Chapter Two: The Crystal Shop
The strong smell of incense swirled around Liz and I as we entered the crystal shop. A gentle ding of a bell rang as the door swung open and closed. The front counter was made of glass, and it was filled with precious gems and crystals of all kinds. To our left was a shelf of incense and candles and another with tarot cards. Beyond that was a stair case. Not much to see up there, as it was usually used for readings and classes. We never did any of those, only the energy healings. To the right was more shelves and cases of rocks, statues, essential oils, and crystals of all kinds. Rows of necklaces and pendulums hung down in racks.
Most people just saw this place as a crystal shop for hippies, but real witches were able to see the magical emblem outside with the word Magia. Magic in Latin.
"Welcome!" A woman with flowy chestnut hair, and a long white gown smiled from behind the counter.
"Hi." Liz said glumly. She wasn't great with talking to people. She hated people for the most part, even other witches. I can't blame her.
"Hello!" I said, "we're here for the energy healing." I cleared my throat. "Magia."
The woman gestured toward the hall in front of us. We knew the way. Forward we went until we hit the large room on the right. We signed in on the sheet as people quietly greeted us. I felt a calmness, just by entering the room. People sat around, patiently waiting in chairs. The healers took turns cleansing each person's aura. Some of them used their power for physical healing on people who had trouble with pain. This type of magic is very hard to do. Every so often a healer had to step away to recoup.
When my turn came, the lead healer began by asking, "may I enter your aura?"
I nodded. She started from above my head and swayed her hands in intricate motions to sift through the energy around me. Though she wasn't physically touching me I could feel her presence near me. I could feel the energy of each motion pull the darkness and stress away.
"Wow!" She exclaimed. "You're aura is huge! How do you handle all this energy?"
"I can barely handle it sometimes. That's why I needed this cleanse so badly," I told her.
She ended the cleanse with a "ray of golden light". I could feel the heat hit my face, arms, and legs as she pulled the energy down from the air to my feet.
When Elizabeth finished with her cleanse we thanked everyone and headed back through the crummy low income apartment complexes and oil stained streets to my place. Ares greeted us at the door by brushing against my leg. I could sense he was wondering where I had been all day since I had been home a lot during this summer break.
Our other three cats popped in the living room to say hello. Bastet was a dainty light gray tabby with white on her paws and chest. We found her as a stray that had been under cars for a few days. Hades was a Russian blue that had been kicked out of multiple homes around the complex for being aggressive. He followed my sister and I home and the rest was history. Last was Athena. She was a long haired black cat, and the grandmother of Ares. We've had his mother, grandmother, and great grandmother.
Liz and I watched a gory, horror movie. I don't remember what it was called, just that it wasn't as scary as I had hoped. Elizabeth hurried away before my mother got home. She didn't like to be around her much, especially if her and I started an argument at some point.
Don't get me wrong, I love my mom. She has always been my number one supporter, but with her overly emotional personality and my hot-headedness, we could not stand to be around each other too long without something ticking us off.
As Liz left she yelled, "I hate you!"
"I hate you too!" I pulled my hands into the shape of a heart. We never say I love you. If we do then we must be pissed off about something. Plus, we love the look people give us when we yell "I hate you!" at each other