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“…and give to another, to not lead astray
Those who’ve been placed under her command,
But to guide them all with a steady hand.”
Magic rose in the air and snapped a palpable connection between Juneau and Sophie. Both witches twitched as if struck by a weak electrical charge, their eyes widening. A flash of light ran down the connection between them, Juneau gasped and slumped down, and Sophie jerked and made a sound of pain before hunching over.
“It is done,” Shobha said, her sari swishing in the quiet of the room as she moved out of the circle.
Merle leaned forward, squinting at Sophie. “How do you feel? Did it work?”
Shobha scoffed. “Of course it worked, child. No spell I crafted ever failed.”
Hazel hid her smirk at Shobha’s gruff rebuke.
“Okay, okay,” Merle muttered. “Sorry.”
Sophie straightened, took a deep breath, and then helped her mother to her feet. “It worked. I feel the connection to all the members of my family, magical threads binding them to me.” She nodded at Merle, then at Shobha. “Thank you. On behalf of my whole family, thank you.”
Shobha inclined her head. “All of you will have access to additional magic again, and you will be able to defend yourselves. May you put it to good use for our community. We desperately need more witches to patrol the streets.”
“Of course.” Sophie nodded eagerly.
“Now that this is settled,” Merle said, “time for the binding.”
She glanced at Hazel, who stood up along with Patricia and Kristen.
Sophie exhaled heavily and rubbed her mother’s shoulders before leaving the circle. Juneau, though still uncharacteristically quiet, holding the blanket wrapped around her like a queen grasping her coat, glared at the witches assembled, bitterness etched into the lines of her face.
Together, Hazel, Patricia, and Kristen stepped into the circle. Hazel took Patricia’s hand, who grasped Kristen’s so they were all connected. The binding spell required a lot of magic, almost too much for one witch alone to carry, which was why they’d form a temporary bond and act as one to channel the power necessary to shackle Juneau’s magic inside her.
Hazel had spent all of last night reading up on this particular spell since she’d never done it before. Neither had the others. It wasn’t often that the witch community needed to punish one of their own with this extreme measure. Rowan, Merle’s grandmother, had used a similar spell to bind Maeve’s magic deep inside her after her phoenix had erupted, its power proving too much for a young girl.
Hazel looked at the witches beside her. “On three?”
They nodded.
“One,” Hazel said, “two, three.”
Together they began the chant.
“The power inside your body and mind
Shall be leashed and bound, chained and confined
Deep in your core, beyond your reach,
Never to surface, never to breach
The walls that keep it under lock and key.
May you never be able to break it free.”
The air hummed with their combined magic, the candles crackling, and Juneau stiffened. They repeated the chant twice more, and each time, Juneau’s expression became more pained. When they were done, the power in the air hushing, the oldest Laroche sank to her knees, breathing heavily, tears wetting her cheeks.
Hazel looked around until she caught Sophie’s gaze and nodded at her. Sophie rushed into the circle, hugged her mother, and whispered to her too low to hear.
Shobha stepped up close to Juneau, laid her hand on the head of the oldest Laroche, and closed her eyes for a long moment. Features hard, the Elder witch withdrew her hand.
