The Cursed Witch

by Chandelle LaVaun

  “That’s normal. But we’re here for you and we’re going to help you.”

  As the hallway around us emptied until it was just us, my pulse skyrocketed. “So…um, what class is this?”

  “Photography,” they both said at the same time.

  We walked down to the very end of the hallway to a set of double wooden doors that Gigi yanked open like it was no big deal. Like this whole class thing wasn’t something to be afraid of. My stomach tightened and turned. A little voice in my mind was screaming at me to turn and run and never leave the house again. Which only made me want to conquer this whole school thing even more. I took a deep breath and pushed my shoulders back…then walked inside.

  Everything was white, from the ceiling to the floor. Right in front of me was a wide wooden table which I somehow knew was called a desk, though I had no idea why I knew that. The chair behind it had four wheels and was sitting empty. On the wall behind the chair, the word narrative was scribbled in black ink. That meant nothing to me. Like most things.

  Before I let it frustrate me, I forced my gaze to move along to the wall straight across from me. A row of windows let the mid-day sunlight pour into the room and offered a wonderful view of some pine trees. In front of the windows were about a dozen computers. I had absolutely no idea what a computer was but Landreia had one and she’d tried to explain it to me last night…until I got so frustrated I’d burst into angry tears. Those damn butterflies danced around in my stomach again at the mere thought of having to use one of them.

  Savannah cut in front of me and walked over to a long, jet-black sink with a bunch of bottles, jugs, and canisters sitting on top and underneath. “Don’t let it overwhelm you, we’re gonna do this one step at a time.”

  I bit my lip and nodded. “Okay.”

  “Oh, who do we have here?” an unfamiliar feminine voice said from my right.

  I looked over just as a beautiful woman with the brightest purple eyes I’d ever seen strolled up to us. Her hair was as red as mine and fell in waves down to her hips. She grinned and it made her eyes light up. I wiped my sweaty hands on my jeans and swallowed down the rush of nerves clawing their way up my throat.

  Savannah jumped forward next to the woman, then pointed to me. “This is our friend Saraphina Proctor. She’s new here.”

  The woman’s eyebrows rose. “Oh, how lovely. And beautiful name, Saraphina.”

  The fact that Savannah didn’t tell this woman to call me Saffie made me happier than it probably had any right to. She was respecting me even when I hadn’t asked her to. “You can call me Saffie.”

  She smiled so wide it dimpled her pale cheeks. “Nice to meet you, Saffie. I’m Ms. Kelly.”

  “She’s new here, too.” Savannah leaned her head on Ms. Kelly’s shoulder and made a goofy face. “But we adore her.”

  Ms. Kelly chuckled. “So, Saffie, what brings you to Salem?”

  “Oh, well—"

  “That’s a good question.” I sighed and waved my new friends off. “It’s okay, there’s no use in pretending or being weird about it. I have amnesia, so I have no idea.”

  Ms. Kelly’s violet eyes widened.

  A loud bell sound ripped through the room and stung my ears.

  “Oh, dear, that is the bell. Time to start class…” Ms. Kelly stepped forward and put her hand on my forearm. Her eyes were soft and kind, but there was an intensity in them I couldn’t explain. “Stick close to Savannah and Gigi, okay? Then we’ll talk when we break.”

  I nodded. She winked, then turned and started to walk away when Savannah snapped her fingers.

  “Oh, she needs a camera.”

  Ms. Kelly paused and glanced over her shoulder. “Right. Gigi, dear, why don’t you grab mine for her to use?”

  “On it!” Gigi spun and hurried to the back corner of the room then disappeared out of sight.

  “Come on, let’s grab seats,” Savannah said as she took my hand and tugged me forward.

  I spun and stumbled to catch up with her quick steps – then realized for the first time since walking in that there were other students in the room. Somehow I’d missed two dozen students sitting at the long tables in the middle of the room. Fortunately, none of them were paying me any attention. They were all focused on Ms. Kelly. Savannah dragged us up to the front table to where there were a handful of empty stools.

  Savannah sat in the one in front and patted the one behind her. “Sit here.”

  I did as she asked and noticed a few students nearby glanced over at me with confused expressions. I tucked my hair behind my ears, then leaned forward and whispered, “what happens now?”

  “Ms. Kelly is explaining our assignment and then we’ll be dismissed to work on it,” Savannah whispered back. “Just hang tight, I’ll explain everything when she’s done.”

  I nodded and started to speak when the classroom door in front of me swung open. I glanced up — my breath left me in a rush. My chest burned and I knew I needed to breathe but my body seemed to forget how. All I could do was stare.

  It was him.

  Zachariah. Riah.

  The world slowed down but my pulse skyrocketed. Heat rushed through my limbs and into my cheeks. He paused just inside the class and nodded once to Ms. Kelly. I meant to watch for her reaction to him but I was frozen in place. And then he turned and those beautiful bright, sunshine-like, golden eyes met mine.

  I didn’t know what it was about him but when our gazes met the world melted away. It made me question just how much following had actually happened that night. Maybe I’d just thought I saw him. Because I’d been seeing him in the corners of my eyes since he walked in at lunch. This feeling was confusing. It made no sense. I was going to have to talk to someone about it. Soon. Before I lost what was left of my mind. I was lost in a trance until he turned and walked away, saving me from myself. If he’s in my class, maybe I can ask him?

  Chapter Eleven

  Saffie

  “All you do is point and click?” I frowned as I realized I hadn’t understood what the assignment was. “What is a narrative?”

  “Exactly.” Savannah pushed the door open and bright sunlight poured into the hallway. “A narrative is a picture that tells a story without any words or explanation. It can speak for itself.”

  “Oh, and it’s black and white film.” Gigi shrugged and adjusted the strap on her camera. “That’s an important detail we need to mention.”

  Savannah snapped her fingers then pointed to the top of my camera where a little number 24 was visible. “That’s how many pictures you have left to take, so pace yourself.”

  Twenty-four pictures. I can do this. This will be fun. Look for a visual story.

  I glanced between them as they watched me. “I’m ready.”

  Savannah winked. “Let’s march, dudettes!” Then she stomped out the door and into the sunlight.

  I followed Gigi outside – and gasped. Everything was white. Snow fell from the sky in little chunks that sparkled as the sunlight hit it. The ground was covered in a couple inches of snow, pretty soon it would start to pile up. Even the leafless tree branches had a layer of snow on them.

  Savannah sighed. “I couldn’t have manifested a better day for this project if I tried.”

  “Speak for yourself.” Gigi groaned and pulled her hood tight over her head. “I left Canada for this? Hashtag bullshit.”

  I had no idea what compelled me, but I lifted my camera up to my eye and peeked through the little window until I saw Gigi’s deep scowl in the box. Snow was already piled up on her shoulders and splattered on her hood. The blonde curled ends of her hair were wet and speckled white. Point and click.

  Gigi jumped and turned to me with wide eyes. “Did you just take a picture of me?”

  I grinned. “Well your face definitely told a picture.”

  Savannah threw her head back and cackled, holding her stomach with her hands. “Shit. I like her so much.”

  Gigi rolled her brown eyes but there was a smirk on he
r face. She shook her head then spun around and marched toward the street. “You live through Montreal winters, then you can talk to me.”

  “That was amazing. I can’t wait to see that pic.” Savannah raised one hand in the air in between us and froze. “You hit with yours, it’s called a high five.”

  “Oh.” I reached up and slapped her palm with mine. I chuckled. “That was fun.”

  She giggled, then flicked the ocean-colored ends of her hair over her shoulder. “Come on, let’s go find more stories to snap.”

  Then she turned and skipped to catch up with Gigi. I sighed and watched my two new friends turn onto the sidewalk in front of the school. I’d only just met them less than two hours ago yet I felt like we’d been friends for ages. They didn’t make fun of me for not knowing things, and they didn’t focus on it either.

  I followed after them, enjoying the crunch of my boots in the snow as I walked up the path. Savannah and Gigi were a little ways down, in front of another red brick building that looked identical to the ones of our school. They were crouched down with their cameras pointing under a car and giggling.

  I stopped on the sidewalk in front of the school and looked around. The mid-day sun was bright enough to shine through the haze of gray clouds, making the snow shimmer like stars in the night sky. The air was cold, but the coat Landreia had given me was keeping me perfectly warm. Besides, the air smelled fresh and crisp. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath through my nose, and soaked it in. Every time I went outside I found myself feeling a little bit better. Lighter. The world wasn’t crashing in around me.

  With each breath, the tension in my shoulders loosened.

  My thoughts slowed until I heard only the beat of my heart and the chirping of birds up above. Their song was cheery and musical. I opened my eyes and scanned the tree branches hanging over the street until I spotted them. I moved to the edge of the sidewalk to get a closer look.

  I couldn’t believe my eyes. The birds were gorgeous and maybe the size of my hands. They were also the most vibrant shades of blue and green I’d ever seen. The white snow all around them made their colors really stand out. They chirped and flapped their wings, fluttering around the branches. I took another step forward. The trees on each side of the road sprawled over the street, connecting with each other like they were all the same tree. Yet the birds were divided by color. The blue ones were on a branch just over my head, and the green ones were in the branches over the street. I wondered what they were saying to each other.

  Wait. That’s a story!

  I fumbled with my camera to get it up and the lever yanked back. Then I braced myself with one hand on the tree beside me, and pointed the lens up at the trees and hit the button. The camera clicked in my ear. Then I took two more, just to be sure I got it. I pulled it back down and stared up at these glorious animals. I hadn’t seen such a pretty thing since I woke up on that wharf, nothing with colors — wait. The pictures are black and white!

  I pulled my cellphone out of my pocket and looked for the circle with the picture of the camera in it – a symbol I now recognized. These birds were too pretty to only see in black and white, besides, I wanted to show Landreia when I got home. I pointed my phone up at the trees and hit the big circle button at the bottom. My phone clicked just like the camera did. I smiled and held my phone down so I could see it, then hit the little square with my picture in it — I gasped.

  There were no birds in my picture.

  I frowned and looked up…and there they were.

  I held my phone up and took another picture – but this one was just as empty. No birds. What? Why? It didn’t make any sense.

  “Saffie!”

  Unless it has something to do with the camera on my phone? Maybe it doesn’t capture certain colors?

  Yeah. Yeah, that must be it.

  “Saffie!”

  I turned toward the sound of Savannah’s voice when I spotted a bright pink flower on the trunk of the tree beside me. I frowned. All of the trees on this road were in hibernation for winter, displaying pale brown colors – except for this one spot. A bright green vine grew out from the bark then wrapped around the trunk. It was thick with green leaves and little pink flowers. I reached out then froze. That’s where my hand was.

  Surely there hadn’t been a flowery vine there when I leaned on it or I would have seen it.

  Right?

  Right.

  But then…where did this come from?

  I glanced around to all the other trees but none of them were flowering. It was just this one. I looked down at my hand and sighed. Right, I did that. Get ahold of yourself, Saffie.

  “Saffie!” Savannah shouted again and I jumped. When I glanced over she was walking toward me with a frown. “Are you okay?”

  I blinked and looked down at my phone to the bird-less picture…then up to the trees where they sat singing away. Then to the random flower on the trunk. “Um…yeah…”

  “Come on, let’s venture out a bit,” she yelled out to me and waved her arm.

  I frowned but hurried over to her with my phone gripped tight in my hand.

  “You all right?” She cocked her head to the side. “Something wrong?”

  “No, no, it’s nothing. I just —”

  A loud screech erupted from her pocket. She cursed and dove toward the sound, then pulled her phone out and held it to her ear. “Hi, Mom ….” She grabbed my hand and dragged me down the street.

  My question on the birds hung on the tip of my tongue, waiting for her to get off the phone as we skipped down the street. We passed red brick homes and wooden ones painted in pale colors like white, gray, and yellow.

  “Okay, Mom,” Savannah grumbled as we caught up with Gigi at the corner. “Yes. I will….no, Ma, I have Gigi. We’ll be fine hanging tonight. You do you. Have fun…all right. Yes. Okay. Bye, Mom.”

  Gigi chuckled and shook her head. She waited for Savannah to put her phone away, then said, “slumber party night?”

  “You down?”

  Gigi rolled her eyes. “Duh.”

  Savannah turned to me and smiled. “Do you want to join us tonight, Saffie?”

  I opened my mouth then shut it. My bird question vanished. “What…what is a slumber party?”

  “It’s when friends all hang out at one person’s house and sleep there.” Savannah wiped snow off her camera lens but peeked up at me with kind eyes. “You don’t have to answer now, and it’s no pressure. But you’re invited if you’d like to, okay?”

  “Yeah, you can think about it.” Gigi yawned. “Plus, you wouldn’t have to sleep over, either. We could just hang for a little while and then bring you home.”

  My heart fluttered and my cheeks warmed. “Thank you. I will think about it? Is that okay?”

  Savannah grinned. “That’s perfect.”

  Gigi stuck her thumb up at me, which I had no idea what it meant but she was smiling so I went with it. “Now, we’ve reached the corner. Which way you wanna go, Savannah?”

  “Hmmm…good question…” she tapped her chin with her finger and pursed her lips.

  Unable to curb my curiosity, I turned and looked back down the street. Even from several houses down I still saw those blue and green birds in the tree. I held my camera back up and looked through the little peep window — I gasped.

  Riah.

  There you are.

  His long golden hair and sharp cheekbones filled the frame of my camera. He stood in the middle of the street with his hands in his pockets and that black hood pulled over his head again. What is he doing? Where’s his camera? I turned the lens on the front of the camera until his face appeared to be closer than it was.

  And then he looked up at the birds and his lips curved ever so slightly on one side.

  He sees them!

  That made me feel worlds better. It must have been something with the phone.

  “Come on, Saffie!”

  I jumped and my finger hit the button. The camera clicked and snapped a pictur
e of his beautiful face as he looked up at the birds. Savannah grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the corner of the building. Gigi bounced next to me. I glanced over my shoulder…but Riah was gone.

  We walked to the next street, then turned left. Savannah stopped immediately and crouched down to take a picture of something on the ground while Gigi took a picture of her doing it. I put my camera up to my eye then slowly spun, searching for a narrative picture to jump out at me. I moved slowly until a large, dark object stepped in front of my camera down the street. I zoomed the lens out and my heart fluttered.

  Riah?

  How did you get over here so fast? No, I’m imagining things.

  I lowered my camera and peeked over the top – and my heart stopped. Riah wasn’t there. I scanned the street and brick sidewalks, then behind the trees and cars. He was nowhere. Two guys from our photography class jumped out from between buildings – one of them was tall and wearing a black hoodie. I sighed. Oh, Saffie. You really ARE imagining things.

  With a groan, I turned and marched off with my camera in my hands. Savannah and Gigi had ventured off but I saw them in my peripheral vision close by. I needed to stop thinking about Riah. I needed to just focus on my assignment and breathe. When I got an opportunity to speak with him, I would take it. I think.

  Just breathe, Saffie. You’re confusing yourself. You’re freaking yourself out.

  Take pictures and relax.

  It was hard to do that since I had so many questions, especially about this boy. Starting with what was he doing that night on the wharf and ending with why did I feel so drawn to him? But I had to push these thoughts aside before I drove myself crazy.

  Something touched my foot and I jumped. When I looked down I spotted a little gray bunny rabbit sitting between my feet. I smiled and held my camera to my face…and waited. A few seconds later, my little visitor looked up at me and I clicked the picture button.

  “Thank you, you’re so pretty,” I said softly to the rabbit.

  It wrinkled its nose, winked both its little black eyes, and hopped off. I kept the camera pointed at him as I pulled the lever back. My little friend left the cutest little paw prints in the snow as he bounced through it and headed toward the street. I crouched down low then took a picture of the paw prints stretching across the street.