Chapter Nine
"Power," Mia told Nell, "carries with it responsibility, a respect for tradition. It must be tempered with compassion, hopefully intelligence, and an understanding of human flaws. It is never to be used carelessly, though there is room for humor. Above all, it must never be used to harm. "
"How did you know you were. . . How did you know what you were?"
"A witch. " Mia sat back on her heels. She was weeding her garden. She was wearing a shapeless dress of grass green with deep pockets in the skirt, thin floral gardening gloves, and a wide-brimmed straw hat. At the moment, she couldn't have looked less like the witch she professed to be.
"You can say the word. It's not illegal. We're not the pointed-hat-wearing, broomstick-riding cacklers that much of fiction drew us to be. We're people-housewives, plumbers, businesswomen. How we live is a personal choice. "
"Covens?"
"Another personal choice. I've never been much of a joiner myself. And most who form groups or study the Craft are just looking for a pastime, or an answer. There's nothing wrong with that. Calling yourself a witch and holding rituals is one thing, being one is another. "
"How do you know the difference?"
"How do I answer you, Nell?" She leaned forward again, neatly snipping off deadheads. "There's something inside you, burning. A song in your head, a whisper in your ear. You know these things as well as I do. You just didn't recognize them. "
The deadhead went along with her weeds into a basket.
"When you peel an apple, haven't you ever thought if you could finish it without breaking the chain, you'd have a wish granted or gather good luck? Snapped a wishbone? Crossed your fingers? Little charms," Mia said, sitting back again, "old traditions. "
"It can't be as simple as that. "
"As simple as a wish, as complex as love. As dangerous, potentially, as a lightning bolt. Power is risk. It's also joy. "
She picked up one of the deadheads, cupped it gently in her hands. Opening them again, she offered Nell a sunny yellow blossom.
Delighted, fascinated, Nell twirled it in her fingers. "If you can do this, why do you let any of them die?"
"There's a cycle, a natural order. It's to be respected. Change is necessary. " She rose, picked up her basket of weeds and dead flowers, and carried it to a composter. "Without it there'd be no progress, no rebirth, no anticipation. "
"One flower blooms off to make room for another. "
"A lot of the Craft is philosophy. Would you like to try something more practical?"
"Me?"
"Yes, a simple spell. A stir of the air, I think, considering. Besides, it's a warm day, and a breeze would be welcome. "
"You want me to. . . " Nell made a circling motion with her finger. "Stir the air?"
"It's a matter of technique. You need to focus. Feel the air moving over your face, your body. See it in your mind, rippling, turning. You can hear it, the music of it. "
"Mia. "
"No. Put doubts aside and think of those possibilities. Focus. It's a simple goal. It's all around you. You only have to stir it. Take it in your hands," she said, lifting her own, "and say the words. 'Air is breath and breath is air. Stir it round from here to there. Spin a breeze and spin it lightly. ' As you will, Nell, so mote it be. Say the words, one times three. "
Mesmerized, Nell repeated them. Felt the faintest flutter across her cheek. Said them again and saw Mia's hair lift. On the third count, Mia's voice joined hers.
The wind spun around them, a private carousel of air, cool and fragrant with a happy little hum. The same hum sounded inside her as Nell turned, circling round and round, her short cap of hair dancing.
"It feels wonderful! You did it. "
"I gave it the last nudge. " Mia laughed as her dress billowed out. "But you got it started. Very well done for your first time. Now quiet it again. Use your mind. Visualize it going still. That's it. Good. You picture things well. "
"I've always liked to draw moments in my head," Nell said, breathless now. "You know, images that appeal or that I want to remember. It's sort of like that. Wow, I'm dizzy. " She sat straight down on the ground. "I felt a tingling inside, not unpleasant. Almost like you do when you're thinking-really thinking-about sex. "
"Magic is sexy. " Mia dropped down beside her. "Especially when you hold the power. Have you been doing a lot of thinking about sex?"
"I didn't give it a thought for eight months. " Steadier now, Nell shook back her hair. "I wasn't sure I'd ever want to be with a man again. Since the Fourth, I've been doing a lot of thinking about sex. The kind of thinking that makes you very itchy. "
"Well, I've been there. Why don't you do something about it? Scratch the itch?"
"I thought, I'd assumed, that after the fireworks last week, Zack and I would end up in bed. But after we drove around and he finished his patrol, he took me home. Kissed me good night at the door, the kind of kiss that lifts the top of your head off and spins it around. Then he went home. "
"I don't suppose it occurred to you to drag him inside, toss him on the floor, and rip his clothes off. "
The idea made Nell chuckle. "I can't do things like that. "
"A minute ago you didn't think you could conjure a breeze either. You have the power, little sister.
Zachariah Todd is the kind of man who's willing to put that power in your hands, to give you the choice of time and place. If there was a man like that I was attracted to, and who was attracted to me, I'd do something about that power. "
She felt the tingle again, the stir inside her this time. "I wouldn't know how to begin. "
"Visualize, little sister," Mia said wickedly. "Visualize. "
***
Zack couldn't think of a better way to spend a Sunday morning than skinny-dipping with the girl he loved. The water was cool, the sun warm, and the inlet private enough to allow for such activities.
They discussed taking a sail later, and the adoration in her beautiful brown eyes told him she'd follow him anywhere. He stroked her, sent her into a wiggle of delight before they swam companionably through the crisp and quiet water.
When a man had a female so uncomplicatedly devoted, Zack figured, he had it all.
Then she gave a yip of excitement, splashed a stream of water in his face, and headed to shore. Zack watched his boon companion desert him for the woman standing on the rough bank.
Lucy bounded onto the bank and straight into Nell, knocking her back two full steps and drenching her with seawater and doggie kisses.
Zack listened to Nell's laughter, watched her scrub her hands enthusiastically over Lucy's wet fur. Maybe a man who had a pretty dog didn't have quite everything, he decided.
"Hey. How's it going?"
"It's going good. " Shoulders, she thought. The man had amazing shoulders. "How's the water?"
"Close to perfect. Come on in, see for yourself. "
"Thanks, but I don't have a suit with me. "
"Me either. " He flashed a grin. "Which is why I didn't follow Lucy's example. "
"Oh. " Her gaze shot down, then immediately back up to hover six inches over his head. "Well. Ha. "
Visualize, Mia had told her. But this didn't seem quite the appropriate time.
"I promise not to look. You're already wet. "
"All the same, I think I'll stay out here. "
Lucy dived back in, retrieved a mangled rubber ball. After scrabbling back to shore again, she deposited it neatly at Nell's feet.
"Wants to play," Zack told her. And so did he.
Obliging, Nell picked up the ball and tossed it. Before it hit the surface, Lucy was leaping in pursuit.
"Pretty good arm. We've got a softball game coming up in a couple of weeks if you're interested. " He drifted closer to the bank as he spoke.
Nell scooped up the ball Lucy retrieved, heaved it again. "Maybe. I was thinking about trying out another recipe. "
"Is that so?"
"The catering's turning into an actual enterprise. If I want to expand on it, I need to be able to offer a variety of dishes. "
"I'm a strong believer in capitalism, so anything I can do to help. "