The Brave Witch

by Chandelle LaVaun

  “Got it.” I followed her instructions and laid on my back with my arms by my side.

  “Perfect. Now just lie there, and we’ll do the rest.”

  I took a deep breath and focused on the sky. In the background, Henley’s voice rang out in that same unfamiliar language she’d used during Libby’s healing ritual. The incantations sounded like a lullaby, and with every word, my muscles relaxed a little more.

  The sky above me was misty and gray. Tennessee must’ve calmed the water because I couldn’t hear a single wave.

  Something moved in my peripheral vision. A second later, baseball-sized golden orbs of light floated over my head. They dropped down and hovered above me by maybe an inch or two.

  I took a deep breath. Being on the receiving end of this ritual was a totally different story. The lights brightened then slammed into me. I gasped as energy coursed through my veins. My back arched off the ground. The tension in my muscles slipped away. The ache in my bones vanished. My lungs filled with fresh, salty air. I blinked and the mist was gone. The sky turned a glorious blue, so vibrant I wanted to bottle it and turn it into paint.

  I licked my lips and blinked my eyes. Did Witch’s Shock rob me of my senses?

  Emersyn’s face blocked my view of the sky. “Tegan? We’re done. You can get up.”

  I frowned and sat up. The girls had all gone back over to Larissa’s cauldron. Easton, Royce, and Braison were looking at something on Easton’s phone. I scanned the beach again and spotted Cooper knelt down beside Larissa. It took me a minute to see Tennessee, but when my eyes found him, all I saw was his back as he stormed off toward the parking lot.

  “How long has the ritual been over?” I asked, eyeing my friends. Not a single one stuck around to make sure I was okay? That wasn’t like them. “What happened, Em?”

  “Tennessee happened.” Emersyn sighed. “For a guy who doesn’t want to be the leader, he sure enjoys telling everyone what to do.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “He ordered them away as soon as we finished. I’m under strict orders to not let you talk to anyone and to bring you straight home.” Emersyn held her hand out and pulled me to my feet. “You’re to go right to bed.”

  Chapter Six

  Tennessee

  What a damn day.

  I wasn’t sure how many more of these I could take without a break…or breaking. It had taken all of me not to panic and race to the beach when Henley called to say Tegan passed out again. When I’d arrived, she looked like a zombie with sunken cheeks and blueish lips. I’d had to avoid looking at her altogether. Cooper was paying way too much attention, my reaction wouldn’t go unnoticed. But she was his sister. I understood his anxiety. But it turned into an all-or-nothing situation. The second the ritual was over, I practically sprinted for my car.

  I hadn’t wanted to be near Kessler yet. I wasn’t ready to face any disappointment he might show. So, I’d gone to the infirmary to sit with Libby until Katherine kicked me out. The clock on my jeep read midnight when I finally pulled into my driveway. I slid out and slammed the door. My pocket vibrated. I sighed. It was probably Kessler or Cooper wondering where I was. Wait…no. Wrong pocket. My phone was in my back left, but the vibrations came from the front right. George.

  When I looked down, purple mist seeped out of George’s hiding spot. I frowned and pulled the pendulum out. I’d been so lost in thought I hadn’t heard the whispering before, but I did now. It was so loud it barely counted as a whisper anymore.

  I held the stone up. “George, did you need to speak with me?”

  YES.

  “Is something wrong?”

  YES.

  My pulse quickened. I glanced around me, but the street was dark and silent. The house was quiet too. “Am I in danger?”

  No.

  “Is my family in danger?”

  No.

  “Is Tegan in danger?”

  No.

  I sighed with relief. “Is anyone in danger?”

  YES.

  “Someone in The Coven?”

  Yes.

  “Can you guide me to them?”

  YES.

  I paused. Sometimes the pendulum wanted me to drive; other times it wanted me on foot. “Should I drive?”

  NO.

  “Okay, George, I’m listening. Show me.”

  The blue crystal switched directions and aimed down the street to my left. I pushed all of my thoughts about Tegan to the back burner and focused my energy into the stone. Someone in The Coven was in trouble, and I might’ve been the only person aware of it.

  I crossed through my front yard and onto the sidewalk, keeping the pendulum high in the air. The good news was only a witch could own or rent a house in our neighborhood. The Coven made the rule so we would be free to use our magic without getting caught. This meant if anyone in the houses spotted me, dressed in black from head to toe, walking suspiciously down the street, no one would be worried. Well, at least not about me.

  I followed George’s directions halfway down the street when it switched and signaled for me to turn right. My heart did a little flip in my chest, and my stomach knotted. Directly to my right was Tegan’s house. Without hesitating, I sprinted across and into her yard. Two cars were parked in the driveway, and the green house didn’t appear to have any lights on inside. I ran around the back of the house and headed straight toward Tegan’s bedroom window.

  I shouldn’t even know which window is hers.

  I didn’t even get all the way there before my chest flared with heat and pain. The damn glyph was like a beaconing system, lighting up whenever she was near. She’d never be able to sneak up on me, that was for sure. I moved closer to her window when a little shock zapped my fingers. The purple mist grew thicker and brighter. The swing of the crystal was faster and wider.

  I frowned. “The danger isn’t in their house?”

  NO.

  I sighed. “Okay, sorry. I’m following you again.”

  The whispering got louder, and in my mind, George was absolutely yelling at me. But that was okay. If the danger wasn’t in her house, and my glyph told me she was in there, then I could breathe normally. I took a deep breath and refocused my thoughts. George led me through Tegan’s backyard, in between Easton’s and Larissa’s houses and onto the next street over. When my feet hit asphalt, the pendulum aimed to the right.

  Where the hell are we going?

  The night was calm and still. A crescent moon stood out against a cloudless, star-filled black sky. The breeze was easy and warm, but comfortable. If there was danger lurking, I couldn’t sense it. Yet, George urged me forward. I continued on its path six houses down until I reached Willow’s house on the corner, then the pendulum swung left.

  I expected to find a Coven-mate in the thick of battle with a demon or fairy-spirit. I expected chaotic magic and spells shooting through the sky. I expected an obvious situation. What I didn’t expect? Emersyn standing in the middle of the street in a short, pink-flowered nightgown dress and white fuzzy slippers. I froze mid step about five feet away from her and looked down at my pendulum.

  It hung straight and unmoving.

  What the hell? I frowned and sent my question to George mentally. “Is Emersyn the one you sent me to find?”

  Yes.

  Well, that’s unexpected. “Thanks, George. I’ll get her home,” I whispered and stuffed my pendulum back into my pocket.

  There was nothing around us. Not even a stray cat or a dog in someone’s yard. But if the pendulum said she was in danger, then it meant it. The question was…danger from what? Maybe it simply meant her out at night alone was a horrible idea? What was she even doing out here? Her head was angled back with her face aimed at the moon. Her long, hip-length blonde hair flew in the breeze and whipped around her body.

  “Emersyn?” I called out. “What are you doing out here?”

  She didn’t respond. She didn’t move. I frowned and walked over. Her eyes were wide and staring up at the
moon through some trees. I reached out and squeezed her shoulder. Her skin was cool to the touch.

  “Emersyn, can you hear me?”

  “It’s not yours,” she mumbled, then repeated it several times. “I don’t care.”

  “Emersyn, are you all right?” I glanced around. We were still alone. “It’s me, Tennessee.”

  She stared up at the sky unblinking. “Smoke, then, y’all. Country style. Not me.”

  I frowned. What? “Emersyn? What are you saying?”

  “Always together. Not separate,” she whispered. “Won’t happen. Peanut-butter-and-jelly time. All day, every day.”

  Then it clicked. I rolled my eyes. Emersyn was sleepwalking. However, an untrained witch out alone in her sleep was bound to end up hurt. It was a fairly common occurrence among stressed-out witches to have strange conversations with the moon. In fact, it was common enough that we created a spell to get their unconscious minds to listen to us so we could escort them home safely.

  I stepped closer to her and took both of her slim hands in mine. Practical magic wasn’t something Coven members focused on, but we knew how to do it. I took a deep breath and channeled white energy from me into her palms. Silvery light filled the spaces between our hands and wrapped around her forearms. Goose bumps spread over her skin.

  “I call the Empress from within her sleep, hear my words but remain in deep. I will guide you until you’re safe at home, where you’ll find dreams in protection’s dome.”

  Emersyn blinked then looked directly at me. Her golden eyes were clear and calm, her smile warm and friendly. If I hadn’t known what a sleepwalking witch looked like, I wouldn’t have suspected it. The silver and white light of my magic faded away. I dropped our arms, but kept one of her hands in mine to lead her home.

  It only took us five minutes to walk the short distance back to her house. I half expected someone to spot us out there, but if they did, no one said a thing. Emersyn led me right to her bedroom window, which was the same as Tegan’s. Apparently they shared a room, which was good to know.

  Really? Is it? Why?

  Fortunately, they lived in a one-story house. Otherwise, the task would’ve been tedious. Either Emersyn had climbed out her window and shut it behind her, or they slept with the thing unlocked. Neither was comforting. I lifted the glass and helped Emersyn climb back through. By the time I hoisted myself inside, Emersyn had already climbed back into bed and cuddled into her blankets. I shook my head and turned to check on Tegan.

  Her black and purple hair was spread out above her head like a halo or crown. Her thin black eyebrows were scrunched low, and her lips mashed into a straight line. The muscles in her arms were flexed and tense, like whatever she saw in her dreams frightened her or made her angry.

  Unable to stop myself, I walked over and sat beside her. The mattress dipped under my weight, but she didn’t wake. She curled onto her side and pulled her hands under her face.

  Butterflies filled my stomach, and my pulse quickened. All of the signs of Witch’s Shock were gone, leaving only flushed, healthy skin and normal breathing. She was beautiful. She was perfect. I wanted to lie down beside her and hold her in my arms while she slept. But I couldn’t. The risk was too severe. Instead, I brushed my fingers over her cheek and dreamed of the day when I’d be free to be with her.

  I leaned down and pressed my lips to her temple. “Sleep peacefully, High Priestess.”

  Chapter Seven

  Tegan

  “Emersyn, she’s going to take you down again if you don’t actually try.”

  Emersyn bared her teeth and made this little growling noise which I thought was absolutely adorable. “I am trying.” Her blonde hair was tangled and frizzy, with dirt and grass smudged into it. Sweat beaded across her forehead and under her eyes.

  Uncle Kessler crossed his huge, muscled arms over his chest and arched one blond eyebrow. It was startling how similar to my father he was, except a tad bigger. “No, you’re going through the motions.”

  “She’s my stepsister! Do you want me to stake her like a vampire?” Emersyn threw her hands up in the air, with the wooden training dagger still gripped in her palm.

  “Like a vampire?” Uncle Kessler shook his head and laughed. “Well, yeah. I’d like to see you try.”

  “Yeah, I’m standing right here still, y’all,” I said with a laugh. There was so much energy running through me I didn’t mind the sweat rolling down my back, or the purple hair dye bleeding into my gray shirt. That healing ritual gave me life, quite literally.

  “Uncle Kessler—can I call you Uncle Kessler?” Emersyn scrunched her blonde eyebrows and wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. “I figure if Tegan and Bentley are going to call you Uncle, I should too?”

  Uncle Kessler chuckled and shook his head again, and a huge grin spread across his tan face. He seemed to be genuinely amused by almost everything my stepsister said. “Yes, Emersyn. That’s okay by me. Though it won’t get you out of training.”

  Emersyn sighed and plopped down on the greenest grass I’d ever seen. We’d been training with these wooden daggers for a couple hours already, with barely any break, so I understood her exhaustion. She picked up a water bottle and chugged it. There was blood on her fingers, and I had no idea if it was mine or hers.

  When she set the bottle back on the ground, she turned her pointed gaze back at Uncle Kessler. “I just don’t understand why we’re using dull wooden sticks instead of magic.”

  I fake gasped and clutched my weapon to my chest. “Emersyn, it can hear you. Be nice.”

  She narrowed her eyes at me, and her lips curled up at one end. “You’re such a weirdo.”

  I giggled and shrugged my shoulders. “Yup. And I feel fantastic. Stand up and actually try to kick my ass so my win is more rewarding.” Was I taunting her? Yes. Was it working? Too soon to know.

  “I’m gonna smoke you.”

  “Oh, I see what you did there.” I grinned. “Feisty. I like it.”

  “Seriously, Uncle Kessler.” Emersyn glanced at him. “Why no magic?”

  He uncrossed his arms and ran one hand over the back of his head, just like my father did whenever he was nervous or uncomfortable. Behind him, the sky was cloudless and a vibrant blue, the kind of color they turned into crayons.

  Summertime in Florida was brutal. The temperature on my weather app read 102 degrees with a heat index of 110. Even with the ocean breeze and the shade from the house, the humidity was suffocating. The cooler full of water bottles was almost depleted.

  I hope that smell isn’t me.

  “Is this, like, standard witch training?” Emersyn eyed her wooden dagger suspiciously.

  After a few seconds, Uncle Kessler walked over and sat down on the short brick wall just behind Emersyn. “No. Most witches learn practical magic from their parents growing up until they attend Edenburg. Once there, each witch decides which tracks they want to focus on. Fighting is only an option.”

  “So, then why—”

  “Because you’re not most witches. You’re not even regular witches. Members of The Coven have immense power, especially elemental magic as you know, but we also have immense responsibility our fellow witches do not. It is our duty to protect the world from the monsters who don’t belong here. You’ve gotten a glimpse at some of those already.”

  Images of the red-eyed creatures and ghost fairies popped into my mind and I shuddered. “You could say that.”

  “Magic is useful for us, of course. But fighting with weapons is crucial.” Uncle Kessler wiped his face with his arm. “As High Priestess and Empress, your Coven-mates are going to look to you for guidance and protection. Just like they do Tennessee. The more you prove yourselves, the less they’ll think they need to coddle you. You three have incomparable power. But that power also attracts more danger.”

  “I’m still not following exactly why you’re not training us to use our magic in a fight.”

  I frowned and glanced up at my stepsis
ter. “Because sometimes your magic won’t be there.”

  “Precisely.” Uncle Kessler nodded. “If Tegan had been attacked yesterday, she wouldn’t have had an ounce of magic to aid her. It used to happen to Tennessee when he was a little boy. He used to overextend himself constantly. If Cassandra hadn’t lived with us, I would’ve had quite the mess on my hands.”

  Cassandra lived with them? Well, that explains a lot.

  “You need to be comfortable with a weapon in battle so that if for whatever reason you cannot use magic, you still have a chance at survival.”

  “Oh.” Emersyn nodded. She stared at the grass for a few moments before she climbed to her feet and faced me. “Okay.”

  Movement behind them caught my eye. When I looked, I found a messy head of black hair and a cocky little smirk through the sliding glass door. Heat rushed to my cheeks. I looked to the ground to hide my blush from my uncle since Tennessee and I were forbidden from dating and my uncle seeing my reaction to his son would be obvious. I glanced back at the door but he’d vanished. Damn it.

  “All right, break time is over,” Uncle Kessler said and stood tall again. He motioned for us to take our places. “Show me what you’ve got.”

  “Yeah, stake me, Buffy.” I winked and readjusted my grip on our training dagger. I recounted all the moves Uncle Kessler had shown us on how to dodge an attack and how to retaliate. I stretched my arms and legs out, then got into a fighting stance.

  Emersyn narrowed her pretty golden eyes, then charged toward me without warning. She swung her weapon in a downward slicing movement. I leapt forward and intercepted her strike with my own weapon then spun around and ducked under her arm. Just like Uncle Kessler taught me, I brought the back of my weapon down and smacked her right between the shoulder blades. She cursed and stumbled forward, but she didn’t fall down. I grinned and took the lead, sprinting toward her and jabbing my dagger right at her gut.

  “Excellent, Tegan. Take her down.”