It was an interesting thing, the emotions of a witch. Xander was not an empath, but he was attuned to the magical energy that resided in every living thing. The more powerful the witch, the easier it was to perceive the energy within her. At times it radiated like an aura. There was so much untapped potential within Ashley. So much anger.
And pain.
Even if her thoughts hadn't been too loud to ignore, Xander would have been able to watch the war unfolding within her as she tried to rein in her control. He knew from experience, that wasn't such an easy task for her.
He'd given her carte blanche to ask him anything she liked — a hefty boon from any Faerie — but her first question wasn't actually a question at all. In the same way, his silence was an answer. Xander started to reach for her hand, but the question that did come made him freeze despite the fact that he'd known it would pop up sooner or later.
Even now, that day retained a hold on him. Thirty years was a drop in the bucket. For those blessed with longevity, time truly was relative.
Xander's face changed in a way that had nothing to do with his glamour. He felt the old wounds spark beneath his skin, travelling back much further than a few mere decades. A storm brewed behind his clear blue eyes, turning them a tumultuous gray-blue flecked with silver, as if lightening flashed within. His expression hardened, turned cold and unforgiving. In his youth, there had been a sizzling, unbridled heat to his rages. They had exploded from within him, lashing out with all of the intensity of a solar flare, and over just as quickly, though the repercussions often continued on far longer. Over time, the fire had died and the embers had faded to all but a glow, and a frigid chill had settled deep within his bones. Fire burned, but ice could preserve one's wrath in crystalline perfection.
"Your father found a way to cross the veil into the Faerie realm, and he absconded with a child no older than you were at the time." The storm darkened. A muscle in his jaw ticked. "That he entered Faerie uninvited was a serious transgression. His temerity to steal a babe…." It was an offense punishable by death, at the very least. Not for the first time, Xander regretted that he had not chosen swift justice over his own desire that the warlock suffer for an eternity.
Xander's gaze lifted as he looked at Ashley. His tone softened, but the steel that ran through his words did not weaken. "In time, you will come to learn that there are many magical and wondrous creatures in this world." And in others, he added silently. "Witches are one of them. As a witch, you have the potential to tap into the magic that runs through everything around you, but it is a craft. Your potential lies not only in your own power, but also in your ability to master the skills required to access that magic. Even the strongest witch or warlock cannot access all magic on their own, and there is always a refractory period. That is why your father hungers for more.
"The Fae are not like you. We are not witches." He'd assured her he was not a witch only moments ago. "Witches are humans with the ability to use raw magic. Faeries are arguably the most magical of all creatures. It is what we are. What we are made of. For us, it comes as naturally as breathing does for you. For a warlock to perform a blood magic ritual using the blood of a faerie...it would be disastrous, and an ever deeper perversion of his natural ability."
Xander had had time to research and analyze what he'd witnessed that day, and he thought he'd surmised what the warlock's goals had been. "I believe that, using the strength of that child's blood, your father would have been able to take your powers and the power of any other magic wielder he could, for as long as the spell lasted. And as long as he kept growing stronger…." Without his power being drained, and using Ashley's mother as a magical surge protector, it was possible he could have kept the spell going indefinitely. Xander didn't need to tell her that.
"You...the child he stole...even your mother. You didn't deserve to suffer for his greed."