The Witch’s Grandson

By Fallon Martin

When I was just a baby, Granny Gertrude saved me from humans, but she couldn’t save my mother. A human claimed to be my father and tried to take me from her. The Evergreen Forest protected her, just like it protects all the witches, but the humans accused Granny of kidnapping me out of loneliness and killing my father.

The pages of my book are filled with colorful images of the violent humans and the poor witches they hunt. Beautiful handwriting twists around the graphic scenes. But most of the pages are blank because my life has only just begun.

—

“What are you doing, Oliver?” Granny snatches the book from me. “No reading without me. And certainly not without my permission.”

I flinch. “I’m sorry Granny.”

“You must’ve gone to my room to get this.”

I lower my head. “I’m sorry.”

“This is unacceptable.”

Tears fog my eyes. “No, Granny, I’ll make it up to you, I promise. I’ll do anything.”

“Go, do your chores,” she said before going back to her room and slamming the door.

I start after her, but then change my mind. If I just do what she says maybe my punishment will be lighter. Granny has the most creative punishments. I tend to the little garden and feed all the little farm’s animals. I stand outside Granny’s bedroom door and wait until she comes out to tell her I’m done.

“Now my punishment?” I stare at my feet.

“I badly need something.” Granny lifts my chin. “It can only be found on the other side of Evergreen Forest.”

“Okay, I’ll get it for you.”

“You are still not to use your magic, do you understand me?”

“I understand.”

“Fine. You’re looking for the alakeah. It grows only in wood cracks, and it glows blue. Go.”

She trusts me to be alone in the forest, so I can’t mess anything up. It sounds like a challenge, but if I can do this for her, maybe she’ll forgive me for reading.

I rush out the door, but immediately, the beautiful fog calms me. Long, twisting stems with glowing white-blue bulbs greet me, the vibrant forest floor quickens my step. There are flowers of all colors, little trees and big bushes. Big red fruit and vines disappear as soon as I get close.

The animals are mostly little and sweet. Most of them run when they see me, like witches run from the humans. There’s one shadow that flashes before it disappears, so I don’t get a really good look at him. They shouldn’t be afraid, I’m a witch boy; I’d never hurt them.

There’s so much life in the forest, but I don’t really know what all the species are called or what they can do. My book is our only book, and none of these creatures are in it. And Granny never told me anything about them, only about the farm animals and the garden plants. And I thought those were unbelievable!

I can’t believe all of this has been just outside my door and I’ve never seen it. I want to gape and gasp and be amazed, but I’m out here for a reason. I’ve already let Granny down once today, and that’s far too many times.

I sprint to the end of the forest until my feet come to an abrupt stop. There’s nothing but a barn here, and in a world full of beauty, the barn is just… old and colorless. Its wood is chipped and its planks are broken. The only thing that dares to go inside is a haunting wind that makes the whole thing shiver.

Any window glass that isn’t in sad broken shards is jutting out of the dirt, creating a sharp fence around the place. Its screams for me to leave makes me tremble. Is this it? It can’t be. But it’s wood. It’s the only place the alakeah can grow. The wind opens the door, the creak wailing at me, “turn around, turn around.”

No, I’m always letting Granny down. She badly needs the alakeah. This is too important. Besides, she’d never put me in any danger.

The only thing inside the barn is the alakeah in the center. I take croaking step forward. And another. And another. Each step sends a shiver down my spine. Finally, I dart to the flower and pull it out. The shadow flashes again. I dash out.

But I’m just outside the forest instead of back in it. It’s a village with sad, broken-down mud huts. The sun is glaring all its rays on a murky river.

And there are humans surrounding me on all sides.

I call for help, hoping Granny can hear me. The shadow sits in a huge tree that looms over the village. The shadow looms over me. I look for a place to hide, but the humans are coming closer. I want to obey Granny, but they’re going to kill me. I’m sorry Granny, I have to use my magic. I try, but the magic doesn’t come.

The humans call for someone named Chief. A human with a beast’s skins covering his huge, dark-skinned muscles towers over me. A frail girl who looks a little like him stands next to him. She sways her hand from one side to the other.

“St… stay back.” I ball my fists. “I have magic, I…I’m a witch.”

“Cool,” the human girl says. “Show us some magic.”

The humans stare at me like they want to see it. The girl starts to chant. “Magic, magic!”

The village chants it back. Chief raises his hand and they fall silent. He crosses his arms. The arms of the beast flap at his side. It makes no effort to escape. He glares at the girl. “Olive!” he says.

Then he shifts his glare to me. “Boy, come with me.” He marches away, a path clearing for him.

I know Granny would be mad if I followed, but I don’t want to end up like the beast, so under the stares of humans on all sides and the shadow’s glare, I follow.

Chief’s shadow plunges into the dark side of the river. There’s a cloaked figure hunched over in the dark. The tree leaves are droopy; the bushes are dry; the flowers are wilted; and the dirt is gray with no grass to cover it.

“Cynthia,” Chief says, “a boy who thinks he’s a witch.”

Thinks?

The figure trembles. The head lifts and turns, but I can’t see the face. “Does he look like me?”

The voice behind the cloak is raspy.

Chief’s face droops like the trees. “I don’t remember what you look like.”

“Does he look like… my husband?”

Chief falls silent.

Cynthia turns. I still can’t see her face. She touches mine and I step back into the only sliver of light. She gasps and rushes toward me.

“He looks like me. But he has his father’s eyes.”

She tries to grab me, but I step back into the dark. I open my mouth to scream for help, but she steps into the light. “Oliver.” She pulls her hood down.

She looks like me. Exactly like me. I know I shouldn’t, but I lean toward her. The shadow screeches and comes down, slashing between us. I run, past Chief, past the people, through the old barn, all across the forest with no second glances.

Why did Granny let me come here alone, in the creepy barn, so close to the humans? No, it’s not her fault. I shouldn’t have followed Chief. She’ll be mad at me, so all I can do is hope to all the gods the flower will be enough to shield me from her wrath.

Granny isn’t home, but the door to her room is open. It invites me in, but I should reject. She’ll be mad enough. But I need to know… something. I don’t know what.

I step inside. My book sits in the nightstand drawer. I reach for it, but turn and pull open the cupboard instead. It’s packed with nothing but books, books, and more books. I don’t understand. Granny said my book is our only book. Why did she lie?

The books about humans are all horror stories. I try all the easiest spells from the easiest spell books, but they don’t work. I grab my book and try a reveal spell, but there’s nothing to reveal. Or, it doesn’t work.

I turn to my first story. A picture of a human who looks like Chief is saying the witch took a boy and killed his father. A man with my eyes. And a cloaked, teary woman who looks like me runs to the shadows. A lie.

It’s not true. It can’t be. I shove the book in the nightstand and pull out one about flora and fauna instead. I find the alakeah in the book. It’s a dangerous flower used in a potentially fatal spell to give humans magic. That’s the only use for it. But why would Granny need that? Why would she put me, or anyone, but especially me, in danger?

There’s a screech and the shadow snatches the book from me, clawing me. The shadow vanishes and Granny rushes forth, shouting and waving her broom at where the shadow was. The species book is at her feet.

I scramble to my feet and back against the wall. I try to catch my dripping blood.

“Oh my dear,” Granny says. She rushes toward me and I can’t back up anymore. “What did those nasty humans do to you?”

“One of them looks like me.” I didn’t even think before saying that. “Why?”

“They disguise themselves so you trust them.”

“But they don’t have magic.” I glance at the cupboard. “And neither do I.”

Her face twists. “I have told you not to try. Of course you cannot do magic yet…”

“Why not?”

“You’re not ready.”

“I’ll never be.” I take a step forward. “What happened to the human man in the story?”

“The Evergreen Forest protected us from him. I’ve told you this.” She grabs my hands. The cuts heal and the blood disappears.

I stare at the book on the floor and the broom in her hand. “Where’s the shadow?”

“Nevermind the shadow, it won’t bother you anymore.”

I pull my hands away. “What about the book? The shadow took it and now it’s across the room. Where you appeared.”

“Enough of the questions. I protect you from the humans, I raise you, and this is how you repay me? Breaking into my room, trying to do magic behind my back, reading without my permission, questioning me. After all I’ve done for you.”

I rub my hands. “You hurt me.”

“And now you accuse me of harming you? I’m the one who healed you, you ungrateful brat.”

“You made me get the alakeah to change me.”

“How ungrateful can you be? I clearly haven’t taught you well enough.” Granny snatches the book on the floor. “You will never read another word.”

She points to the doorway. “Stay in your room. No dinner. For however long it takes me to come up with your real punishment!”

I glare at her. “No!”

She glares back. “No? You can’t say no to me.”

“I’m not moving.” I crush the alakeah until its blue glow burns out. I let it drop to the ground.

Granny’s face melts from red to the starless night sky. The broom and the book clack against the floor; wings replace her arms and horns shoot out of her head. She is nothing but a shadow. My shadow.

She dives toward me. I duck and she crashes into her nightstand. I grab the broom. She charges again with a terrible shriek and I swing with all my might. The form splits in half where the broom hits. She screams as she begins to rematerialize. I take the species book and dash out to the woods with Gertrude screaming behind me.

The shadow spreads all around me, making all the plants shiver. The animals run and hide. I run through the barn to the village, to the light. The sun’s light hits the shadow with all its might. She retreats with a wail, ending the plants’ shivering and bringing the animals back out among the light.

I open the book as the humans surround me again in their warm embrace. Cynthia lays her hands on my shoulders. I flip through the pages. I’ll use it to help the humans. I’ll be like my father, but I won’t die. I’ll protect them from the witch and no child will ever be taken again.