Chapter 9

9

LECTURE NOTES FROM SPELLCASTING AND CURATION:

Spells performed without care are ineffective. A witch must believe in the words delivered.

T hessa stared over the basin, watching the water ripple as she blew out her breath.

She would not retch. She would not.

Any moment now, the goddess would present her gift.

There was a light knock at the door. “Tess, are you alright?”

Thessa’s knuckles were white from clenching the sides of the washroom table. She released her grip and masked her tone. “Yes, be right out.”

Get on with it.

Ivy and Beatrix had swarmed her and Leora with birthday wishes when they’d returned. Thessa took the opportunity to slip into the washroom, letting Leora fill them in.

Smiling blankly, attempting to hide her disarray, Thessa opened the door .

Ivy and Beatrix were enthralled by Leora’s shift. Their excitement was thick in the air while Leora beamed as bright as ever.

Beatrix was commenting, “This is amazing.”

“I know.” Leora placed a hand over her heart before outstretching the other. “Tess, come, I’d like to say a prayer to the goddess. I want to thank her, but I want to pray for you too, for your gift.”

Thessa gestured to decline, but Leora gave her a don’t be stubborn look.

“Let’s pray then,” Thessa said with reluctance, and stepped over to the Celestials.

They formed a circle and interlaced their fingers before Leora started. “We join hands to thank the goddess for her offering. Her endless offerings. For our blood, and for our magic. The essence of her being is forever mine, and forever ours.” Leora looked them all in the eyes, landing on Thessa’s gaze last. “Now we ask the goddess to guide our sister to her destiny. May the strength of our stars light her path into eternity.” Nodding in conclusion, Leora asked, “Vy, will you send the prayer up for us?”

“Of course.”

The witches released their grasp, but Thessa watched Ivy closely. She held a white-tipped finger out, twirling it in tight circles. Her magic escaped in a tiny wisp, now spinning in the space between them. Thessa noted Leora’s whirling finger beside her waist, as if studying Ivy’s movements.

Ivy kept her finger working until the Celestial energy froze between them. But it wasn’t frozen at all, rather buzzing with momentum while condensing into the tiniest sphere of starlight. Then, she flicked her finger to the sky, and the Celestial Messenger shot through the roof, as if it were air itself .

Leora’s prayer would reach the stars soon, and maybe the goddess herself. For what it’d be worth, Thessa was not certain.

Ivy broke up the silence. “Shall we eat while we wait for Thessa’s kick in the leg?”

Thessa grinned, the humor easing her nervousness. “I’m in.”

“I could eat,” Beatrix added.

Leora patted her stomach. “Oh, I’m so hungry after all this.”

The smell of sweet spices swept through the dining room.

Thessa was relieved to be away from the kitchens today, the midday meal was cauldron boiled apples and oats—incredibly crusty and a nightmare to clean.

Waiting for her Summoning was agonizing. Unable to focus on much of anything, let alone converse, Thessa dug into her cinnamon-dusted meal.

The two long tables were full of witches, consumed with chatter about the Summer Solstice Festival this evening. Thessa wondered how she’d get out of that commitment.

She could develop a mysterious illness, or something that would require her bedridden.

Hmm.

It wasn’t long before there was a swift thump to her knee—Leora had nudged her. Thessa made eye contact and Leora silently asked if she was okay, but Thessa shrugged. Leora’s next look softened Thessa’s heart: I am with you.

Ivy finished a swig of sage water, then asked no one in particular, “So, who’s excited for the festival tonight? ”

“There’ll be honey mead from Wilcrest. I can’t wait!” Beatrix chimed in, nearly lifting off of her seat.

“Is there something special about the mead?” Leora wondered.

Ivy’s face lit up, “Oh it’s the bees?—”

“And the flower fields,” Beatrix added.

“The mead is made with their honey. It’s so divine,” Ivy finished.

Leora smiled. “I can’t wait to try it.”

Back in her room, Thessa worked up the courage to tell Leora she wouldn’t be going to the festival tonight. The panic inside her had been simmering under her skin all week, waiting to boil over. If time between her own breaths was hard, casual talk and laughter would be impossible.

Leora spoke first. “Tess, you’re too quiet.”

Thessa walked to her bed and curled under her sheets before saying, “It’s because I don’t know what to say.” Leora sat on the edge of her bed, giving her space, but the silence encouraged Thessa to continue. “I didn’t think waiting for my magic would be this difficult. Adding the festival on top of today is going to be too much, but I’m happy for you and I want you to go. It’s just … I’ve barely slept, and I’m so tired. Would you be mad if I didn’t?”

“I don’t think I could ever be mad at you, especially when you’re that honest. Would you be mad if I skipped the festival too?”

Thessa objected. “You can’t. I want you to play with your magic and have fun. You deserve to celebrate.” She pointed toward the room across the hall before burying her head into the pillow. “And they’re going to be so upset if you don’t go.”

“Well, you and I both know Vy and Bea would forget about me the moment their lips touch that mead, and besides they’ll miss you much the same. ”

Thessa rolled back over, facing Leora. “Well that last bit is simply not true.”

Leora shoved Thessa’s leg over her blanket. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

Leora’s good energy pierced through Thessa’s walls, and a grin escaped her. “You’re still not staying back.”

“Yes, I am. Why are you so stubborn?”

“I thought this was about making me feel better.”

Leora pushed her leg again, laughing.

Thessa sat up, asking, “You’d really stay? What about the mead?”

“It’s just mead.”

“Okay then … I have an idea.”

Leora cocked her head, listening.