*Flashback*
A very little Evie traveled through the woods near her home. She knew she shouldn’t stray far, but she loved the little bit of freedom. Picking at the berries, she sang sweetly to the flowers nearby.
“Little things, Little things, grow up big and strong.”
Her mother always told her that singing to flowers helped them grow. She didn’t know if that was true, but she didn’t want to take any chances. Bending too far down, her berries fell from her basket. She sighed heavily because she’d worked so hard picking them for her mom. She bent down to pick them up, and suddenly saw a pair of boots. They were large and scuffed, and something about them made her uncomfortable.
“Do you need any help?” A harsh voice called from above.
She looked up slowly to a man looking at her. He was tall, and lanky, his body reminding her of a tree during winter. His eyebrows bushy, his face wrinkled even though he didn’t look that old. Evie backed away from the strange man.
“N-no thank you,” she said softly.
Just like his shoes, his voice made something inside her very uncomfortable. The man frowned, “Oh okay…I just wanted to help.”
Reaching down, he picked up a few of her berries and outstretched his calloused hand to her. She didn’t take them.
“My mom said not to talk to strangers.”
He smiled an awful smile, and her stomach sank to her shoes.
“Your mother is very wise. How about we become friends then? My name is Apep, what’s yours my dear?”
Evie found herself conflicted. On one hand, her mother had warned her never to speak to anyone she didn’t know, on the other, she’d also taught her to never be rude. Since the man told her his name, wouldn’t it be rude not to tell him hers?
“M-my name is Evie,” she said finally.
“Well, that’s a beautiful name.”
Evie hated the way his teeth seemed to coil inside his mouth.
“I should get home,” she said, turning, wanting to get away fast. From behind she heard sobs, she turned to find Apep crying. “What’s wrong?” She said concerned.
He slowly wiped his eyes, “It’s just…I know a secret and it’s a very sad one. Some people are going to get hurt, and I don’t know if I should tell.”
Evie's eyes widened in shock, “You have to tell them, mister! You can’t let people get hurt when you can do something.”
He sighed and scratched his head, and she saw white flakes fall from it, “You’re right. I should tell the necromancers; someone is going to try to harm them.”
A chill went up to her little spine, “I-I’m a necromancer.”
Apep clutched his chest and covered his mouth, “I-I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“NO! TELL ME PLEASE. WHO'S GOING TO HURT US!”
“No Evie my pet, it’s much too dangerous.” He turned, and Evie grabbed onto his dirtied cloak as he smiled that awful smile, “He’s a very strong sorcerer, his power stronger than all the necromancers combined. I’m afraid you all won’t survive when he attacks.”
Evie’s eyes watered, she didn’t want to die. Her mother, her father, all her friends? Everybody would perish, she didn’t understand why someone would want to hurt them.
“Why does he want to hurt us? We never do anything to anyone.” She couldn’t imagine anyone who betrays another intentionally.
“He said that one of you betrayed him, and now everyone must suffer. I’m sorry to bear this horrible news. I wish that I could help, but even I am not strong enough to beat him.” He put his finger to his chin, “Unless…no, no that’s not a good idea.”
Frantically, Evie raised her hands, “WHAT! WHAT'S NOT A GOOD IDEA?”
“No…no… I could never give you that much responsibility. Though it would be a lie if I said you couldn’t save everyone if I did.”
Her child sized eyes widened, “Me? What can I do?”
“I could enhance your powers, and you could defeat the bad man.”
“Are you a sorcerer too?”
He patted her on the shoulder, “I’m sort of one. I’m not very strong but if I gave you all my magic, it would make you strong enough.”
“But why would you do that to save people you don’t know?” Apep bent down to face Evie, and she could smell his rotted breath.
“Because now that we’re friends, I want to help you and your family.”
Were they really friends? Evie wasn’t so sure. She just met him, and he made her feel weird. Still, it was pretty generous for him to give up his powers to help her and her family.
“Thank you Apep. I will do it.”
He sighed, “There’s just one thing. Without my powers, I’ll be very weak. I won’t be able to protect myself, I’ll need someone to take care of me.”
“I’m sure my mother w-”
“NO!” He shouted so loudly he scared her. Apep soothed her arms, “I need someone who's really, really strong. Someone who will be able to defeat the sorcerer if he came looking for me for revenge.”
Evie thought about it for a moment and in a small voice, she said, “I-I could take care of you.”
He smiled, “You would do that for me?”
Evie nodded her head yes. It was the least she could do.
“That makes me so happy Evie! I won’t have to be alone…but then…”
“What?”
“Well…what happens when you marry? Your husband wouldn’t want to live with a crummy weak old man like me.”
“THEN I WON’T MARRY!”
“Or…you could marry me.”
Evie took a step back and Apep stood and folded his arms to his chest. Her bottom lip dropped, and she looked at him in shock. With his wrinkled face, calloused hands, he was far too old for her.
“Of course, not until you’re older. Until then, you can stay with your family. Your mom, your dad, your friends. You can spend time with them because they’ll still be alive, Evie. They’ll still be alive because of you."
Evie knew how much her mother sacrificed. How much she gave up making sure she was born into love. Everybody worked so hard to protect her, how could she not sacrifice in return? A very little Evie took a breath.
“Okay…I’ll marry you.”
Apep danced with glee, “That makes me very happy to hear!” He closed his hands over one of the berries, when he opened it, it glowed. “Quickly, swallow this. Hurry before the magic disappears!”
Evie snatched it from his hand and quickly swallowed the fruit, “I-I don’t feel anything.”
“In the morning you will. You’ll be stronger and be able to do things no other necromancer can do. Then when the time comes for you to defeat the man, you will be able to do it easily and save everyone.” Evie nodded her head excitedly. “Now hurry on back home, make sure you warn your parents. Make sure you tell them about your friend Apep. Most importantly, make sure you tell them about the deal you've made.”
As he watched Evie run from the woods, he couldn't help but grin. Apep waved his hands over his body. His features changed, he was younger, all that was dirty now clean. He laughed as he rejoiced, his plan working effortlessly.
“One down, one to go,” he said as he made his way to his next destination.