A Bear For Christmas

by Kassandra Cross

  My aunt smiled and nodded. Although, I wasn’t at all convinced. Unless my dad suddenly had a change of heart, I knew there was no way I’d have the money for tuition.

  So, after what seemed like a forever of waiting for the day to arrive for Mom to go off to hospital and get herself back together, it finally rolled around, and I curled up on my bed still quite unable to believe how much had changed in such a short space of time.

  We had gone from safe and secure, to uncertainty and fear. As I stood on the porch and watched the car pull away with Mom in the back, her forehead resting on the pane of glass and leaving a smudge mark of make-up as she sat back to give me a weak smile with her wave, I felt the crushing sense of panic.

  What if I didn’t like it there with Marianne?

  What if Mom never came home either?

  Was I alone now?

  I rubbed my hands around my shoulders, trying to both reassure myself and keep the heat running under my skin.

  There had always been a fire within me, but now as I stood there, I genuinely feared it was about to be extinguished.

  “Come on Aradia,” Marianne called to me from the kitchen, “Grab those boxes from your room and we’ll load them into the car.”

  After we had gathered everything, and the house was empty we turned off the lights and looked at it for one last time. Flies seemed to be crawling out of the cracks in the plaster and the mold was thicker than ever.

  “This is a new start for everyone,” Marianne said as she wrapped a protective arm around my shoulder. “It’s not healthy here.”

  “Too much bad blood…” I said quietly.

  Marianne didn’t respond but she turned and made her way out onto the porch, down the stairs and to the car.

  As I closed the front door and turned the key I knew I never wanted to see that place again. Too much had happened within those walls. It was no wonder the place had begun to rot from the inside out.

  I climbed into the passenger seat next to my aunt and she started the engine. As we pulled off down the driveway and onto the main road that led back towards town I watched the For Sale sign swinging lamely in the breeze.

  “By the time your mom’s better, you’ll be able to think about finding somewhere much more suited,” Aunt Marianne said. “But until then, you’re both more than welcome with me.”

  I turned my head to the side and closed my eyes. It wasn’t late, but I knew we had a long drive ahead of us.

  I really didn’t know where I was going or what I was letting myself in for… But at that moment in time, I knew it was the only option I had…

  Chapter 2

  We drove overnight and didn’t stop. We each took turns behind the wheel and by the time the sun was coming up over the horizon we were only a couple of hours away from Valport Springs.

  When Marianne took over from me after I had done my stint at the night shift, I sat back in the passenger seat and stretched as high as the sky.

  “I know it’s been some years since you’ve been back to Valport,” she said cautiously, “But I really do think you’ll enjoy it more now.”

  She trailed off and shielded her eyes from the burst of sunlight that had suddenly exploded across the windshield.

  “I never hated it there,” I said honestly. “It was just a strange time...”

  She nodded and we didn’t need to say anymore. There was so much hidden in my past that I couldn’t possibly start to dig through it all that day, and Marianne knew it as well as I did.

  But as soon as it was laid out there, the claws of bad memories started to hook themselves into my mind. I saw flashes of black ash and fire and I felt my heart begin to race.

  I sat forward and turned on the radio, hoping that it would take my mind off things. As if this year hadn’t been hard enough, now I was going to have to face demons I thought I had laid to rest.

  “Do you remember Marianne?” I asked her as I stared out of the window and at the wispy clouds way up high in the sky.

  “I remember that it wasn’t your fault,” she said calmly. “I remember that we should have told you the truth.”

  I dug my nails into my wrist.

  Maybe that was when all the problems had started. Maybe dad had started screwing around way back then as soon as he realized that his wife and daughter were very different to him indeed.

  “Don’t think about it now,” Marianne said warmly, “This is a clean break and nothing is going to ruin it, okay?”

  It wasn’t the first time I had felt that she was lying.

  “I won’t,” I said.

  I rolled out my shoulders and thought about the fact that I was older now, the whole town would be different through my eyes. I was sure to have a good summer there as long as I never made reference to what had happened all those years before. And once Mom was better and she came back to collect me, we could move on and start a new life somewhere else. Maybe Dad would even be back by then and I’d be able to get myself off to college after all.

  I smiled to myself and dismissed any fears that were bubbling away beneath the surface. I was from a strong line of fierce women and no matter what happened, I would continue to thrive. This was the turning point I needed to get myself back on track.

  I closed my eyes and let my head rest back against the seat. I don’t know how long it was before I fell asleep, but when I came to we were approaching town, and Marianne was stroking my arm excitedly and telling me we were there.

  I rubbed my eyes and looked out of the window. I recognized the lines of trees instantly and looked up to how they seemed to skim the sky. They were so big, so tall and so elegant, I had fallen in love with them back then and I knew it would continue for the remainder of this summer.

  “The forest,” I said. “It’s breath taking.”

  “Ancient trees,” she smiled. “Nature at its finest.”

  I nodded in agreement as we flashed by the sign that read Valport Springs. My skin prickled with anticipation.

  “Welcome Home,” Marianne said. “It’s good to have you back.”

  When we rounded the final corner before the road gave way to a thick bend of brush and redwoods, Marianne slowed and I sat forward to get a good look. I knew the entrance was impressive, but I had forgotten just how much so. The large wrought iron gates were high and sealed tight as she turned and we waited for them to open. They were unique and opulent, like nothing we had back at home and I wondered how on earth Marianne had the money to keep this place when she was unmarried and only worked from home, on what I wasn’t exactly sure. The gates jostled and began to slowly open.

  “I have a sensor on the car,” she said. “They don’t open for anyone else.”

  She pressed the gas lightly and we moved slowly forward, creeping through the gates and onto the long, winding driveway that led up to the house. It was sealed all around by trees and it was still exactly as I remembered. The redwoods flanked either side of the driveway and cocooned us. The sunlight was scarce and it was like a canopy of leaves above us, moving us along to our destination.

  “It’s so private,” I said. “I’d forgotten how secluded it was.”

  “It’s the only way out here,” she smiled. “Most people have private houses set back from the road.”

  I pressed my nose against the glass and looked up. Somewhere up there I could see flashes of red, of squirrels darting from tree to tree.

  As the driveway curved round once more, the house came into view. It loomed out in front of us like something out of a nightmare. It was so impressive, so daunting and gothic looking, I gasped when I saw it. It had been such a long time, and I hadn’t even been fully able to appreciate it back then. To my childhood eyes, this had been normal, but after years of living in a small dilapidated ranch I could now see how special this place was. The turrets stood proud and went up high into the sky. The windows were curved and dark and the whole house looked as if it were alive. It easily could have been a living creature waiting to welcome us.

 
; “Welcome back to Woodmont,” Marianne said as she turned off the engine and clicked open the door.

  As I got out and stood alongside her and looked up at the house that was about to become my home, I had a feeling inside of me that I had never felt before. My feet were rooted deeply to the ground and there was something that felt so right.

  “I have a strong bond with this place,” I told her. “It’s running right through me.”

  “Yes you do,” Marianne smiled as she took hold of my hand and began to walk with me towards the steps. “We all do my dear, and now you’re back you will see how it can help you truly fulfil your potential.”

  Chapter 3

  I was only thirteen when it happened, and even though the memories of that day are fragmented and confused, I know what I did.

  Even though I wish I could forget. I wish I could take it all back…

  But I can’t.

  It’s far too late now.

  I killed someone.

  It may have been an accident, it may have been Marianne and mother’s fault for not telling me earlier about who and what I really was… but the facts still remain…

  Because of me, someone died.

  We had summered at Woodmont. Marianne had taken us in and even though Dad had been working back home he had flown out for the weekend and we were all spending as much time together as possible before he had to travel again on the Monday for a big meeting in the city.

  I remember the morning better than I remember the actual event because it was the last time everything was normal. We had been sat in the kitchen baking cinnamon bread and Marianne was smoking hashish in the orangery. I could smell the sweet scent of the strawberry smoke mixing in with the deliciousness of the warm oven and when Dad came in he looked at us all and smiled.

  Mom had her feet up on the table, crossed at the ankles and we all looked the same. All of us had our long, wavy, black hair trailing right down our backs. It was a family trait that had survived generations. A gene so strong it didn’t matter who one of The Black Women bred with, it would always remain.

  “Look at you girls,” he said as he wrapped his arm around my mother’s neck and kissed her on the cheek.

  Marianne made sweet tea and we all sat around the table picking at the hot cinnamon bread and shoveling it into our mouths. By the time it had cooled we were all full and tired, and ready for a late morning nap, but Mom said we couldn’t waste the day. It was such a happy morning. And if only we had stayed in the house, it would have remained that way.

  We walked out of the back of the house and down towards the lake. The grounds of Woodmont bordered on the north shore and we were lucky to have such a lovely spot to be able to spend our days. People came from across the country to rent houses at Valport and they all wanted a lakeside view. We had it at our disposal and for that reason we almost seemed to take it for granted.

  We’d been there for around an hour when Mom started to complain about being hungry again. Dad could barely believe it when I said I was too, but it was the first year I had bled and I was hormonal. My tummy was solid as a rock and I knew it was coming.

  “Aradia,” Dad called to me as he pulled out the blankets and trailed them across the stony beach. “Why don’t you run back to the house and ask Marianne to bring down something for us?”

  I nodded and started back up towards Woodmont. It was hot and the sweat prickled the back of my neck. I needed to shower but I was enjoying having both of my parents around me so much that I didn’t want to miss a moment of fun down at the lake.

  It was whilst I was walking back that it happened. I decided to take a short cut by going through the forest to the left of the house. I had never ventured in there properly because of how it was so overgrown, and by the time I was inside of there and realized how dense the foliage was, I was completely lost and had begun to panic.

  “Marianne?” I called. “Dad?”

  The tears bubbled up out of me and my heart started to race. I could feel a tingling in my arms that I had never had before and although it frightened me, I also knew that it was going to lead to something important. I stopped still and even as the tears tumbled down my cheeks I felt rooted to the ground and it was as if an energy was vibrating throughout me. I screamed as it started to overpower me and it wasn’t until I couldn’t stand it any longer that I heard laughter coming from the trees to my right…

  I tried not to do it, but it was out of fear and embarrassment.

  The boy came forward out of the trees. He was alone but he was pointing and laughing, calling me a freak and saying, “Look at the witch girl, she’s going to blow.”

  In an instant an otherworldly fire I had never known to exist thundered through me and shot out of my fingertips. I spat fire and black ash and in my mind I wanted to grab hold of the boy so hard and squeeze the life out of him. I don’t know where the aggression came from, I was always so placid… but in an instant he looked like I’d punched him in the chest. His eyes went wide like saucers and as white as stone, and he dropped down dead.

  I could feel a trail between him and I… even though we were ten feet apart… it was like a fine silver thread had connected us and as the life left his body I could feel it whispering away through the branches of the trees.

  That’s when I really screamed.

  I looked down at that boy and I could see the look of horror on his face, as if he had been petrified and killed by the fright.

  “Aradia!” Marianne shouted as she ran through the trees, her hair whipping out and catching on branches as she went. “Don’t move!”

  I was shaking when she got to me, my fingertips were electric and she wrestled me to the ground, shushing me and telling me to be quiet.

  “He’s dead Marianne,” I sobbed as she held me close. “What did I do?”

  Even then, I knew it was me that had done it. I’d never felt magic before and my mother and Marianne had never told me about our family. But there I was, thirteen and I had just killed a boy because they were too afraid for me.

  The Black Women are cursed.

  That’s what I learned from that day and what I’ve had to live with every day since.

  It’s in our blood.

  It runs deep in our veins and no man is safe around us.

  When Dad saw me that day in the forest, I was screaming so loud it could no doubt be heard from town.

  “What are you people?” he hissed to my mother who was shaking and rocking back and forth.

  “Don’t…” she whispered.

  Even after fifteen years of marriage, she had never confided in him. She had long learned to control her powers, and it wasn’t until little baby Aradia Black came along that it all went wrong. I’d matured earlier than they had bargained for. A witch doesn’t normally gain her powers until she is sixteen and the magic bursts free. But there I was, thirteen and blasting boys to death in the forest.

  “It’s the Baker Boy,” Marianne whispered as she hurled a blanket over his limp body. “We’ll ditch him in the lake.”

  They did what needed to be done and my mother and father were never quite the same again. We were happy, we led a normal life, but beneath the surface, something had changed in all of us.

  When he said he’d fallen in love with someone else, I knew I could stop him, I knew I could change him with my power. Hell, we all could have done. But it only would have come back to haunt us in the end. When a man wants to go, eventually, nothing can make him stay.

  The night he left all those years later, my mother held me and told me to remember that no man is strong enough to stay with one of The Black Women.

  “We are a powerful kind,” she stroked my hair with tears in her eyes, “The only reason your father lasted so long was because he didn’t know. I hid it from him… I tried to protect us…”

  “And he only found out because of me,” I sobbed.

  “No,” she hushed me. “I was weak… And from what I saw of you that day, you’re the strongest of us all.”r />
  She kissed me on my forehead and I closed my eyes to try and sleep.

  After that was when our negative energy began to change the house and everything fell apart. Our grief consumed us and as each day passed our family life rotted and disintegrated around us.

  But thankfully for us, we had Marianne. And her bringing me home to Woodmont was the first step in us changing our fortune.

  Chapter 4

  My first night back I slept soundly. It had been six years since that day in the forest where my newly ignited magic had killed the Baker Boy and I had never returned to Valport Springs since.

  But as I lay there and I remembered it all, a lone tear rolled down my cheek. I had never asked for any of it, and yet it had become my life.

  “This is the time to put all of your demons to rest,” I told myself as I curled up under the blankets and pulled them tightly around me.

  I could hear the wood pigeons in the trees and even though the sun was barely up and the dawn light was still gray, I decided to put on my robe and go for a look around.

  I left my room silently and tiptoed down the long hallway to the staircase. The floorboards were bare and rough underfoot and I smiled as I remembered how as I child I would ride my bike up and down them, and no one would care about the mess it would make.

  I walked around the galleried landing and ran my fingertips along the oak bannisters. It really was a beautiful old house. It was only now as I was seeing it all again that I could really sense its secrets and magic, and it was exciting me to the core.

  To my surprise as I opened the door to the kitchen, Marianne was already up and she was drinking green tea at the table.

  “Good morning,” she smiled as she rested her book face down.

  “Do you always get up so early?” I asked as I sat next to her.

  “Every day,” she grinned. “Best time of day for conjuring.” She winked at me and I could hear the bubble of her cauldron on the stove.