Vasilisa's POV
My mother became worried when I told her I was leaving.
That didn't mean she didn't help me pack.
She just kept muttering things to me about being safe and very careful.
I kept reassuring her that I would be, but that didn't stop her from repeating them over again.
"Just be sure to go far out in the woods to relieve yourself." She would say.
And then she would add "Oh, and this is the one time I'll let you get away with not bathing..."
I would manage a sigh before she would say "Oh, and for goodness sakes, wear layers. It'll get cold at night."
She just had my best intentions at heart, but she was driving me bloody bonkers.
"Mother," I started.
She seemed to be too caught up in making sure I had enough dried meat for the journey.
"Mother." I reassessed.
She stopped and turned to me with an apologetic look.
She sat on the bed and patted the spot next to her. I sat and she ran her thumb over my cheek "You look so much like your father." She muttered reminiscently. "I worry about you, Vasilisa, my child. Your spirit is so much like his, but it will get you into trouble." She took a deep breath.
I opened my mouth, grasping at something to say to make her feel better. My mother was the most amazing woman in the world and she hadn't been dealt the best hand in life. I wished I could make up for it all, and I tried all the time to do so, but it never seemed like it was enough. It never seemed like I did her enough justice.
She seemed to see my inner turmoil and smiled sadly "Don't worry about me now, sweetheart. It's hardly your job. I'm the parent here. Now, have I ever told you the story of my Grandmother Korra?"
I frowned "No." She laughed "Oh, then this will be fun. You see, when she was still alive, and I was a young girl, I would visit her every Monday and Thursday. I loved my Gran, she was...well, eccentric. In fact, rumor had it that she was a witch."
I laughed "Now you're telling me we're witches?" She smiled and went on with her story "Well, one day I came to her to find her with candles lit all about and she was mixing herbs. I was so curious and slowly crept up behind her to see what she was doing. She knew I was there, though, and called for me to come to her. I did and you'll never guess it, she was lighting candles without flint! She wasn't touching them. She'd simply blow..." My mother demonstrated by softly blowing as if preparing to whistle and then carried on "And the wick would catch aflame."
"My Gran would snap and the flame would go out. I was convinced she was a witch like everyone said, but I wasn't scared. Gran would never cast curses on anyone who didn't deserve it." She added. I laughed.
Mom sat there in silence...and moments went by. I looked at her strangely "And?"
My mother raised her brows "And what?"
I scowled "And what happened then?"
My mother inhaled and started up as if being jolted "Oh! And then she taught me how to do it, and as it turned out, the rumors were true."
I stared at her.
What the hell?
Has she been eating mushrooms?
"You're serious?" I asked incredulously.
She nodded and pursed her lips, then she perked and stood, scurrying out of the room. She came back in with a candle.
She smiled at me and whispered while focusing on the wick "Incendia." She blew softly and to my amazement the wick caught a spark, and slowly a small flame was produced. I stared at in awe.
"Holy shit." I whispered.
My snubbed the flame out and set the candle back on her dresser "I never much got past the basics, but then again, I never had a reason to."
I asked, slightly confused "And you're choosing to tell me all of this now?" My mother shrugged as if it were just an every day occurrence "I figured why not now? You needed to get the sadness off your mind and now you have."
I shook my head "And replaced it with this...this...this madness!" My mother made a 'pfft' sound and retorted "Oh please, it's perfectly rational. Witches simply have a greater feel for drawing on energy than the regular human. We can harness the energy with special words and make matter appear. It's like that science your father got you so interested in, except this is much cooler."
I rubbed my temples before grabbing my bag and standing. I needed to meet Scar. I sighed heavily before hugging my mother and kissing her cheek "We will be talking more about this later." I said.
She grinned "Goody! Maybe I can teach you the candle thingy!" She glanced down and then pulled her necklace off and over her head "Here, take this with you. It'll keep you calmer. It's amethyst." Before I could reject it, she'd place the elegant chain over my head with the gemstone gilded to the end.
She lead me to the door "And I know you're going to be busy trying to remain a male, my dear, but do try to have a little bit of fun. It shouldn't be so hard with a man as handsome as Scar." I turned so she couldn't see me blushing and waved from over my shoulder as I headed off to meet Scar at the gate.
I couldn't believe my mother was a witch. Even more unbelievable, I couldn't believe she'd waited 19 years to tell me so.
Scar and I headed off, just the two of us. He told me that there were packs occupying nearly every city along the east side of the country, while the Vampyres occupied the west.
"The whole country?" I asked. I felt a tiny tendril of fear slithering through my peace of mind.
Scar smirked "What? Are you upset you can't run away now?"
I knew he was just joking...didn't I? I tried not to look guilty while shaking my head "No, you would think that we would've heard about the change in city officials by now, though, wouldn't you?"
He raised a brow 'You hadn't?"
I shook my head "No, our town may be big, but it's not nearly as big as some, and I can tell you now, we're hardly up to date on the gossip of other cities. Like," I frowned trying to think of an example "Did you ever hear about the heir to the throne knocking up that stable girl?"
Scar grinned wryly at me and snorted "Who didn't hear about that wagon wreck?"
I nodded "Exactly. By the time our town got wind of the news, the babe had already been born."
He laughed "Well, we have correspondence running up and down the paths all the time so I can promise you, if the heir knocks up any more stable girls, we'll be the first ones to know."
I rolled my eyes and replied dryly "Oh, thank the lord! And here I thought we'd never be accepted into society because we were never as knowledgeable about the latest news as the rest of the country."
"You sound so relieved." He laughed.
I rolled my eyes "Oh believe me, I am."
That night, my mother had not been wrong in it dropping to teeth-chattering temperatures. Scar suggested that we not build a fire, and though I didn't verbally question him, I did think to myself What the hell is he thinking? And then I remembered he's a mythical creature and I'm a girl pretending to be a boy with only a bearskin to cover myself.
I hardly slept at all and when Scar jumped up in the morning he had to shake me a few times to keep me from falling back into exhausted slumber.
When I snapped at him grouchily he pouted and teased me "Oh, did the baby boy not get his beauty sleep? Come on, princess, don't tell me the ground was too hard for you?"
I grumbled "I can't feel my fingers or toes, Scar. Believe it or not, not all of us are shielded from the freezing winds by our magical wolfiness."
He snorted and broke out into laughter "Your terminology never ceases to amaze me, V. Come now, we'll get moving and you'll work the blood back into your hands and feet. We should reach the town by dusk if we travel hard."
I sighed and pulled out my dried meat. I followed  him because I had no other choice and I kept telling myself once I got there I could sleep well into the morning maybe. Whether I really could or not, I probably would.
By the time the sun was in the middle of the skies I collapsed against a tree. Good God. My legs were killing me. Scar turned to me, worried "Are you okay?" He asked.
I nodded slowly, taking deep breaths and closing my eyes "I'm just not exactly up to tracking a good ways across a country in two days as some might be."
He squatted down in front of me "We can set up camp here..." I shook my head and in an achingly slow motion I brought myself to a stand again "No, we'll keep going until we get there. When we do, I'm finding some place inside a building, curling into a ball, and not waking up for half a day."
Scar didn't look amused "If I push you further than you can go you'll be of no use to me then."
I frowned "Whatever use do you need me to be of you on this trip?"
Scar pursed his lips and I saw some childish expression taking over his features "Well...what you said the other day...it kind of made sense...and..."
I realized he wanted me to help him mediate. I tried not to smile when interjecting "Of course I'll help you. I'm not entirely sure I'm the best person to be doing it, but I will try."
He gave a little smile and my heart melted. He looked so young. Why did he have to be here, like this? Why did he have to be a beast?
I knew there was little to no chance of me and my family getting out now, and I knew I couldn't remain a man forever. Someone would notice how I never grew, or how a beard never came in, or how I never took an interest in other women.
It would be best for the truth to come from myself. I tried not to think about what the fallout would be like because it made my stomach knot and left a sour taste in my mouth.
Scar would learn I was a woman before we reached home.