Witchling (Curse of Kin)

by Ari Harper

  I grabbed my phone and sent her a text message to see if she wanted to come over and help me. Within seconds, my message alarm beeped. Be right there. Why wasn’t I surprised? I grinned at her text and threw my phone on the bed, then scrolled through the Web sites while I waited for her.

  Ten minutes later, Brie bounced up the stairs and into my room.

  “Oh, Nera, this is so exciting.” Her whispery voice let me know how this was going to work out. She had her eyes closed, and I knew she was imagining all the possibilities in front of me.

  “Get a grip, will you?” I snapped. “This isn’t some romantic novel you are reading you know. This is my life we are talking about here.”

  “I know. You are so lucky,” she said, dropping to the ground beside me and putting her arms around me for a quick hug.

  “What is it with you and reality? Has it passed you by completely?” I looked at her , then shook my head. Mention love or magic to her, and she lost the plot completely. I love her to death, but she could be such an airhead sometimes.

  We settled down to search for answers. After two hours in front of the computer, I was none the wiser. It all seemed too much like fantasy to me, even though deep down something was starting to form in my mind.

  “I don’t know why you don’t just accept what Jasper said and get on with it,” Brie said, leaning back on her arms while she watched me struggle with her statement.

  I couldn’t commit to the thought of being a witch. Not yet. It would take more than a few dreams and an old oil painting to convince me.

  “I want you to let me think about this until we could go back to Jasper’s on the weekend,” I said. “I need time to let this sink in, Brie.” It was the only way to get her to go home.

  A few minutes later, I sat on my window seat and watched her walk away. I wondered if things would be easier to accept if it was Brie that had been thrown the challenge. She loved magic and all it entailed and would have been the perfect candidate. Sadly things never went the way you thought they would.

  “Nera, dinner is ready,” Mom called. I went downstairs, my head still in a bit of a fog. I didn’t realize how much until the room went quiet, and I looked up to see Dad with his gaze on me.

  “What?” I asked my hands up.

  “You are miles away.” My father glanced at me with eyebrows raised. “Are you okay?”

  I knew what he meant but chose to ignore it.

  “I’m fine, why wouldn’t I be?” I took my seat at the table.

  I saw the silent signal that passed from Mom to Dad. Let them put it down to hormones. It seemed the popular excuse at that moment. Ever since I got my first period a couple of years ago, Mom has blamed all my moods on hormones. If the truth be known, my moods had gotten worse around then, but I was blaming it on the lack of sleep from my nightmares intensifying.

  Conversation flowed around me. Stubbornly I kept my head down and ate my dinner. I could feel Dad’s gaze on me, but I was having enough trouble dealing with Jasper’s news to be worried about dinner conversation. I felt guilty enough to offer to do the dishes while Mom took Roman up for his bath, which left me with Dad. Great.

  “Honey.” Dad put his hand on my shoulder and turned me toward him. “I think there is more to this than what Mom does, and after what happened at school, I think I am right. Is there something bothering you?”

  “Stop worrying, Dad. It was just a bad day, okay?” I shrugged and plunged my hands into the water, intent on getting away from his questions.

  Dad tried again. “If there is anything that you need to talk about, you know that I am here.”

  “Thanks, but you’re worrying over nothing. I’m fine.” I cleaned up the kitchen in record time. “I think I’ll turn in early.” I said good night and crawled into bed with the paperwork I had printed off earlier spread around me on the bed.

  The theories surrounding Mari were diverse. What they all seemed to agree on was that she was a goddess, one that predated Christianity and that she was married to Maju, or Sugaar, the other name he was sometimes known by. Her court was made up of witches. I wonder if that was how Jasper came into contact with her younger sister.

  Some say she lived in a cave, others in a tower. She was accused of having control over the weather, blamed for the theft of cattle, and for leaving hail wherever she walked. As with most of history and legends, a lot of what was written was taken from other stories. I knew I would have to ask Jasper more next time I saw him.

  My God, I couldn’t believe what I was thinking. Did I believe Jasper? Yes and no. I didn’t know. Disgusted with my jumbled thoughts, I threw the papers down on the floor and turned off the light.

  I snuggled down under my blankets and tried to sleep. My mind had other ideas, though. So much had happened over the last couple of days, I needed to put everything in its place so I could analyze things the way I normally did. It was how I worked best: sensible, practical Nera. That was me.

  So why was I slowly starting to believe in magic and curses? My dreams were not enough to convince me. No, it was Jasper, that gorgeous man I loved with a passion and trusted with my life. The man with the saddest eyes when he had told me the story of his family. That was what pushed my indecision over the edge. I was there. How much farther would I fall before this ended? I had a feeling it would be a very long way.

  CHAPTER THREE

  I stormed out of the school office. How dare they make me redo my math test again? I had all but finished it before my “episode.” If they bothered to check the answers, they would have found that what I had done would have been a pass anyway. Idiots.

  Out the window I could see Brie and Sully sitting out on the bench in the sun with some of our classmates. I headed outside to join them, looking forward to bitching about the system.

  I turned the corner toward the door, and a hand shot out and grabbed the back of my shirt. Someone slammed me face first against the wall. I gasped, the shock sucking the breath from my lungs. Before I could retaliate, my attacker pushed against my body so I couldn’t move. My ears rang with the pain, and sheer horror ripped through me when his hips ground against my bum. He slid his other hand up my shirt and grabbed at my breast, then tried to work it free of my bra. I wanted to hit him, but I kept my body still, my mind racing looking for options. He was panting hot breaths over my ear and he slid his tongue down my neck toward my face. My stomach turned.

  “I told you this was what you wanted,” Connor said in a ragged voice. He pushed his face against mine, his tongue , darting in and out of his mouth as he tried to kiss me, reading my lack of fight as a green light.

  I twisted my face toward the wall and tried to kick backward with my foot to make contact with his shin, but I didn’t have enough room to make an impact. He moved his hand from my breast and roughly forced it down the front of my jeans, trying to pop the button, his fingers digging into my panties. I screamed in fury and tried to break free by throwing out my arms. The sudden feeling of being let go surprised me. I turned around to see Connor flying through the air, his eyes and his mouth both open wide as he hit the opposite wall.

  I glared at him, my discomfort pushed aside for my fury to take center stage. How dare he put his hands on me when I had been refusing his immature advances for years?

  “Nera, what’s going on?” Sully ran into the hallway with half the class behind him. “We heard a scream.”

  “The bitch is crazy!” Connor yelled from his place on the floor. Blood was running down his face from a cut on his forehead, and he was a ghastly shade of gray.

  “You dirty rotten prick!” I advanced on him, my temper still at boiling point. “How dare you put your filthy hands on me?”

  Connor cowered, holding his hands over his head and whimpering like a scared child. A couple of his friends tried to keep me away from him while another went to help him up, but he struggled to get away from them too. “She’s mad! She picked me up and threw me at the wall. She tried to kill me!”

  Sull
y slid his hand on my shoulder to hold me back as the headmistresscame down the hallway, alerted by Connor’s hysterical noises.

  “Everybody calm down.” Once Mrs. White had everyone’s attention, she turned to me. “What happened here, Nera?”

  “The dirty scumbag pushed me against the wall and groped me.” I lifted my chin in defiance. “I pushed him away, and he fell against the wall.”

  “She’s lying.” Connor’s face was turning red with embarrassment. “The crazy bitch grabbed me when I passed her; then she shoved me into the wall when I tried to kiss her. That’s what she’s always wanted, so I gave it to her. Stupid tease.”

  “That is enough of that language, Connor. Go to the office now, get that cut seen to, and wait for me. I will deal with you shortly.”

  She turned back to me. I was standing with my arms folded and my mouth tight, staring at Connor with Sully and Brie on either side of me. “You can lose that attitude right now, Nera. Tell me calmly what happened.”

  “I left your office after you insisted I retake my math test. I was headed outside to meet my friends for lunch. A hand came out of nowhere and pushed me against the wall. He proceeded to groped my breasts and grind his body into mine. I tried to kick him, but I couldn’t make contact. He attempted to put his hand down the front of my jeans. I pushed him away, and he fell.”

  “Do you wish to lay a formal complaint?” The headmistresses crossed her arms, and she tapped her fingernail on her elbow while she waited for me to reply.

  I glared at her while my hatred for that idiot slowly waned. I shook my head. “No. Thanks. I don’t think he will try that again in a hurry.”

  “He will be suspended indefinitely, and a letter will go home to his parents. A copy will be forwarded to your parents as well. If you have any more problems from anyone regarding today, please contact me.” Mrs. White turned and walked briskly back to her office to deal with Connor.

  A huge breath shuddered from my body, and I let my shoulders slump.

  “What really happened?” Sully guided me outside with his arm around my shoulders.

  I shook my head. There were too many people around to talk about it. Holding my silence, I waited until everyone went back to their own conversations. When they looked like they were ignoring us I sat closer to Sully and Brie and told them what happened.

  “I swear, I didn’t lay a hand on him. I just wished I could have.” I pulled at an imaginary thread on my shirt not willing to say any more. I wasn’t sure I was ready to admit it.

  “What? So you just threw him against the wall by thinking about it?” Brie scoffed. She looked at me in disbelief. I watched her face as it slowly dawned on her what had happened. Her look changed to one of wide-eyed wonder. “No way.” Brie grabbed my arm. “How did you do it?”

  I looked from her to Sully, and then dropped my gaze to the ground. This was moving too fast for me. I ran my fingers through my hair, digging into my scalp, the pain almost a welcome thing. I knew what I had done. I could feel the force of the power when I threw him against the wall. I could tell myself it was an unconscious move on my part, but I would be lying. Before Connor hit the wall, I knew I wanted to hurt him. And I knew it was me who’d done it. How I managed it, I had yet to find out, but he was telling the truth when he said I had thrown him. Physically, I hadn’t touched him. How was that possible?

  I listened to Brie talk to Sully about telekinesis. I could tell by his expression his scientific mind argued against it, while at the same time hoping it was true. I lifted my head and looked directly in his eyes.

  “Did you throw him against the wall?”

  “I think so.” The endorphins from the attack had subsided and I started to shiver, my anger now replaced by fear. “Sully, what am I going to do?”

  He pulled me closer and wrapped both arms around me protectively, resting his forehead against mine.

  “I think you should tell Jasper, Nera,” Brie insisted. “Remember he said that if you were the girl he thought you were going to be, that you could do anything. This has to be a show of that power.”

  “I don’t want to be the one who does this. Don’t you understand? Let someone else have the powers, and leave me alone.” I wrapped my arms around Sully’s waist, tucked my head into his neck, and closed my eyes.

  “I don’t think it works like that, or I’m sure Brie would gladly take them off your hands.” Sully’s warm breath brushed over my face.

  “I admit it, okay.” Her voice was tight. “I’m jealous, Nera. I’ve always wanted to be a witch. You know that. But I would never let the fact that you have those powers come between us.” She leaned forward and took one of my hands.

  “I wish it could be you.” I gave her a weak smile and her hand a squeeze. “I would gladly share it if I could.”

  We sat through the rest of lunch break quietly. There was so much I wouldn’t admit to just yet. Mrs. White handed me a letter for Mom and Dad about the “incident” during my last class which I stuffed in my bag. It’ll be a fun evening ahead when they read that. On the bus home, Connor’s friends gave me the dirtiest looks they could manage, but I ignored them.

  “Bye, Brie, Sully. Catch you tomorrow,” I said and hopped off the bus at my stop. I slowly walked up the back lane to our house, kicking at the downed petals from the flowering dogwoods on my way. My mind was trying to organize things into little boxes again, but no matter how I tried I couldn’t find anywhere for the magic.

  “Hi, Nera,” Roman called out to me. He was covered in dirt and had a big smear of it down his face. “I’m helping Mrs. Freeman weed her garden.”

  “That’s great, buddy.” The old lady smiled at me, and I waved at her but hurried inside to avoid a conversation that would last forever and be about absolutely nothing interesting.

  “Hi, honey.” Mom blew me an air kiss as I threw my bag in the hallway. “Have a good day?”

  “No. Not at all,” I grumbled. I might as well get this over with. I retrieved my school bag, dug out the letter from the headmistress, and handed it over to her before slumping into a kitchen chair.

  Mom took it without a word and ripped it open. She looked at me then her face paled when she read the contents. “Oh, honey, no!” When she finished reading, she knelt by me and pulled me close while stroking my hair. After the past week, the tears came. Mom held me while I cried, gently patting my back and whispered soothing sounds.

  I managed to pull myself together and grabbed a tissue from the table to wipe my eyes and blow my nose.

  “Do you want me to call Dad?” Mom stood in front of me with the letter tight in her hand, waiting for me to answer.

  “No, Mom, don’t. He will probably want to go and punch Connor out for it. I will be okay, promise. It was just a bit of a shock.”

  “Of course it was, Nera. Let me make a cup of tea, and we can have a girly chat and some cake. That always makes me feel better.” Mom bustled around the kitchen, the letter stuffed into her pocket. I tried not to berate myself for letting her think that Connor was the reason for my tears. I didn’t like keeping things from my folks; it made me feel sick and just a little bit dirty. We were a close family and didn’t have much in the way of secrets from one another.

  Mom poured me a cup of tea and passed me a huge slice of her chocolate cake. We sat and chatted about boys and their teenage trials. Before I finished my tea, she had me laughing again and over my one-man pity party.

  My parents were all for us taking responsibility for ourselves, and Mom believed that Connor would be feeling sorry now for his actions. I figured he would also be worrying about what I had done. He knew I hadn’t laid a hand on him, and when he had time to think it through, he might decide to give me a wide berth. That’s what I was hoping anyway.

  Roman hurried up the back stairs to the kitchen door with his usual enthusiasm and ran into the room toward me with flowers in his little hands.

  “Nera, look what I picked for you.” He thrust a bunch of small red blooms at me.


  “Thanks, Roman. Just what I needed,” I said. My eyes were moist with fresh tears, and I grabbed him close and squeezed him tight.

  “Mom, I’m going to put these in a vase for Nera, and she can put them in her room.” Roman bounced over to the cupboard where Mom kept her collection of vases before she had answered him, determined to organize it himself.

  “Sure. Use that little one there.” Mom pointed to a small glass one with flower etching. She got up and filled it with water for him, and he brought it to me. I handed him each stem, and he put them in the water, one at a time, his face a mask of concentration.

  “There you go. They look beautiful now.” Roman stood back and admired at his handy work.

  “They do, buddy. Want to come and show me where I should put them?”

  He picked the vase up off the table and carefully carried it up the stairs to my room. He walked over to my bedside table and placed it beside my lamp. Standing back, he looked at them and then smiled at me. “There, Nera.”

  “Thanks, Roman. That was very sweet of you.” I crouched down and pulled him close.

  “That’s okay.” He patted me on the arm. “You can talk about your feelings, you know.” He turned and left me in the middle of my room. I guess he must have picked up on my bad mood when I walked in the gate.

  I knew I would feel better after a run so I changed into my sweats and running shoes for a jog before dinner. I called to Hugo, waved at Mom, and ran down the backyard to the lane. I replayed today’s incident in my mind as I ran, wondering if I could do the same thing again. I let the emotion build inside me. I remembered Connor’s hands groping and pulling at my body, which left me with a sickening feeling in my stomach.

  Jasper’s house came into view before I realized that was where we were heading. Why not? I called out as I came through the kitchen gate. Hugo, as usual, was way ahead of me.