The Punishment of Kumiko

💚 Rumors have been heard about a witch who lives deep in the forest and keeps to herself. Many have claimed she keeps many riches to herself and have gone to find her, but there are some who come across her home by accident. Regardless, few have been known to return 

💜 Kumiko: (believing these rumors goes looking in the forest for this witch, hoping for more riches beyond her wildness dreams)

💚 The deeper she went, the thicker the vegetarian seemed to be. Trees that grew to cover the sky and bushes scattered throughout the ground could be seen for miles. If one turned their head just right, they might be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of an animal...elves ...maybe one of the centaurs thought to be legend ....or even a spirit spending its day to tend to the life all around. 

💜 Kumiko: (she became more annoyed by the lack of this "witch" the deeper she went, the more vegetation the more she was getting annoyed, the more bugs she would fine the more she just wants to get the riches and go home)

💚 A random nature spirit with long, unruly hair with leaves and twigs scattered around curiously wanders by the stranger that has wandered so deep into the woods ??? : (leaps a to a few feet away) excuse me, miss. Are you lost?

💜 Kumiko: Yes, who wants to know?

💚 ???: just a humble spirit miss, curious about why someone like you is so far in. Trying to find your way to the next town? 

💜 Kumiko: I heard rumors of a witch around these parts

💚 ???: (her curious expression falls to one of dejection) you’re looking for Lady Svana too? 

💜 Kumiko: So that's her name

💚 ???: why are you looking for her, miss? Do you have some sort of business with her? Are you looking for her to provide you with a spell?

💜 Kumiko: More riches

💚 The spirit’s face falls even further, looking at her on with pity. ???: why? 

💜 Kumiko: More riches for our kingdom as a whole..

💚 ???: miss, you must be terribly mistaken to believe one can carry enough riches for a kingdom.

💜 Kumiko: We'll cross that bridge when we get to it (she continues forward)

💚 ???:  and what will you do when you do find her? 

💜 Kumiko: ask her

💚 ???: and depending on her answer? If she doesn’t have any? If she does?

💜 Kumiko: Again, I'll get to that when I'll get to it

💚 ???: (frowns again) Lady Svana will not like you trespassing on her home...especially for such a greedy reason. 

💜 Kumiko: (she just continued forward)

💚 ???: miss, it would be best if you turn back now. 

💜 Kumiko: (she ignores ???)

💚 ???: I beg you, for your own sake you must turn back. 

💜 Kumiko: (she started just going faster)

💚 ???: miss!! Please! Turn back! She WILL curse you!! 

💜 Kumiko: (she didn't even hear her)

💚 ???:.....then this shall be my last warning. If you get past this and insist on proceeding, the consequences to come will be your fault and yours alone. (She raises her arms and a thick wall of thorn bushes break out from the ground. With this manipulation of nature the spirit disappears) At that moment voices could be heard all around, echoing in disapproval 

💜 Kumiko: (she looked pissed at this point, tearing off the thorned branches, not caring for the bloody cuts, as she pushed on through)

💚 The voices just grow louder as she eventually gets through Past the other side of the wall of thorns, the beginning of a path could be seen, stretching for a long distance. 

💜 Kumiko: (she just groaned at the voices at this point, as she pushed on ahead)

💚 The further she got down the path, the more it seemed like the forest tried to push her away. Bushes would be tied together. Animals would suddenly rush at her. Water splashed her from out of nowhere. A tree even fell down right in front of her 

💜 Kumiko: (she pushed forward, becoming more unhinged than the last second)

💜 Kumiko: (she panted from her journey here, as went right up to the door and slammed her hand on the door)

💚 No answer 

💜 Kumiko: Hello?! (Knocks on the door)

💚 ???: LEAVE!!!

💜 Kumiko: ....excuse me??!

💚 ???: you heard me! This is my private property and you are trespassing!! Leave now!! 

💜 Kumiko: ....I did not come here just to be DENIED!! (Knocks again on the door, the blood on her hands staining it)

💚 The door slams open to reveal a woman with long wavy hair dresses in green, looking sorely crossed. This was indeed Svana, the solitary witch of the forest 

💚 Svana: “Just to be denied?” Who do you think you are to assume you can just trespass on my home and demand something as though I am obligated to tend to your every need!? 

💜 Kumiko: I. Am PRINCESS. KUMIKO. YUMANI. FROM THE KINGDOM OF ALEAHIL!

💚 Svana: Well as you can see you’re obviously not in your dear kingdom. This is MY home. And I am NOT obligated to answer to anyone who only wants to take from me, especially a spoiled little ingrate like yourself. 

💜 Kumiko: How DARE YOU! I am a royal figure that demands RESPECT! You should BITE your tongue for such a rude comment from an old hag like yourself!

💚 Svana: (scoffs) every time just proves me right. The majority of people just CAN’T COMPREHEND the fact that I wish to be ALONE! You all believe you can just waltz up to my home and demand me to do something from you! Or even STEAL from me!!! Your greed overtakes your respect, if you even have any left. Listen here brat, the forest does NOT belong to you. Even if it was by your kingdom, you are still just a pathetic greedy mortal. It’s pathetic, you would even take from someone who just wants to be left alone. 

💜 Kumiko: As pathetic as a lonely hag sitting in a cottage in a deep part of the forest doing what? Whispering like a mental patient to plants and animals, living all alone like you can't even handle the outside world. Oh, you poor FUCKING thing...

💚 The voices just get louder as if they’re enraged

💜 Kumiko: See! Like fucking that!

💚 Svana: The outside world as you call it is not nature which was there long before the putrid waste mankind has left. Someone as rotten and stupid as you does not deserve anything from me even if I were willing. Seriously: since when does one person out in solitude have enough for a kingdom? 

💜 Kumiko: Oh my GOD! (she slaps her across the face) Fine, live like a hermit far away from anyone. Why the fuck should I care if you poison yourself out here. Fucking freak. (She begins walking away, looking like she has the moral high ground)

💚 As soon as her hand made contact she felt a searing pain

💜 Kumiko: (she shakes her hand from the pain of the slap, soon noticing a thorn sticking out of it)

💚 Svana’s eyes glow with rage and she lifts her hand Svana: little cretin. Very well, you will get something from me. Only what you deserve. (She mutters in a different language and blasts Kumiko with a spell which knocks her over) 

💜 Kumiko: GAH!! (She stumbles and falls to the ground)

💜 Kumiko: (she just gets back up and brushes off her dress)

—

💚 After a long while, she come across a peculiar spot in the forest. The region was mostly clear around a huge crystal clear lake. It seemed to be relatively small but still stretched a far distance to where more trees can be seen on the other side 

💜 Kumiko: She was so incredibly rude! I hope she gets dragged back to civilization! (she stops her way over to the water to get a sip)

💚 A root grows out of the ground and makes her trip face first into the water 

💜 Kumiko: GAH! (she splashes down into the shallow part of the lake, as she brings herself up) What... what the heck tripped me?! (she didn't realize that her legs were getting scaly)

💚 The root quickly sinks back into the ground 

💜 Kumiko: (she quickly stood back up while looking around the area for the thing that tripped her, her clothes started feeling tighter for some reason, or like they were getting more worn out while her legs seemed to starting to be in a different color)

💜 Kumiko: (she began to stumble a bit, her legs feeling like they weren't bending as well) ><!! (her legs were covered with pink colored scales, as the area around her waist began to expand and tearing the dress slightly) Hm?!

💜 Kumiko: (soon her legs made her stop as they stuck together, making her fall onto the water-soaked sandy ground, as the shallow water soaked her) Wh-WHAT??!! D: (when she fell, her feet began to become longer and thinner, her waist started pushing the gold on her dress away, making them scrape against each other)

💜 Kumiko: (she began trying to push herself up again, but unable to get up due to her legs changing without her knowledge) Come on.. get up! ><! (her skirt soon started tearing, loosening up her dress as the gold began to weigh down and tear the dress more) H-Hm??!! (her elongating feet began to merge together while her bra began to feel more solid)

💜 Kumiko: what...what's going on??! >< (she was only aware because her bra was feeling weird, like it was more solid and pushed against her dress more, as her feet became one big fin, as it looked more like a giant fan in shape. The gold on her dress began breaking off and dangling in some cases, as pieces of her dress were floating on the water)

💜 Kumiko: (then, without warning, the chest part of her dress exploded and tore off her dress, revealing her now marble/pearl white shell bra, it felt much looser than her normal bra) O////O! Wh....what?! (she looked behind herself, only to see her pink tail and her gold-colored fin swaying in the air, as she laid in the torn and broken remains of her dress) H-HOW AM I A MERMAID??!!

💚 At that moment the water around started to move 

💜 Kumiko: (she looked scared as she was practicing flexing her tail, unaware with what the water was doing)

💚 The water gathering around formed into a huge arm that rose   from the middle of the lake. In the blink of an eye it lunged and grabbed Kumiko 

💜 Kumiko: GAH!! DX (she was wiggling and shifting about, trying to get out of this water arm's grasp)

💚 Her struggles were in vain as the water just drags her further down the lake 

💜 Kumiko: (she watched in surprised as she watched how faraway she was getting from the shoreline)

💚 As she was dragged, smaller bits of water grab and rip off what remained of her dress on her 

💜 Kumiko: Bu-But that was made specifically for me!! DX (she felt naked with just a loose shell bra on)

💚 The water paid her no heed, continuing to drag her to the center of the lake 

💜 Kumiko: (she then began trying to swim with her tail away from the center, with little to no luck)

💚 Soon enough she was taken to the very center where the arm had emerged. As soon as she reached there the water arm plunges under, taking Kumiko to the depths of the lake 

💜 Kumiko: (she screamed loudly when she was getting taken under, only to have water rushing into her mouth, it's a good thing then that she could breath underwater now)

💚 Once taken to the very bottom, the arm lets go and seems to disappear 

💜 Kumiko: (she ended up slamming against the surface of the lake) DX (she soon lifted her body up and looked around her)

💚 There seemed to be nothing for a long while, just random schools of fish passing by. Who knew what would be in the entirety of the water? 

💜 Kumiko: (she slowly swam a tiny bit upwards) He...Hello? (she seemed pretty scared)

💚 As she tried to swim to the surface, one or two bits of seaweed seem to try to grab at her, like they want to prevent her from leaving to the surface 

💜 Kumiko: Hm? (she looked down, as she swayed her tail in a way to pull against the seaweed)

💜 Kumiko: (she blinks and tries her best to avoid it, as she begins swimming to the surface, just for a peak to see where exactly she might be)

💜 Kumiko: (she pokes her head out of the surface of the water, franticly looking around to see if there was any land close by)

💚 The sights had not changed. Land was still in sight on all sides of the lake, though it would still be a great distance 

💜 Kumiko: (she sighs as she dives back down and picks a random direction to swim in, just wanting to go back on a beach to try to change back)

💜 Kumiko: (she continues swimming some more, getting closer to the seafloor because she felt more comfortable swimming closer to it)

💜 Kumiko: (she didn't realize it until she swam into it, but she soon was swimming through a field of seaweed)

That bit of seaweed grabbed onto her tightly as if it was determined not to let her go

💜 Kumiko: (she blinked as she landed in the field of seaweed around her as she looked back to see the seaweed on her) Wha-Why do this to me??

💚 Of course, no answer would come from it 

💜 Kumiko: (she began to grab the seaweed and trying to pull on it)

💜 Kumiko: (she was able to get free, as she soon swam faster to the shore, eventually making it on land as she crawls out of the water when she could no longer swim)

💚 A lot of time seems to pass by

💜 Kumiko: ...why am I not turning back?... My tail feels so ITCHY! ><

💜 Kumiko: .......AAAGH! D8< Turn back already! (she slammed her fin on to the sandy ground)

💚 No matter how long she stay....the tail would not become legs again  

💜 Kumiko: ...you have got to be kidding me... no.. did-...did that bitch really do this... to ME??!!!

💚 The water once again grabs Kumiko and drags her to the bottom of the lake 

💜 Kumiko: Oh COME ON!!! DX (she tries to fight against it)

💚 It’s no use. She gets dragged to the very bottom 

💜 Kumiko: (she lays on the ground, crossing her arms and pouting) I refuse to be a mermaid of this lake!

— end —