The crisp scent of ice lingered just above the smell of burning wood, drifts of
smoke rising from the small leather hut nestled beneath frozen cliffs. The path
leading to it was packed down and dirty, grime and blood frozen black into the
snow. Crude pictures were painted on the side in different shades of paint, bits
of herb still stuck in the thick substance.

There was a woman who was young, with crimson red ringlets and ribbons in her
hair, walking towards the hut. She wore a priest's cassock, white and pristine
as it hugged her short form, a cobalt stole settled on her shoulders and visible
beneath the heavy white cloak she wore. Dangling from her throat was a necklace
of devotion, words of faith etched upon it. She was not a wholly attractive
woman: her nose was too large and her lips too thin and the spray of freckles on
her face were too many in number to be charming. Her green eyes were bright and
innocent and otherwise unremarkable.

Her feet crunched on the ice as she ducked and entered the hut, her face
becoming dry and her throat parched with the drastic change in temperature.
Inside, surrounded by a wall of rocks, was a large fire pit nestled in the
centre spitting that black smoke into the hole in the roof. Bowls of water lined
one rounded wall, and the stench of meat and herbs was almost too much to
handle. A bearskin bed was nestled in one section, and various pots and strange
symbols hung from the leather ceiling.

Inside rested an old hag buried in various skins and tribal markings,
especially the ring of teeth around her neck and the claws stuffed into the
piercings in her ears.

The young priestess coughed slightly at the abrupt change from icy fresh air to
the stuffy, smoke-captured hut. Through watery eyes she said, "Good wishes,
Elemiah."

Her mighty chest heaved as she cackled through yellowed teeth, "And to you,
Dina."

The young priestess flashed a quick smile, a gap showing between her two front
teeth, before she entered and slid her cloak and stole off her shoulders,
settling it on a wooden stool. She established herself in front of the old
woman, sinking unsteadily into a cross-legged position. The fire continued to
crackle at her left shoulder as she and the old woman gazed at each other.

"I see you come with more than you left with last time," the woman said
gruffly.

The girl nodded, smiling again. "Promotion for completing five years worth of
service."

Nodding warily, "These things mean so much to you?" She reached out and grabbed
the pendant hanging from the girl's neck, her callused fingers running over the
smooth white gold.

The girl looked down and nodded, a blush overcoming her features in red blots
on her face and neck. "It's what I want to aspire to: a priestess of the Light."

The woman laughed, her yellow teeth gleaming in the firelight. "To hear you say
these things!" the woman said with glee. She turned and reached for a worn
wooden pipe. "Are you ready?" she asked.

Unperturbed by the laughter, the girl nodded, pulling her hair away from her
face and tying it back with ribbons. The woman set the pipe aside, reaching for
a bowl by the wall. Setting that between them, she reached into a pouch and
pulled sprigs of yarrow out, picking at them and throwing the remains into the
water. Taking the bowl of the pipe in hand, she stirred the water.

"What would you like to know this time, little priestess?"

Eyeing the water, the priestess asked, "I am curious about something a little
selfish, Elemiah..."

The woman had closed her eyes as she stirred, humming deep within her hefty
chest. "Go on," she murmured. "I will not turn you away, as your spoiled
half-formed might!"

Making a slight sound at the scoffing, she said, "I wish to know what Corial
has been up to."

Opening her dark bloodshot eyes, the woman murmured, "I see," and deftly pulled
green-brown seawood from another pouch around her waist, setting it in the bowl.
"You have doubts on his fidelity?"

The younger woman startled slightly, "His faith wavers at times, is all...
Elemiah, those herbs. You've been busy!"

The enchantress nodded with a grin, "I had a druid priestess visit; she gave me
herbs for a fortune."

"A very lucrative trade, it seems."

Satisfied with her own cleverness, and chuckling softly, the woman settled
back, stirring the concoction in the bowl. She began to chant under her breath,
stirring more rapidly until a small whirlpool formed in the clear water, the
bits of herb floating around in a miasma of dark

Stopping, the woman peered into the bowl. "Drink," she ordered.

Wasting no time, Dina took the wooden bowl to her lips and sucked the water
down in three large gulps, gasping as she set it down again, wiping her mouth
with the back of her hand.

Elemiah snorted and the girl chuckled, hiccupping slightly. The hag peered into
the bowl, picking at the bits and pieces with her worn pipe and murmuring to
herself. She shook her head and looked at Dina, "You no worry over your blasted
man. Not only is he faithful to you, but he be faithful to your cause. You find
no better!" Elemiah laughed heartily, her bosom shaking with the effort. The
young woman glowed slightly, and removed a package from the folds of her white
cassock.

"I know you rarely take payment from us, but I did want to give this to you.
Your advice has always been sound, and you know..." the girl hesitated. "I never
met my parents, and you sort of make me think you could have been my mother in
other circumstances." The girl blushed, shoving forward the small parcel into
the woman's hands.

Cocking her head to one side, Elemiah smiled sweetly at the girl, despite her
yellowing teeth and chapped lips. She unraveled the delicately wrapped paper,
revealing a glossy onyx pipe. She lifted the pipe to the fire, observing the
pieces of herb expertly mixed with the gem, laughing with gusto again.

"This be good gift, yes! I see it has my favorite weed mixed in."

"Elemiah, I'm so glad you like it!" Dina said, glowing. "It's always a pleasure
to have my fortune told by you, you and your strange yet wonderful magic." The
girl rose awkwardly and paused, raising her hands and holding them steady as a
scintillating shower of cleansing cosmic energy surrounded the woman, bathing
her. The woman sighed happily, nodding at the girl.

The girl pressed her hand over the pendant hanging from her neck, "May the
Light always guide you, Elemiah." Before turning to gather her things and hustle
out the door.

Elemiah gazed keenly behind the girl and replied to no one, "I treasure these
gifts, always."