Lily went south as Cyrus went north. “As I open to the divine powers that be, I call upon the power of the South and the Fire element to protect and guide me. And so it is.”
The candle lit on its own, with no help from Lily. It grew bigger and bigger, then shrunk down in size. I felt heat on my skin. My tired eyes grew more awake.
Lily stepped to the final candle. “As I open to the divine powers that be, I call upon the power of the West and the Water element to protect and guide me. And so it is.”
She leaned down to light the candle, and I felt the current of the river grow stronger, it’s waves lapping at the bank. The air grew misty with fog as the circle was completed. Lily and Cyrus stepped into the circle at the same time, heading towards me with the last candle. Lily handed me the lighter and spoke: “I call upon the energy of the Universe and the Eighth Summer Ceremony to aid me in my magic. And so it is.”
I lit the white candle and suddenly I was alone. I looked around frantically in the fog, the candle in my hands now missing and so were my friends.
“Lily!” I called. “Cyrus!”
I saw them now, so far away, looking shocked. They stood outside the circle now, Lily speaking but me not able to hear the words she was saying.
“What’s going on?” I cried.
I stepped away from my spot in the circle and tried to run towards my friends, but now the border that separated me from them was endless. There was no way out. I collapsed to the ground. “Help me!” I screamed.
And then I opened my eyes, and I was back in the original spot I had been, but now I had collapsed to the ground.
“That’s impossible,” Lily was saying. “We must’ve done it wrong.”
“You didn’t,” Cyrus said. “You did it perfectly.”
I stood up slowly, rubbing my temples. “What happened?”
Lily shook her head.
“Every witch has an affinity to an element. Some of the more powerful witches have two, but never three and definitely never four,” Cyrus explained.
“Okay, what does that mean?”
“An affinity is just to show what kind of magic comes more easily to you. The Eighth Summer Ceremony shows us what affinity you have by calling all the elements forth and seeing which one reacts to your presence.”
“And what happened?” I asked.
“They all reacted,” Lily said. “You have an affinity to all five elements, Noa Rembrandt.”
CHAPTER 10
I did not have time for school today. My whole world had imploded and I was still expected to be outside the steps of Gardenside at 6:45 on the dot to be taken to school.
I'd spent hours with Lily and Cyrus, getting all the information I wanted. The significance of eight. The rules and law of witchcraft. If my mother and father were still alive.
Most information they could give me; the whereabouts of my parents was unknown.
So now I, exhausted by lack of sleep and the apparent nonexistence of coffee on Gardenside grounds, did not give one heck about school today.
"Noa Rembrandt, please report to the principal's office. Noa Rembrandt, please report to the principal's office. Thank you."
It was third period. Chemistry. I wasn't even good at science in the first place; how they thought a Chemistry class was a good fit was beyond me.
Everyone glanced at me as I gathered up my things to leave. People were scared of me. Apparently, Madison spent the night in the hospital from an apparent heat stroke and was just released this morning. Only I knew the full story: the an affinity for Spirit, finally unleashing itself in my emotion. I could literally suck the soul out of people. A perk of being bloodmade or bloodborn, according to Lily. Still, that didn't stop people from speculating. And what kind of freak accident caused someone to have a heat stroke in an air-conditioned building?
I made my way down the hall towards the office, my anxiety causing my heart to bounce across my sternum. I walked into the office and walked up slowly to the TA who helped me the first day of school. The TA smiled sheepishly.
"Just have a seat, Mr. Sawyer will be with you in just a moment, hun."
Hun. One of the Southern term of endearments that I never liked. Sounded too condescending, especially with a Southern accent.
I sat on the hard blue chairs lining the wall, next to two other misfits sitting and waiting. Fifteen minutes passed and Mr. Sawyer finally opened his door. Madison stepped out, pale and weak-looking. She was accompanied by two older people, a man and a woman. Her parents presumably. The man was big and bulky, looked more like a WWE fighter than a mayor. The woman was gorgeous and well-groomed. The perfect power couple. Madison glared at me, exciting the office quickly with her family, an aura of terror around her.
"Miss Rembrandt," the principal spoke, gesturing into his office. "I'd like to have a word with you."
I stood and entered the office. I sat in the chair positioned across the desk, waiting for Mr. Sawyer to sit on his own. When he did, he sighed, taking off his glasses and rubbing his face. He placed his glasses back on his nose and stared at me intently. "What happened yesterday morning?"
"In regards to what?"
"Your experience with Madison Scott."
"She started it."
"Miss Rembrandt, I'm not concerned with how the fight began. I'm concerned with the stories of you causing Miss Scott's hospitalization."
I rolled my eyes. "You're implying that I caused Madison to have a heat stroke?"
Mr. Sawyer looked down at papers in front of him, skimming the lines briefly before continuing to speak. "We have witness reports saying you were touching Miss Scott when she lost consciousness."
"Okay? I don't understand what you are trying to imply." I sat back in my chair, arms crossed. "You're trying to tell me I somehow heated up the insides of a person just by touching her arm?"
It was weird now that I knew the truth. That the impossible was possible, and even though I was trying to lie my way out of the situation, Mr. Sawyer knew something was up. Or maybe he was just like me before I knew my own secret: things didn't add up, but that didn't mean they didn't happen.
"Miss Rembrandt, you have to understand that being at Gardenside means you are a guest at this school. For students like Madison Scott, this town is their home."
Anger surged through my body and I found myself clenching my fists. I stared in complete disbelief at the words coming out of Sawyer's mouth. As if me being a foster child meant I did not hold the same place in the town that Madison did. I noticed the windows begin to shake, the plant on Sawyer's desk begin to wither. Gross injustice aside, I had to get my emotions and magic under control, quick.
I took a deep breath. I closed my eyes, unclenched my fists. When I opened them again, calmness fell over me. Sawyer raised an eyebrow, wondering what kind of mental breakdown his student was having. But the windows had stopped shaking, the plant still living.
"What kind of punishment am I getting for upsetting your precious queen bee?" I spoke slowly, choosing my words carefully. "I am getting punished, right? That's the point."
"Unfortunately, I'm at a point where I can no longer tolerate the misbehaviors of the children of Gardenside." Sawyer grabbed a paper from a drawer and began to scribble on it. "So, since you've incited violence on this campus, I have no choice but to suspend you for two days."
He handed the paper to me, where I could grab it and read what he had just said to me. "You'll need a parent—er, guardian—signature on this sheet when you return."
"What kind of school requires signatures on a suspension sheet? Wouldn't they know their kid was suspended, because they were at home all day?"
"Gardenside's so-called parental supervision are notorious for losing track of her kids. I want her to know for sure that you were suspended for inciting violence on your second day."
I stifled a laugh. "You purposely made a sheet of paper to mess with orphan kids?"
"Misfits."
"Our parents are dead. How else a
re we expected to act?"
"It's time for you to leave the campus, Miss Rembrandt."
I shook my head, grabbing my stuff and standing to leave the room. "This is bullshit."
Still, despite my troubles at school and having to tell Elsa that I was suspended on my third day, I was excited. For the first time ever, I was able to control my emotions and stop my curse from happening. No more incidences. No more moving. I just had to learn and work harder to get where I needed to be.
I would finally find my place in the world.
◆◆◆
The temperature in South Carolina in early August was terrible for literally anyone else in the country—but I was used to the humidity that clung to my skin and put weight against my lungs. I walked home and should've felt defeated but I didn't. Today I felt victorious.
The walk back to Gardenside was only a few miles, and the route was familiar. I wondered if Elsa was going to be there and then figured that was a stupid thing to ask, anyway. Of course, she would. There were children in Gardenside that were not school age. Someone had to be there.
Heat burned in my chest, the familiar feeling of anxiety. I wished it could be like in the movies, where once a character found their true calling, all their life problems disappeared. Except this wasn't a movie, it was the real world. Instead of being a mere mortal with anxiety, I was now a witch with anxiety. I chuckled to myself.
I made it back a little over an hour and a half later, walking through the big wrought iron gate that separated Gardenside from the rest of the world. It was a weird feeling, having a place I felt I finally belonged. Was it just two days ago I was trying so hard to leave? And now I'd do everything in my power to stay and learn more about where I came from, and where I was going. What I could do.
Elsa was standing outside the door when I walked up. "Miss Rembrandt," she spoke slowly as if she was trying not to be angry. "Can we speak in my office please?"
I nodded, fear clinging to my pores. Did Elsa know? Did she suspect that Lily and Cyrus had figured it out? "Sure."
I followed Elsa into the house, down the hall to where the office was. I shuffled into the small cramped room, standing awkwardly as Elsa shut the door and walked around me to get to her desk. "Have a seat! Please."
I sat, my heart beginning to pound. I hoped Elsa wasn't too mad about my suspension. Or did she even know?
"How are you and Lily doing?"
"We're good," I stammered. "We don't need to be moved. We worked it out."
"That's good. I did notice you girls were pretty much inseparable yesterday, and with Cyrus, too. How's that?"
"Cyrus is good. He's nice."
"I've never heard Cyrus Blackman be described with the word nice." Elsa chuckled. "That's surprising."
I nodded slowly, waiting for the real conversation to begin.
"How is school?" There it is.
"It's fine, I guess."
"It's not like you haven't been there any more than a few hours combined in the last two days." Elsa raised her eyebrows slyly. "Care to explain?"
"I had an emergency."
"What kind?"
"I just didn't feel good."
"And what about the situation with Madison Scott?"
I shrugged. "I feel like that situation was grossly misinterpreted."
"But it still led to a suspension." Elsa sighed, running her fingers through her hair. "Noa, I have to report this to your social worker. And explain why my foster is starting fights on the second day of school, ditching, getting suspended."
"I know, I screwed up." I gripped the armrests of the chair that I sat in, urging my emotions to stay under control. But Elsa was right. If I didn't stop messing up, Clara would pull me and probably get me to a family out of state. Hours away from Lily and Cyrus.
"You haven't had a good first couple of days here, Noa. And I'm concerned for your future here."
"I'll be better. I swear."
"Just keep it in mind, okay?"
"Okay."
"Do you have the suspension sheet?"
I pulled the now crumpled paper out of my backpack and passed it over to Elsa. She scribbled her signature and handed it back. "You can help out with the younger children for the days you're here."
"Okay." I stood to leave, taking the suspension paperwork off Elsa’s desk and heading towards the door.
"Oh, and Noa?"
I turned towards Elsa again.
"Have a good day, okay?"
"You too."
I left the office and headed for the stairs, running up the steps until I got to my floor and where my bedroom was. Lily was still at school, so the room was empty. I noticed the book on the desk Lily had read from just a few days ago. What had Lily called it last night? A Grimoire. A book of spells for witches, personalized completely to them.
I needed a Grimoire too, I decided. I dug through my closet, looking for an empty notebook I knew I had. Lily's Grimoire was fancy, a family tradition. I didn't have any of those, so an old composition book would have to do. The first few pages were full of Math notes from my last school. Unimportant now, I ripped them out, crumbled and tossed them into a corner of the closet.
I sat on the floor, pen in hand. What did I know about magic? What did I know about myself?
Rhiannon, I wrote. Original Witch.
Sacrifice occurs every lifetime, a young witch chosen by the Order and Rhiannon herself. Last sacrifice did not work—power given to unborn child instead. Mother and baby went into hiding. Baby found in trashcan by mortal authorities. Raised in foster care. Mother's fate unknown. Father = ???
I read over again what I wrote. My life story in one paragraph. I turned the page struggled to think about what else I could put in there. Intention? Circles? The hierarchy of witchkind?
I wanted badly to look through Lily's Grimoire for inspiration, but I remembered her lesson on basics last night: Grimoires were super personal, like a diary. Only to be used with permission from the author.
"And besides," Lily had said. "We'll teach y'all the important basics, and it really doesn't matter what your Grimoire ends up looking like, because it's just for you."
Even though I hadn't yet practiced much magic, I felt it would be easy. I stood up off the floor, leaving my closet for the bathroom, turning on the faucet. I glanced at my new Grimoire, letting intention form in my head.
I held my hand out, noticing the tremor I developed whenever I felt anxious. I concentrated on what I wanted the water to do, what form I wanted it to take.
And the water listened. It denied the basic rules of gravity and instead lifted itself to meet my fingers. It trailed across my palm, forming itself into a ball in the center of my hand. I cupped it normally, but it didn't sink into my skin or slip through my fingers. It was my will to manipulate entirely.
I dropped my hand suddenly, letting it drop back into the sink. I smiled proudly, then glanced into the mirror. I wasn't a fan of looking at myself usually, but now I wondered. What part of me was my mother? My father?
I ran my fingers through my bangs, pulled at the short length of my brown bob. I hoped one day I'd see my mother, be able to see what features I had of hers. Until then, I would just get to be the best witch I could be. Make my mother proud, like her sacrifice had been completely worth it.
CHAPTER 11
That night, I sat in the library looking over what few magic books I could find. Lily had mentioned they were hidden in the library for the witch kids to study, but she wouldn’t say where. And everything was just so mundane… even for witchcraft.
I had in front of me a book of herbs. The others were just history of the Order and the chain of command inside of it. I brushed over the information. It was just as boring as the Senate and Congress and whatever else American’s democracy was made of.
The book of herbs was more interesting. When combined with a witch’s ability, simple herbs most people kept in their spice cabinet were actually incredibly powerful.
Chamomil
e, I wrote in my Grimoire. Evokes calm in consumer. Healing abilities. Banishing of evil. Luck. Love.
“What are you up to?”
I slammed my Grimoire shut at Tomás’s smooth voice. I placed the composition book on top of the words of the magic book, trying to hide it from him. Lily’s first rule was to never let the mundane know of witchcraft. “Just, uh,” I looked around anxiously. “Uh, some homework. For history.”
“I don’t recall herbal studies in Behling’s curriculum,” Tomás said, pushing my Grimoire aside to glance at the words on the page.
“Must be new,” I spoke quickly and rushed forward to close the magic book and shove it into my bag. “What’s up?”
“You’re so jittery today.”
“Yeah, nerves.”
“I heard you got suspended.”
I nodded, folding my hands over my chest and leaning back in my chair. “That the school gossip?” I asked, watching Tomás take a seat next to me.
“No, Gardenside.”
I smiled. Aside from Tomás and some other freshman kid, everyone else in the high school within Gardenside were witches. It seemed odd that, with more responsibility than an average teenager, the first thing kids did when they got home was gossip about their day. “Who’d you hear it from?” I asked.
“Does it matter?” Tomás smiled widely.
“I guess not.”
We sat silently for a few moments. I felt unsure of where this encounter was going to go. I did like Tomás. I felt at ease with him, and aside from Lily and Cyrus, he was one of my only normal friends. Even Alana, as kind as she was, was a witch. She hadn’t admitted it yet, but Lily had a big mouth.
And I liked to feel at ease. I liked to pretend I was normal again and now Tomás was my only outlet. No witch talk. No “you’re a missing mysterious baby that started a war” crap. Tomás looked at me like I was the most normal, mundane person he’d ever known, but he looked at me as if that was incredible.
The door to the library opened and Cyrus walked in with Alana. They both looked at me knowingly, but for different reasons. Cyrus had known I was in the library studying magic, so seeing a human with me must have been startling. Alana was just a normal teenage girl, and when she saw me and Tomás together, her eyebrows wiggled. They sat down together at a different table, Cyrus whispering something to her and Alana laughing loudly.
The Power of Witches Page 6