HOME | DD

Description

The next installment of Strings. More about the Spider Queen in this one~

CoD-Strings
Strings
    A young boy named Arty lived with his father and mother in a decrepit village called Weavan. This village was situated in northern Haallan within the Shaggy Forest; an unkempt forest littered with overgrown vegetation, tangled trees, and fallen branches. Arty’s house stood proudly at the edge of a forest clearing, although it could be said that the house had nothing to be proud of. After all, it was no different from the houses it was sandwiched between.
    Although the house had nothing to be proud of, Arty’s mother did. She was an impeccably beautiful, human woman with high cheekbones and just the right amount of rouge to accentuate them. Not only that, but she was the ‘matriarch’ of the neighborhood, although Arty had no idea what that meant.
    In contrast, Father was a diminutive elvish man, both in nature and personality. He was barely five-feet-tall and was particularly skitt COD: Strings Part 2,Lucinda, Queen of the Spiders, sat upon bejeweled chair, rapping her knuckles on the iron arm rest.Looking into her mirror, her face twitched in anger--her heeled feet crossed at the ankles and resting on one of her spiders, using it as a footrest.Her plans had gone horribly awry. She wasn’t expecting her husband to betray her; she wasn’t even expecting him to have an inkling of what she had planned for her son. Least of all, she wasn’t expecting their aimless butler to steal her son away.It had been an hour since she had commanded one of her spiders to go and fetch her son, and it had not returned.Lucinda brushed her head full of luscious golden locks aggressively. I must find my son before his music escapes him.She painted her face with rouge and complimented it with black lipstick to her lips.She looked herself in the eyes with a little smile. She could see little spiders crawling around in them that gave her Sight. She didn’t miss her old eyes in the least. They sparkle like they did the first time I met Jody! She batted her sapphire spider eyes, her heart skipping a beat just thinking about it.But then she remembered her husband’s betrayal. Her fists clenched, she ground her teeth. She climbed to her feet, spinning around--her beautifully embroidered, pink cloak flourishing behind her as she did.“You,” She pointed a painted nail at the spider she had been using as a footrest. “Fetch me Big Mary. We must catch Arty.”Lucinda’s heeled feet padded across the tattered and frayed, flower-print rug toward her bedroom door. When she reached it, she opened it. Outside in the hall, the spiders had no more reason to hide since her son was no longer in the house. Dozens of giant spiders--ranging in size from medium to gigantic--emerged and followed their queen as she headed down the hall toward the entryway.She arrived at the foyer, throwing the door to her house open.She breathed in the fresh, night air. Outside, Big Maria—who was named so because she was the biggest spider in the village—kneeled on its spindly, hair legs, allowing her master to climb into the pink saddle atop her.Lucinda whipped the reins linked to the spider’s bridle.She set off through the village, riding sidesaddle, riding past homes that were identical to her own in shape, size, and color, riding side saddle, with dozens of loyal spiders following her. The citizens of the village bowed to her lovingly as she went, cheering her on to bring Arty home.“Quickly, dear queen! Bring Arty home so that we may begin the Gizzenbar and we may feast on the notes!” They shouted in unison.Lucinda waved at them, flashing a blindingly white smile. “I will bring him home, fear not!”Big Mary trotted elegantly through the village and into the shaggy forest surrounding it on all sides.As Lucinda rode, she wondered how her husband had found out about what she had wanted to do with their son. Moreover, she wondered about how he could possibly betray her after all this time. She had picked him for a husband, after all, not because she wanted to be loved, but because…She grinned eerily as their first meeting came to mind.He had so easy to manipulate.Back then, she worked at a library in the Land of Haalan and had normal, blue eyes.Her husband, Jody, had been a librarian there like she was. He had been as meek and pathetic then as he was the night she had decided to steal the notes from his soul..But to be fair… she had been meek and pathetic as well. As meek and pathetic as her normal, blue eyes.The library they worked at together was dusty and rundown; very few people visited it. It was a sign of the times, she had supposed. Lucinda had gotten a job there because she loved books. But that wasn’t the only reason, though. She had gotten a job there because she wanted to live an invisible life.She had lived with her father up until she had turned seventeen, and it was at this time that her father--the venerable Belmarduk--had banished her from his home and forbade her from staying with any of her sisters. She had been devastated. Belmarduk hadn’t given her a single copper piece to live on, either. Having no money, she had to find a way to support herself, and a job at the library seemed like her best option.She had worked at the library for two years under the head librarian, and then Jody had been hired.He was an elegant elf, lanky and somewhat short. She hadn’t been attracted to him at all at first, but then, she couldn’t remember being attracted to anyone in her life. Probably because she was so focused on lying low.Lucinda had been on the top of a rickety, wooden ladder that reached the top shelves in the library when the head librarian called to her, “Lucinda! Come meet the new guy!”He had been so loud that she nearly lost her balance. Luckily, she managed to steady herself with a deep breath. Afterward, she carefully climbed down the ladder and made her way through the labyrinthine, twisting library, until she arrived at the entrance.Being naive as she was at the time, she hadn’t noticed that her future husband’s his jaw went slack at her beauty upon meeting her--instead, she was preoccupied with smoothing her patchwork dress down and dusting it out. Afterward, she had reached a hand out to Jody, intending to shake it. “Hello, my name is Lucinda. What’s your name?”His lips moved, but he made no sounds. She raised an eyebrow. “Are you nervous about the job? Well, you shouldn’t be. It’s a nice, quiet job. The customers are mild mannered, and there aren’t many to begin with. Plus, you’ll have me to train you. I’m something of a pro at keeping the library clean, organizing books, and pestering customers.”Jody had managed to find his voice in a moment. He shook her hand and said, “Yes. I’m just nervous about the job. I’m sure that, with you guiding me, I’ll do fine.”Lucinda’s reverie of the past was disrupted when Big Mary slammed into a tree in the shaggy forest. Lucinda growled, yanking her reins downward. “Stupid spider! Look where you’re going!”Big Mary put her many-eyed, spidery face to the forest floor--sniffing loudly-- following the trail of notes Arty had left behind. Once Big Mary detected the smell, she continued on her way.Lucinda leaned her hand on her cheek as the spider went. I like spiders more than two-legged beings, but I must say, they are quite stupid.As she rode past dozens of duplicate, overgrown shagbark hickories, fallen branches, and white pine shrubberies, Lucinda became bored. The gray forest became blur on either side of her as she rode, until it seemed to her like the world was made up of gray streaks. The scenery caused her mind to became sharply focused on a distinct memory, and she realized that Big Mary was off course. “Big Mary! You’re following the wrong scent!” Lucinda was almost worried as she said it, as she knew where her spider must have been leading her.Lucinda held on as the spider disobeyed her and quickened her pace.When the spider came to a halt, Lucinda was nearly thrown from the saddle. She squealed in dismay as her body lurched forward. She felt dizzy, and it took her vision a moment to stop spinning. When it did, she immediately took out her compact mirror to ensure that her hair and makeup wasn’t ruined. She gasped in horror when she discovered that her hair had dozens of twigs and leaves embedded in it. Additionally, her makeup was running and everything was out of place.She growled, hopping down from Big Mary and kicking the spider as hard as she could manage. “You stupid, ugly, spider! Not only have you lost the trail of my precious son, but you’ve also made me look as ugly as my trollop sisters!”Big Mary hissed and hid behind a nearby tree.“Well, aren’t you just a little coward! Come out here and take your beating!” Lucinda demanded.Big Mary lifted one of her hairy legs and pointed to something in front of Lucinda.“Trying to divert my attention? Do you think me a fool? I’ll look, but once I’m finished looking, I will deliver the sound beating that you--” As Lucinda looked ahead, she saw a familiar cottage in front of her, and her face fell.This was not just any cottage. It was a cottage whose roof was as black as night and whose body was as green as envy. It looked entirely out of place in the shaggy forest. The lighting around the cottage was abnormally dark, and the eerie green lantern hanging from the tip of the roof only accentuated it.It’s her. She’s back... as she promised she would be. Lucinda cleared her throat, dusted her dress off, and headed to the front door of the cottage. She took a moment to attempt to pick the twigs out of her hair, and then took a deep breath. She knocked on the door.The sound her knuckles made echoed three times throughout the forest.The door creaked open a crack, and within the black opening, Lucinda saw the glowing green eyes of the witch she had met so many years ago; Hortens.“I see it is you, my Lovely Spider Queen. Has life been all you imagined? Have you eaten all the delicious notes you can possibly digest? Have you hosted many gizzenbars and recruited new members to the Spider religion?” The witch asked in her slithery voice.Lucinda knelt, her eyes downcast. “I have.”“Are you curious as to why I have led you here?” The witch continued.“I am.” Lucinda replied shortly, knowing the witch direct answers.“Then, come in.” The witch shut the door and retreated into her home. Lucinda took several deep breaths, and then gently pushed the door open. It creaked the whole way.The inside of the house was enshrouded in midnight blackness, but for the witch’s green eyes shining in the dark.Once Lucinda stepped in, however, the house bloomed to life. The undeniably beautiful witch sat in the rocking chair. She was a silky-skinned woman with green eyes and red hair as thick as the forest surrounding them. Her hands were curiously black--perhaps because of a spell gone awry… or because of one gone right. She may not be able to match Lucinda in beauty, but she could always outdo her in sensuality. “Hello again, Lucinda. You have done well for the Spider Religion. We have grown so much in number since you became a member.”“Thank you, Mother Hortens.” Lucinda curtsied, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.“I have called upon you to tell you how proud I am of you.” Hortens stood, her knee-length, yellow dress patterned with blooming flowers draping about her knees, highlighting her long limbs. “You have finally done away with your man after years of attachment to him. His notes have energized you, yes?”Lucinda nodded. “They have.”“No regrets?” Hortens continued.“None.”Hortens came to Lucinda’s side with her hands clasped in front of her chest. “Then I have some good news to share with you. You are nearly ready to become anointed as a Mother, but first, I have two more tasks for you.”“What are they, Mother?” She asked.“Catch the boy. Purge yourself of all desires but for your desire to be a good Mother to your people.” The witch answered.Lucinda lifted her eyes a little. She chose her words carefully before speaking: “I am in the midst of accomplishing the first. How do I accomplish the second?”“That is for you to decide.” Hortens replied. “If you fail, however, you will no longer be a part of this religion.”Lucinda rose to her feet. “What?”“That’s all.” Hortens refused to elaborate. “Oh, and you have forgotten one important thing; you must always be kind to the spiders. Don’t think I didn’t see how you treated Big Mary earlier.”Lucinda sweated with apprehension.The witch flicked her middle finger against the Spider Queen’s forehead.The Spider Queen’s consciousness left her, and suddenly, she was looking at her body from a distance as it was blown out of a completely black world and into the gray, shaggy forest. She landed on her belly in the dirt.Her consciousness rejoined her body in a moment, and she took in a sharp breath. She clambored to her feet, dusting the dirt from her dress and arms. She coughed a few times, still breathing heavily.Big Mary was still cringing behind a tree, and Lucinda realized that she had, indeed, been mistreating her precious spiders. She lowered herself to one knee, motioning Big Mary to come closer with a pointer finger. “Come here, Big Mary. I want to brush you!”Lucinda retrieved a brush from her bag.Big Mary nervously approached, slowly making her way across the forest floor. When she arrived at the Spider Queen’s side, she folded her spindly legs under her and sat down. Lucinda, too, sat down, and leaned her head against Big Mary’s body. “I’m sorry, girl. I shouldn’t have treated you so badly. I’m just so… so angry at myself that for letting that little twerp escape. You’ve been nothing but loyal to me, unlike my wretched husband and child.”Lucinda took a moment to brush Big Mary’s hairy body. “Maybe I’ll do your hair up in braids again. Would you like that?”Big Mary purred her assent.Lucinda chuckled. “I thought so. Taking a little break wouldn’t hurt, and then we’ll get on that brat’s trail again.”After Lucinda finished brushing out and braiding Big Mary’s hair, she took a step back to look at her work. She clasped her hands together with a smile. “You look absolutely gorgeous!” Lucinda exclaimed with a grin.When she said that sentence, the frown melted from her face. It brought back memories that she was trying hard to let go of. __“You look absolutely gorgeous today, Lucinda!” Jody exclaimed when he arrived for work the day after he was hired.Lucinda was busy dusting the shelves and hadn’t even heard him entering the library. She turned around and saw Jody hanging his top hat on the hat rack. She blushed a little. “You think so, huh? I’m pretty sure I’m covered in dust, but whatever you say.” Her heart thudded as she continued wiping the dusty shelves with a damp rag, hoping he would continue to flatter her.He cleared his throat and managed to mumble out, “No dust can hide your beauty.”Butterflies took flight in her stomach; she pressed a palm to her heart, secretly treasuring his words. She finished with her dusting--and then noticed that Jody had no idea what he was supposed to be doing-- judging by how he was dusting shelves that she had already dusted.She retrieved a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her face with it, returning to Jody’s side afterward. “We have some new donations that need sorting. Follow me.”She grabbed him by the wrist, dragging him through the labyrinthine library. Eventually, they came to the center of the library where dozens of tables were stacked with dozens of books.Jody’s jaw went slack. “We’re—we’re going to sort all this?”Lucinda nodded. “Yep! I’ve been trying to get through them for the past month or so, but every time I get close to finishing, about thirty more are donated. Nobody reads too much these days…” Lucinda sighed. Reading was her favorite hobby.Lucinda leaned over one of the tables, beginning to sort the books by the last names of the authors and by genre. “At any rate, people who do read can’t even do so at the library because all the tables are covered in books. I’m hoping with your help, we can get through most of it today.”Jody looked overwhelmed by the task, but he nonetheless rolled up his sleeves, licking his lips. “Alright. These books are going down.”Lucinda hid a giggle and a grin behind her hand at that.The two began sorting the books. Lucinda focused on her work, and didn’t catch Jody periodically glancing up at her. Lucinda had already sorted thirty books, while Jody had only sorted ten.Minutes of silence went by. Because they were so new to each other, neither knew what to say. To fill in the silence, Jody began gently singing under his breath.Lucinda finally looked up at him, her eyes glazing over, her ears so mesmerized by the beauty of his voice that, for a moment, she could not continue sorting.When Jody saw her staring, he smiled gingerly. “Sorry, is my singing bothering you?”Lucinda quickly shook her head, snapping out of the spell that Jody seemed to put her under. “Not at all--quite the opposite. Did you used to be a singer?”Jody went beet red at her casual compliment, and if Lucinda weren’t so young, innocent, and inexperienced, she would have realized that he had a crush on her.But it wasn’t just that.It was the fact that she considered herself off-limits, and therefore, did not realize when anyone had a crush on her, despite her grand, almost unearthly, beauty.“No. I was a stableboy. I’m not that talented at singing.” Jody answered as he stacked one book on top of another.Lucinda was aghast that he should sell himself short. Even though he had been singing so quietly and conservatively, his voice had… soothed her muscles, bolstered her courage, and warmed her heart. “You fishing? You could make a career out of singing with that voice. I’ve… I’ve never been so enthralled in my life.”Jody threw his palms up, shaking his head. “I really don’t think I’m that good! Besides, making a career out of singing is impossible.”Lucinda scowled. “I feel like slapping you. A talent like yours deserves to be heard by everyone, and every moment you spend behind the curtains is a moment the world is deprived of something enchanting. So then, what brought you to working at the library? Do you like books?”Jody shrugged gingerly. “No. I can’t even read. I come from a poor family in Elf Port, and I was fired from my stable job.”Now, it was Lucinda’s turn for her jaw to go slack. “You can’t read and you work in a library. Are you kidding?”“No. I genuinely can’t.” Jody confirmed.“By the Roc’s feathers! You’re missing out on whole other worlds!” Lucinda couldn’t contain her shock. “I’ll have to teach you how to read!”Jody saw his opportunity, and he took it. “Maybe you can teach me how to read after work? There’s a nice restaurant nearby.”Lucinda didn’t realize he was asking her out on date because she had taken herself off the market a year ago. But, a friendly dinner sounded delightful to her. “Absolutely. A man who can read is a man who is educated, after all!”After work, Lucinda hurried home and grabbed a pencil and paper, intending to start teaching Jody the alphabet. Her home was a tiny, one-room hovel that she could barely afford, but home was home, and she had everything she needed. She snatched up a pen and parchment before heading back out under the night sky. Her home was located at the end of a gravelly road, far away from the other residences in Haallan, and it was absolutely silent where she lived but for the crickets. Going out alone at night when there was no noise and no people was scary. Lucinda consistently threw worried glances over her shoulder as she walked along the road that was lit by glass lanterns.The first time she glanced over her shoulder, the fire inside the lanterns was orange and vibrant. The second time she looked, nothing had changed. The third time she looked, the lantern fires had turned green.Lucinda stopped in her tracks, turning around to see that her hovel was no longer a hovel.Instead, it was a cottage.Lucinda froze where she stood, her eyes wide as they took in the eerie, envious cottage. Her head was screaming at her to run, but her feet were pushing her back toward the cottage. She strolled down the gravelly path, her heart thumping with each step, her palms perspiring. The night was still but for the distant cawing of a crow.Eventually, she came to the door of the modest cottage and was unable to keep herself from knocking.The door creaked open on its own.From within, a raspy voice: “Come in.”Lucinda gulped. She took deep breaths, and then pushed the door in.Two bright, green eyes blinked at her from the darkness. The creaking of a rocking chair filled her ears. Then, the lights came on. A gorgeous witch was revealed to Lucinda. She had long, red hair and black hands, despite the rest of her being an opaque white.“Good to meet you, Queen Lucinda.” The witch said with a brilliant, toothy grin.Lucinda raised an eyebrow. “Queen?”“Yes. I have seen it. You will be queen. You will be one of us.” The witch said.Lucinda was trembling, but in a moment, she snapped out of her fear. She crossed her arms. “Who are you and what did you do with my house?”“You mean that pathetic hole-in-the-ground that is unworthy of you?” The witch said sardonically. “Fear not. I have kept it safe for you. As for who I am… I am Mother Hortens.”Lucinda shook her head, not following. “Am I supposed to know who you are?”“No.” The witch answered flatly. “But you will. I am one of the many Mothers of Spiders, and I have watched you since you were a young girl, as I determined your potential long ago.”Lucinda gasped, clapping a palm to her mouth in horror. “A Spider Cultist!”Lucinda spun around, pulling on the handle of the cottage, aggressively trying to escape.The door would not budge.Suddenly, the witch’s voice surrounded her on all sides like a shrieking wind. It was so overpowering that it brought her to her knees, drawing tears of fear from her eyes.“I am no cultist! You are merely unaware of the true history of Dru! People think there are only two sides of the history: Either the Roc won in the Great War, or the Ant did. But, no one speaks of the hidden Spider Mother, who watched the battle from the shadows, waited for the two to slay one another, and feasted on what was left of the two. Yes. Our version is the correct version. ”Lucinda, who was a devout follower of the Roc, was aghast. “Fool! There is no mention of the Spider Mother in the religious texts! There is only the Roc and the Ant! Your religion is nothing but a cult!”The witch stopped rocking, pursing her lips. She drummed her long, black nails against the arm of her chair, wearing an unamused expression. After that, she stood. “Unruly girl. I have seen your future, and it is with us, although I am beginning to think you are undeserving of it. Your fate was sealed the moment you met the Notekeeper.”“The Notekeeper?” Lucinda questioned.“The elegant elf, Jody. Would you like to know why his voice captured you--why it wrapped you in warmth and loved you greater than anything or anyone in your life ever has?” Hortens enticed her.Lucinda said nothing. She did want to know, but she also didn’t want to get caught in the witch’s web.“Would you like to feel the things those notes made you feel every second of your life?” Hortens continued.Lucinda’s eyes were glassy. More than anything, she did. And for some reason, she thought that the fact that she did made her irreconcilably evil. Nonetheless, she whispered under her breath, “I would.”“Then let me tell you where those gorgeous notes come from, and what they are for.” Hortens said with a smirk. “There are people on Dru who have music in them.”Hortens let that sentence hang there, letting Lucinda feel empowered by it, despite not understanding what it meant. She shook her head. “I don’t understand. Don’t we all have music in us?”Hortens shook her head. “Only the naive believe that. We are all, gray, drab, empty vessels, living lives without music in us. All of us, but a few. Jody is one of them. When he was born, the spirit of the Roc chirped notes into his soul, and made him one of the brightest souls upon Dru. And…”Lucinda waited for her to continue, enraptured by the witch’s words. When she didn’t, Lucinda prompted eagerly, “And?”The witch grinned with a maniacal, unruly look in her eyes. “And anything the Roc and Ant blesses is food for the spiders! And oh how we hunger! We are starving, in fact! And the only thing that will empower us are the Notekeepers!”For a moment, Lucinda got swept up in the witch’s energy. She wanted to be wrapped in love, and it seemed as if joining the Spider Cult was the best thing to help her achieve that. She nearly joined without a second thought, but managed to stop herself. When she gained control over her senses, Lucinda replied, “What makes you think I would ever become a Spider Cultist? I’m a good girl who keeps to myself, thank you very much! I will be on my way!”Lucinda tried the door again, but it would still not budge.“I know you’re a good girl…” The witch hissed mockingly. “Belmarduk’s good, little girl. Does whatever she’s told and gives up a life of love and adventure just to please Daddy.”Lucinda spun around, her eyes alight with shock. “How did you know that?”“I’ve watched you since you were born. You are very important to me. I know that your big sister Mirj--the three-eyed fortune teller--saw your future, and saw that you had a son, and that you would be… unkind to that son. What she did not tell you was that your son would be a worthy sacrifice to a worthy cause.” The witch informed her. “Your son… he will be blessed with the most music ever known to Dru, and when you devour his notes-”Lucinda’s eyes were screwed shut, her hands were clasped over her ears. She did her best not to listen to these words that at once tantalized her and frightened her. “Stop it! I want nothing to do with you! Let me go!”“Your father fears you! Do you not understand what a glorious thing that is? Belmarduk--one of the most powerful and illustrious wizards on Dru fears you! That’s why he blacklisted you! That’s why you live out here alone instead of with your family! He fears you the same way he fears me, because I am your mother!” Hortens continued relentlessly.Lucinda was weeping, shaking her head. “Daddy told me about you, and you are an evil woman! Leave me be!”The witch cackled louder and louder until it felt like her laughter wormed its way into her head, filling it. Lucinda sank to her feet in tears, weeping at how much her head hurt and how afraid she was not only of her mother, the witch, but of herself.When the witch’s laughter finally died down, she said coldly; “You may go. I will see you again soon, Lucy.”Lucinda shot to her feet, threw the door open, and ran outside. As she dashed across the gravel, the street lights that were lit with green flame poofed back into orange flame. Lucinda dared not look back, but she hoped that, when she returned, her own house would be there instead of the witch’s cottage. __When Lucinda arrived at the restaurant, she was a mixture of frightened and depressed, which she tried to hide by being silent. She picked lamely at the glorious plate of spaghetti that Jody had ordered for her.Jody was a little put-off by how quiet she was being. “I’m sorry, do you not like spaghetti? I can order something else, or…”Lucinda perked up a little, raising her downcast eyes and hastily shaking her head. “No, no! It’s nothing to do with you. I just…”Jody waited for her to continue.Lucinda grinned. “I was just contemplating how to teach you to read!”She reached into the pocket of her dress, retrieving a piece of chalk and a small, palm-sized chalk. She scribbled the letter A on the board and then placed it on the table. “What letter is this?”Jody scratched his head. “Um… C?”Lucinda bit back laughter, finding his deficit overly charming. “It’s an A, silly!”Lucinda tapped her chin, thinking. She scribbled more letters down on the chalkboard and then passed it over to Jody. “These are the first few letters in the alphabet, A, B, C, D, and E. I want you to use my letters as a model and copy them below.”Lucinda stood up and moved behind him, peering over his shoulder. He glanced up at her, swallowing nervously. His hand was shaking, which did not help his sloppy form as he traced the letters. Lucinda tsked. “That’s not the right stroke order. Let me show you: first, you have to hold the pencil right.”Lucinda leaned over his shoulder, her long, blonde hair brushing his face as she did so. She grabbed the pencil, showing him how to hold it correctly by pinching it between her thumb and index finger, bracing it with her middle finger. “Now you try.”She didn’t notice, but Jody had frozen in terror of having the woman he loved so much so close. Her hair was as soft as a cloud and smelled like fresh lilacs. He was too nervous to even look her way. He could barely focus, and barely paid attention when she had shown him the proper grip. Now, when he tried it, his hands were so shaky that he dropped the chalk.“Why are you so nervous? I won’t make fun of you. There’s a lot of people who don’t know how to read.” Lucinda assured him.He swallowed. Having her acceptance helped him to hold the chalk steady.Lucinda nodded. “Nice work. Now, let me show you the proper stroke order…” Lucinda guided him through constructing A, B, C, and then she paused. “Do you want me to show you D? Or do you want to try it on your own?”Even though Jody was somewhat confident he could write D correctly, he savored Lucinda’s touch upon his hand and wanted her to continue. He cleared his throat, “I think I could use some help on it, and then I’ll try E by myself.”Lucinda nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”Once Lucinda showed him D, he tried E himself, and Lucinda nodded with approval when he did it correctly. Lucinda gave him a friendly kiss on a cheek before pulling away. “Nice work.”Jody asked abruptly, “So, what’s a knockout like you doing working at a dusty old library?”Lucinda’s lips turned up in a smile, her eyes glimmering. “A knockout?”“Surely you’ve seen yourself in the mirror.” Jody continued.Lucinda blushed. She had seen herself in the mirror. And if she were to be honest, she was undeniably gorgeous. Her heart leapt with joy at such a comment, and then it sank and thudded with fear when she remembered her sister’s fortune.She hoped he wasn’t flirting with her and that this wasn’t a date he had asked her on. She liked him very much, and the prospect of having to break his heart did not appeal to her. “I have. I suppose I’m not bad looking. I work at the library because I love books of course--I explained that before.” Lucinda said simply, not looking Jody in the eyes.Jody pursed his lips, giving her a knowing look. “I know that you love books, but you could always just rent them to be around them. A girl like you should be out exploring the world.”Lucinda snorted. She had never been particularly adventurous. It was true that she didn’t fancy the idea of locking herself in a library her whole life, but at the same time, exploration sounded scary. “What makes you think that?” Lucinda asked, meeting his eyes.He paused, scratching his chin as he gazed upon her. “The light in your eyes tells me that they yearn for adventure. Not just that, but there’s a line on your palm that informs me that you will travel the world some day.”Lucinda chuckled. “You read palms?”“Absolutely! It was a side gig for me back in Elf Port. I actually made more money off it than I did at the stable.” Jody explained, slurping up a ball of long-hair spaghetti into his mouth.Lucinda found herself utterly charmed by that. “You charlatan! There’s no way you can predict people’s futures. There’s only one person I know who can do that.” Lucinda covered her mouth with a gasp, not intending to give away such a personal part of her life.Jody waved a finger at her. “Now we’re getting somewhere! Who else do you know who can tell the future?”Lucinda sank into her chair, averting her gaze. “I don’t want to talk about this. Tell me more about you.”Her tone was serious--warning Jody not to pursue the topic. Her voice almost sounded like it didn’t belong to her--it was raspy and moody.Jody quickly changed the subject; “Alright. Well, I’m twenty-seven, I can’t read, I have seven brothers and three sisters, I worked as a stable boy for about twelve years of my life, and I moved here because I wanted to see more of Dru. I love fortune-telling--even if I’m not very accurate--and… I sing a lot, just because I enjoy it. Actually, I love it. To be honest, I feel like there’s just… music inside me, waiting to be heard. It makes me feel warm and happy… I don’t think many other people have that feeling.”Lucinda was enthralled by that last sentence.Indeed.She was enthralled by Jody. She wanted to be around him as much as possible.__Lucinda snapped back to reality as Big Mary came to a screeching halt, once again throwing Lucinda from her saddle. She landed in a patch of mud, and was so furious that she stomped toward the spider, ready to kick her. However, a voice from behind her said, “Get out of here, you cultist! Leave the boy alone!”Lucinda spun around and saw that her sister--Belmarduk’s favorite--the manly Gehenna, had an arrow trained upon her.Hiding behind her was Lucinda’s son, Arty, and standing by Gehenna’s side was the traitorous butler, Beardsley. The dire bulldog, Barktholemewl, was growling at her, too.Lucinda grinned, a wild look in her crystalline eyes. There’s my boy! Come to mommy...s

Description

The next installment of Strings. More about the Spider Queen in this one~

CoD-Strings
Strings
    A young boy named Arty lived with his father and mother in a decrepit village called Weavan. This village was situated in northern Haallan within the Shaggy Forest; an unkempt forest littered with overgrown vegetation, tangled trees, and fallen branches. Arty’s house stood proudly at the edge of a forest clearing, although it could be said that the house had nothing to be proud of. After all, it was no different from the houses it was sandwiched between.
    Although the house had nothing to be proud of, Arty’s mother did. She was an impeccably beautiful, human woman with high cheekbones and just the right amount of rouge to accentuate them. Not only that, but she was the ‘matriarch’ of the neighborhood, although Arty had no idea what that meant.
    In contrast, Father was a diminutive elvish man, both in nature and personality. He was barely five-feet-tall and was particularly skitt COD: Strings Part 2,Lucinda, Queen of the Spiders, sat upon bejeweled chair, rapping her knuckles on the iron arm rest.Looking into her mirror, her face twitched in anger--her heeled feet crossed at the ankles and resting on one of her spiders, using it as a footrest.Her plans had gone horribly awry. She wasn’t expecting her husband to betray her; she wasn’t even expecting him to have an inkling of what she had planned for her son. Least of all, she wasn’t expecting their aimless butler to steal her son away.It had been an hour since she had commanded one of her spiders to go and fetch her son, and it had not returned.Lucinda brushed her head full of luscious golden locks aggressively. I must find my son before his music escapes him.She painted her face with rouge and complimented it with black lipstick to her lips.She looked herself in the eyes with a little smile. She could see little spiders crawling around in them that gave her Sight. She didn’t miss her old eyes in the least. They sparkle like they did the first time I met Jody! She batted her sapphire spider eyes, her heart skipping a beat just thinking about it.But then she remembered her husband’s betrayal. Her fists clenched, she ground her teeth. She climbed to her feet, spinning around--her beautifully embroidered, pink cloak flourishing behind her as she did.“You,” She pointed a painted nail at the spider she had been using as a footrest. “Fetch me Big Mary. We must catch Arty.”Lucinda’s heeled feet padded across the tattered and frayed, flower-print rug toward her bedroom door. When she reached it, she opened it. Outside in the hall, the spiders had no more reason to hide since her son was no longer in the house. Dozens of giant spiders--ranging in size from medium to gigantic--emerged and followed their queen as she headed down the hall toward the entryway.She arrived at the foyer, throwing the door to her house open.She breathed in the fresh, night air. Outside, Big Maria—who was named so because she was the biggest spider in the village—kneeled on its spindly, hair legs, allowing her master to climb into the pink saddle atop her.Lucinda whipped the reins linked to the spider’s bridle.She set off through the village, riding sidesaddle, riding past homes that were identical to her own in shape, size, and color, riding side saddle, with dozens of loyal spiders following her. The citizens of the village bowed to her lovingly as she went, cheering her on to bring Arty home.“Quickly, dear queen! Bring Arty home so that we may begin the Gizzenbar and we may feast on the notes!” They shouted in unison.Lucinda waved at them, flashing a blindingly white smile. “I will bring him home, fear not!”Big Mary trotted elegantly through the village and into the shaggy forest surrounding it on all sides.As Lucinda rode, she wondered how her husband had found out about what she had wanted to do with their son. Moreover, she wondered about how he could possibly betray her after all this time. She had picked him for a husband, after all, not because she wanted to be loved, but because…She grinned eerily as their first meeting came to mind.He had so easy to manipulate.Back then, she worked at a library in the Land of Haalan and had normal, blue eyes.Her husband, Jody, had been a librarian there like she was. He had been as meek and pathetic then as he was the night she had decided to steal the notes from his soul..But to be fair… she had been meek and pathetic as well. As meek and pathetic as her normal, blue eyes.The library they worked at together was dusty and rundown; very few people visited it. It was a sign of the times, she had supposed. Lucinda had gotten a job there because she loved books. But that wasn’t the only reason, though. She had gotten a job there because she wanted to live an invisible life.She had lived with her father up until she had turned seventeen, and it was at this time that her father--the venerable Belmarduk--had banished her from his home and forbade her from staying with any of her sisters. She had been devastated. Belmarduk hadn’t given her a single copper piece to live on, either. Having no money, she had to find a way to support herself, and a job at the library seemed like her best option.She had worked at the library for two years under the head librarian, and then Jody had been hired.He was an elegant elf, lanky and somewhat short. She hadn’t been attracted to him at all at first, but then, she couldn’t remember being attracted to anyone in her life. Probably because she was so focused on lying low.Lucinda had been on the top of a rickety, wooden ladder that reached the top shelves in the library when the head librarian called to her, “Lucinda! Come meet the new guy!”He had been so loud that she nearly lost her balance. Luckily, she managed to steady herself with a deep breath. Afterward, she carefully climbed down the ladder and made her way through the labyrinthine, twisting library, until she arrived at the entrance.Being naive as she was at the time, she hadn’t noticed that her future husband’s his jaw went slack at her beauty upon meeting her--instead, she was preoccupied with smoothing her patchwork dress down and dusting it out. Afterward, she had reached a hand out to Jody, intending to shake it. “Hello, my name is Lucinda. What’s your name?”His lips moved, but he made no sounds. She raised an eyebrow. “Are you nervous about the job? Well, you shouldn’t be. It’s a nice, quiet job. The customers are mild mannered, and there aren’t many to begin with. Plus, you’ll have me to train you. I’m something of a pro at keeping the library clean, organizing books, and pestering customers.”Jody had managed to find his voice in a moment. He shook her hand and said, “Yes. I’m just nervous about the job. I’m sure that, with you guiding me, I’ll do fine.”Lucinda’s reverie of the past was disrupted when Big Mary slammed into a tree in the shaggy forest. Lucinda growled, yanking her reins downward. “Stupid spider! Look where you’re going!”Big Mary put her many-eyed, spidery face to the forest floor--sniffing loudly-- following the trail of notes Arty had left behind. Once Big Mary detected the smell, she continued on her way.Lucinda leaned her hand on her cheek as the spider went. I like spiders more than two-legged beings, but I must say, they are quite stupid.As she rode past dozens of duplicate, overgrown shagbark hickories, fallen branches, and white pine shrubberies, Lucinda became bored. The gray forest became blur on either side of her as she rode, until it seemed to her like the world was made up of gray streaks. The scenery caused her mind to became sharply focused on a distinct memory, and she realized that Big Mary was off course. “Big Mary! You’re following the wrong scent!” Lucinda was almost worried as she said it, as she knew where her spider must have been leading her.Lucinda held on as the spider disobeyed her and quickened her pace.When the spider came to a halt, Lucinda was nearly thrown from the saddle. She squealed in dismay as her body lurched forward. She felt dizzy, and it took her vision a moment to stop spinning. When it did, she immediately took out her compact mirror to ensure that her hair and makeup wasn’t ruined. She gasped in horror when she discovered that her hair had dozens of twigs and leaves embedded in it. Additionally, her makeup was running and everything was out of place.She growled, hopping down from Big Mary and kicking the spider as hard as she could manage. “You stupid, ugly, spider! Not only have you lost the trail of my precious son, but you’ve also made me look as ugly as my trollop sisters!”Big Mary hissed and hid behind a nearby tree.“Well, aren’t you just a little coward! Come out here and take your beating!” Lucinda demanded.Big Mary lifted one of her hairy legs and pointed to something in front of Lucinda.“Trying to divert my attention? Do you think me a fool? I’ll look, but once I’m finished looking, I will deliver the sound beating that you--” As Lucinda looked ahead, she saw a familiar cottage in front of her, and her face fell.This was not just any cottage. It was a cottage whose roof was as black as night and whose body was as green as envy. It looked entirely out of place in the shaggy forest. The lighting around the cottage was abnormally dark, and the eerie green lantern hanging from the tip of the roof only accentuated it.It’s her. She’s back... as she promised she would be. Lucinda cleared her throat, dusted her dress off, and headed to the front door of the cottage. She took a moment to attempt to pick the twigs out of her hair, and then took a deep breath. She knocked on the door.The sound her knuckles made echoed three times throughout the forest.The door creaked open a crack, and within the black opening, Lucinda saw the glowing green eyes of the witch she had met so many years ago; Hortens.“I see it is you, my Lovely Spider Queen. Has life been all you imagined? Have you eaten all the delicious notes you can possibly digest? Have you hosted many gizzenbars and recruited new members to the Spider religion?” The witch asked in her slithery voice.Lucinda knelt, her eyes downcast. “I have.”“Are you curious as to why I have led you here?” The witch continued.“I am.” Lucinda replied shortly, knowing the witch direct answers.“Then, come in.” The witch shut the door and retreated into her home. Lucinda took several deep breaths, and then gently pushed the door open. It creaked the whole way.The inside of the house was enshrouded in midnight blackness, but for the witch’s green eyes shining in the dark.Once Lucinda stepped in, however, the house bloomed to life. The undeniably beautiful witch sat in the rocking chair. She was a silky-skinned woman with green eyes and red hair as thick as the forest surrounding them. Her hands were curiously black--perhaps because of a spell gone awry… or because of one gone right. She may not be able to match Lucinda in beauty, but she could always outdo her in sensuality. “Hello again, Lucinda. You have done well for the Spider Religion. We have grown so much in number since you became a member.”“Thank you, Mother Hortens.” Lucinda curtsied, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.“I have called upon you to tell you how proud I am of you.” Hortens stood, her knee-length, yellow dress patterned with blooming flowers draping about her knees, highlighting her long limbs. “You have finally done away with your man after years of attachment to him. His notes have energized you, yes?”Lucinda nodded. “They have.”“No regrets?” Hortens continued.“None.”Hortens came to Lucinda’s side with her hands clasped in front of her chest. “Then I have some good news to share with you. You are nearly ready to become anointed as a Mother, but first, I have two more tasks for you.”“What are they, Mother?” She asked.“Catch the boy. Purge yourself of all desires but for your desire to be a good Mother to your people.” The witch answered.Lucinda lifted her eyes a little. She chose her words carefully before speaking: “I am in the midst of accomplishing the first. How do I accomplish the second?”“That is for you to decide.” Hortens replied. “If you fail, however, you will no longer be a part of this religion.”Lucinda rose to her feet. “What?”“That’s all.” Hortens refused to elaborate. “Oh, and you have forgotten one important thing; you must always be kind to the spiders. Don’t think I didn’t see how you treated Big Mary earlier.”Lucinda sweated with apprehension.The witch flicked her middle finger against the Spider Queen’s forehead.The Spider Queen’s consciousness left her, and suddenly, she was looking at her body from a distance as it was blown out of a completely black world and into the gray, shaggy forest. She landed on her belly in the dirt.Her consciousness rejoined her body in a moment, and she took in a sharp breath. She clambored to her feet, dusting the dirt from her dress and arms. She coughed a few times, still breathing heavily.Big Mary was still cringing behind a tree, and Lucinda realized that she had, indeed, been mistreating her precious spiders. She lowered herself to one knee, motioning Big Mary to come closer with a pointer finger. “Come here, Big Mary. I want to brush you!”Lucinda retrieved a brush from her bag.Big Mary nervously approached, slowly making her way across the forest floor. When she arrived at the Spider Queen’s side, she folded her spindly legs under her and sat down. Lucinda, too, sat down, and leaned her head against Big Mary’s body. “I’m sorry, girl. I shouldn’t have treated you so badly. I’m just so… so angry at myself that for letting that little twerp escape. You’ve been nothing but loyal to me, unlike my wretched husband and child.”Lucinda took a moment to brush Big Mary’s hairy body. “Maybe I’ll do your hair up in braids again. Would you like that?”Big Mary purred her assent.Lucinda chuckled. “I thought so. Taking a little break wouldn’t hurt, and then we’ll get on that brat’s trail again.”After Lucinda finished brushing out and braiding Big Mary’s hair, she took a step back to look at her work. She clasped her hands together with a smile. “You look absolutely gorgeous!” Lucinda exclaimed with a grin.When she said that sentence, the frown melted from her face. It brought back memories that she was trying hard to let go of. __“You look absolutely gorgeous today, Lucinda!” Jody exclaimed when he arrived for work the day after he was hired.Lucinda was busy dusting the shelves and hadn’t even heard him entering the library. She turned around and saw Jody hanging his top hat on the hat rack. She blushed a little. “You think so, huh? I’m pretty sure I’m covered in dust, but whatever you say.” Her heart thudded as she continued wiping the dusty shelves with a damp rag, hoping he would continue to flatter her.He cleared his throat and managed to mumble out, “No dust can hide your beauty.”Butterflies took flight in her stomach; she pressed a palm to her heart, secretly treasuring his words. She finished with her dusting--and then noticed that Jody had no idea what he was supposed to be doing-- judging by how he was dusting shelves that she had already dusted.She retrieved a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her face with it, returning to Jody’s side afterward. “We have some new donations that need sorting. Follow me.”She grabbed him by the wrist, dragging him through the labyrinthine library. Eventually, they came to the center of the library where dozens of tables were stacked with dozens of books.Jody’s jaw went slack. “We’re—we’re going to sort all this?”Lucinda nodded. “Yep! I’ve been trying to get through them for the past month or so, but every time I get close to finishing, about thirty more are donated. Nobody reads too much these days…” Lucinda sighed. Reading was her favorite hobby.Lucinda leaned over one of the tables, beginning to sort the books by the last names of the authors and by genre. “At any rate, people who do read can’t even do so at the library because all the tables are covered in books. I’m hoping with your help, we can get through most of it today.”Jody looked overwhelmed by the task, but he nonetheless rolled up his sleeves, licking his lips. “Alright. These books are going down.”Lucinda hid a giggle and a grin behind her hand at that.The two began sorting the books. Lucinda focused on her work, and didn’t catch Jody periodically glancing up at her. Lucinda had already sorted thirty books, while Jody had only sorted ten.Minutes of silence went by. Because they were so new to each other, neither knew what to say. To fill in the silence, Jody began gently singing under his breath.Lucinda finally looked up at him, her eyes glazing over, her ears so mesmerized by the beauty of his voice that, for a moment, she could not continue sorting.When Jody saw her staring, he smiled gingerly. “Sorry, is my singing bothering you?”Lucinda quickly shook her head, snapping out of the spell that Jody seemed to put her under. “Not at all--quite the opposite. Did you used to be a singer?”Jody went beet red at her casual compliment, and if Lucinda weren’t so young, innocent, and inexperienced, she would have realized that he had a crush on her.But it wasn’t just that.It was the fact that she considered herself off-limits, and therefore, did not realize when anyone had a crush on her, despite her grand, almost unearthly, beauty.“No. I was a stableboy. I’m not that talented at singing.” Jody answered as he stacked one book on top of another.Lucinda was aghast that he should sell himself short. Even though he had been singing so quietly and conservatively, his voice had… soothed her muscles, bolstered her courage, and warmed her heart. “You fishing? You could make a career out of singing with that voice. I’ve… I’ve never been so enthralled in my life.”Jody threw his palms up, shaking his head. “I really don’t think I’m that good! Besides, making a career out of singing is impossible.”Lucinda scowled. “I feel like slapping you. A talent like yours deserves to be heard by everyone, and every moment you spend behind the curtains is a moment the world is deprived of something enchanting. So then, what brought you to working at the library? Do you like books?”Jody shrugged gingerly. “No. I can’t even read. I come from a poor family in Elf Port, and I was fired from my stable job.”Now, it was Lucinda’s turn for her jaw to go slack. “You can’t read and you work in a library. Are you kidding?”“No. I genuinely can’t.” Jody confirmed.“By the Roc’s feathers! You’re missing out on whole other worlds!” Lucinda couldn’t contain her shock. “I’ll have to teach you how to read!”Jody saw his opportunity, and he took it. “Maybe you can teach me how to read after work? There’s a nice restaurant nearby.”Lucinda didn’t realize he was asking her out on date because she had taken herself off the market a year ago. But, a friendly dinner sounded delightful to her. “Absolutely. A man who can read is a man who is educated, after all!”After work, Lucinda hurried home and grabbed a pencil and paper, intending to start teaching Jody the alphabet. Her home was a tiny, one-room hovel that she could barely afford, but home was home, and she had everything she needed. She snatched up a pen and parchment before heading back out under the night sky. Her home was located at the end of a gravelly road, far away from the other residences in Haallan, and it was absolutely silent where she lived but for the crickets. Going out alone at night when there was no noise and no people was scary. Lucinda consistently threw worried glances over her shoulder as she walked along the road that was lit by glass lanterns.The first time she glanced over her shoulder, the fire inside the lanterns was orange and vibrant. The second time she looked, nothing had changed. The third time she looked, the lantern fires had turned green.Lucinda stopped in her tracks, turning around to see that her hovel was no longer a hovel.Instead, it was a cottage.Lucinda froze where she stood, her eyes wide as they took in the eerie, envious cottage. Her head was screaming at her to run, but her feet were pushing her back toward the cottage. She strolled down the gravelly path, her heart thumping with each step, her palms perspiring. The night was still but for the distant cawing of a crow.Eventually, she came to the door of the modest cottage and was unable to keep herself from knocking.The door creaked open on its own.From within, a raspy voice: “Come in.”Lucinda gulped. She took deep breaths, and then pushed the door in.Two bright, green eyes blinked at her from the darkness. The creaking of a rocking chair filled her ears. Then, the lights came on. A gorgeous witch was revealed to Lucinda. She had long, red hair and black hands, despite the rest of her being an opaque white.“Good to meet you, Queen Lucinda.” The witch said with a brilliant, toothy grin.Lucinda raised an eyebrow. “Queen?”“Yes. I have seen it. You will be queen. You will be one of us.” The witch said.Lucinda was trembling, but in a moment, she snapped out of her fear. She crossed her arms. “Who are you and what did you do with my house?”“You mean that pathetic hole-in-the-ground that is unworthy of you?” The witch said sardonically. “Fear not. I have kept it safe for you. As for who I am… I am Mother Hortens.”Lucinda shook her head, not following. “Am I supposed to know who you are?”“No.” The witch answered flatly. “But you will. I am one of the many Mothers of Spiders, and I have watched you since you were a young girl, as I determined your potential long ago.”Lucinda gasped, clapping a palm to her mouth in horror. “A Spider Cultist!”Lucinda spun around, pulling on the handle of the cottage, aggressively trying to escape.The door would not budge.Suddenly, the witch’s voice surrounded her on all sides like a shrieking wind. It was so overpowering that it brought her to her knees, drawing tears of fear from her eyes.“I am no cultist! You are merely unaware of the true history of Dru! People think there are only two sides of the history: Either the Roc won in the Great War, or the Ant did. But, no one speaks of the hidden Spider Mother, who watched the battle from the shadows, waited for the two to slay one another, and feasted on what was left of the two. Yes. Our version is the correct version. ”Lucinda, who was a devout follower of the Roc, was aghast. “Fool! There is no mention of the Spider Mother in the religious texts! There is only the Roc and the Ant! Your religion is nothing but a cult!”The witch stopped rocking, pursing her lips. She drummed her long, black nails against the arm of her chair, wearing an unamused expression. After that, she stood. “Unruly girl. I have seen your future, and it is with us, although I am beginning to think you are undeserving of it. Your fate was sealed the moment you met the Notekeeper.”“The Notekeeper?” Lucinda questioned.“The elegant elf, Jody. Would you like to know why his voice captured you--why it wrapped you in warmth and loved you greater than anything or anyone in your life ever has?” Hortens enticed her.Lucinda said nothing. She did want to know, but she also didn’t want to get caught in the witch’s web.“Would you like to feel the things those notes made you feel every second of your life?” Hortens continued.Lucinda’s eyes were glassy. More than anything, she did. And for some reason, she thought that the fact that she did made her irreconcilably evil. Nonetheless, she whispered under her breath, “I would.”“Then let me tell you where those gorgeous notes come from, and what they are for.” Hortens said with a smirk. “There are people on Dru who have music in them.”Hortens let that sentence hang there, letting Lucinda feel empowered by it, despite not understanding what it meant. She shook her head. “I don’t understand. Don’t we all have music in us?”Hortens shook her head. “Only the naive believe that. We are all, gray, drab, empty vessels, living lives without music in us. All of us, but a few. Jody is one of them. When he was born, the spirit of the Roc chirped notes into his soul, and made him one of the brightest souls upon Dru. And…”Lucinda waited for her to continue, enraptured by the witch’s words. When she didn’t, Lucinda prompted eagerly, “And?”The witch grinned with a maniacal, unruly look in her eyes. “And anything the Roc and Ant blesses is food for the spiders! And oh how we hunger! We are starving, in fact! And the only thing that will empower us are the Notekeepers!”For a moment, Lucinda got swept up in the witch’s energy. She wanted to be wrapped in love, and it seemed as if joining the Spider Cult was the best thing to help her achieve that. She nearly joined without a second thought, but managed to stop herself. When she gained control over her senses, Lucinda replied, “What makes you think I would ever become a Spider Cultist? I’m a good girl who keeps to myself, thank you very much! I will be on my way!”Lucinda tried the door again, but it would still not budge.“I know you’re a good girl…” The witch hissed mockingly. “Belmarduk’s good, little girl. Does whatever she’s told and gives up a life of love and adventure just to please Daddy.”Lucinda spun around, her eyes alight with shock. “How did you know that?”“I’ve watched you since you were born. You are very important to me. I know that your big sister Mirj--the three-eyed fortune teller--saw your future, and saw that you had a son, and that you would be… unkind to that son. What she did not tell you was that your son would be a worthy sacrifice to a worthy cause.” The witch informed her. “Your son… he will be blessed with the most music ever known to Dru, and when you devour his notes-”Lucinda’s eyes were screwed shut, her hands were clasped over her ears. She did her best not to listen to these words that at once tantalized her and frightened her. “Stop it! I want nothing to do with you! Let me go!”“Your father fears you! Do you not understand what a glorious thing that is? Belmarduk--one of the most powerful and illustrious wizards on Dru fears you! That’s why he blacklisted you! That’s why you live out here alone instead of with your family! He fears you the same way he fears me, because I am your mother!” Hortens continued relentlessly.Lucinda was weeping, shaking her head. “Daddy told me about you, and you are an evil woman! Leave me be!”The witch cackled louder and louder until it felt like her laughter wormed its way into her head, filling it. Lucinda sank to her feet in tears, weeping at how much her head hurt and how afraid she was not only of her mother, the witch, but of herself.When the witch’s laughter finally died down, she said coldly; “You may go. I will see you again soon, Lucy.”Lucinda shot to her feet, threw the door open, and ran outside. As she dashed across the gravel, the street lights that were lit with green flame poofed back into orange flame. Lucinda dared not look back, but she hoped that, when she returned, her own house would be there instead of the witch’s cottage. __When Lucinda arrived at the restaurant, she was a mixture of frightened and depressed, which she tried to hide by being silent. She picked lamely at the glorious plate of spaghetti that Jody had ordered for her.Jody was a little put-off by how quiet she was being. “I’m sorry, do you not like spaghetti? I can order something else, or…”Lucinda perked up a little, raising her downcast eyes and hastily shaking her head. “No, no! It’s nothing to do with you. I just…”Jody waited for her to continue.Lucinda grinned. “I was just contemplating how to teach you to read!”She reached into the pocket of her dress, retrieving a piece of chalk and a small, palm-sized chalk. She scribbled the letter A on the board and then placed it on the table. “What letter is this?”Jody scratched his head. “Um… C?”Lucinda bit back laughter, finding his deficit overly charming. “It’s an A, silly!”Lucinda tapped her chin, thinking. She scribbled more letters down on the chalkboard and then passed it over to Jody. “These are the first few letters in the alphabet, A, B, C, D, and E. I want you to use my letters as a model and copy them below.”Lucinda stood up and moved behind him, peering over his shoulder. He glanced up at her, swallowing nervously. His hand was shaking, which did not help his sloppy form as he traced the letters. Lucinda tsked. “That’s not the right stroke order. Let me show you: first, you have to hold the pencil right.”Lucinda leaned over his shoulder, her long, blonde hair brushing his face as she did so. She grabbed the pencil, showing him how to hold it correctly by pinching it between her thumb and index finger, bracing it with her middle finger. “Now you try.”She didn’t notice, but Jody had frozen in terror of having the woman he loved so much so close. Her hair was as soft as a cloud and smelled like fresh lilacs. He was too nervous to even look her way. He could barely focus, and barely paid attention when she had shown him the proper grip. Now, when he tried it, his hands were so shaky that he dropped the chalk.“Why are you so nervous? I won’t make fun of you. There’s a lot of people who don’t know how to read.” Lucinda assured him.He swallowed. Having her acceptance helped him to hold the chalk steady.Lucinda nodded. “Nice work. Now, let me show you the proper stroke order…” Lucinda guided him through constructing A, B, C, and then she paused. “Do you want me to show you D? Or do you want to try it on your own?”Even though Jody was somewhat confident he could write D correctly, he savored Lucinda’s touch upon his hand and wanted her to continue. He cleared his throat, “I think I could use some help on it, and then I’ll try E by myself.”Lucinda nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”Once Lucinda showed him D, he tried E himself, and Lucinda nodded with approval when he did it correctly. Lucinda gave him a friendly kiss on a cheek before pulling away. “Nice work.”Jody asked abruptly, “So, what’s a knockout like you doing working at a dusty old library?”Lucinda’s lips turned up in a smile, her eyes glimmering. “A knockout?”“Surely you’ve seen yourself in the mirror.” Jody continued.Lucinda blushed. She had seen herself in the mirror. And if she were to be honest, she was undeniably gorgeous. Her heart leapt with joy at such a comment, and then it sank and thudded with fear when she remembered her sister’s fortune.She hoped he wasn’t flirting with her and that this wasn’t a date he had asked her on. She liked him very much, and the prospect of having to break his heart did not appeal to her. “I have. I suppose I’m not bad looking. I work at the library because I love books of course--I explained that before.” Lucinda said simply, not looking Jody in the eyes.Jody pursed his lips, giving her a knowing look. “I know that you love books, but you could always just rent them to be around them. A girl like you should be out exploring the world.”Lucinda snorted. She had never been particularly adventurous. It was true that she didn’t fancy the idea of locking herself in a library her whole life, but at the same time, exploration sounded scary. “What makes you think that?” Lucinda asked, meeting his eyes.He paused, scratching his chin as he gazed upon her. “The light in your eyes tells me that they yearn for adventure. Not just that, but there’s a line on your palm that informs me that you will travel the world some day.”Lucinda chuckled. “You read palms?”“Absolutely! It was a side gig for me back in Elf Port. I actually made more money off it than I did at the stable.” Jody explained, slurping up a ball of long-hair spaghetti into his mouth.Lucinda found herself utterly charmed by that. “You charlatan! There’s no way you can predict people’s futures. There’s only one person I know who can do that.” Lucinda covered her mouth with a gasp, not intending to give away such a personal part of her life.Jody waved a finger at her. “Now we’re getting somewhere! Who else do you know who can tell the future?”Lucinda sank into her chair, averting her gaze. “I don’t want to talk about this. Tell me more about you.”Her tone was serious--warning Jody not to pursue the topic. Her voice almost sounded like it didn’t belong to her--it was raspy and moody.Jody quickly changed the subject; “Alright. Well, I’m twenty-seven, I can’t read, I have seven brothers and three sisters, I worked as a stable boy for about twelve years of my life, and I moved here because I wanted to see more of Dru. I love fortune-telling--even if I’m not very accurate--and… I sing a lot, just because I enjoy it. Actually, I love it. To be honest, I feel like there’s just… music inside me, waiting to be heard. It makes me feel warm and happy… I don’t think many other people have that feeling.”Lucinda was enthralled by that last sentence.Indeed.She was enthralled by Jody. She wanted to be around him as much as possible.__Lucinda snapped back to reality as Big Mary came to a screeching halt, once again throwing Lucinda from her saddle. She landed in a patch of mud, and was so furious that she stomped toward the spider, ready to kick her. However, a voice from behind her said, “Get out of here, you cultist! Leave the boy alone!”Lucinda spun around and saw that her sister--Belmarduk’s favorite--the manly Gehenna, had an arrow trained upon her.Hiding behind her was Lucinda’s son, Arty, and standing by Gehenna’s side was the traitorous butler, Beardsley. The dire bulldog, Barktholemewl, was growling at her, too.Lucinda grinned, a wild look in her crystalline eyes. There’s my boy! Come to mommy...s