AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She gets to work, pouring things into the bowl, smashing the herbs and grinding it into the bottom of the wooden bowl.
"So, this Wiccan thing is pretty serious?"
She nods, glancing up at me with a smile while she continues pouring things into the bowl. "I suppose. My family are pretty serious Wiccans. Most of us have dabbled into the occult, but we mostly stay away from it. Nothing good has ever come from that side of our magic."
"What's with the five-pointed star, then? Isn't that black magic shit?"
She chuckles. "Sometimes it's better to keep a foot on the side of darkness to stay protected from it."
Setting the stones next to the bowl, one shiny and black, another light blue. She stands up, pouring the salt from the container around our small circle, cloaking us in safety.
She sits back down next to me, lifting the knife. "Give me your hand." She wiggles her fingers at me.
I shake my head. "Blood magic. That's not fucking good, Hazel. Let's do this without it."
She opens her palm, slapping the blade open and cutting down her own skin. "We all need to take part today. Whatever is clinging to you, it's powerful. Powerful enough to scratch you in this short amount of time. There's no time for fucking around."
Piper and Blaire open their palms, reaching toward Hazel. She cuts their pale skin, and they tip their hands, letting drips of red fall into the dark bowl.
"Your turn, Vera," Hazel says.
I lift my hand, and she doesn't waste any time. Bringing the bloody blade to my skin, she slices a small line down the middle. She pulls my fingers, bringing my hand over the bowl. I watch the blood drip down my palm, sliding off my wrist and falling and mixing with their blood.
“Your power is strong, Vera. Almost stronger then my own. It’s not about lifting your hands and throwing people across rooms or lighting a flame while looking at it.” She looks at me, a smile in her eyes. “Though, it is possible. It’s more about the energy you create and what you do with it. You can choose to do good in the world, and you can choose to do bad. Your energy is good, whether or not you believe it. But whatever has a hold on you has you toeing into darkness. If you were to become possessed, you would be very, very dangerous.”
Grabbing my hand, she folds her bloody one over mine and nods at Piper and Blaire. They bring their hands to ours, and we fold our fingers over each other’s. "Blood sisters. Forever," Hazel says.
My body hums, and without wanting to believe it, I know she’s telling the truth. Whatever power lies in a witch, also lies within me. I can feel it as our blood mixes and becomes one. Different DNA, different power, all within this small circle, uniting us into an unbreakable force.
Grabbing the matches, she strikes one, the yellow flame lighting up the dim forest. She drops it into the bowl, and it crackles and pops, a massive spark exploding from the bowl before lowering, small flames burning the blood and herbs.
Hazel reaches out, and we all connect our hands. Closing her eyes, she tips her head toward the sky and begins to mumble.
Evil spirits and dark forces,
Return to the place in which you came.
We do not fear you and refuse to keep you.
May our homes once again be safe.
For it is us you willneverenslave.
She repeats the chant three times, each word distinct and punctuated with certainty. I can feel her words punching into my soul, and by the third time she says it, I'm mumbling the words along with her. We all are. With hope, with a pleading necessity.
Then, silence.
No wind. No crinkling of leaves or branches or any breath of the earth. Just us.
Suddenly, a gust of wind slams against our small circle. The salt enclosure is disconnected, a gap in the connection leaving us exposed to anything and everything.
The four of us are lifted off the ground, and we scream as we’re suspended in the air, breaking our linked hands and leaving us vulnerable to the unknown. The force holding me is strong, and fear freezes me in place. Dread sinks into my body, as my arms fly out in front of me, my hair falling like an effortless sheet into the air. Then, with an angry whip, we’re flung backward. My back slams into the stump of a tree, and I let out a scream as the cuts on my back scrape against the bark. I’m momentarily disoriented as my head pounds against the stump. I can hear everyone else get flung against trees.
Blaire's blanket and belongings are strewn about as we all fall to the ground.
Then it's silence once again.
Fear reflects in each of our eyes as we stare at each other. Scratches line our legs and arms, and that's enough for me.
