Stone Cold Witch

by Lori Woods

  “Cat’s honor,” she says and curls up at the edge of the couch. “Did you really have to give him our bed?”

  “My bed,” I say, but my voice is teasing. “Your bed is still available.”

  She pretends to be asleep. I roll my eyes and grab a sheet from my little linen closet before curling up on the couch, already aware that tomorrow is going to be a crazy day.

  Peter awakens at the crack of dawn the following morning, and I can hear him sniffing around for food. I laugh and proceed to make pancakes. He is beyond amazed at this; he has apparently never had pancakes. I imagine coming from Safe Haven that he’s probably used to the creepy-crawly food I had been served at The Graeae Sisters.

  Thankfully, he loves them. The kid can’t get enough of my blueberry pancakes. And he has a gargoyle-sized appetite. When he is done, he thanks me and is all smiles, saying he’s never had something so good. Turns out he’s partial to food inspired by the other side. Thank goodness because that’s about all I know how to cook.

  We walk to the library together, and we are getting looks already. People passing by in the streets twist their necks in surprise to see a gargoyle in Nightshade. No one seems afraid or upset or anything like that; just surprised. And equally surprised to see the gargoyle walking with their local Spell Master and her trusty familiar. I suppose it being daylight out and the gargoyle not being stone is enough in and of itself to evoke stares, though. Get used to it, people, gargoyle boy is here to stay—and he doesn’t take a stone nap in the daylight.

  The three of us arrive outside of the library, and there is Sprout, as always; seems like he prefers to be back outside, tending to the garden. He smiles politely, though I can tell he’s puzzled by Peter’s presence. I smile warmly at him. “Who’s your friend, Suzy?” he asks.

  “Sprout, this is Peter. My son,” I say proudly, and I got to say it felt good to say that. I can see Peter positively beaming to be introduced in such a way.

  “Son!” he says, dropping his hedge clippers, just barely missing his toes.

  “I’m adopted, or can’t you tell?” Peter jokes, giggling slightly. I’m glad the kid has a good sense of humor about people’s reactions to this. He had been giggling the whole way here whenever people would stare; I think he likes the attention.

  “Um… oh… Suzy,” Sprout stammers and then just spits out, “Why?”

  “Well, I visited an orphanage while I was out in Safe Haven,” I say. “I grew up in an orphanage as a kid, so I know what it’s like. I’ve got love to give, and Peter and I just clicked.” That should work for now, and I give him a sharp stare to let him know to stop gaping at us in shock.

  Sprout perks up; he’s always the more flexible and relaxed one of my new group of friends. He smiles and tips his hat. “Well, welcome to the Nightshade Public Library, Mr. Peter. I’m Sprout, a friend of your… mother’s… and I’m sure we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Peter says perkily as we head inside. I can see Sprout from the corner of my eye. I process his stare of disillusionment and I tell myself to just shake it off for now.

  Sprout is probably the least of my worries, I think to myself. My grandmother had warned me that bringing Peter anywhere other than Safe Haven was going to immediately label him as an outcast – I hope in the long run he agrees with me that being with family will be worth it.

  “Whoa!” Peter exclaims, his eyes growing wide with wonderment. He turns and looks at me. “You work here? I’ve never seen so many books!”

  I grin. “Yup, this is my fortress of solitude.”

  “That’s a weird name for a library,” he said.

  I just laugh. I lead him to one of the largest of the rooms near the fireplace, figuring I’ll set him up with some good study books. I’m not sure what to do with him just yet; public school? I’m already a little sketched-out by that in general, but then again, I’m not sure how homeschooling would work on this side. With the mortals I grew up with, I could have just used a website that walked me through all of the necessary curriculum. On this side, I’m not sure if anyone would even know how to teach a gargoyle-warlock hybrid, so maybe that was the best option? For now, I’m just going to let him do a little exploring and have some fun at the library.

  “You can hang out in here while I get everything ready to go for the day, okay?” I say, and I hear whispering behind me while Peter goes straight for the bookcases and starts scanning for something.

  I turn and see Doc and Alfie poking their heads in—spying on us. I’m sure Sprout has already informed them at the door about my decision to adopt a child from Safe Haven. They think I can’t see them. I instinctively roll my eyes. Snowball has taken a liking to Peter already, and I’m glad. She can be a bit snippy, so it thrills me to see her sitting up on the table being her usually witty self and making him occasionally giggle.

  “I see you two back there,” I say over my shoulder, and Doc and Alfie make a slow entrance. “Peter, come here, I want you to meet some of my friends.”

  He comes over, happy as ever, and offers the two guys a crooked smile. “Hi,” he says somewhat nervously.

  Snowball decides she’s just going to do the introductions. “Peter, this is Dr. Stork, he’s a regular around here. And, this is Alfie; he works here, and he’s a bit irregular.” Peter smirks.

  Alfie rolls his eyes at Snowball before looking up at me. “So… you just decided to… adopt a kid?”

  “Pretty much,” I say. “Be nice.”

  “Nice to meet you both,” Peter says and takes a step forward. I watch Doc jolt back, and I know that Peter definitely noticed. He steps back and stands with his hands crossed in front of him.

  Doc looks almost as embarrassed as Peter. He straightens his clothes and says, “Welcome to Nightshade, Peter. If you all will excuse me.” He walks around us and heads off to the bookshelves, eager to locate a book and pretend he hadn’t just acted ridiculously jumpy.

  Peter looks sad, but he shakes it off pretty quickly. He smiles at Alfie. “You work here? What do you do?” he asks.

  “Assistant librarian,” he says. “A little odd for me, though.”

  “How so?” Peter asks.

  “He can’t read,” Snowball says matter-of-factly.

  “I can read!” Alfie argues. “I’m just… a little dyslexic.”

  “Oh,” Peter says. “Hold on.” He suddenly waves his orange hand right in front of Alfie’s face. “Oculus recta!” A flash of light appears before Alfie’s eyes, and he jolts back, throwing his hands over his eyes.

  “Ah!” Alfie roars. “What did you do to me, you little rock monster!”

  Peter huffs and crosses his arms. “I’m going to go read somewhere,” he states in a firm tone and walks right out of the room.

  “Alfie!” I snap as the man is rubbing his eyes. “Why would you insult him like that?”

  “Why does that creepy little gargoyle know magic?” he questioned, still rubbing his eyes. He moves his hands down and blinks several times. “I thought he blinded me for a minute there!”

  Suddenly the books on the shelves start shaking, and Doc stands up from his seat in the back room curiously. “What in the world?” he questions.

  “Pick me! Pick me!” the books all start shouting. “Alford, pick me!”

  “That’s strange,” Alfie says. “They’ve never shouted at me before.”

  “Yeah, because you can’t read,” Snowball says and then suddenly perks up. “Wait, go get a book, Alfie.” Alfie glares down at Snowball like he thinks he’s being the butt of some joke. “Humor me,” she insists.

  Alfie goes and picks one of the screaming books off a shelf. He opens it up, and I see his eyes widen. “What?” I ask.

  He just stares down at the pages. I’m not really sure how to explain the look on his face. Sad? Happy? Overwhelmed, maybe? “Alfie, are you all right?” I ask.

  “I, um… I need to go apologize to the kid…” he says, throwing the book on the shelf
and running out of the room, and I swear I see the uptight dwarf attempt to subtly wipe tears from his eyes.

  “Snowball?” I question.

  “I think Peter fixed his dyslexia,” Snowball says.

  “No way,” I say.

  “That’s an awfully obscure spell,” Doc says, coming over to me. “Just the type of spell book that would be found in an orphanage in a place like Safe Haven where there are very few witches. Something that’s more for interesting reading than actually learning spells.”

  “You think he was basically just given a book of useless, random spells?” I ask.

  “Teach a bored kid too many spells that you don’t know how to undo, I imagine that would be difficult for a group of gargoyles to look after,” Doc says. “The teachers at his orphanage probably just gave him a book of harmless spells to study to pacify him. Something that obscure… he must have memorized every spell in whatever book it was he was given.”

  Suddenly, Val appears from around the corner. I smile; I wasn’t expecting to see him today. His eyes are wide, and he looks incredibly annoyed. “You adopted a child!” he exclaims as he enters.

  “Wow, word sure does get around fast in this town,” Snowball grumbles.

  “Can you two give Val and I the room?” I ask Doc and Snowball. They both shrug and head out together, Doc carrying a book under his arm.

  Once I’m sure they’re gone, I nod at Val. “Yes, I did.”

  “What in the world! That is just so… random!” he cries. “And, honestly, a gargoyle! They have a worse reputation than us vampires!”

  I grit my teeth. “I’d think you of all people would know how it feels to have everyone assume the worst about you.”

  “How is your little gargoyle friend even walking around during the day?” he asks.

  “Funny, I think someone said the same thing about you once,” I say.

  “Seriously, Suzy!”

  “He’s a hybrid,” I say. “He doesn’t turn to stone.”

  “Suzy, pardon me for being so rash, but don’t you think you should have talked to me about this first?” he asks.

  “And why would I do that?”

  “We’re in a relationship, aren’t we?” he questions. “You just went out and adopted a little monster without even telling me!”

  I scowl. “He’s not a monster, Val.”

  “How would you know?” he asks. “You don’t know anything about this side. You know nothing about gargoyles.”

  “I know that I am one!” I hiss, and he stares blankly at me.

  “Pardon?”

  “My father was a hybrid,” I say. “It’s… new information. But yes, I’m one-fourth gargoyle, just like Peter, the boy I adopted.”

  His shoulders slump. “I’m sorry, Suzy, I didn’t know.”

  “No, you didn’t, but it’s nice to see how everyone feels about that,” I say. “What is wrong with gargoyles? All the ones I’ve met so far have been really sweet. Sounds to me like everything everyone is basing their opinions off of is just old stereotypes—kind of like what happened at the wedding when all of your little vampire friends were arrested.”

  “You’re right,” he says. “I was not so much upset about him being a gargoyle as I was that you would just do this without even talking to me. Adoption is a big deal, and I’m sure you know that. Why didn’t you… share this with me, Suzy?”

  “It was a bit spontaneous, I know,” I say. “But let me explain. I need you to keep this between us, okay?” He nods, and I give him the whole spiel. I tell him about the dream I had had, about my grandmother telling me of my heritage, me going to Safe Haven, meeting the gargoyles, and finally learning all about Peter and who he is to me.

  When I’m finished, Val steps forward and puts his arms around me. “You’re incredible,” he tells me. “A brother! Suzy, that is wonderful. Does he know?”

  “No, not yet,” I say. “I think I should just reel him in, one big change at a time, you know?”

  “I understand,” he says and then stands upright, looking embarrassed about his outburst. “I am so sorry I got so angry. I would have done the same. Can… can I meet him?”

  “Of course,” I say, and we head off to find everyone.

  They have all settled down upstairs near the second floor fireplace. Alfie is sitting on the floor across from Peter, and the two of them are laughing and cutting up with one another while Snowball runs around in a circle. “Alfie!” I snap. “Did you give Snowball catnip again?”

  “Maybe…” Peter says, giggling.

  I roll my eyes, and they both bust out laughing. Doc smirks; he’s sitting closer to the fireplace with his nose in a book. “Come here, Peter,” I say. “I have someone I want you to meet.”

  Peter stands, his long tail dragging. I can tell he looks nervous to meet anyone else after all the reactions he has gotten. Val smiles at him, though. “Hey!” Peter says perkily. “You’re a vampire! One of my best friends at the orphanage was a vampire!”

  “There are vampires still living in Safe Haven?” Val questions.

  “Just a few,” Peter says. “They’re always really nice.”

  “Well,” Val says. “It’s very nice to meet you, Peter. My name is Val. I’m good friends with… your mother.”

  Peter raises a brow. “Oh,” he says. “You two are dating, aren’t you?”

  This flusters Val, and I laugh at his expense. “Yes,” I say.

  Peter smiles. He has just the most adorable smile.

  Chapter Thirteen

  After the awkward introductions are out of the way, I decide it is time to work on the investigation. The gargoyles had told me to see if there were any reflective surfaces out in the woods where Ted had been killed. A reflective surface meant that we were likely dealing with a vampire basilisk. With Snowball all jacked up on catnip, I decide that leaving her at the library unattended by anyone but Alfie, Doc, and Sprout would be a terrible decision. I bring her with me, along with Peter and Val.

  Much to my satisfaction, Peter and Val are talking one another’s ears off the whole walk to the woods. They seem to be getting along really well already; I suppose them both being creatures of reputation gives them a lot to talk about. I have to carry Snowball the entire way there because she keeps walking around in circles and singing some old sailing shanty. I’m going to punch Alfie for giving her catnip when I get back to the library.

  “Sing with me, Suzy!” Snowball shouts. “Come all ye young fellow that follows the sea! To me, way hey! Blow the man down! Now please pay attention and listen to me—give me some time to blow the man down! I’m a deep-water sailor just come from Hong Kong! You give me some whiskey; I’ll sing you a song!”

  “For the love of all things Holy and righteous, please shut your cat up!” Val pleads with me.

  “Wait!” Snowball cries. “I can change it and make it better!” She then begins to sing again. “I’m a deep-water sailor just come from Hong Kong! You give me some catnip; I’ll sing you a song!”

  “Why do you even know that song?” I question.

  “You don’t know my life!”

  “Okay, but that’s enough, okay? We’re here,” I say as we reach the woods. I put her down. “Stay out of trouble, okay?”

  She starts wandering off. “To me, way hey! Blow the man down! Now please pay attention and listen to me—give me some time to blow the man down!”

  “Well,” Val says. “I’d just let her wander. Not like we’re going to lose her with her shouting like that.”

  “Agreed,” I say, shaking my head.

  We make our way over to the tree where Ted had been found. Just trees, sticks, and leaves. “There is nothing here that Ted could have seen a basilisk’s reflection in,” I say.

  Peter starts looking around. He disappears from my sight, but I can still hear him traipsing around. “Yeah, I’m not seeing anything either,” Val says. “It happened at night, right? That’s even less likely to see a reflection off something, I’m sure. There’s
not even a smooth stone or anything slightly reflective around here.”

  “Hey, Suzy—err—Mom?” I hear Peter call.

  “Hold on,” I say to Val and head off in the direction I heard Peter call me. “What is it, Peter?”

  “Could your friend Ted have seen a reflection off this?” he asks, pointing to a pool of water.

  “Huh, I didn’t know this was here,” I say, stepping towards the water. I see my reflection staring back at me. “You know what? He definitely could have.”

  “Suzy! Peter! Get away from that!” I hear Val shout just as something bubbles in the water in front of me. I shove Peter back just as something leaps up and grabs me.

  I get pulled down into the water. I hate water! I start to fight as I feel a gentle hand touch my face and I manage to force my eyes open. It’s a mermaid. In a small pond. A mermaid! She looks very sad, but she gives me this reassuring look as though to tell me she’s not going to hurt me, but she continues to drag me down deep. How deep is this pool? I just thought it was a small pond! The water is very clear; I can see well here despite it being in a swampy area in the middle of the woods.

  The mermaid stops yanking me around and simply points. My eyes follow her finger, and I see a mermaid at the base of the pond, frozen in stone. I look at the woman sympathetically, and she grabs me under my arms. She sways her long mermaid fin a few times, and we arrive at the surface. Val grabs me and jerks me up and out of the water. “Are you all right!” he cries. “Suzy, are you hurt?”

  I cough up a little bit of water. “I’m fine, I’m fine.”

  I hear a panther-like growl erupt from Peter’s throat, and he drops down on all fours like he’s going to pounce. I spin around to see the mermaid has propped herself up on land, her fin still laying out in the water. “Easy, Peter, it’s all right,” I say. “She was just trying to show me something.”