Friday, April 17, 2020

Witch of Apple Hill ~ Epilogue


Epilogue


Thanksgiving
Elise walked up the walk to the Badger Hill Bed and Breakfast with a pumpkin pie in her hand and Roark on her shoulder. Rosemary, Dorothea, and Ernest followed behind her.
“That pumpkin pie smells divine,” said Dorothea.
“You think all food smells divine,” snapped Ernest. “We can’t even smell.”
“Of course, it does,” said Rosemary, “and I’m sure Dorothea is remembering the way food smelled when she was alive. Don’t be such a grump. This is the first community Thanksgiving dinner we’ve ever been invited to and you best mind your manners.”
Elise smiled as she heard the giddiness in Rosemary’s tone. The townspeople had insisted Rosemary, Dorothea, and Ernest stop hiding themselves now that the secret was out that they knew about Elise and her ghost-y friends the whole time.
Cage walked out the front door and smiled at his guests. “Hello, friends! Thanks for coming.”
As Elise stepped up onto the porch Roark crawled out of her pocket and scrambled up onto her shoulder. He crouched down and let out a low growl at Cage.
Cage furrowed his brow and growled back. Elise fought the urge to step back. She thought Roark and Cage had put their differences aside. She felt her fingers tingle, thinking of a spell to defuse the situation. Then Cage broke into a smile and she could fell her spider friend vibrating as if chuckling.
Cage held his hand out close to Roark as if waiting for a high five and the spider lifted a large leg and gave it a slap.
“You two,” said Elise shaking her head.
“Come on in,” said Cage. He opened the door for Elise and she was pleased to see him continue to hold the door open for Rosemary, Dorothea, and Ernest, even though he knew they could walk through it, and greeted each one by name. She thought she heard Dorothea giggle when Cage thanked her for coming. Even Ernest mumbled a, “Thanks for having us” after being greeted.
“Hello,” said Elise as she saw Ms. Welch, Mr. King, Mayor Garver, Pammy and her family, already seated in the living room having a sip of wine. They returned her greetings with hellos of their own.
“How is Heather?” asked Elise. The spell that Elise had put on Heather, meant that even though the townspeople knew what happened with the Mozath, Paul Campbell, and Elise being a witch, it was all still new to her.
“She’s poured herself into books and keeps asking me what’s real and what’s not,” said Mr. King. “She’ll be over soon and I’m sure she’ll pepper you with questions, even though I’ve told her not to.”
Elise smiled. “I’ll answer them as best as I can, but not even I know what all is real and what comes from the power of the imagination. It’s such a clever thing, that imagination.” She gave Mr. King a wink.
Cage came in behind the ghosts and rubbed his hands together. “The turkey should be ready any moment.”
As if on cue the smoke alarm in the kitchen started to screech. Cage’s eyes widened as he rushed toward the sound. Elise followed, stopping momentarily to place her pie on the table. She walked into the kitchen just in time to see Cage pull out a black turkey as smoke billowed from the oven.
She waved her hand in front of her face and stifled a chuckle as she pointed at the smoke detector. It shut off as she wiggled her finger. Cage sat the bird on the table waving his pot holders over it, as if that would somehow salvage the main course.
Elise hurried to the windows and opened them, then wiggled again at the smoke as if enticing it toward the open windows and out of the kitchen.
“Gosh darn it!” snapped Cage, glaring at the bird. “I was sure that oven was fixed.”
“Probably a problem with the thermostat,” said Mr. King from the doorway. “Don’t worry, we have plenty of food.”
“But we need turkey,” said Cage, sounding defeated. “I was really looking forward to the whole Thanksgiving experience, now I’ve ruined it.”
“Nothing is ruined,” said Elise, with a coy smile.
“Do you not see this turkey?” asked Cage.
Elise twirled her fingers around her back and quickly imagined a golden, juicy turkey cooked to perfection. “Looks fine to me.”
“Are you blind?” asked Cage throwing his hands up in the air, “it’s completely bur…” He looked down. “What did you do?”
Elise shrugged. “Magic. I am a witch after all.”
The End

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Witch of Apple Hill ~ Part 37


Paul’s eyes widened. “No, you can’t. I was your mentor. Let me stay here with you. I won’t cause any trouble I swear.”
“I would love to trust you, even put in a good word on your behalf,” said Cage allowing Mayor Garver to put the handcuffs on Paul, “but as my teacher taught me … trust no one, especially a fool who plays with dark magic.”
Paul screamed again as Cage pulled him to his feet and led him toward City Hall where they would meet the sheriff.
“Want to try to sit up?” asked Pammy. Elise nodded slightly.
“Okay, slowly now,” said Pammy.
With Pammy’s help, Elise pushed herself off the sidewalk and sat. She was surprised to see the townspeople still surrounding her. She remember how they had shielded her when she was fighting the mass and how they had stood with her when the battle started. Tears formed in her eyes as Roark slowly crawled off Pammy’s hand and onto Elise’s shoulder.
She looked at her friends … her family.
“I can’t thank you enough,” she said to them. “I’ve cursed you all these years. You knew and yet you came to my side anyway. I don’t understand.”
Mr. King looked to her fellow townsfolk before answering. “Our ancestors settled on your land, looking for gold. Gold that could have scarred this place for ages. You kept them from finding it, if any was here, which protected the way of life we know now. You protected the apples, which have made us all very wealthy, since the townspeople own the orchard and we all get a cut. You created a barrier that made it hard for anyone wanting to do this town, and therefore us, harm. Which is why it takes the sheriff’s department so long to get here, they don’t have to often. You build a library and kept us educated, even though you declared you didn’t like us much. You’ve been to every town hall meeting I can remember and participated in every event the town has thrown.”
He shrugged. “So the founding families decided long ago, we’d put up with curse and those that couldn’t handle it would need to move. You are this town, Elise, and we can’t thank you enough.”
Elise felt her tears fall on her cheeks as she smiled. “I have seen the love and light. I lift the curse and all the plights. I know now I’ve been wrong. Let us celebrate for centuries long.”
Her fingers tingled as the magic trickled from them and started to spread throughout the town. Pammy’s hair turned back to its lovely shade of blonde. Elise heard Ms. Welch ask someone for a sweater. The items broken on the streets due to the fight and the storm Elise had caused before fixed themselves, the wind swept the streets clear of debris, and the mums grew bigger and brighter than ever.
The townspeople oo’d and awed as if they were watching fireworks and for the first time in 83 years, Elise felt the world lift off her shoulders.

Friday, April 10, 2020

Witch of Apple Hill ~ Part 36


A brilliant light blazed across the skies like a shooting star in the middle of the day. It landed on the mass and exploded, knocking Elise and everyone else off their feet.
Elise rolled over and shielded her eyes, just in time to see a giant black spider crawl away from the light right before the back mass seemed to be vacuumed into the unknown.


Chapter 12


Elise laid her head on the sidewalk, thankful for it’s coolness. The mass was gone. She was sure the banishing spell had worked and that was one thing they wouldn’t have to worry about again.
Her mind turned to Cage as she heard the grunts and groans of a fight still raging. She wanted to get to her feet and help, but her body felt trained of life and her body felt disconnected to the demands that she stand up.
“Elise?”
A face popped in front of Elise and at first all she could see was bright orange hair.
“Elise?” the orange hair repeated.
Elise made her eyes focus on the face attached to the hair. It was Pammy.
“Are you okay? What can I do?” asked Pammy. She held up Roark in her hands. “I have your friend. He’s tired but okay. How can we help?”
Elise tried to smile as the picture of the prissy Pammy holding the giant spider seemed incredibly comical to her. She heard an anguished cry.
“Cage?” Elise whispered, again trying to rise.
“He’s okay,” said Pammy, placing a gentle hand on Elise’s shoulder keeping her down. “Stay still for a moment. Ms. Welch hit that Paul guy with her walker and he fell like an old man. Turns out when you banished that horrible black thing, Paul’s magic went with it. He’s now just a man.”
“The cry?” stated Elise, furrowing her brow. “The groans?”
“All from Paul,” said Pammy, “Cage has him locked in a head lock while the mayor ran to get the handcuffs from his office, Lord knows why he has handcuffs. The sheriff has been called, but you know it takes them forever to get to the valley.” Pammy clicked her tongue as if disappointed. “It appears Paul is throwing a hissy fit over losing.”
Elise couldn’t help but chuckle as she heard Paul snarling at Cage. “You’re a disgrace to your kind. I can’t believe you’d live here and let her live. I taught you better. You’re a failure.”
“And you’re going to jail for attempted murder,” said Cage. “We have quite a few witness that saw you attack our very own librarian.”
“Not to mention our new innkeeper,” said Ms. Welch. “Two counts of attempted murder should keep you in prison until you shrivel up and die.”
“But don’t worry,” said Cage, “now that Mozath has been banished and you can’t feed off his magic or the magic here in Apple Hill, I’m sure you’ll shrivel up and die much sooner than anyone expects. I’m sure Lucifer will be thrilled to get his hands on you.”
Paul’s eyes widened. “No, you can’t. I was your mentor. Let me stay here with you. I won’t cause any trouble I swear.”
“I would love to trust you, even put in a good word on your behalf,” said Cage allowing Mayor Garver to put the handcuffs on Paul, “but as my teacher taught me … trust no one, especially a fool who plays with dark magic.”
Paul screamed again as Cage pulled him to his feet and led him toward City Hall where they would meet the sheriff.

Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Witch of Apple Hill ~ Part 35


A flash of black followed the swarm in causing Elise to blink hard and focused on the black mass. At first she thought the fog had come back to aid Paul, but as the figure took form she realized it was not the dangerous mist, but a demonic looking humanoid that was fighting Paul, not helping him.
It took Elise only a moment to realize who the humanoid was, it was someone who had been by her side constantly, but she had only seen his true form once. It was Roark.
 The swarm dispersed as Roark picked up the fight. Elise couldn’t help but flinch every time Paul landed a hard blow to Roark’s body. She knew her familiar could handle a lot, but worried the cursed Paul might be more than Roark had signed up for.
Her fingers twitched as her mind turned to sunlight. She knew her brain wouldn’t be able to form the words as quickly as she needed to cast spells, so she turned to pictures.
A blazing sun for light. The townsfolk for courage. Cage for hunting prey. Roark for chivalry. A heart for love.
Her hands thrust forward as light streamed from her fingers once again, hitting Paul and knocking him off balance. He stumbled backwards, before opening his mouth in a cry that released the black mass again.
Elise fought back her own cry as the black mass swallowed Roark in its fog. She trained all her light, energy, and magic on the mass, hoping to keep Roark from being swallowed whole. Her heart just about jumped out of her chest from joy as she watched Ernest pull Dorothea from the black mass as they escaped through one of the holes her white magic was causing.
Rosemary hurried toward them, helping them to distance themselves from the black fog. Elise stepped closer to the mass and pushed her magic harder hoping to form a big enough hole for Roark to find his way out as well.
She saw Paul out of the corner of her eye as he started toward her in a run. Keeping her light trained on the black mass she braced herself for impact, hoping Roark could escape before Paul barreled into her.
Elise felt a presence to her side and realized the townspeople had once again lined up, this time to build a human wall between her and Paul.
“She has to keep that light going or we’ll all die,” yelled Ms. Welch. “Protect our witch!”
“No,” she screamed to the people, feeling the determination surrounding her as well as their love. “He’ll kill you!”
Elise felt her head spinning, waiting for Paul to pummel into the people she had grown to love, whether she would allow herself to admit it or not. Another flash of color seemed to envelope Paul and Elise realized it was Cage.
A bit of relief for the town’s people flooded her and she turned all her attention to the mass.
“This is a town of love and light. Together we will stand and fight. Be gone I say, for the last time. Be gone I say, for your crimes. I banish you to the pits of hell, and there forever you will dwell.”
A brilliant light blazed across the skies like a shooting star in the middle of the day. It landed on the mass and exploded, knocking Elise and everyone else off their feet.
Elise rolled over and shielded her eyes, just in time to see a giant black spider crawl away from the light right before the back mass seemed to be vacuumed into the unknown.

Friday, April 3, 2020

April Birthstone

It is April! 
If you were born this month, you are a Dazzling Diamond!



Diamond  “The Stone Of New Beginnings” 
I heal emotional and mental pain reducing fear and bringing about new beginnings! 



Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Witch of Apple Hill ~ Part 34


“You can’t be serious,” said Cage.
“I am,” said the mayor, “all this gentleman has to do is think wisely and agree to not hurt anyone else.” He turned to Elise. “I hope you’ll make the same agreement when this is all over. We’ve allowed your curse because of that dastardly act those men did so long ago, with the hope that you’ll realize we aren’t them. We aren’t them, Elise.” He turned back to Paul. “We aren’t here to harm anyone. Can you say the same? Wouldn’t you like to live in peace?”
“Peace you say?” said Paul as he scratched his chin.
“Yes,” said the mayor, “peace is what we’re offering.”
“No thanks.” Paul threw out his hand causing a vicious gust of wind to knock the mayor off his feet, sending him somersaulting across the street. Two of the townsmen rushed over to help the mayor to his feet once he stopped tumbling.
“I’m fine,” hollered the mayor. “Give him hell.”
Elise tried to think of the best spell going forward, but before the words could form or her fingers could flex, Cage took off into a run toward Paul.


Chapter 11


“No, wait,” cried Elise, but it was too late. Cage barreled into Paul, sending them both flying backwards into a scuffle. To the average eye, it looked like an old-fashioned fist fight as the two men rolled around punching each other on the sidewalk, but Elise knew every punch had the power of a sledgehammer.
She thought of what the mayor had said about the pixies moving in. She wished she could call on the fairies, but knew they wouldn’t get involved unless they had to. They had stayed away from human interaction for centuries and they weren’t about to show themselves to the townspeople of Apple Hill now, even if the town declared itself a haven. But she could ask nature for help. Nature would know that Paul’s destruction of the town would hurt both human, flora, and fauna.
“Mother Nature I call to thee, please Mother Nature hear my plea. In our mist we have a foe, one of which must surely go. Please send your help, we need it now. Please send your help, you have my vow. Help these souls keep this town and I will bestow to it a crown. This is a place a rest and peace, now please rid us of this beast.”
Elise heard Mother Nature answer her call as Cage let out a cry of anguish as Paul’s fist met with his rib, causing Cage to roll away.
“Now!” she cried.
A buzz filled the air causing the townspeople to drop to the ground and cover their ears as hundreds of bees, hornets, and wasps swarmed toward Paul. His arms flew up as he tried to cover his head from their stings, but Elise knew there were too many as they assaulted his skin and flew up his nose and into his ears and mouth.
A flash of black followed the swarm in causing Elise to blink hard and focused on the black mass. At first she thought the fog had come back to aid Paul, but as the figure took form she realized it was not the dangerous mist, but a demonic looking humanoid that was fighting Paul, not helping him.
It took Elise only a moment to realize who the humanoid was, it was someone who had been by her side constantly, but she had only seen his true form once. It was Roark.