Chapter Text
They didn't understand where they were at first, they had trouble remembering what had happened, the only thing they felt at the moment was an uncomfortable pain in their limbs. Slowly they tried to open their eyes, and they found themself in a dark place, it looked like a dungeon, and suddenly they remembered what had happened.
'I got captured...'
Their wrists were painfully held by the chains and they found themself hanging from the wall like an animal that had been left to run out of blood. Everything seemed dark and bleak, but no matter what, Raine sighed with relief when they didn't see their children in that cell, there is still a chance that they will be okay.
But suddenly the cell door opened and someone walked in, Raine couldn't quite see who entered but they heard her, "Oh, you're awake," came a high bittersweet voice, "I hope you rested well, as we have a very busy evening ahead of us,” Kikimora stepped closer to them and Raine had to work hard not to spit in her face.
Ever since the day they accepted the job offer from the Emperor's coven, they had been waiting for the day they could finally end this charade and show them how they really felt about the coven and the emperor. It had been years of hard work and waiting, and even though their current situation was not very good, they were relieved to no longer have to pretend.
"Do you know why we're here, Raine?" Kikimora asked as she stopped right in front of them, she was holding something behind her, but Raine couldn't tell what it was.
Raine didn't answer her, and it seemed like it was their first mistake...
---
When they weren't being tortured with knives, whips, spells, and fire, they were stuck in a hopeless situation where their own coven sigil kept them in a dark prison where they could do nothing but wait for their next punishment. It had been a few days, maybe a week, they didn't know how many times Kikimora had visited them, anyway it was enough that they couldn't remember everything that had been done to them. In spite of everything, Raine tried to maintain common sense, they tried to collect and remember every piece of information that Kiki said in her rage, and every manipulation technique that she tried to use on them, Raine used it as an opportunity to find out what was happening on the other side of this cell. Kiki had said something about three Bards escaping from the conformatorium, this gave Raine a lot of hope as it gave the possibility that their kids had escaped and were now away somewhere safe, maybe they had found Eda and they were all now safe and sound at Owl House. That hope made them smile and made all the physical pain much more bearable.
They weren't sure if they would ever get out of this torment, but that was okay, they didn't care about themself as long as their loved ones were okay. Eda and the kids are safe, that was all that mattered.
---
Their head hurt like a bloody battle was going on in their head, the pain came suddenly and it was so strong that Raine woke up from their unconscious state because of it. The first thing they heard was themself moaning in pain and then their weak hands came up to grab their aching head, but someone stopped them, someone's hands grabbed theirs and gently took them back down.
"Don't move, Raine, it'll be easier and less painful then,” someone told them, the voice was a bit familiar to them, but they couldn't remember who it belonged to.
They couldn't remember anything at all, the only thought and feeling in their head seemed to be that bone-crushing headache that made them clench their teeth.
That same voice came again, but this time it seemed to be talking to someone else, "You said they were attacked. By who?"
"Wild witches, that was so unexpected,” said a worried voice.
"But how could they cause them such harm? These injuries...they are...”
"I can't answer you, Hettie, we don't know exactly what happened, we found them in that condition. I wish I could tell you more,"
"It's okay, Kikimora, the main thing is that you found them. If you had found them a little later, I wouldn't have been able to save them." there was a brief silence between them, during which one of the individuals placed a cool wet cloth on Raine's forehead, the Bard heard them say, "Breathe, Raine, this will help. Terra, do you have more of this tea? I think they need a bigger dose to make the pain go away,"
"Of course," someone's third voice said and Raine felt someone approach them and at least two people's arms wrap around their body to help them into a more seated position, and a moment later they smelled some sort of sweet smell, "Hey, drink it, Sprout, it takes away the pain,"
They finally opened their eyes, looking at where they were, they saw Terra Snapdragon and Hettie Cutburn sitting next to them, Terra was holding a cup with what appeared to be steaming tea in it, and before Raine could react properly, the cup was on their lips and the two head witches helped them empty the cup, the tea tasted bitter, and left a poisonous taste in Raine's mouth.
"Nicely done, Sprout, you did so well," came Terra's voice, and Raine could have sworn they felt her fingers smoothing their hair.
They were trying to figure out what was going on, they were trying to remember what had happened to them, but the last thing they could remember was their Head Witch ceremony, they remembered how excited they were for the ceremony even if a little nervous, they felt so proud of themself, that they had come this far and that they had been given the opportunity to work for the emperor and for the titan's pleasure. But why did they feel so much pain now? What had happened to them?
The pain in their head slowly began to subside, and they calmed down a bit, melting more comfortably into their bed, they opened their eyes again and only now noticed that they were in the hospital wing of the Emperor's castle.
A small whimper of pain escaped their lips before they asked, their voices hoarse and quiet, "What…what happened?"
"Shh, don't worry, Sprout, it's okay now, you're okay," Terra said, her hand that had been in Raine's mint-green hair sank to their shoulder giving it a squeeze, "You were kidnapped, after you ran away from your ceremony none of us could find you anymore, you were missing for several days, but yesterday Kikimora found you in the forest, wild witches had tried to kill you. Kiki brought you back to the castle and the Emperor kept you alive with his magic until Hettie got here,"
Raine listened to the story, and it made a lot of sense to them even if they had no memory of the attack or anything that could cause them life-threatening wounds. Terra continued to explain things to them, Hettie went back to her Coven Head duties and Kikimora walked away, she had a slight glint in her eyes that made Raine's stomach turn uncomfortably as their and Kikimora's eyes met for a split second.
This left Raine alone with Terra who sat closer to them and began to rub their arm with her bony hand, her voice soft and friendly to them as if she was worried about them and wanted to help them, "Sleep, Sprout, you'll feel better soon. I'm here to free you from this curse, don't worry, these wild witches will never get their hands on you ever again,"
Raine felt themself nod a little without them planning to do it and as Terra had advised them to they sank further into their soft hospital bed and closed their eyes. Terra stayed there watching them, her hand caressing them like she was meaning fell and wanted to make them feel safe...but for some reason, they didn't feel safe even though their brain told them to.
---
They spent three days in the hospital wing before being allowed back into their living quarters in the castle. It was a lot more comfortable, they no longer had to be the main attraction for all the wounded Coven Scouts, and they could spend time in isolation playing their music. Although their wounds had been healed, many of them still caused them pain, they also felt much tiredness and physical exhaustion, unable to play their violin or any other instrument for more than a few minutes before their hands were tired and sore and they had to stop and to lay down on their bed. They didn't go out of their living quarters, they didn't need to because Terra often visited them bringing them food and medicine and sitting with them for a while to make sure they were all right.
Terra always knew when they needed her, whenever their bad headache came back they didn't have to suffer for long as only a short time later Terra walked into their bedroom, with her that life-saving cup of tea. This tea took all the pain away, it didn't taste good but it did them good...at least they thought it did. Terra told them that this tea would help them heal, that it would take away all the pain and help them be free of all the trauma these wild witches had caused them. Something seemed a bit odd to them though, they didn't remember ever having a good relationship with Terra, usually, Terra made them feel uncomfortable and a panicked shiver ran through their bones as the plant lady approached them. They had always thought of Terra as this strange and slightly horrifying woman who lacked a caring side and usually seemed selfish and rather mean, but now Terra was not like that at all, she helped them, she saved them from pain. She was nice to them. She said she cared about them and Raine believed them, even though it left them feeling a little weird. Some instincts inside the Bard witch told them not to trust Terra, but Terra told them to trust her and Raine did everything Terra told them.
One day, however, Terra came to them with an unexpected invitation, she invited them to her greenhouse, and even though Raine didn't want to go, they didn't say no to her, they never said no to her. She led them with her to the garden behind the castle where she had her gorgeous and large greenhouse, it was impressive, all the plants there were beautiful and healthy, they were colorful and big, even the usually tiny roses and daisies were as big as the average witch's head.
"Isn't it beautiful, Sprout," Terra entered the giant greenhouse behind them, closing the glass door, "All my plants are strong and full of life, they started out as a weak sprout and grew into powerful weapons of life thanks to me. Every plant here is poisonous, even the beautiful lily and the delicate daisy,"
The Bard looked around in bewilderment, but they couldn't help but feel a little worried as all these plants seemed to turn towards them and even though they had no eyes or faces, they felt like the flowers were looking at them, "Why...why are they poisonous?"
"Why shouldn't they be, Sprout? Flowers don't have to be just beautiful, no, that's not right, besides, beautiful and poisonous is a good composition,"
"I guess...oh..." Raine was startled as they felt something wrap around their wrist, they looked down to see a spiky red rose there, its sharp thorns piercing their skin,"T-Terra...?" they looked up at her in panic, completely confused as to what was going on.
But she just looked at them, a narrow smile that made the blood freeze in Raine's veins on her lips," Don't worry, sprout, they won't hurt you, I actually think that you like it, don't you?"
Raine didn't know, they felt it hurt their wrist but at the same time...Terra said it didn't so...it didn't? They didn't understand anymore, they felt pain, but now their brain told them there was no pain.
"Ah, my head hurts again,” they groaned in pain, their free hand coming up to grab their head.
"Looks like you need more tea," she explained and Raine noticed that she already had a horn full of warm tea ready just for them, "Drink, my sprout, everything will be much clearer and better after that,"
They weren't sure if they wanted it, but it was Terra who offered it to them, so they didn't say no, they took the horn from her hand and slowly drank it down, they gave it back to her and Terra's hand then went up to their lips, to wipe away the remains of the bitter tea.
"Is it better now?" she asked, her face coming very close to theirs, "Does it hurt?"
The roses buried themselves further into their flesh and Raine's face cringed in pain, they could feel the blood running down their arm, but their brain forced them to say, "No, it doesn't hurt,"
"Good, Bard,” She whispered in their ear and suddenly they felt Terra's lips on their chin and something snapped in their head.
They realized that this didn't feel right to them, they felt the physical urge to push her away and tell her to get away from them, but they couldn't do anything to stop it, their body didn't respond to such commands and quietly their brain seemed to be convinced in it too, their mind told them that it was perfectly okay, and when Terra whispered to them, "Let it happen, it's good for you. It will break the curse and heal you," they believed it and let Terra's lips move over their skin, they let her do what she wanted.
Her hand grabbed their shirt and Raine noticed her fingers begin to unbutton their shirt and slowly she pushed them forward towards a large flower bush, then out of nowhere there was the familiar sound of a crowphone ringing and Terra growled stepping away from Raine and grabbing the bird who flew towards her.
Still in shock, Bard heard Terra talking angrily into her crow, but they couldn't make out what she was saying. They were confused and also a bit scared, they didn't feel comfortable anymore and they still felt the pain in their wrist but they didn't understand why their head was trying to tell them that it wasn't like that. Who was at fault? Their head or their body? Both?
It took a long time, they were stuck in these confused feelings, they only came out of it when they felt someone's hand on their cheek and Terra forced their eyes up, her fingers pinched their chin tightly, and they saw the anger and resentment in her eyes, "You have to go back to your room now, sprout. Your master has to go on an unexpected mission, but you be a good bard and go to your room and stay there, and don't tell anyone what happened here. I'll drop by your place tonight to give you your medicine."
The bard nodded, and when Terra let go of them and the rose fell from their wrist, they left the greenhouse with a very quick step. When they reached their room and closed the door, they fell to their knees on the floor, hundreds of thoughts running through their head.
What had it been? What did that mean? And why does all this make them feel like two different forces are at war in their head? Their head began to ache again and they felt tears welling up in their eyes.
Terra had said it was okay and of course, they believed her and trusted her, but they couldn't help but feel weird and uncomfortable about it. Why did this happen to them? What sorcery had these wild witches cast upon them? Are they really cursed?
The pain in their head grew and grew until finally it was too much and they passed out on their bedroom floor.
---
As Terra had promised, she came to them a little before midnight, she brought tea and bandages with her, and while Raine drank their tea, she wrapped Raine's injured wrist in bandages and told them that tomorrow morning they must join the rest of the Coven Head to breakfast, but they need to put on a long-sleeved shirt, or a pair of long gloves to cover their injured wrists, she said it was to keep them from getting cold, and they did not question it at all, because when they were having their tea, they felt much better and were ready to listen to her again. At first, Terra seemed to be planning to stay with them longer, she had even sat on the edge of their bed and helped them lie down on it, she seemed to want to lean closer to them, but then both Raine and Terra heard a number of footsteps coming from the hallway, as if a large mass of Coven scouts rushed past and Terra pulled away from them and quickly disappeared without a word.
That night Raine fell asleep, and in their dreams, they saw strange images, it was like a memory of a scene, they recognized themself there, but with them, there were three other witches, three young teenagers, but when they tried to remember their names or faces, they couldn't manage to do it.
But they heard their voices, one of the voices sounded rather high but insanely cheerful, this voice shouted to them laughing, "Nini, nini! Look how high I can fly with my wings! They are not completely useless! Maybe soon I won't need a staff or a broom!"
There was also a much lower and calmer voice that seemed to belong to a young man, "Hey, nini, can you help me? I can't get this note right on my accordion, can you show me what I'm doing wrong?"
And there was also a third voice, "Raine, would you like to read my story? It's a story about a chili pod and an apple, and before you ask, no it's not inspired by anyone in real life," this voice sounded like it was holding back a laugh.
All of these voices were familiar to them, but when they tried to remember who they belonged to, they woke up with a headache that made them feel like someone was constantly stepping on them. It was a terrible night for Raine, they could barely sleep because of the pain in their head, luckily Terra came to them again in the morning and offered them tea. Together they picked out clothes for Raine and they went to breakfast together. Since leaving the hospital, they hadn't been out of their room more than the one time they went with Terra to her greenhouse, and it was the first time in several days that they had come into contact with anyone other than Terra. As usual, all nine Coven Heads were sitting at the large table in the dining hall and the chefs working in the castle were serving them breakfast, but this was Raine's first time eating breakfast with the other Coven Heads, and they couldn't ignore the fact that everyone was constantly looking at them like they were the only black griffin in the herd.
Terra sat next to them, and her bony hand held theirs, Raine wanted to let go of her hand, but then Terra whispered to them, "Don't," and suddenly they didn't want to let go of her hand, but even gave it a weak squeeze.
During breakfast, no one tried to make much conversation with them, only Hettie once asked how they were feeling, and Vitimir once joked that he was not surprised that the leader of the Bard Coven had been the one the wild witches had chosen as their victim because it had always been the Bards who had been an easy target for everyone.
When breakfast was over they all had to go to their offices to complete all their necessary paperwork and other work duties. Raine headed towards their office, Terra had told them to go straight to the office and start their paperwork like a good and proper Coven Head, but about halfway there, Raine noticed someone following them. They tried to peek over their shoulder to see who it was and were a little surprised to see Darius and Eberwolf, it probably wouldn't have surprised them as much if they hadn't known that the two had their offices in the other direction and that they had been following Raine almost all the way to their office. They felt a little panicked, they didn't know why, they had a feeling inside them that told them to run. Fortunately, they didn't have to because suddenly, they felt vines wrap around them and the plants spun them around a few times before they came face to face with Terra."I almost forgot, sprout, here,” her vines handed them a tray with an teacup and teapot on it, and then she set them back down, her vines now pushing them down the hallway towards their office," Go on now, be a good coven head and do your part,"
They heard Terra disappear again, her plants swallowing her, taking her to the titan knows where, they looked over their shoulder to see if Darius and Eberwolf were still there, they weren't. They were alone so they did as Terra told them and went to their office to do their work like the good and faithful coven head that they were.
---
Every day Raine felt how their ability to bear all this was getting less and less, they were tired of it. These migraine attacks were killing them slowly, they couldn't walk through the castle without being watched, there were eyes everywhere watching them. It was so tiring, and their mind seemed to be sinking deeper and deeper into the bottom of the abyss, disappearing somewhere into the dark hole at the end of the realm.
Nothing much had changed, they spent most of their days in their room drinking tea and doing their usual Coven Head work, making financial plans on how to spend the Bard Coven's next year's budget, approving applications for new joiners, and giving crystal ball calls to higher levels Bard witches who wanted to get their teaching license. Things seemed a little better, they felt more energy in them, their injuries didn't hurt anymore, but things weren't really better, they didn't know what it was, but something didn't feel right in their life anymore.
When they weren't in their bed with headaches or doing their important Coven duties, they were with Terra in her greenhouse, Terra had a hired assistant who did most of her paperwork and because of that, she was able to spend most of her day in her greenhouse. Terra was so kind to them that she trusted them to take care of her flowers, she allowed them to water the flowers and pull the noxious weeds from her rose bushes. It was actually quite relaxing, Raine had always been a witch who loved the fresh air, they remember spending hours in the woods when they were a kid wandering around with their best friend...a friend whose name or face they no longer remembered. In front of their eyes were images of them spending hours sitting on a beautiful hill surrounded by flowers, their greatest love by their side...whose name and face were now gone from their memories, but whose voice they remembered, that voice sang a beautiful melodious song about freedom and true love.
They heard that voice now too, it brought a gentle smile to their lips but it instantly disappeared as their head was hit by what felt like an electric shock and they fell to their knees, both of their hands coming up to grab their head. They rested their head against the cold grass, the coolness that came from the ground eased their pain a little, but not enough to stop the tears that began to flow from their eyes.
"There, there, sprout," Terra's hand began to stroke their back, and Raine could already tell by the smell that Terra was holding tea for them in her hand.
They raised their head and quickly grabbed the cup from her and drank it down as if their life depended on it. The pain seemed to get worse every time and they were completely addicted to this tea, it was the only relief in the terrible agony they now called their life.
"When will this hell end?” they asked, their voice dripping with desperation.
Terra's arm wrapped around their shoulders, and her other hand rested on Raine's cheek, with a weak force she forced Raine's head onto her shoulder, "I know another trick that might help you,"
"What trick?" they asked, a faint hope in their voice that hoped that maybe Terra could finally take this torment away from them once and for all.
"You'll soon find out," she told them, "But first we're going to have a little botany lesson," she rested her hand on the ground, and when she lifted it up again, Raine saw that where before bare grass had been now had a tiny sprout growing there, the sprout was smaller and weaker than the grass around it," You know what this is?"
"A sprout," they said.
"That's right, and what is a sprout?"
"A young plant that has not yet grown up,"
They hissed as they felt Terra's nails pressing into their shoulder, her voice sounded grim as she said, "Wrong answer,"
Weird, they thought that was the right answer, but it looked like they were wrong, "Wrong answer," they then agreed in a whisper.
"Good,” her grip on their shoulder loosened a little, “Look at this poor plant, it is weak and helpless, it cannot protect itself from the world of hardships. It's just a tiny, helpless, and weak sprout, just like you. Is that right, sprout?"
They nodded, their gaze blank, their eyes glued to the dying plant in the grass, "I'm tiny, helpless, and weak sprout,"
"And whose sprout are you?" they didn't answer, and Terra's grip tightened around them again, and before they could do or say anything, her other hand grabbed their jaws violently, "Answer!”
"You...you're hurting me, Terra,” they whispered, tears they couldn't explain falling from their eyes.
"No, I'm not, you like it,"
"I...I like it...” it didn't sound sure at all because Raine didn't feel sure, their brain was telling them that they liked it and that Terra wouldn't hurt them, but they felt like she did, but still, they couldn't do anything to stop it, their brain power was stronger.
"That's right, and you'll like it too,” and suddenly Raine felt Terra's lips on theirs.
Raine's eyes widened in shock, they hadn't expected this and they didn't know what to do, they didn't want to kiss her back, definitely not, it didn't feel right, not at all, but Terra had said they liked it...did they like this? Terra's lips were dry and it was as if she was trying to force Raine to open their mouth and kiss her back, but it didn't feel right for the musician, so they didn't, but they didn't try to stop her either, they wanted to, but when they ordered their hands to push the plant lady away, their hands refused to do so. When Terra's lips finally pulled away from them, Raine just stared at her like they were a little kid who didn't understand anything and was as confused as a two-year-old in science class.
"Did you like it?" Terra's voice asked near their ear.
"No," came the reply, which was quieter than the morning wind.
They didn't dare look up to see Terra's expression because they were sure it was nothing good, "Didn't I tell you that you have to like it?"
"Y-you...you did,"
"So? Why didn't you like it?" Terra's voice sounded threatening, and she grabbed Raine by the throat, squeezing it and digging her nails into their flesh, "Tell me, sprout, why won't you do as I tell you to? Why are you rebelling against me?"
"I…I don't know,” they answered, barely able to get their voice out, Terra's grip around their neck preventing them from breathing.
"Hmm, looks like you need more tea then!"
"But...but my head isn't..." they couldn't finish their sentencem they felt how something, not the tea, but the leaves of the plant being forced down their throat, and as their mouth was full of bitter tasting leaves, Terra's hand covering their mouth and nose, stopping their every chance to breathe.
"Chew up these leaves and swallow or die of suffocation, your decision, sprout,"
There was only one instinct in their mind at this point, and it told them to do what Terra told them to do because her threats were true. They chewed through the leaves, suppressing the reflex that tried to get the poison out of their body, they swallowed the leaves, instantly feeling their head grow dizzy and the world before their eyes blur.
They heard Terra laugh and then she abruptly let go of them, letting them fall to the cold ground, "It was fun, but unfortunately our time is up now. Go to your room, change, and get ready for the meeting and remember, no one must know what happens in greenhouses,"
"No one must know," they answered her in a whisper and then got up from the ground, heading for the door.
The whole world was spinning around them and their stomach was turning, but they couldn't remember why or what had happened. And when they got back to their room unnoticed by everyone, the first thought on their mind was that they should ask Terra for more tea.
---
It was late at night and Raine was sitting in their room, Terra had just come by and put a cup of tea on the bedside table before she left quickly, mentioning that she had an urgent meeting with Belos.
Raine took this as an opportunity to sit on the table by their bedroom window and think, but no matter how much they tried to get clarity on things, the more confused everything seemed. They had never heard of a wild magic curse that would give a witch the symptoms they had, and they knew a lot about curses, though they couldn't remember where they had gotten that knowledge and why they had done so much research on curses in their youth. Remembering, that was one of the weirdest side effects, they weren't quite sure but they had a feeling that some specific memories and specific people were gone. Why would a bunch of wild witches care about their memories? Had they ever done anything to them? They didn't remember ever harming a wild witch, but at the same time, they didn't remember many things at the moment.
They felt like they were breaking, they were fed up with everything and everyone, and most of all they couldn't stand the mess that was going on in their head anymore. It was all just horrible. A nightmare that seemed to have no end, but also no explanation.
No, they couldn't do it anymore. They were sick of allowing this battle to exist in their head, they refused to be in the dark, if they could they would even jump out of this very window and if they managed to survive, go find the witches who had done this to them and break their necks. Raine had never been a violent witch by any means, but despair could break even the strongest of witches.
They jumped off the windowsill and started frantically pacing the room, begging in their head for the Titan to bless them with some kind of answer. The rage against everything and everyone grew inside them and with it the migraine that attacked their head. This rage grew and they had an impatient urge to throw something, break anything to get this rage out, they did...they threw the first thing they could get their hands on...they threw Terra's cup of tea...with all their might ...shattered it against the wall...destroying every last drop of their healing tea. They don't know why, but their first reaction to this was to smile, but as the seconds passed and the gravity of the situation dawned on them, they panicked.
'What have I done?'
Swift as a note of music traveling through the air to the listener, Raine rushed towards the broken cup, falling to their knees in front of it, looking at it like it was a dead loved one.
'Shit, shit, shit!'
They didn't know what to do. They had just destroyed the only thing that saved them from their deadly headaches! And Terra was in a meeting, she couldn't get them a new cup right now! And worst of all, they had just broken their promise to Terra. Raine had promised to be a good little sprout and drink their tea, but now they couldn't.
As a last thought they tried to rush to the door, maybe they could find Terra and she wouldn't be too upset, but before they got to the door they stopped as the pain hit them again, all this fear and all this panic made the pain in their head so much stronger, that they fell to the floor and couldn't do anything but curl up there and frantically tear at their hair. It seemed like this was their punishment straight from the Titan himself, they had broken a promise to their friend and now the Titan was punishing them for their sin. The pain tormented them longer than their mind and body could handle, they wanted to scream in pain and they did, the soundproof walls of their room stopping all their screams. Their hands gripped the carpet beneath them, they wouldn't have been surprised if their fingers were already white from all the force, but suddenly…all the pain disappeared.
They gasped suddenly, their eyes popped open and they panted wildly.
'The pain...it went away...why?'
Green eyes looked at the cup of broken tea, all its pink content that had spilled onto the carpet, its sweet, bitter smell filling the room.
'The tea...oh...it was always the tea,' and just like drops of tea seeping into the carpet, their memories were seeping back into their head, it took time but slowly it all came back to them...all of it, 'What did they do to me...'