Chapter Nine
Ria
“Most beloved Goddess, Hecate. The brightest light who illuminates our night. Guide the path we walk upon, so our magic may always take flight. Blessings be.”
“Blessings be,” Ria and the other witches intoned in response. Hands clasped in the circle, the women all waited for the magic to fade.
A few seconds passed, and then Marella, the High Matron’s wife who was leading the closing chant, let her arms fall to her side. “Thank you all for coming to this morning ritual,” the older witch announced. “Go now and walk in the Goddess’s love.”
Hands dropped around the circle, and conversational chatter picked up.
Ria’s mom, along with a few other witches, began trudging up the sandy beach toward the parking lot.
Ria wasn’t quite ready to leave yet, so she took a few steps closer to the water and lowered herself to the sand, watching as the waves snuck closer and closer to her toes each time they rolled in.
Despite heading toward the cars, her mom would no doubt chat with Marella for at least half an hour before calling for Ria to join her so they could leave.
With the High Matron still on a “soul journey” as Ria had been told, there was a slight bit of contention with who would take over the meetings each week.
Marella had been filling in, but it sounded like Ria’s mom was vying to take over the spot if the Matron didn’t return soon. Even witches had politics apparently.
But since Ria couldn’t care less, she hung back, watching the waves glitter in the burgeoning light of the new day.
The warmth of the rising sun soaked into her back, and she let the soothing feeling melt into each and every muscle.
She could think of no better way to start her day than watching the ocean sparkle to life as the sun began its journey up through the sky.
“You look happy,” a soft voice broke through her reverie.
Ria cracked an eye open to see Kelly standing over her with Bootsy, Hailey, and Jess lingering just behind.
At least, she thought it was Jess. Provided the twins never swapped beads, she’d learned Jess was the one with blue in her dreads.
“Oh, hi,” Ria replied, throwing up a hand to shield the light.
“Yeah, I’m one of those annoying morning people.
I always feel my best at the beginning of the day. ”
“Makes sense,” Bootsy said, plopping down unceremoniously next to Ria, her breasts jiggling in the too-small bra that barely covered her nipples. “I’m the same. It’s like I can feel my soul rising with the sun, and it gives me this boost of energy.”
“Yeah, and for the rest of us, there’s coffee,” Kelly added, gingerly lowering herself to the sand on Ria’s other side, careful to brush away any bits of shell or seaweed before she sat.
“Sorry if we’re intruding on your moment,” Hailey chimed in as she and Jess joined their little line of witches gazing out at the sea. “We wanted to see how things were going. You’re so quiet in the meetings.”
Ria tucked a stray curl behind her hair. “Yeah, I’m still getting my feet under me, I guess. I’ve never been part of a coven, aside from the few rituals my mom dragged me to growing up. I just never felt like I belonged here. I’m not really a witch the way you guys are.”
“And what kind of witches are we?” Bootsy asked, digging her toes into the sand until the tops of her feet were covered.
“You know,” Ria replied, gesturing idly at the ocean. “Witchy witches. Communing with nature and stuff.”
“Uh-huh,” Jess said, leaning forward so she could face Ria. “And what are you doing right now?”
“Right now? I’m sitting on the beach, watching the waves,” Ria replied.
“Kinda sounds like communing with nature to me,” Hailey remarked. “What do you think, Bootsy?”
“I think if we weren’t here, she’d be naked and dancing in the surf.”
Ria opened her mouth to protest their highly inaccurate assessment of her extracurricular activities, but Hailey cut her off.
“I’m going to have to agree,” the petite Asian witch said solemnly. “Sorry, Ria. Verdict’s in. You’re a witchy witch too.”
“It’s okay,” Kelly added, brushing sand off Hailey’s leg that nudged up against her own. “Embracing your witch side doesn’t mean you have to change who you are. We’re all different, and we love one another for it.”
“She’s right,” Jess said. “You don’t have to be or act any specific way to be part of our coven. Each of us brings something unique to the table, so there’s always someone to help out if a witch is struggling. For instance, Jenna and I work a lot of rituals.”
“And I’m great at handcasting,” Hailey chimed in.
“Well, I’m the first to shed my clothes during the moonlight rituals,” Bootsy announced proudly, puffing up her chest and drawing all eyes to her almost obscenely low-cut blouse. “It’s a pivotal role, and one I take great pride in.”
“She’s not joking either,” Kelly said. “The rest of us would just stare at one another if Bootsy wasn’t donning her birthday suit the minute the chanting started.”
Bootsy nodded and beamed at Ria.
“I’m glad you all have a place,” Ria replied, pulling her eyes from Bootsy’s chest to smile at her. “I guess I have some skill with potions.”
“Excellent,” Hailey exclaimed. “The High Matron was our only other potion-skilled witch, and with her on leave, we could definitely use your help from time to time.”
“Okay,” Ria agreed, nodding slowly. She hadn’t wanted to find herself liking these women so much, but the more she actually hung around them, the more she found herself drawn to their energy.
Witches weren’t meant to be lone wolves, but Ria hadn’t planned on bonding with a bunch of people, since she didn’t intend on staying in Seacliff forever.
Although maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to get to know them.
Portland was only two hours away. She could always visit, maybe finally join one of those naked midnight rituals she heard so much about.
“So tell us how things have been going,” Bootsy prodded. “Weren’t you saying before you were going to offer handcasting spells on your social media page?”
Ria scooped up a palmful of sand and let it slip through her fingers. “Yeah, but I’ve only gotten one client so far. And I’m not even sure if the spell worked.”
“Why do you say that?” Jess asked, leaning forward on her knees to trace a symbol in the wet area of the beach.
“There was no sparkle.”
Jess stopped mid drawing and jerked her head up. “No what?”
Ria glanced at the four very confused faces staring at her. “Um, you know, when you handcast a spell and there’s a little glow around the subject?”
“Oh,” they all replied in unison.
“You’re talking about the Goddess’s essence,” Jess said, returning to her drawing. “Why would you think her essence would appear in a destiny spell?”
“I guess because every other time I did a handcasting there was a little glow?”
“Oof.” Jess shook her head and sat back on her haunches to evaluate the triquetra she’d drawn. “Girl, you need to cast more. The Goddess only shares her essence in transmutation spells.” She shifted her body to face Ria. “Those are when you change the physical form of something.”
“Yeah,” Bootsy confirmed. “A destiny spell is a form of divination magic with maybe a touch of conjuration. There would be no, uh, what did you call it?”
“Sparkle?”
“Yeah,” Bootsy replied, clearly trying to stifle a giggle. “No sparkle with guiding spells.”
“Oh, okay,” Ria said, dropping her face toward the sand to hide her blush. If she had a dollar for every time she got embarrassed lately, she wouldn’t need to sell her magic. “So then, maybe it worked. The woman told me she would let me know, but I haven’t heard anything.”
“These spells can take time,” Jess said, frowning as the surf rolled in and erased her symbol. “And if it doesn’t work out, you could always try a ritual instead. If I remember correctly, there’s one that’s similar to the handcasting.”
Ria let out a self-deprecating chuckle. “Yeah, I think I’m worse at rituals than I am at casting. Too many moving parts to remember.”
“Understandable,” Jess replied. “Still, I wouldn’t fret yet. You’ll probably hear from her soon with good news.”
As if Jess’s words caught Hecate’s ear, Ria’s phone dinged, and all eyes darted to her. She pulled her cell from the pocket of her gray shorts to check who would be messaging her so early in the morning.
LISSA: Hey, no movement on spell yet. My friend said I should go to Pride in PDX this weekend. Would you want to come?
LISSA: Just to, like, guide me in case I’m fighting the spell or something.
Ria slowly raised her head to stare at Jess. “I’d ask if you were a witch with that timing, but I already know you are. This text is from her.”
“Ooh, what did she say?” Bootsy demanded, trying to snatch Ria’s phone from her hand.
Clutching the device to her chest, Ria said, “Nothing on the spell yet, but she wants me to go with her to Pride for guidance.” She nibbled on her lower lip for a second. “I don’t know what to say…”
“Wait, is your first client a lesbian too?” Bootsy asked. “What’s her name? I know every lesbian in Seacliff.”
Hailey scoffed. “That’s not saying much when half of them are in our coven.”
Bootsy shoved Hailey playfully, knocking her backward into the sand before turning back to Ria and the gossip she so clearly desired.
Ria glanced between her phone and Bootsy’s eager face. “Umm, I don’t know if I’m supposed to reveal that. Isn’t there some kind of witch-client confidentiality?”
“You’re not her doctor,” Kelly said. “I don’t think HIPAA applies to magic.”
“True…” Ria hedged. Still. Something was nudging at her to remain quiet about Lissa’s identity. It was probably the confidentiality thing. A holdover from her marketing days where NDAs were sacrosanct. Whatever the reason, it certainly wasn’t a desire to keep these other women’s hands off her girl.
Client! She corrected. Lissa was just a client, and she had no claims on her.
So why couldn’t she bring herself to say the name? Maybe it was the spell making sure she didn’t accidentally send Bootsy chasing after Lissa and distracting her from her destined love. Yeah, that was probably it.
“I don’t think I should say,” Ria stated, firm in her decision. “I don’t even know much about her anyway other than she’s an artist of some kind.”
“Oh, no,” Hailey groaned. “Please tell me her name isn’t Lexi?”
Ria cocked her head. “No. Not Lexi. Why?”
“That girl’s a hot mess,” Hailey replied, leaning back on her elbows, her hand brushing against Kelly’s. “She has a new ‘true love’ every six months or so. You don’t want to dip your toes in her ocean of crazy. Only a nutjob would date her.”
“Good to know.” Ria made a mental note to avoid any Lexi’s she came across. “So what do I do? Do I go to Pride with this woman?”
“I don’t see why not,” Jess said. “As long as you’re not attracted to her yourself, then it’s just a witch helping a client.”
“Right. And I’m definitely not interested in her.” Ria hoped the others didn’t notice the unnecessary emphasis she put on the word “not.” She couldn’t even tell at that point if she was trying to convince them or herself.
“Well, there you go,” Bootsy said. “It’s settled. Maybe I’ll see you there. I never miss the Portland Pride Parade.”
“Lucky,” Hailey whined, tossing a shell into the ocean. “I have to finish cleaning out my classroom this weekend. I thought I had a few more days, but the administration mentioned they want to fumigate or something.”
“I can help,” Kelly offered, louder than Ria thought the soft-spoken woman was capable of.
Hailey turned to Kelly, eyes bright and wide. “Really? I’d like that.”
“Of course,” Kelly replied, her voice dropping back to barely audible levels. “I’m always happy to help.”
Ria glanced back and forth between the two witches and wondered how strongly the coven enforced that no dating rule.
Leaving them to their shy glances and smiles, she tapped out a quick response to Lissa, confirming she’d be happy to join her.
“Done,” she announced, slipping her phone back in her pocket. “Now I need to figure out what to wear. I’ve never actually been to Pride because I don’t love crowds. What do people normally wear?”
The girls all glanced between themselves and grinned.
“My dear,” Bootsy said, slinging an arm around her shoulder, “we are going to have so much fun with this.”