Electric Blue

by Jamieson Wolf

  Lilly led them to the kitchen, to the left of the living room; it was a sprawling room with a deep sink basin, large windows again but they were covered with ivy. The floor was tiled in terracotta and the cupboards made out of a varnished pine. The spare bedrooms, three of them, were all done up in shades of blues and purples, they were small comfortable rooms that swam in fabrics and plush carpeting. The master bedroom was beautiful, done in shades of red and soft mauves. Lilly slept in a large, oak canopy bed draped in gauze and the fabric matched the deep red of her velvet curtains. A large, sauna-like bathroom at the back of the house completed the home and it was a place of relaxation. The stone floors had been sanded soft and they were cool on the feet. A large, old claw-footed bathtub stood in the centre of the room with a large showerhead that glinted silver against the stone. There was another bedroom, but the door was locked.

  "Your house is beautiful," Monica said when they had been served their tea.

  "Thank you. I have had many years to build it."

  "How long had you lived here?" Moe asked.

  "Since I was thirteen."

  "What?" Monica said. "You were a child!"

  "Yes, but a Witch reaches her maturity when she first bleeds. I was thirteen when I bled the first time, so I was a woman then. I came from a long line of Prophecy Keepers. My mother was one before me, as was my grandmother and my great grandmother. It was family tradition."

  "What do Prophecy Keepers do?" Monica asked.

  "Well, we are an oddity of sorts. We are Witches, but we possess no magic. What we do possess is knowledge. We are keepers of history for the Coven and all its Sisters. We protect the fallen city and we protect and learn the Prophecies."

  "The fallen city?" Moe asked. "Is that this place?"

  "Yes, it is," Lilly replied. "There was a time, way before any of us were born, when this city existed." She looked out at the city through the kitchen window. It peeked through at her through the vines. "When the Coven was looking for a place to build this house, they looked for power spots; old places that had been forgotten that housed power. They were led here, to the Fallen City. No one knows when it was built, though it has been around for eons."

  "The Coven House gets its power from the Fallen City?" Monica asked.

  "This is true," Lilly said. "The power in the ground of this place runs through the walls of the Coven House. It is sacred ground here and very old."

  "But why are you down here all alone?" Monica asked. "Surely you could have left the Coven House?"

  "I am the Coven’s Prophecy Keeper; I cannot leave the Coven House. . . ." she sighed. "At least I haven't for some time. I used to teach the young Witches in classes of how the Coven was formed, the Coven's history. I cannot bear to leave the prophecies for very long, so I stay here. People used to come to me until one day. . .they stopped coming."

  "Weren't you curious about what was going on? Why there were no people coming to see you?" Moe asked.

  "Yes, but my first responsibility is to protect the Prophecies. I admit I was curious, but I am also afraid. It has been eons since I was in the world of the above. I spend my time here."

  "It must be horrible being all alone."

  "Oh, I am not alone," she said. "I can feel the house all around me; she is always with me." She smiled. "And I have my companion."

  "Your companion?" Monica asked.

  "Yes, would you like to meet him?" Lilly smiled and called out. "Edgar!" she yelled, "we have visitors!"

  "What's that?" A man’s voice came from the locked bedroom.

  "Visitors! We have visitors!" Lilly said. "Come out and meet them!"

  "Alright," said the voice. It sounded gruff. "I'm coming." Monica and Moe heard footsteps, a pattering of clicking noises and the lock clicking. The door opened and out bounded a large, shaggy sheep dog. He had grey and white fur and it fell in front of his eyes. His large paws padded on the floor and his claws made clicking noises on the wooden planks of the living room floor. It came to stand beside Lilly and looked at Moe and Monica. It huffed and blew the fur from out of its eyes and regarded them with warm brown eyes. "Pleased to meet you," the dog said. "It's not often we get ghosts in this part of the house. What brings you here?"

  Monica and Moe stared at him open-mouthed. "You can talk," Monica said.

  "Of course I can talk," the dog said. "My name’s Edgar. I'm a sheepdog."

  "And you can talk," Moe said.

  "Seem to be having trouble with that huh?" he laughed a soft bark. "No problem. I'm one of the few Fey animals that can talk. There are many animals who are Fey, part of the Fey world. Cats are, birds are. But not all of us can talk. I can."

  "So you're a talking dog?" Monica said.

  "Isn't that just what I said?" Edgar laughed. "It'll take you a bit to get used to me, but don't worry, I don't bite and don't bark much either." He laughed again.

  "I raised him from a puppy," Lilly said. "I found him outside this house one day and he's been with me ever since." She smiled.

  There was a sound in the air then. It sounded as if the air was whistling. Then came a loud bang and the earth shook around them. They fell off their chairs, Edgar staying upright, the rest of them landing on the floor. The ground stopped moving, only to start again a second later. Something was attacking the House. The House shook again as something slammed against its walls; they heard glass shatter somewhere above them.

  "Do you have friends in the House now?" Edgar asked. Gone were the laughing brown eyes; they were now grim. Lilly's eyes had also hardened. She was no longer smiling.

  "Yes," Monica said. "They are upstairs in the attic."

  "Then I suggest we go to them now," Edgar said. "We may not have much time."

  * * * * *

  Those in the attic heard the sound before the bang hit too. It sounded as if the air was whistling. Then came a loud bang and the earth shook around them. They fell to the floor, House falling on top of Roz who was still tied to the chair.

  "What's going on?" Lucia asked from the floor. She had fallen on top of Naomi.

  "I am being attacked," House said. "I can feel them. I must return to my walls. Get Roz to her bed."

  "Wait!" Naomi said. "What is happening?"

  "They are trying to break in. They want Poppy. I will not be far," House said, "You can contact me through Roz, but I must return to my walls, I must protect us. I will come back when this is all over"

  No one had to ask who ‘they’ was. They knew that Mistress, or someone working for her, was trying to gain entrance. Cecelia looked at Orlando and they ran downstairs to see what they could see. Lucia helped Chip get Roz untied so that they could get her back into the attic bedroom and David and Naomi watched as House began to fade slowly. When she was almost gone to mist, Monica and Moe showed up at the attic doorway. Following behind them, the floor still rocking and shaking, were a woman and a large sheepdog. "Trust these people," House said. "They are part of me, and I am part of them. They have my trust."

  She smiled at all of them, her hair lifting in the wind that blew around her and soon she was nothing but a shiny dot of magic dust in front of them. They all listened to the house begin to fight back. They waited, Cecelia and Orlando downstairs, not knowing what else to do. Naomi began to shake. "I don't know what we're going to do. . . ." she said.

  David could do nothing but pull her close. Monica and Moe stood there, not sure what to do and Lilly looked at her feet. Edgar growled. "Are we all going to just stand here like bumps on logs?"

  Naomi blinked her eyes. "You can talk!"

  Monica shook her head. "We'll explain later."

  They heard a loud scream from down below.

  "STAY AWAY!" They heard Orlando yell. "GET AWAY FROM HERE!"

  "What's happening?" Naomi asked.

  "Want to go find out?" David asked.

  "Go," Chip said from the bedroom. "I'm okay here.

  * * * * *

  In the graveyard, Mistress ran her fingers over Karma's grave. Sh
e had sent LaWanda and the other two, Marc and Lucas, to keep the rest of them busy. As Sisters of the Coven, Cecelia and Naomi would feel Karma's reawakening. She could not allow that to happen. She had told them to create a good diversion. Mistress hoped that LaWanda would follow instructions this time. She ran her fingers in the grooves of Karma's name, feeling the small grit of stone that fell away as her nails scratched the surface. Where her nail scratched, it glowed red. She watched the words glow with growing anticipation. ‘Rest in Peace’, indeed. She laughed wildly. She knocked on the tombstone now, as if it were a door. "Come on granddaughter," she said. "We have some business to attend to." Mistress smiled to herself when the dirt of Karma's grave began to stir. "That's it," she said. "That's it, come on now, night grows short. We don't have much time."

  * * * * *

  They all arrived downstairs to see Orlando standing at the front door. It was open and he was screaming at the top of his lungs. "STAY AWAY FROM HERE!" the wind was furious around them as House tried to keep the evil from them. "GET AWAY FROM US! You have no business here!"

  David and Naomi froze on the stairs as something grabbed Orlando and threw him through the air. Cecelia still stood to the right of the open door, chanting under her breath. Lucia, Monica and Moe watched as everything played out around them. No one dared move. Lucia, making a decision, broke away from them and joined Cecelia at the door, grabbing her hand and chanting beside her. She broke the spell, because David ran to Orlando who was lying unconscious. Naomi ran to Cecelia and added her powers to her grandmother’s and Lucia's. Edgar and Lilly remained on the steps, watching the scene below them. Monica looked at Moe. "Let's see if we can help house."

  "Right behind you," he said. They faded into the walls of the house behind them, going to see if they could find the House Spirit and lend her a hand. They left behind wispy air and David watched them leave. Everyone was humming and chanting, aiding the house in its battle. David tried to rouse Orlando.

  "Who was it?" he asked. His voice was catching in his throat. "Who did you see?"

  The question was answered for him, however, when LaWanda walked through the front door.

  Chapter Forty Two

  House Protected

  "Hello David Honey," LaWanda said. "Did you miss me?"

  "What are you doing here?" David said.

  "What does it look like? Having a little fun."

  "What are you doing here, LaWanda?"

  "I told you," she said, pouting slightly. "Having a little fun. Don't you like to party?"

  "No, not your kind of party."

  "Well, I'm afraid that you don't have much of a choice. See, we're gate crashers." LaWanda wanted to get out of here soon. She hoped that she was buying Mistress enough time.

  * * * * *

  Mistress smiled. "That's it," she said. "That's it granddaughter, come on, we don't have much time."

  From out of the earth, a hand shot up, white and pale, dirt under the nails. There was a sound like a moan coming from the earth, from deep within the dirt that shook at her knees. Mistress clasped the hand, her long red nails glowing in the moonlight. "That's it," she coaxed. "That's it. A little further now."

  With a shove that was like the earth giving birth, spilling its bounty, Karma pulled herself from the earth and lay gasping on the ground in front of her grandmother. Her hair was a dirty brown and her skin was a clammy grey colour.

  "What. . .have you done to me?" She rasped. She could barely move.

  "I have need of you," Mistress said.

  "I will not do what you need," Karma rasped. She coughed and blood and a clear liquid spat on the ground.

  "Oh, I think you will," Mistress said. "When you see what is in store for you if you don't." The Mistress smiled a cruel smile, an evil one. Everything was going according to plan. The night grew short and dawn was close. Mistress gathered Karma to her arms and carried her out of the cemetery, leaving her grave dug up. Empty save for Karma's coffin.

  * * * * *

  "What do you want of us?" Cecelia asked. She had stopped humming when she realized that they were not in danger. If they had wanted to hurt them, they would have done so before now.

  "Just having a little fun," LaWanda said.

  "Why are you doing this?" Naomi spat. "Who are you working for?"

  LaWanda laughed. "Why am I doing this?" She laughed again, like a bark. "Better ask David why I'm doing this, why I could possibly want to hurt any of you. He knows all the answers. Him and his little slut of a girlfriend." She spat on the floor.

  "Who are you working for?" Naomi asked again.

  "Someone who wants to see all of you dead," she said. "She was one of us once. . .one of the innocents." She looked up as if she heard someone calling her name. The ground beneath them stopped shaking and LaWanda's head snapped back to attention. She looked at all of them and smiled a mean smile. "We'll see you all again real soon." She laughed again and they all watched as LaWanda, Marc and Lucas faded away like ghosts in the coming daylight. It stretched golden on top of the buildings. When the first rays of sun hit, they were gone.

  David looked around at everyone, at the fallen house, the destroyed furniture and front door. He clutched Orlando to him. The woman and her dog still stood on the stairs. David held Orlando, shaking. Edgar and Lilly looked to the floor, unable to meet anyone's gaze. Monica and Moe flew down through the ceiling, awestruck at the scene around them. Lucia, Naomi and Cecelia unclasped their hands. Cecelia stood and looked at everyone, meeting each one of them in the eye. The house was silent around them. "I think," she said, "that I could use a strong drink. Some explanations are in order."

  Chapter Forty Three

  Father Daughter

  Inside the hut, there was darkness. They could see nothing but shadows, but on the floor near them, Poppy saw a medium sized owl. It had grey markings around the eyes, a black beak and white and silver feathered wings. It hooted at them softly and regarded them with soft grey eyes. The owl hooted again and Poppy and Alicia felt the air around them begin to pick up speed. The candle flame flickered out and they were left in darkness for only a moment. The flame relit itself and the hut had light once more. Alicia gasped. Where the owl had been moments before, they watched open-mouthed as it changed and morphed into the shape of a man. When his transformation was complete, he regarded them with soft grey eyes. He had brown hair that fell in curls and a soft face. His eyes were kind and his skin was tanned a soft brown from the sun. He stood and smiled at them. He turned to Poppy.

  "Hello daughter," he said.

  Poppy was dumbfounded. She could only stare at him.

  "I suppose you are wondering what is going on?" the man said. Poppy nodded. "Well, it's quite simple. I am your father," he said.

  "What is your name?" Poppy asked.

  "They call me many things. But as a child, I was named Grant. I have not gone by that name for a long time, but I suppose you can call me Dad."

  "First things first," Alicia said. "We need proof that you’re Poppy's father. Her mother said that she didn't know who he was, that she had slept with too many men. How do we know that you're the real deal?"

  He smiled. "You need more proof than my being able to change my shape?" he laughed. "No matter." He took out a worn leather wallet from the inside pocket of his long white robe and removed a picture. He handed it to Poppy. It was an old black and white photograph. It was worn and bent at the corners and the black and white and grey tones had white lines running through them, where the picture's glaze had cracked. But Poppy could still see the picture clearly.

  In the picture, a small girl stood with her mother, Lucy. Lucy was smiling and laughing at the camera. The girl was smiling too, but her eyes looked serious. She flipped the picture over. On the back was: Poppy and Lucy, 1986.

  "You were eight then," Grant said. "I remember that day. . .your mother had tracked me down." He was looking right at her as he talked. "God, I remember Lucy. She used to light a fire inside me, Poppy. I've missed
her so much through the years."

  "Why did you leave me?"

  "I didn't leave you," he said. "Your mother left me." He sat back down and motioned for Alicia and Poppy to do the same. He poured out a sweet smelling tea from a pot that was on a hearth behind him. Its scent filled the small hut and made Poppy sleepy.

  "There are things that are going to be hard for you to understand, and there are things we won't have time to talk about. Our time is already precious, and I can feel her growing nearer to us. Already the Darkness has spread; soon, Ashling will be no more."

  "Perhaps you better start at the beginning," Alicia said.

  Grant smiled. "Yes, that is usually the best place to begin." He paused for a moment before continuing. "You were the happiest thing in my life, Poppy. When Lucy had you, you filled my world up with such light. We lived together, though your mother always refused to marry me at the time."

  "If you were so happy, why did she leave?"

  "Because of what I am." At Poppy's blank look, he found an owl’s feather on the ground and handed it to her. Its tips were silvery grey. "I didn't tell her what I was. She came in on me one night, in the backyard, when I was changing back." He shook his head. "I saw the revulsion in her eyes, Poppy. She never looked at me the same way; perhaps because she could no longer understand me."

  "Why did she run away from you?" Poppy asked.

  "Because she was afraid. A perfectly normal reaction, but my heart was broken. I came home one day and found you and Lucy gone. Every trace of your lives had been wiped clean from that house."