Chapter 1

Chapter 1 The History It all began in the large, dark forest of Gwendare, in the land ruled by Queen Gwendolyn. Now, in this forest lived a multitude of creatures. The furry ones lived in stumps, those with feathers lived in trees and some with scales lived in caves. Most who were human lived in houses. One such house dweller was a young witch named Quagmire Pinch.

Quaggy, as her family and friends knew her, came from a long line of natural witches going back hundreds of years. The family tree was quite impressive with her fifth greatgrandmother Fancy, acting as Queen Gwendolyn’s seeress and astrologer. That fact alone made the Pinch family one of power and prestige in the witch community, until the reign of King Haight. At the time of his triumph over Queen Gwendolyn, Haight had grown tired of witches.

He began to banish from the country and dispose of anyone who practiced the art of witchcraft.

Following the execution of Queen Gwendolyn, Fancy Pinch managed to escape that same fate by leaving Gwendare. To insure the witch community would offer no resistance, the King executed all castle servants loyal to Gwendolyn. Yes, it was a dark and gloomy time for witches, as well as all mystical creatures that dwelled in Gwendare.

Immediately after a proclamation of Haight’s intensions, the rest of the Pinch family went into hiding, conjuring only out of necessity. After fifty years of the king‘s horrific plunder of the country, this cruel ruler was overthrown by the army of Gwendolyn’s daughter, Fortuna.

Fortuna’s rule ushered in a quieter, more serene way of life. It was at this point, the Pinch family came out of hiding, returning to their home to live openly as witches for two-hundred years.

The house, in which Quagmire lived, saw many children born into the Pinch family. Because of its construction, this house withstood the most severe storms as well as any battles fought to secure freedom from potential invaders. Such had been the case during the half-century of terror inflicted by King Haight. The home was a small but comfortable stone structure, with a thickly thatched roof. It had a big main room, which contained a fireplace used for heating and cooking.

There were two large bedrooms and ample loft space above. The windows were made of intricately shaped leaded glass. It was rather ornate for its time.

Quagmire’s parents were priceless, as parents go. Her father, Lochlann Pendergast, loved to dance and play jokes on people. His fiery red hair was a mass of curls; a hint to his temperament and playfulness. He loved music and played the concertina for any occasion he could create.

Showing an industrious side, he owned a meadery where he made both spiced and fruited mead, also known as honey wine. The people believed Lochlann’s mead was the very best mead in all of Gwendare and it was true. His was the finest because his family stole the recipe from another.

This is not to say his was a family of thieves, but there was a proclamation during the reign of the king, to find the best mead for the royal family. The makers of the chosen elixir would be revered and spared a cruel demise. Therefore, what was Lochlann’s family to do?

Quagmire’s mother, Spinney Pinch, was rather placid in her youth. It was not until she met Lochlann that she became a different person. She was frolicsome. Her head was in the clouds more than it was on her studies, but she managed to become a formidable witch, nonetheless. In her later years, after she had her daughter, she became somewhat matronly and could be quite strict. The only throwback to her youth was her flute playing. When Lochlann would pick up his concertina, she would accompany him on her flute. It was a sight to behold. When those two would play, their music made people sing and dance.

There were many happy moments spent in this home. Rarely was sadness a part of their life, when they no longer had to hide. They held parties, celebrations and festivals inside this house, as well as on the grounds. The Pinch family had owned this home for as long as anyone could remember. Moreover, just like those before her, Quagmire was very shrewd and imaginative. So much so, through her final years of study, she was under the discipline of Crone Sibyl Beldam.

Sibyl was a crone with unequaled capabilities. She too, came from a line of natural witches whose powers had surpassed others in the sisterhood. Because of their strengths, the women of that family accepted the position of Crone for many generations. Fancy Pinch was the first witch in the Pinch family. When she began to show witchy talents as a child, the family allied themselves with the Beldams to tutor her.

As for Quagmire, the Pinch family relied on Sibyl for instruction. Now, Sibyl rather liked her young student and quietly admired her, as she reminded the Crone of herself when she was Quagmire’s age. When her student feigned illness to get out of her chores, lessons and the like, Sibyl would ignore those bouts, continuing to prod the young witch to mind her studies, until her student would concede. At first, this made the young witch very angry, but eventually, she came to respect Sibyl more and more for seeing through her act.

Quagmire Pinch was one in a million. The skill she had shown over the years was remarkable.

The adults in her family felt she had the potential to become an outstanding witch, if only she would apply herself. She began conjuring at a very young age. Even though she was very good at it, she was also a bit careless. She once made the barn explode into a burst of flames, which turned into butterflies. Her mother undid that mishap and issued a stern warning followed by a lecture on the proper use of a wand, as well as the appropriate words used in incantations.

Quagmire loved nature, as she should, and was naturally inquisitive. She found pleasure in poking her nose into things. Investigating might be a more appropriate term for what she did; whether it was the forest around her house, or asking questions of people on matters that may or may not have been her concern. When asking questions, the Crone had warned her on many occasions, to be less nosy, especially when or if the question was of a personal nature. Quaggy did consider the Crone’s warnings. After all, Sybil was the one in charge for the time being.

In the art of persuasion, no one could match Quagmire Pinch. She had a way of drawing you in to believe whatever she suggested. In the beginning, she did this without the use of Magic, but as her knowledge of the craft increased, her methods were nearly boundless. It might have been the way she shifted her eyes, or the way she smiled, or even her tone of voice. No one really knew why she had this power nor could anyone learn how to mimic it. Worse yet, no one learned how

to avoid it. It was exactly what it was. She neither harmed anyone with it, nor used it for evil means. Nonetheless, she did use it.

The way of a witch’s tutelage is unique. The world around, when a child born into a family shows witchy talents, the parents school her until the age of eight. At that time the parents step aside and another older, wiser witch moves into the home where she will teach, train and prepare the young witch until such time as the young one is a full-fledged, adult witch. This process usually takes another ten years. However, in the case of Quagmire, she was a quick study and ready for the final test three years early.

She was grateful when her parents chose Sibyl Beldam as her instructor. After all, if Sibyl were good enough to train her mother, she was good enough for her. Given time to prove herself, she felt she could and would be a more prominent witch than the Crone.

By no means did Quagmire Pinch suffer humility. As a result of all the praise she received over the years, she thought very highly of herself, which was unusual for a witch, but probably not for one who had shown as much promise as she. Much to the disgruntlement of the Witches Council, she had, for years, accompanied and assisted the Crone on several matters of scrying, which is seeing the future in shiny objects, conjuring and incantations. The Council felt it was inappropriate for such a young witch, who had yet to obtain her academic credentials, to assist on the levels Sibyl had allowed. Still, once the Council had been witness to this student’s expertise, they were more inclined to acquiesce to her and the Crone on the matter. This only added to the young one’s feelings of self-importance, which, at times, would further irritate the elders.

Regardless, she never challenged Sibyl’s authority. Sometimes however, she would answer her tutor’s questions with a quip of disrespect. On those occasions, the Crone would sit her down and firmly explain the true situation, pointing to the express fact that Quagmire had not graduated yet and, until such time, she was not all she imagined herself to be. Luckily, graduation was soon to be here.

The final test was usually a demonstration of an original spell or potion concocted by the student. Part of the test would include a journey to collect ingredients that would require one or more nights spent alone in the forest. Once collected, the student would return home, mix the potion and demonstrate its properties. Upon acceptance of the potion and associated incantations, if any, the instructor issued a diploma. Then, and only then, Quagmire Pinch would be a fullfledged witch. She knew when she had graduated, she would be able to go out on her own and carry out feats no one had seen or could even imagine. In her heart, she knew she was ready.