by K E O'Connor
“He’s hurting and lashing out because he’s desperate to make sure Luna recovers,” Hilda said.
Russell flapped over to the chair and settled on the back. He tapped the top of my head with his beak.
“You’re trying to tell me something?” I said.
“He’s saying he wants to help Luna,” Hilda said. “We all do. She’s a sweet witch.”
“Then you go fight the ghost,” I said. “Maybe Russell can catch it in his huge claws and fly away with it.”
I got a sharp tap on the head for that comment.
“You could at least try to help,” Hilda said. “Visit Luna and see how she is.”
“That’s just sending myself on an even bigger guilt trip, and I’ve had enough of those for one day. She won’t want to see me. Luna’s in this mess because of me. Well, partly. But she shouldn’t have chased after that ghost on her own.”
“Enough of the sob story,” Nugget said.
I huffed out a breath. “It’s true.”
“So what if it is? It’s no surprise you have an awful reputation around these parts,” Nugget said. “And you are to blame. You turned Luna away when she came asking for help.”
“Because I didn’t think she’d do anything as dumb as this.” I thumped my head back, making Russell fly off and dust plume around me.
I wasn’t here to save my friend. Why did this have to be so complicated?
Hilda tapped my cheek again. “You could go and take a look at Luna’s apartment. You might notice something odd.”
“All I’ll notice is that I’m a magic using loser who struggles to cast a basic spell these days.”
“You are a total loser,” Nugget said.
“Thanks for that. Why don’t you go outside and find a nice cold pile of mud to sleep on?”
“I’m only agreeing with you. But if you did want help...” Nugget flicked his tail.
“Yes? What’s your brilliant idea?”
He licked one paw, taking his time. “Well, you have everything you need right here to amp up your magic again.”
I sat forward. “Amp up my magic? And risk the attention of the Magic Council?”
“You’ve already got their attention,” Hilda said.
“And I don’t need any more official types strutting around and giving me grief.”
“You won’t get it. So long as you don’t let them find out what you’re doing.” She did a tap dance on my shoulder.
“What have you got to lose?” Nugget said. “Or are you going to prove to everyone they were right about you all along?”
Chapter 7
After barely any sleep, it was time to get to work. I’d mulled over everything I’d discussed with Nugget, Hilda, and Russell last night, and decided that maybe there was something among Magda’s things that could fix Luna’s ghost problem. And if there wasn’t, and I messed up, there was a cold, unwelcoming cell waiting for me courtesy of the Magic Council.
After I’d taken the world’s quickest icy shower, dressed in clean clothes, and eaten a tin of peaches, I stood in the middle of the living room. My gaze was fixed on Magda’s magic cabinet.
I’d avoided it yesterday, even though it kept calling to me, reminding me of the hours I’d spent picking through the small drawers and shelves, and wondering at the amazing things my stepmom had inside them.
Her hoarding sometimes produced valuable results. She loved to collect gemstones, crystals, and unusual stones she’d pick up when out on one of her long walks.
She’d often infuse her finds with magic. It could be anything from a light spell to something as powerful as a freeze spell. Stones were easy to carry or wear around your neck, so you’d always have an easily available spell if you needed it, without draining your own abilities.
“What are you waiting for?” Nugget said from his towel bundle in the corner. “Get the cabinet open and let’s see what we’re working with.”
“I thought you weren’t interested in helping.” I walked to the dark teak cabinet and rested my hand on it.
“I didn’t say I was. I just want to see you make a mess of this.”
“If I do, I’ll aim my misfiring magic in your direction.” I turned the small silver key in the cabinet lock and pulled open the double doors.
I sucked in a breath as I stared at the contents. Nothing in here had been touched for years, but it looked immaculate. There was no dust on the shelves, everything was lined up with the labels the right way out, and the wood smelled mildly of lemon wax as if someone had recently polished it.
Hilda scuttled up onto the first shelf. She waggled a leg at me.
I held out a finger to make contact so we could talk.
“This is incredible,” she said. “I haven’t seen inside here for a long time.”
A small smile crossed my face. “I used to play my magic store game in here. I’d pretend to be the cashier, and Magda would buy stones and spells from me in exchange for chocolate-covered candy.”
“I remember.” Nugget yawned. “You made me wear a small hat with a tassel and pretend to be your assistant.”
I laughed. “I’d forgotten about that. You used to be a much nicer cat back then.”
“And you used to be a better witch.”
My smile faded. “Luna loved this cabinet, too. Magda let us play here for hours. I had no idea what half the spells did, but she trusted me with them.”
“Magda always put too much faith in you,” Nugget said.
“Quit with the insults, or I’ll stuff you and put you on the mantelpiece if you don’t keep your fuzzy mouth shut. Or maybe I’ll use your paws as a spell ingredient.”
He hissed at me. “If you use my body parts in your magic, I’ll make sure the spells fail and you explode in a cloud of stinky grossness.”
I didn’t need Nugget jinxing my magic to make that happen.
“Isn’t that a ring of control?” Hilda said.
I looked away from Nugget. “You’re right. That thing will pack a punch.” My hand hovered over the gold ring with a shimmering ruby set in it.
“It does when you know how to use it correctly,” Nugget said.
“There’s way more magic in this thing than you’d be able to handle,” I said.
“Unlike some people in this room, I have excellent control over my abilities,” Nugget said.
“Is that so? Try this.” I grabbed a bag of herbs and tossed them over his head.
He gave an almighty sneeze and his fur fluffed out like he’d just been given an electric shock. He squeaked as he flipped onto his back.
“Crud! Nugget, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” I ran over, but stopped as he doubled in size and turned upright, snarling at me like an adorable baby panther.
“Wow!” I laughed as I backed away, not keen on getting near those massive paws. “I didn’t know you could do that.”
Nugget growled at me. “What did you think that magic would do?” He lifted one paw and examined it.
“I thought it was a spell of sleep. It smelled strongly of valerian. You were supposed to doze off, not get big and fuzzy.” I turned to Hilda. “I should use that spell on you. I’d never risk stepping on you if you were bigger.”
“I wouldn’t like to be big all the time. I don’t want to scare people any more than I do. Even though I’m small, I still send people screaming in the opposite direction. It hurts my feelings. What’s so scary about being a spider? I eat annoying flies and bugs, and even the occasional skin flake. I keep the place tidy.”
I grimaced at the thought of Hilda chewing on my skin flakes. I scratched my arm as I turned my attention back to the magic cabinet. “Hey, isn’t this a bloodstone?” I gently eased the black and red stone out from the drawer and placed it in front of me.
Russell squawked loudly and flapped his wings.
“We sense its power,” Hilda said. “You’d better not tangle with that until you’ve got your magic back to full strength. That could blow your head off. It’s been well-used.”
I rifled through more drawers. There were bundles of multi-colored candles, witch keys, herbs of every description, herbal spell mixes, small dark bottles of infused oils, charcoal tabs, consecrated salt, and dozens of stones and gems. There was everything a witch needed to make her powers even more incredible, providing they were working, and you hadn’t been drained by a soul-void member of the Magic Council. And, if I was going for brutal openness, you weren’t a bit scared about unleashing your magic on a community you’d devastated once before with your warped spells.
“There’s a magical arsenal in here.” I stepped back. “I could have fun with all this stuff.”
“What are you waiting for?” Nugget said. “I want to see you blow something up.”
“Then you’d better hope I don’t test my powers on you.” I hurried to the kitchen and returned with a portable cauldron which I sat beside the cabinet. I extracted oil, herbs, charcoal, and a dash of salt, and placed everything inside the cauldron.
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” Nugget said.
“Nope. But casting spells is like riding a bike.” At least, I hoped it was.
I stared inside the cauldron. I was aiming for a simple temperature change spell. Give the atoms a jiggle to warm the place up a bit. I needed to test my power and make sure everything was stable before I chased down this ghost and taught it a lesson.
I took a few deep breaths and closed my eyes, holding my hands over the cauldron. When I had my full power, I didn’t need to use a ritual to conjure a spell, but whilst my ability was restrained, I needed an extra boost.
“You’re making it smoke,” Nugget said.
“It’s supposed to do that,” I muttered. “Give me a minute. I’ve got this.”
“We should evacuate,” Nugget said. “Get out while we still can.”
“You’re welcome to leave any time you like,” I said. “And if you don’t want to come back, I’m fine with that.”
Hilda jabbed my cheek hard with one leg.
“Ouch! What was that for?” I glanced at her and sighed. “Nugget shouldn’t be so mean.”
“He’s not himself,” she whispered in my ear.
“I’m very much myself. But I don’t like an inexperienced witch messing with Magda’s things.” Nugget flipped his ears back and forth.
“They’re my things now.” I closed my eyes again and focused on the cauldron. A flicker of magic pulsed up my arm. It felt unnatural to have such weak magic. The Ash witches were one of the strongest covens in recorded history. They’d been a respected branch of witches until Magda and I smeared the name into murky oblivion.
That was the last thing I needed to think about. Concentrate on the spell. Bring forth the power, just like I’d been taught.
“There are flames!” Nugget said. “Everybody get out!”
“Stop panicking, you’re distracting me.”
“Maybe you should try something else if you’re struggling,” Hilda said, a gentle sadness in her voice, suggesting she also doubted me.
“This is a simple spell. I can do it.”
There was a high screeching whizz, a flash of light, and the cauldron flipped in the air and exploded, scattering fragments across the room.
I looked down at my clothes and groaned at the sticky residue coating my pants.
I looked around to make sure everyone was okay and had to press my lips together to stop from laughing. Nugget had a large clump of green goo on top of his head.
“I won’t forget this,” he hissed out. “Make sure you sleep with one eye open from now on.”
I bit my bottom lip. “Sorry, Nugget. I guess my magic is still really screwy.”
There was a knock at the door, and I glanced up. I wasn’t in the mood for visitors. I ignored the knock and knelt to pick up fragments of the cauldron.
There was another knock. This one more persistent and ongoing.
“Aren’t you going to get that?” Hilda said.
“It’ll be the trolls. They probably heard the explosion.”
“They didn’t knock the last time they came in,” she said.
“Then it’s someone from the Magic Council. They already know I’m messing with magic and have come to arrest me. Or it’s a resident from the village telling me to get lost.”
Nugget peered out the window. “It’s not the Magic Council or the trolls.”
“Another pumpkin wielding resident?” I said.
“I don’t see any pumpkins. Which is a surprise, given who it is.”
I placed the pieces of the cauldron in the trash can, before peeking out the window. My eyes widened. “Huh! What are they doing here?”
“Open up!” Odessa Grimsbane’s voice came through the door. “We can hear you in there, Indigo. And the house has already told us you are home.”
“I didn’t know this house talked.” I ducked back as my second visitor, Storm Winter, glanced my way. I hadn’t heard from either Odessa or Storm since leaving the village. What were they doing showing up now?
“Odessa has cookies,” Nugget said. “You need to let her in. I’m starving.”
“You don’t eat cookies.”
“I’ll eat anything if I’m hungry enough.” He hopped off the window ledge and sashayed out of the room.
I swiped goo off my clothing, then headed to the front door and cracked it open. “Hey. Is there something I can do you for?”
“I told you she wouldn’t remember us,” Storm said. Her short dark hair spiked up and her pale blue eyes narrowed. “This was a waste of time.”
“No! Of course Indigo remembers us. We haven’t changed that much.” Odessa was short, curvy, and nearly always smiling. She had round cheeks, a cute button nose, and an infectious giggle.
“I remember you, but I’m kind of busy,” I said.
“We could come back another time,” Odessa said. “Although we brought you welcome home cookies. I made them.”
“And guess what flavor they are?” Storm said.
“Um... pumpkin?” Odessa specialized in pumpkin harvesting and scarecrow wrangling.
“And chocolate chip,” Odessa said. Her brow furrowed. “You do remember us, don’t you? You aren’t just being polite? It’s been a while since we last met. Although I’d recognize you anywhere.”
“Sure, I know you.”
“Indigo doesn’t do polite,” Nugget said from his position on the stairs.
“We’ll only stay five minutes, but it’s important we speak to you.” Odessa waved the plate of cookies at me.
They did look amazing. I opened the door wider and stepped back. It seemed all my old friends wanted to reconnect. Who’d have thought it after everything I’d done?
Odessa walked into the living room and set the cookies down on one of the few surfaces that hadn’t been splatted with spell mixture. She placed her hands on her hips and looked around. “I like what you’ve done with the place. It’s very authentic grunge witch.”
“Did you blow something up in here?” Storm also looked around, not seeming nearly as impressed by my recent spot of redecoration as Odessa.
“I was messing around with some of my stepmom’s old stuff.” I gestured at the cabinet. “Thanks for the cookies, but I do need to get on.”
“Then we won’t waste any more of your time.” Odessa walked over and petted Russell. “Hello, handsome birdie. You must be bored, stuck like that.”
Russell preened and rubbed his beak against her hand.
“He’s not stuck. He’s free to leave any time he likes,” I said.
Storm looked at me like I was crazy.
“What?” I gestured at Russell. “He came in here when I arrived. I’m not forcing him to stay.”
“Your magic really is messed up,” she muttered.
I stared at Russell. That made no sense. What was I missing? “What’s so important that you needed to see me?” I expected them to tell me to pack my things and leave.
I glanced at the cookies. As tasty
as they looked, I shouldn’t eat them, just in case there was something in them that had a nasty side effect. I didn’t want to end up with ears and a tail.
Odessa unwrapped the cookies, took one, and offered them to me and Storm.
Storm took a cookie, but I shook my head. I had to get Odessa and Storm out of here so I could focus on helping Luna, or simply blowing up cauldrons.
Nugget walked back in the room, looking mildly less goo covered, as if he’d just speed cleaned himself while sitting on the stairs. He was also back to his normal size.
“Oh, how kind of you. You took in all your stepmom’s familiars,” Odessa said. “Is Hilda here, too?”
Hilda scuttled out from under a chair and waggled her front legs at Odessa.
“I didn’t have much choice in taking them in. They barged into the house and haven’t left,” I said. “It’s weird. I barely remember them. I know Nugget, but the others are blurry. A lot is blurry.”
Odessa nodded, a sympathetic look on her face. “I expect it is. You’ve been through a lot. I came looking for them after you and Magda left the village,” Odessa said.
“They didn’t leave. They got arrested for multiple homicides and the deadly use of dark magic,” Storm muttered.
Odessa pursed her lips and shook her head. “I was worried about them, but they’d disappeared. I figured your stepmom had made arrangements for them to be taken somewhere safe.”
“Magda didn’t have time to make any arrangements for their well-being. They got left behind.”
“Ah, yes. I expect she didn’t. It was all a surprise what happened that day.”
“Yep,” I said, not really wanting to delve into that area of my past, but sensing that was where this was headed. “So... why are you here? Is it about what happened, you know, when I...”
“Turned into a psycho witch?” Storm said.
I pressed my lips together and nodded. She’d always been the blunt one in the group, and age had done nothing to soften that aspect of her character.
“No! Nothing like that. That’s in the past,” Odessa said. “And we’re all allowed mistakes.”
“That was an epic mistake,” Storm said.
“Storm! We talked about this.” Odessa pinched Storm’s bare arm.