Earth

by Shauna Granger

  "Byron!" I called out into the darkness and heard the humming stop and the rustle of stiff fabric as a shape took form in the pale moonlight. As the shape took the form of a man I heard the rough chuckle rumble from his throat.

  "Hello my pretties." I returned Byron's smile and handed him the take out box from dinner. He took as deep breath and sighed with pleasure, "Ahhhhhh.... roast beef, my favorite. Thank you."

  "And I brought this for you." Steven handed him a wool blanket he'd carried out that I hadn't noticed.

  "Very kind." He smiled at all of us and nodded, "Same as last?"

  "Yes, but it may be a little longer than last."

  "That’s fine darling. The city installed a lovely bench by the road. I shall have a sit down with my dinner and cozy blanket and I'll read by the street lamp." Byron was the self-proclaimed beach bum of our town. He'd become homeless by choice, giving up society for good in the 80's when he caught his wife cheating on him with his brother. He stumbled upon us one night, nearly breaking our circle, but didn’t ask too many questions and offered to strike a bargain with us to act as our look-out on nights we needed to work, all in exchange for the simple cost of a hot meal. Of course we offered money more than once, and shelter, but he refused it every time, saying nature provided all he needed. So instead we'd bring him food and hand-me-down clothing our fathers were going to donate to charity.

  We set out for the spot on the shoreline we customarily took. It was partially hidden by a curving of rocks and the sand was smooth and free of pebbles but large enough to create a fifteen-foot radius circle. We each set our bags down on the rocks and quickly stripped our socks and shoes, shivering from the cold, damp sand. I found the spot to mark as the middle and extended one arm fully. Jodi grasped my hand, stepping back to extend both arms and Steven reached for her hand, extending his arm fully. Carefully I began to rotate on the spot, Jodi and Steven walking slowly next to me, marking two large circles in the sand with their feet so we could have clear lines to follow when they magically drew the protective circles.

  Twenty minutes later and both Steven and Jodi finished their circles, careful to have everyone inside the inner-circle before Jodi sealed it around us. I had set up our altar as they drew the protective lines around us, feeling energy flow strongly around me as I worked. Steven lit the candles. Closing his eyes and breathing deep he raised his hand to the wicks and caused them to flame to life. My face glowed with pride. Fire was one of the more volatile elements to attempt to control. Because I had the aptitude for all four elements things came easier to me than to the others, which had made me a makeshift teacher for them in their elements. So when they were able to show command over their powers I couldn’t help but feel proud.

  We sat then, meditating for a time, reaching out to each other and interlacing our energies, pushing it out to the circles around us, strengthening their shields. We joined hands and I began the prayer, calling all good energy and light to help us, dispelling any evil or mischievous entities. I vaguely heard Steven and Jodi near me chanting beneath my prayers, calling the names of the elements and the power of three, their twined voices like velvet on my skin.

  "We call to our guardian angels to come and hear us. Aide us this night in search of healing and love for another."

  "Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Earth, Air, Water, Fire. By the power of three times three, let it be, let it be. Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Earth, Air, Water, Fire."

  "We call to our guardian angels to come and hear us. Aide us this night in search of healing and love for another. We ask for help banishing an evil, controlling force that threatens her innocent life."

  "Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Earth, Air, Water, Fire. By the power of three times three, let it be, let it be. Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Earth, Air, Water, Fire." Their voices were softer now. I held my eyes closed to keep out all distraction. I heard the ocean pulse nearby, the waves lapping gently against the packed sand and in the darkness I saw the shimmer of silver light growing stronger by the moment. I felt Jodi's fingers tighten around mine, knowing she was seeing a similar vision. It was only thanks to years of practice that kept her from gasping aloud and breaking the rhythm of the chant.

  "Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Earth, Air, Water, Fire. By the power of three times three, let it be, let it be. Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Earth, Air, Water, Fire." I kept quiet, summoning the energy I felt beneath me and sending out to the lights that approached us. I became aware of two others, one on either side of me and I knew they were drawing closer to Jodi and Steven respectively. Our deep connection to each other, with the channel open through our joined hands, allowed me to share this moment with them as their guardian angels began to take form for them. I would never truly know what their angels looked like, just as they would never know what mine looked like, that being a very private and intimate thing, but I reveled in the joy, knowing I had helped bring them together.

  The breeze that had swirled around us suddenly stopped and I knew that Jodi was embracing her guardian angel and had found the power within herself to fully command the intangible element, shielding us completely, not wanting even a breath to interrupt this most beloved of meetings. I reached out and drew my familiar angel to me. He smiled softly, but with that smile he could light a thousand suns and I felt my throat tighten and tears spill from behind my eyelids.

  He was more beautiful than a full-mooned sky with a million stars reflected over the sea. He had tousled, golden hair and rich evergreen eyes that seemed to have the depths of heaven hidden there. His wings, shimmering black and silver, wrapped around me, pulling us together into one. And in that moment I gathered myself and silently sent my plea to him for Tracy's sake, asking for help to find her guardian angel to keep her safe from Nick and guide her where her heart belonged.

  In an instant it was over. The crisp, moist air whipped around us suddenly, biting into our cheeks and hands. We sat in silence for a few more minutes, grasping each other’s hands tightly and I knew, without looking, they cried with me.

  "Thank you..." I almost didn’t hear Jodi's whisper over the unexpectedly loud waves crashing closer and closer to us. Steven, beyond words gripped my hand tightly, his silent gratitude washed over me like heat of a roaring fire on a cold winter's night. I smiled again.

  After we said a prayer of thanks and dispelled our circles and cleansed the area around us we made the hike back up to the road, finding Byron still sitting on the bench, reading a dog-eared copy of A Tale of Two Cities.

  "Ah, all finished then?" He asked brightly as we approached.

  "Yes, thank you Byron, as always, we couldn’t have done it without you."

  "Do you need anything Byron?" Jodi asked, genuine concern in her eyes.

  "No my dear, thank you." We bid him goodnight and piled into the minivan and I turned us back onto the freeway and drove quietly and contentedly into the night.

  Chapter 3

  When the three of us walked to my locker after French on Monday and I pulled my locker door open, a light purple envelope fell out at my feet. Steven stooped down and picked it up, tearing it open as he stood up. He pulled out the card inside with two silver hearts intertwined on the front. He flipped it open and showed us that inside there was a simple “Thank you” written in pink ink.

  “That’s Tracy’s handwriting,” Jodi commented almost dismissively as she shoved our French books inside the locker and pulled out our math books, handing me mine.

  “How do you know?” Steven asked.

  “I recognize it from her birthday party invitations.”

  “What teenager still hands out birthday party invitations?” Steven asked incredulously.

  “Apparently someone who still sends thank you cards,” I said as I snatched the card from him and waved it in his face. “Someone who still has manners.” I tucked the card inside my math book.

  “Hey! Why didn’t I get an invitation?” Steven pouted.

  “Because it was a slumber party for girls.” Jodi explained as if
it was the most obvious thing in the world.

  “So?” He insisted.

  “For real girls, Steven!” I said as I grabbed Jodi’s arm and blew Steven a kiss rushing us to class.

  When we walked into class, Jodi grabbed my arm suddenly, making her thoughts burst into my mind as she thought, There he is!

  What? Who? I thought back. Looking up I saw a guy at the teacher’s desk taking back a piece of paper and turning to take an empty seat the teacher indicated with a wave of his hand. As he turned, his eyes scanning over the room, he stopped suddenly, as if hit by a wall, and locked eyes with me. He had fathomless blue eyes. My stomach flipped and I felt my throat tighten and I had to fight the urge to smile. This was a very strange feeling, suddenly nervous and self-conscious just because this boy was looking at me.

  Oh no, that’s not him. Phew! But he does look a lot like him. Maybe twins? Jodi’s “voice” sounded more like her own again, breaking me from my trance.

  Who are you talking about? I demanded, letting my frustration color my words.

  There’s this new guy in my Chem. class. He’s gorgeous, not that this guy isn’t, but there’s a more chiseled quality to the other guy’s face. Yeah, twins, must be. I found it funny how a new student always seemed to carry with them an air of adventure and excitement.

  Hmmm…Wait, what the hell Fae! You’re dating Jay! I colored my words as darkly as I could. Jodi had a more wandering eye than most hard up guys. Her boyfriend was a good friend of mine going back to elementary school.

  There’s no harm in looking! She shot back defensively. Too defensively.

  Mmmhmm. Just remember, Jay’s like a little brother to me, and just because he’s at a different high school, it wouldn’t make you any less of a slut.

  Whoa! That’s too far! Jodi glared at me.

  Not according to what I can see going through your mind right now, I shot back at her. We glared at each other, Jodi’s hands forming fists and mine holding onto my bag. After a few tense moments Jodi finally blinked and looked away from me. I felt a wash of embarrassment from her; she hadn’t realized I could see the underlying thoughts in her mind when we were so closely connected. I couldn’t really blame her though; I was afraid of being the same way and that more than anything kept me from committing to a boyfriend. We set to work on today’s problems in silence. We were just finishing the sixth problem when I heard the tip of Jodi’s pencil snap.

  “Damnit!” She whispered harshly. She turned in her seat to reach in her bag for a fresh one and turned quickly back around, touching my wrist lightly, The new guy is staring at you. This exciting development magically erased all our earlier tension. Girls learn at a young age not to physically respond to this kind of information for fear of embarrassing yourself. So with every ounce of self-control I had, I remained staring at my paper.

  Staring or zoning out and happens to be looking my way? I asked skeptically, trying to ignore the twist in my gut. Jodi turned again on the pretext of closing her bag to take a second look.

  Totally looking. And he just realized I caught him doing it and he looked away really quickly! I tried, unsuccessfully, not to grin at that – after all he was cute and I didn’t have a boyfriend. Jodi bent her head over her paper and went back to working the problems, giving me an un-obstructed view of the new guy.

  He had wavy, chestnut colored hair that was just a little too long, letting a wayward lock fall forward over his forehead as he bent to his copy of the problems. He had a light, creamy complexion that no one would dare call pale. His lips were full and soft red but not in any way feminine like Steven’s could sometimes be. He had a narrow, straight nose and dangerously sharp, high cheekbones. From my first glance I knew he was at least three or four inches taller than me and I could tell his lightweight sweater hid a well-muscled chest and arms, but lean, not meaty. I was aware of an excess of saliva in my mouth and forced myself to swallow, trying to not blush when I heard Jodi snicker quietly next to me.

  Jodi and I passed our papers to the front of the row just as the dismissal bell rang shrilly. We quickly shoved our binders into our bags, pulling the zippers closed and slinging our bags over our shoulders almost in perfect sync with each other. We stepped into the aisle and blended in with the other students making our way to the door. I was trying with all my effort not to glance around. I had to be careful to keep my face neutral and not look like I was trying to watch the new guy and at the same time not look like I was trying not to watch him. It was a delicate balancing act that girls have been trying to perfect for generations. Some girls are better at it than others.

  Luckily, because he hadn’t been staring at Jodi during class, she was free to look for him almost as obviously as she wanted without fear of embarrassment. I saw her glance over her shoulder so many times it looked like she had some sort of nervous twitch. Her eyebrows shot up dramatically as she neared the door and I caught the faintest of nods. She had spied him watching me again, making his way to the door. As casually as possible, I grabbed the sleeve of her jacket and shoved her out the door and rushed away.

  “What’s the matter?” Jodi asked, unable to keep all of the laughter out of her question.

  “Be less subtle, Captain Obvious!” I answered sarcastically.

  “Dude, trust me, he was so fixated on you he would never have noticed me looking, even if I was two inches from his face.” She glanced passed me and grinned again, skipping off to class. I didn’t have to wonder what made her suddenly so giddy for long.

  “Who was fixated on you?” Steven’s voice sounded over my shoulder almost immediately. Damnit, Jodi. I sighed heavily and turned to face Steven and walk with him to Chem. I filled him in on the new twins at school, trying very hard to explain the looks I got in math as a no big deal situation. But, just like Jodi, he launched into immediate gossip mode and began a rapid fire of questions ranging from the tilt of his head to the possible innuendos even the slightest eyebrow arch could mean.

  When the bell rang for lunch, we made our way to the door. Sitting in the last row always made us the last two out. Steven stepped out before me and I nearly broke my nose as I crashed into him after he came to an abrupt stop and gasped, eyes going round.

  "Is that him?" He whispered over his shoulder. I lifted up onto my toes to see over his shoulder and knew immediately this was the twin that Jodi had seen in her first class. He was the same height, had the same velvety hair but rather than lean muscle his shoulders and chest threatened to tear the seams of his simple black sweater. And the razor sharp nose and cheekbones I had admired earlier were softer with a slight roundness to them.

  I shook my head and said, "No, that must be the one that Jodi saw first; he's burlier than the other one."

  "Mmmhmm burlier. Now that’s an adjective you don’t get to use too often." Steven bit down on his lower lip and let his eyes follow him until he turned the corner and disappeared from sight. "Mmm! Love to watch him go!"

  "Oh. My. God! You are such a cliché!" I covered my eyes and shook my head.

  "Only on Mondays, darling."

  We made our way out to our spot at lunch, Jodi following just a minute behind. Steven reached up and pulled Jodi down into the grass as soon as she stepped next to him, launching into a debate about the likelihood of which team Mr. Muscles played for. I pulled out my copy of the Almanac and tuned them out as much as I could. I read the same line five times before I realized I wasn’t taking in a word of it, unable to see past the image of perfect ocean blue eyes. I finally gave up, throwing the book back into my bag and nudging Jodi's foot with mine.

  "Hey, did you see Tracy in band?" Tracy played second chair flute.

  "Oh yeah." She shook her head sadly, "Nick walked her to class.” Then she perked up said, “His arm is in a sling. He won’t be playing for the rest of the year." She perked up at the end.

  "Aw, poor boy," Steven said sarcastically.

  "Seriously though? Nick walked her to class?" I asked, a little too aggressively.
<
br />   "Yep. And gave her a kiss good-bye, so I guess everything’s perfect for them," Jodi said. I fumed quietly, knowing I shouldn’t expect things to change overnight but sometimes you just can’t help but hope. "That means we'll probably pass him on the way to English..." She let the sentence trail off.

  "So?" I asked.

  "So, maybe we should go first and make sure the coast is clear?" Steven finished her thought.

  "No way. I am not scared of that Neanderthal!" My voice rose of its own accord. "If he so much as breathes in my direction, I'll snap his other collarbone and say it was self-defense." I felt heat rising in my cheeks as I spoke. Jodi and Steven shared a knowing look and a second later I thought I saw Steven's hand move away from Jodi's. I had a funny feeling I missed something.

  “Did you give her the crystal?” I asked trying to ease the tension between us. I didn’t like that they were worried about me and my tempter.

  “Oh yeah!” Jodi’s voice lightened with the subject change. “She took her jacket off so I dropped the heart on the floor near her foot at the same time and picked it up and told her I thought it fell out of her jacket.”

  “And she bought that?” Steven asked.

  “Well, it’s a pretty trinket, isn’t it? And Trace is pretty girly. She kinda smiled at it and said thanks and took it.”Jodi looked proud that her little trick had worked.

  “Hey, aren’t you worried she’ll think Nick slipped it to her?” Steven asked me, nudging my foot with his.

  “Not really. It doesn’t matter who she thinks gave it to her, so long as she keeps it,” I shrugged.

  “But say it works, right? And they break up, and she thinks Nick gave it to her, what if she gets rid of it?” He pressed.

  “So she gets rid of it,” I said dismissively. “They’ll only break up once the spell is complete and then she won’t need it anymore.”

  “But what if--” Steven started to argue again.