Feel free to comment and vote. I want to hear your opinions.

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He tried walking as quietly as possible through the whining forest. His cold, exposed hands tightened the grip around the broken lantern as he shook from the cold.

His stomach growled, begging him for the food they both knew they couldn't have.

He resented the night.

He couldn't remember how long he had walked, all he remembered was the gold in his pouch and his destination.

The light from his lantern shone upon the bricks leading up to the wooden cabin that nested in a clearing in the middle of the Nightmare Woods. He hated the woods, he hated the night and he hated depending on another. All the more reason he despised himself for what he was about to do.

It left a bitter taste in his mouth when he carefully proceeded to the strange, circular door.

His shaking hand reached out from beneath the lapped cloak.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

"Witch of the Nightmare Woods, I wish to make a trade," He managed to utter.

He waited.

"And what would be your order?" A rusty, old voice wondered.

A pause.

"H-half a dozen potions of poison."

He heard a snicker behind the door.

"And what would I get in return?"

"Two gold for each," he replied shamefully, "I have no more to offer." In which he had gone months in the alleys of the streets by the coast, barely surviving.

The door creaked and slowly opened. "No, no, boy. A dozen pieces of gold is plenty. Would you like to shelter 'till I finish your order?" The Witch wore no hat, no long cloak, only a long-sleeved, black dress that meshed well with her long silver hair. "I will, of course, supply you with food and the like." She added after taking a good look at the young boy who had found his way to her cabin and ordered a peculiar amount of poison.

"Can I?" The boy asked.

"Of course! Poison is the cheapest on my menu. Although I cannot guarantee the most comfortable sleep, you are sure to feel warmer inside."

The young boy seemed suspicious. The Witch was not a nice person from what he had heard. Why would she offer shelter?

He looked up at her face. She smiled maliciously and welcomed him in.

The creaking floor that greeted his feet was covered by a green, circular rug with gold patterns engraved in it.

The air was significantly warmer inside.

Cabinets and bookshelves were pushed up against rectangular walls, and the room was a colorful, organized mess.

Shuffle.

The young boy cautiously stepped back in surprise as a little ... fox? A little creature sprung up from behind a stack of worn-out books. It seemed to be a mix between a fox and a human.

The creature played around with a couple of odd-looking mushrooms it had found between the books.

The Witch closed the door and stuck out a hand. "My payment." She demanded. The young boy turned around and grabbed the leather pouch that was bound to his belt and handed the Witch the generous amount of gold he had stolen.

"Oh," the Witch said. "Mito, would you mind showing our little guest to our spare room?" The little creature saluted from atop of the shelf, jumped down and scuttled over to the young customer.

"What's your name, kid?" The boy was taken aback by the speed of its speech.

"O-Orion," he muttered. "Orion's my name."

"Well then, Orion! You are sure to have a blast in this fantastic castle of mine!" Mito said. "Oh, and you can place that lantern outside."

Orion nodded and hurried over to the door and placed the broken lantern outside.

How he despised the comfortable chamber the Witch had lent him. He was sure that if he angered the Witch, the chamber was to be returned.

Tch.

He hated depending on another.

Mito scuttled around the little room, getting everything ready. "Oi, kid! Six potions of poison seems plenty strange. You sure you're not up to no trouble?"

"It's trouble, alright," Orion sat down on the mattress in the corner covered in pink and yellow pillows. "I'm killing the wizards up by the coast."

"Murder!" Mito cried. "You needn't have six potions for that! A drop of poison from these woods is enough to kill a large man!"

Orion ignored him.

"Hey Mito," he wondered. "How come the Witch offered me shelter?" Mito perked his head up from beneath the pastel green blanket.

"You get what you pay for. The old lady only uses a gram for each healing potion, you offered a lot, kid! Where'd 'you get it?"

"The people by the coast are loaded," Orion sighed.

Mito left for food, a few minutes ago. It left Orion to realize his current state. He hadn't had a shower in ages, and his chances of cutting his hair were cut to nothing ever since the damned wizards came by. He pushed his dirty, caramel-colored hair aside to look at the room he had been granted. He heard the small door to the chamber open and close.

"There you are, kid," Mito handed him a wooden plate with strange-looking meat and a piece of buttered bread. "Eat up!" He said and started chewing on a purple-dotted mushroom.

"Isn't that poisonous?" Orion questioned.

"It sure is, and it's delicious!" Mito exclaimed, taking another bite. "Say, kid. Why would you kill the wizards?"

Orion hesitated. He didn't trust the odd pair he had found in the woods. "Do you have connections with them?"

"Hah! The old lady despises wizards! Foul creatures, she says!"

Orion figured he had no more to lose. "They burned the place down," Mito listened carefully, quite intrigued. "They're all gone, and it's their fault! The bastards!" he cried, grabbing his hair in frustration.

Mito grinned. "Well, ain't this an interesting story," he pulled another mushroom from his pocket. "The first few potions are most likely finished by now. Would you like to try them out?"

Orion heard the Witch snicker behind the door.

"Yeah," he replied, "definitely."

-

I'm not going to continue the story, I have another one in mind. What do think of the different characters?