“Yes, I heard what happened.” I got closer, I couldn’t look at him. “She blamed me and we had a fight.” I said without really realizing what I was saying. I felt my mind in a haze and I kept blabbering without thinking.
“You have no fault.” He interrupted. “I don’t like bossy girls... I prefer the clumsy and discreet ones.”
I understood the hint and blushed. He wasn’t shy, he got to the point right away.
I composed myself and stepped back. “Maybe you like me just because I was the only girl who didn’t hit on you.”
Paul advanced and plunged into the darkness. “Not only for that. You’re the type of girl who doesn’t look for attention, you are always on your own. Actually, I’m like that, too.”
“I would have never guessed that.”
“No one notices. For years, my father has been dragging us from town to town because of his work. I never had enough time to make friends.”
I was really surprised. “And why did you choose to come to me?”
“I told you. I immediately understood that we are alike. I don’t want to go out with people who will take me from one party to another and won’t listen to me when I talk. Or girls who compete to get with the new guy and flaunt me like some kind of trophy. I’ve been there, unfortunately. This time I want a more relaxed school year.”
His smile was wonderful and I was fascinated. “I’d like to get to know you better, Zelda, if you want to go out with me, too. Would you like to go to school together tomorrow morning?”
“That would be lovely.” I stuttered.
He smiled at my childish response. I really was a naïve child.
“You live here?” he pointed at the house.
“Yes, with my mother.”
He didn’t investigate further, he didn’t ask where my father was and with that, to be honest, he earned a few extra points.
My father died of pancreatic cancer when I was twelve. I never wanted to talk about him, not because I didn’t think about him, but because it still hurt me.
Maybe I found a loyal friend in Paul: unlike many others, he was able to understand immediately when to remain silent.
He nodded and set off, putting his hands in his pockets. “See you tomorrow, then.”
I saw him fade in the light of the street lights and my heart shuddered.
A few days after, I found out that a pair of extremely furious eyes with black kajal make-up had followed our meeting, hiding in the bushes.
***
My soul was in turmoil, shivers running down my skin. I locked myself in my room, grabbed my violin and started playing to calm my nerves. I learnt to deeply love music from my father.
He, Rupert Blackmoon, had been a cellist in the Ney York Philharmonic, but all of his existence had changed because of his illness. After many years playing, he was forced to give up his greatest passion.
My father was a mortal, but my mother always loved him since they were in high school: he was the one that made my mother’s magic bloom when she was my age.
It was probably because of this reason, that my human side was perpetually in conflict with my supernatural side; unlike Sheila, whose father was a wizard.
I couldn’t stop thinking about Paul and my music gave me a sweet comfort. The initiation ceremony that made me so anxious until that morning, seemed trifle now.
I couldn’t wait for tomorrow morning to come, so I could see him.
My mother called for me at midnight and we headed to Clara’s house, the witch guru in our Cabal: a lively seventy years old lady, who never married and spent her entire life teaching to young recruits. Her clothing was stuck in the sixties; she looked like a hippie, with her hip-length platinum hair and countless floral necklaces and bracelets.
Clara’s house was a Victorian building and had a particularly big basement, the existence of which many ignored: it was a huge chamber where someone, no one knew when, had painted a red pentacle.
The walls were lined with oak panels, the most used wood in witchcraft. There were seven arms candle holders set everywhere, with crackling red candles.
As soon as I entered with my mother, the witches of our Cabal warmly welcomed us. We were about twenty people in total and I recognized Sheila among all of those faces. She was even more furious than before and she didn’t want to look at me.
Old Clara put on her ceremonial clothes: a crimson red habit with golden Celtic garnishes. I put on a white gown that covered down to my ankles and a silver tiara with a dangling triskele.
Someone was whispering that I looked like Artemis, the Moon Goddess.
All the witches, including Sheila and her mother, formed a circle and started the propitiatory prayer. I was in the center, kneeling.
Clara prayed for a long time, invoking the Goddess Hecate and, at last, dipped her fingers in a jar of oil. For the next ten minutes she drew mysterious symbols on my forehead, all the while praying in a language that I had never heard. It seemed ancient Gaelic, her mother language.
“Now, repeat your mantra.” She ordered in the end.
The personal mantra was a prayer that the witch had to formulate herself, in which she swore to use her magic for good purposes only.
“Cassandra, perhaps your daughter will be able to levitate during the mantra.” Said excitedly Sheila’s mother, Thelma.
“I don’t think she will.” Said my mother, objective as always. “Zelda is still inexperienced. And she’s half mortal. Having the same amount of power as a pureblood witch is improbable.”
Only a few witches were able to levitate while saying the mantra; it happened when Hecate deemed them with a heart so pure that she gave them a power bigger than the others.
I felt myself rise, pushed by an unseen power, as if a thousand hands were holding me and lifting me up gently to the ceiling. My stomach was gurgling, my ears were ringing and my eyes were burning.
My skin shimmered and I felt an unusual warmth, as if I was going on fire, but without pain.
To everyone’s surprise, I started levitating, still kneeling and with my hands held in prayer on my chest. My hair was floating, like golden rays with long waves, and was tickling my bare shoulders.
Even though my eyes were closed while I was reciting my promise, I could feel all their bewildered eyes gazing at me. And a very enraged gaze: Sheila’s. She had not been able to levitate during her consecration promise, a few months ago.
When the ritual finished, Sheila’s mother came to congratulate me. “You’ve done very well, Zelda. You’re the second witch that I’ve seen levitating during the initiation ceremony.”
“Who was the first one?” I asked inquiringly.
She answered with a big smile. “Your grandmother, Morgause.”
There were many recurring names in our clan. I knew other two girls named Zelda, a few Selene and a lot of Cassandra. A few young mothers, the ones from the new generations, would name their daughters with innovative names like Hermione, Sabrina or Prue, which made the old witches turn up their noses.
My mother hugged me, full of pride. “Darling, now you are part of the Cabal. You are a full-blown witch.”
Thelma said, reprimanding her daughter. “You should work hard, too. Instead of going out wasting time and dating boys. You’re just a good for nothing daredevil.”
“Don’t be so hard on her.” Said my mother.
I hesitated, in silence. I didn’t know what to say, or what to do. Actually, I felt anxious and confused.
Sheila didn’t reply, she looked at me, grunting, then turned around and exited the basement without turning back.
Now I was sure that her rage would not find peace until the day she would defeat me. On all grounds.
***
The next morning I found Paul on my front porch. I wasn’t able to sleep the whole night while thinking about him, about the fight with Sheila and about the initiation ceremony; but all the stress disappeared as soon as I saw him.
“Hi.” He smiled with his
usual tact.
“Hi, Paul.”
Our high school was just a few blocks down and we headed there on foot. I was looking at the houses and their gardens, while my mind was bubbling, looking for a topic we could talk about. I wasn’t able to find the slightest cue as a conversation topic and my stress deepened.
The truth is that I wished to be in that bliss forever, in silence, just with him by my side.
“You are shy, aren’t you?” he finally asked. “I don’t understand how you can go out with someone as crazy as that Sheila.”
I thought about my best friend again, I planned to talk to her as soon as I arrived at school, to try and make her understand. “Don’t blame her, her mother is pushing her, she always expects the best from her daughter, both in school and with magi...ehm, other things. Her father abandoned both of them when she was little and now, if she’s interested in someone, she seeks to have him in every way. Actually, she hates me because she really likes you.”
I kept talking non-stop because of the excitement.
“On the other hand, I happen to like another girl.” Paul looked at me smiling, and I blushed. “She needs to understand that she can’t force people to accept her, especially after acting so bossy.”
He really liked me, then.
I couldn’t help but smile and he noticed.
I had to wake up and stop hiding my feelings. I’ve been doing it for too many years. I didn’t want to lose Paul because of my inherent shyness.
“I...I like you, too.” I burst out.
I was bright red, like a tomato.
For a few long minutes we didn’t talk and we kept walking, at last he got closer and took my hand.
His touch gave me a gentle thrill. I blushed, even more embarrassed than before, but I didn’t say anything and I didn’t let go of his hand.
When we entered the school, a lot of students stared at us with baffled expressions.
In the corridor I heard small bits and pieces of comments that I didn’t understand at first:
“Did you see? It was true, then.”
“She fooled us for all of this time, with her ‘good girl’ farce.”
“Sheila did the right thing when she dumped her.”
I had a bad presentiment, as I realized what happened.
Since the first period everyone in school knew what happened the night before, or, to be precise, they knew the version that my friend had spread: I stole her boyfriend, stabbing her in the back.
We entered our classroom and Sheila saw me and Paul holding hands. She was astonished; she clearly didn’t think that I would be brave enough to actually go out with him. Obviously, I still was a whiny anxious child in her mind, the one that she used to tease, pulling her braids.
She got up and took a seat far away. She smiled to two classmates, two girls she didn’t even acknowledged until yesterday and, after a while, she called them over and started whispering, hiding low under the desks. The two girls turned to gaze at me with a shocked expression.
“Let it go.” Paul whispered in my ear and held my hand tighter. “She will get tired in time.”
I looked at him and gave him a smile to thank him.
The day went on like a nightmare.
During the chemistry class some girls threw paper balls in my hair and during American literature class they started whispering pretty offensive names.
Before lunch break I passed along the lockers in the corridor. When I arrived to my locker I froze.
All the other students in the corridor where looking at me, giggling.
Someone wrote on the locker door with a bright red spray paint the word that everyone in the school thought summarized my behavior: bitch.
Paul caught up with me, froze and gripped his fists in anger.
We didn’t meet until then because during the first few hours we had different classes, so he still didn’t know how I had been humiliated in the classroom.
He got closer and took my hand, telling me in a low voice to go outside with him. I pushed him abruptly and ran away, while my eyes were glistering with tears.
***
I couldn’t get hold of Sheila for a whole week. She didn’t attend the classes that we took together and the few times that I saw her, she was on a bike with some stupid guy, wearing leather jacket and with a cigarette in his mouth.
My reputation had fallen in the mud, and I knew that it would be difficult to stand up again.
Paul kept sending me messages on my phone, and the times he came looking for me at my house my mother told him, as I instructed, that I had already left.
One afternoon, after school, my mother opened the door with an indignant look. “What did you do?” she asked, almost in tears. “All the Cabal knows what happened between you and Sheila.”
“Oh, really?” I asked sarcastically. “What other bullshit did she come up with this time?”
I nervously sat down at the kitchen table, bumping my school bag on the floor.
She sat down, frantic. “Is this story true? That she was going out with a boy and you...slept with him, enchanting him with your magic?”
“What?!” I shouted, out of control. “And did you all believe in what she said? This is absurd!”
She sighed, relieved. “Bless the mother goddess, I knew it wasn’t true. I would never believe that my child has already...never mind.”
She pondered for a while, shaking her head. “Sheila is wicked, she doesn’t hesitate to crush others in order to impose her will.”
I tried to calm her down, even though I was shaking inside. “I will stop her. Now she has crossed the line. She is trying to ruin my life in the Cabal, after ruining my school life.”
My mother hid her face in her hands. “She has changed since she found out about her powers. She thinks she’s invincible, just because she is a witch. She will end up badly if we don’t stop her. This isn’t the first time something like this happens. I’ve already seen many witches lose themselves because of their greed for power.”
She nodded and added “Clara decided to talk to her, she never believed in her story. The meeting is tonight at the Victorian villa.”
I swallowed, scared and anxious. By now I was certain that Sheila would never stop, not even in front of our guru.
***
As I went out of the house I called Paul. My voicemail was full, he had left messages for the whole week. We met at the park, two blocks down from my house.
There were few people and the twilight had darkened, the street lights started to flicker on.
He was sitting on a bench, he shot up as soon as he saw me and approached. “Are you all right?”
I understood in that moment that my face must have been shocked.
“Why are you avoiding my phone calls? You’ve been running away every time you saw me in the school corridors. Did I do something wrong?”
“No, Paul. I have some problems with Sheila and I need to fix them. I don’t want you to get caught up in this.”
He lifted his eyebrow. “Her again? What else did she do this time?”
“She went around saying that you were her boyfriend and I started hitting on you. In other words, everyone thinks that I slept with you.”
“If something like that happened, I would have noticed, I can assure you.” He tried to make me laugh, but he got the opposite reaction from me.
I sighed, restless.
“She is looking for attention. If we ignore her, she will give up.” He nodded.
I wanted to vent to him, confess that we were witches and that my rival’s wrath would not alleviate until the day she was able to snatch him from me. But I didn’t say a thing.
We sat on the bench.
Paul draped his arm on my shoulders and pulled me closer.
As our lips got closer, I forgot everything. My breath was short and I could feel my heart in my throat.
His lips were warm, a solace for all the things that were happening. The more I kissed him, the more I wanted to
kiss him.
I stroked his hair, right behind the ear. With a sigh, Paul got even closer and I felt his chest pressing on my breasts.
His hand went down slowly and slipped under my shirt. The moment my naked waist made contact with his skin, it felt like sparkles were pouring out.
I took his hand and put it back on my shoulder, before he could reach for my bra.
He detached his lips from mine and gazed at me with a guilty look.
I couldn’t say a word, but he understood anyway and smiled at me.
I owed him at least an explanation. “Paul, it’s too soon, I can’t do it.”
He nodded, giving me a light flick on my cheek. “You’re right, no rush.” He tried to explain himself, awkwardly. “I like you, Zelda. I’m a boy after all, I got carried away...” he stroked my cheek. “Sorry.”
I gazed at him with gratitude.
His kisses gave me the strength to move on.
***
It was one in the morning when I opened Clara’s front door, without making a sound. She had given me her spare keys. I called out for her a couple of times but she didn’t answer.
I was terrorized out of my mind.
I decided to go down in the basement, maybe Clara was in there with Sheila: it was the only place where she could blast her powers without being heard by the entire neighborhood.
I heard frantic voices and headed down the stairs.
They were standing, facing each other in the center of the red pentacle. Two tigers were going to tear each other to pieces.
“What kind of lie are you saying now?” I said, staring at Sheila with a resented look. She was wearing the same leather pants, a gothic cross on her neck and a dark shirt: the rough look that suited her.
“Zelda.” Clara said. “Go away.” Even in that frightful moment her voice was calm and steady.
“No.” I said, inflexible. I turned to face my ex-best friend.
“How could you say so many lies, just to have your revenge? After all we’ve been through together! You ruined my reputation just because you couldn’t get one boy.”
She licked her black lips and approached me. “You want to know the truth?” she halted and displayed a wide grin. “Everyone has always compared me with you, ever since we were children. I don’t exist in my mother’s eyes and I’m her biggest failure. ‘Zelda is a straight A’s student’, ‘Zelda levitated during her initiation ritual’...you know what? I’ll become the strongest witch in our Cabal so that no one will ever think that you are better.”
Zelda Page 2
