Our tale starts with Once Upon a Time, when witches were still burned at the stake, the people not knowing that witches were crucial to their fairytales. This was the time when more fairytales poofed into oblivion and were forgotten. Our remarkable heroine, by the name of Miss Clementine-Anabella, was in fact one of those witches burned at the stake. Or so they hoped she would. Who are "they", you ask? Well, "they" will be explained in good time.
The land in which Clementine lived was ruled by a rather lazy King, whose days were spent playing his music and letting the ministers do the dirty work. But the Prince was different. He loved the people. He loved spending time with them, in particular he loved spending time with a certain girl. They met, when her scarf flew off and smacked him in the face. Upon catching it, he saw a pink-faced girl running towards the scarf. He laughed good-naturedly and gave it back to her.
"Thank you, Prince Jeco," the girl blushed, embarrassed and flustered.
"It was my pleasure, Milady. May I ask your name?"
"Clementine."
Mutual love at first sight is a common thing in fairytales. It just so happens that these two did fall in love at first sight. It was amazing. Hearts beating faster. Colour rising to faces. Smiles gracing features. The wind whipped fragrant cherry petals around the two star-crossed youngsters in spiralling patterns. Pink. The colour of meant to be. It surrounded them, cutting them off from the world.
Blissfully unaware that Clementine was a witch, Jeco said, nervously and awkwardly "Will I see you again?"
"I don't know..." Clementine admitted.
"Meet me at the bridge tomorrow. I have to go now. Farewell, Clementine!" Jeco ran off to the castle, his two tailed coat flying behind him.
A darker entity was watching, filling with a deep jealousy.
"Our love is simply magical, isn't it?" Clementine sighed happily, few months after she and Jeco's first encounter.
"AHA! WITCH!" a voice, unfamiliar and presumably unwelcome, cried, hatred poisoning the air.
Clementine and Jeco both reeled back. Jeco stared at the girl who stood, feet planted on the ground, index pointed fiercely at Clementine, eyes burning with a force to be reckoned with. Her hair, long and luscious, flew around her and her cloak moved with the strengthening wind.
Everyone knew her. She was a witch-hunter's daughter, and though, as a female, was not permitted to be a witch hunter, everyone thought trusting her in such matters was wise, because she was apparently born with witch-hunter's impulse. Little miss Lilly-Anne Brown.
"I'm no witch!" Clementine squeaked, on the defensive.
"What worth do witch's words carry?" Lilly-Anne growled.
"But I'm not a witch!" she insisted. Lies.
"I-is this true?" Jeco cut in.
"She's enchanted you, Your Majesty." declared Lilly-Anne, quite unhelpfully so.
"I promise I haven't!"
"YES SHE HAS!"
"CLEMENTINE WHY?"
"But..."
"WITCH!" Lilly-Anne began to shout,
"WITCH!" echoed the watchers of this horrific scene.
"BURN HER!"
"BURN HER!"
Despite all her kicking and squealing, Clementine was roughly carried off. She could've easily escaped using her witch's magic, but she didn't want to confirm that she was a witch. Her eyes stung and she looked pleadingly at Jeco, who would not return her gaze, his faced lowered to the ground, fists and teeth clenched.
"I, Lilly-Anne Helena Brown, condemn you to burning at the stake for the following crimes: being a witch, lying about not being a witch, knowingly using magic, lying about not using magic, enchanting the prince and lying about not enchanting the prince!" if anyone was a witch, it was Lilly-Anne.
"LET HER BURN! LET HER BURN!" a chorus lead by Lilly-Anne quickly fired up, growing stronger like a flame with an unlimited supply of alchohol-soaked landscape.
A torch was lit. From her position on the tall pole, doused in beer, Clementine could see the flames rising, threatening to reach her. The process was slow, and painful both physically and mentally. She began to cough, the flames eating up the oxygen. Sweat dribbled down her forehead.
"Author, please...." she said, inaudible over the cheers.
The flames weren't backing down. Quite the opposite, really. They came close enough to lick her. But not yet. The moment a single spark would go on her, that would be the end of darling Clementine. She couldn't hold out anymore. Green witch's eyes flashed.
A sizzle went through the rope, it also lighting on fire, due to the beer spilling onto it and being a flammable material on its own. The entire pole lit up. But there was no sign of Clementine.
You did this to her, Lilly-Anne. thought Jeco miserably.
Note[]
Keep in mind the song Witch Hunt by Luka. The entire story is based off that. Except some details.
Also, this is about Clementine-Anabella Pepper and Jeco Sept. Set in a different universe where fairytales are still reality, but before they've realised their importance.