So, I'm a witch, so what?

"Don't worry about it. Most get released within a day for a brawl." Miss Eris seems to buy my lie quite well, yet I cannot avoid the feeling of guilt for lying once again to such a fantastic lady. I swear I will make it up to her later.

"Also, the trees around here are scary. Are we close yet?" I have seen more terrifying stuff, but while I could handle the trees and grim atmosphere, I wasn't sure I could avoid another trauma explosion if I kept going along this trail for much longer.

"We are here, believe it or not. Hold on, just a second." Miss Eris claps her hands right after she finishes her sentence, which makes another mysterious door appear before us at the foot of another tree, just like at the Queen's place.

Knowing that stepping into the door would take us wherever we were headed, I wasted no time opening the door and carelessly wandered in without Miss Eris telling me to do so. I simply assumed I would be transported somewhere else, which was the case.

I sure liked whatever this magic was, as it felt pretty standard after only two trips. I was the first to appear at the other side of the door, right in front of a counter, where a nasty-looking lady began to nag me, asking me what the hell I was doing back there.

"Hey! Kid! What the hell are you doing here alone? Did you get lost or what?" She kept pressing me, and I froze like I hadn't before. I always answer quickly, but this lady's aura felt different. I could feel an intense pressure on me when she spoke, which didn't let me speak.

I assume it was some sort of magic because the lady soon said something along the lines of, "Oh, shit, I still have my skill active. Sorry, kiddo." So, her power was really an ability of hers. Well, whatever it was, it sure was frightening.

The ugly woman opened another transparent flat TV screen before her while another light flashed next to me. Seconds later, Miss Eris showed up next to me and quickly spoke to the lady behind the counter.

"Hey, there Edwina san. How have you been doing? Long time no see." Miss Eris calmly talked and moved like nothing was wrong, but I still couldn't. Just how powerful was Miss Eris, really?

"Ah? No way it's you, Eris. It's a miracle to see you on that other side of the counter for once. Everything is alright. I know my magic is too weak for you, but could you at least pretend?" The lady said as she nervously clicked some buttons on her screen until I could finally move.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't even notice you had your suppression aura on my bad, Edwina Chan." Miss Eris does a cute head scratch while she closes her eyes, followed by an adorable, slight smile. Now that was a "humble" beast.

{Sigh} "Anyway, what brings you here, Eris? I doubt you came to see me." Edwina drops her left arm forward and leans her whole body toward the counter, ultimately dropping her cheek on her left palm.

"I'm here to look for this kid's parents. I believe their names are... Uhm Yoi, what were their names?" Eris asks me while I'm distracted, looking at the cells behind the lady's counter. It takes me a while to react, but when I do, I quickly answer.

"Okina and Ariel! I wanna know if they're here!" Oh gosh, even my screams were strange. I commanded no power with this childish feminine tone. Edwina quickly reacts to the names, though, as she slightly laughs.

"Oh, those two? I had a rough time with Okina; she almost beat me up when I tried to push her inside her cell. Ariel mentioned you, and she wanted to see you. I assumed you would come tomorrow, but it seems like you're quite skilled."

Edwina was quite a nice person without her dangerous immobilizing power, and she genuinely appeared to have a blast when speaking, as her smile never vanished until I asked the following question.

"Mommy Ariel mentioned me? What about Mommy Okina? Is she worried about me, too?" Edwina's smile quickly vanishes and gets replaced with a more serious look and tone as she looks down to the ground.

"Uhm. I don't think it's a good idea for you to see Mommy Okina. I'm not trying to be cruel, but I don't think she wants to see you." Edwina throws her hands up while she does a minor shrug, but I ignore her antics.

What I couldn't ignore were the words she said. Mama Okina didn't want to see me? But why? I'm her daughter and a very special one, says the Queen, so why was she angry with me? I didn't understand. However, something else bugged my mind, and I felt I had to get it out of my system to be happy.

I hadn't mentioned how Edwina looked because I was still confused about how to describe her, as I had never seen anyone like her. Edwina's skin was dark brown, with strange tattoos over her arms and face. She wore a uniform, but what bugged me the most was her hair. I had never seen such a hairstyle before.

Her hair looked strange, with many long strands clumped up into 18 long clumps of hair. I could swear they looked like braids but much thicker and longer. The urge to ask her about it soon began to drive me crazy, so I asked her about it. I wanted to know how she looked so different from everyone else in the forest.

"Miss Edwina, can I ask you something before you take me to mommy Ariel?" Lady Edwina simply answers with a "go ahead" while she opens the door between me and her.

"How did you paint your skin like that?" Miss Eris can't help herself, letting a small giggle out, followed by another giggle by Edwina herself as she graciously pets me. I wondered why adults liked to pet me so much. I'm not a pet, you know!?

"I flew too close to the sun and got burnt! Ahaha! There used to be more like me, but I'm not even sure it's appropriate to tell you but to say it short, shit went down during the last war." The last war? Did the others die? I could assume something like that, couldn't I? If she felt like it would be too traumatic to tell me, then indeed, someone died.

"You will learn about the war at school, so don't worry. You're too young to worry about that stuff." Miss Eris mentions from behind the counter as Edwina leads me inside the jail while holding my hand. She was right. I shouldn't worry much, but their secrecy made me curious. Now I wanted to know. I suppose I would have to ask one of my mothers about it.