"No, I just like this form" Meredith answered nonchalently, as if bored by the question "you certainly seem to respect it more than when you thought I was a feeble old woman"
Nicola looked down at her hooved feet in embarassment, knowing she'd wasted a question.
Meredith threw her head back and laughed "you humans are so obsessed by superficial appearance. I have taken so many forms it is irrelevant which of them is true to me and it would make no difference to you. I hope I use your next question more wisely"
Nicola considered this for as long as Meredith was likely to give her. Asking about her fate, her safety or what James had been turned into was only likely to rile this creature up, no matter how keen she was to find out. But there was another question burning at the back of her mind, and against her better judgement she found the words nervously escaping her lips.
"Could I ever have power like yours?"
Nicola waited for the inevitable, mocking response but instead Meredith smiled. She almost looked impressed.
"A very reasonable question" the witch fixed Nicola with an almost hypnotic stare "Believe it or not, I like you Nicola. You are ruthless, ambitious, selfish. All highly underrated qualities. Not many of your kind would have asked me that. So I will answer."
Meredith placed herself uncomfortably close to Nicola on the couch and began gently stroking her black hair. Nicola supressed her instincts to stop her.
"Power like mine? Never"
Nicola was visibly dissapointed.
"But power greater than a human could ever imagine wielding? Skills way beyond the abilities of the fairy tale witches you read about as a child? Yes, I could grant you that if I wished"
Nicola's eyes lit up but Meredith placed a finger on her lips before she could speak.
"No more questions for now" Meredith instructed Nicola "It is my turn to dictate what happens next"