Magdellaina was a whirlwind, all energy with no control or inhibitions. I was in awe of her. Lainie had all the qualities I didn't: she was unafraid to speak her mind, unabashedly hedonistic and gorgeous. I was more than a little in love with her and the fact that she studied magick was an added bonus.

I was surprised, though, when she asked to join me in a Full Moon Ritual. Despite my years of study, natural abilities and a summer spent with my mentor, I was still a fledgling Witch with a lot to learn. My self-initiation was a few months behind me and my only partner in magick up until then was Lynx, an admitted Gray Witch. Lainie and I came from even more disparate schools of thought. I was resolutely Wiccan whereas Lainie's Native American grandmother taught her the basics and her knowledge was augmented by a year spent abroad.

I couldn't say no to her, few people could. Lainie was a force of nature; she was dynamic and magnetic and not to be trifled with for she was as quick to anger as to laugh.

The night of the full Moon we slipped out of the dormitory near midnight, making our way to the creek that ran through campus. We were all nerves and giggles, as if we were doing something illicit, even though no one cared. Magick wasn't a crime. We scurried down a set of steps to a cement platform overlooking the brook. It was out of the way, even during daylight hours, so we wouldn't be disturbed by raucous frat guys, but we still had a perfect view of the full Moon hanging above.

It was one of those hot, autumn nights in the desert, where even the breeze rustling through the trees didn't bring relief. Lainie set up the circle, sweeping back dead foliage, exposing the rough concrete beneath. She sketched out a pentacle with chalk, adding symbols I didn't recognize. She said they were Arabic elemental symbols to strengthen the circle. A cold chill snaked down my spine and my inner voice screamed at me to leave. I didn't heed it, too caught up in Lainie's enthusiasm.

We walked the circle together, spreading holy water and blessed salt. Lainie chanted in a language I didn't understand, one she'd picked up in North Africa. We sat within the circle across from each other, the Full Moon lighting our way as we lit the white candles set on the compass points. In the center of the pentacle I created a small mound of blessed sea salt while Lainie kindled the incense in the brass censer; she lit the red candle while I poured holy water into a vessel. We had all the elements covered: Earth, Air, Fire and Water as well as their corresponding directions: North, East, South and West.

She grinned devilishly and produced a bottle of Blackstone wine from her bag. She winked, “An offering for the Gods and us.” She opened it and took a slug. She offered me the bottle but I shook my head. She shrugged and took another drink before pouring a generous libation in the middle of the circle.

Lainie wanted to do the ritual and I agreed. This was now her rite, not mine; I felt as if I was there to be her audience, not a participant.

She held out her hands and I took them, our bodies creating a circle within the circle. She closed her eyes and started chanting in Arabic. I closed my eyes and pulled energy up from the Earth through my spine, anchoring myself to the World while filling myself with Power. I breathed slowly, finding the rhythm in Laine's chant and using her song to fuel my magick. I pushed the energy within me outward, forming it into a sphere of Power, encompassing us in a perfect bubble of protection.

Lainie gasped in pain; I opened my eyes and reflexively dropped her hands.

She was surrounded by a swirling black mass. The sight of it undulating around her made me physically ill. It obscured her features so all I could see was her green eyes glowing from within the darkness.

She spoke, and her voice was strangled, “Can you see it?”

“Yeah, what is it?” My own voice trembled. I'd seen some weird shit in my life but nothing like this. It was not of this plane and should not have manifested in it.

She shook her head and didn't answer me. “You need to go. I can get rid of it.”

“Lainie?”

“No, Rowan. This is my burden. I don't want it infecting you. Take down the circle and leave.” She closed her eyes and began to chant.

I closed my eyes and reached out to the sphere of protection, prepared to remove it just as I'd built it. It's something I'd done hundreds of times but this time a thought occurred to me.

Whatever was in the circle with us had come from within not from without. I hadn't trapped the demon, for lack of a better term, inside the circle with us, it was already there. And it hadn't come from me.

I saw Lainie through new eyes as I brought down the protection circle and released the energy back into the Earth. Lainie's lifestyle caught up to her – the drinking and drugs had more than a physical effect on her, it had a mystical one as well, and now she had to battle it on a spiritual level.

I cleaned up the remains of our physical circle, removing all traces of magick from the platform. All the while Lainie chanted and the black mass twisted around her. I'd catch sight of it from the corner of my eye and each time I got nauseous.

As I scattered leaves over the blurred chalk circle I said, “Lainie, I'm leaving. Are you coming with me?”

She shook her head, “No, I have to take care of this. Go home, Rowan, this has nothing to do with you.”

“May the Lord and Lady protect you.” I murmured as I stumbled up the steps, leaving her alone with her personal demon.

Lainie laughed, but there was no amusement in her voice, “The Gods aren't here anymore.”

At first she wanted advice on how to get an older man to leave her alone. She'd flirted with him at a bar, let him buy her drinks and cop a feel while he showed her how to play pool. It wasn't anything I hadn't heard before, but Casey was young, barely twenty-one, and not used to warding off unwanted advances.

I told her what I tell everyone, “Tell him the truth, Case. You're not interested. If he doesn't back off, then lie. How many times have you seen Hope and I pose as girlfriends?”

She laughed, “That last time, on your birthday, I thought the guy's eyes were going to pop out of his head! I'm surprised he didn't ask the two of you to have sex right there on the bar.”

“It worked, though, he left us alone and we got our free drinks.”

She took a deep breath, “Yeah, okay. I can do this.”

* * *

She grabbed me on the street a few weeks later. Her eyes were as wild as her untamed hair and her tone was strident. “Rowan, it didn't work! I told him he wasn't my type and he called me a tease and a whore!”

I laughed at the obvious oxymoron, but she didn't get the joke.

“Roe, this isn't funny. You have to help me. Can't you, you know, banish him?”

I rolled my eyes. “Casey, just 'cause I changed the weather so your barbeque wasn't rained out doesn't mean magick is to be used carelessly. Remember what happened after that little favor?”

She frowned, “It's rained on every single one of my days off work since then.” Her eyes brightened for a moment, “Can you do something to fix that?”

“No.” I replied firmly. “Power comes with a price and I warned you about it. Why don't you talk to that cop friend of Aimee's before resorting to magick.”

“Roe,” she used her best wheedling tone on me, but I knew all her tricks. “I know you can do something.”

“Casey, my abilities don't exist to solve your problems. Figure it out yourself.” I walked away, my exasperation easy to read.

* * *

I ran into her outside work about a month later. I didn't have to be an empath to know something was seriously wrong. Her eyes were sunken and haunted, her vivacious personality shrouded by fear.

“Casey, what happened?”

Her voice was plaintive, “I tried to take care of it myself, Roe, I really did.”

“What did you do?”

“Remember that guy I was having trouble with? Some of the guys from work had a talk with him.”

There were few women in our workplace and the men often treated us like sisters. At times it was stifling, but at other times it was useful. “Did it help?”

“Oh yeah. He'd leave the bar if I went in with one of the guys or just ignore me if I was out with Aimee.”

“Sounds like you handled it well. What's the problem?”

“Someone's been following me and I'm afraid it's him.” She sat down heavily on the steps outside the office.

“What do you mean following you?” I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach and I never ignored that feeling; it meant someone was in danger.

“A rusty old pick-up follows my car most nights.”

“Have you seen the driver?”

“It's too dark and he doesn't get close enough. It's usually after I get off work or leave a bar. One night it followed me out to my aunt's.”

Casey's aunt lived along a narrow, twisty road with a ten drop into the ocean on one side and a mountain of loose shale on the other. Driving on it in daylight was taking a chance, in the middle of the night it was insanity. Whoever was following Casey was up to no good.

“Did you talk to Aimee's friend?”

“He couldn't help. Until he commits an overtly hostile act the police can't do anything.” The more she talked, the more I felt her fear.

Her wide brown eyes pleaded with me, “You're my last hope. Can you do something now?”

I nodded, ideas stirring within me, “I can't promise anything. You know there are often unforeseen consequences to magick. I'll come up with something. Visit me later.”

Relief poured over her, filling the places where fear once resided. I sighed and prayed to the Lady that she wasn't pinning all her hopes on me. I had Power but how it manifested was seldom up to me.

* * *

I spent the afternoon creating a personalized talisman for Casey. When she arrived I was ready.

“So, here's the plan. Hang this from your rearview mirror while I talk to your car for few minutes.” I handed her a dream catcher made of feathers, leather and crystals.

She raised her eyebrows in skepticism as she took it, “What are you doing?”

“The problem is he's following your car so we're going to make sure he doesn't see it.”

“You're going to make it invisible? That's awesome!”

“Not invisible, only less noticeable. The problem is that your car's very recognizable. If he doesn't notice it then he can't follow you.”

Casey shrugged and hung the amulet in the car while I ran my hands over the body of the vehicle, pulling energy from the Earth into me and molding it into the shape I wanted it to become before releasing it into the car. My Power laid in my ability to transform elemental energy but people liked to have something tangible to hold onto so I made trinkets. It didn't hurt anyone, and if anything, helped me focus my energy on the task at hand.

I finished pouring Power into the car, confident in my work. No one with ill intent would notice Casey's car. She'd be safe from her stalker.

* * *

Less than two weeks later she rushed into the office. She tossed the talisman down in front of me.“You have to break the spell,”

I looked up in puzzlement, “What happened? Didn't it work?”

“Oh, it worked. I haven't seen the pick-up since then but I've been in nearly half a dozen accidents. Yesterday a cop almost plowed into me while I was parked at a gas station! Parked! In board daylight. It's like I'm invisible!”

I looked down at the talisman, looked up at her angry face and burst into laughter. Who knew there were so many people out there with ill intent in their hearts?

“What? What's so funny?”

“There's a cosmic lesson to be learned here.”

She frowned, “I don't get it.”

Of course she didn't and I didn't explain it to her.

Pain radiated off him in waves; my empathic abilities couldn't block it and my healing gift urged me to help him. I was reluctant to get involved. I didn't know Patrick well; we'd met a couple times at parties and he was my girlfriend's best friend but the two of us never had an actual conversation. Going up to a near stranger and offering to help ease his pain was never a good way to introduce oneself, mystic or not.

As the evening progressed his physical pain became obvious to everyone; he was doubled over with it, beads of sweat dotting his already pallid complexion. After awhile I couldn't ignore the beseeching look in Hildy's eyes and the constant pressure in my mind to help. I pulled a polished stone from my pocket and Hildy nodded in understanding. She sat down beside Patrick, wrapping an arm around his waist. She leaned close and whispered in his ear. He listened carefully, emotions I couldn't read dancing swiftly across his face. Finally he nodded, giving me the permission I needed to proceed.

Hildy curled up next to him and held his hand as I sat down on the other side of him. “This won't hurt, I promise.” As discreetly as possible I wrapped my left hand around the back of his neck. The touch of flesh on flesh was as necessary to the healing process as breathing.

I closed my eyes and breathed deeply, slowly, using breath to transport me into in a trance state. I wasn't accustomed to doing magick in a room full of people who didn't know who I was or my capabilities. I needed extra time to block out the chatter around me. I dug my bare toes into the soft carpet, pulling energy up from the Earth, through my spine, grounding me in this world before I started working in another. I clutched the bloodstone in my right hand, using it as another anchor.

Patrick was still beneath my hand, his skin fevered and his own breathing irregular as he tried to ride out the pain though clenched teeth. I was aware of this on a subconscious level, just as I could feel Hildy beside him, her breathing calm and steady. She had faith in me and some of that faith was transferred to Patrick, easing his fears.

I sank deeper into the trance; I could see the dark mass of physical pain in Patrick's abdomen but that wasn't all that I saw. I recognized his spirit from lives lived before; our meeting in this life was destined. He was a part of my soul, a piece I didn't know was missing until I touched him. Now that I found him I didn't know what to do with the knowledge. In the meantime, I had to do what I could to bring him a measure of relief.

I hummed under my breath as I reached out with my mind and started pulling the darkness out of Patrick and taking it into myself. It didn't want to move, the pain stubbornly entwined in Patrick's intestines and soul. I tugged harder, siphoning energy from the Earth to supplement my own. It took more effort than I expected to pull the pain from him into me. The dark energy had a sticky quality to it, as if it wasn't just physical pain I'd grasped, but spiritual as well. Once it was within me, I needed to transfer it from my left hand into the stone in my right, at least in theory. The darkness filled me, threatened to overwhelm me, and it took all I had to focus it into the chalcedony. The deep green stone with blood red spots heated up in my hand as the pain filled it.

After more than an hour he came out of the healing session stronger, more alive; his spirit strengthened by my power and his pain eased by my gift. I came back with knowledge of his soul and a weariness that went deeper than my bones.

His emotional pain was as great as his physical pain and my gift urged me to heal him, to make him whole again. And I tried; for years, I tired. He couldn't see past his wounds to the brightness inside, to the beautiful soul buried beneath the physical illness and the emotional agony. He couldn't see his self-worth that was as clear as crystal to me.

I let him see the love in my heart, the reflection of who he was and who he had been. It wasn't enough. He was lost in the issues of the past, both in this life and the last, doomed to repeat patterns imprinted on his soul and I wasn't strong enough to heal wounds that deep, even for the man who had once been my brother.

In the end I could do nothing but let him go.

Some called it the year the Earth died, but actually it was the end of human dominance. The Earth survived; the Earth always survives. Between natural disasters and industrial accidents, humans were nearly wiped off the face of the world. Small pockets of them existed in isolated areas but they kept to themselves, trying to subsist without amenities they were once dependent upon. The destruction of human civilization left room for another species to become dominate.
 

Surprisingly, it was a creature of the seas, one hit hard by past proliferation of human pollution, who recolonized Earth. Following the downfall of humans, hundreds of creatures crawled out of the oceans, adapting to life on land. Turtles were the first to slide out of the ooze. They were swiftly followed by mammals who already split their time between land and sea: otters, sea lions, seals, and walruses. Dolphins quickly adapted, trading flippers for feet, returning to land as eagerly as they once abandoned it. But it was the gentle sea cow, the manatee, who flourished.

As an herbivore, one would not think a manatee had the cunning it takes to conquer an entire world. One would be wrong, for the manatee is related to the elephant, after all.

Despite their unattractive appearance and slow demeanor, the manatee had a complex social structure and a long life span. Different species could be found on the coasts of every continent and when they arrived on land, they arrived with a plan.

They started small, creating self-sustaining villages near their natural habitat. They were hard workers, plodders more than thinkers, so thought the derisive dolphins, who themselves were thinkers rather than workers. Dolphins hadn't done anything constructive other than move into structures abandoned by humans.

Manatees started by building ponds with ingenious filtration systems that not only kept out polluted water, but collected the hydrocarbons that drove them from their original environment. They were able to farm their own food in the ponds, growing enough plants to sustain more than a village of manatees. The hydrocarbons were collected and stored in clay containers for later consideration.

Once food was plentiful, the manatees had time to expand their minds and their culture. They built communal housing out of mud and grasses. Due to the nature of these dwellings there was no need to heat or cool them, for regardless of weather, the mud domes remained the same temperature as the Earth.

Each herd lived in the houses as a familial unit. Monogamy was considered a failed human conceit and a manatee could have congress with any consenting adult they wished, as long as they didn't share blood. Many young bulls left their village for another when they came of age so as not to defile their sisters and to keep the blood lines strong.

As for the social structure of the herd, it seemed simple on the surface, but as with everything manatee, not all was as it seemed. The elders of the herd were the organizers, the younger bulls were the brawn while the cows spent their time raising the next generation, but as in any group of individuals, there were some who didn't or couldn't fit into their assigned role. They were allowed to join whichever group fit their talents best. Females worked along side the males in the ponds, males raised calves with the females, and some of each joined the elders because they had ideas, fantastical ideas, on how to make their society better. These individuals were valued above all. They became the architects, the engineers, the linguists, the storytellers, the teachers. They were the instrument of progress, and progress they did.

Before long the manatee spread throughout the globe. Wherever there was water, there was a manatee city. They used their ponds for irrigation purposes, bringing water to much needed areas and attracting land mammals, who were once indifferent to the manatees. They farmed fish and shellfish as well as water grasses, algae and plankton. They created deeps pools of both fresh and salt water for recreation. Once other species recognized the industriousness of the manatee, they traded with them. Whales carried messages between the continents to other other manatee enclaves; birds, canines, deer and equines did the same job within a land mass. Elephants, happy to be united with their long lost kin, helped with manual labor.

The only creatures not happy to align themselves with the manatee were the dolphins and the humans. The dolphins, having lived in the human cities, thought the exile of the humans was extreme and they could still be useful members of society. The manatees disagreed and took measures to keep the humans in their compounds.

Other than the discord with the dolphins, the greatest challenge facing the manatees was what to do with the hydrocarbons. The black crude corrupted humans and they didn't want it falling back into the hands of those who could use it against them. There were rumors of humans raiding manatee cities, searching for oil, so they could restore their old way of life.

There was an outcry from other species. They wanted the collection of crude oil to stop, for the hydrocarbons to be destroyed rather than saved. The manatees were more farseeing; they could see the difference their efforts made in the oceans and the denizens of it. Less species were dying as the water became more oxygenated.

The best solution was to give it back to the Earth, where it came from originally, but doing so seemed an impossible task. Finally, a young female manatee came up with a solution. The canisters of hydrocarbons would be returned to the Earth through extinct volcanoes.

It took tremendous effort from the manatees as well as their allies but eventually the task was completed and protocols put in place to ferry new canisters into volcanoes. This went on for generations; the oceans became cleaner and life became easier for every species.

Then one day a dormant volcano rumbled awake.

As the pregnant Moon ascended the September sky, my stomach was aflutter with nerves. Her countenance held promise in its light but I was unsure if I was worthy of grace.

I'd been preparing for this moment for four years; now that I was at the precipice, I was unsure of myself. Was I ready for this? Was my faith strong enough?

I took a deep breath and pushed self-doubt aside. I couldn't afford to waste energy on uncertainty, there were more important tasks ahead. Everything was prepared to the best of my ability; the ritual could begin.

I entered the bathroom. The steaming water in the tub was scattered with rose petals, sage and mint. The cleansing herbs danced on the waves my body created in the water, like tea leaves swirling in a cup. I slipped into the hot water and allowed all extraneous thoughts flow out of me. I breathed in the scent of the herbs and the vanilla candles that lit the room. The flickering flames  reflected in the drops of water twinkled like fire opals on my skin. There was more than candle light refracted in the droplets. Brilliant colors shimmered in the water: blues, greens, oranges, reds and yellows. It reminded me that one small element could contain everything necessary for life, including mystery.

With a slight smile, I got out of the bath. It had served its purpose; it cleansed my soul of doubt while it cleansed my body. I was embarking on a new journey and it was the right one for me.

I slipped on a simple linen robe and snuffed out the candles with my fingers. Before heading outside into the moonlight, I swirled my velvet cloak over my shoulders, laid a wreath of rose buds and laurel on my head and picked up the basket filled with supplies necessary for the rite.

I walked barefoot down the narrow path to the river. The Moon above shone upon me, lighting my path. While my task was a solitary one I felt as if someone walked beside me, the presence warming me even though the night was cool.

I reached a cross-roads. The Moonlit trail continued on to the bank of the river, the other route was shrouded in shadows and led through the underbrush into a strand of ancient trees. I didn't pause to consider my choices; my course was decided long before I reached this point. My fate was set the instant I opened that book so many years ago.

I moved off the well-tread path and stepped between two large trees. Debris from the forest crunched underneath my unclad feet. I felt bereft when the Moon disappeared behind the canopy of trees, leaving me in blackness. A shiver ran down my spine as a tingle of fear crept over me. I wrapped my cloak tighter around me to ward off an unseen chill.

An owl screeched, disturbing a flight of smaller birds causing a shower of autumn leaves to rain upon me. The call of a bird, cut off in mid-song, meant the owl found its prey. The silent flight of the predator whispered past me; an eddy of air brushing across my face and the scent of fresh blood were the only evidence of its passing.

The recesses of my mind were as dark as the night around me and it chittered at me like the night birds. Old fears surfaced and I felt alone, abandoned. Did she desert me as others had? Despair threatened to overwhelm me but I continued to stumble along the path, my soles burning from the cold.

The trail widened and I collapsed against the trunk of a nearby tree. I needed a moment to collect myself. I closed my eyes and breathed. As I expelled my breath I felt the energy of the woods. From the sap running through the tree beside me, to the insects burrowing in the bark, to the bats hunting above, there was a whole ecology living in the darkness surrounding me. It lived and breathed just as I did. Everything was interconnected, unable to exist without the other.

Like the droplet of water, this was a reminder of my faith. I was never alone; even at one's darkest, light is always within. I had to find my inner light and, in between one breath and the next, I did.

I straightened my spine, even more determined to complete the ritual. A few more feet along the trail the forest opened up into a small Moonlit grove. I walked into the center of the clearing and turned my face up toward the Moon. As I felt her rays on my skin my fears and worries melted away. This was the right place; this was the right time; this was my night.

A quick check of the time showed I had less than ten minutes until midnight. Luckily my preparations were simple. I readied my ritual space using the contents of the basket. The trappings of religion weren't as important as what was in one's heart and my heart led me to this place, at this hour.

I unfurled my cloak upon the ground and sat upon it. I lit the candles on the small altar before me and spoke the ritual words I'd memorized. I closed my eyes and blocked out everything except my intent.

When I was ready, I stared up at the expectant Moon with open eyes and an open heart. There was only one question in my mind, “Goddess, may I call myself a Witch?”

The silvery light of the Moon illuminated the spot where I was sitting; a stray breeze extinguished the candles and rifled through my hair as a light fog rolled off the river, surrounding me in a gentle mist. I had only an instant to take it all in before I was swept up in an incredible wave of love and acceptance and a single word.

“Yes.”
 

A faint noise awoke me. At first I thought it was an insect. They loved to nest in my ears or under my scales, but then I recognized the annoying wail for what it was. Another two-legger was staked outside my cave.

Drat! I hated those annoying two-leggers. Always thinking that by giving me one of their less desirable members I'd leave them alone. As if I'd prefer to eat one of those bony, little things to a nice, plump four-legged grazer. Bleh!

I knew the routine well. They'd chain a skinny, little squeaking thing outside my door and I was supposed to come out and take it inside. Then one of those oh-so-clever two-headed four-legged beasts would try to stab me with a pointed stick. Didn't anyone ever tell them it was dangerous to run with pointed sticks? Why one of them nearly poked my eye out once. Good thing I have scales.

Frankly I was getting tired of the game. I didn't appreciate being attacked in my own home and I took no joy in ridding the world of the irritating two-headed beasts. Thought, I do admit, they sizzled quite nicely inside those hard shells of theirs.

I laid there, too tired to play the game, and contemplated my options. Maybe it was time to do something about them and those trouble-making two-leggers. Should I wipe out the whole population? They lived together near the grazers in funny little dwellings, much like bee hives or wasps nests. It'd be easy to fry them inside those fire-traps. It'd take hardly any effort at all.

No, that much senseless killing didn't settle well with me. I really didn't take to killing unless for food or to protect my territory. Maybe it was time for me to move on. I'd lived in this cave for several hundred years, perhaps it was time for a change in scenery. Though, according to the other Kin, these two-leggers and two-headed beasts were everywhere, disturbing them just as they bothered me. It was even rumored that they'd managed to kill a Kin or two. I couldn't imagine that unless the creatures were using some terrible new weapon. Sticks couldn't hurt any of the Kin, regardless of how sharp they were. I'd heard that the two-headed beasts thought our bellies were vulnerable to attack but that was ridiculous. Our flesh was impervious though we are prone to indigestion.

Hmm, maybe that's why they kept trying to feed us those squalling two-leggers? Make us too ill to fight back and they may be able to kill one of us. As if I'd eat one of those things! Ha! It was much easier to burn them to a crisp and let the birds take care of the charred pieces. No, I wasn't stupid enough to spring that trap though there were probably a few of the younger Kin who'd fall for it.

A new sound joined the wails outside: the clop of a two-headed beast. I sighed and shook my body, straightening out my beautiful bronze scales. I inhaled deeply, now smelling the fetid stench of the creatures. I nearly gagged. Why anyone thought something that smelled so terrible was good to eat was beyond me. It gave me heartburn just thinking about it.

I felt the fire rumbling in my belly and I went out to face the knight, ready to protect myself from yet another metal-clad creature with a bad attitude.

I laughed as I stepped out of the cave. If there was one thing heartburn was good for was it built up a nice hot fire!