From the Witchfinder's Files, Tale I: Snake in Chains

Phyliss smiled softly, as he started to laugh, not in the evil, cruel way he da done days before, but in a way she knew from sane men. Was he getting back to his senses, maybe there was a chance for him, and for her, in conclusion?
"What is it?"

"Nothing, really. I was just thinking how funny this all is - I should have burned you... and here you are, and I am glad you are alive. What did I do? Why did I do that? I have never saved anyone before. And I still think that I was right in doing so.... so what kept me from adding you to that number - and it is quite a considerable number - I don't know. But it was good."

His answer was at least as rambling and confused as the giggles, but it was hard keeping his thoughts straight.

Phyliss, clothes again, and her hair didn't need any fixing, stood close before him.
"It is nice out here, much nicer then the place I've been all the times. How long is it ago since you have traveled?"

"I normally only travel in business. Other than that, I go hunting whenever possible - animals, that is, not witches. You, on the other hand, seem to be one of the traveling people, as far as I know... that would not be a life for me. I need to stay here, and I need to protect the people from clever corrupters hiding in their midst. It is what I do best."

He pulled her a little closer, not only because of the chill of the night. "If you mean I should join you, then I will have to say no, even though it would break my heart to see you leave. My place is here, and I would not last a day out there on the road, doing whatever it is travelling people do. I do not beg, I do not make music and you better believe I do not engage in those...other things."

"You know, I am not a gypsy. I was traveling most of my life, but mostly because I was forced out from the nice, safe places I found. Each time I thought I found a good place to stay in some upperclass setting, there were either some jealous women, some superstitious peasants or some dumb warlord messing everything up."
After she spoke, she realized just what he has said. Sureley, he mistook her earlier life, but what was really important, did he just hint she was free to leave?

Had he just hinted she was free to leave? He had to be going insane. A pleasant form of insanity, but insanity nonetheless. Yes, he was ready to let her go, if she really wanted to. It would pain him, but he would.

"Well, what do you do for a living, then? all the travelers that I know of do very suspect things. Things that drag people into sin or at least tempt them. What is it that a snake-headed woman does?"

The thought of her leaving made him involuntarily hold on to her more strongly, determined to keep her from going away at least for the moment. Later, he would let her, with a heavy heart. For now, she was in his arms, and he was not about to let that change. As he waited for her to answer, his affectionate kisses to her cheek and neck from behind continued, some of the kisses even landing on the snakes. A very odd feeling, those snakes. Scaly, but smooth, they wriggled against his lips. Ticklish, but also somewhat repulsive...if he could bring himself to think about anything on her as "repulsive". He almost had to laugh as one of the snakes actually tried to kiss him back.

Phyliss giggled as she felt him kissing the snakes - not many men dared to do this. She didn't have full control of him, but they would not bite anybody if she didn't want it - so he was perfectly safe. She hugged him as wel,, feeling almost sorry for him now. Thinking of the surrounding, just walking out of here wasn't a to good idea, anyway, even if she would have money, what she didn't have.

"I wasn't so much a traveller as lifestyle. Usually, I was looking for a protector who was rich and powerful enough to keep me as a stead guest. Certainly, I know all the dances, games and smalltalk to be a pleasant company, and I adopted enough etiquette to move among nobility. Especially rich merchants who like to be accepted in the highest ranks do like to show off with splendid parties and illustrous guests - and what could be better then a beautiful lady with snakes on her head? Many people just came to see me. So I did payoff just by my presence, and I perfected my skills in that."

"I am, of course, not rich. Were I to break my vow of poverty like I have broken my vow of chastity, people would notice. I can not show you off. It would be foolish, and endanger you and me. I can offer you very little, except for my love, and, by employing some underhanded means, a modest life. What I can offer you, though, is protection. You would not have to hide your snakes, or anything. I have enough influence to have you declared a miracle instead of a demon. I can convince them you were returned from the dead, with a vision revealing to me your true nature as an angel. The holy scripture has many examples of angels who look much more frightening than you, my beauty..."

A mad, feverish plan. Monstrously blasphemous, to boot. Likely his blatant violation of chastity had inspired him to sin even more. He had damned himself to hell for her, and was more than willing to damn himself further.

"Declared a resurrected angel, no one would dare lay a hand on you. Jealous women would find themselves accused of witchcraft or heresy. You would live, officially, as a mystic, a holy woman. We would know better, of course..."

He was shocked to hear his own words. If this woman really was of Satan, then she had just now tricked him into damnation. What was she that he was willingly risking his soul for her? Was it magic? Was it love? Either way, it made him tremble at the mere thought of it.

Thinking about the words he had just said, he held on to the only one who was present. His arms pressed against her, held the body which he had mangled close to him, the wounds healed, but the memory so very close. He hoped, fervently, that she would agree to his plan. It was insane, and if it did not work, he would burn as a heretic. Even if it did work, it was a terrible sin. He liked it.

Phyliss thought about it, even if it sounded insane. Running away, even in attempted disguise, would be suicide in this area. She doubted that he would be able to get a carriage that would take her out of this countries, on the other hand. What were the remaining options? She could stay in a hole beneath the ground, imprisoned even if he would not imprison her. Not a very nice alternative. Sureley, she could wait for her chance for a safe departure, but what would happen if he should die meanwhile? Nothing to pleasant, for sure. His idea sounded crazy, but it would get her out of the prison, saving her from the danger of accidental discoverey, and give her some freedom and independity. But would it work?
"Is there any chance that it will work? Could you pull it off?"

"To be honest, it is sheer insanity. I am willing to try it because it will make you happy, and because you being with me makes me happy. If it fails, you will have to flee - again - and I will probably face my own trial for heresy, ironically. I am willing to take that risk, though. For you...and for me."

He would have to be very convincing there. Put all his authority and experience at playing to a crowd into saving this woman. It could be done. It would be a lie, a fraud, and - worse - a blasphemous fraud. A fake angel: The wrath of God was sure to hit him with full force for this idea. And yet, he found himself strangely willing to brave even the wrath of God for her. And, closer to home, the wrath of the church. If the deception failed, he could meet a very fitting end in his own torture chamber, or at the stake. He had always been a little curious how his devices felt to their victims, but he was not too keen to find out in person.

"We will take the risk. We will stay here until the morning... then I will return, with you following. It is likely that the townspeople will try to stone you on sight, or do something else foolish. So, be careful not to reveal your face. I will go to my superiors and notify them of a vision I had and followed, whereupon I found you, the supposedly dead demon. I will tell them how the vision had berated me, condemned me for torturing a messenger of the Lord. I will tell them that I had sincerely repented, and been told to find you on that hill."

He was making this up as he went along. He was good at it, and even found a certain fun in it. Too bad his fun was marred at the moment by the thought that if they disbelieved him, she would be on the run again, and he would be on fire within the week.

"Yes, it is dangerous. But if it goes wrong, you could flee with me. Together we would stand a better chance. And there are better places we could go."

She was determined to take that risk. She did not want to hide for the next decades in a small dungeon, alwys being in fear, and unsecure what would happen if he would get older and older.

He was so glad she had agreed to it. Now to putting this mad plan into action... he sealed their decision to go through with it with a kiss.

"It will not dawn until a few hours. Maybe we should sleep until then, so that we are clear of mind and refreshed when we present the townspeople with this lie."

He really was getting a bit tired. He had not slept that night, and the wonderful time with Phyliss had exhausted him somewhat. He laid down on his back, his arm still around her. Although... he could as well use the chance. He pulled her closer, gave her a kiss on the chest, just above her breasts, and hugged her. As his hand stroked her snakes, he said: "An exotic showpiece! You are so much more than that, my dear..."

Phyliss snuggled against him, lying in the arms of the man who had already killed her in the worst way.
"I was trained to be that, first... probably it was meant that i would vanish into some private collection of some rich, kinky owner... but I didn't. I went on, going alone, choosing my places. I guess nobody expected that."

"No...nobody expected that. Vanish into a private collection! That is what I nearly did to you, in a way. At first, I was fully intent on doing that. Keep you for me, to indulge in. It felt wrong. I felt that you are a creature of freedom. You would have withered in that dark hole. Withered even faster than anyone else. And, at first, I would have accepted that. A toy I would throw away in a year or two, and get someone just as good. There is more to you than that. You are more than a toy. Much more."

It felt strange to reveal the darkest contents of his heart towards her, but it also felt like something he had to do. She had to know what he had originally planned. This was the time for honesty, and if it involved telling her that he had fully intended to rape and murder her, then that was what it took. Not that it was a secret to her what he had been planning to do. He had raped her. Other men had... thinking back on it, he felt the weight of his terrible guilt towards her.

"But you have changed your mind now... You did some horrible things, some with me, for sure..but maybe you aren't so bad as you think." She gently slid her hand over his arm. Maybe he was just misguided... She had seen men who were corrupted by power; some of this had treated her very well and even protected her, while they have commited crimes to others, but she never asked about that.

"I do not know if I have changed my mind. I still think that what I am doing is necessary. Evil is hiding among us, and we have to flush it out in whatever way we can. And there is more - others sometimes told me that it was hard for them to hurt people. It never was to me. Something in me actually likes my profession. I may be more of a monster than you - I enjoy doing these things to women, to have them at my mercy, to make them beg. I am a monster who uses his strange urges for good - hunting witches - but I do not deny that I am using something very evil to protect those around me from the devil's agents."

It was ironic, now that he thought about it. In his arms, there was a kind, gentle woman who looked like a demon. And holding her was a man who enjoyed inflicting horrible violence on helpless women, but who looked like a monk - the embodiment of righteousness. It was a full reversal of roles. He had expected to make her confess, and now he was confessing the darkest secrets of his inner life to her.

"I think all the.. people in this village will say I am the monster, not you." She didn't say anything further about that, wondering who that devil would be... it seemed to her that his religion must had the most evil god possible, but maybe with some good work... Well, she had to care for herself now first.

"Yes. Yes, they would. And they would be wrong. I am the tame monster who protects them from the worse ones."

As they were waiting for the sun to come up so they could put their plan into action, he slipped his hand into her top and put it on her right breast. It was very warm, and he could feel her smooth skin on the one side, and the fabric on the other side. He caressed her nipple with his thumb and closed his eyes to think about how he could save her. His words and behaviour once he "reappeared" had to be absolutely perfect for people to give any credence to his explanation. Those damn snakes - they made it so much harder to convince people that she was not a demon. He silently cursed them, even though he had grown fond of them, like he had of every single inch of this woman's body.

Phyliss just closed her eyes and leaned backwards. She felt his hand slightly pressing her full breast, and although they had so much sex before, her nibble hardened as he kept playing with it.

It felt good to rub her under her dress; it distracted him from his gloomy thoughts, and his worries about the insane plan they were about to attempt. That would be in a few hours. Now, he would just keep rubbing and feel her slowly stiffen under his touch. His other hand slid in on the other side, to do the same thing to her left breast.

Phyliss moaned softly as both her breasts gotthe same treatment. His sexual urge was enormous, as if it had be surpresed for a long time. But it wiuld have been easy to get a woman, and to do all he would like to without any fear or remorse... But maybe it was different with her.

He laid back and pulled her over his body, almost like a blanket, her back on his chest and her head close to her mouth. The snakes tickled on his lips as he nuzzled them playfully. Were they poisonous? They seemed quite friendly, but they were still snakes. And could she feel what he was doing to them? He hoped so - all his passion was going into these small kisses, and even though they were placed on a snake's mouth, they were meant for someone else. Someone who was calmly lying on top of him, her heart beating slowly as he intensified his rubbing and spread out his hands over her chest and stomach.

Phyliss laughed softly. The whole situation was so surreal, her tormentor that almost killed her was her only way to survive, and he play with her, with all signs to be in love, and she actually enjoyed it... if he was out of his mind, she was probably too.

For a long time, they just lay there, his hands on her body, his lips playing with the snakes, her body on his... then, a light stripe on the horizon appeared, showing that it was time for them to put the plan into action. Slowly and very reluctantly, he withdrew his hands and lifted her off him, then started to straighten out his clothing.

"If this does not work, be prepared to flee immediately. I will probably be tortured and burned if it goes wrong, but I want you to run in that case. It is enough that one of us ends up dead."

He was quite matter-of-fact about the possiblity of death; he had decided that she was worth risking his life for, and so he would, consequences be damned,

"Will I even have achance to run then?"
She was totally healed, and had all her powers back, still, it was only a small chance to make it to a civilised era where his cult had no power.
"But if I have to, I will at least try."
She hugged him and kissed him on the mouth, preparing to wait.