A message is sent to Madison through Sticky Sticker: "Hehehe, Dear Briar, your presence is requested at the cottage! Hehehe, there is a magical ritual I need your help with. Please come as soon as possible! Hehehe." —Dissonant Hero, Witch Ops Commander Warden Grand Witch Majolica After sending the message, Majolica waited at her cottage for the arrival of her guest. She had no real idea how long it would take for her guest to arrive, but she didn't have much to do right now anyway. The trial had been completed, Akzatraz was under construction and moving along on time thanks to Ivan's help. All she really had to do was plan for the huge outing she had promised. "Hehehe, it's going to be so much fun being with everyone! We can have food and play games, and everyone will be in swim suits! Hehehehe! I'll have to get a new swim suit!" Majolica asked the Witch Frogs to set out some drinks. One of them got to work making fresh lemonade, but also setting out a pitcher of water. Majolica took a glass of lemonade and sipped. "Hehehe, very sweet! Just like I like it!" Setting the glass down on her table, the Grand Witch happily colored as she waited. As she colored, she thought about the ritual she would soon undergo with Briar, the guest she had invited. Honestly, At first, she wasn't sure if she should go through this ritual. It was a taxing one. The amount of effort, physical, mental fortitude to complete the ritual was staggering. And yet, this person had earned it. They had worked had, been a team player when the time was right, and even tried to play nicely. These had been the qualities Majolica had been looking for, but still, this ritual wasn't going to be very fun for her. "Hehehe, well, I guess she earned it so it's fine." Sitting up from her desk, Majolica went out the door. It was a beautiful day in the forest as usual, and Witch Frogs waved at the Grand Witch as she exited. Majolica waved back with a smile as she stepped into the grass. "Hehehe, I guess it's the right thing to do. They're apart of the group now, so it won't do to not go through with it. Hehehehe, she better be appreciated when it's all over though! This is very hard for me! Hehehehe!" Majolica looked towards the forest clearing's entrance. Soon, her guest would arrive. Soon, the ritual would begin. @Madison Freebird
The ping came while Madison was meditating. Not quite fully asleep; just merely sat there focusing on her breathing because she was both A) bored out of her skull, and B) too lazy to do anything about it. The little sticker gifted to her by the @Grand Witch Majolica hummed with a magical energy as it was stuck to the inside of her right ankle. Maddy's eyes fluttered open and took a second to focus while the sticker continued to bug her. Hmm, a bit sooner than expected, she thought to herself as she pulled up her pant leg to get a look at the thing. The sticker itself was a cute little thing, a Lisa Frank job of the most adorable little black cat (actually purple, because the reclusive artist that defined the childhoods of generations doesn't know that darker colors exist) with a rainbow-hued witch's hat resting on top of its grinning, fuzzy noggin. Madison absentmindedly tapped the sticker, more to shut it up than out of any real desire to hear the message contained therein. The Grand Witch's voice rang inside her mind, considerably more pleasant than before now that the plagueslinger and the girl were on friendlier terms. As it turned out, the witch needed Madison's assistance at her little cottage in the woods for some ritual. Pressing the sticker again to record her own message, Madison said, "Sure. I'll be there in a couple hours." With another tap of the cat, she sent it off into the aether. Why Majolica didn't use the in-game messaging system was beyond her. It took Madison half as long to get to the Grand Witch's twisted little cabin than she figured. Amazing how much time you save on travel when you really only have to travel a third or a quarter as long as it would take in the real world. As the crow made her landing in the forest clearing in front of the house, she let out a couple caws to alert Majolica to her arrival. And in a swirl of black feathers scattering in the breeze, Madison rose to her full height, free from her beast form. The dark druid took a step towards the boss of the Witch Ops, brushing a couple errant jet black fluffs off the shoulders of her olive green tunic. "Maj," she greeted the little girl with a nod.
"Hehehe, you made it. Good. I set out some drinks if you want one, hehe, there's super sweet lemonade and water. You can pour yourself a glass if you want, hehehe, but not too much of the lemonade! It's mine! Hehehe. Anyway, I called you here today because there's a very important ritual that you and I must go through. Hehe, it will be very taxing on me. The strain might even be so severe that I pass out! Hehehe, but it needs to be done anyway. So if you want something to drink have a glass, hehe, then let's get started. I'll be over there getting ready." Majolica pointed towards an open area about fifty yards from the cottage. Stretching her arms, she hopped on her broomstick and floated over. Once she got there, she hopped off and stretched her back. "Hehe, okay broomstick, get to work!" The broomstick began drawing a magic circle around the Grand Witch. Majolica watched the broomstick work as she waited for Madison to enter the circle. @Madison Freebird
Madison wasn't quite sure what the Grand Witch was getting at, but her sense of dark curiosity was quietly pushing her sense of caution out the window. The plagueslinger sipped on a glass of water while Majolica's broomstick went to work, scraping an intricate ritual circle around the yladian. Her eyes followed the broom's work as it moved around the clearing. "You didn't mention what kind of ritual this was. Anything terribly dangerous?" Well, of course it was. Why would she have invited me all this way if it weren't? If we succeed, then hey; great job Maddy, here's a promotion and an upgrade in nickname to one of the two you picked out. If not, then we're probably rid of each other. Either way, everyone wins. The look on @Grand Witch Majolica's face indicated that Madison was expected to be inside the circle as well. And so, just to get it over with, Madison complied. She was careful not to scuff her sandals across the magical lines that the yladian's broomstick had drawn in the dirt as she stepped into the circle. "Okay, what now?"
Now that Madison was in the center of the circle, Majolica looked to her. "Hehehe, okay, let's get started." Walking towards Madison, Majolica placed both arms on the side of her shoulder. Then, with a gravity one wouldn't normally expect from The Grand Witch, Majolica looked into Madison's eyes. "Hippity Bippity Bop. A Goblin you are not." Majolica released Madison and took a few steps back. "Phew, hehehe, that was rough." Majolica wiped her forehead. She looked tired. "There, you're not a goblin anymore. Don't go back to being one either. Hehehe, I'm going to go drink lemonade." The ritual was over. @Madison Freebird
Maddy flinched at the Grand Witch's touch, but it was the words that came out of the girl's mouth that surprised her the most. Is... is this an apology of some sort? ...or some kind of admission of acceptance? The plagueslinger stood there, dumbfounded, her mouth hanging open. And just like that, the moment was over. Majolica stepped back, looking absolutely exhausted. ...or is this all just for show... Was a little bit of humility really difficult for her to summon? Madison watched as Majolica left the circle for another glass of lemonade. The woman wasn't far behind, walking away while the magic circle faded into the dirt. "Yeah, you're alright too, Maj," she offered as a sort of verbal truce between the two.