Chapter 4
A rich orange sunset washed over us when we reached the outskirts of the colorful, holy woodland, and I could see the borders of the sea-stone kingdom from where I stood. Then a cool breeze swept past my face and pushed back my hair, and I took in a deep breath and briefly closed my eyes as I enjoyed this one peaceful moment. I was utterly exhausted, and I knew there was no point heading toward the sea-creature infested realm when dusk was quickly approaching. Besides, we hadn’t agreed on a plan on how to sneak into the kingdom, so I abruptly stopped in my tracks and turned to face the others.
“Let’s make camp here,” I ordered, and before Vanessa could argue, I shot her a small frown. “There’s plenty of space to set up tents, and it will be safer to travel by morning light. Trust me, Professor. I know what I’m saying.”
“I suppose you’re right, Cole,” she sighed after a long silence, and I could see the surprise in everyone’s eyes as she wordlessly hopped off her elk and rolled up her sleeves. Then she began to set up two tents on opposite sides of each other before flashing me a tight smile. “There… that should be enough distance between us. Hopefully, I won’t hear anything that will disturb my sleep, for once.”
“Let’s make a small fire before night falls,” I said as I ignored her comment and then turned to look at Alexander and the other familiars. “Go hunt for your meals and then bring us back something. We’ll need something in our bellies before we go to sleep.”
Yes, Cole, Alexander replied in my head before he took off, and the others followed after him either by flight or foot or, in Ursula’s case, slithered. We won’t head too far.
“Good,” I said before they all disappeared from view.
“Gather the wood,” Vanessa ordered, and we swiftly obeyed her command.
I knew everyone was exhausted and weary from the fight and the journey through the woods, and the air was filled with thick tension as the professor watched us all with steady eyes. I felt her unwavering gaze fixated on me and turned to look at her, but when our eyes met, she didn’t look away or even scowl like she usually did. It was a peculiar minute, and I wondered what she thought as she gazed into my eyes.
Then Circe broke the unusual moment with one of her random questions.
“Do any of you reckon your familiars will change any more?” she asked with a pale, arched eyebrow. “I mean… how do you know when they’ve fully stopped growing?”
“You just know,” Vanessa muttered, and her bright blue eyes turned to look at the blonde Wicca. “You still don’t remember your familiar from your past life?”
“No,” the serpentine witch said as she shook her head, “but maybe someday I will.”
“It’s possible,” the professor sighed before she sat down against a tree and folded her arms across her chest. “You’ve cast ancient spells from out of nowhere, so I’m sure the memory will return to you someday.”
“I think we’re powerful enough now to create our own familiars,” Marina said as she stared at Circe and then at Vanessa. “Once we return to Scholomance, that is.”
“You mean if we return,” Vanessa whispered as she stared down at her feet. “As you all saw, I nearly died today. Even I cannot predict what the future solidly holds for us.”
“You’d be safer if you were a part of the pact,” Circe said in a perky voice, and Vanessa’s eyes instantly turned ice cold.
“I’m not even going to respond to that, Miss Circe,” the professor snarled as she shifted uncomfortably on the ground. “It’s not an appropriate question.”
“But it wasn’t even a question, it was a state--” the blonde witch continued, but I raised my hand and shook my head.
“Let it go, Circe,” I said in a firm but gentle tone.
“Yes, master,” she replied before continuing to quietly pick up scattered bits of wood.
Once we gathered enough logs and sticks to make a decent fire, Vanessa pulled out her wand and aimed it at the small pyre we put together.
“Illuminana,” she said in a tired voice.
A ball of fire spurted from the tip of her wand and lit the wood up, and as we gathered around in a circle, we warmed our hands by the fire and sat in silence for a moment or two. No one said a word until we heard a sudden rustling of leaves, and we breathed a sigh of relief in unison when we realized it was the familiars returning with our bloody dinner.
We killed a brace of rabbits, Alexander said before he flew over my lap and dropped a fully grown rabbit next to the fire.
“Here, everyone, give me your rabbits,” Revna said, and we did as she asked.
Then I watched as the dark-blonde beauty pulled out her thin wand and aimed it at the pile of dead rabbits.
“Intus sunt!” she recited, and the furry, fat bodies turned inside out until their red and purple muscles glistened in the bright, tangerine flames. “Alright, let’s cook them.”
Soon, a mouthwatering scent filled the air as the meat began to crisp, and then Vanessa loudly cleared her throat before she carefully studied each of us.
“We need to come up with a plan for tomorrow,” she said in a steady voice before she focused solely on me. “Cole, it was wise of you to suggest that we stop for the night. Now, we have more time to come up with ideas.”
“Well, isn’t the kingdom full of sea-like dwellers?” Morgana asked.
“Yes.” Vanessa nodded. “We’ll need a disguising potion or charm, but one that can last for as long as possible. At least from sunrise to sunset.”
“Anyone have any ideas?” Marina asked as she turned to look at every one. “You came up with that charm before, Beatrix.”
“B-But it only lasted for a little while,” the light-haired brunette responded as her eyes widened with anxiety. “It’s not enough to get us past the entire kingdom…”
“What if you and Penelope combine a charm with a potion?” I asked as I stared between the two witches. “Would that work?”
“I-I do know of a charm to create sea-like features for beings that walk on land,” Beatrix responded as she turned to look at the bright-haired witch, who was deep in thought as she chewed on her bottom lip. “Penelope, do you know of any potions that can make a spell last longer than usual?”
“Err…” the orange-haired witch began as she wrung her hands together and looked at everyone with bright but insecure eyes. “I started studying one before we left, but I have never had the chance to see if I perfected it or not.”
“I’m sure you can do it,” I said as I flashed her a confident smile. “Like we told Beatrix, we have faith in you.”
“Thank you, master,” the beautiful Wicca said, and as we locked eyes with one another, my heart beat faster and harder. “All I need are a few ingredients.”
“Such as?” Morgana asked as she leaned closer toward the flames, and they lit up her perfect features.
“Moth heart, citrus seeds, fairy powder, and a dash of thyme,” the orange-haired Wicca replied as she counted the ingredients off on her fingers.
“I bet you can find all of that here,” Morgana said with a bright smile. “We can search for them at first light.”
“Great,” Vanessa said before she aimed her wand at the cooked meat, and then plates appeared on our laps before each of us was given a full portion of a well-cooked rabbit. “Now, let’s eat and then get some rest. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.”
“Yes, Professor,” we replied in unison before we dug into our simple but satisfying dinner.
I couldn’t help but wonder about Samara as I chewed thoughtfully on my meal. Her presence always felt like venom coursing through my blood, but the last time we connected, something was different. I just couldn’t stop thinking about her as I sat there, even after I finished my meal and our familiars were all cuddled up into a love pile.
“Prohibere,” Vanessa muttered to kill the fire, and the sound of her voice broke me away from my thoughts as she looked at each of us. “Now, everyone, go to sleep. And that was an order, not a request, in case you were wondering.”
We nodded in agreement, and as the glowing sunset fell beneath the horizon, the forest quickly grew dark and cold. Vanessa didn’t say another word before she popped into her own tent, and Isobel crawled inside to join her. Then a heavy and tense silence filled the air until Akira chuckled under her breath.
“So, is it just me, or is she even bitchier than usual?” she whispered, and some of the others giggled, but even in the dark, I could see Morgana’s horrified expression as she stared at the black-eyed witch.
“Akira!” she gasped. “How many times do I have to remind you that you can’t speak about her like that? She’s our professor, and she nearly died today. Of course, she’s a little tense.”
“Yeah, that’s true,” Akira replied with a regretful sigh. “As usual, you’re right, nerd.”
“Speaking of, I don’t think we should piss her off further by staying out here,” I said before I stood up and looked toward our massive tent. “Besides, she’s right. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow, and we’ll need our strength.”
“Yes, master,” the women answered in unison before they followed me inside our magically built shelter.
There were soft silks and blankets spread out for us on the ground inside the tent, and we took off our shoes before lying down without a word.
I could feel as the others instantly fell asleep. They softly breathed as they wrapped themselves around me and each other, and even though my entire body was weak with exhaustion, I still felt this strange jolt of energy surging through my body as I laid in the middle of my curled-up women.
I didn’t push the feeling aside, and when I closed my eyes, I could suddenly feel the elder goddess’ presence as it surrounded me like a heavenly cloud. In my mind, I could see her with her back turned to me as clear as day. She was standing at the edge of a cliff, and down below, there was a large body of deep purple-hued water. I had a feeling she couldn’t sense me, even as I took a couple steps closer toward her.
“Hello, Samara,” I said when I was close enough to breathe down her neck.
The elder goddess jumped with surprise, and when she swung around to face me, there was murder in her ocean-colored eyes.
“You,” she growled as she stared at me from head to toe. “For heaven’s sake, get out of my head.”
“Why should I?” I grinned. “You always entered my mind without consent. Now, tell me, how does it feel, Samara?”
“Why don’t you just go to hell where you belong?” she snapped before she took a step closer toward me, and at this point, our noses were practically touching.
This dream-like encounter seemed so real I could even smell her perfume, which reminded me of red roses and lavender. I took a quick moment to carefully study her, and her skin was smooth and bright like the finest white silk. Her lashes were long and as dark as night, and her lips were as crimson as the trees of the redwood. Her long, golden-brown hair tumbled over her bare shoulders, and she wore a sheer, light-pink gown with a deep neckline that exposed the curve of her full breasts.
“We both know you’re struggling with your faith,” I said as I stared deep into her eyes. “Why don’t you simply accept that you belong with us? With me?”
“Never,” Samara spat before she tried to spin around, but I reached out and grabbed her wrist without thinking.
The touch of her skin sent a shiver up my entire body, and we both stared at each other for a long moment before she snatched her hand back and looked at me like I was a monster.
“Don’t you dare touch me!” she snarled.
“You’ve never had a problem with it before,” I said as I took a step even closer, and I looked down at her full lips. “Remember when you kissed me? I knew you felt something.”
“You’re wrong,” she said, but there was a tremor in her voice. “Get away from me.”
“I won’t,” I said, and I could see her breasts heaving up and down as she stared at me with a mix of fury and confusion plastered across her face. “I can feel what you feel now. There’s no escaping it.”
“Get out!” she screamed before she placed her hands over her ears and took a couple of steps back.
For a moment, I thought she would fall over the cliff and down into the purple ocean, so I raised my hands in a truce and took a few steps back.
“Alright,” I said in a softer voice. “I will leave you be… but mark my words, we will see each other again soon. And then I’ll do all the things to you that you’ve been wishing for.”
Before Samara could answer, the world slowly vanished from existence, and when I opened my eyes, I was back inside my tent with my women. It was still pitch black, and everyone was deeply asleep, but I knew I couldn’t get another wink in, even if I tried. So, instead, I took care to slowly rise from the silks and blankets and quietly left the tent. When I was outside, I passed by the pile of slumbering familiars and saw Vanessa was wide awake and sitting by the edge of the forest. Her familiar was lying down next to her with her heavy wolf head on the dark-haired witch’s lap.
“You couldn’t sleep, either, I take it?” I asked before I sat down next to her.
“No,” she replied without looking at me. “There’s too much on my mind.”
“Me, too,” I responded as I watched the sun slowly peeking over the horizon.
“Did she speak to you again?” the professor asked without turning to look at me. “Samara, I mean. Not the mysterious woman from your dreams.”
“Yes, I spoke with Samara,” I said, and this time, Vanessa turned to me with wide, curious eyes. “I’ve been able to penetrate her mind, rather than the other way around. It all began after we discovered the second artifact.”
“That’s impressive,” she said in a stoic voice. “Do you think she’ll listen to you?”
“She won’t have a choice,” I replied with a small shrug. “Once we have the third artifact in our possession, anyway. It will be over for her, and she knows it.”
“True,” Vanessa sighed before she turned back to look at the rising sun. “Wake up the others… it’s nearly time to sneak into the kingdom, and we still need to find those ingredients for the potion.”
“Of course,” I said, but before I stood up, I carefully studied her profile, and as the sun glowed on her dewy, flawless skin and long dark hair, I couldn’t help but admire her beauty but deep sadness as well. “Are you alright, Vanessa?”
The professor quickly clenched her jaw, and for a moment, I thought she would snap at me for using her name, but instead, she looked down at her hands and took a deep breath.
“I’m fine, Cole,” she replied in a soft voice, “but please, don’t ask me again.”
“If that’s what you want,” I answered before I left her alone with her thoughts for a few moments longer.
I turned to go into the tent, but by the time I slipped inside, the women were already getting up, and some of them were either braiding or pulling up their hair.
“I think the rest of you should stay here while Penelope and I hunt for the ingredients,” I said as I looked at each woman. “There’s no point in all of us wandering deep into the woods and separating from one another.”
“Yes, master,” they replied.
I turned to look at the orange-haired Wicca. “Are you ready, Penelope?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “Let’s go.”
We swiftly left the tent, and when I looked over toward the edge of the woods, Vanessa was no longer sitting down. Instead, she was vanishing her tent, and when she turned to study me, her bright blue eyes were filled with determination.
“We need to move quickly if we want to slip into the kingdom by--” she began, but then I raised a hand to cut her off.
“Penelope and I will go and hunt for the ingredients,” I explained in a gentle voice. “You should stay here with the others. We won’t be long.”
“And if you please, Professor,” Penelope said in a respectful voice. “Could you brew some water for us before we return? It would be most helpful.”
“Fine,” the beautiful professor answered after a long silence, “but be careful.”
“We will, and we won’t go too far,” I assured her before I turned to look at Penelope. “Right?”
“Yes, master,” she said with a bright and eager smile.
We both turned away from Vanessa and the sleeping familiars before heading back into the woodland. The woods were cold, and the early morning sunrise was barely visible, but it still cast a pale glow on the forest floor and vibrant trees.
“So, how hard do you think it will be to find these ingredients?” I asked as we walked onward, and the sun began to burn a little brighter.
“It shouldn’t be too difficult, they’re rather common,” she responded before she stopped in her tracks and then looked around. “In fact… I think we could find a moth nest in one of these trees.”
“Yeah?” I arched an eyebrow as I turned and looked at the differently-colored barked trees. “Any particular one?”
“If my memory serves me correctly,” Penelope began before she drummed her fingers along her lips. “It should be inside a dark purple barked tree. Moths love to nest inside them because darker colors tend to attract more light and warmth, and they thrive from it.”
“Got it,” I said as we looked at all the colorful trees around us. “Well, that shouldn’t be too hard to find. Most of these are light, so a dark tree should be easy to spot--”
“Look, there’s one just ahead,” she gasped as she pointed to a dark tree among a cluster of yellow, green, and red ones. “Let’s check it out.”
I followed Penelope as she ventured toward the deep, plum-colored tree, and then she pulled out her wand and aimed it at the bark.
“Aperto,” she recited before a speeding green light fired from the tip of her wand and tore a hole into the purple tree trunk.
We both neared the broken bark and peered inside the opening. I saw a small nest built from little, bird-like bones, and there were white and black spotted moths fluttering wildly inside.
Penelope reached into the tree and grasped one of the winged creatures with her bare hands, and then she squeezed it with all her might until a satisfying crunch followed.
“That’s one ingredient down,” she said in a pleased voice before she withdrew her hand and placed the dead moth into her pocket. “Now just three more to go.”
“Which one should we hunt for next?” I asked.
“I’d say we should try to find the thyme,” Penelope said before she stopped and looked down at the brightly-colored forest floor. “It’s a plain green ingredient, and it should stand out from everything else around here.”
“Understood.” I smiled, and as I watched the orange-haired witch with careful eyes, I couldn’t help but marvel at how confident and gifted she was. “You know, Penelope, without you, we would have been fucked countless times before. I hope you know that.”
“I do, master,” she replied before she looked up at me with adoring, honey-brown eyes, “but you do know the only reason we’ve come this far is because of you, right?”
Before either of us could answer, there was a sudden rustling of leaves, and we both whipped around with our wands pulled out and aimed at the ready. We both prepared for anything to appear, but then we found ourselves staring at Penelope’s panda, and we both laughed in relief.
“Oh, it’s just you, Naomi,” the orange-haired witch giggled.
And me, too! a familiar voice said in my head, and when I looked up, I saw Alexander flying just above my head.
“Were you not asleep when I left you?” I laughed before he perched himself on my shoulder.
So? he said in a stubborn voice. Did you really think I wouldn’t follow your scent? You can’t get rid of me that easily, you know.
“I know that,” I chuckled. “Anyway, now that you’re here, I want you to fly up and see if you can spot a bright green herb growing from the earth.”
No problem, he said in my head, and then he sprung from my shoulder and took off. I’ll be back sooner than you think!
“While Alex is gone, let’s look for the seeds,” I suggested before I turned to Penelope, who was petting her panda with a loving smile. “What kind were they again?”
“Citrus seeds,” Penelope clarified before she looked at her familiar and whispered something into her ear.
The bright orange panda nodded her head and waddled off into the woods, and when Penelope spun around to face me, she flashed me a small smile.
“She’s going to kill some fairies, and once I have their bodies, I can retrieve their powder,” she explained.
“Great,” I sighed. “So, let’s find the seeds, and by the time we’re done, hopefully the familiars will be, too.”
The bright-haired witch nodded in agreement and began to look up at the sky, and for a moment, I was confused.
“Hmmmmm,” she hummed aloud.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Looking up at the yellow trees,” Penelope explained. “That’s where lemons grow.”
“Ah,” I said with a small chuckle, “but of course.”
I craned my neck up to see if I could spot any lemons in the bushy, yellow trees, but it was difficult to make out yellow fruit among the sunshine-hued leaves. Until, suddenly, I thought I spotted one dangling high above me, and when a strong gust of wind swept across us, the fruit swayed with the breeze.
A smile broke across my face before I raised my wand. “Secare.”
The tree branch holding the fruit instantly broke in half, and when the lemon came tumbling down, I caught it with my open hand and handed it to Penelope.
“Nicely spotted, master,” she giggled.
Before I said anything, Alexander swiftly flew down and perched himself comfortably on my shoulder with a bundle of green herbs in his mouth.
Is this what you meant, Cole? he asked.
“Penelope, is this thyme?” I asked as I gently took the herbs from Alexander and handed them to her.
“Yes!” she said in an excited voice before she patted Alexander on the head. “Well done, Alex.”
She’s hot, but tell her I already have a girlfriend, Alexander chuckled in my head.
“Calm down there.” I grinned before Penelope’s panda wandered toward us, and there were dead, dangling little women with wings hanging from her bloody jaw. Then the large familiar dropped the gore-covered fairies into Penelope’s open palm, and the both of us looked at each other with proud smiles. “Nicely done. Well, now that we have everything, let’s go back and perform the potion and charm, shall we?”