by Marva Dasef
Chapter One - A Winter Abroad
Kat lay on her stomach, elbows bent, hands propping up her chin as she read 101 Spells for Household Maintenance. She had trouble focusing on the runes and vaguely wondered whether the last spell she read for unclogging drains called for a plumber or a plunger. Her eyelids kept drooping, and just before she fell asleep, Teddy, her bunny familiar, nudged her nose with his.
Her eyes popped open, and she sat up. “Thanks, buddy. Gotta ace this test tomorrow; then I’ll be free! Graduated and outta here on my first trip alone. I can hardly wait.”
Teddy twitched his nose. “Study.”
Kat heaved a sigh. “I know, I know.” She turned her attention back to the book.
A rap sounded on her door, and a muffled voice yelled, “Decent?”
“Yeah. Come on in.” Kat rolled onto her back and sat up.
Kat’s half-brother, Rune, pushed the door open. “You got albatross mail.” He shoved a dingy, string-tied package at her. “I think Sean should retire old Bosun. He poops on every package he carries these days.”
She took the small package between two fingers and held it over the wastebasket. As she pointed at the string, a tiny spark leapt the gap, cutting it.
Rune craned his neck to look over her shoulder. “What is it?”
“Hey, nosy. This is private.”
Rune grinned, exposing his pointed canines, an inheritance from his vampire father. “It’s another gift from Andy, isn’t it?”
Kat glared at her brother and then peeled the bird-pooped wrapping off. “A book. Well, I like books.” She opened it to the flyleaf to read the inscription: “To My Dearest Kat, Love Andy.”
Kat curled her lip. “I wish he’d stop sending me stuff.”
Rune took the book from her hand. “I think it’s rad he likes you so much. I never hear a word from Nadia.”
“So, how many times have you written to her?”
“Um...I sent a note a couple of months ago, but I didn’t get an answer.”
“You don’t know how lucky you are. I’ve been thinking about this a lot, Rune. We’re witches, well, half-witches, and Andy and Nadia are mundanes. We’re just too different.”
“You’ve got a point, I guess,” Rune answered, head bowed. “Still, I just felt like Nadia and I clicked.”
“Maybe it’ll work out for you guys, but Andy...well, I met him when I didn’t have any magic. Now, everything has changed. I’m powering up more every day. I might even beat you some time.”
Rune grinned. “I doubt that, Kat. I’ve got some vampire tricks you’ll never have.”
“I know, baby brother, but you can’t talk with animals.”
“Well, I, uh. Whatever.” Rune reached for the book again and examined the spine. The letters were too scratched to read. Flipping open to the title page, he let out a loud guffaw. “The Poems of Emily Dickinson! Man, that’s about the most useless thing I’ve ever seen.”
Kat snatched the book out of Rune’s hands. “It’s the thought that counts.” She went to her bookshelf and stuffed the book between Love Philtres and Captivating Potions.