Layla Witch of the Black Moon by Kate Bowen
Layla was born under a black moon, deep in a hidden wood surrounded by yew trees. Her mother was alone, save for the animal familiars and tree spirits of the land. She did not live long past Layla’s first breath, but in that brief time, she was able to cast a protection spell over her sweet baby girl. Layla’s mother kissed her softly three times across her face, leaving a birthmark in the trace of each kiss. Along with the whispered spell, these marks acted as sigils to safeguard Layla against harm.
As soon as Layla’s mother transitioned from this realm to the next, a storm began. It came abruptly, with thunderous claps, cracks of lightning, and the cries of the newborn baby, but it passed as quickly as it arrived. In its wake, a cluster of purple mushrooms grew rapidly, first forming a large, glowing fairy ring around Layla and her mother. Then, another colony of mushrooms, this time electric blue sprouted around and under the baby, creating a tiny bassinet of sorts. Field mice gathered moss, and ravens stitched together a blanket from the moss to swaddle the infant. The tree spirits, along with her animal and fungi friends, kept watch all night long to ensure her safety.
Layla grew up as an outcast, shunned by many. From the night of her birth, she maintained a deep, unbreakable bond with the animals and mushrooms around her—a connection that others found unsettling. What was natural to her seemed anything but to those in the community. So, like many witches, she found a place on the edge of the woods where she could live in peace. With her hair tangled in moonlight, dancing to the sounds of the nighttime orchestra of flora and fauna, she felt most free.
Though Layla may be known as a dark witch, her magic is not rooted in harm. Instead, it draws from the very things many fear. Her power flourishes in the shadows, where others dare not tread, thriving on the unseen forces and forgotten whispers of the world. She mixes potions by candlelight and tends to a mushroom sanctuary hidden beneath her floorboards, growing every variety of mushroom imaginable—from the delicious to the psychedelic to the deadly, and everything in between.
Layla’s hidden mushroom den is not just for kitchen witchery use, Layla can feel and communicate with them through their mycelium network, and not just them, her mushrooms are connected to an even larger mycelium network of the forest (the fungi, the plants, the trees) all around her. This connection allows Layla to sense everything happening in the woods. She can tap into this network to not only feel and see what’s unfolding but, when the mood strikes, take action if she chooses.