Charlie stared at Agatha. She knew where the old Akelarre was – it was the big ancient fireplace in their lounge. Nowadays it had a modern mantelpiece with family photos and a pot plant sitting on it. But still it tingled with the ghost of magic past.
“It’s up to you what you put in your wreath,” Agatha was saying. “You could put a sigil, like a pentagram…”
Charlie turned to her lever-arch file and found:
Sigils:
Pentagram
Pentacle
Baphomet
Endless Knot
All-seeing Eye
“Or you could just use herbs that you like. Focus on what you want for the village in the winter to come. Think about the people, the weather, the crops. Your wreath is personal too, so you can add in a wish for yourself, a goal you want to achieve in the next few months.”
Charlie swallowed. She knew what she wanted. She wanted her best friend – her familiar – to be all hers again. She glanced sideways at Kat and turned to her page on herbs. There were herbs for encouraging friendship, for love, but nothing for bonding someone to you.
“I’m just going out to gather some more honeysuckle,” said Kat. She closed the cottage door behind her.
“Um,” Charlie began quickly, “what herb could I use to link s-s-s-someone to me? I mean, o-o-only to me?”
Agatha put down her wreath and gave Charlie a questioning glance. “Possession?” she said. “That’s dark magic, Charlie.” She shook her head slightly. “It’s wrong to make someone like you or pay attention to you. And even if you bound someone to you by force, it would be meaningless. It is not real if it has to be forced.”
Charlie looked away. Her throat was tight.
“I-I have to go,” she said. “It’s nearly d-d-dinner time. C-can you say goodbye to K-K-Kat for me?”
“OK, Charlie,” said Agatha softly. She passed Charlie a twig of honeysuckle. “Hang this over your bed tonight,” she said. “I think it’ll help.”
Glossary of witch terms
Akelarre – a place where witches meet.
Chalk circle (also known as a Ritual circle) – a circle of space to contain energy or protect the spell-caster.
Charm – an item of magic, intended to bring good luck and/or protection to its owner; a spell.
Coven – an association of witches.
Curse – a spell to inflict harm.
Dreamcatcher – a small hoop, often containing feathers and beads, which catches bad dreams or sad thoughts.
Familiar – a creature, usually an animal, with minor magical pow ers who assists a witch.
Grimoire – a book of spells.
Havoc – a type of bad luck which accompanies the use of dark magic.
Moon days – w itches celebrate four phases of the moon: new moon, waxing moon, full moon and waning moon as well as, less often, a lunar eclipse.
Poppet doll – a figure or doll made to represent a person or animal. Used in spell-craft to focus magic.
Potion – a magical liquid.
Sigil – a symbol of magic such as the star or pentacle.
Sun days – w itches celebrate particular days to honour the Sun God, such as Yule, Imbolic, Beltane and the Summer Solstice
Telepathy – the art of communicating with another’s mind.
Tincture – oral drops made from herbs.
Witch bottle – a device used to trap or counter a spell or curse.
Items in a Witch’s Larder
Apple – encourages balance and harmony, used for healing spells.
Candle wax – use varies according to colour:
White – for purity
Yellow – for creativity
Red – for power
Blue – for harmony
Green - for growth
Orange – for joy
Eggshell – for protection.
Heather – white heather (Erica carnea f. alba) brings luck and protects against evil. Purple heather (calluna vulgaris) assists with spell-casting.
Honey – enhances happiness, helps to bind ingredients together.
Lavender – used to bring peace.
Orange peel – used for happiness spells.
Salt – used for protection and purification spells.
Sandalwood – used for healing and warmth spells.
Sulphur – banishes bad luck.
Useful spells
Good luck spell – to be said at dawn.
Close your eyes and recite:
O rising sun,
On this very day ,
I need good luck,
To come my way!
Wish spell – light a candle outdoors at full moon.
Look at the moon for ten seconds, then recite:
By stars above,
By moon, by fire,
Bring to me
My heart’s desire!
Friendship spell – make a bracelet from
honeysuckle. Stroke it three times and say:
I open my mind,
I’m ready to start,
New friends I’ll find
To soothe my heart!
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First published in the UK by Scholastic Ltd, 2016
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