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Warlock was always a curious child. Even from a young age, he had always asked questions about anything that popped up in his mind, from why the sky was blue to why birds ate worms. He didn’t understand why, why the world was how it was and how it came to be, so he asked.
His mother entertained him at first but quickly got tired of his constant stream of questions. She often just shrugged the question off with an I’m not sure or an I don’t know and told him to go play outside.
His father was rarely even around, and when he was he always told Warlock to go ask his mother, not even looking at him. Warlock wasn’t even sure if he heard the question.
For the first few years of his life, he never got a clear answer to his inquiries, and the questions itched at the back of his head for years, never being able to fully let it go.
–
When Nanny Ashtoreth entered his life, she never brushed him off or redirected him somewhere else. She always answered his questions fully, and Warlock believed her when she answered. He had found that adults had a tendency to lie about things they don’t know, but not Nanny Ashtoreth. When she didn’t know something, she said it, and Warlock believed her when she said it, though it was rare for her not to know something about everything.
When she didn’t know, they spent hours coming up with possible answers to the question. She never laughed at his ideas, in fact, she encouraged him to inquire.
“What are stars made of?” He had asked once.
“Gas; very hot gas.”
“Who put them there?”
Nanny’s face fell slightly like she was starting to miss something. “I did, dear.”
She sounded sad when he heard her say it. It made him believe her.
“I think they look cool,”
She smiled, a rare smile.
“Thank you, dear.”
–
Sometimes Nanny said things that confused Warlock, but he couldn’t find it in him to not believe the words that came out of her mouth, no matter how silly. She was always serious, her voice never wavered when she talked of demonic armies that he was to command, or a hellhound that would be sent to guard him.
“Why do I have to command demonic armies?” He asked one day, while he was laying in bed after Nanny’s usual lullaby.
“I don’t know, but I do know you will be the one to destroy the Earth when it is Time.”
“What if I don’t want to end the world?”
Nanny said something that sounded so simple, but Warlock somehow knew it was somehow Much More Complicated.
“Then don’t.”
–
One time, when his parents were absent and distant, Warlock asked Nanny if he ever bothered her, asking questions when he did.
Nanny was quiet for a long time, and Warlock felt bad for asking.
“Never.”
“You promise?”
She turned toward Warlock.
“Never apologize for being curious, Warlock. You are a very smart boy, and you have much ahead of you. I would never deny you knowledge.”
She looked up, as if thinking about her next words.
“Questions are meant to be asked, Warlock.“
Warlock looked up at the woman. “Why do parents hate when you ask questions?”
Nanny looked up, staring at the sky. “I don’t know.”