We walk through the courtyard, and I see Yiselda sitting by herself. She appears troubled.
‘How about you two go on ahead? I’m going to see if Yiselda is okay,’ I say.
Magnus and Alec peer over to Yiselda and see her moping on a bench. They nod and walk away together. Sometimes I don’t get Alec and Magnus. They argue and fight, yet they are by each other’s side more than mine at times. They truly are like brothers. I roll my eyes at the back of them again.
‘Yiselda,’ I say in a chirpy tone and sit beside her. ‘You didn’t come to the orc trials?’
‘No,’ she says quietly.
‘Oh, I was hoping to see you there, but that’s okay,’ I smile.
She waves her wand at the ground in a circular motion making the leaves float from the ground and swirl into a tiny whirlwind.
‘So, you seem pretty quiet… and glum?’ I say to her. ‘You don’t like it here?’ I add.
‘It’s not that I don’t like it here. It’s absolutely beautiful here. I miss Pandora’s box, though. It’s always been my home, and to see it burn down like that and to know we won’t be returning to the human world. I can’t rebuild my home there. I think I’m feeling homesick. I’m sure I’ll adjust over time,’ she frowns.
‘What if we were to rebuild a Covenstead here for you on Emerald Island? We have people with the knowledge and skills of different trades, and with the help of some magic, we can have it built in no time at all!’
‘Really?’
‘Truly,’ I smile, ‘You gather the coven, and I’ll gather the tradesmen.’
With a ‘Skedaddle Dash,’ Yiselda has disappeared to gather the witches.
I approach each workshop and ask them to help build a new Covenstead. Yiselda, May, Fern, Ela, Lilac and Ria appear behind me, startling me.
‘Sorry,’ Yiselda laughs.
‘All right, let’s find a spot to build our new Covenstead,’ I say.
We come across a clearing a few yards behind the castle.
‘Here would be great. I don’t want to be too far away in case anything bad ever happened, and my help was needed,’ Yiselda says.
‘This is Mysteria. Nothing bad will happen,’ I assure her.
‘There have been wars before,’ she points out.
‘True, but we aren’t a threat to anyone,’ I shrug.
‘Let’s hope it stays that way then,’ Yiselda smiles.
We return to the courtyard and tell the tradespeople where we will build. The men look at the materials and then the distance to carry it all, giving each other a worried look.
‘Lifto Levitatous,’ we all say, lifting bundles of wood, stone, and other materials off the ground. The men, relieved they don’t have to carry the materials, follow us to the building location. We place the materials down, and they begin building right away. Hours later, we are running out of wood.
‘Spawniate,’ I say, turning the last wood plank into a hundred new planks. Kadva joins us and casts his magic to help move things along. We all stand proud and admire our work by the day’s end. Although it’s not the same as the old Covenstead, it’s close enough.
‘Let’s go inside,’ Yiselda says.
We all cast our wands and say, ‘Materialise’ and furnish the Covenstead.
Together we materialise a large black cauldron in the kitchen, just as big as the one she used to have. Yiselda has everything she needs, from pots and cups to a bed and shelves.
‘Illumini,’ she says, and every candle in every room lights up.
We all look around and feel something is missing but struggle to put our finger on what it is. It’s not until we are leaving that Yiselda figures it out. She grabs the rickety broom and waves her wand, ‘Awaken,’ she says, and the broom begins to move about, sweeping the floor.
Now satisfied, Yiselda smiles at me, ‘Thank you, Luna,’ she says and pulls me in for a hug.
‘You’re welcome,’ I reply.
We visit the Covenstead daily, make potions, and practice spells together. I continue to read the book, A guide for magical weapons. Unfortunately, I never got a chance to finish it back in the human world.
The coven and I are excited about the midsummer solstice today and find white flowy dresses to wear. Saskia helps and finds me gold bangles to wear and brown sandals with leather laces that tie half up my shins. Everyone, including the men, wear white clothes. Magnus seems quite comfortable in the white tunic and trousers. Alec, on the other hand, continues to stand in the shadows sulking.
‘Why does white have to be so bright? Wouldn’t black clothing be more appropriate to wear at the solstice?’ he pouts.
I cup his face, ‘Oh, Alec, it’s tradition to wear white to celebrate. Black would be more suitable for a funeral or an unpleasant event. The solstice is meant to be bright and colourful with lots of flowers and dancing.’
Alec grabs my waist and spins me around, pinning me against the shadows of the wall.
‘The only flower I want to see at the solstice is you. Nina, you are like a rose among weeds. If only I could pluck you from this garden now, take you upstairs and make your cheeks bloom red,’ he whispers and nips my neck. And my cheeks do just that, bloom red with a blush from his endearing words and my insides heat up. My heartbeat races, and we kiss. Alec’s lips leave mine, and his tongue trails down my neck. His fangs protrude and sink into my flesh. Then, for the first time, he drinks what he needs and pulls away with a smile. We gaze into each other’s eyes passionately. Blood drips from his lips. He smashes his lips against mine, and the metallic taste of my blood enters my mouth. Excitement and adrenaline overtake my senses, and my hands clench tighter to his back as I pull him in closer.
Someone clears their throat interrupting us. Alec places me down, and we see May, Yiselda and Fern already in their white dresses.
‘You know you’re supposed to save all that for tonight?’ May winks.
‘Saskia is looking for you,’ Yiselda smiles, ‘She is waiting in your room to do your hair before we leave,’ she adds.
‘Thanks, I’ll go to her now then,’ I say, combing my now even more messed up hair with my fingers with an even more prominent blush on my face.
Avoiding eye contact with the girls, I stride past them and ‘Skedaddle Dash’ up the stairs.
Saskia braids the top half of my hair and leaves the bottom half down.
‘Should we bother with hair pins since you will decorate your hair with flowers at the solstice anyway?’ she asks.
‘No, they won’t be necessary. You are so good at braids,’ I say, admiring her beautiful work.
She bows, ‘My pleasure, my Queen.’
I bump into Kadva on my way downstairs.
‘Hi Kadva,’ I smile.
‘Hi, Luna.’
‘I see you’re ready for the solstice too?’
‘Yes, but I’m a little nervous, though,’ he says as a faint blush appears.
‘Oh? How so?’
‘Well, everyone has been saying how it can be quite the intimate celebration, and I struggle as it is to get away from the unmated she-wolves. Also, the girls from the Midnight coven are always fighting over me when I help them with potions and magic. The other day they even used spells on each other. Ria put Lilac in a thick bubble that wouldn’t burst. Fern made Ria shrink, then placed her in a jar and put her on the shelf with the jars of spider paste. Ela made Ria float and became stuck to the ceiling. They kept claiming they all had dibs on me first and spoke about me as if I wasn’t even in the room. When I tried to leave discreetly, they spelled my feet to the floor so I couldn’t move. I was so relieved when Yiselda came into the kitchen to save me yet again.’
‘Oh, I see. Surely there is a girl in particular that piques your interest?’ Perhaps pursuing her will stop the horde of other girls trying to claim you?’ I suggest. ‘You are very handsome and beautiful,’ I add.
Kadva laughs nervously and scratches the back of his head.
‘Thanks for the compliment, Luna, but that’s the problem. Nobody knows this, but um, I prefer males.’
And just like that, my mouth drops open in surprise. I step closer and fling my arms around Kadva. Relieved, he relaxes his shoulders and wraps his arms around me too.
I step back with a smile, ‘Well then, I hope you find yourself a strapping young man,’ I wink.
He laughs, kisses my cheek gently, links his arm through mine, and escorts me down the stairs to the great hall where everyone awaits.
