Someone knocked on the bog witch’s door. Azami was wearing pajamas even though it was ten in the afternoon. She was brushing her teeth when she waved her wand and opened the door. From her bathroom, she cried out, “Who is it?”

  A young lizardfolk was standing there. He wore a short-sleeved white collared shirt, his head spines had been neatly brushed to the side, so it looked like a hair part. He wiped the sweat off his brow with a rag and slipped the rag back into his neatly tucked khaki pants.

  “I said, who is it!?” Azami called out from the bathroom again.

  “Uh, ma’am? My name is Lizal Fus. My friends call me Lizel.”

  Azami came out brushing the morning frizz out of her hair, “Well, hello, Mr. Fus, what may I do for you? You know it’s not very polite to interrupt a witch before she’s ready.”

  “I’m so sorry, ma’am. May I ask, what was it you were getting ready for?”

  “Nothing of importance, but that’s when I like to look my best!”

  Lizel let out a laugh, “Well, I was coming by because I knew you were a witch and I had something you just absolutely needed to see.”

  “Oh, no.” Azami looked past the lizardfolk to her garden, “I’m so sorry. I have to see this.”

  She walked past the man and stared down at two purple flowers. She bent down, still brushing her hair, “Two bulbs. Do you see this? Two bulbs!”

  “Y-yeas, Ma’am. I see this. I don’t know what that means.”

  “Don’t you know your flowers?” Azami asked, “This is a hydra-drangea. You’re not supposed to cut the heads off willy-nilly; they’ll grow two more. You don’t keep up on it, then it’ll start to grow like a weed.”

  “I see eight bulbs.”

  “Very astute, young man. Now I know for sure you can count to eight. The fact is that I started with one a week ago. That means somebody or something is taking my bulbs.”

  “Ma’am. I believe I have something that might fix your problem?”

  “You might?”

  It was like that activated the lizardfolk. Lizel lifted his hands and braced in the middle of the garden, “Yes! Let me get it from my bag.”

  He had the kind of drawl that lizard folk got. It was like their cold-bloodedness affected their speech. Everything took its sweet time. The lizard folk reached into his black bag and pulled out a purple tome.

  ‘You see, I’m selling the Dark Lord’s Edition of the Necronomicon, and I figured since you was a witch-”

  “Pass. Thank you for the offer.” Azami looked down at her garden again.

  “I… oh. Well, ma'am. It’s a brand new edition with new spells and edicts. Said to be freshly printed right before his disappearance.”

  Azami smiled, “I’m sure it was. But no, thank you. Have a nice day.”

  The lizard stroked his forehead one more time, “As you wish, miss. Sorry to bother.”

  Azami saw that this poor young lizard folk was dabbing his perspiring forehead with a well-soaked sweat rag. Azami let out a sigh.

  Lizel picked up his bag of books and began to walk out. He was so tired that he took a break right at the edge of Azami’s property. He rested his case along the apple tree and took a breather.

  “Young man?” Azami asked, “Young man?”

  The lizardolk turned and covered his eyes from the beating sun. Azami rolled her eyes gently and called Swiff over. Swiff picked her up and flew her to the lizardfolk’s spot in an instant. The cool wind from the broom felt like a tonic to the lizarfolk’s wet skin.

  “You look like you’ve been walking all day, Mr. Fus. Would you like to come in from some sun tea?”

  “Ma’am, that’d be awful kind of you. Thank you.”

  Azami turned her broom around and followed inside. Lizel followed her with the bag.

  “Leave the bag,” Said Azami. She waved her wand, and the bag sprouted legs and walked behind Lizel.

  He walked inside her cozy cabin. Since it was hot outside, she had an icy fireplace. Instead of logs that were burning, three timbers covered in snow were cooling down the house. Azami waved her wand, and a pitcher with a miniature sun inside of it and glass bounced along the countertop and poured itself.

  “I heard you was good.”

  “You don’t get topside much?” She asked.

  “No, ma’am. I’m from a little burrow in the Underdark. Mostly just us lizardfolk.”

  “Mr. Fus.”

  “No, please. Just call me, Lizel, miss.”

  “Lizel… and please, call me Azami.

  “Azami. We all hearda you in the Underdark. ‘The Bog Witch.’"

  Azami smiled, “I do love my bog."

  “You don’t seem nasty like no witch I ever heard of.”

  Azami laughed, “Not all witches are nasty. The ones that are… they don’t have enough hobbies.”

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Gardening is your hobby?”

  “Gardening is my life.” Said Azami, “Speaking of.” Azami got up and stepped out of the house without saying another word to Lizel. Lizel picked up the pitcher and watched her through the window. She got on her hands and knees and peered down into the garden.

  “SON OF FEMALE WEREWOLF!” She banged at the ground.

  Lizel came rushing out of the house, “What’s wrong?”

  She revealed flowers she was perched in front of. They were red and white and lightly on fire.

  “My flaming tulips. They’re missing a bulb too. You know what this means, don’t you?”

  She stood up.

  “Uh, no. What does it mean?”

  “Say, you’re a tall, lanky boy. Would you be willing to do something for me?”

  “S-sure. What is it?”

  And so, Lizel peered into a pitch black burrow, nestled in the ground under a tree. He tried to look in, but it was too black, even for his dark vision.

  “You want me to check inside there?” He asked.

  “Could you please? You’re skinny enough for it. I’d send my broom but, well, he doesn’t have eyes.”

  Lizel looked at Azami’s pleading face and nodded. He got down on his hands and knees and tucked his way inside the burrow. It was a tight squeeze, but he managed to shimmy further in. When he turned the corner of the cramped tunnel, he saw that the burrow opened up to a bigger room.

  In the center, a tiny goblet bubbled, and a little mammal with a spiny back and a large brimmed hat was plucking the flaming petals from the tulip and placing them in the goblet. A tiny smoke bloomed from the goblet, it entered Lizel’s nose, and he sneezed.

  The hedgehog turned around and noticed Lizel.

  “Yeeeowch!”

  Azami waved her wand, individually pulling the spines out of Lizel’s face.

  “Ahh!” Lizel said as Azami waved her wand again.

  “Sorry about that. I had my suspicions, but now it’s confirmed.”

  “What was that thing?” Lizel asked.

  “That’s a hedgewitchhog. When a hedgehog makes its home near a witch, it eventually starts mimicking them. They’re the ones who have been taking my hydra-drangeas.”

  “And your Flaming Tulips. Ouch.”

  Azami plucked another spike out of Lizel, “And my black marigolds.”

  “So… how do you plan on getting rid of the thing? We get these possums in the underdark when we leave trash out. What we do is-”

  “Get rid of!?” Azami looked offended, “They have just as much right to their home as I do to mine. No. I don’t want to get rid of them. If they start mixing potions wrong, it could blow up this side of the Fierce Forest. Not to mention having some respect for my garden.”

  “So what do ya plan to do?”

  Azami smiled, “I plan to teach them.”

  Azami turned around, she was wearing her white overcoat and goggles. She held out her hands, and her gloves magically came on.

  The hedgewitchhog stared up at her with big eyes.

  “Now!” Azami said.

  Lizel sat in the corner of the cabin, feeling a lot cooler having been in Azami’s cabin for an hour now. He poured himself another glass of Azami’s sun tea. The mini sun inside the pitcher gently rolled to the bottom as he filled his glass. He was fitting to leave but decided to stay for the free alchemy lesson.

  The hedgewitchhog had its goblet over a tiny campfire on Azami’s counter.

  “Okay!” Azami said, “Let’s make a simple health potion. Take your powdered newt snoot. And put a dash into your goblet.”

  The little critter wrapped its two arms around the powdered vial and poured it into the goblet.

  “Mix that in. As that cooks, mash your lavendwarfs with your black marigold petals."

  The hedgehog picked up their pestle and smashed the petals with the mortar until they were smashed up.

  “Now, once the newt snoot is up to a boil, mix in the powder and drip in the hibiscus syrup for the red color.”

  The hedgehog did exactly that. “And stir.” Azami waved her wand, and the stirring happened on its own, “You’re allowed to cheat.”

  The hedgewitchhog took out its branch and flicked it like a wand.

  The whisk did not move on its own. Azami twirled her wand, “You’ll get there.”

  After ten more minutes, the liquid was reduced to a boil, and what was left was a dark red health potion.

  “Now, we bottle this. There we go. And hand it to Lizel.” Once Azami finished bottling it, she handed it to the critter. The vial was half its body size. The hedgehog was leaning back, waddling to the other end of the counter where Lizel received it.

  “Thank you, kindly.” Said Lizel as he grabbed the vial and drank it. He felt the tiny holes made by the hedgehog close up, the pain slowly disappearing. He grabbed his face, “Wow! It worked great!”

  “There we go!” She looked at her new pupil, “Now, I want you to come to me if there’s ever anything you want to know about recipes or potions or magic… come to me. But if I’m not available… maybe there’s some kind of guide you can buy.”

  Azami smiled as she looked at Lizel, who had a dumb smile on his face, “What’s the guide?” He asked.

  Azami’s smile dropped, “Your book, dummy.”

  “Oh!” He reached into his bag and pulled out the Dark Lord’s Necronomicon. “You got money, little one?”

  Lizel looked at the bushels of berries the hedgewitchhog used to pay instead of money, “It ain’t much, but it’s a living.” He placed it in his black bag. The sun had begun to set.

  “Thank you for the help today!” Azami said.

  “Are you kidding? Thank you!”

  “Well, I should get to bed. I’ve got a lot of books to read.”

  Lizel smiled and waggled the book in his hand, “I got a book you could read.”

  Azami shook her head and rolled her eyes.

  “It’s not just potions! It’s scriptures from the Dark Lord’s teachings.”

  “I’ve heard enough from him.” Said Azami, waving her hand.

  “Y’all were friends, weren’t you?”

  “Good friends."

  “Do you miss him?"

  Azami shook her head, “He’ll be back.”

  “You know that for a fact?”

  Azami nodded her head, “Yeah. I’ve got faith.”

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