by Paul Simpson
Note 6
I saw more lights, possibly portals again, within Jack's dwelling. After a different light in each room appeared, one of the witches from the village was never to be seen again. Have they joined with Jack, made a deal of some kind? I fear for my life and the safety of my family.’
Note 7
‘I have done the spell up by the tall stones, I have left one anchor there and a second I keep with me. I can only pray that it works, as the only way to find out is to have my life taken from me, not something I’m willing to test. Further findings suggest that if my life is lost naturally then as long as I stay within this world for 24 hours, my mortality will be restored. If, however, it is taken from me, then those who are responsible must pay a gift to compensate for their wrongdoing. I just need to find out what that gift might be. The other witches have long since gone and Jack, I presume, is dead after this night's encounter.’
Note 8
‘It’s been peaceful these last few months since that night I fought Jack, maybe all the fighting was worth it? That’s mostly all I seem to have done since I arrived in this era.
The creatures appear to have gone along with him; all that’s left of his presence is his mansion upon the hill which I’m guessing will stand empty to rot and fall down as the villagers seem scared to even go near it now. Still no sign of the other five witches from the village, I’m guessing they will stay away, although I do feel they, along with Jack, have sealed my own fate. Until that day I can just be me, while I enjoy the company of my beautiful daughter Ffion and my loving husband John.
It’s crazy to think I won’t even be born for more than another 300 years. I miss the future. It wasn’t easy losing all my family and friends. I still cry now. What must they think happened to me? The pain they must be feeling. Yet I’m unable to let them know I’m alive. I also miss TV, shopping, my music player, just how much I took technology for granted and the world’s a much bigger place without a car.
I’ve kept this diary in the hope something good can come of it, even if it’s just to keep me sane from everything that’s happened to me over the years. I’ve logged spells, creatures, events and my own thoughts within these pages and I’ll continue to do so until such a time I don’t need to or the ability is taken from me by my passing.
While the calm lasts I intend to make the most of it, spend time with the family, do normal everyday boring things and enjoy life for what it is. Maybe, just maybe, things are changing for the better?
To the future I’ll look, and each day I’ll get a little closer to the time I belong in. But until I reach it, my family is always my home.
Love to the future, I hope to see you again – Jodie.’
It was some time later when George met Ffion’s gaze as she walked back toward him and the stones. “So did you find the book then?”
“Yeah I’ve got it. I turned it into something more practical to keep it…… portable and nearby if we need it,” answered Ffion, as she raised her wrist to George and gave a shake of the new charm bracelet. A small silver book hung from the chain.
George acknowledged it with a nod, suitably impressed. “Well, did you find what you were looking for? What do we have to do?”
Ffion smiled “You’re not going to believe this but I think we need a house.”
George looked confused. “A what? Where? But why?”
Ffion turned and smiled “Don’t worry. Let’s just get back to the mansion grounds again and I’ll think of the 'how' by the time we get over there-maybe!”
As they walked over, Ffion explained what she knew.
“Ok, here’s the plan based on what I could find. Jack made the house with portals in it, one of which he came through on our first encounter with him. There are five other portals, each with a witch on the other side, who must be Jack’s anchor links-minus one, as we’ve already met her.
Now, we’ve just placed that witch's soul in one of the rocks. The book says there is a gift to be paid if my mother’s soul is to be freed by those who put her there,. What if the gift is their souls in exchange? That would explain why the first witch’s soul was trapped within the pendant, her own anchor, and was sucked into the first rock once it got close enough. This gave us, by chance, our first key to releasing Mother from the barrier so that she can become fully human again. She’s already started changing, so what if the other four complete her?”
George stared back, “You do know how nuts that sounds, don’t you?”
Ffion smiled. “Yeah, but to everyone else I’m talking to a cat so my theory doesn’t sound that bad in the scheme of things.”
George pondered his reply for a second. “Yeah, ok, you got me there. Fair point!”
The duo carried on up to the mansion grounds as another problem came to George.
“But what about the barrier that surrounds her now? We can't get in and she can’t get out.”
Ffion looked back at him, worried. “Yeah I know, but the stones are there to contain her soul. Maybe if she’s mortal again the barrier will be unable to hold her and break?”
George felt a little bad as he knew he said, “We’re betting on a lot of if's at the moment, I hope we are right about this.”
“Me too, George. Me too.”
Ffion and George stood before the building ruins. Nothing more remained than a few blocks of cement foundations, everything else was now overgrown with grass, flowers and weeds. Ffion looked down to George.
“In order to access these other portals I need to be in the room where they are linked to.” she stated.
George tried to joke. “It’s a pity we can’t just build another, that would be the easiest thing. But how’s that going to happen in a day? Even that spiderweb on the small tree over there would have taken all night and we need a building! There’s no chance, we’d need an army to build it.”
This gave Ffion an idea. “I’ve picked up a few tricks on my travels, let's see if they’re of any use. Thanks for the idea, George.”
Ffion knelt on one knee and pressed her hand into the long grass as she gently channelled power through to the roots in the earth. The ground began to thump gently as the plants started to show signs of life and movement, glowing lightly as if filled with fibre optic lights.
George watched on in amazement as the bushes and grasses began to grow and twist together, forming a base round the area of the old mansion's location. The small Japanese maple tree began to grow by several feet. Maturing, its branched leaves glowed red in the bright afternoon sunshine of the summer's day. Then, as if the season had changed, it shed maple seeds in its thousands, which twirled through the air in a fantastic cascade of red spinning propellers, falling to the ground. From each of the four mansion corners, more trees began to grow and twist together, their branches reaching out to each other and to the central main tree, to form a basic upper floor and attic roof.
George was gobsmacked by the whole thing.
“Where is it you’ve been these last few years again?” he quizzed.
Ffion didn’t reply, she had moved her attention to the nearby woods in waiting. George watched on as he too, waited for something to happen. Over by the web he had seen came the spider toward him. It travelled across the short grass area, then ran over George’s foot toward the trees. Climbing up the newly twisted branches it began to spin a web. George walked over and watched as the little bug went busy about its work.
“Hey, Ffion, I hope you don’t expect this one little spider to build you a…house!” George turned to look at Ffion and was greeted by a blanket of spiders moving toward him as a close knit network. He quickly moved out of their way as they began to climb the trees and branches, covering everything in webs. George walked back to Ffion and sat by her feet, watching in wonder as the spiders worked, binding the branches together, building walls and floors all covered by the main tree’s red leafed branches, covering the new structure like a roof of ruby red.
The two of them looked on, both as much in awe
at the house as the other. As the last of the spiders scurried off back to the forest, they left behind a building of white webs topped by the red leafed roof, a truly beautiful sight built before them within minutes, and shimmering in the sunlight, giving the building a warm interior glow.
Ffion and George walked over for closer inspection. The tree’s branches had formed curved shapes of doorways and window spaces. Looking inside, branches had twisted to form the main staircase and the spiders had weaved their webs between the branches for the walls and upper floors, which gently bowed underfoot, as if stepping on a trampoline’s surface but without the extra bounce as they walked upon it.
“Well George, I don’t know about you but even I’m impressed. One mansion, of sorts, with access to all levels, and each level has portals we need to find. Now all we need to do is locate them and find the other souls we need to free my mother.”
From behind the house through the web walls a strange glow drew near. Ffion watched the light draw closer. “George could this be...?”
“Yep,” confirmed George. “Meet the glow bug thing.”
Ffion was slightly taken aback when it came into view. The golden sphere floated in front of the duo and seemed to stare back.
“George, do you know what this is?”
“No, why?” he asked with a puzzled expression.
“George, your new friend isn’t a what, it’s more of a who. That is someone’s soul that’s been following you around.”
George froze still.
“You mean the night light is actually a dead person? Eew, creepy!” He quickly looked up at the hovering orb. “Sorry, don’t mean to offend, but still-eew!”