Once there was a witch. She lived right outside town, a stone's throw from the creek. She raised chickens, and had an extensive garden. She kept fruit trees outside her house expressly so that passerby could have a quick snack.

They say the inside of her house is always changing, due to the fact that she stacks layers upon layers of beautiful murals on every surface. She frequented the town often, giving gifts, advice, and a smile or two to anyone in need. The townspeople all loved her.

There goes Lydia! They would all say. Off to do some good and tend to her garden. Her garden was an interesting topic. She had a stand where she sold her vegetables and spare eggs at a price much too low, and the people loved her more still for it. But they'd also seen her garden. And in the corners, on the walls, there were herbs and spices. Some who'd done research recognized them as various poisons. The people had never seen her use them, but it still reminded them to be a bit wary of the strange woman living just outside of town, a stone's throw from the creek. She was a witch, after all.

Lydia had black cat who lived with her. The cat did not belong to her, exactly, but they lived in the same house. Nobody in town could remember the cat having ever been a kitten, and nobody knew where it came from. Some days, it would follow her into town and sit patiently outside the bakery or at the tailor shop, watching the crowds in the marketplace. The children liked to pet it. It let them.

There was a rumor that a man from a nearby town had tried to steal the poisonous herbs from Lydia's garden. Nobody had seen it happen, so nobody could swear that it was true, but soon after, Lydia appeared in town with two cats. The new cat had brown and grey stripes, and it limped a little for a few days.

When people saw her in town, they'd smile and speak to her. Lydia would return the smile and nod hello. She would often give a snippet of rosemary to those who spoke to her, and the people always took the rosemary for their own gardens. But they began to pass by Lydia's fruit trees without picking, and they never repeated the rumors where a cat might hear.