Work Text:
The acrid smoke still clung to their clothes as they walked through the cobblestone streets in silence. Tang Si kept her eyes fixed ahead, but she could feel the weight of what they’d witnessed pressing down on her chest like a stone. The screams of the innocent woman had finally ceased to echo throughout the town square, but nonetheless continued to ring in Tang Si’s ears. She held the woven basket she was carrying closer to her chest as she tightened her grip in stress.
A sigh from the woman walking beside her pulled her out of her thoughts.
“Another innocent lost,” Qi Shiyi murmured beside her, voice barely audible above the sound of their footsteps as they crossed the low rising bridge, the faint rushing of river water audible below their heels.
Tang Si’s hands trembled slightly as she pulled her raggedy cloak tighter around her shoulders. That word, innocent. Tang Si couldn’t bear to hear that word thrown around knowing the weight it held. The woman that they had just witnessed burned at the stake, accused of consorting with dark forces, witchcraft, a woman both Tang Si and Qi knew only aimed to heal with herbs. But Tang Si… she held secrets that would doom her to the same fate if uncovered.
The lengthy grass bellowed in the dusk spring wind, shadowed weeds flourishing across the edges of the path.
“The townspeople… they all seemed so… eager.” Tang Si replied carefully, ensuring she did her best to cover up the tremble in her voice. Shoulders stiffening as she continued,
“As if they were merely enjoying a festivity.”
Qi’s jaw tightened as she chose her next words carefully.
“Fear makes monsters of us all. They think by burning one, they’ll drive away any lingering sin.”
Qi paused as she and Tang Si approached the forest trail’s fork in the road where their paths diverged.
“But darkness isn’t so easily vanquished.”
There was something different in Qi’s tone. A weight, a certain knowingful aura, that made Tang Si double take back at her. In the dying light of the evening as dusk fell heavier, Qi’s face was cast in shadows as she stared off down the path, expression unreadable.
Tang Si looked down to her feet solemnly as she spoke pensively,
“No, it isn't."
The pair stood at the crossroad for a moment, the silence stretching between them like a cliffhang neither dared to jump. Finally, Qi shifted with her heel to set down the path towards her abode.
As she turned to leave, she heeded over her shoulder,
“...Rest well tonight, Tang Si. Try not to let today’s horrors follow you into sleep.”
“And you as well, Qi.”
Tang Si’s gaze lingered on Qi’s back as her companion’s figure disappeared into the gathering shadows of the deeper forest, before turning on her heel towards her own cottage at the forest’s edge.
⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨ ᰔ ୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
It didn’t take long for Tang Si to reach her own home, her familiar cottage baring into sight as she trudged closer, past the overgrown hedges she had been meaning to trim. Her cottage has always been her little safe place, tucked away from the rest of the world. The maroon roofing beckoned Tang Si back into comfort, as the worn acacia door creaked to make way for Tang Si. Her heels clacked across the flagstone as she pushed her door open gently, met with her cozy and safe home. She set her basket of goods from the town down on her kitchen table as she let the door gently shut. Unbuckling her cloak with a sigh and hanging it on her wall, she tucked her loose strands behind her ear.
The familiar smell of fragrant wax and herbs coddled her like a secure blanket, easing the tension in Tang Si’s shoulders as she began to glide effortlessly across her abode with practiced ease, drifting from cupboard to cupboard as she unpacked her haul. She was out in the town market with Qi when they saw the innocent acquaintance of theirs suffer horribly. Tang Si looked at the jar of jam in her palm as she clenched her fist, steeling her resolve and shelving into the designated spot.
That woman today, Tang Si could sense she was different. She tried to talk to her discreetly, send signals, but alas, her death was inevitable. No matter how long it may be, Tang Si would forever hold guilt close.
With a heavy heart, Tang Si pulled out her trusty wooden bowl and dragged out a jug of water from her stock, pouring it just so it would reach the almost full mark. Selecting the right herbs and shrubs, Tang Si gulped as she poured them all into the water, letting her hand sink into the liquid. She shut her eyes as she swirled her hand once in the water, pulling it out as she saw the water begin to glow golden. Hovering her hand over the surface of the water, start to replay the scene she had seen hours before in the reflection.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t do more to help you.”
With a steady exhale and shutting her eyes, Tang Si began to mutter incantations in a foreign tongue, channelling her energy from her soul to the palm of her hand and thus infusing it into the water. It continued to swirl all on its lonesome as it began to suddenly flicker and replay the scene she had seen hours ago. It even played the sounds, the agonising screams of the woman and the cheers of the crowd. Tang Si flinched as the cries from the crowd going “Burn the witch! Burn the witch!” Grew angrier. The magic flew through Tang Si’s veins as naturally as blood, coming effortlessly but by no means at no cost. As essential and natural as breathing, a part of her she had needed to conceal for her own good, as vital as-
The front door creaked open.
Tang Si’s stomach dropped as she whirled her whole body around at the notice, the magic bowl flaring brightly as Tang Si failed to suppress it. Her heart hammered against her ribs intensely as she stared at Qi Shiyi standing at the doorway, unable to pry her eyes away from the golden liquid on the table. Tang Si couldn’t stop the rush of the panic as she scrambled to cover up her deeds,
No, no, no…
“QI, I, this isn’t what it looks like- I-I swear!!”
Tang Si stumbled across her words, almost tripping over her own legs as she drew closer to Qi. Her mind was racing for a quick explanation, reasoning, anything, that could justify what I had just oh so clearly witnessed. The glow from the bowl had finally begun to flicker and die out, reverting back to still water. But it was too late.
With a blank expression, Qi fully stepped into the cottage and silently shut the door closed behind her, standing in front of Tang Si face to face. Her movements were slow, measured, like someone approaching a frightened animal.
“Tang Si,” Qi said quietly, with not a hint of accusation or fear found in her voice. Only something that almost sounded like relief. She continued to speak,
“How long have you carried this burden alone?”
Qi at this point had gripped Tang Si’s shoulders gently yet firmly, trying to make eye contact though Tang Si refused, looking anywhere but directly at Qi.
Tang Si opened her mouth in a stutter, “I don’t know what you mean,” She said desperately, backing against the table with her hands on its coarse edge. “What you think you saw-”
“Was magic,” Qi completed gently. “True magic, not the hedge witchery they accused that poor woman of today.” She took another step closer, and Tang Si finally had the courage to face Qi clearly. There was no horror in Qi’s expression, no disgust or terror. Instead, there was wholehearted understanding. Compassion.
And… something else.
“Please,” Tang Si forced out a desperate plea, she wasn’t sure if she was begging for mercy or for Qi to run before she involved herself in danger.
“Please don’t–”
“Don’t what? Turn you in?” Qi’s voice was incredulous. “Tang Si, look at me.”
Against her better judgement, Tang Si forced herself to meet Qi’s eyes. They were dark and steady, full of a security that made Tang Si’s chest ache.
“I would never,” Qi said simply, as if it was a plain truth. “Never. Do you understand me?”
“But you don’t understand what this means,” Tang Si said, gesturing helplessly at the cottage around them, at the evidence of her true nature. She could feel herself slip further into deranged fear and helplessness as she droned on,
“What I am. What the townspeople would do to me if they knew.”
Tang Si choked back a terrified sob, unable to hide the terror she felt so deeply.
Qi only looked on sympathetically before speaking after a moment,
“...I understand much deeper than you may think, Tang Si.”
There was something in Qi’s tone that made Tang Si pause, that cut through her impending panic like a honed blade through silk. Qi was looking at her with an expression Tang Si was unable to comprehend, part sorrow, part determination, and something else that made her breath catch.
“Qi?”
Without breaking eye contact, Qi raised her own hand. She whispered words in a language Tang Si recognised but had never heard spoken aloud by another. The ancient tongue, the language of binding and unbinding, of calling and commanding.
Tang Si revelled at the candles in her abode as they flared brighter, as if bending to Qi’s will, their flames stretching to the rafters like spindly fingers. The air around them seemed to buzz with static power, and Tang Si felt a resonating strum in her own magic, as if it recognised a kindred force, one meant to be felt, not vocalised.
Qi’s eyes reflected the dancing firelight, flickering golden for a brief moment as she spoke again with deliberate care, this time with words in the common tongue.
“You are not alone.”
Tang Si couldn’t help but stare dumbfoundedly, as Qi solemnly lowered her hand awaiting Tang Si’s reaction. Qi’s words didn’t register in Tang Si’s head yet, before understanding crashed over her like a vigorous shore wave, leaving her breathless and reeling in shock.
“You’re-” She began.
“A witch, yes.” Qi spoke as the candle flames settled back to normal. "I have been since I was a child. My mother taught me before the fear took hold in our land, before being different became a death sentence."
"But how…? All this time, I never sensed-"
"I learned to hide it well," Qi said with a sad smile. "Perhaps too well. I've watched you these past months, seen the weight you carry, the careful way you choose your words. I suspected, but I wasn't certain until tonight."
Tang Si felt her legs start to buckle under the weight of her body, settling into the nearest table chair and slumping.
“I thought I was the only one, I thought I was alone.”
Qi moved closer, and Tang Si didn’t flinch when her familiar, gentle fingers brushed her cheek.
“You were never alone. And you won’t ever be.”
“They’ll send us to the stake if they find out,” Tang Si whispered lowly beneath her breath as she snaked her hand up to clutch Qi’s hand cupping her cheek. “Both of us.”
From her kneeling position by Tang Si’s knees, Qi reassured, “Then we’ll be careful. We’ll protect each other.”
Qi’s voice was steady and certain. “I promise, we will get through this together.”
Tang Si closed her eyes and nuzzled mindlessly into Qi’s touch, mind too flooded with shock and stress to focus. For the first time in years, the constant knot of fear in her chest began to loosen. The realisation that she had never been alone even when she thought she was brought a soft smile to her lips.
"I tried to warn her," Tang Si said quietly. "The woman who died today. I sent messages, tried to help her escape. But it wasn't enough."
"You did what you could without exposing yourself. That matters." Qi's thumb brushed away a tear Tang Si hadn't realized had fallen. "But now we can do more. Together, we're stronger."
Tang Si opened her eyes and looked down at Qi, really looked at her. The carefully crafted mask Qi always disguises herself in public was gone, revealing her raw and honest self. In her face, Tang Si could see the same loneliness she carried, the same terror concealed to fit in.
After a moment, Tang Si spoke up with a relieved sigh, “How did you know to come back tonight?” Tang Si asked.
A faint blush coloured Qi's cheeks. "I... I felt something. After we parted, I felt drawn back here. I told myself I wanted to check on you after today's horror, but..." She paused, searching for words. "I think perhaps our magic called to each other."
Tang Si felt a warmth spread through her chest that had nothing to do with the candles or the lingering traces of magic in the air. "Perhaps it did."
They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, the weight of revelation and relief settling around them like a shared blanket. Finally, Tang Si spoke again.
"What do we do now?"
Qi smiled, and it was the first truly unguarded expression Tang Si had ever seen on her face. "Now? We make tea. We talk. We plan." Her expression grew more serious. Tang Si squeezed Qi’s hand in agreement, as they both started to get up to start planning. Tang Si grabbed the usual herbs to brew them both some tea, something to calm the nerves. As they began to plan, they both realised just how terrified they used to be, living on the edge thinking they were alone and could get caught at any moment. Seeing all these other innocent women get accused only instilled more terror into their souls, knowing they were so close to suffering the same fate. But now, as they spoke deeper into the night and let the morning light begin to seep in, they knew they’d never be alone again.
Not if they had each other.
⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨ ᰔ ୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹