Something Hidden: Witches Rising

The rest of October passed in a blur and I woke one dark and dreary morning to the sudden realisation that it was, in fact, October 31st – Hallowe’en, for the rest of the school and Samhain for us. It had been announced a week previously that we would be able to wear costumes during the day, which the four of us had decided was definitely something we would do.

I woke late that morning, and Riley, Kota and Morgan were already up and getting into their costumes.

Riley was a cat, and so she dressed all in black – black leggings, a long-sleeved black shirt and black socks and shoes. She had used a spell to give her cat ears and a tail– a Magickal alternative to the traditional headband and scarf, and was just putting the finishing touches to her whiskers.

Kota was going as a Vampire. She wore a short, black leather skirt, a worryingly tight red corset and 5-inch black stiletto sandals. She, too, had used a spell to slightly change her appearance for the day – lengthening her canines to look like fangs.

Morgan chose to dress as a Pixie. Obviously, the rest of the year would think she meant to be a fairy, but she was adamant she would inform anyone who asked that she was, in fact, a Pixie. She wore a gorgeous emerald-green and white dress, and little green ballet pumps, and she’d cast a spell to attach the fancy-dress wings she’d bought securely to the back of her dress, so it looked like they were actually attached to her back.

I, to the amusement of Kota and Riley, had set my heart upon going as a Witch. Obviously not the “traditional” kind, with warts and a fake nose, but a more truly traditional, original sort of Witch. I wore a knee length, ruffled silver skirt and a white T-shirt with a gorgeous piece of embroidery running up the left side - a flower pattern, each leaf tipped with gold. The white of the top shone against my olive skin. On my feet I had a simple pair of white, high-heeled sandals, and I’d painted my toe- and finger-nails silver to match the skirt. I curled my hair loosely and left it loose about my shoulders, then completed my look with a silver pointy hat and a slim stick of wood in my hand to pass as a wand. No way was I going to use any real Magickal paraphernalia as part of my outfit - I’d bought the wand in a fancy dress shop in town.

The day itself was a nightmare. In my first five minutes outside our dorm room I saw at least five vampires, a gaggle of boys in freaky masks, and even Death himself, complete with a shiny and worryingly realistic scythe, not to mention the collection of girls who seemed to have stumbled into the adult costume section and all seemed to have forgotten to wear trousers today.

Our lessons passed quickly - we didn’t really learn much, as most of the teachers had attempted to incorporate good old Hallowe’en fun into their lessons - but lunchtime was a lot calmer.

I chose a bacon and avocado salad for my lunch. As I slid into the booth we’d claimed as ours, a black pointy hat caught my eye from across the room. I stared towards it, and realised with a jolt that the owner of the hat was Lucas Williams, and he was staring right at me. The hat itself was a simple black one - plain and simple, and the rest of his outfit was much the same. He had on a long black robe over his usual uniform of blue jeans and a neatly buttoned check shirt. The robe fastened as his waist and flowed freely to the floor from there. As we watched each other, he reached up to a pocket in the breast of the robe and held up a single leaf, which, I realised with a jolt, was a laurel leaf. He smiled, almost seductively, and slipped the leaf back into his pocket, then raised his fingers in a sort of wave. I blinked, almost disbelieving. What was he trying to say? I fumbled at the edge of the table, trying to stand up so I could go over there and see what the hell he wanted, but as I rose from my seat he turned and vanished into the crowd of people congregating at the food hatch. I sank back into my seat, my face falling.

‘Laurie? Are you okay?’ Riley’s voice shocked me as she slid into the booth across from me, the plate clattering on the table.

‘What? Oh, yeah, no, I’m fine,’ I said, shaking my head vigorously.

‘Are you sure?’ she frowned.

‘Never better,’ I replied, smiling brightly. I picked up my fork and speared a chunk of avocado.

‘If you say so.’

‘Mmm,’ I mumbled. Then I shrugged, pushing the incident to the back of my mind, and started to eat my lunch. I’d need my energy for the ritual I had planned for the evening.

Darkness fell quickly over the school grounds that night. Morgan led the way down the perilous cliff path – it was a slow journey at the best of times but in this complete darkness it would be even more so, if it were not for Morgan’s new power. She flicked her hand absently and a ball of flame burst to life within it. She held it down towards the ground, illuminating the path before us as we stumbled on.

Eventually we reached the beach and Kota flung down her backpack. The candles inside it thudded dully against each other.

‘I assume we have to cast a circle first?’ Morgan said.

‘Of course,’ I replied. ‘The candles and crystals alone won’t hold back any negative spirits that want in on our ritual – it is Samhain, after all.’

I bent and emptied the bag out on to the sand – five white candles, five large, pale pink crystals and a stick of sage incense tumbled out. Riley arranged the crystals in a circle and I drew a pentagram on the sand between them, using each crystal as a corner. Kota placed four of the candles at the elemental corners of the circle and kept the fifth behind for me to use afterwards. Morgan stepped forward and drew a long circular line around the candles, forming the circle’s wall, then lit the sage and placed it in the centre of the circle.

I took up my starting position at the north corner and bent to pick up the candle.

‘In the name of my Goddess, I call the element Earth to this circle, and I ask that you build a strong wall of containment and a barrier to keep away any negative energy on this, the Samhain night.’ I lit the candle and placed it back on the sand, then moved around, deosil, to the east.

‘In the name of my Goddess, I call the element Air to this circle, and I ask that you give your aid to hold back negativities but make the passage for those I call smoother and easier to travel.’ I lit the candle and put it back in its place. A thin beam of golden light connected the two present elements. I turned again, to the south.

‘In the name of my Goddess, I call the element Fire to this circle, and I ask that you create a wall of flame, scorching to the energies that wish us harm but cool to those we summon.’ I clicked the lighter again and put the now-burning candle back down, then turned to the west.

‘In the name of my Goddess, I call the element Water to this circle, and I ask that you wash away the negative energies that may gather at this portal between worlds but wash to us the spirits of those we need.’ The fourth candle burst to life and I placed it back on the ground, then turned to Kota, who handed me the final candle. I stood at the head of the circle, with Kota, Riley and Morgan behind me, and prepared to summon the spirits.

‘Goddess, I ask you to preside over my circle, here, this Samhain night. I ask you to aid the journey of the spirits we summon to counsel.’ I lit the final candle and put it down, just inside the circle. I could feel the heat of the circle’s boundary as I leant through it briefly to put the candle down. The moment I pulled away from the edge the boundary burst into true life, a shining wall of peachy pink which reached about two feet off the ground.
Kota, Riley and Morgan stepped forward and Riley passed me the sheet of paper on which I’d written the Spell we needed for this next ritual.

‘Blood of our blood
Source of our power
We call upon you this ancient hour
This Samhain night while the veil is thin
Ancients, Originals, Firsts
Cawseed Three, we call to thee
Blood of our blood
Let us speak with thee!’

As we fell silent a strong wind began to blow within the circle. Flames roared from the ground, thirty, forty, fifty feet into the air, and alongside them, water gushed upwards. Vines twisted around the boundaries, probing for weaknesses. Within seconds we couldn’t see into the circle, but then, as suddenly and they had appeared, the vines receded, the waters dried and the flames died. The wind dissipated and three dim figures came into view. A voice sounded over the roar of the receding winds: ‘Who dares call the Cawseed Three?’
I stepped forward.

‘We do,’ I said. My words were echoed by my fellows.

‘How dare you call us?’ The voice was quieter now – it didn’t have to compete with the wind anymore.

‘We dare because we have the Power.’ I took another tentative step forward.

‘The Power is gone.’ The three figures were clearer too, the mists thinning. I looked up into the eyes of the central figure – they were the exact shade of turquoise I had come to associate with our Power, the same colour as our eyes.

‘The Power is not gone – it was reborn into your ancestors,’ I explained.

‘Who are you?’ the left-hand woman asked.

‘My name is Laurel,’ I said. ‘I call you only for peace, and I ask you listen to what I have to say, and for your counsel.’

‘I see no harm in listening,’ the central woman said. ‘Your name is Laurel, mine is Lily. Rose and Hawthorn stand beside me.’ She indicated left for Rose, and right for Hawthorn.

‘Do those who stand with you possess names?’ asked Hawthorn.

‘We do,’ Kota said stepping forward to flank me, to my left. Riley mirrored her, on my right. Morgan hung back.

‘I am joined by my fellows,’ I said. ‘Riley and Dakota.’ I indicated which was which and waited for the Three’s reply.

‘Is that a fourth I see behind?’ Rose asked.

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘Our Three is joined by a Fourth. The Goddess has deemed her worthy of the Power of the Fourth Witch, and she works with us as though she were a part of the Three herself.’

‘The Fourth Witch? That is a concept new to me,’ Hawthorn frowned. ‘Step forward and speak, Fourth!’

Morgan glanced at me. I nodded, and she stepped forward, parallel to me.

‘I am the Fourth Witch,’ she said. ‘My name is Morgan. I stand with the Three against any enemy, though my Powers are not as strong as theirs.’

‘Your Powers are strong enough,’ I corrected.

‘So now the Three has become four?’ Lily said.

‘It can be put that way,’ I said.

‘But why do you call us? You are strong enough to summon ancient spirits and to hold them in the grip of your portal. I cannot believe you call for counsel?’

‘I call you because while we perhaps have the Magickal strength to perform this ritual, we are unsure where to begin our battle against evil. We cannot leave this school, and we cannot reveal our nature – who knows which students here are truly human,’ I began.

‘School?’ Lily said. ‘Explain.’

‘This place is a beach – but on the cliffs above us is a boarding school, and that’s where we live at the moment. We’re students,’ Riley said.

‘A boarding school? Oh, no. We have heard many things in our time in the Otherworld, but the Witches Three, students at a boarding school? Never have I heard anything more preposterous. How do you expect to win the war against evil when you are confined to this building?’ Hawthorn said, sounding angry.

‘We can’t help it. We wouldn’t have met if we weren’t here,’ Kota replied.

‘I see,’ Lily said.

‘You need to wait until the evil comes to you,’ Rose began. ‘Now you are the Three, you will be a large blip on evil’s radar, or so to speak.’

‘So we’re going to have Vamps and Shifters and Hell only knows what else coming here?’ Riley exclaimed.

‘We can’t be expected to fight evil in school!’ Morgan cried.

‘It’s the only way,’ Lily said.

‘Wait, and you will find your beginning,’ Hawthorn added.

Their voices were growing dim, and they appeared to be fading.

‘Don’t leave!’ Kota cried. ‘How do we learn to control our powers?!’

‘You must practise!’ replied Hawthorn, her voice louder now to compensate for the reappearance of the roaring winds. The thin mist that had swirled around the circle throughout the meeting thickened, hiding the Cawseed Three from view. Flames erupted around the circle and water cascaded down from above to meet the vines which twisted their way round the boundaries again. Then they were gone, and when the mists thinned the only thing that remained was the glittering golden boundary line and the flickering light of the candles.

‘They left…’ Morgan whispered.

‘The pull of the Otherworld was stronger still than the pull of our Power,’ I said. ‘We couldn’t hold them any longer. Didn’t you feel it?’

The three of them nodded solemnly.

‘We’ve got time for one more quick talk,’ I said. ‘I want to talk to my mother.’

We arranged ourselves again at the head of the circle and I began to chant the spell.

‘Blood of my blood,
I call to thee tonight.
The Samhain moon is high
And whilst the veil is thin
Cross back over to the other side
Blood of my blood.
I call thee, my mother.’

The display was nowhere near as spectacular as before. The candle flames blazed a little higher, tall grass sprouted inside the pentagram, waving in the sweet-scented breeze. I could hear water trickling and birds singing, and suddenly a surge of water flattened the grass. Darkness flashed like lightning and when we could see again, my mother had appeared in the circle.

‘Laurel!’ she cried. ‘What have you done?’

‘I called you back, briefly,’ I replied. ‘We needed to have a very important conversation.’

‘It can’t wait?’ Mum asked. ‘How about first, you introduce me to your friends?’

I sighed. ‘Fine,’ I said. ‘Mum, meet Riley, Kota and Morgan.’ I waved vaguely at each of them as I spoke. ‘Guys, meet my mother, Claire.’

‘Lovely to meet you, girls,’ Mum said. ‘So, dear, what’s this we have to talk about?’

‘I assume the grapevine reaches as far as the Otherworld?’ I said. ‘So you should know, really.’

‘About you and your friends unlocking the Powers of the Three, and of the Fourth Witch? Of course I know. I couldn’t be more proud of you.’

‘Thank you,’ I smiled. ‘Now you know the story, can we talk about it?’

‘Talk about what? You’re the Witches Three. You’re more powerful than any before you because you have the Fourth Witch on your side, and I did not foresee her leaving you.’

‘You cannot foresee me leaving? What do you mean?’ Morgan asked, frowning.

‘Did Laurel not tell you what my power was? I could foresee future events. However, it didn’t get me very far - I’m dead, all the same,’ Mum replied. ‘I foresaw this. I knew, eventually, this night would come.’

‘You knew?’ I exclaimed. ‘You knew, all this time, what I was going to become?’

‘I knew. I’m so sorry I never told you. I planned to, but I never had the chance. I had a vision - I saw you, grown up, fighting alongside your three friends - the Three and the Fourth - and that terrified me. I didn’t want you to grow up in a world where you’d have to fight for your life from the day you were born. I thought I was mistaken - not to mention I was certain it couldn’t be you anyway. Not my daughter. But, I did some research, especially into our ancestors, and I found out about the original Three, and the Prophecy, and then I knew. It had to be you. I planned to tell you before you began secondary school, but then I died, and so I couldn’t tell you. The only reason you’ve been safe all this time is because you were ignorant of your true abilities,’ Mum explained. ‘I really wish I could stay and help you girls out but I’ve been here long enough, and I’ve probably said more than I was supposed to. They’ll be angry if I tell you too much. Don’t forget; be safe, be wary, and be together. You can’t afford to get split up now.’

The candle flames began to grow, and I cried out.

‘No! You can’t just leave! Tell us how to fight!’

The tall grass was growing again and the wind began to blow, swirling around Mum like a whirlpool, whipping her clothes and hair about her.

‘The Darkness is coming!’ she cried, as the birdsong began and the water began to fall. ‘You have to fight the Darkness!’

Darkness flashed again and then she was gone. I fell to my knees, sobbing.

‘No, no, no!’ I screamed. ‘How do we learn?’

I was vaguely aware of Kota kneeling beside me, her hands on my shoulders, steadying me, and of Riley’s soothing voice, but nothing mattered to me except my anger.

‘Why do we have to do this on our own?’ I screamed at the empty air. ‘Why can’t you help us?’

As I sat there, rocking slowly backwards and forwards, tears streaming down my face, the clouds above us parted and the almost-full moon shone through. A whisper sounded around us - it was my mother’s voice.

You cannot fail. I give my love so life can’t hold you back.

The four of us looked up at the moon, simultaneously, as the new wind toyed with our hair and blew the tears from my face. I took a deep breath, and stood up, and then I spoke directly to the moon.

‘We will fight the Darkness. We can do what so many have failed to do before. We are the Three, and with the help of the Fourth, we are stronger than ever. We will fight.’

And then I fainted.