The Empire Witch

by Chandelle LaVaun

“Goddess, almighty.” My father threw the lid off the box then dove in with a wild kind of grin. Then he pulled out two black leather cowboy boots with an intricate inlay. The look on his face was absolutely priceless. “Heather, they got me BOOTS!”

  “Yes, but I’m afraid I have some bad news…” Mom smiled and pulled out a pair of black cowgirl boots with a sharp pointed toe and black sequins inlayed on the shaft. She held them up for everyone to see. “Mine are definitely much prettier.”

  He scoffed. “That is highly debatable, dear—”

  “I don’t know, Sebastien…” Stedman arched one white eyebrow and lifted his brown cowboy boots out of his box. “Mine are suede, so I do believe that trumps sequins.”

  My parents both gasped.

  “GUYS!” Amelia jumped up, then kicked her feet back and forth. She’d already gotten hers on. “Mine are LEOPARD print. I win. Hands down.”

  Everyone laughed.

  Emersyn bit her bottom lip and sat forward. “Do y’all like them? I wanted y’all to have a little bit of something from me, and I thought maybe we could all go to that country western bar in town together? They have family nights and—”

  “They’re perfect.” My mother smiled and her eyes glistened. “Thank you so much. These look much more comfortable than my Louboutins.”

  “Yeah, I definitely want to go to that bar. I’m ready now.” My father slid his boots on with his pajamas. “All I need now is a hat.”

  I chuckled. “We can get you a hat, Dad.”

  “Yeehaw — wait, is that offensive?”

  Emersyn shook her head and laughed. “No. At least not to me.”

  My mother pulled her slippers off and slid her boots on. Her eyebrows rose. She pursed her lips and nodded. “Wow, these are comfortable.”

  My father rubbed his hands together. “Well, y’all, looks like we’ve gone country!”

  “Actually, that’s not the only place we’re going…” She jumped up and hurried over to the Christmas tree, then pulled out five presents that were hidden from sight. She carried them over then handed them out. “Don’t open yet.”

  I frowned. “Mother, what are you up to?”

  Once we all had a gift in our lap, she grinned. “Okay, OPEN.”

  We glanced around at each other nervously, because my mother was not acting like herself. Actually, she was acting a lot like her old self. The mother I knew when I was a child before she became Major of New York.

  “Well, what are we waiting for y’all?” Emersyn shouted. “Open!”

  At the same time, we tore into the black wrapping paper, shredding it into little pieces as we searched for the box inside. Once I had the box, I had questions. It was a plain cardboard box with no writing on it. I must’ve paused too long because suddenly Amelia squealed.

  “IS THIS – IS THIS – OH MY GOD,” she screamed and started bouncing in her seat.

  Emersyn gasped beside me.

  I frowned and tore the box open – and my eyes widened. Inside was a black and green cloak with a crest on the left chest that said Slytherin. Beside me, Emersyn pulled out an identical cloak. I looked over to Amelia and found her already wearing her black and blue Ravenclaw cloak with her cowgirl boots.

  “Sebastien? Stedman? Which did you get?” Emersyn asked excitedly while looking over.

  My father frowned and pulled out a long black and yellow cloak. “Hufflepuff. How did you know which to get me? I’ve never taken this quiz – Amelia was supposed to show it to me.”

  “Please, honey, you’re as Hufflepuff as they get.” My mother shook her head.

  Emersyn snorted.

  My father scowled. “That doesn’t sound like a compliment. I am offended on behalf of all Hufflepuffs.”

  “I do believe you’ve just proved her point, Sebastien.” Stedman winked playfully. Then he lifted up his Ravenclaw cloak. “I’d also like to point out that Ravenclaw has won the majority of the house.”

  I frowned and followed his gaze — and found my mother wearing a Ravenclaw cloak as well. My father’s jaw dropped. Amelia gave her a high-five. Emersyn giggled.

  “Mother…what did you do?” I narrowed my eyes on her and let my magic wash over her. “I can sense you’re planning something…”

  She grinned. “Oh, I am. Because there’s more to this gift. Everyone look in your left pockets, please.”

  I reached in and pulled out a folded envelope just as Amelia screamed like a banshee. I gasped. “What the hell—”

  “WE’RE GOING TO UNIVERSAL!” Amelia screamed.

  My jaw dropped. I unfolded the paper and found an annual pass to Universal Studios in Orlando Florida. Behind it was a printed picture of the Hardrock Hotel. “Mother…”

  “We’re going.” My mother grinned and rubbed her hands together. “I couldn’t actually book the dates because I’m not sure with The Coven’s schedule and everything, so I printed out the picture of the hotel. This one looks the most fun. And I got annual passes because well, why not?”

  My heart fluttered. “Mom…you got us…a vacation?”

  Her eyes shined and her cheeks flushed. “Well, Emersyn joining the family has made me realize how much I’ve let our family slide away. It’s time we fixed that and since we all love Harry Potter, I figured what better way than to all take a trip there together?”

  My throat burned as emotions I wasn’t prepared to feel rushed to the surface. “Mom.”

  Emersyn wrapped her arms around my shoulders and kissed my cheek. “I think it’s bloody brilliant. I’ve never been. My sister is going to be so jealous.” She grinned.

  “Wait…” Stedman frowned and stared at his cloak in his lap. “I – I – I got one, too? You want me to come with you on vacation?”

  “YES, but not as our employee.” My mom sat down beside him. “You’re family to us, Steds, and I know we’d all love for you to join us for a fun trip. No working.”

  His eyes filled with tears and she pulled him in for a hug.

  I leaned back against the couch.

  Wow. A family vacation.

  My mother hadn’t taken a single day off work since she became Major. Even nights and on the weekends she worked. I’d forgotten what a family vacation even looked like. We hadn’t had one since I was a kid.

  Emersyn wiped her eyes.

  And it’s because of her. My soulmate had brought all of this on and I knew there was no way I’d ever make it up to her. What she’d given back to my family was priceless and immeasurable. I looked down at my right hand, to the black lines that now covered my fingers and wondered not for the first time how I’d gotten so damn lucky.

  Chapter Ten

  Emersyn

  “I don’t think I’ve ever eaten so much food,” Sebastian said as he pushed away from the table and rubbed his stomach.

  “Yeah, I’m hurting but I’m not mad.” Deacon chuckled. He reached over and rubbed the back of my neck. “That was an experience for my taste buds I will never forget.”

  Heather laughed. “It might be on my waistline forever. I don’t know how southern women stay thin. I just want to keep eating it.”

  I grinned. “Stedman might be an honorary southerner after that.”

  “Why, thank you, Emersyn.” Stedman wiped his face with his linen. “I should probably visit the south, for further training of course.”

  “That can be arranged.” I snorted.

  Amelia licked each of her ten fingers clean. “I’m here for it.”

  Sebastien rubbed his face and cursed. “I’m about to be face down in this dish. I need a nap.”

  Stedman sighed. “I may need to call Caroline now, see if she has tricks to avoid manual cleaning because...” he shook his head.

  “Actually, I have spells for that. They’re basic but they’ll work.”

  Stedman’s eyes sparkled. “Excellent.”

  “Okay, but really—" Amelia yawned. “What do we do now? Please say nap.”

  Heather chuckled and shook her head. “If you need one
, yes.”

  “What are we doing tonight?” Amelia yawned again.

  Heather frowned. “I don’t have a plan.”

  “I do.”

  Everyone looked to me and my heart fluttered. I licked my lips and wiped my hands off on my linen.

  Then I looked up and met Deacon’s eyes and smiled. I held my right hand up. “Our soulmate glyph completed finally...and...”

  The smile that spread over Deacon’s face took my breath away.

  “And...and...” I shook myself, then turned to look at the others. “And I want both of our families present when we do the ceremony. So, I was hoping maybe we could do that tonight?”

  “Y-you want us there for that?” Heather’s face was an unreadable mask.

  I nodded. “Of course. We’re all family now, I want you all there with us.”

  Her eyes watered and she blinked. “That would be lovely.”

  “It’s settled then.” I turned back to Deacon and met his gaze. I took his right hand in mine. “Tonight, we make this official.”

  He nodded, his own violet eyes shimmering.

  Amelia clapped her hands and cheered.

  “About time,” Sebastien said with a chuckle. “About time indeed.”

  “I’ve never seen one of these...” Stedman frowned. “What will you need from me?”

  I shook my head. “Nothing. I’m going to call my sister and have them come over.”

  Deacon handed me his phone. I dialed her number then put it on speaker as I waited for her answer.

  “Hey, D—"

  “It’s me.”

  “Eyyyyy, twiny twin twin. Wassup?”

  I smiled. “Firstly, you’re on speaker. Second, um...I was wondering if you could portal the fam over here for a little bit.”

  “Why, what’s wrong? What happened?”

  “Nothing! We’re fine.” I looked down at my hand. “It’s just...well...our soulmate glyph finished—"

  “WHAT? When? No wait, tell me everything later. Of course we’ll come over. BABE!” She shouted to Tennessee in the background then cheered. “Yeah. We’re coming. This is so exciting.”

  I sighed with relief. “And Mom and Dad? Coop and Benny?”

  “Right, so give me an hour. Tenn and I just finished killing some demons over in Buffalo, we gotta clean up. Then I’ll portal and get the fam. That cool?”

  As if on cue, Amelia yawned.

  “Yes, that’s perfect.”

  “Awesome! See you in a hot minute!”

  Fifty-eight minutes later, I walked out of Deacon’s room wearing a pale yellow, strapless dress that dragged the floor. It showed off all of my soulmate glyph, which was what I wanted for this. I walked barefoot across the hardwood floor, then down the grand staircase.

  The floor creaked under my feet and then Amelia came bouncing into the foyer from the living room. Her simple black dress that fell to her knees made her look like a miniature grown-up, but that was a common side effect of kids in Manhattan – so I’d learned. She grinned up at me. “Em, you look beautiful.”

  I smiled and stepped off the last step. “Thank you, so do you.”

  “Thanks!” She twirled the skirt a little then peeked up at me. “You ready?”

  My heart fluttered. More than you know. I nodded. “Yes, where’s Deacon?”

  “I’m here,” he said softly.

  I looked up and found him leaning against the archway that led into the living room. He wore a cream-colored shirt that his mother had just given him for Christmas. It had a deep v-neck – the kind Tenn would wear – but it was perfect for showing off the lavender crystal heart on his chest. I liked the way I could see the black lines of our glyph running across his chest then down his arm. His pants were somehow the exact same shade of cream as his shirt and that just took skill.

  “You look handsome and dashing, as always.”

  He smiled and his cheeks flushed. “You are stunning.”

  Heat rushed to my face, so I looked away. I needed to keep my emotions in check for this. As my gaze wandered, I discovered he was also barefoot. I grinned and stuck my foot out from under my dress. “Guess we had the same idea.”

  “Great minds think alike.” He chuckled.

  “All right, if they’re not wearing shoes then I don’t see why I have to,” Tennessee’s deep velvety voice rumbled through the foyer.

  We gasped and turned to find him standing there with my family behind him.

  Dad closed his eyes and shook his head. “How did you ever keep him clothed growing up?”

  Uncle Kessler chuckled and shrugged. “I didn’t.”

  I grinned. “Uncle Kessler, you came!”

  “Hope that’s all right?”

  I skipped over and gave him a hug. “Of course it is! Oh, hi, Mona! Thanks for coming, y’all. Especially on such short notice.”

  “Oh, we were dressed and ready before Tegan called.” Cooper turned to Bentley and arched one eyebrow. “Someone told us we had somewhere to be this afternoon, but wouldn’t tell us where or what.”

  Bentley grinned, completely unashamed. “Need to know, brother bear.”

  Cooper rolled his eyes, but he was smirking.

  “Twinnnnn, I’m loving this whole…” Tegan waved her hands over my chest. “La-de-da kinda thing going on here. You should show it off more.”

  “She means the glyph, not your—”

  “Sure, we’ll go with that, Coop.” Tegan winked at him suspiciously.

  “Tegan, I think you gave your brother enough anxiety this weekend already. Ease up,” Dad scolded her. He shook his head. “You’re going to give him an ulcer.”

  “Oh, I’ll give him—”

  “Tegan,” Dad growled.

  “Fine.” Tegan sighed dramatically, but when she looked back to me, she was grinning.

  “So this is what having siblings is like?”

  Deacon chuckled and ruffled Amelia’s hair. “This ain’t nothing, they’re just getting started.”

  She grinned. “Well I like it.”

  Me too. My heart was so damn full at the moment. I had to just take a mental step back and let this process. My whole life, for as long as I could remember, all I wanted was a big family. I wanted both parents and siblings and extended family. I wanted bickering and teasing, and lots of laughter. Growing up with just Mom was nice. I had a great childhood, it just always felt a little empty. It’d gotten a bit better when Bentley was born. Those first few years of having him twenty-four-seven were fantastic, but then mom had shipped him off to dad once school started. She’d thought he needed a father around more than a mother.

  I always thought that was ridiculous.

  Now I knew it was.

  It’d been a total lie. They sent Bentley to live with Tegan. Not dad. Because they felt my sister was a wild child who needed a little sibling to ground her. The worst part was they were right. My sister was a handful, however I couldn’t imagine what she would’ve turned out like if Bentley hadn’t come along. And Bettina.

  But now I had everything I’d ever wished for. A family.

  Deacon was just icing on a blissfully sweet cake.

  “Wait, is everyone here barefoot?” Tenn gestured around the foyer.

  I frowned and glanced behind me. Sure enough, Heather and Sebastien were standing beside Deacon…barefoot. “Tenn, you can take your shoes off if you’d like.”

  “Enablers, all of you.” My mother shook her head.

  Tegan snapped her fingers and suddenly they were all barefoot. “That’s better. Now, shall we do the damn thing?”

  My mother stepped around Tegan and walked up to me. She cupped my face and smiled. “You look beautiful, dear.”

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  She winked, then looked over my shoulder. “Heather, Sebastien, thank you for welcoming my rowdy children, husband, and brother-in-law into your home. When one of them breaks something, please let me know so I can punish them.”

  Sebastien threw his head back and laughed. />
  Tegan chuckled and opened her mouth to speak—

  “Tegan,” Dad warned and shook his head – in defeat, because she was impossible.

  She made a circle over her head like a halo.

  “Could you imagine if she were the Devil Card?” Deacon shuddered.

  Amelia giggled and covered her mouth. Her eyes bounced from person to person, just soaking up all of the craziness that was my family. “This is awesome,” she whispered.

  Heather cleared her throat then smiled. “Well, shall we get this ceremony started?”

  YES. I turned and met Deacon’s eyes and butterflies danced around in my stomach.

  Everyone nodded.

  “Great, follow me.” Heather waved for the group to join her in the living room.

  I stayed back, concentrating on deep breaths.

  “You okay?” Deacon whispered against my ear.

  I peeked up at him. “Never better, taco. You ready to do this?”

  He grinned. “Since the moment I laid eyes on you.”

  My body did all kinds of weird things and a strangled kind of noise came out of me. “Deacon.”

  “Come on,” he said with a soft chuckle as he took my hand in his. “We’re all set up and ready in here.”

  I frowned and looked up at him as we walked into the living room. “Set up?”

  He wagged his eyebrows and pointed in front of us.

  I turned – and my breath left me in a rush. My jaw dropped.

  The room was…was…a fairytale come to life. The all-white room was glowing with warm light from the sun setting through the floor-to-ceiling windows and the Christmas tree lights twinkled in the distance with a rainbow of colors. But what blew me away were the candles. There had to be hundreds of them in all shapes and sizes – and they were all white. They lined the walls and furniture in small clusters.

  But in the middle of the room, dozens of the white candles were grouped together to make a circle big enough for just two people with a narrow opening. Our family stood in a big circle around the room wearing happy smiles, their eyes sparkling.

  “Deacon…” I shook my head and tried to reign in my fluttering pulse. “Did you do this?”

  He took my hands and walked backwards, leading me into the circle of candles. “I wanted this to be special for you…and ya can’t do that without flames.”