Freya stood up, her heart pounding, ‘What?’ she asked no-one in particular.
Penelope, voice shaking, was the first one to speak, ‘We will come back to your name on the gravestone but you are sure that you found this brooch on that day in the churchyard? This is important, Freya.’
‘Yes,’ Freya was still scared due to their reaction but she wasn’t a liar, ‘why would I lie about it and could one of you please tell what the hell is going on?’
In response, Drakon strode to the corner of the room, his cane tapping the floor. He reached up into what Freya thought was fresh air. As he pulled his arm back down, he was holding a leather bound book in his hand.
‘What the?’ Freya exclaimed.
‘Oh shit, sorry, Freya. I forgot.’ Penelope’s cheeks coloured as she waved her hand and muttered a few words.
Freya wondered how her brain would process everything that had happened to her recently, as she stared around the room the simply furnished cabin unveiled floor to ceiling bookcases and glass cabinets with various strange objects. Hanging from the ceiling were all types of dried herbs. In the back of her mind she’d wondered about the smell but had thought it was from the scented candles.
‘Very Sherlock Holmes uh?’ Drakon stated the obvious as he placed the book on the table.
Freya nodded as they all righted their chairs, ‘Sorry Freya, once you’re fully part of our coven you will be able to see everything without the need to reveal it. It’s one of the ways we protect ourselves.’
‘You can do this to any space? So, there could be other things in this room I cannot see?’ Freya could see now why they said it would take time to learn everything about being a witch.
‘Technically, yes, but I promise I’m not hiding anything. I simply forgot to remove the spell so you could see the whole room.’
‘That’s all very interesting but let’s focus on what’s important.’ Drakon opened the book and pointed to a page.
Freya moved next to him. She felt an almost magnetic pull towards him and glimsed a wry smile as she almost physically pulled herself away. He was testing her and they both knew it. She made a point of leaning over and touching the picture in the book.
‘This is my brooch. Whose was it?’ Freya asked Drakon, making eye contact on purpose.
‘It was Mary’s, she was the Guardian of the witches’ book.’ Freya remembered they had mentioned Mary earlier but it was a lot to take in.
A thought occurred to Freya, ‘If Mary was the Guardian of this witch’s book which you said holds the names of all the witches. Where is it now and who is the guardian of the book now?’
Penelope sighed, ‘We don’t know Freya. Once we are a full coven we can find the book and that will be a game changer. We can find the other witches and start to build once again once we have killed the witchfinders.’
‘Do you think Mary could be buried in the graveyard where I found the brooch?’
‘Maybe,’ Penelope hesitated, ‘there is a myth that Mary is still alive?’
‘But how could that be, you said that the guardian wasn’t a witch?’ Freya said, wondering if she’d got it wrong.
‘That’s right but we think that a powerful coven created this brooch to protect Mary. Maybe to hide her from the witchfinders since she didn’t have any powers.’
Freya looked at the brooch and tried to imagine what this Mary felt like being told who she was. She reached out and touched the brooch and closed her eyes. She felt a connection to this woman who had been in the same position as her hundreds of years ago. How had Mary’s brooch ended up in the cemetery and did that mean Mary really was dead? Had they lost their guardian and if so, who was the new guardian?
***
Mary
‘No.’ Tobias shook his head, ‘it’s too dangerous.’
‘It’s dangerous for all the witches out there. They need our help.’ Mary exclaimed, holding tight to the book.
Tobias paced in front of the fire. Mary knew she was right, they had to use her and the book as bait to bring out the witchfinders.
‘I can look in the book and pick a name which will be in their book as well. Then we find a village we can set up as a healer and spread the word.’ Mary felt sick. What did she know about such things and how were they to deal with the Witchfinders when they turned up. They never came alone and they must have powers. How much did they really know? By trying to convince Tobias, she was realising how much danger she was putting them in, ‘You said it yourself Tobias. We need to lay a trap.’
‘Yes, but I didn’t mean you. It’s too dangerous. We cannot risk you.’
‘But you can risk another witch’s life? Another coven? Why do I have to hide?’
‘Because the guardian has special powers. I didn’t want to tell you this yet but…’ Tobias stopped pacing and stood before her, ‘I told you that witch scribes can add a name of a new witch or scratch out the name of a witch who has died.’ He paused.
‘Go on Tobias. I need to know.’
‘First, I have this for you.’ Tobias reached over and pulled a stone from the side of the fireplace. Reaching in he drew out a bag and gave it to her.
It was small and light. She unwrapped the delicate cloth inside the bag and gasped, ‘Tobias. This is beautiful. But surely it is not for me. Such an expense gift. I cannot accept it.’ Mary was about to return it to the cloth but Tobias reached out and took the brooch. He unclasped it and ignoring her protests he pinned it underneath the collar of her dress.
‘You mustn’t have it on show as someone will no doubt try and steal it but it is for your protection. A way we can find you wherever you are.’
Tobias sighed, ‘I think you are right and I knew deep down if you hadn’t suggested it I would have had to ask you to put yourself in danger.’ He gave a wry smile and Mary’s stomach flipped.
‘We have to ask and we need the name of the witchfinder. He has gone under so many names we do not know his true name. We should have acted sooner before they had killed so many and made us weak.’
Mary’s hand touched the brooch and a feeling of comfort washed over her. She felt something. Someone, almost a memory of a woman. Someone she knew she had never met.
Tobias spoke again and she turned to him and the ghost of the woman disappeared, ‘As the Guardian you have the power to remove a witch completely from the book. It would be as if they never existed but we need to know their name.’
(please remember this is just for fun and hasn’t been edited!)
Thank you to Sandra who has powered this chapter through my buy me a coffee link
C.L. Peache 