Lilly Cobb
This was a request for Waldorkler, a short story involving their OC. Thanks for the request!
https://lilly-cobb.tumblr.com/
Lilly Cobb
The vapors of a dream drifted up from the dying embers of a violet cigar; the various aristocratic faces caught in the curling tails of smoke began to fade as the young Lilly Cobb stirred. She had fallen asleep in the parlor, lying face first on an antique settee, patterned in wilting silk flowers. Her cigar holder rested precariously between two thin fingers, threatening to catch the rug on fire. She couldn’t decide if the mansion set ablaze would be an awful way to go or not, there was something appealing with the idea of the Cobb Estate pershing in a glorious blaze with it’s last remaining occupant. Yet, she thought again that perhaps it should remain standing as the largest mausoleum in history, a hollow symbol that stood for the loss of an entire lineage.
The Cobb family had been cursed. The entire bloodline had slowly began to vanish, as one by one each member had perished, until the sole remaining member was the young Lilly Cobb. Lilly was not a lonely girl, for whatever reason, the spirits of her late family still roamed the estate. It was not quite the same as when they had been alive, the large estate that had been filled with the constant bustle of life was quieter now, but even so she was never in want for company.
Lilly stretched and pulled the twirls and tangles from her long lavender hair, retrieving her lacy head wear that had fallen to floor. She collected herself, lit another cigar, and began to explore the mansion to see if she could find any of her family and discover what they might be up to. With no purpose in her mind, she eventually came to the nursery. It was made up of two large, adjoining rooms. One was the play area and the other filled with bassinets and small beds. She admired the room that had once held her and many small cousins for generations. She noticed some toys were strewn about the floor and one of the rocking chairs was slowly coming to a stop. Oddly enough, the room was empty. Emptier than a home filled with wandering spirits could be, that is. It was strange, but she moved on chasing the phantom smell of something cooking downstairs.
China lined the entire length of the long dining table. The other banquet tables had been brought out and were also set up, as if to reenact a family gathering. As of late this display was something normally that was reserved only for the rare guests, that occasionally wandered into the mansion. The faint smell of food she had followed downstairs was gone and the dishes remained as vacant as the chairs set before them. Interesting.
The members of Lilly’s families all spent the afterlife in their own way. Some liked to try to rekindle the pleasures or habits they had had when they were alive, with varying levels of success. It was difficult to imbibe earthly pleasures when one was essentially hollow, after all. Others had not taken as well to their new state, despite being in the warm presence of family. They wallowed in their sorrow or madness and displayed uncouth or even violent tendencies. Yet, Lilly only had a smile waiting for them, because what else could she do. Today it seemed she’d find no one in the dining room or kitchen areas so she moved on again.
Before she could return upstairs she saw a flash of light and made a new discovery of her old home. The flickering light illuminated an invisible space between the wall. She ran her fingers over the floral wallpaper until she felt air hit her finger tips. She gave the wall a gentle push, something clicked and the door came open. A gleeful surge came over her as she entered the narrow passage. It was completely dark except for a glowing ball at her feet. It must have rolled down the path and created the light she had seen, the crystal orb bumping on the uneven floorboards. She picked it up and found it was very cold, it’s innards swirling with a pretty white smoke. She used it to light her way down the hall that had more turns than she was anticipating. Lilly followed on, barely able to make out some old portraits of family members she had never seen before. Other odd trinkets like clocks or a compasses were also encased in shadow boxes on the wall, defeating their purpose.
Eventually she came to a room and saw a glowing claw on the table that must hold the orb she carried. She placed it into the hand and the room lit up with star light. Tiny lights began to twinkle throughout the room, a candelabra and sconces on the wall ignited with soft flames until the room was bright with flickering pastel shades of blue, green, lavender, pink and orange-red flames. Now she could see all that awaited her in the room.
Books lined shelves that encircled the room in all the languages of the world, and some that were a world apart. Small herbs and mushrooms grew in a garden that thrived in darkness. Rocks with strange symbols and crystals of all kinds were sorted into slots and glass vials. Cabinets were filled with jars and objects that were labeled with numbers and letters. There was more too, in chests and in alcoves, hanging from the wall and ceilings. All of it, the entire room carried a smell she had never known until now, but she knew it surely, Magic.
Uncertain of how much life she had left to claim Lilly was ecstatic at the prospect of this new hobby. What girl wouldn’t want to study the wonders and potential esoteric horrors of magic? It was determined instantly in Lilly Cobb’s mind that she would become a witch. That task would be proven easier said than done, shortly.
The first part was organizing, she had to sort the piles of notes and books into an order she could use. First were the books that were written in languages she could understand, and those were sorted into what contents she could even begin to comprehend. This severely narrowed down the resources she could use, but that was helpful in it’s own way. Finally she settled down into trying to decode the notes and books, taking notes of her own. Trying to break the frustrating shorthand took hours, and Lilly found herself tired before even beginning to reach the lower branches understanding. She closed her books and rubbed her eyes. She went off to find food or rest, whichever came to her first, carefully closing the passage behind her, in case any relatives had any ideas about disorganizing her notes. As she began to make her way upstairs once again, she heard a voice.
“Lilly,” It called to her in a high feminine voice she did not recognize. She approached the hand calling from a darkened corridor at the end of a hall. “This should help you.” The voice told her, handing over a blue book with silver moon embossed on it’s moleskin surface. Lilly looked up from the book to say thank you, but the darkness had vanished and so had the pale reaching hand. It must have been a relative she hadn’t met she reasoned, and thought that they might have had something to do with the crystal ball that lead her to the secret room in the first place. After all it was unlikely that ball had rolled off the table and through all those twists and turns on its own.
The next time Lilly entered the room she had the blue book, and when she opened it things began to click. It was written as guide for someone without understanding, and contained an index of simple enchantments and spells. Lilly found the idea of a new wardrobe appealing, specifically for when she was here in the Witches’ Lair. It was as good a starting point as any.
Following the instructions carefully, reading them three or four times, Lilly took spider’s silk from a vial and placed it on old spinning wheel. Chanting a few clumsy words while touching it’s surface, it began to work on it’s own and would make the process far easier. When it gave her piles and piles of gossamer thread, far more than she should have been able to yield. She placed the soft, silky pile carefully on a dressforms’, headless, neck and began to envision what it was she wanted. But first she would need a wand.
She took her cigar holder, and dipped it into a smoking poultice she had made from strange herbs with strange symbols in their names. Then she held it over a flame until the whole of it turned burning orange, yet it never warped or turned to ash. She whispered a few words, and a small puff of visible air came from her lips wrapped around the holder and began to spark. She took it between her fingers, held it up to the mass of thread, ready to test that she had done everything correctly.
She said the words that needed saying, and the thread began to work it’s way down the form like water. She played with the layers, moving her wand like a conductor, shifting the shape this way and that. Finally, with sweat fresh on her brow she was finished. She took the outfit from the dress form and slipped it on, it had an icy burn from the fresh magic still crawling over it’s stitching. Lilly stood before the mirror and admired herself, a proper conical hat with a wide brim and a dress that lightly sparkled, maintaining the webbed pattern from the spider’s silk, with flowing sleeves. The outfit was of course purple, and brought out the stunning shade of her features.
Tired, but overjoyed in her success, Lilly retired her spellcraft for today. Cleaning up her newfound workspace, she felt eager to to begin conquering her next feat. One a little more difficult, not to mention dangerous. She could already picture it, sailing over the estate, casting a shadow over the moonlit graves.
A few weeks had past, but Lilly was finally ready. With a flick of her wand her cannon began to glow and spark. She had tried to enchant this thing a few times before, and each time at this stage it always went wrong. The last attempt had nearly destroyed the cannon. This time she knew she had it, without breaking connection, she lifted her arms up and then brought them down commanding a cascade of energy onto the cannon. She caught her breath, looking at the cannon, before grinning. This was it.
Lilly Cobb adjusted her cannon skyward before sliding her legs in. She angled herself over the rim while pointing her cigar holder-wand back at the fuse. With a single word the fuse ignited, and so too did the young girl’s heart. She settled into the cannon and looked up at the sparkling sky. She closed her eyes, took a serene breath and felt the blast begin at her feet. The boom of thunder, the crack of lightning, and Lilly flew across the horizon. Up and up the magic carried her until the heat of the had blast faded away. Lilly kept her eyes on the stars, the world leagues behind her, and smiled again. Soon she would be among the cosmos. A dying smoke trail and a faint twinkle beside the moon would be all that was left behind.