Witch

"Come again?" 

I asked quizzically, my voice perhaps betraying my astonishment as she took a timely draft of breath. This was dangerous territory, and I was not so sure if I could immediately place my trust on Calida just about yet. I placed my palms on the table, keeping them flat to ground myself and neutralise my body language.

"It is, as you've heard, Tetsu, the village chief, is deceiving everyone in the village. Although right about now, I can guess that you don't trust what I've said yet, have you?"

Her eyes locked onto mine, her gaze piercing and sharp, as though she was reading me like words off a book. Maintaining the facade of composure, I sought to venture forth into the conversation with a stronger hand, or at least one that wasn't completely at her mercy. The only possible way that I could come out of it with sufficient benefit, or at least avoidant of exploitation. Whether she was able to see right through the act, or trying to size me up verbally, we were well past the Rubicon to turn around now.

"If I was the sort of man who'd immediately put faith in the first stranger to show me kindness in this village, we wouldn't be having this conversation at all. No. You need a sceptic, someone with agency and initiative to confide in. Someone unbound by the norms and traditions of the village, and with little to no ties to it, who can act autonomously in a competent manner."

Watching the scarce glimmer of a smile curve on her lips before she tugged it away smugly was a sight to behold. A part of me wished I had a coworker as competent as her in my previous life, then again, she might prove just as useful in this one. Her schemes, however, were still unknown to me and I still had my uncertainties about her intentions.

"Absolutely. A smart man who doesn't blindly follow the order of things? If I prayed to the Gods, then I might have offered them thanks for sending you our way."

She responded, a light laughter trickling down her voice as she concluded her comment. Eliciting one in turn from me as well, seeking to lean into banter. After all, casual conversation was where one made the most slips.

"Are you sure you should be revealing such a detail to me, of all people? I doubt any man of the cloth would turn the other cheek."

Something that only prompted her to laugh even more, as she reached across the table and stroked my cheek, her expression carrying a wealth of amusement.

"I suppose it is only fair that you test me as well, but I assure you Tetsu, if I was the type of woman to blindly believe that you're an ordained priest, then I'm sure you would've not entertained a single sentence I spoke."

I held her caressing hand and placed it softly on the table. What might've looked like an overtly friendly interaction was a ruse to try and gauge my micro-expressions, temperature and feel up for any micro-expressions I'd make to her statement. It was crystal clear that she knew I wasn't who I claimed to be, and thus had armed me with knowledge to negotiate on even footing. If not for all the time I spent with corporate cutthroats, I'd have definitely lost my cool and any hope of even footing here.

"Then we're both charlatans of our settings. Let us air our business out, then, there are three things I am seeking. Shelter, income and knowledge. I came from beyond the Exiled Lands-" 

I brought her hand to my cheek, pressing it as a make shift polygraph. After all, I was speaking the truth, not the whole truth, but the truth. Whether I could trust her was a separate dilemma, but I could not deceive her too long.

"-where a mysterious entity rendered me in circumstances where I am completely lacking in knowledge of this world, forcing me to learn from scratch."

Her hand glowed a light shade of green, as did her eyes, before she pulled back and took a deep sigh. Stroking her temples momentarily, clearly in contemplation over what I said. After all, I intentionally structured all the limited knowledge I knew into an information bomb to give her limited room to process.

"You'll have to forgive me for my use of an espial spell, after all, every part of the sentence you've just uttered would have us both tried for heresy. It appears you spoke the truth, and as you've entrusted me with your circumstances, I shall entrust you with mine."

She loosened the leather pauldron on her shoulder, and her shirt underneath to reveal a cryptographic tattoo on her toned fair shoulders. It appeared as a single great tree, branching off into vials, books, candles and skulls at odd branch intervals. Circled and crested with a skull with flaming eyes, and who's jaws entombed a candle within, underneath it. I observed it briefly before she covered herself up again.

"I'm a witch, one of the few left alive and unimprisoned after the purge. As was my mother before me, and her mother before her. I came to the village to be as far away from the prying eyes and care of the Inquisition as possible."

A witch, that tracked and comforted in the same breath, after all this meant that I had an ally that I could rely on, if not to aid, than at least to have just as much to lose as I did. Something in my mind clicked as my gaze lingered upon her, there might be others, set aside and hiding as heretics to the order of the church. Useful allies with unique abilities who'll have nothing left to lose nor allegiance of piety to the order. Many would be villainous, but perhaps fate might be kind enough to guide me towards those who might see a grander vision.

"You're staring. I've left some books hidden within the night stand, read them discreetly to get up to speed on what exists on this edge of the world."

She snickered and cleared her throat, prompting me to follow suit and brush my gaze away swiftly. I shelved those thoughts for later.

"Staring? Not really. Scheming? Yes. Let's reconvene after sundown, I'll plan some next steps by then. Thank you for the books-"

And before my sentence could be completed, she was gone, her presence fainter than the faintest of traces. I sighed and resigned myself to what seemed to be many hours of intense reading.