Incantations

Sakura would have easily flown through the night, the moon and stars creating a relatively peaceful atmosphere while she traveled through the night sky.

But, unfortunately, her anger began to dissipate and she was left feeling anxious and fearful, nervously glancing over her shoulder every so often as she flew. Shiori tried her best to help her stay calm, but Sakura's mind was too full of questions.

Who on earth was that mage with the snakes? She was antsy at the memory of his evil gaze and desperately wanted to contact her former teacher, certain that the older witch would be able to provide answers.

She replayed the scene in her shop over and over in her mind, still taken aback by Kazeo's reveal. Was he even human? After that glamour had disappeared, he seemed more like a wooden doll than an actual person and the sudden thought that she'd befriended - been tricked into befriending? - some sort of fake, wooden man left her feeling oddly betrayed.

Which brought her flurried mind to the subject of the red-haired warlock. The serpentine mage had called him Sasori, hadn't he? The name didn't sound familiar and yet she swore she'd seen his face somewhere before. Where did he play into all of this? Had he been... controlling Kazeo?

She thought back to the clipped conversations between the black-haired mage and Kazeo, the entire event burned into her memory. He'd called him this Sasori man's 'toy'...

Sakura groaned in frustration and rubbed her forehead, steadying herself on the branch as she twisted around and grabbed her pack, reaching in to search for her compass. After consulting the convenient tool and the stars, she adjusted her course and began to head more northwest, Shiori napping on her shoulder. Her cloak billowed out behind her and the skirt of her dress ruffled in the wind, her feet tucked and crossed under her as she rode the branch through the night until, eventually, the fatigue of the day began to catch up to her.

She reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose before turning her attention to the ground far below. The moon was high in the sky by now and the night was silent with the exception of the calls of nocturnal animals. She'd have to find a place to rest sooner or later.

Glancing downwards, Sakura realized she was flying over a lake, the stars reflected on the surface of the calm water. Upon further inspection, she could see scattered clumps of land forming small islands in the large lake, the distant smell of moss and mud meeting her senses. A marshland?

She circled over a few of the small islands before picking one out and began to descend, stopping to hover over the still water. Dismounting her plum branch, Sakura threaded her magic through the soles of her boots and delicately stepped onto the surface of the lake, a small spray of shimmering water droplets scattering around her as her magic made contact. She stood carefully on the surface of the lake and let her broom shrink back to its smaller size, tucking it into her bun as she approached the small island in front of her.

The water glowed blue and dazzled with starlight wherever she stepped and she paused in front of the marshy land, reaching into her boot to remove her hawthorn wand. Sakura could hear crickets chirping and frogs croaking nearby and the distant hoot of an owl and, waving her glowing wand several times, a shimmering cloud of magical energy began to form in front of her. Once she was satisfied that she had enough, she blew gently into the twinkling cloud, the shimmers spreading out before falling onto the muddy land and absorbing into the earth.

The ground hardened enough to a point where she wouldn't have to worry about sinking into the muck and she stepped forward, giving the bewitched island a testing tap of her boot. Pleased, Sakura picked out a spot to set up camp and dropped her pack, crouching down to search through it for a moment. There wasn't much on the small island besides moss and clumps of tall grass and reeds and, while she was fairly far from the edge of the lake, it wouldn't hurt to take a few extra precautions.

After a moment she found the small silk bag of crystals for protection, gathering a handful of pyrite - fool's gold - before standing, wand at the ready. She gave the hawthorn a flick, the fluorite glowing gently, and tossed the crystals into the air. They skattered slightly before stilling in the air and, with another flick of her wand, they spread out evenly and landed along the edge of her small island, encircling her camp. For a moment, a near-transparent, shimmering, golden bubble appeared and formed a dome over the island before disappearing from sight, Sakura's nerves calmed by the temporary barrier.

Sakura nodded to herself, mumbling under her breath to Shiori, who had awoken from her nap from the feeling of the witch's magic gently gathering around them. "Those should keep us safe while we rest. I don't think we were followed, but it's better to be safe than sorry."

Reaching back into her bag, Sakura pulled out a blanket that looked a little too big to have actually fit inside the pack and any normal human would have balked at the sight of her pulling out a cloth-wrapped half-loaf of bread as well. Her traveling bag - a single-strapped, leather bag with a pair of extra pockets on the front and a lucky charm dangling from the latch of the main flap - was obviously enchanted.

She spread the blanket out on a relatively flat area of the island and plopped down with a groan, tearing off a chunk of the bread and offering it to Shiori as she apologized for not packing something leafy and green for her. Satisfied with just bread for now, Sakura laid back and allowed herself to think of Miyako.

The witch wasn't sure how far she had traveled, but she knew she had been flying for several hours. It was sad to think that she'd probably never return to the pleasant city - she hated to think how her customers would react when they found her shop empty and abandoned come Monday morning - but Sakura had never been one to stay in one place for too long. Most witches were fairly nomadic, unless they happened to really get attached to a particular area, but her two years spent in Miyako had been nice.

Sighing, she watched the stars and made herself comfortable, her pack under her head to use as a pillow and her cloak wrapped around herself. With Shiori's calm energy settling over her to help her relax, Sakura eventually drifted off as her mind worked to figure out her next course of action.

::

Morning came with the soft chirping of birds and Sakura awoke to a lovely sunrise, the warm colors reflected on the surface of the lake. She sat up with a yawn, stretching to work out the kinks from sleeping on the ground - inwardly, she chastised herself for not thinking to enchant the blanket to make it more comfortable - before gathering up her belongings. Munching on another chunk of her bread, she stumbled about sleepily after shoving the blanket haphazardly back into her pack, wand at the ready and the small silk pouch in her free hand.

Muffling another yawn into the back of her hand, Sakura swirled the hawthorn above her head, calling the pyrite crystals back. Once the cube-shaped crystals were gathered, circling lazily above her head, she held the silk bag open and beckoned them back into their pouch. Satisfied, she finished packing and shouldered her pack once more, reaching up to pluck her still-small plum branch from her bun and taking a moment to let her hair down.

When she was back in the air, perched on her branch and a sleepy Shiori on her shoulder, Sakura gave a final flick of her wand to break the spell she'd laid over the island, the ground returning to its marshy softness, and took to the sky. Her wariness from the night before had worn off and she was oddly excited at the aspect of setting off on a journey to find a new home, mind buzzing with plans.

Should she immediately set up a new shop in a new city? Or should she maybe travel the country for a few months? Perhaps she could visit a few old friends...

"Where are we headed, Mistress?" Came Shiori's soft voice in her mind, the slug nestling close to her neck as Sakura's hair blew back in the breeze of the flight.

"The coast is a few days' travel away, but it's been years since I last saw the sea..." She answered aloud, her familiar seeming pleased by the idea. "We'll find a town and a place to stay - an inn or maybe a cottage to rent - and, by then, we'll be far enough away from Miyako that we can relax and I can try to get in contact with Tsunade. I'm still thinking about what to do after that..."

"I've never seen the sea before, but the idea sounds lovely."

Sakura smiled, reaching up to stroke Shiori's back with a gentle finger. "I think you'll like it. I know of a few towns that have nice views and the weather is always humid. Though, hopefully there isn't too much salt in the air to irritate your skin..."

Shiori's laugh was a gentle chiming in her mind and the witch smiled fondly, turning her head to watch the sunrise as she flew. It had been a while since she'd found herself without a plan or a clear destination, but traveling had always been fun and it was exciting to think about the journey ahead of her.

Ultimately, Sakura flew for three days.

The witch and familiar camped in the countryside as they traveled, avoiding bigger cities and towns until Sakura was ready to return to civilization. They happened upon a farmer traveling into market on the second day, his wagon full of fresh vegetables that had both of their stomachs grumbling.

One could only imagine the farmer's surprise when a young woman with pink hair descended from the sky on a plum tree branch, asking to purchase some of his freshly harvested crops.

Sakura left with half a dozen carrots and a small head of lettuce, inwardly glad that she'd remembered to pack some money into her bag beforehand. She eventually passed over a winding river and eagerly stocked up on fresh water after searching through her bag for an empty bottle, letting Shiori take a refreshing break on the moist shoreline.

By the time the pair made it to the coast, Sakura had left most of her worries behind her, focused on finding a place to stay for a few days and dying for a bath.

They eventually found a quaint, cliffside town that overlooked the sea, a lush forest behind it and misty mountains in the far, far distance. It wasn't too small of a town but it still probably wouldn't be a good idea to just drop down in the middle of the market, so Sakura landed in the forest near the main road that led into the village, after taking a few minutes to admire the view of the sea.

She took a moment to clean herself up the best she could, tucking the small-again plum branch into her hair and smoothing out her dress. It felt nice to stretch her legs after three days of flying and she relished the cool air of the coast, tucking her pouch of emergency money into the pocket of her dress for quick access.

It was a short walk into the town and Sakura received a few curious glances, eventually finding a cozy inn towards the center of the village. She put on her friendliest smile and walked in, hurrying towards the front desk and trying to look as unthreatening as possible. Most towns were fairly welcoming of traveling witches - at least ones with pretty faces - and Sakura didn't bother to hide Shiori, guessing that the townsfolk would figure out what the pair was on their own. It was easy to live in bigger cities where there was already an abundance of magic (making a living in big cities, however, was a different story entirely), so long as a witch didn't cause any trouble, but small, reclusive villages were often superstitious and unwelcoming of strangers. The towns in the middle were usually a nice compromise, especially if they were in need of a healer or spell-seller and, inwardly, Sakura hoped the townsfolk here would find her as more of a novelty than a threat.

And, judging by the excited twinkle in the eyes of the girl behind the welcome desk of the inn, Sakura had lucked out.

"Welcome!" The girl greeted with a bubbly smile, her dark blonde hair bouncing as she couldn't seem to sit still in her excitement. "Looking for a room, Ma'am?"

The pinkette smiled back and approached the desk, nodding pleasantly as she adjusted her pack. "Yes, please - two nights."

Enough time to research the surrounding cities and clean up her home, still tucked away in the crystal marble. Maybe even make a little money, depending on whether the town was in need of a witch or not.

"Excellent!" The girl looked like she was waiting for Sakura to start shooting off dazzling spells, almost reluctant to turn towards the wall of keys behind her. "Do you have a room preference, Ma'am?"

::

Once Sakura was all checked in and had paid for the room, the hostess a little disappointed that she hadn't done anything exciting, she hurried upstairs to her rented room, immediately dropping onto the bed with a pleased sigh.

Shiori crawled off of her shoulder and made herself comfortable, apparently just as happy to be out of the air as her witch mistress. After a few moments of relaxing on the comfy mattress, Sakura sat up and reached into her pocket to fish out the crystal marble, just as she'd left it. Pulling out her wand as well, she gave the marble a light tap with the glowing fluorite and let it return to its normal size.

She peered down at her shrunken belongings contained in the orb, running her thumb over the surface of the crystal and rolling the view between rooms, trying to decide which one to deal with first. She stopped on the kitchen, her shelves of ingredients and cooking utensils resting on invisible walls and in invisible drawers, her gaze pausing on the discarded basket of groceries on the kitchen table. Sakura let out a groan and rubbed her forehead, grumbling to herself.

"Great. Ew. Those are all probability rotted by now."

Best not to leave the undoubtedly ruined produce in there any longer.

With an annoyed sigh, Sakura focused on the basket, tapping her wand to the crystal orb once more to summon it to her. There was a sudden puff of smoke and, when it cleared, the basket was sitting on her lap, her nose wrinkling at the smell of groceries that had been sitting out for too long. Sakura sighed and began to sort through the fruits and vegetables, searching for anything that might have still been edible. She paused as she picked up the small box in the basket, remembering the lemon tart she had bought.

The witch perked up at the memory of Kanako, slapping her hand to her forehead. "Oh, damn, right! I still owe her some tea for helping me out..."

Sakura quickly set the basket aside and returned her attention to the crystal ball, swiping her finger over the surface until the view of her ruined shop came into focus. Squinting down at the orb, she searched for a tin of tea that hadn't been destroyed by the mage and Kazeo. Managing to spot one still resting on one of the battered shelves - a before-bed mix for peaceful sleep and sweet dreams - Sakura decided it was good enough and quickly summoned it from inside the ball, changing the view to that of her storeroom and summoning a ribbon and piece of paper as well.

With the ribbon tied around the tin and a scribbled, polite Thank You note attached, Sakura turned to Shiori, beckoning her over.

"Could you make a quick delivery for me, Lady Shiori? The bakery is far enough away from the old shop that you should be safe to teleport there and back."

The slug was perfectly happy to run the errand, committing the address and mental image of the shop to memory before wishing Sakura a quick farewell as she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Sakura spent the rest of the evening cleaning up her contained shop, wand in hand as she guided shrunken items around inside their temporary crystal home. Organizing broken shelves attached to invisible walls and cleaning up spilled salves and broken containers, she was still hunched over the crystal orb when Shiori returned. She took a moment to stretch, swiping her thumb over the crystal with a sigh before laying back and running a hand through her hair.

"When we finally find a place to settle down for a while, I'll be able to extract everything all at once and really get to cleaning that mess up." She rolled her shoulders, pulling the view of her bathroom into focus. "But, until then, everything's going to have to stay inside."

A flick of her wand and drawers and cabinets opened inside the orb, allowing Sakura to search for her favorite soaps and shampoo before summoning them as well. With her toiletries in her arms, she shuffled into the bathroom attached to her rented room, cackling triumphantly at the sight of a waiting bathtub.

One long, relaxing bath and a good scrubbing later, Sakura emerged feeling refreshed and clean for the first time in days. She summoned a change of fresh underwear - much more comfortable than the simple pairs she had packed into her bag - and a nightgown from the crystal and got dressed before perching herself on the bed, pulling a folded map from her traveling pack. Legs crossed and one of the leftover carrots in hand, Sakura unfolded the large map and spread it out in front of her. With Shiori perched on her knee, she gave the enchanted map a quick tap with her wand and waited for the small, glowing spot to appear, pinpointing her current location.

"So," Sakura said, offering her familiar a still-crisp lettuce leaf, "Where should we go?"

::

After the pair had decided to head north towards the mountains - Tsunade had been traveling around the Ginzan Mountain range last Sakura heard from her - they hunkered down for the night, a handful of pyrite left by the base of the door and on the windowsills to keep any unwanted guests out. Sakura planned to spend the day buying supplies so she wouldn't have to keep summoning stuff from the crystal, prepare a few useful spells beforehand, and try to contact Tsunade before mapping out her journey to the mountains.

She awoke to the distant cries of a rooster, rubbing her face into her pillow as she yawned before rolling out of bed. After freshening up, the witch grabbed her crystal orb and pulled up the view of her bedroom, summoning a change of clothes - a comfy, wide-collared, light blue shirt with puffy sleeves and high-waisted, dark grey trousers - before her gaze landed on the small, metal blossom still attached to her mirror. Sakura paused, clothes resting in her lap, before summoning the metal flower as well, frowning down at it as it appeared in her hand with a small puff of smoke.

"Should I even keep this?" She muttered aloud, soft enough so she didn't wake Shiori (still sleeping peacefully on the second pillow, a few uneaten bits of lettuce next to her). Sakura sighed and rolled the black blossom around in her hand, her chin resting on her free hand as she sat on the bed.

"It was a gift but..."

Frowning, she set it aside and distracted herself with getting dressed, gathering the pyrite now that the night had passed uneventfully. Would she really want to keep a gift from a man who had inadvertently ruined her home and livelihood? From a man who probably wasn't even really human?

She shook her head clear of these thoughts, not wanting to spend her morning worrying herself over what had happened.

Breakfast was another carrot - she was dying for a full meal, maybe the inn had a banquet hall she could visit - and she placed another leaf of lettuce next to the still-slumbering Shiori, smiling fondly to herself. She spent a few moments tidying up the room before deciding to head out and start exploring the town. Sakura was just in the middle of braiding her hair when the slug suddenly snapped awake, her voice urgently ringing through her mind with a start.

"Mistre-!"

The door to her room suddenly slammed open and Sakura scrambled backwards with a shriek of surprise, shocked gaze on the door as a familiar red-haired man stepped in.

Shock quickly turned to anger.

"YOU!"

"Why didn't you tell me you were a witch?" He said with an irritated look, ignoring her accusatory shout and striding into the room as if it was the most casual thing.

"Wha-?! How the hell-?!" Sakura stumbled over her words for a moment, bewilderment and confusion quickly mixing in with the anger as she grabbed her wand and pointed it at him threateningly. "Get out!"

He seemed to ignore her again, crossing his arms as he glanced around the room nonchalantly, expression still annoyed. "I'll admit, I'm a little impressed. You have a real knack for suppressing your magic - I had no idea you were a witch-"

"Who the hell do you think you are?!"

Ignored again, he just sent her an accusing look, "But now you've gone and gotten that bastard Orochimaru interested and made such a big mess of things."

"Me-?!" Sakura's glare faltered for a moment as she stared at him incredulously - was this guy for real? It took her anger mere moments to return and she let out a scream of frustration, stomping forward and grabbing the redhead by the front of his shirt. Lifting him a good half-foot off the ground as her hands glowed blue with strength-enhancing energy, emerald glared up into brown, Sakura's teeth clenched and shoulders stiff.

"Who are you?!"

His eyes widened almost unnoticeably and she swore she saw a brief mix of surprise and amusement flash through his gaze before he simply regarded her with a bored, slightly annoyed look, one of his hands moving to grip her wrist.

"Akasuna no Sasori."

She felt her eye twitch at how frustratingly calm he sounded before her glare darkened as he continued.

"Put me down, brat."

She raised him a few inches out of pure spite, holding up her other hand and pointing her wand at his face.

"Why are you following me, Sasori?"

His nose wrinkled slightly and the grip on her wrist tightened, the fingers of his free hand twitching. "That's my own business and none of yours. Now, put me down."

Sakura growled under her breath, her half-braided hair lifting slightly as the energy filling the room swirled around the pair, her gaze darting to her left briefly. With a flick of her wand, the shutters to the large window flew open and she shoved her wand into her back pocket before grabbing the redhead with her now-free hand and-

Chucking him out the open window.

A split-second decision, but effective.

There was a chorus of shouts - from both the warlock and passing pedestrians down below - but Sakura quickly slammed the window shut and turned back to the room, grabbing her belongings and shoving them into her pack.

She was only on the second floor, he couldn't have gotten hurt too badly.

Her cloak quickly swung onto her shoulders and a still slightly-shaken Shiori perched on her bag, Sakura raced downstairs with her full-sized plum broom in hand, startling the girl behind the front desk. The hostess quickly took in her flustered, haphazardly packed appearance, jumping with a start and catching the key to Sakura's room when the witch tossed it to her.

"Ch-checking out early, Ma'am?" She called in bewilderment before her expression turned excited, watching the pinkette mount the plum branch and a flurry of wind kick up around her, the front doors to the inn slamming open.

"Yes, sorry, thank you!" Sakura replied back with a hurried shout before quickly darting out the doors and into the sky.

She ascended rapidly, not bothering to spare the town a backwards glance as she put as much distance between herself and the warlock as possible. The wind whipped around her violently as she flew at a breakneck pace, her glare still in place as she grit her teeth and tried to control her thudding heart. Shiori had quickly taken shelter inside her bag and Sakura could feel her energy buzzing around them as the slug made sure they weren't being followed.

Eventually, miles away from the quaint town, Sakura slowed down, her knuckles white from clenching the branch so hard.

"How the hell did he- When did- AUGH!" Sakura let out a scream of frustration, flying a few feet higher to pass over an oncoming flock of geese before growling to herself.

"O-one moment we were alone and then, suddenly, I felt his presence outside the door." Came Shiori's voice in her mind, the slug carefully peeking out of the bag. "I didn't have enough time to warn you, Mistress - I'm sorry."

"No, no! It's not your fault, Lady Shiori!" Sakura replied back, her voice taking a much more gentle tone as she slowed to a stop in the air and reached into her bag. "He caught both of us off-guard."

The familiar crawled up the witch's arm, moving to rest against her neck. Sakura made sure she was comfortable before continuing the flight, moving at a slightly slower pace. Shiori's voice rang through her mind again, still sounding slightly perplexed.

"I hadn't sensed anyone following us the past few days, but he might have been concealing himself..."

The pinkette gave a small nod, replaying the scene in her mind. "He must have been hanging around for a while. There's no way he could have found us so suddenly."

Her frown deepened and she glared at a passing bird, fingers clenching around the branch again.

"The bastard must have just been waiting for me to remove the pyrite - the crystals would have kept him out."

Shiori gave a soft hum of agreement, leaning against Sakura's neck as they flew, clouds drifting peacefully overhead and the silhouette of mountains in the distance. The witch wasn't slightly disorientation from her sudden flight but the far-away mountain range brought her some comfort and she took a few calming breaths, beginning her journey once more.

::

Sakura didn't stop flying until both the day and night had passed.

She traveled throughout the day, snacking in midair on what was left of her carrots and ushering Shiori back into her pack for more rest and to get her out of the wind. Rather than head straight towards the mountains as they had originally planned, Sakura took a winding path over the countryside, just in case the strange mage was tracking her somehow. She passed over several towns and a couple larger cities but didn't stop, too concerned with gaining as much distance as possible.

She flew through the night as well, stubbornly staying awake as the stars twinkled above her and the glow of the waning moon provided her with enough light to stay on her tentative course. Shiori stayed awake with her as they traveled, helping her stay alert and focused, but, eventually, the day finally caught up with the witch.

When the warm rays of dawn began to appear in the horizon, Sakura was a little surprised, having not realized that she'd flown until morning. Her flying was a little unsteady, not too worrying but enough for Shiori to notice how tired she was, and she reached up to rub her eyes, stifling a yawn into her fist.

"Well should find a place to rest," Shiori said softly into her mind, her feelers nudging Sakura's jaw gently. "You've been flying for too long, Mistress."

The witch looked like she was going to argue that she wasn't tired, but then another yawn tore through her and she gave a reluctant sigh as she nodded.

"Alright, alright. Just a quick break and then we head out again. I don't want to risk the chance of that warlock catching up with us..."

They passed over a town mere moments after Sakura agreed to take a rest and she circled back before descending just on the outskirts, ignoring the curious glances of a few townsfolk. After finding an inn and managing to get a room so early in the morning (the man behind the check-in desk finally relented after picketing a little extra money from her), Sakura quickly made her way downstairs the hall and up the stairs, sparing a moment to set out her pyrite before dropping onto the bed.

Within moments, she was asleep.

And she didn't wake until the sun was low in the sky, her stomach growling angrily and finally forcing her awake. Sakura rolled over with a groan, her hair a mess from both flying all day and night and sleeping so haphazardly, and took a moment to stretch as she blinked away the lingering sleep. Her stomach gave another growled and Shiori's soft laugh rang through her mind, the small slug crawling over to her.

"Sleep well, Mistress Sakura? I kept watch while you rested."

Sakura combed her fingers through her hair before pulling it up into about messy bun, sending her familiar a smile. "Yes, thank you, Lady Shiori. Rested, but starving. We might have to do a little shopping - I think we're out of food."

Shiori nodded, crawling onto the witch's offered hand and taking her place on her shoulder as Sakura searched through her pack. Her fingers brushed something cold and she frowned to herself, pulling out the metal blossom Kazeo had given her. She scrutinized it with a wary gaze, vaguely remembering tossing it into her bag during her hurried retreat the previous morning.

The pinkette thought over the sudden appearance of the warlock, Sasori, and how he'd barged into her room without a warning.

"He showed up pretty soon after I pulled this out of the crystal ball," She muttered aloud, her eyes narrowing. "You don't think..."

She stood up quickly, glancing to Shiori before glaring down at the metal flower.

"You don't think he's tracking me through this, do you?"

Shiori was quiet for a moment, moving down her arm to inspect the harmless-looking gift.

"I can't sense any spells on it, but there's a strong energy emanating from the iron..."

Sakura's frown deepened and she inspected the metal blossom a little closer, running her thumb over a petal. It wasn't as smooth as a metal should be and, oddly, it reminded her of that iron sand Kazeo had wielded in that fight in her shop.

She stood, glaring down harder at the flower, and approached the window next to the inn's bed before opening it, the early-evening air drifting into the room. Without a moment's hesitation, she threw the metal flower out the open, third-floor window, watching it sail through the air and land on a rooftop a couple buildings away. Nodding in satisfaction, Sakura closed and locked the window for extra measure, double-checking her pyrite before moving to sit back down on the bed and slowly relaxing.

Better to be safe than sorry.

::

Two days passed uneventfully as Sakura took a much needed break in the town of Genki, luckily not coming in contact with the warlock again.

The townsfolk gave her a wide birth at first, shooting her curious but wary glances as she came out of the inn that late afternoon in search of a meal and the following morning when she traveled to the market. It wasn't until she healed a crying boy's broken arm - she'd never understood why children enjoyed climbing trees so much - that the town seemed to warm up to her, their hesitant frowns turning into welcoming smiles.

The local children took to following the witch around as she shopped through the marketplace, hoping to glimpse her working some exciting magic. And Sakura was always a sucker for the awestruck looks and squeals of delight from children so maybe she was guilty of showing off and pushing a little magic into the soles of her shoes so flowers would spring forth from wherever she stepped in the grass.

She stocked up on traveling supplies and worked a few odd jobs - a fertility potion for an unlucky couple still wishing for a baby, a quick green-thumb spell for a young man who was having trouble keeping his window-garden alive, a simple ring adorned with a crystal that's colors were ever-changing for a sweet woman who planned to propose to her girlfriend soon, etc. - as she enjoyed her time in Genki. Sakura was sure to mark the town on her map as a place to revisit in the future, befriending several of the townsfolk and offering aid and advice to a young, local witch, as she memorized faces and names for future reference.

Shiori occasionally accompanied her around the town but ultimately spent most of her time in the inn to rest. Being so far away from the Shikkotsu Forest and her mother was rather draining for the young slug and she slept to regain energy, snacking on fresh vegetables while Sakura was out and about.

The witch became fairly accustomed to the layout of the town during her two days of exploring and it was late in the evening of the second day, as Sakura took a shortcut through an alley to the inn, that her luck finally ran out.

The only warning she received was the soft click of a door opening behind her - one of the back exits to one of the surrounding buildings that she had passed only moments prior. A hand quickly covered her mouth, muffling her shriek of surprise as an arm looped around her waist and tugged her backwards into an open doorway, the door shutting in front of her moments later as she was enveloped in darkness, an irritated voice breaking through the thudding of her heart in her ears.

"I'll admit that bursting into your room unannounced wasn't the best of ideas, but did you really have to throw me out a damned window, you frustrating witch."