Using powdered silver, Zeke drew a pentagram on the floor. After which, Sorrel began putting a black candle at every point of the star.
With that done, they let the girl lie down at the center.
The three casters allowed their familiar spirits to stand circling the huge pentagram to help them channel the mana and aid in casting the spell.
As the headwitch, Heather began the ceremony chanting an ancient cantata. While doing so, she motioned Hazel's body to hover on top of the cauldron.
Hazel's remain and even her severed head turned into red crystal-like particles and dispersed into the boiling water.
As the concoction began giving off an eerie reddish glow, Zeke and Sorrel joined the headwitch in singing the incantation.
Heather took her sacrificial knife and made several cuts in the air. With those gestures, wounds suddenly appeared on Lily's body.
As blood flowed out from her cuts, the princess screamed in pain.
With Hazel's body as catalyst, Heather added some herbs before singing in a crescendo.
As response to the song, smoke rose from cauldron and floated towards the writhing girl.
The smoke seeped inside Lily's wound making the girl cringe. But in a blink of an eye, the pain gradually disappeared before her wounds healed completely.
As the casters neared the end of their song, Lily's cries grew quiet. When they finally finished singing, Lily was given a respite from the pain she had undergone.
Just then the pentagram glowed before blue fire engulfed it. Surprisingly, Lily was physically unharmed but her mind seemed to be taken elsewhere.
"So the final test begins." Heather muttered.
~~~
After Heather cast the spell, darkness had engulfed Lily and she cannot seem to get out. Just then, a light flickered just a few meters away from her.
Drawn towards the light, Lily began making her way towards it. Her eyes widened in shock as she looked at the girl in front of her.
"A doppelganger!" Lily cried out as she scanned the girl whose face was her's.
Only that the other Lily has raven hair and sharp purplish eyes. The dark-haired Lily seemed to be emitting an ominous aura around her.
"Hello Lily!" the other Lily smirked evilly.
"Who are you?" Lily asked.
"I am you..." the girl replied with malice. "only wiser and stronger."
"Why? How?"
Instead of answering, the girl caught her. "You want power, right? I can give it to you."
She offered with an evil glint on her eyes. "Just allow me to have your body and power will be yours."
Lily felt tempted to say yes. She wanted to be able to cast spells and this girl here is offering her a once in a lifetime chance.
If she will say yes, her dream to become a witch is at hand.
"If you say yes, you will be able to take back your kingdom. You can exact your vengeance and defeat all of your enemies. You can rule the world!" the girl kept on enticing her.
The offer was too good to be true and Lily was inclined to say yes. But she snapped out of trance just before she could utter her affirmation.
Then lessons from Hazel came back to her. As response, Lily slapped the girls hand away and moved back.
"Sorry but I can't allow you to take over. There are other ways for me to survive and get what I want. I don't need your help, demon."
The other girl's eyes flashed before she launched herself towards Lily. Her hands enclosed Lily's neck.
As she started choking the princess, she screamed. "Your body is mine!"
With her oxygen supply getting cut off, Lily's eyes blurred. But instead of giving up, Lily let her hands grope her pocket until she found the tear shaped charm.
With shaking hands, she pulled the charm out of her pocket. Despite her coughs and choking sound, she was able to chant the spell.
The charm emitted a light so bright that it repelled the entity.
With the receding light, Lily suddenly found herself in a distorted dreamlike world.
"Queer!" Lily muttered as she noticed the bluish fog covering the ground. When she took a step, the fog would clear away.
Just a few paces away, she could make out dead trees and broken furniture floating in a scattered manner in the area. As she took a few more step closer, she noted that the whole place was devoid of life.
Not minding the weird environment, she decided to explore the area. She had been walking around not knowing where to go when suddenly a sob got her attention.
Lily followed the sound and found a girl crouched inside a hollowed tree.
"Hello!" Lily drew near the girl. "why are you crying?" she asked with concern.
The girl stopped sobbing and turned towards her. Lily gasped as her own face greeted her.
The only difference was that the crying girl had dark circles under her eyes and was a bit paler than the princess.
"I hate you Lily. How could you throw me away?" the girl's eyes flashed with hatred.
"I... I don't know what you are talking about." Lily took a few steps back when the girl got up.
"I could give you everything you want... power, strength." The girl had a wicked look on her face as her dark eyes never left the princess.
"But why did refuse my offer?" she snarled.
"What?" Lily asked in confusion.
"You didn't want my power, yet you have sought that runaway miscreant's magic. You are pathetic!" The girl morphed into a demon before it assaulted her.
Lily tried to fight the demon. She managed to defeat her before. This time, it should be a cinch. Lily thought as she kicked the demon away.
It would have come near Lily again when an owl got in between them before it perched on Lily's shoulder.
The owl's eyes glowed gold before it took off and attacked the demon. "Get away from the girl! She is not yours and will never be yours."
"You will need my help someday. When that time comes, I will have your soul." The demon cried before it disappeared.
The owl turned to the princess. "Sorry, I arrived late. Are you hurt?"
Lily just shook her head. "Thanks for saving me."
"Don't mention it, your highness." The owl gave a small bow.
"Who are you?" Lily asked when she noticed the familiar manner of speaking. She knew that she had heard it somewhere.
The owl just cocked her head before answering. "I am Roan. I had been Hazel's familiar since she was a mere child. Now, allow me to present to you a gift."
~~~
The three casters were actually worried since the spell was taking too long to take effect.
"The incorporation should have been done by now." Heather commented as she observed the girl.
They had finished the incantation for more than hour and they are waiting for the results.
"But how come the princess was not waking up?" Zeke worriedly queried.
"Something must have gone wrong." Sorrel paced worriedly around the pentagram.
Suddenly, Lily's eyes opened but she remained still on the floor.
Just then, the blue fire engulfing the magical pentagram slowly ebbed. With it comes the pain shooting through every fiber of the princess's being.
Lily could feel the change her body was going through. Her whole being was burning.
The three casters just watched as the change was going through. They couldn't believe that the spell worked well. The only problem will be how long will the spell work.
When the fire died down, Lily decided to see if they had succeeded. Ignoring the pain, she got up and tried to see herself at the mirror. As she beheld her reflection, she cried in a mix of horror and wonder.
Her wavy golden locks turned dark and straight. Her sky blue eyes became fiery red. Her delicate hands had grown long black fingernails. Her once gentle and dainty aura was replaced by a dark ominous one.
Gone was the lovely princess who was adored by many. In her place was a creature of malice, hatred and revenge. She finally got her heart's desire, she became a witch.