The witch trials were in full bloom this October. You saw many who you’d considered friends reduced to wolf meat or ashes. And yet, you threw them into the flames. You spread the rumors, you got them caught. Because your life was Salem, and you needed to protect your town no matter how many tears it caused. That was until you became the brunt. The harassment, the nasty names, the rumors you yourself had said of others, all now you. And when you refused to marry the Reverend's son, they reached a boiling point. A mob of citizens showed at your door and announced your banishment from the beautiful town of Salem. And there was no one to fight for you, like you had wanted for many years. But there was one. A crow with flaming orange wings diving into the crowd, causing pandemonium. You ran into the forbidden forest, because no one would dare follow.

You trudged through those God forsaken woods for half a day that bled into night. The moon was big and yellow like parchment, and the stars in the sky looked like thousands of eyes peering from the heavens. Were they eyes of judgment? Was it your time? So you did as you have since you were a babe, and prayed. Knees to the dirt and eyes squeezed shut, you pray, clutching your hands together. Until you hear a faint twig snap. You don’t let it disturb you, until another goes. And another, and another, until it becomes a cacophony of sound that suddenly stopped. You risk a peek, and you see her. A woman in a black cloak, adorned with feathers that looked like fire. Her dress was red, fading to maroon as your eyes traveled down. On her stomach, you meet an eye, embroidered into the fabric of the corset. Her wrists and hands are covered in golden jewelry, and earrings hang from her ears with pearls on them. Her gray locks fall down her back. Her own piercing blue eyes meet yours with a raise of her pierced eyebrows. There’s not a sound now, save for the rustling trees when a chilling breeze rolls through the strange clearing.