Witches

A **witch** is a human being born with magical powers.

The origin of witchcraft dates back to the beginning of the Earth itself. Since then, witches have existed for untold centuries, passing down their knowledge and skills through generations in family lineages. Contrary to popular belief,M most witches do not receive their powers from Demons, nor do they worship the Devil. The term "witch" is not exclusive to females and is extended to males as well.

## History

The origin of witches, and by extension witchcraft, remains unknown, however, witches have existed for many centuries passing down their knowledge and skills through generations of family lines. Contrary to popular belief, witches do not receive their powers from demons, nor do they worship the Devil. Instead, witches consider themselves "the Servants of Nature," as they make it their duty to maintain balance within the world.

## Witchcraft

Witchcraft is the practice of magic. However, before a witch has come into their power, they're considered "untapped", and their magic is considered pure. Prior to tapping into their magic they are, for all intents and purposes, "human", and before the destruction of the Other Side, would have passed on to their destined afterlife. After awakening their power, witchcraft can encompass many different types of activities including astrology, divination, spell casting, and spirit communication. It includes the practices of many cultures, nations, and religions as well as many books and writings dating back to ancient times. Depending upon the individual, some witches practice their power by certain belief systems, such as Shamanism, Voodoo, Wicca, or any number of other magical practices from countries and cultures all around the world. Although the majority of traditional witches are commonly portrayed as being kind and selfless humans who use their powers to maintain balance within the world, some witches are not and go directly against the Balance of Nature by practicing their powers for dark and sinister or selfish deeds. A few darker witches go so far as to subvert the very laws that govern Nature.

## The Balance of Nature

The Balance of Nature is a spiritual belief system based around the observance of the Earth and reverence of Mother Nature. The goal of many witches is to honor the design of Nature and to maintain balance within the natural world. The Balance of Nature is intimately tied to one's spiritual relationship with the Earth, and the idea that all living things are considered sacred, as they are all different aspects of nature. Contemporary witches often use ceremonies, rituals, or shamanic practices to attune themselves with the natural rhythms of Nature in their efforts to obtain guidance and knowledge from wiser known witches called "the Spirits" or from their ancestors. However, according to Gloria, who referred to herself as an "old-school voodoo" practitioner, not all witches follow this belief system and have free will to choose how they practice their power.

## Classification

While witches, in general, are numerous throughout the world and thrive in various cultures, they're often referred to by other names. Though these cultures are not elaborated upon, they include "Template:W" of Italy; "Template:W" of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, West Africa; "Template:W" of Sweden, as well as Template:W (of Latvia), Template:W (of Morocco), and Template:W (or Obeah of Nigeria) witches.

Witches with special abilities or gifts can further distinguish them; those being siphoners, Travelers, Seers, pyromancers, and muses. Siphoners, or siphon witches, are few in number and born without the ability to generate their own magic but they possess a rare power that allows them to siphon magic from external sources through touch. Traveler witches were cursed a millennia ago and forced to become nomadic or face destruction while developing their own brand of magic. Seers and Oracles are witches specializing in the practice of divination, typically without the aid of spells. Oracles, when they change the outcome of their visions, they change and become a Fury, which grants them a connection to the minds of gods. Pyromancers, of unknown origins but found mostly in Template:W, are another unique and rare type of fire-breathing witch; however, only a couple dozen are said to remain. Muses are another unique witch with the special power of inspiration and born under extremely rare circumstances; i.e. the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter.

## Powers and Abilities

Witches can achieve a variety of powers or abilities through their use of witchcraft and spell casting; however, age, experience, knowledge, or power can limit the capabilities of one witch to that of another.

1. ↑ Vincent describes an untapped witch and their magic in *Exquisite Corpse*.
2. ↑ In *Ordinary People*, Rebekah refers to herself and her siblings as "human" after Henrik's death (apart from Kol). Kol reiterates this to Davina in *Chasing the Devil's Tail*, telling her that "none of [his] siblings (excluding Freya) had tapped into their power".
3. ↑ While this is shown with Henrik's death, it is further backed up by Michael Narducci: https://twitter.com/MichaelNarducci/status/536418656922509313
4. ↑ *Après Moi, Le Déluge*
5. ↑ *What Are You?*
6. ↑ *Beautiful Mistake*
7. ↑ *A Ghost Along the Mississippi*
8. ↑ *Some People Just Want To Watch The World Burn*