"Ugh!" Effie grunted, anger boiling low in her throat as she worked to scrub the putrid, brown innards of what she could only guess were rotten tomatoes off of the apothecary's store sign for probably the fifth time that week.
Even though Effie had anticipated a cold welcome from the people of Evanore after their return last week, what she hadn't realized was just how often the townsfolk would attempt to vandalize the building. Yesterday it hadn't only been rotten tomatoes, but chicken eggs too, which smelled even worse. The day before that, someone had dumped a reeking pile of horse manure at the front step to greet them when they came to open shop that morning. Thank goodness their cabin in Moodshadow forest was still hidden by magic, or she was certain the townspeople would try to defile that too.
How dare they!
How dare they treat her Aunt Anise's precious business in such a way? Effie gritted her teeth, scrubbing furiously, trying not to let her anger turn the blood in her veins into hot, liquid power. Sometimes the injustice and disrespect toward her aunt was enough to make Effie want to flatten the entirety of Evanore. But she knew the only thing worse that she could do to Anise would be to let the power take over and turn her heart black. So she still wouldn't use her powers against anyone. Though that didn't stop her from at least imagining what she would like to do to the people of Evanore.
"Get out of our city, evil witch!" Yelled a random teenager as he rode by on a rickety, rusty old bicycle that squeaked loudly with each rotation of the wheel. "You don't belong here!"
Effie whirled around just in time to see him throw some garbage onto curb in front of the building.
"Hooligan!" Effie called out to the boy before he was out of sight. "I aught to make you come back here and help me clean up this mess!"
Of course that would never happen. Any respect she'd earned here throughout her life had been dashed practically over night. But Effie still wanted to stand her ground and show the people of Evanore that they couldn't break her.
With a heavy sigh, Effie bent down to pick up the piece of garbage which turned out to be a crumpled up note. When Effie opened the note, only one word stared back at her in bold, black letters.
"DIE!"
Effie pushed an even louder sigh past her lips, crushing the note up into a tight ball in her fist. She had to get rid of this note before her Aunt Anise could see it. The less her aunt had to deal with, the better. As hard as this was for Effie, it was probably a hundred times worse for her aunt. The town that Anise had nurtured and cared for for so many more decades than Effie had even been alive had now turned its back on her, and that had to be agony.
Effie pushed the door to the apothecary open, hiding the horrid, crumpled-up note behind her back, intending to toss it into the fireplace before Anise had the chance to see it.
The sight inside the apothecary was disheartening to say the least. There were still splintered floorboards and broken chairs from the night they were violently dragged from the building. On the counter lay piles of unclaimed envelopes full of medicines meant for the people of Evanore - their patients - who now refused to come by and receive any further treatment from Effie and Anise.
"Oh, there you are Effie, dear," Anise said, sitting two tea cups down on the table, and smiling warmly as if not a thing in the world was wrong. "You're just in time. I've finished brewing some herbal tea. Won't you take a break and come join me?"
Effie bit her lip at the sight of her aunt who was putting on a smile and pretending everything was okay, probably mostly for Effie's own sake. It made her stomach sour inside of her.
"You know you don't have to pretend in front of me anymore, Auntie," Effie said, her fingers tightening around the note in her fist.
"What ever do you mean, dear?"
"You know very well what I mean... Remember the day my mother died many years ago? You and her both would keep smiling and acting like everything was okay so that I wouldn't get scared or upset. Well, no matter how much you two pretended, mother still died. So what's the point of pretending, when it doesn't change anything? Just tell me that everything sucks, already. Tell me that you're sad and angry. You don't have to hide it from me."
"Oh, my dear girl," Anise replied, her smile growing weaker, but not faltering. "I'm not the only one who's hiding things to protect the one I love, am I?"
With that, she motioned toward the arm Effie held behind her own back. The one that hid the note from Anise.
Effie's shoulders drooped, every ounce pent-up anger and rage deflating from her body, and her eyes fell to the floor, now feeling nothing but guilt. Of course Anise was right. She'd just chastised her aunt for doing the same exact thing she had been doing. Putting up a front to protect the person she loved from more pain. And for the first time in her life, rather than resenting it, Effie began to understand why Anise and her mother had done what they did back then.
As the silence between the women began to grow, Effie opened her mouth to say something... anything, but whatever she was going to say, the word was cut off immediately by the tinkling of the bell above the shop door, announcing someone's arrival.
Effie spun around just in time to see a familiar, dear face entering the apothecary.
"Good morning, dearies," Ms. Spenser said with a fond smile. "I heard you were back in town. I'm sorry I haven't come by sooner, but I've just been so tied up with things back at the quilt shop. My daughter's back in town you see, and- well, I can tell you all about it later if you'd like to hear it. Meanwhile, I came by this morning to take my morning tea with Miss Anise. If you'll have me, that is."
Effie was so happy she could cry. Just when she had resigned herself to the fact that every last person in Evanore had turned their backs on Anise, here stood Anise's oldest friend, asking to have tea as they had always done, despite hearing all the gossip and rumors around town.
Apparently, Anise was feeling the same way. Her face lit up with the happiest, most genuine smile that Effie had seen since before the day they were dragged to prison.
"Of course, my dear Ms. Spenser," Anise replied. "You are always welcome to join me for tea here. Come, have a seat at the table. Let me just pour another cup for you."
As Anise set to work, preparing another cup of tea, Effie shoved that nasty, crinkled up note into her apron pocket when her aunt wasn't looking, deciding to get rid of it later. Right now, she couldn't risk ruining the look of pure joy that was written all over Anise's face.
Just as Anise had finished pouring the third cup of tea, the bell above the entrance tinkled once more, much to Effie's surprised. When she turned again to have a look at whoever was standing in the doorway, a familiar old farmer, and his red-headed grandson made Effie's eyes grow wider.
"Silas?" She and Anise exclaimed in unison.
"Pardon the intrusion," he said gruffly, taking the straw hat respectfully from his balding head, and pressing it against his chest. "I just just passing by, and couldn't help but overhear that you were having tea this morning. Kip and I were hoping we could join you."
"Oh, dear Silas," Anise said, wiping a tear from her eye. "Of course you may. You know you're always welcome here. Though, there's not much room at the table... But I can certainly make room. Here, let me pull up some chairs for you two as well. I'll put another kettle on."
Effie almost couldn't believe her eyes when the five of them had all managed to gather around the little table for tea that morning. And though it was the same herbal tea that Anise had always made for them each morning, somehow it seemed to taste so much better than Effie had ever remembered. Perhaps Anise had prepared it with some extra pep, or maybe it was the effect that the visitors had brought with them to the apothecary that day.
"How's your health been these days, Silas?" Anise asked, once everyone had settled down.
"Better than ever," Silas replied with vigor. "Fit as a fiddle. Whatever you two did to me that night- I haven't felt this good in probably the last twenty-five years."
"That's so good to hear," Anise said, uncertainly edging in her voice. "But Silas... are you really okay with what we did? Not many would have been alright with it. They would have much rather died than be healed by magic. Are- are you certain that you're okay with what we are?"
"What's there not to be okay with?" Silas shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me what you are. You two are my friends first and foremost. No matter what method you chose to use, you saved my life, and I will never forget that."
"I concur," Ms. Spenser said, taking a sip of her tea. "You've been my friend for many decades, my dear Anise. I've known you ever so long. And Effie... I've practically watched her grow from child to woman... Anise, you're like a sister to me, and Effie is like a second daughter. To me, it doesn't matter what you are. Goodness knows you're not the evil witches they portray in the stories. You are good people, and you are very dear to my heart."
Anise picked up a handkerchief to dab some tears away. "What would we ever do without you two?"
"We will always be on your side," Ms. Spenser nodded. "In times like these, it's important to know who your real friends are. Speaking of which," Ms. Spenser then turned to address Effie, "Effie, deary, I think you should talk with the Clayton's boy, Seth, as soon as you can. His break will be over soon, and he'll be heading off to college again for lord knows how long. After everything that's happened, it's probably best to clear the air with him and find out where things stand in your relationship. Though he's always been so mad about you that I have a feeling he will share a similar sentiment as Silas and I. I doubt you'll have anything to worry about."
Effie gripped the handle of her teacup and stared down into the placid, yellow-brown liquid inside. Would Seth really be okay with her now knowing what she truly was? It seemed so easy for Silas and Ms. Spenser to accept them. Maybe it wasn't out of the realm of possibility. Though she never thought she was that close with Seth, apparently he had thought of her as a friend all along. Possibly even more than that. Would it really be alright for her to seek him out and have that conversation with him? She wasn't sure if she could really do it. But it might be worth trying.