IN AN IRON SLING

by Mountain Rider

“Be careful going home,” called Hannah out the door of her cottage through the lightly drifting snow. “It’s growing dark already, and the cold will come upon you quicker than the wolves.”

“Aye,” responded the man over his shoulder. “Thanks again. The wife will appreciate this draught more’n you know, and so will I.”

Kerl’s wife had a nasty cough that was keeping them both up at night. It was nothing that a simple tincture of horehound and coltsfoot added to honey then added to her tea wouldn’t fix in no time though. Any decent witch could have made it, but Hannah was the only witch in this part of the Cathalian wilderness.

It was a dubious honor at best. The country folk loved her and feared her in equal measure, and the noble folk ignored her completely unless they were in real trouble. Then they came to her with gold and demands. Witches don’t like demands. Demands suggest that there are no options, and witches don’t like limits on their freedom.

Hannah often found herself having to explain the moving parts of the word “no” to people who had more money than sense. It was her prerogative after all. One does not use magick for disharmonious purposes and expect to live long. Hannah was well into her fourth decade and planned to live a lot longer than that, so she was careful to stay on good terms with the powers that be.

Still there had been sacrifices over the years. She had never had a husband or children. When you’re married to the land and mother to everyone on it, it’s hard to share your life with one man and only his children. Sometimes she ached inside for that fulfillment, but her station was worth the price. That’s not to say that she was a stranger to carnal knowledge, far from it. There just wasn’t enough room in her life for the commitment of family.

Yes, there had been sacrifices. Hannah’s brown hair was shot through prematurely with wide ribbons of silver that followed its full length down past her feet. She most often wore it in a winding braid, but even then it glistened silver in the light. Her arms and legs were muscular and her hands were rough from woodland work instead of dainty like a court lady’s. She had also lost an eye to a particularly demanding spell once upon a time. The patch she wore gave her a roguish look despite her otherwise feminine face.

There were also significant benefits to knowing your way around herbs and nutrition though. Despite a life of labor and spiritual exertion, Hannah was in excellent health and of surpassing beauty. Her shape was goddess-like, almost exaggeratedly feminine, and her hair and skin fairly glowed. Yes, she thought for the ten thousandth time, I would have made a fine wife and mother, voluptuous and strong. I make a finer witch though, and that’s where the greater need lies. It was just hard sometimes when she had to deal with happy couples, like Kerl trying to take good care of his ailing wife.

As the light faded and the temperature dropped, Hannah stoked up the fire. She had just settled onto a stool in front of the warm blaze with a mortar, pestle, and some ingredients for a salve when a desperate pounding came at the door.

Hannah carefully set her things aside and out of the way of any windblast from the door and stood up wondering. Now is not a time for visitors, she thought. That means something is wrong. She approached the door warily and caught up her witch’s broom on the way.

“Who’s there?” she called and pressed her forehead to the cold banded oak of the door. Hazily an image formed in her head of a bundled figure shivering on the front stoop. She widened her vision a little and verified that whoever it was, was in fact alone.

“Please, I need shelter!” came the cry from the other side.

From the looks and sound of the visitor, Hannah reckoned it to be a woman or a boy. She put her broom between her body and the stranger and carefully opened the door. In truth it was a young man.

“P-p-please m’lady. I almost f-f-frozen through, may I come in?”

“Enter, but stamp the snow off your boots before you do,” Hannah said quickly and moved aside. She still kept her broom between them though. “You are not known to me, but you are welcome to shelter, food, and warmth.”

The hospitality spell was ancient, and even if the stranger meant her harm, it offered some measure of protection. Few could bring themselves to violate it, but this lad was no danger to her. She could see his thoughts form in the ether just above and in front of his head as he stamped the snow off quickly and darted inside. Nothing in his thoughts showed anything but gratitude and relief.

“Thank you m’lady, thank you,” he kept repeating as he danced in place and clapped his arms around his body in an attempt to warm up. “It’s colder than a witch’s teat in an iron sling out there.”

“I beg your pardon!”

The young man froze in mid-shiver and mumbled, “Sorry m’lady, an army expression that’s all. I meant -- oh cripes!” He stopped and paled as his surroundings dawned on him. All at once he took in the cauldrons hanging on hooks all about the room, the jars and bundles of herbs and other ingredients on every shelf and doorjamb, the broom, and most assuredly the imposing one-eyed woman glaring at him from behind it.

“Oh dear -- oh -- oh cripes. Please don’t hurt me.”

“Hush and mind your manners then,” Hannah said, shaking her broom at him, which made the lad flinch. The space above his head was lit up with fear now.

“I-,” he began.

“Hush,” repeated Hannah. “First you warm up; then you eat; then we talk. You are a guest, and your comfort comes first.”

She turned and retrieved a heavy woolen blanket from a chest to one side of the hearth. Tossing it to the lad, she said, “You get out of those wet clothes and wrap up in this. I’ll get you some broth and bread.”

Hannah turned back to the fire and ladled hot broth from the hanging pot there into a large bowl. Then taking a hunk of bread from the larder, she turned back to the lad and pointed with her broom to the stool near the fire.

“Sit. Eat.”

The blanket-wrapped young man quickly obeyed and gratefully accepted the proffered meal. Shortly, the food was consumed and his clothes and boots hung by the side of the hearth to dry. Hannah put away her mortar, pestle, and ingredients and turned to regard the lad.

“Are you warm enough?”

He nodded.

“Is your belly full?”

He nodded again and patted his stomach through the blanket.

“Now then, how did you, a scout soldier of Tilnon by the look of your livery, come to be this far north into the Cathalian wilderness and alone on my doorstep on a winter’s night, hmmm?”

“I was on my way to Tuloth and became separated from my patrol in the bad weather,” he said, as if rehearsed. The lie was plain in his thoughts.

“No… try again,” said Hannah.

“I was on my way to Tuloth and deserted my patrol in the bad weather?” he said, clearly unable to lie to her.

There it was. “I thought as much. Why?”

“I -- I’m homesick. I miss my family, and I want to go home.”

“You look a little young to have a wife and children.”

“I’m twenty winters!” he said, a touch defiantly. “But it’s my parents I miss, and my little brother.”

“Cider?” she offered from a jug that had been warming on the hearth.

“Yes, please,” he said and took a sip before handing it back. It warmed him inside, and he continued. “I joined the legion because I wanted to get away from home. Now it’s the one place in the world I want to get back to.”

“I understand,” the witch nodded. “Those roots don’t come up easy.” She took a sip from the jug as well before corking it and putting it back by the fire. “Got a name?”

“Cerif.”

“Well met Cerif,” she responded and offered her hand. “I’m Hannah. You’re a long way east of your desired route, and it will take some miles to put you back with your patrol.”

“But I don’t want to go back with my patrol!” he responded and clasped her hand in proper greeting.

“I know that, but you committed yourself to the Tilnon legion and owe them your loyalty. Your family would want you to live up to your obligations rather than see you home and have you hanged for desertion. Besides, your patrol may be endangering itself in searching for you. Had you thought of that?”

“No, I had not.”

“Youth is not an excuse to stop your view of the world at the end of your own nose. That’s one thing the legion will teach you. It’s a big world, and you’re not the center of it. Everything and everyone you touch affects something else. Believe that.”

“Are you a veteran?”

“No, I’m a witch. Witches know these things.” Hannah said and sat back into the shadows by the hearth. Her one eye gleamed out at him in the firelight.

“Forgive me,” he said and lowered his gaze.

“Do you fear me young man? Have I not been hospitable?”

“Yes, yes, you have m’lady, but I thought for sure you were going to cast a spell on me with your broom when I entered your home!”

“Actually, I planned to thump you on the head with it if you proved to be unfriendly. Why use magick when a solid piece of ash will do in a pinch?”

Cerif’s eyes grew wide, until he realized that Hannah was grinning at him out of the shadows. He lowered his eyes and smiled bashfully.

“You don’t know much about witches do you?”

“No ma’am. You’re the only one I’ve met.”

“Am I what you expected?”

“Yes and no,” Cerif said thoughtfully. “The cottage looks like the old tales say, but you’re not the hag that’s supposed to live in it. You’re young and pretty, and you’ve been kind to me.”

“I’m well more than twice your age, but I’ll accept the other compliments at face value,” Hannah responded smoothly. “I don’t know where the legends of witches as hags came from. We were all young once, but I guess those of my kind live longer than most, so people remember us as the old crones we become.”

“Is it magick that keeps you alive?”

“Sort of my dear boy, but it’s not as exciting as you make it sound. We witches are the country doctors. We just know how to take care of our own bodies and minds as well as any other we treat. For example, did you know that mistletoe can strengthen your heart, and cure wasting disease?”

Cerif shook his head.

“It can, but only certain parts of it. Other parts can kill you. It’s my life and my calling to know things like that. Nature is full of things that heal and kill and create and change. If that’s not magick, I don’t know what is.

“Witches try to bring health where there is sickness; fertility where there is barrenness; life where there is death; happiness where there is grief. We walk the boundaries and build bridges where we may. We see things. We know things. We remember and pass the knowledge on. That’s magick, lad.

“We live so that we can fulfill these obligations. Just as you must fulfill yours. I committed to this path, and you committed to your path in the Tilnon legion. Taking responsibility for your own actions is a big step in growing up. Stay the course, boy. Stay the course.”

They were quiet for a few moments, listening to the crackle of the fire. Cerif thought about his obligations and Hannah watched his thoughts struggle.

Eventually the young soldier sighed and asked, “Will you help me find my way back?”

“Of course, but it can wait until morning.”

Cerif glanced around the cottage. It was all one big room -- kitchen, hearth, sitting room, and bed all in one place. “Where shall I sleep?”

“Anywhere you like. On bitter nights like this, I usually make a pallet in front of the fire and sleep there. You are welcome to share the pallet or take the bed if you like. Just stay warm.”

Nervousness bloomed in Cerif’s thoughts and Hannah saw that he was concerned about his nakedness and afraid that she would laugh at him. Images of her unclothed body also flitted through his mind shaded slightly with hints of desire, and she was amused to see herself so depicted in the young man’s head. So she decided to tease him a little.

“Of course I’ll need that blanket back…” she said with a straight face.

“B-but I haven’t anything else to wear!” stammered Cerif.

“True enough, but your clothes will be dry by morning. Perhaps you should have thought about taking your pack when you ran off from your patrol.”

Cerif glanced around and then reluctantly shrugged his way out of the blanket and handed it back to the witch. He looked completely comical trying to cover his manhood with his hands while squirming his naked backside around on the little stool.

Hannah turned toward the fire and set the blanket aside, allowing herself to smile while her back was to the young soldier. Then she gathered her skirts up and unwound them from her hips to stand naked from the waist down. Her silhouette curved sensuously in the orange light as she bent at the waist to spread her thick layered skirts on the floor before the fire and covered them with the blanket she had taken from Cerif.

She heard Cerif gulp behind her and turned to face him. Immediately his eyes dropped to the sparse thatch of brown curls between her legs, just below the bottom edge of her blouse. The silver that also shot through that downy hair sparkled in the firelight. Lust, fear, and uncertainty flickered in the air over his head as his cockstem swelled under his hands, and he vainly tried to suppress it.

Hannah began to unlace her bodice which drew Cerif’s eyes upward to her fingers and emerging cleavage, then to her face. The witch’s eye captured his attention. She was grinning!

“Relax young Cerif. You’re not hiding anything I haven’t see before, but I’m flattered that an old woman like me can put you all aflutter.”

“You’re so beautiful, I can’t help it,” Cerif responded, slightly less embarrassed. He still struggled to hide his erect cockstem though.

“Then why?”

“Why what m’lady?”

“Why do you hide your cock from me?”

“Are all witches as plain spoken as you?” Cerif asked.

“It helps us in our work to be able to express ourselves clearly. There is often too much to do to mince niceties. Besides, what purpose does it serve to speak in riddles and innuendos?”

“None I guess,” said Cerif, but he still had not moved his hands.

“Then why do you hide your cock from me?”

“Because I’ve never been unclothed in front of a woman before, and I’m embarrassed.”

“I’ve seen plenty of cocks before, Cerif. Do remember that I am the local doctor here. I am also a wise woman, and have felt my share of cocks inside me.”

“Yes, but I’ve never seen a woman naked before, or been naked with a woman before, or put my cock in anything!” the young soldier blurted out, and Hannah knew he spoke the truth.

“There’s a first time for everything.” There let him chew on that for a minute, Hannah thought. On the other hand, he has something I could use.

She completed unlacing her bodice and removed both it and her blouse. Cerif’s eyes widened further at the spectacle of her. Her long braid was wrapped around her narrow waist more than once and tied like belt, and her arms and torso were covered in small intricately designed tattoos. They seemed to move on her skin in the flickering light and chase each other around the contours of her body.

What captured Cerif’s attention most though was the strange contraption she wore to support her very large breasts. It looked like a normal cloth sling, but with what appeared to be metal braces like armor sewn into the back, shoulders, and support pockets of it.

“Believe it or not,” she said to his gaping expression, “it’s an iron sling. My breasts are so heavy that I had this dwarf-designed iron-reinforced sling made to take the stress off my back.”

“I’ve never seen breasts so large, and your hair is impossibly long,” gawked the young soldier. “Truly your magick has had some strange effects.”

“You still don’t know much about witches or magick, dear boy. My hair is long simply because I’ve never cut it, as is traditional for wise women. It’s an ancient belief that to cut your hair is to cut your magick. I don’t believe it to be true, but I follow the tradition out of respect for my teacher.

“My breasts are so large because I’ve been giving surrogate milk for many years. Even though I have no children, I am the only midwife for many many miles, and sometimes young mothers can’t make enough milk on their own. I help them with that. Human milk is also a powerful spell ingredient, and I know the right herbs to eat to make sure that my breasts are full whenever it is needed. The repeated fullness of nursing has made them larger and larger as the years pass.

“So yes it is magick, but it’s natural magick. Like makes like. Good begets good. Life creates life. That is the way Nature works. It is mysterious and powerful enough on its own without us interfering in it.”

“What do the marks in your skin mean?” Cerif asked, pointing.

“Each symbol is a tiny piece of knowledge, a lesson, a skill, a permanent wisdom… a spell if you will. I’ve earned each and every one of them too… some at great cost,” Hannah explained and briefly touched her eye patch. “My teacher was covered head to foot, but I’m not that old yet. Neither do I know as much as she did. Watch now, and I’ll show you something.”

Hannah turned two small metal latches that unfastened the iron sling and released her breasts. She set the sling aside and stood naked except for her tattoos in the firelight before him. Then a brief look of concentration crossed her face, and each tiny tattoo flared to luminous life. Networks and cascades of the markings glowed with a subtle blue light and traced effervescent designs over her curves. The patterns pursued each other across her skin in shimmering waves for a few moments until the glow died away.

“You cannot mean to tell me that was not magick either?” Cerif asked incredulously

“The ink used for these tattoos was made with a fungus that glows when it gets hot. I just concentrated on raising the heat in my skin, and it made them light up. So yes, it is magick but also natural.”

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“To make a point and perhaps cure you of some of your youthful silliness,” the witch smiled. “The magick that is in plants to cure the sick, or in fungus to glow, or in my body to bleed once a moon cycle without dying, or in my breasts to feed a child, or in the sun to ripen the grain is the same magick that makes your cock grow from small and cold to large and stiff. It is the same magick that fills you with seed and quickens your heart to feel a woman’s body next to your own -- to fill her with your cock and to create new life with that fertile seed. It is magick as ancient as any living thing that the gods put on this world, so why would you ever be embarrassed by that?”

“I -- I don’t know. I never thought about it like that.” Cerif began to relax slightly and without realizing it let his hands fall open in this lap. His hard cock stretched upward and a clear drop of fluid wept from the tip.

“You have a lot to learn about the world and your obligation in it, young Cerif,” Hannah whispered sensuously, pressing her advantage as she leaned down toward the young soldier. “Start by accepting yourself. You were made by Nature into a beautiful creature, and you must trust Nature’s design.”

Cerif caught his breath as Hannah’s lips stopped just above his ear. Her breasts swayed inches from his face, and his peripheral vision was teased intermittently with small blue flashes as individual tattoos winked on and faded.

“Nature designed you for many things, but the one fulfillment your cock aches for more than any other is lying with a woman,” Hannah continued. She paused a mere moment to study the boy’s thoughts, then brushed his ear with her lips ever so softly. “Do you wish to lie with me?”

“Yes, m’lady,” responded Cerif, barely audible. His shivers had returned, and his cock ached.

“I will make a bargain with you,” whispered the witch in his ear. “A virgin man’s seed is very powerful for stimulating fertility. It works for land and crops as powerfully as it works for women. Give me some of your seed, and I will also accept your virginity.”

“Yes, m’lady.”

“Do you wish to give these things to me of your own free will?” Hannah asked, leaning away slightly and fixing the boy with her eye.

“I do.”

“Why?”

“Because…” Cerif blinked several times and tried to find the words. Then suddenly a quiet smile stole across his youthful face. “Because it is natural. Because it would help you as you have helped me. And -- and because I want to.”

“That’s three times you’ve agreed then. We have an accord,” the witch purred in his ear and winked her gleaming eye at him.

There was a momentary distortion in Cerif’s vision like a trick of the light, and when he blinked it away Hannah was sitting back in her chair in the shadows. Only her eye sparkling out at him and the curves of her lower legs where they penetrated the arc of firelight from the hearth were visible. Cerif hadn’t seen her move, and his rational mind immediately began to doubt that the previous moments had even happened. Perhaps he had nodded off.

“You must do exactly what I say if this is to be fruitful,” Hannah’s voice came out of the dark and blue patterns rippled across the great curved expanse of her breasts.

Cerif blinked again and shook his head. No this is really happening, he thought.

“What must I do, m’lady?”

“Answer these two questions first…” came Hannah’s mischievous voice.

“Yes?” asked Cerif. He squinted into the darkness. It was getting harder and harder to see the witch. He wasn’t sure if the fire was dying or the darkness was just wrapping them tighter.

“Why is your cock’s liquid treasure called seed, do you think?”

“I don’t really know,” Cerif admitted after a moment.

“Because my dear boy, if you plant it deep in the warmth of a fertile woman, you can create Life. That gift makes you a god.” The witch paused to let that sink in, then continued with her second question, “Now, have you ever made yourself climax my young god?”

“Y-yes m’lady -- for some years now.”

“Good. You must do this for me. You must do exactly what I say, and I -- your goddess -- will help you on your way.”

Cerif nodded and watched mesmerized as the tiny blue patterns flickered in the pressing darkness.

“Close your eyes young god. Feel the warm darkness of void enfolding you,” Hannah intoned. Her voice was deep, resonant, and immense. The sensuality of it stirred Cerif’s blood.

“Feel your heartbeat. Let the rhythm of your body expand to move the darkness. Breathe deeply. Let the rhythm of your breath harmonize with your heart. Let each pulse and breath echo into the void. Feel your blood flow. Let the surge of your blood follow your heartbeat and breathe out into the void so that it is not void.”

“Feel your heartbeat. Feel your male strength. Feel the heat of your blood. Feel your desire for creation. Your cockstem is mighty, hard, inflamed... Feel it swell, threatening, dangerous, hungry… and take hold of it.”

Cerif grasped his cock in his fist and indeed was surprised at how large and stiff it felt. He could feel his heartbeat in it and a growing heat in his balls.

“Arouse your hunger my god. Stroke your cockstem. Squeeze its violence in your hand. It is a hungry sword, a ravenous spear, a drum that announces battle, a horn that rallies legions... Feel your heartbeat, and feel your cockstem grow in your fist.”

Incredibly Cerif felt his cock engorge even further in his hand. He felt immense, powerful, more than man; and his balls swelled in response. His heart beat louder and louder in his ears, and his blood raged through his body. His conscious mind began to fall back and his primordial mind to surface. He was not man. He was god.

“Feel your balls swell with longing -- warm, heavy, and full. Feel a tear of desire weep from the tip of your cock, my god. This void must be filled. You must bring forth Life into this space. Stroke your cockstem. Squeeze its potential in your hand. Control this energy.

“Feel the strength of the rutting buck as he runs the land and fights for a mate. Feel the great desire of the salmon hurling himself upstream to spawn. Feel the power of the corn bursting the bondage of the soil and reaching for the sun. Stroke your cockstem. Squeeze its great strength in your hand my god. Focus it, and open your eyes.”

Cerif’s eyes flew open. His hand was rapidly pumping his massive erection and his balls slap-slapped against the edge of the stool in time with his pounding heart. Before him in the last glow of the fire lay Hannah spread open on the pallet. Whether it was the light of the embers or an unnatural effect, his vision swam with red hues.

“Behold your goddess mate. I am the fertile fields. My cleft is the sweet valley of abundance -- my breasts the very mountains from which the streams of nourishing water flow.

“Kneel my god. Kneel between the thighs of your goddess. Send your seed onto the belly of the land. Focus all of your potential for Life and Creation behind it.”

Cerif had no idea who was speaking anymore. He heard the sweet words in his mind as if from a great distance, but he obeyed. He knelt between the thighs of the goddess and pressed his swollen balls against the moist cleft he found in the valley therein. His godlike cock cast a great shadow over the land and the rose capped mountains swelled toward him. Blue lightning swept the peaks and plains of the land. He felt warm hands hold his hips as the seed within him boiled and churned toward release in his pumping fist.

“Give it to me,” came the echoed command washing down from the mountains and reverberating through the valley.

Cerif felt the hot wetness of the goddess on his balls and the gathered storm of life burst from his cock in hot streams. He exhaled his triumph and -- suddenly spent -- collapsed into the softness of the void. In the last threads of consciousness before the blackness took him fully, Cerif felt a soft kiss on his brow and heard the words, “Well done my young god.”

*****

“Awake, sweet soldier,” Hannah spoke softly.

Cerif groggily opened his eyes to look up at the smiling witch. It was still night, but the fire was blazing cheerfully, and he was deliciously warm under the wool blanket on the floor in front of it. It only took him a moment to recollect that he must be lying on Hannah’s skirts, which a deep breath of her body’s fragrance confirmed. He stretched luxuriously.

“Up you sit,” Hannah said and helped him sit up and lean against the wooden chest that had contained his blanket. She had a cloak draped around herself, but was obviously naked beneath it.

“Here drink this,” she continued and handed him a steaming mug. “And have a bite of this.”

Cerif sniffed the contents of the cup and looked uncertainly at the rust colored biscuit the witch placed into his hand. “Potion?”

“Tea with milk and honey and a molasses biscuit,” Hannah laughed. “It will help you recover some strength though, and that’s magickal enough. You gave up a lot of yourself to me, so you’re likely to feel a bit weak.”

Cerif nibbled the biscuit and drank the tea. His thoughts were turned inward on what he thought he remembered. Finally he asked, “Did it really happen?”

Hannah had been studying him and watching his recollections roil in the thought forms around his head. She had seen the question form before it left his lips.

“Aye,” she said and held aloft a small stoppered bottle hanging on a lace in the warm place between her breasts. “The rite was fruitful.”

“I can’t believe it was real,” Cerif whispered. The exaggerated scale of the experience couldn’t make sense in his head.

“I can be a little overwhelming when I work the big magick,” Hannah said gently and kissed his brow again to help him connect the fragmented pieces of the recollection. “You did very well young soldier -- very well, and when you’ve rested a little, I’ll fulfill my part of the bargain.”

“Your part?”

“Surely you’ve heard that witches sacrifice virgins to their strange gods?”

“Y-yes I have heard that,” Cerif said and almost spilled his tea.

“Well if you recall, we agreed that in return for your seed I would sacrifice your virginity for you,” Hannah said and stroked his face. “That is, if you’re still interested in lying with this one-eyed witch.”

“Yes! Yes, please!” Cerif exclaimed and almost spilled his tea again.

“Relax, young one,” Hannah said, and patted his blanket-covered knee. “You can rest first. There was a need for urgency and intensity before, but we can take it slowly this time.”

Cerif tried to calm down and drink his tea, but the touch of her hand on his knee and the swaying of Hannah’s barely concealed breasts immediately had his cock stiffening again. The blanket peaked upward in his lap as he attempted to nonchalantly finish his molasses biscuit, and the sight of it made the witch laugh softly.

“Ahh, the enthusiasm of youth. I see that your body is convinced it has rested enough and would prefer to get on with other play.”

Cerif blushed and sipped his tea.

“How many times do I need to remind you that it’s natural, young soldier,” Hannah gently chastised after noticing his embarrassment. “Accept yourself. Now lie back down here, and we’ll see what happens.”

Cerif set his tea aside and slid back down onto the pallet of Hannah’s skirts. He was still covered with the blanket, but the peak over his crotch and his wide eyes clearly signaled his excitement.

“Lovemaking is all about balance, Cerif,” began the witch. “You must give the best of yourself, but not be afraid to receive the same in return. Right now is your time to receive.”

Hannah slithered down to Cerif’s feet and separated them under the blanket. She reached up to her throat, unclasped the cloak she wore, and let it fall. Then, grasping the bottom edge of the blanket, she winked at him and said, “Don’t look -- just feel.”

Without another word, the witch ducked under the blanket and slid up Cerif’s legs. He could feel her bare skin caress him on her way up his body, and though he had an inkling of what was to come, Cerif could not suppress a small moan when he felt her warm breath against his cock. The lump in the blanket where her head was hovered just over his erection.

Cerif felt her soft, heavy breasts pressed around his thighs and her strong hands caressing his hips and belly as her breath continued to tickle over his stiffness. He felt her place her palms on his lower belly and use her thumbs to press his cock further upright toward her face. Then, almost so soft that he missed the initial contact, he felt Hannah’s lips touch the tip of his cock.

Her tongue teased the slit-like opening then pushed past her bottom lip to cradle the underside of his cockhead. Slowly, the witch’s lips parted, slid over his cockhead, and continued down his shaft. Her tongue led the way along the underside and brushed the top of his ball sack as her nose pressed into his pubic hair. The wet warmth was beyond anything Cerif had ever experienced, and he gasped aloud.

Hannah squeezed him with her lips and gently sucked as she slid her mouth slowly up Cerif’s shaft to stop at the ridge of his cockhead. Her tongue pressed firmly on the underside of the head and dragged up and over the opening to swirl around the top crown a few times. Then again she slowly slid her mouth all the way back down the shaft and lavered his balls with her tongue.

She was so relaxed and in control, that Cerif had no appreciation for how exceptional Hannah was to perform so well so easily. He could only assume that she was experienced -- which she was -- but her ability went beyond normal control. She was a witch after all. In the back of her many faceted mind Hannah wondered if she was ruining the boy for future women, but she comforted herself with the knowledge that he would never forget her.

Hannah lifted and loved each of Cerif’s balls with her tongue for several seconds, all the while she kept him fully thrust into her mouth. Then withdrawing her tongue to caress the underside of his swollen shaft, she tightened her lips again and sucked gently with a slight pulsing cadence.

‘Uhhhnnnnnnn!” was Cerif’s reaction to the whole unfolding experience.

Hannah chuckled internally, and slid her mouth back up Cerif’s shaft to nip gently on the head of his cock. The young soldier jumped and twitched from the tiny jolts her teeth gave him, before she once again took him into her mouth and forcefully sucked her way back down his shaft with her tongue slithering its way along his pulsing textures.

Hannah’s exquisite sucking, licking, and oral caresses carried on for many minutes. Cerif marveled at the pure complexity of the things she seemed to be able to do with her mouth. Her tongue seemed unnaturally long, and she never seemed to need to breathe. Her thumbs also found their way under his ball sack and pressed gently into the muscles below it. The pressure seemed to make his cock stand up that much firmer and longer, and despite his growing need to burst his seed, seemed to keep him from doing so.

Eventually Cerif grunted out a request for rest. He felt so feverish and dizzy from the intensity of Hannah’s talents that he was afraid he might succumb to vertigo. The last thing he wanted to do was pass out or be sick.

“What’s wrong my young soldier?” Hannah asked mischievously as she emerged from beneath the blanket. She was so flushed from being between Cerif’s body and the heavy wool that all her tattoos were glowing. Her enormous breasts looked like arcane maps of fantastic alien globes. “Has the old woman gotten the better of you?”

“It was just too much,” Cerif panted. “I couldn’t take any more. How were you able to do that and not choke or suffocate?”

Hannah touched a tattoo on her throat, “Because of this.”

“What is it?”

“The mark I received when I learned to do this,” Hannah explained and took a wooden flute from a cubby near her chair. She put it to her lips and blew a simple little tune of continuous notes. Cerif missed the significance entirely.

“I don’t understand.”

“Hold your hand under my nose while I play, and you will,” the witch said and took up the tune again.

Cerif obeyed and was amazed to feel that Hannah was breathing normally through her nose while playing uninterrupted on the flute.

“That must be magick, certainly?”

“Only the magick of a great deal of practice,” Hannah said and shook her head. “But enough talk, there’s more lovemaking to be had don’t you think?”

“I don’t think I can take any more right this minute,” Cerif said pointing at the twitching tent in the blanket that covered him. “You made me feel like my head was going all funny.”

“Well, I’m not sure I’m ready to let you rest yet,” purred the witch as she crawled up his body and stared down at his slightly frightened face. “It’s time for you to taste me now.”

“I don’t know how --” Cerif began to explain, but was cut short by a soft battering from Hannah’s breasts descending on either side of his face.

“You’ll figure it out,” she said, and stroked the lad’s face with her abundant bosom. “Just relax and trust your instinct. Have fun and be gentle -- unless I tell you not to be.”

The witch crawled forward to straddle Cerif’s face and by secondary consequence pinned his arms to his sides with her ankles on the blanket that covered him. She looked down at him through her cleavage and her eye sparkled.

“Ready?”

“I can’t move my arms.”

“I know -- it’s intentional. I didn’t ask you to use your arms or hands. Ready?”

“Ummm… yes?” Cerif answered.

For all of her sensuality and nurturing spirit, the amount of authority that Hannah seemed to assume kept Cerif on the edge of alarm. It was exciting, but unnerving as well. However, Cerif’s bemusement with his own psychological position was short lived as the witch lowered her warm, wet cunt to his lips.

“Give your best. You will know if you’re doing well.”

The softness of Hannah’s lightly furred cunt felt incredible to Cerif’s lips. He acted on instinct as instructed and gently nuzzled his face into her. Her inner lips were soft, bare, and wet, and Cerif felt his nose bump a little nubbin of flesh that was not soft.

Hannah’s “mmmmm” abruptly changed to a gasp of pleasure when this happened, so Cerif tried it again. Again came the gasp, this time with a small moan. That’s important, he figured. I’ll remember that and come back to it. Let’s see what else I can find.

Experimentally Cerif probed her folds with his tongue. Her taste was salty and musky like sweat with a feminine sweetness mixed in. He quickly became accustomed to it and explored all of her flowing crevice with his eager tongue. The more he licked, the hotter and wetter she became, and the more she gave him audible and physical clues to what felt good and better than good.

Cerif made a quick study of the witch’s cunt and began to gain confidence. Soon he was licking and sucking on her wet inner lips and hard nubbin above like he’d been doing it for ages. He savored her taste and fragrance and the way she would squeeze his tongue when he slid it inside her. He kissed his way all around her wet center, planting soft kisses and gentle suction on her downy outer lips.

The only words spoken were soft reminders from Hannah to “Slow down. There is no rush.” Occasionally Cerif would get overeager in his attentions, and the witch would lift off him slightly, breaking contact. He learned to read this as instruction to be softer. Sometimes however she would press herself more firmly down upon his face, and he likewise responded firmly.

As Cerif’s confidence bloomed, so did the heat in Hannah’s cunt. His enthusiasm kept him going, and her non-verbal cues kept him on the right track. He was enjoying himself immensely, and the witch was steadily climbing to an orgasmic peak.

At last with a resonant moan and rapidly jerking hips, Hannah climaxed fully on Cerif’s busy mouth. Simultaneously Cerif saw a bright blue flash just above his nose, as if there was one more tattoo hidden in the damp curls above Hannah’s spasming cunt.

“What just happened?” he asked, muffled by her womanhood.

“I just had my first climax,” the witch gasped between short breaths.

“First ever?”

“First today,” she corrected. “No talking -- keep licking please.”

The young soldier happily did as he was told, and a couple minutes later was rewarded by another shuddering climax and blue flash from his voluptuous hostess.

“Gooood, that’s two. Keep going Cerif. Faster now,” Hannah groaned and reached down to stroke his hair while he kept his face buried in her flowing cleft.

Again the tattoo flared and the witch climaxed… and again… and again… and again… until Cerif lost count. His tongue ached, and he had so much of her nectar up his nose that he felt as if he would drown. His motivation never flagged though, and Hannah leaned back and arched her body to press her cunt even more firmly against his probing tongue. Her huge breasts quivered upward and one of her hands stole back under the blanket between the young soldier’s legs to massage his balls and stroke his cock as he brought her past a dozen orgasms.

Oh, he has much promise! Hannah thought. He’ll make a fine husband to some lady one day. I suppose I had better let him rest some though and reward him for his efforts.

“Enough dear boy. That’s enough,” Hannah spoke aloud. “You’ve done very, very well. Rest a moment, and then I’ll take over again.”

She leaned up, turned, and swung her left leg over Cerif’s body to gracefully settle seated next to his head. He stared elated and fatigued up at her as she gently stroked his wet cheeks and numb lips.

“What did you think of that?” she asked after a moment.

“That wath amathing!” Cerif exclaimed softly. His lips felt thick and sore and his tongue was tired of following his intentions. “You tathe tho thweet and feel tho thoft!”

“Rest the lips and tongue, sweet boy. You worked hard down there,” Hannah chuckled.

“What wath the tattoo down there?”

“One of my favorites,” the witch explained slyly, still chuckling. “Most of these are for learning to control something. That one was for learning to let go.”

“What do you mean?”

“I have spent years and years developing immense and detailed control over my body, but too much control stifles freedom. It stifles beauty, flow, and growth. In short, too much control isn’t natural. So I had to learn how and when to let go of my body and let it flow where it will. That’s why I’m able to have so many orgasms.

“Any woman can do it, but most don’t let themselves because they don’t accept themselves. Or worse, they don’t value themselves. So much is the pity. They don’t get to experience something as simple and wonderful as the elation of several climaxes in a row.

“Speaking of which -- I know you must be ready to burst, my young soldier. Do you think you’d like to put your cockstem inside this witch, or are you too tired?”

“You mean this gets even better?” Cerif teased. His powers of enunciation were returning along with an aching need to put his cock in something.

“We’ll see won’t we?” Hannah teased back and drew the blanket down off his body. His skin was flushed from the heat and his cockstem stood proudly erect and leaking wetness.

Cerif looked down at himself and frowned. That was not what he expected.

“What is it?” asked Hannah, reading profound disappointment in his thoughts.

“My cockstem looks too small. Well, I mean, it looks normal. It was so big earlier when -- when we did the magick together. What’s wrong with it? It -- AHHH!”

Cerif’s complaints were cut off abruptly by his terror of an angry witch. Hannah had moved over him faster than he could follow and straddled his belly, once again pinning his arms to his sides. She gripped his face painfully in one strong hand and poked the tip of his nose with the hard nail on her other index finger.

“SILENCE! Never -- NEVER -- question the way Nature made you! Forces more powerful than you can begin to understand shaped you in your mother’s womb. It is a disrespect to them and to her if you complain about the way you are made!

“I will not hear any more of it in this house, and if you insult yourself and your makers again I will cast you naked out into the snow to watch your cockstem freeze off. That might teach you to be grateful for what you have. Do you understand me?”

Cerif stuttered and paled, but managed to squeak out, “Yes, m’lady.”

“Good,” Hannah said and gave the tip of Cerif’s nose a good sharp poke which made his eyes water and blink for a few seconds.

By the time the young soldier’s vision cleared, Hannah was once again seated next to his head and gently stroking his face and lips. The only indications that the previous moments had taken place at all were the pounding of his heart, the sting on the end of his nose, and the wet spot on his belly. He hadn’t seen her move that time either, but when she spoke again her voice was kind and gentle.

“If I want you to take anything away from your time with me Cerif, it is respect. You must learn to respect… women, men, authority, Nature, animals, life, duty, love, order, freedom… everything. Everything is intertwined. You cannot touch anything in this world without affecting everything else that touches it. Only the very wise have the power to see how everything relates, but you and I must learn to take it on faith and respect. There are forces and designs behind all that is. You must trust the intelligence behind Nature, and respect it above all things.

“You must also learn to respect yourself as a creation of Nature. You are important. You are valuable. You matter in this world, otherwise you would not be here. Life must flow, and you must flow with it because you are a part of it. You’ll find your place, but you must live in respect with your eyes open.”

Two small tears trickled from the corners of Cerif’s eyes. He fought them briefly but realized that to do so wouldn’t be “natural”, so they fell unimpeded.

“That’s right,” Hannah affirmed as she watched the brief battle flicker through his thoughts. Then she leaned down and sensuously pressed her full lips to his. She could taste her own special flavor on his tongue as her own softly invaded his mouth.

The kiss warmed Cerif’s heart. “I will take that lesson with me, m’lady,” he said gravely after Hannah broke the kiss.

“Promise?”

“Yes.”

“Say it.”

“I promise.”

“That’s three times again. We have an accord,” grinned Hannah and kissed him deeply again. “Now, I would like to fuck. Would you like to fuck, or have I frightened the stiffness out of your cockstem?”

Cerif looked down at his dwindled organ. “You did, but I would,” he responded and managed a smile. “You seem to have a knack for keeping me off balance.”

“Witches are good at that,” Hannah explained and paused to kiss the lad again. As her lips left his, she continued in a whisper, “Things are easier to change if they’re off balance a little.”

Sitting up, Hannah instructed, “Raise your arms over your head please.”

As Cerif complied, she swung a leg over his body again. This time she didn’t trap his arms, and as she slid her wet crotch down his chest and belly to rest on his flaccid cock she took his hands in her own and pressed them to her breasts. The rejuvenating effect was immediate as Cerif began kneading her soft mounds, and his cock quickly inflated in the warm pressure placed upon it by Hannah’s cunt.

The witch ground her hips against him as his growing stiffness made her wetness flow readily. His warm hands hefted and molded her heavy breasts, and a genuine smile of pleasure and acceptance lit up the young soldier’s face.

“I cheer again for the enthusiasm of youth,” Hannah laughed out loud. “It didn’t take much for you to recover my dear boy.”

“This feels really good. Isn’t it natural?” Cerif grinned.

“Absolutely correct,” Hannah answered and leaned down to kiss him again. Their tongues slid over each other and their breath mingled. She sucked on his bottom lip briefly and made him moan, and he squeezed her breasts to make her purr.

“Virgin sacrifice?” Hannah asked a moment later when she let Cerif breathe.

“Please, m’lady,” Cerif nodded.

“Hold still, and in a few moments you’ll be sacrificed,” she promised and winked.

Cerif stilled immediately and Hannah slid forward off his cock. Then leaning her heavy breasts down onto his face, she slowly slid back again. Cerif’s cockhead quite naturally slipped up her wet folds to her waiting openness. As the head of Cerif’s cockstem slowly penetrated the witch’s body, they both moaned aloud. As the shaft followed, they both gasped and kissed again. As she settled back with the young soldier balls-deep into her tight passage, Hannah had yet another small climax.

“You may orgasm whenever you need to,” she said to her youthful lover. “Your first time should be everything you want it to be.” With that, Hannah began artfully grinding her hips down on him and squeezing him with her internal muscles.

Cerif closed his eyes in bliss and continued to massage Hannah’s heavy breasts. His thumbs pressed circles around her rigid nipples and his palms gently squeezed and kneaded her abundance. His cock felt like it was being massaged in a grip of warm oil. It was different from the feeling of being in her mouth, but no less pleasurable.

He opened his eyes and looked down to where their bodies met to witness her pink wetness and soft brown curls pressing onto his own thatch of pubic hair. Hannah raised up slightly with her legs so he could see where his glistening shaft disappeared inside her, then a little more until only the head remained within.

Cerif sighed and then moaned as the witch slid back down his cock to fully embrace him again. His visible thoughts of heat, wetness, cock, breasts, love, life, sex, magick, fire, wind, stone, metal, Hannah… Hannah… Hannah… blazed in myriad colors for her viewing. She leaned down to kiss him again and began to slide him in and out of her cunt with long strokes. He responded by arching his hips off the floor in time with her movement to drive himself even deeper. His balls bobbed with the effort and brushed against the smooth cleft of the witch’s buttocks.

His hands left her breasts to slide around her ribs and move up and down her back. He stroked the thick rope of her braid and caressed his palms over the strong muscles that moved beneath her soft skin. Instinct led his hands downward, over the braid belted around her waist, to caress her smooth backside. It rhythmically clenched and unclenched as the witch pumped herself down onto his thrusts, and he softly gripped its firm curves.

Hannah growled low in her throat and nodded at Cerif as he squeezed her with his hands. She did like to be held like that. The lad’s instincts were right on target, and she quickly had another small orgasm on his sliding cock. The orgasmic ripples in her cunt sent Cerif over the edge, and she felt his cock pulse repeatedly as he released thick streams of semen within her.

“Aaaahhhhhhhh,” cried the young soldier as his passion erupted into Hannah’s flowing cunt. His legs shook uncontrollably in the grip of his orgasm, and he arched into her as far as he could.

Hannah squeezed Cerif hard with her cunt as his orgasm spent him, and his cock began to deflate inside her. She then leaned forward onto his chest, propping herself up by placing her elbows either side of his armpits, and resting her breasts on him. She supported her chin on her interlaced fingers and gazed down at him as he caught his breath. Her eye twinkled.

“How do you feel?”

“Incredibly alive,” he said in a tone of amazement.

“That’s the difference between climaxing alone and climaxing with someone. Alone you spend all that life energy on nothing. With someone, they give it back to you.”

Cerif nodded, “That makes sense.”

“Want to go again?” the witch asked and rubbed her breasts on him playfully.

“I think I do,” Cerif wondered aloud as he felt his cock begin to harden again inside Hannah’s liquid grip.

“Good!” the witch responded. “Roll over with me. I want you to take me this time. I am certain you’ll like the way it feels.”

She lay fully on him and stretched her legs out. Then the two of them rolled over so that Cerif was on top with his now erect cock still inside her. Hannah spread her thighs and wrapped her legs around her young lover’s waist. A simple pull with her ankles tightened Cerif to her, and he lifted his upper body off her to support himself on his hands.

“Very good my boy,” Hannah praised him and stroked his chest. “Now… fuck me.”

“Oh yes!” Cerif enthusiastically agreed and immediately began stroking in and out of her.

Their combined fluids dripped from Hannah’s cunt and squished against Cerif’s balls as he pressed himself as deep as he could. Hannah closed her eyes and ran her hands expertly over her breasts. The erotic show further heightened Cerif’s excitement as he watched her pinch and roll her own hard nipples. Her skin was so soft and warm against his own. She was so strong, but undeniably feminine. He loved the way she smelled, the way she tasted, all her delicious textures -- she was so wholly woman and so wholly alive. That was a lesson in itself that he also vowed internally to take with him.

She was also so slippery and hot on the inside, that Cerif was sure he would climax again soon. In little time his balls stopped slapping against her wet backside and tightened up. Hannah didn’t miss the telltale sign, so she interrupted the moment.

“Stop for a moment and squeeze your thighs together tightly,” she ordered gently.

Cerif was used to doing everything she said by this point, so he immediately complied… and somewhat painfully squeezed his balls.

“Ow!” he said and relaxed himself completely.

“Sorry lover,” Hannah cooed and stroked a finger across his wrinkled brow. “That was a dirty trick, but I don’t have time to teach you to keep from climaxing in more elegant ways. That way works at least and quickly so.”

“Why didn’t you want me to climax?”

“I think you only have one left in you tonight, and I have an idea for how you should have it. Pull out of me for a moment. Trust me -- you’ll like this, and you’ll soon have the best orgasm ever.”

“I do trust you. You haven’t been wrong yet!” Cerif said, and withdrew his now dripping cock from her.

Hannah turned over and raised up on all fours. The wetness on her thighs caught the firelight.

“All right,” she said over her shoulder. “Put your cock back inside me.”

“I’ve heard of this,” Cerif said and lined himself up behind her. He grasped the witch by the hips and easily slid himself all the way back into her cunt.

“Ahhh, yes,” groaned Hannah. “Now doesn’t that feel good?”

“Uhhnnn, very good,” groaned the soldier in return.

“Fuck me like this for a few moments, and then we’ll change it a little,” Hannah panted back at him. Getting fucked from behind was a personal favorite of hers.

After a minute or two Cerif spoke up again, “I think I’m getting close to climaxing again.”

“You are, I can feel it too. Stop and rest for a moment then put your knees outside mine. I’ll squeeze my legs together, and you’ll feel a big difference.”

Cerif rested and breathed deeply as he counted backward from fifty. Then he moved his knees to the outside of Hannah legs, and she brought her thighs together. The tightening of her cunt was immediate, dramatic, and -- “Natural magick?”

“Now you’re catching on, Cerif,” Hannah laughed. “Fuck me like this for a few moments, and we’ll change it again. Just take yourself up to where you feel like you might be about to climax again, then stop.”

It didn’t take long with the increased tightness of her woman’s embrace to bring Cerif up to the edge again. Dutifully he stopped in time, rested, and breathed again.

“What next, m’lady?”

“Lean over my back, and we’ll lie down together,” she said. “Keep your cock in me, your legs outside mine, and tell me what you feel.”

They lay down together with Cerif inside and on top of her, and much to his wonder, she got even tighter. Hannah’s hips were flat to the floor, and her thighs were pressed tightly together.

“Gods! This is the best yet!” Cerif exclaimed. “You feel so tight and hot.”

“Gooood,” Hannah groaned back. “Now don’t hold back anymore. Fuck me Cerif. Fuck me hard.”

The young man leaned his full weight behind his cock, driving it as deep as it would go into the witch. He held it there just a moment before withdrawing almost all of it and thrusting hard back into her. Both lovers grunted as Cerif’s length slid home, and his pubic bone pressed against the firm curves of Hannah’s rear.

“Yessssss,” hissed the witch. “Just like that.”

Cerif repeated his deep thrusts again and again until he established a rhythm and began to gather speed. The wet friction of Hannah’s tight cunt was too much for either of them, and in fewer than fifty strokes they both cried out in ecstasy. Hannah arched her hips back into his final thrust as Cerif emptied himself into her. The intensity of their mutual orgasm caught Cerif off guard and the moment his muscles relaxed, he toppled off Hannah to lie by her side.

Tender kisses and the crackle of the fire were the last he remembered until the grey light of a snowy morning crept into the windows.

*****

“Put this in your pocket,” Hannah said and pressed a small bottle into Cerif’s hand.

“What is it?” he asked as he finished tying his boots.

“Tincture of horehound and coltsfoot.”

“What’s it for?”

“Read it,” Hannah answered and fastened her cloak.

Written on the paper glued to the bottle were some simple instructions: One spoon added to honey and tea eases coughing.

“I don’t understand,” Cerif said.

“You will. Now are you ready to go?”

“Yes, but how will we find my patrol? They could be anywhere by now.”

“We’ll manage,” Hannah said vaguely and fastened her cloak. “Now what have you learned from our time together, dear Cerif?”

They stepped out into the frigid morning together and began to crunch through the fresh snow up the path from Hannah’s door.

“Well…” Cerif began, biting his lip in hard thought. “I’ve learned that everything is connected to everything else, and that I must live a life of respect because to disrespect anything or anyone is to disrespect a lot more than I know. That means that I need to -- how did you say it? -- look at the world past the end of my own nose and take responsibility for my own actions.”

“Very good,” the witch said and scooped a big handful of snow up as she walked. “What else?”

“I’ve learned that the best way to live life is to live it.”

“What do you mean?” asked the witch as she scooped up more snow and added it to the snowball she was making.

“I learned that just by watching you. You are so alive. You accept that everything is beautiful and ordered and natural, so you don’t weigh yourself down with doubt, expectation, or any feeling of lack. You feel complete, or at least complete enough. You’re happy the way you are, so you just live. I need to learn to accept myself the same way and just live life as it comes to me.”

“Excellent. That’s a profound realization for one so young. What else?”

“I’ve learned that there is magick in the world, but it’s not necessarily unusual. I mean it’s all around all the time, isn’t it? You just have to know how to recognize it.”

“There you go! You might make a civilized soldier yet,” Hannah praised him. Her big snowball was almost complete.

“Oh and one more thing!”

“What’s that young soldier?”

“I’ve learned that a witch’s teat is very, very warm, even in an iron sling!”

“I hope you’ve learned that this witch is warm in other places too?”

“Gods yes! You are an incredible woman Hannah. I don’t know how to thank you for everything you’ve given me and done for me.”

“You don’t have to,” she said and lagged a little to let Cerif get a few paces ahead of her. “That’s what witches do.”

“I’ll never forget you.”

“I know,” she said and smiled. “Goodbye, Cerif.”

*****

Cerif turned to look back at Hannah just in time to catch her snowball hard in the face. The whole world went white as it exploded on the bridge of his nose and knocked him flat on his back. He quickly sat up pawing the slush out of his eyes and was surprised to see one of his patrol fellows running toward him. There was no sign of Hannah or her cottage. In fact even the woods looked different all of a sudden.

“Cerif! I’m so glad we found you!” Gufi said. “When we found your pack, we feared the worst.”

“Where am I?”

“Safe now. That was a nasty night. I got separated. You got separated. Even Pikus got separated, and she sees really well in the dark. Well at least we’re all together now. You were the last one unaccounted for.”

Cerif felt so disoriented that he almost fell back into the snow, but sure enough there was the rest of his patrol coming up to Gufi and him. They all looked cold, wet, and tired.

“Looks like you took a branch across the face too,” Pikus said and touched a nasty looking cut on the bridge of her nose.

“Sorry?” said Cerif, not understanding.

“You’ve got a purple bruise right between the eyes,” she giggled. “It almost looks like someone pounded you with a snowball!”

“Come on,” said Corporal Zukellig and helped Cerif to his feet. “We’re all tired and soaked through. We’ve got to find somewhere to get warmed and fed before we all catch our death of cold. Geriggus is already coughing, and we know that none of us will get any sleep if he gets any worse.”

As if on cue, Geriggus covered his mouth, hunched over, and made a sound like an angry mule. The Corporal rolled his eyes, and they all turned to go. Still shaking his head in wonder, Cerif felt in his pocket and sure enough there was the little brown bottle of horehound and coltsfoot. It was real, and that meant that somewhere out there was a beautiful witch to which he owed a great debt of gratitude.

“I’ll give you something for your cough when we find you some hot tea,” Cerif casually mentioned to Geriggus as they fell into formation. “I have just the thing.”

*****

Copyright � Mountain Rider 2006

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