Hitting two birds with one stone

Atasha's Point of View

A symphony of joy filled my ears the minute I learned from Claudette that there was an opportunity for me to be free of the curse that had been placed on me. This was the opportunity I had been waiting for.

I looked at Elijah who seemingly tried to comprehend what had happened in Claudette's house—from a stoned house, it turned into something elegant and diamond-y.

"Would you give us a moment to talk?" I asked Claudette.

"Of course. I will give you an hour to talk about things in private. Whenever you're ready, we can proceed to the next part, that is, you convincing my friend, Devon, to come here and be reunited with her mother."

"Thank you, Claudette."

She nodded her head as a response, and walked into a certain room in her house. As soon as she was out of sight, Elijah started expressing what was in his mind.

"Atasha, are you certain about this?" His voice was filled with worry. "This negotiation you have with that white witch might bring us into a potential danger. But if you're really certain about this, I'll follow your judgement. I will keep my faith in you," he added.

I let out a sigh, held his hand and squeezed it. "I assure you that we can trust Claudette. She's Devon's friend, after all, and I can't wait for this curse to be entirely taken away from me..."

He walked near me and kissed my forehead. I couldn't help but smile, looked up to him and embraced him tightly. It really felt good for us to make a decision together, mutually.

At that point, we both made the decision to take advantage of the opportunity laid out by Claudette. It was after an hour when the white witch went out from one room and stood in front of us to know our thoughts.

"Have you made up your mind about what you want to do?" she queried, voice was somehow sounded hopeful.

It was with a full heart that I informed her of our decision. "Yes, we have agreed to cooperate with you. Devon will be brought here and reunited with her mother. I will do everything to convince her," I stated in a determined tone, then I noticed her smile.

"You made the right choice, then. The Highest Priestess, Diva, her mother, will be delighted to learn that she will have the chance to be reunited with her long lost daughter," she added. "It's been a long time since the last time they meet. The Highest Priestess cannot leave this place, the very reason why Devon had to live without a mother around for so long."

Happily, I then turned to gaze at Elijah, who only nodded at me.

Now, it was time for us to get to our feet, get prepared to bring Devon in here to meet her mother in no time. Claudette was right. This was the place where she truly belonged, with her mother who could take care of her.

We started moving and didn't waste any time. Claudette walked us outside of her home.

"We are grateful for your help," I told her sincerely.

"It's my pleasure, Atasha..." she said.

Elijah and I took a few steps towards the door that we had used to enter this underground world. We entered through the door and proceeded to trek down the tunnel. Claudette assisted us in opening the door on the ground, which could only be unlocked by the witch.

"I'm hoping that we will be able to meet Devon immediately," I muttered beneath my breath.

We walked out the door and took one glance to Claudette who waved her hand as we left. I walked into the forest with a smile on my face. Minutes passed and we began climbing up the trees, jumping from one tree to another in order to avoid the traps that had been laid in the ground below us.

"I believe it was a good thing that we met Claudette, don't you?" I inquired of Elijah.

"Yes, without a doubt. We didn't know what would have happened to us if we hadn't met her. Who knows? Something terrifying could have happened and I don't want to picture that."

I chuckled a bit. Elijah was indeed right. We could be locked there for the rest of our lives without ever locating Devon's mother. But since we met Claudette, it became easier for us to find a way to remove my curse. Given the fact that Devon's mother was none other than the Highest Priestess, not just an ordinary witch, I assumed that there was no way for us to meet her without being captured. If not for Claudette, we would never had the chance to see her.

"That castle we saw earlier, I think that is where the Highest Priestess lives. That place seem to be protected by her magic, seeing how it looks from the outside. We need Claudette or Devon's help to get in there successfully," Elijah went into detail, and everything he said made sense to me.

I nodded my head. I knew to myself that I was impatient earlier, wanting to enter the castle without having second thoughts. It was only just now when I realized how difficult could it be for us to enter the castle, considering that we were werewolves who hid our identities.

The witches were indeed a mysterious and powerful creatures here in the world. I was completely out of words when it came to measuring their powers. Certainly, if there was anything which we should not be tampering, it should be none other than the witches. I recalled the first time we traveled to the witch mountain right after escaping the East Land. If not for Devon who helped and sheltered us, I assumed we would have been perished by the witches. And thanks to Claudette who helped us in the underground world of the witches... I didn't think we could do much without her help at all, after all we are only werewolves who didn't have the ability to cast a spell. We mainly relay on our physical strength.

This was something I've asked Elijah about, and he believed Devon knew that we would be able to figure things out on our own. Devon had put her faith in us to get this far. She had a strong desire to see her mother once again. She was unaware, however, that her mother was the Highest Priestess.

What I wasn't sure about was how Devon would react if she found out what her Claudette was up to. There was a possibility that Devon would shove the idea of returning to their territory, given that she already became independent ever since she fled away when she was a teenager.

"What if Devon won't come with us?" I asked as I became worried all of a sudden.

"Who knows what the future holds? She misses her mother, we both know that. We can explain everything and pursuade her," Elijah responded.

We were able to pass the traps on the ground—those muds which had the ability to captivate and keep us grounded. We began to trek back to Devon's secret place, as soon as we realized it was no longer dangerous to descend any farther. It was a fortunate thing that Elijah and I were able to recall everything about the trail.

We started running on the trail in order to get there as quickly as possible. We made it in less than an hour since we were moving at breakneck speed on our feet.

"This area has a special place in my heart and Devon is someone I'm looking forward to seeing," I mumbled beneath my breath.

Following Devon's secret place, we arrived at the wooden cabin without detaining ourselves. We unlocked the door and walked around, trying to find a familiar face we needed to see.

There we came across Devon who was reading a book in the living room.

"You guys are back! Did you succeed in finding my mother?" she exclaimed and stood up. "It’s been only two days! I can't believe you will be able to return that fast!"

We were surprised to learn that it had already been two days since we entered the underground world; everything seemed to happened so quickly when we were there.

"Devon, we would like to say that we failed to see your mother, but we saw Claudette, and she will be helping us to meet your mother," I said.

Elijah then gave me a look and his thoughts linked to my mind, asking if I was going to tell her about her mother’s role in that place. I shook my head in response.

"What's she been up to? Claudette... she’s one of my best friends!" Devon exclaimed.

"She's one of those witches who work in that underground world," I told her. "She wants to see you. Come with us, Devon. Let's all come back to that underground tunnel." Then I held her hand.

She smiled, and we were able to persuade her to accompany us back in that place. I was afraid to tell her right immediately that her mother was the Highest Priestess because she might end up escaping this place and abandoning us, but Elijah was right; we would never know what might happen in this situation. The reunion of Devon and her mother would bring me a great joy, and knowing that Claudette would aid me in breaking free from my curse was a major comfort. It was the equivalent of hitting two birds with one stone.

We had no issue getting through the mud because of Devon's magic which helped us while we were traveling back to the underground world. We were able to enter the tunnel, and we didn't waste time and went directly to the underground world. I noticed that our feet were dangling, similar to what we had seen a witch floating on the castle's stairway when we initially arrived there.

"We are floating!" I exclaimed.

Devon then suggested that we continued walking because it was temporary and we might tumble to the ground if we did not keep moving.

After that, we were able to stroll through the main porch of the underground realm without breaking a sweat without breaking a sweat again. Devon said something under her breath, and the door opened. The three of us resumed our quest, and it was evident that Devon was looking forward to seeing her mother and friend Claudette when we finally arrived at our destination.

"So, what is your relationship to Claudette? She claims to be your best friend, but does she have any basis for this claim?" While passing through the tunnel, I was struck by a peculiar thought.

She stated that she was one of the witches who had supported her from the beginning, and that she saw her as a role model. In fact, she was someone she admired and looked up to.

"She's always been like a sister to me," she explained, and I was taken aback by the fact that it reminded me of how much I looked up to Astrid.

I was terrified when I remembered what happened in the church, and I hope that Astrid was not responsible for my encounter with the witch who cursed me. However, the fact that she was around for the entire time I was cursed bothered me a lot.

"We've arrived." Elijah murmured and then opened the door. We walked inside the door and found ourselves in Claudette's house.

Devon came after us and, after a few steps, we came upon the onion-shaped house of Claudette, which we immediately recognized. When Devon saw the house, she chuckled because it reminded her of the ancient house they had back on the witch mountain. After then, Claudette appeared out of nowhere.

"I've been waiting for you for such a long time, Devon!" she exclaimed, and I noticed how teary-eyed Claudette looked.