The night was bright and the moon was dull. She sat on the throne with an air of indifference, her hands lax as she beckoned for a servant to pour her more wine.
Vineyard season was at its peak. The Witch swished the supple nectar, its nipping bitterness pleasantly engulfing her senses- an acquired taste.
A booming knock on the door diverted the Witch’s attention away from her cup. “Enter.”
“Your Exaltedness,” the guard curtsied, “we have returned from the expedition with thewanderer.”
The Witch shifted in her seat, crossing her legs as she assumed a sterner position. She waved her hand, signaling for the guard to retrieve her guest.
“The infamously calloused Comtesse.”
The Countess looked up at The Witch with a deadpan expression, the chains digging into her wrists, but never breaking flesh.
“I expected more of a fight.” The Witch turned towards the guards. “Fetch her a chair. Then, leave us.”
The grand hall emptied. The Witch set aside her drink, the clink of the wine cup resonating within their bones. She walked towards The Countess, her lengthy black fingernails grazing the palm of her hand in anticipation.
The Witch nicked her skin and held it up to The Countess’ mouth. “You can have a taste. I know you’re famished.”
The Countess’s nose slightly twitched. “Bite me.”
The Witch smiled in a curious manner. “For many days and many nights, you have been wandering the lands plentiful and the lands barren, searching in vain for something that will make you feel...” The Witch slid her hand over The Countess’s agape mouth. “Full.”
The Countess bit down on her blood stained bottom lip. “I know about you, Witch of the Wilds. You conjure tainted pacts with the blood of the unfortunate who cross your path.”
“Was that contempt I heard in your voice? Alas, The Countess can feel something other than hunger.”
“It would be for your benefit to let me go.”
The Witch bent down level eye to her. “Would it? I was hoping to take you up on your offer.”
“What offer?”
“The offer to bite you.”
The Countess huffed. “You are that lonely that you had to send your henchmen after me?”
“You needn’t wise off with me, Comtesse. I wish to brew an elixir with special alchemical properties, but alas, I am missing a key component. A component you possess.”
The Witch waved her hand, and a parchment of paper appeared suspended in the air. “In order for the spell to work, a binding give and take is required. I take what I most need, and I give you what you most desire.”
“What would you need to take from me?”
“The ingredient I require is a blood sample from the original source of your supernatural power.”
The Countess tilted her neck to the side, faded puncture marks sparkling underneath refracted rays of starlight. “Mmm... I see...” The Countess murmured, the fleeting gleam allowing The Witch to see The Countess side-eye her collarbone.
“Allow me to draw a sample, and I will free you from your hunger infliction permanently.”
“Even you don’t have that kind of power, Witch.”
“Blood contracts are bound by forces that no one can dare to comprehend. With your accordance, I will.”
The Countess gazed beyond the contract levitating midair, the patterned glass failing to display her reflection. “A contract with you is never advantageous for both parties. I decline your offer.”
The Witch settled back into her throne, the contract dissipating into dust. “Unchain her.” The enchanted chains began to oblige upon her command. ”I thank you for your time, Countess. It was unwise of me to assume that you wanted to break free from your everlasting thirst. If I relieve you of your hunger, you will not feel anything at all. And wouldn’t that be a miserable existence?”
The Countess yanked the final chain off of her ankle and turned towards the exit.