“I’m probably worse than you. Although I might have a spell to turn us into Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.”
“Who?”
“You’ve never seen Top Hat? Or Flying Down to Rio? What is wrong with you?”
“What is wrong with you?”
The two witches continued joking and pretend-bickering as they strolled onto the dance floor. Homecoming was turning out to be not-horrible, after all. Sure, Iris had caught her soulmate making out with another girl. But it could be a one-off, and besides, there might be other soulmate candidates to consider. It was a big world.
In the meantime, life was definitely looking up. The New Order and Antima were pretty much history. Witchcraft was finally going to become legal. Any and all witches and suspected witches had been freed from jail, including Ms. O’Shea and her coven; in fact, the history sub was here at the dance, chaperoning.
And speaking of covens… their two covens had been talking about merging into one. Iris wasn’t sure how she felt about that, especially given this new-old Greta-and-Div drama. But at least the seven of them—now eight, including Torrence—weren’t mortal enemies anymore. Together, and with Dr. Jessup and Aunt Viola and lots of other wise witches to guide them, their powers would surely grow.
The next song started to play. “Spell or no spell?” Torrence asked Iris.
“No spell? I think I’m cool with making a total fool of myself,” Iris said, flossing again.
LOVE-POTION TEA
FROM “THE TEA WITH TORRENCE”
This is a love-potion tea for you to drink so you can invite love into your life.
INGREDIENTS:
A small handful of fresh rose petals or rosebuds (or both!). Make sure the roses have not been sprayed with pesticides, and in any case, rinse them with cold water and dry on paper towels.
A small handful of fresh mint leaves
Two cinnamon sticks
A slice of fresh ginger
Honey or sugar to sweeten (optional)
Bottled spring water (optional)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Boil water, preferably spring water. You can buy bottles of spring water at the grocery store.
2. Put rose petals and/or rosebuds in a teapot. Add mint leaves, cinnamon sticks, and ginger.
3. Pour boiling water into the teapot, cover, and let steep for ten to fifteen minutes.
4. While waiting for the tea to steep, infuse it with your intention. Close your eyes and think about a specific person, or type of person, your heart desires. Speak positive affirmations, like: “I deserve love” and “My heart is open to someone who will love me and treat me with kindness and respect.”
5. When your tea is ready, pour into your favorite cup and sweeten with honey or sugar if you’d like.
6. Sit in your favorite spot and sip slowly. Chant the words:
I drink this fragrant tea
To bring my love to me.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We want to thank all the people who helped bring this book into the world:
Alex Hightower, for her thoughtful editing, boundless energy, and support.
The rest of our amazing team at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, including Megan Tingley, Angelie Yap, Annie McDonnell, Katie Boni, Christie Michel, Stefanie Hoffman, Shanese Mullins, and Savannah Kennelly.
Sweeney Boo, for her gorgeous, gorgeous cover art.
Mollie Glick, for always being there for us.
Vimbai Ushe, Lola Bellier, and Cesar Parreño, for their indispensable help.
Nancy would also like to thank:
Paige, my magical coauthor.
Clara Ohlin, my creative partner and inspiration.
My other young readers, Cecily Molnar, Vivian Molnar, and Anaya Truth Rickford.
Chris Reynolds, for answering my millions of literary Qs.
My cats, who sat on my lap (and on my keyboard) during long writing sprints and provided warmth, love, and endless amusing shenanigans.
My family. You are everything.
Paige would also like to thank:
Nancy, the one person who I couldn’t have done this book without.
My family of witches: Mum, Gamma, Greta, and Scout. Your magic inspires me every day.
All the magic makers out there. Thank you for sharing your gifts with the world!
And last but not least, we want to thank our wonderful readers. You complete the circle of our storytelling, and for that, we are so honored and grateful.
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PAIGE MCKENZIE is a millennial hyphenate: a New York Times bestselling author, YouTuber, actor, influencer, creator, artist, and producer. Her first book series, The Haunting of Sunshine Girl, was on the New York Times bestseller list for over a month. Paige is constantly creating. Her Etsy shop, the Homebody Guild, is full of her art and designs, and she is always updating it with new creations. Paige also interacts daily with her Sunshiners across a variety of media including YouTube (where she has over half a million subscribers), Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Paige is a founding member of Coat Tale Productions, with three projects in active development. Paige lives in Portland, Oregon, with the love of her life, a seven-pound Chihuahua named Pongo.
NANCY OHLIN was born in Tokyo and moved to the United States when she was nine. She has written, ghostwritten, or collaborated on over one hundred fiction and nonfiction books for children, teens, and adults, including her YA novels Consent, Beauty, and Always, Forever. Most recently, she collaborated with Paige on The Sacrifice of Sunshine Girl, Quvenzhané Wallis on the Shai and Emmie chapter book series, and Chloe Lukasiak on her memoir Girl on Pointe: Chloe’s Guide to Taking on the World. Nancy lives in Ithaca, New York, with her family and many cats. She invites you to learn more at nancyohlin.com and on Twitter (@nancyohlin).
BY PAIGE MCKENZIE AND NANCY OHLIN
B*Witch
Witch Rising
Witch Rising Page 24
