I awake at the crack of dawn. Slinging my pack over my shoulder, I find James waiting for me in the hall outside my dorm.
Still shaken from last night, I inhale a sharp breath and plaster on a smile before striding up to him. Concern is etched into his handsome features as he scans my face.
"You look tired," he remarks quietly.
I feign a yawn and stretch my arms before replying. "Yeah well I'm not a morning person, and I woke up at dawn to do this. My sister had better realize how much I'm going through to rescue her...again."
His expression doesn't change. "Jacklyn."
I flinch. "Yes?"
He takes a step closer. "I know you, you don't look well. Did the nightmares return?"
I close my eyes and exhale before opening them again. "Yeah, but it was only one. I'm sure it was just because I was thinking about it today. You know how the subcon-"
"Jackie, nightmares don't come from your subconscious, they come from the dark magic, which you know. If someone's is trying to hurt you..." He takes another step closer and lifts my chin.
"We've been friends since you were three, you know you can talk to me right? About anything?"
I nod and swallow the lump in my throat. "Yeah, of course. And if there was something I needed to tell you, I definitely would. Okay, so let's get going. I'm worried about my sister."
A sense of relief washes over me when he doesn't protest and leads the way down the hall to the staircase.
....
We sneak down the stairs and almost make it to the door when suddenly a raspy voice stops us both in our tracks.
"Where do you two think you're going?"
I slowly turn on my heel to find Aunt Bodhi standing there in her nightgown and sleeping cap. I chew on my lip and consider what to do.
"Hey Aunt Bodhi, we were just...coming down for a late night snack?"
I internally groan, that was not convincing enough. Why am I such a terrible liar? My parents were wonderful liars, why didn't I inherit their talents?
Aunt Bodhi crosses her arms. "Miss Vice, and Mr. Rayven, it is only a few minutes past dawn, you two know witches don't eat at this hour."
I cringe. Damn it, I can't believe I forgot about that. Witches don't eat in the hour past dawn, it is considered a cursed hour, terrible things happen to witches who eat now. Or so I've heard.
Clearing my throat loudly, I square my shoulders.
"You know auntie, you look tired-"
"Miss Vice," she interrupts, "I don't know what you're doing with Mr. Rayven but you know the rules. No cavorting with the opposite gender in the night hours."
My neck rashes red as I begin to protest. She holds up a hand. "I don't want to know. Both of you, back to your dorms and to sleep. At once."
James buts in. "With all due respect Ma'am we weren't 'cavorting' or doing anything of the sort, we were merely going to the training room to-"
My aunt snaps her fingers and suddenly James can't talk. He moves his lips, but no words come out. She snaps her fingers again and his voice is back.
Something in me is triggered. I have turned a blind eye to her cruel behavior for too long. James's gaze lands on me with a question in his eyes.
Consumed with anger, my eyes flit back to my aunt as I raise my wand.
"Miss Vice, what in the Coven's name do you think you're-"
A flash of green from my wand as my aunt is swallowed in a cloud of smoke. Seconds tick by as the green cloud dissipates. In my aunt's place is now a small monkey. I pull a piece of fruit from my coat pocket and drop it into her hands.
Leaning down to the monkey's ear, I whisper, "Have fun cavorting, Auntie."
I feel James's gaze burning holes through my back as I slip my pack over my shoulder.
"What did you just do?!" He whisper-yells.
"She shouldn't have hurt you. She got what she deserved. Besides, it's not like she's in any real danger."
I remember Bodhi's words about my sister and decide my aunt deserves the Karma, wherever she is. I grab James's arm and pull him along with me out the door.
The cool night air fills my nostrils as we step outside. Pulling my junior witch's hat farther down to hide my face, I motion for James to follow me. He obliges as we both discreetly slip past the Senior Witches on duty.
....
The stench of death hits me like one of Bodhi's boulder spells as soon as we step foot into the forest. James lays a hand on my arm and shoots me a stern look filled with concern.
"Are you sure about this Jacklyn? No witch who's gone into the forest has ever come back...alive."
I shake his hand off and push my hat up to look him in the eyes. "Yes, I'm sure. I need to save my sister. It is what she would do for me, I know she would. But if you are too scared and would like to chicken out James, then please, be my guest. The exit is over there," I say pointing my index finger to the opening of the forest, a few feet away from us.
His Adam's apple bobs as he swallows before running a bruised hand through his hair. Sighing, he looks me in the eyes.
"Fine, if you're certain, but don't run off on your own. Stay within my sight at all times, okay Jackie?"
I scoff and lightly punch him in the arm.
"I'm not a baby anymore James, I can look after myself."
He smiles before pulling my hat farther down over my eyes. "Your height begs to differ."
I place my hands on my hips and stick my tongue out at him.
Suddenly, a twig snaps nearby, making both of our smiles fade. This forest is no place to be joking around. We continue on walking with both of our senses on high alert. After a while, the darkness increases the deeper we get into the forest, until is almost pitch black and we can't see more than two feet in front of us. We can't risk a flashlight spell because we don't want to alert the rogue coven to our presence on their turf.
I glance at James, who is keeping himself incredibly close to me for protection. We grew up together in the coven, his parents and mine were the greatest of friends, before they all died after being convicted in the Witch trials. Several passed away that year, my aunt hardly ever talks about it. When I used to bring it up, she always told me to be quiet or she would more often than not change the subject. I once asked her why she herself didn't fight for them, which caused her to be so angry she locked me in the dungeons in the underground levels of our Coven's layer. I didn't mind though, I made several rat friends that day.
I shift my gaze to the path ahead of us. "How far into the forest do you think the Finger-Less Coven resides?" I say softly to James.
Even in the darkness I can see him bite his lip. "I don't know, considering how dark it is out here, It'd be really hard to tell where the landmarks on the map are. But according the books, once you hear the crunching of bones under your boots, we will be at the entrance, so we have to be careful not trip any of the booby traps after that point."
My eyebrows knit together.
"How can we tell if there is a trap? We won't be able to see them?" I question.
He shoves his hands in his deep coat pockets. "I can tell, when we reach that point, I will walk in front of you, so just stay behind me. If it's safe I'll signal to you and then you walk in my footsteps, okay?"
I nod my understanding before we continue on. The eerie feeling that's been following me for a few hours now returns as I feel someone's eyes on me. I tug on James's sleeve as we both stop in our tracks.
"What's wrong?" He whispers.
I swallow, hard. "Don't you feel someone....watching us?"
Suddenly, something jumps out of the trees to our right. Pouncing on me, the creature tackles me to the ground and presses it's knee to my chest. The weight constricts my breathing as I try to push the thing off. James grabs it from behind and throws the creature to the ground before pinning it there. I cough and stand up before shifting my gaze to the creature....a girl? A young girl with jet black hair and pale skin that somehow is illuminated in the darkness, like the skin of a ghost. I look down at her hands and that is when the realization hits me. She has no fingers, she's part of the Finger-Less Coven.
I stare her down and growl. "You're from Finger-Less Coven," I spit.
She struggles under James's tight grip as he pulls her to her feet and he pins her arms behind her back. She looks up at me, for once I am taller than someone. I stare her down and do my best to intimidate her.
"What are you doing so far outside of your Coven's perimeter?"
She hisses before speaking. "I'm on Patrol. What are you doing here?"
I close my eyes and inhale before opening them again. "I'm looking for my sister."
Her eyes widen. "Tall, blonde curly hair, blue eyes, the kind of girl that looks like a China doll?"
My eyes narrow. "So you do have her?"
The girls eyes turn to slits as she hisses again before smiling, a cruel smile showing all her teeth that have been filed to a point.
"Nope, haven't seen her."
"Lies," I spit.
She giggles.
"Okay maybe I have seen her. What will you give me If I tell you where she is?"
The sickening gleam in her eyes makes every bone in my body want to run as tales of what this tribe has done to other witches race through my head. I know I can't trust her, but I don't have a choice.