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Everybody in the village knew about the old house on the Fringe, but nobody knew too much about the two people (were they even people?) living there.
There were rumors, of course, but there were always rumors circulating in a small village such as theirs.
Hazelwood had been founded hundreds of years ago, and was comprised almost entirely of the descendants of the original settlers.
Not many people ever came to visit, and if they did, they never left.
Not because of the picturesque houses or lovely sunsets, and certainly not because of the growls and wails that people swore they heard coming from the woods in the dead of the night.
No, it wasn’t out of any sense of commitment to the place, it was because nobody could ever seem to physically leave.
Sometimes people would try to leave and just pop into existence on the other side of the village, dazed and confused.
Sometimes they would decide subconsciously (though they all knew it wasn’t them who made that decision) to turn around and head back when they got too close to the outside of the Fringe, and arrive home wondering why the residents of Hazelwood all seemed to be stuck in the valley.
The farthest anybody could go was the witches house.
The older of the two inhabitants only spoke in lies, and their very name could make even the bravest of people shudder.
The younger- their child, they all assumed- dressed in dark colors and had mismatched eyes (one green and one purple-ish gray) that looked to be brighter and shinier from those of a typical human.
Everyone called the two of them the witches because many people swore that if you trekked through the forest and managed to find them, they could help you with any issue. For a price, of course.
Cheating spouse? Broken heart? The witches could help with a spell or potion, of course, in exchange for your deepest wish, or darkest secret.
Everyone regarded the witches with a healthy amount of fear, knowing that they knew everything about them and could ruin their lives with ease.
Everyone except one person, that is.
Patton Hart was far too gentle and too kind (or perhaps too naive) to be mean to people who “obviously needed a little kindness, right?”.
And that’s why, when Patton had been getting bullied at school and needed a place to go, he went to the old house.
He had been eleven, running through the forest with tears streaming down his face and a mark on his cheek just beginning to swell.
His gut had seemed to be dragging him towards the house, so he’d listened and followed.
He had hoped he’d be able to find a potion to help him make a friend. Not even multiple friends necessarily, he only needed one. Maybe even a BEST friend. He just wanted one person he’d be able to talk to, to tell everything, to stay up until 3 am laughing so hard his ribs hurt with.
When he burst through the door, with tears drying on his face and clumping his eyelashes together, he’d found another kid walking through the hallway and been surprised.
“Holy heck!” He exclaimed. “You can’t be more than a year older than I am!”.
The child, obviously startled, yelped and whipped towards Patton, baring their teeth in a snarl and making a noise that could only be described as a growl. Patton gasped. The first thing he noticed was the kids strangely pointed ears and elongated canines.
The child flinched, as though expecting Patton to run away in terror.
Instead, Patton bounced on his toes, grinned widely, and started chattering excitedly about how cool and SHARP the other kids teeth were and what is your NAME you seem so COOL and-
The kid, somewhat overwhelmed and absolutely NOT at all relieved that the boy hadn’t run, raised their hands up as if to protect themself from the barrage of questions coming their way.
Patton looked apologetic and chirped “Oh, shoot, sorry, I, uh, I do that… a lot. I’m Patton!”
They smiled hesitantly. “Virgil.” They said quietly, trying to keep any shakiness out of their voice. They hadn't exactly met many people before. “Uh… why are you here?” They asked.
Pattons face fell, and Virgil hastily added “Not that I’m disappointed, but-“
‘Wait, what?’ They thought. They had only just met this (kind, enthusiastic) stranger, why were they so upset to see how sad the boy- Patton- had gotten at that? They shrugged it off as Patton beamed.
“I, uh, was hoping you could help me with something?” Patton asked sheepishly, before shaking his head. “But thats not important right now, who are you?” He asked excitedly.
Virgil smiled. It was small, but it was genuine, and Patton grinned in response. Virgil opened their mouth and began to speak.
After a few hours of them getting to know each other, and a quick move over to the kitchen because Patton was hungry, Patton realized that it was getting late and that he was supposed to have been home hours ago. He doubted anybody would notice, though.
He did his best to keep any bitterness out of his expression, but probably wasn't entirely successful judging by the expression on Virgil's face.
Virgil was hesitant to ask about it, though. They didn't want to scare their new acquaintance(?) off, even if the chances of accidentally doing so seemed to be dropping with every passing moment.
Time continued to pass, and the two grew even more comfortable talking. After a few more hours, Patton's face had grown sore from all of the grinning he'd been doing and Virgil felt comfortable enough to lie upside down on the top of the couch facing towards Patton in a completely relaxed way.
"You can't seriously know how to spell 'effervescent' and not 'Wednesday'!" Virgil said, trying to keep a laugh contained.
Just when Virgil had begun to fear that they had sounded mean and Patton would suddenly hate them, Patton grinned and retorted "I absolutely CAN, and besides, i technically do know how, i jus-" "WITHOUT saying wed-nes-day in your head?" Virgil interjected. "Well, no..." Patton muttered petulantly.
Patton's face suddenly lit up like a Christmas tree. "Well, maybe next time i can't remember, i'll just ask you to SPELL it out for me!" He said, wiggling his eyebrows.
Virgil looked at him, their expression entirely deadpan. "Witch puns? Really?" They asked flatly, managing to keep a straight face for a few more seconds before they suddenly cracked up. Patton giggled, which made Virgil laugh twice as loud because Patton's laughter was the contagious kind.
Patton realized soon that it was nearly 3 am, and they were both laughing until their ribs hurt, and that realization made him feel like bubbles were spreading out from his heart into every part of his body.
Eventually, the subject circled back to the reason Patton had come.
“Do you… well… happen to have a potion for making a friend?” Patton asked them, trying not to sound awkward.
Virgil gave him one of their rare smiles. “I do, actually.” They said, rummaging around in some drawers. They moved around the kitchen quickly, grabbing various things out of jars and mixing them and heating them up with some water. A few minutes later, they turned back and leaned over the counter, setting a steaming mug in front of Patton with a soft plink.
“Is- is this tea?” Patton asked, confused.
“Sure is!” Virgil grinned widely as they propped themself up on their forearms and leaned forward, showing teeth that were just slightly too sharp and long to look entirely human. “Now tell me, Pat. How has your day been?”