Chapter 27 #2
“Do you think dragonettes are that friendly? It’s a wild animal, girl. Of course, Denny is your familiar.”
“Daisy.”
“Oh yes, Daisy. Lovely creature.” Daisy lets out a hiss and tries to bite Mum’s finger as it waggles in front of her nose. Dad swiftly pulls Mum’s hand out of the way of her snapping maw.
Mum’s eyes are glazed over, so she doesn’t seem to notice, and even after the close call of almost getting bitten, she doesn’t drop her manic smile.
“You have a point. The dragonette is showing actual signs of a familiar bond. How interesting.” Mum nods at Jodie’s words and her smile grows even bigger.
“She also adores Owen. Which is wonderful. She must see you, Owen, as Tuesday’s mate.
” Owen grins and Mum’s smile vanishes as Daisy hops onto Owen’s chest and rubs her muzzle underneath his chin with a happy chirp.
“Jodie?” I ask.
“Hmm?” She places a hand over her mouth as she chews a delicate-looking sandwich.
“Is it okay if I try to link a portal gateway to the shop?”
“You can do that?” Andy’s nasal voice pipes up, butting into the conversation. He bites into an apple and peers at me over the shiny green skin, his face a mask of disbelief as he chews obnoxiously. Chomp-chomp. I wince at his mouth sounds.
“I think so… I’d like to try it.”
“You aren’t a gateway witch.” My nose crinkles as I get a glimpse of chewed up apple as he speaks.
“Someone is getting a little bit full of herself.” He chuckles mockingly and opens his mouth to say something else, but then thinks better of it when Owen turns to stare at him.
He looks away and takes another bite of the apple.
“Of course. That’s a wonderful idea,” Jodie says.
“I think it would make a good escape hatch, in case anything were to happen again, you know, like the mercenaries.”
“That’s a great idea,” Dad says. He leans forward in his chair. “So, did you use the escape ladder when the mercenaries came to your flat then?” I nod and Dad looks all too pleased with himself.
“Yeah, yeah,” I groan and wave my hands in submission. “Yes, Dad, you were right about having an alternative exit.” Dad grins but doesn’t rub it in. “I am reformed and from now on, I solemnly swear to always have an alternative escape route.”
“Why the shop?” Mum asks. “You should put one at the house so I can come here directly. I don’t want to have to wait around for your wonky portal service.”
Wonky portal, have you heard her? Yeah, that’s never going to happen. A doorway directly to her house? Gah, I have to repress a shudder.
“So, I am going to do that today if that’s okay?” I ask Jodie.
“No problem, the wards will let in you and anyone with you of your choosing,” Jodie replies with a not so subtle nod at Owen. Andy grunts and we ignore him.
“You can always make your own portal, Mum,” Diane says sweetly. Uh-oh, her smart mouth is going to get her into trouble. Mum can’t make portals, only a gateway witch can, and only with fixed gateways that are attached to ley lines.
Mum ignores Diane’s dig.
As a host, I don’t use ley line magic. I think I just rip a connection through the dimensions as I make portals out of thin air. If my school’s magical theory books are right, I should be able to open and fix a portal to go anywhere. That is a cool piece of magic.
I guess I have only just scraped the tip of the iceberg on things that I can do. My tummy flips, and suddenly, I am overwhelmed and a little bit sick.
Another thing that is making me sick is all this marriage malarkey.
Distance and running away has always been my thing, a simple but perhaps unhealthy way of protecting myself.
I learned long ago no one was willing to listen to me, so there was no point in opening my mouth.
Now, here is Owen. We’ve just had our first kiss and I am already head over heels.
This time, I can’t sit back and nod my head when my mother says I will marry a stranger.
Owen doesn’t know that I will agree, only to avoid my coven for as long as it takes for my mum to give up her wild notion.
Another eight years if needed. But instead of it being me and Daisy against the world, I must take another person’s feelings into account. I’ve got to think of him.
What does he think?
What would I think if his pack insisted he marry… mate with somebody else? I’d be devastated. It would break my heart.
To not say something would be the worst thing I could do. Disrespectful. What kind of person would I be if I did that?
So, I do something I haven’t done since I was sixteen years old. I fight my corner. I get a bright idea and send a blast of magic out into the real world.
Huh, it worked. I sit back, feeling a tad smug. Ah, heck… I might as well get this over with. I don’t want this hanging over me and Owen.
I have the urge to roll my neck like a fighter going into a ring.
Ding, ding.
“So, Mum, this whole marriage thing…” Owen’s thigh brushes against mine.
I nibble on my lip. This will be like removing a wax strip, unpleasant but worth it in the end.
But like a wax strip, it must be done quickly.
Not that I’ve used a wax strip. We have spells for that.
Even though I hate magic—or I did—I’m not opposed to cheating when it comes to body hair.
“Not this again.” Mum groans and dabs her mouth with a napkin. “I have decided you will marry one of those boys. There is no choice, no discussion. You will, for once in your life, do as you are told.”
Well, there might be a teeny tiny problem. I try again, doing my best to hold in my smugness. “I appreciate the time you have spent on this, and I understand how important it is to you, but I am not marrying a stranger just to make you happy.”
“I’m right about this. You’ll see. I know what is best for you. I am your mother.”
Owen grunts.
“How dare you interfere?” she snarls at him.
Owen just sits there and stares back at her. His silence will drive her bat shit crazy. She isn’t his mum or his coven leader, and he doesn’t have to learn her rules or play her games.
“Mum, you are being rude.” Diane puts her steak knife down on her plate, abandoning the huge steak she is eating as she stares Mum down like she is dealing with a charging minotaur. “You have to stop.” Mum blinks at her and then slowly takes in the angry faces of her coven.
“Carol,” Dad growls. “That is enough.”
“Well, it’s a good thing then that I have magic,” I say as I blow on my nails and then buff them against my dress.
“’Cause I sent a magical announcement to both men, thanking them for their kind consideration, but I’m not and never will be available for an arranged marriage.
” Mum grows pale. Diane grins at me with approval, picks up her plate, spears a piece of steak, and chews happily.
“Oh, and I also sent an announcement to the rest of the community, so there will not be any further misunderstandings.” For the first time since they arrived, my smile is genuine.
“You did what?” Mum croaks out.
A packet of crayons and a colouring book pop out of the ether and slap onto her lap.