Familiarity Breeds Witchcraft

by Nora Lee

  Why couldn’t Gemma manage to get along with others as well as a five-year-old could?

  “It’s time, it’s time!” Iris Westerly, flapping her hands. Sparkles gusted across the lawn.

  “It’s time,” Enid agreed, shooting a grin at Gemma.

  In such moments, all wounds were forgotten.

  An undercurrent of magic hung heavy on the air as the coven cast the healing birth spell. Gemma could feel the focus on the inside of the house, even and steady. They channeled strength toward the woman laboring to bring new life into the world.

  A life blessed by the rest of the coven.

  “Is Nana Winterblossom here already? I haven’t seen her.” Orianna had, by the time Gemma made a circuit of the lawn and returned, met up with Fern and Caedmon. The trio looked more and more like a family unit every time she saw them together.

  Orianna nodded. “Who else would midwife this birth?” She gestured upward. “Look.”

  Gemma spotted a fluffy white puff ball perched beneath the front eave. Sparkles the owl stirred to scratch under a wing. Nana’s familiar wouldn’t be inclined to miss such a momentous event in the lives of both Nana and Rowan. Nor would the owl be here if Nana weren’t.

  The strongest of the elders moved into a semi-circle around the front steps of the house. The rest of the coven, minus Gemma, created a secondary circle behind them.

  She watched the elders clasp hands, bow their heads, and close their eyes. The group began to glow with a golden light as they strengthened the powers already being channeled in through the open front door.

  Gemma knew they’d already drawn a circle of power around the perimeter of the house to prevent any of the magic from escaping. The power, like brilliant beams of twisting light, melded into a sparkling orange column that moved from them up the steps to disappear inside. She noticed Enid standing with the rest of the secondary circle, though, her face a mask of concentration.

  She could have joined her sister. She wanted to join her sister. But it had been so long since she’d united with the coven—what if they didn’t want her there? Gemma hung back.

  “Sorry I’m late!” Fox appeared at her side, holding a plate of pumpkin pie. It seemed she hadn’t eaten anything else since her arrival and planned to eat at least three more slices. “What’s going on?

  “You haven’t missed anything,” Gemma managed to say, even though Fox’s bright smile caused an almost unbearable ache to well up within her. “Rowan’s in labor. This could take a while yet, from what I’ve been told.”

  “That’s good news.” Fox wasn’t immune to Gemma’s mood. She set her pie down and frowned. “You okay, babe?”

  Gemma swallowed down the lump in her throat for the umpteenth time and said, “Fine.”

  “I’m fine and you’re fine.” Gesturing at the house, Fox asked, “This will all be fine, too, right? Nothing’s going wrong with the mama or baby?”

  That depended on Fox’s definition of “nothing”. Of course, Gemma knew, in a general sense, what the other woman was asking. “The situation seems pretty normal at this point.”

  Normal in Secret Hallow, of course, did involve witchlings throwing practice hexes at each other, but Gemma wouldn’t have had it any other way.

  Fox glanced over at the rest of the coven. “Why aren’t you up there with the others? I’m sure they could use your help. You’re strong.”

  Gemma couldn’t figure out how to explain…well, anything, about her place in Secret Hallow. She’d caused her own outsider status by refusing to allow kind-hearted people to be involved in her life.

  “I’m hanging back to eat pie,” Gemma said, knowing it was a ridiculous excuse.

  “Building up your strength, huh? Good idea.” Looking at the various baked goods on the table before her, Fox rubbed her hands together, her tongue wetting her lips. “Ooh, so many new goodies I haven’t tried yet. I’m going to save the rest of my plate for later and grab something else. What do you recommend?”

  Gemma shrugged. “Everything’s good. Depends on your tastes, I guess.”

  Fox grinned. “Good thing childbirth tends to take a while! I might have to sample a few things while we wait.” She chose a slice of apple and one of berry crumble. “Where shall we sit?”

  They ended up side-by-side on the tall grass. Not only did Fox have a plate of dessert, she’d also filled a second with an actual meal, probably because she’d been driving all over the state for most of the day.

  Between bites, she regaled Gemma with the tale of her quest for fuel, punctuated with an occasional self-deprecating laugh. As expected, she hadn’t been able to find the town where she’d gotten the tractor again because she couldn’t remember the name.

  “I drove down a private farm road at one point!” Fox had to set down her plate for a moment so she wouldn’t spill her food as she gestured. “I ignored the ‘no trespassing’ sign because I thought I’d seen a familiar outlet.”

  “Did you find one?” Despite her heartache, Gemma couldn’t help but get caught up in the story.

  “No way.” Fox gave Gemma a rueful grin. “The owners were sweet, though. They gave very nice directions to a nearby town. Not the right place, but I came across a diner owner who recognized what I am and…” Trailing off, Fox squinted in the direction of the house. “Huh.”

  Following the glance, Gemma asked, “What?” She didn’t see anything unusual. Yet she thought Fox seemed unnerved by whatever she’d noticed.

  “Looks like the spell is fluctuating.”

  Watching the streams of power, Gemma frowned. “I don’t see any changes. And the coven does this kind of thing all the time so I can’t think they’d have a problem. This is second nature to everyone around here.”

  “I’m not saying anything’s wrong.” Fox waved toward the assembled group with a dramatic flair. “This is the coolest magic I’ve ever seen. May a black cat cross my path if I’m fibbing.” She dropped her hand into her lap. “I just…”

  Gemma bit her lower lip. Fox often mentioned that, though she didn’t have much developed skill, part of her raw talent lay in her ability to see variations in power. Since she didn’t go to group workings, she couldn’t practice using the skill. Even so, Gemma trusted her instinct. “What do you think’s happening?”

  “They’re…unbalanced? As a group they’re compensating really well, but the combined powers aren’t quite achieving maximum potential. They need a special spirit source to even out the casting.”

  Spirit. Of course. Gemma glanced at her companion out of the corner of her eye and wondered whether Fox might be setting her up.

  Fox picked up her dessert plate and took a large bite of pumpkin pie and whipped cream. She closed her eyes and gave a pleasurable moan as she chewed, not seeming inclined to follow through on the discussion.

  Gemma took a breath. “You know I’m a type of spirit witch. Technology is related to that—imbuing the inanimate with life.”

  Fox’s eyes brightened. “I totally forgot!”

  A loud noise came from the house. Not quite a scream, but very close.

  Gemma’s heart skipped a beat. “Sounds like Rowan’s in distress. Do you think my joining in would help?” Despite her personal feelings, she couldn’t ignore a friend in need, considering the situation. She also owed Rowan big time for having treated her the way she had without even offering an apology.

  “Couldn’t hurt.” Fox gave the impression she had no strong opinion on whether or not Gemma should help out. “The decision is yours, of course.” She bumped her shoulder affectionately against Gemma’s.

  With a pang, she realized Fox was being kinder to her than she’d been to her own sister earlier that day. Both Rowan and Enid deserved better from Gemma.

  Her conscience won out over her discomfort when she heard another loud whimper from the house.

  Though unfamiliar with actual childbirth, she knew the general series of events, and couldn’t begin to imagine how Rowan might be feeling as she labored to
bring her child into the world. She deserved all the help she could get—and she deserved it from the entire coven, not just the witches who were in a good mood.

  Gemma brushed her hands over her skirt as she stood. “Got any trash? I can throw stuff away on my way over to join the group.”

  “Sure!” Fox grinned as she handed her used plates up to Gemma. “Thanks for testing my hypothesis about adding a spirit witch to the mix. Time to see if all my self-study magic has paid off!”

  Gemma dropped the plates on the ground and knelt to pull Fox into a bear hug.

  She couldn’t help it. She needed that moment of sweet contact. Not just to show her gratitude, but to bolster her strength, her confidence…everything.

  Fox patted her on the back as she returned the embrace. “Go get ‘em!”

  Once Gemma threw out their trash she stepped up to the clasped hands of the larger semi-circle grouped behind the elders. Enid grinned and released her neighbor’s hand, allowing her sister to join in. Gemma took a breath and turned her focus inward as the coven’s power washed over her.

  She’d been raised on magic. Centering and accessing power came to her in a way as instinctual as breathing.

  As a spirit witch, she collected and focused the powers of the group. Since she felt magic in a clearer manner than what she saw, she soon realized Fox had been right.

  The coven was unbalanced. Everyone needed to pull together.

  Pushing her doubts away, she took up the ragged edges of power cast by the others and wove them into a whole, pushing that forward to the elders until she sensed a shining tapestry of magic between them. For the first time, she’d come into the group working as an equal, her power as strong and sure as that of any one of the elders.

  Gemma’s newfound self-confidence allowed her to increase the power to a point where they could help out Rowan with whatever strength and healing power she needed to give birth.

  A rush of joy overwhelmed Gemma at the exhilaration of the experience.

  At her side, Enid gave her hand a slight squeeze.

  Gemma realized all had been forgiven between them. She only hoped Rowan felt the same way…once she wasn’t so busy elsewhere.

  ☆★☆

  Floating on the tides of magic, Gemma lost track of time. The coven continued to send their power in to shore up the strength of the laboring mother inside the house. The combination of focus and intense magical participation would have drained any solo practitioner. As a whole, though, the group reinforced the strengths of others whenever they flagged.

  It may have been minutes, hours, or days. Gemma couldn’t tell.

  Yet when it was time to end the spell, everyone knew instinctively.

  They felt her.

  The new witchling had come.

  Excited shouts rang out as they all welcomed the new member of their coven.

  “Blessed be!”

  Gemma sagged with exhaustion, reaching out to feel through the power how her friend Rowan might be feeling. The mother seemed okay. Though exhausted, and still in a bit of pain as she went through the immediate post-birth experience, she exuded feelings of relief and exultation out to her fellow coven members.

  “Wonderful,” Enid said, embracing Gemma tightly. “That was wonderful!”

  “And now we must ground!” Adora shouted so that everyone could hear.

  Laughter met her announcement.

  Grounding meant eating good food, drinking hard cider, and laying around: the best part of a successful spell. They broke apart to attend to such important business.

  Gemma felt a little wobbly-kneed as she turned to find Fox standing at her side with a piece of pie and glass of cool water. Gemma took the offerings with a grateful, if weak, smile.

  “That was so cool.” Fox took her by the arm and led the way to the mound where they’d been sitting before. “Wow! You’re so lucky to be able to do this all the time. My imagination never came close to the true experience.”

  She felt a slight disorientation and couldn’t determine how much time had passed since she’d last spoken with Fox. Her arms and legs trembled after the extended exertion.

  Passing a hand over her eyes, she looked toward the horizon, trying to gauge the hour by the height of the sun. “I wouldn’t say we do this all the time.” Gemma wasn’t trying to be modest. With such a small population, Secret Hallow didn’t have many births. “You see how long we’ve gone without welcoming a new child into our coven.”

  “You were great! I would’ve thought you do this all the time!”

  Gemma ducked her head in embarrassment.

  Fox placed a hand under her chin and turned her face up so their eyes met. “I wish you could see what I do when I look at you, babe. You’re amazing. You should give yourself more credit for your strengths and forgive your weaknesses. We’ve all got ‘em.”

  She saw a kind of…wonder, maybe…in Fox’s eyes. No, that didn’t describe the expression since wonder implied a lack of familiarity. Maybe pride worked better.

  Yes, that was it. Fox looked proud and admiring.

  More than anything else, Gemma wanted to be worthy of that look.

  Before she could say anything, a group cry arose, and she turned to find Garrett standing in the upstairs bedroom window with a tiny wriggling bundle cradled in his arms.

  “Her name’s Siobhan!” he called, not too loud, but with enough projection to be heard.

  Everyone cheered. “Siobhan! Merry meet!”

  Fox let out a whoop, though not as loud as the people who’d imbibed a lot of cider.

  Gemma made no noise—Garrett had a baby, after all—but smiled until her cheeks hurt. Again, tears tracked down her cheeks. This time, though, she cried with joy because she couldn’t contain all the positive emotion filling her at the moment.

  Feeling a light touch, she looked down to see Fox’s hand holding hers. Their eyes met and she once again lost track of time as she drowned in their sparkling depths. The two shared a moment of such connection, her breath caught.

  Caught up with Fox, she missed Garrett pulling back from the window at Siobhan’s quiet protest. She also missed the majority of the group breaking up to return to their own homes. By the time she could focus on anything outside her companion, she saw that only a few stragglers remained to break down the tables, and realized the couple now sat almost alone in the gloom of early evening.

  “Would you like to come back to my house?” Gemma asked, when she could form words again. She hadn’t realized how that would sound.

  Fox waggled her eyebrows.

  Her face flushing, Gemma’s next words came out with a slight stammer. “I mean…uh…well. You know Nana will be busy with her family tonight. She’ll be busy for a while, in fact. You probably don’t want to stay in a strange house alone.” She shrugged. “Like Enid said…we’ve got plenty of spare rooms.”

  “Nothing about how much you want me to stay with you?” Fox winked.

  “No. I can’t stand you.” Gemma deadpanned in a way she hadn’t been able to manage in an in-person interaction up to that point. The euphoria of residual power of the healing birth spell emboldened her. She also felt exhilarated at the thought they wouldn’t be able to cast Fox’s spell for several days after the group’s exertions that day. “Asking you to my house is my way of avoiding you.”

  When Fox fell backward into the grass, giggling, she pulled Gemma down with her. The stars blinked to life overhead as the last of the twilight faded to full darkness. A pleasant glow emanated from the windows of the nearby house and the warm happiness of the new family washed out over them.

  They rolled around together for a long time. By now, they were the only ones left outside, the stars overhead the only illumination once the lights in the house went out.

  Gemma wished for the moment to never end.

  Chapter 14

  ON ANY OTHER day, Gemma would’ve returned to her attic alone after the gathering, settling in for an online conversation with Fox until sh
e tired enough to fall asleep.

  For once, reality proved to be better than the internet world.

  Instead of sharing a digital communication with Fox on this wondrous night, she found herself enjoying a happy conversation about the events of the day as they headed to the Winterblossom cottage. They needed to retrieve Fox’s things so she’d have her sleepwear and toiletries so she’d be comfortable for the night.

  The stars twinkled overhead, the moon not yet up. A light breeze caused the crisp leaves on the nearby trees to rustle and fallen ones crunched beneath their feet as they walked. When Fox stumbled a bit on a hidden rock or small hole, she reached out and took her friend by the hand to steady her. A thrill raced up her arm and warmth spread across her cheeks. She felt happy the darkness hid her blush.

  “Careful with your footing. This path can be a little rough.” Gemma didn’t want Fox to end up with a sprained ankle or something. Not after such a nice start to the evening.

  “Thanks.” Fox gave a little laugh and squeezed Gemma’s hand.

  They continued to hold hands the rest of the way to the cottage. Trying to convince herself they only did so to prevent Fox from hurting herself, Gemma continued to enjoy the intimacy of a companionable walk hand-in-hand through the night until the darkness gave way to silvery moonlight.

  The cottage seemed empty without Nana’s presence, since she was still with Rowan, Garrett, and Siobhan. Gemma remained outside as she waited for Fox to gather up the things she’d left in Rowan’s old bedroom.

  She heard no sound other than a soft chirp of crickets and the occasional rustle caused by the passage of some nocturnal creatures. She stood in the middle of the front garden and turned a slow circle. While she enjoyed being outdoors during the daylight hours, she preferred the night time hours. Gemma loved the mysterious feel of the shadows in her oh-so-familiar territory.

  “All ready!” Fox hurried out onto the porch. “Do you think I should lock up?”