Playing with Magic (Elemental Trilogy Book 2) (11 page)

“Autumn?”

She blinked at him and sighed. “Sorry, was thinking of another time.”

“I wish we were all together. It feels wrong being apart.”

She nodded. A tear escaped down her cheek. “Maybe I could have been colder, like Anatha.”

“Autumn, that’s not fair.”

“Explain that to Jaime.” She took in the crisp May air. It felt much different up here in the mountains than down in the valley.

“Anatha never came across anyone who would ever be interested in a long-term relationship. No matter how we changed over the past years, that never did in my eyes. She is still the most self-centered bitch I know.”

“Other than Envy?”

He got quiet, and then nodded. “Okay, second most self-centered bitch.”

“Maybe third over Drake.” They looked at each other seriously, and then both burst into laughter.

Autumn fell back onto the grass. The smell of fresh greens and earth flooded her. And then the laughter faded as she thought of her friends and her guys.

Stefan must have noticed. He stopped laughing as well. “What did you mean back there about dying?”

She sat back up. “We went to the cave of the stars.”

“And?”

She told him everything.

****

Rowan and River sat up, covered in sweat. What a nightmare. It had something to do with Autumn. She had been so sad, and something happened.
What?
River thought, lying on his back. It came to him. Dogs attacked and ate her. Goose bumps ran up Rowan’s arms. He wondered if she was okay.  He missed her so much. They’d never been without each other this long.

“It was a bad dream,” River said, looking into the dark.

“Just a dream,” Rowan repeated as they lay there on the small bed, shoulder to shoulder.

River’s hand roamed, finding Rowan’s and held it tightly. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Rowan said and squeezed.

River let go and rolled on his side, facing Rowan. His free hand reached out and moved over Rowan’s bare chest. “This has been the longest we have been alone together, just me and you, since we left.”

Rowan nodded, and he felt River shift again. He felt Rowan’s lips brush along his cheek. Rowan turned his head so their lips could meet. He relaxed into the kiss and as it grew feverish, Rowan grabbed River’s head.  The fire burned in him. He wanted to fill the void in his body.

River pulled away. “Not tonight, Rowan, you need some rest.”

“I need you,” he said as tears escaped his eyes. “Help me, River. I hurt. Please.”

River pressed his lips against his, and Rowan’s hands wrapped into the messy curls. He pulled away and kissed along Rowan’s jaw, down his neck, down his chest, taking in Rowan’s natural smell. He moved down farther. Rowan let go of the pain as his lover’s mouth slid over him. He grabbed River’s head and guided him in the dark. He bit his bottom lip as he tried not to make a sound; his pain forgotten, replaced by that wonderful buildup of pleasure.

****

Autumn had just fallen asleep when the dream hit her. She was back in her apartment with her boys. They were in bed. Naked flesh against naked flesh. Mouths touched as tongues licked. Her eyes closed as she felt that warm vibration start to build. She wanted more, release, but they were just teasing her. Bringing her so close yet not far enough, making her wake up, breathing hard. She realized it had been a dream. Brokenhearted, she rolled onto her side, crying. She felt so alone.

****

Mabon could feel his sister in the other room very upset. He wanted her to stay with him. But he felt that she really loved Rowan and River. She was breaking into pieces being away from them, and it hurt him inside. He looked down at the paper in front of him. He was no stranger to heartache.

Chapter 10

“Now we all know the basic rules for witchcraft, right?” Pyrus asked.

“You mean the threefold law?” Aarawn asked. Anatha’s face turned red as she thought about one of the greedy spells she had done some years ago that had backfired on her. She totally believed in karma now.

Pyrus shook her head. “It’s a start.”

“The reed?” Anatha asked.

“No.” Her eyes went to Autumn sitting by the window.
So distant in the past days
, she thought. “Autumn, wake up,” she said, clapping her hands.

She looked over, eyes still distant. “What?”

“The rules of conduct?”

Her eyes went to the floor. “To feel the power, you must trust the power. Always be careful of what you do. Be careful of who you tell and trust. Don’t use it against others, because it will come back threefold. Never use it to harm other witches unless protecting yourself.” She turned back to the window.

“See, Autumn barely pays attention, but she still understands the rules.”

“We have the power, Pyrus. Why do we need to learn the rules? Aren’t we exempt?” Mabon asked with a big smile on his face, and Aarawn nodded.

Pyrus tsked at him. “You must have rules even if you have power. It makes the world right.”

“Good balances evil,” Autumn replied, still looking out the window.

“Right,” their grandmother said. “A kind heart is needed. Never think bad thoughts, for your elements are pure, almost innocent.”

Aarawn laughed. “Well at least we have a little innocence left.” Anatha and Mabon chuckled as Pyrus scowled at them.

“Remember, we are self-judged. We strive to connect with everything, even the other elements. There are two worlds around ours. Above is the Summerland, where we go to be reborn. The world below us is the Underworld.”

“Ran by Arawen,” Autumn said.

“Correction,” Pyrus said.

“Autumn got something wrong,” Anatha said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

“Arawen has a piece. Other gods, who have been punished, have their own kingdoms down there.”

Autumn finally brought her attention to her grandmother. “Then why is he the only one after us?”

“It’s because he was the one who was trying to harvest the elements before. He came close, but something stopped him.”

“Akasha?” Anatha asked.

Pyrus shook her head. “No. It is unclear what happened.”

“Was Akasha called around then?” Mabon asked.

“No,” she replied. “Now I want you all to try and work together. Let’s make this a trial. I have all the materials here.” They looked over the candles, dried herbs, cords, bells, a dagger, and a ritual bowl.

Autumn stood and walked to the middle of the room. She pictured the circle enveloping the room. “The circle is drawn as a circle of power around us, above me and below me, in a sphere that passes through all boundaries in all planes,” she said.

Pyrus staggered as the power encased her.  “Impossible. You haven’t called the quarters.”

Autumn smiled, but it wasn’t a happy smile. She was tired. “I am a quarter.”

Pyrus thought it over. “You’re right. Do me a spell, guys.”

Anatha flattened her hand out, palm facing the ceiling. Concentrating on her hand, she created a small fireball. It glowed and danced on her palm. She held it out to Aarawn. He bent close and blew on it. The fire grew. She then turned her hand to Mabon. With his hand, palm down, he touched her palm. The fire went out in a small puff. They turned, showing their hands to Pyrus.

“You’ve been practicing,” Pyrus said.

“Not all of us can work together,” Anatha said.

Pyrus nodded. “The elements combined in such a way could make one of you call Akasha. We can’t have that.”

The circle shut down, pushing the air out of them all. “Sorry,” Autumn said weakly.

“A little warning next time,” Mabon told his sister.

“Just not in the mood,” she replied angrily.

“I’ll be back. I have some things to do,” Pyrus told them, looking at the old grandfather clock, and left.

They sat around, waiting. After ten minutes, someone knocked on the door. Anatha went to answer it. Dack was standing there beaming at her. His face glowed with a sheen of oil, and she could see it feeding the bad acne. She wanted to slam the door on him. “Hi, Anatha,” he said.

“Hi, Dack.”

“Who is it?” Mabon asked behind her.

Her head disappeared behind the door. “Dack,” she whispered.

Aarawn mouthed
move
, and as soon as he had taken over her spot, he grinned at Dack. “Hello, Dacky, ol’ boy,” he said in a fake British accent.

He took a step back. “What?”

Mabon went to the window, peeking out of the curtains. He motioned for Anatha to join him. They peered out, watching. “Why are you here?” Aarawn asked.

“I wanted to see Anatha.”

“Did you ever think that maybe she doesn’t want to see you?”

He shrugged. “I don’t care, because I can do whatever I want to.”

“Well, Dack, see, before you thought you had something on us. But once again, you don’t. So if I see you again, I will use my power to pop your zit-ridden little head right off your little scrawny shoulders.”

Dack took a step off the porch. “I am so telling the elders about that threat,” he said in a high-pitched voice, his eyes wide with fright and unshed tears.

“Tattle-teller.”

“You’re in trouble!” he said, running as fast as his chubby legs would take him.

“Grow up, Dack!” Aarawn closed the door, and then went over to the window with the others. “I have an idea.” He smirked and closed his eyes, picturing the wind blowing. When he opened them, he watched as the wind howled forcefully outside. Dack pushed against the wind as it blew and pushed him around. His toe hit a piece of uneven concrete, and he stumbled, falling to his knees.

“I got you,” Mabon said. He envisioned rain. Giant teardrops started to fall. It started as a spring shower, and then the rain started to fall faster and harder. Soon the rain had turned into a downpour. They looked at Anatha.

She put her hands to the glass and pictured fire in the sky. Thunder rumbled the ground under their feet as lightning bolts exploded overhead. Her eyes darkened black as they focused on Dack, and a lightning bolt slammed into the concrete a few yards from him. He wiped his glasses, getting to his feet, and turned, looking at the house. They smiled innocently, waving at him. He turned, frightened, running as fast as his short legs could.

“You guys are bullies,” Autumn said.

“Trust me, Autumn, he deserves it,” Aarawn said.

Autumn shrugged. “Maybe he is a nice guy, and Anatha might enjoy spending time with him.”

“As if,” Anatha said, rolling her eyes.

Autumn shot daggers at them, her hands on her hips. “It seems you like to try new guys … umm, I mean … new things.” She turned and left the room, looking for Shantaina to see if she needed help in the garden.

****

Carolas, second to last of the elders, looked up at the storm centered in one spot in the sky. “Pavana isn’t going to like this,” he told Pyrus.

“What are you talking about? It’s just a normal spring shower.” Her mouth fell open as her eyes stared at the crystal blue sky.

Dack ran by, crying. “I might be a weak elder, but I’d never let anyone catch me crying like that,” Carolas said, chuckling. “You better control your grandchildren. If not, Pavana will try harder.”

“She will try, Carolas. I fear for anyone trying to control those four. They learn magic so easily; it’s so natural for them, and their powers sometime scare me.”

****

Stefan came over to them at the window. “Somebody is going to get yelled at today.” He pointed, and their eyes followed up where his thumb pointed.

“Oh, shit,” Aarawn whispered.

“You think anyone noticed?” Anatha asked.

Shantaina walked in the front door. “You guys are so in trouble,” she whispered.

“I wasn’t part of this,” Autumn said, coming back inside the room, having heard Shantaina.

“It almost makes me wonder what you can do, Autumn,” Anatha said, fuming. “I mean, you can make a powerful circle, but we haven’t really seen you use your Earth power lately. Just some simple spells we probably all could’ve pulled off.”

“Why do you say that? You of all people know I can do a lot with my magic.”

“You haven’t been able to do much, but really, what else can you do?”

“Anatha—” Aarawn warned.

Her cheeks warm with anger, she clenched both hands. “I’ll show you,” she said. Her eyes darkened to forest green orbs as she shoved her power below her, using the Earth. It started as a deep rumbling. Everything she saw turned green as the house started to shake slowly at first, and then grew more intense.  Everyone stumbled. Glass shattered and rained down around them.

“Autumn, you’re going to bring down the house!” Shantaina shouted.

Pulling her power back, she almost sagged on the stairs. Not feeling well and this little show of power had made her weaker. She turned, walking up the stairs as the others stared after her until she had disappeared.

Pyrus ran in. “Is everyone okay?” The front window had shattered in the earthquake. She saw them all motionless, staring at the empty stairs.

“How big was the quake?” Aarawn finally asked after a few seconds.

“Big. It must have been a seven-pointer down in San Francisco,” she said. “Why aren’t you guys outside?” And then it hit her. Autumn had done that. “Goddess, help me. What were you guys thinking, using your powers like this?”

“Maybe we shouldn’t question each other’s powers,” Aarawn said, ignoring his grandmother. Anatha said nothing as her eyes stared at the staircase.

Mabon nodded in agreement. “You know she can manipulate the Earth to do anything. Like swallow us in this very house.”

“Like in
Carrie
. Impressive,” Aarawn said.

****

“I have been feeling kinda sick since we left,” Rowan admitted to River as they walked through the town that the survivors had taken to living in. By the looks of it, they were struggling, trying to get back to the way the world used to be. Rules, money, police … but it felt fake.

“I was thinking about Autumn this morning as I watched the bees on the flowers.”

“You found a secret place I don’t know about?” He winked.

“Ha, not really.”

“You know her and plants. I haven’t felt a hundred percent either. I think we just miss her so much.”

Rowan nodded. “I miss her, but I do have you.” He looked around, saw no one, and then risked brushing a kiss against River’s lips.

“But she has Anatha and Stefan. So she isn’t alone. But I have been worried about her. I just want to see those beautiful green eyes, kiss her wonderful lips.”

“Sink into her like the first time all over again,” Rowan said.

They both sighed, thinking of them together. “Fuck,” River said.

****

“I’m so nervous,” Stefan said, stepping out of the hot spring with a large, soft, cotton towel wrapped around him. Two men helped him into a brown robe.

“There is nothing to be nervous about,” Mabon said beside him.

“You’ll do fine,” Autumn said. Her green robe fit her like a glove, and Stefan, just for a moment, wished she had chosen him over Rowan and River. He loved her, sometimes more than a friend and mentor, but now he had thoughts of someone else. He would always love her differently, but his new love interest was more interested in him than Autumn would ever be. They might have only known each other for a brief time, but they clicked.

Autumn let her eyes run over his brown robe. Her green eyes met his. There was a great power in him, and she could feel something, but what?

“You should have said something before you came over. I could have been naked,” he said, waggling his eyebrows at her.

A small blush touched her cheeks. “Sorry. We don’t want an episode like what happened between Anatha and River back in the mall.”

“That was the same night you and Anatha did the Summer Solstice Spell.”

She nodded, thinking of the mall, and a tear ran down her cheek. She wiped it quickly. “Yeah,” she said as another tear escaped her glossy green eyes.

He took her in his arms as she let the tears come. He ran his hand down her head as she buried it in his shoulder. “I know”, he whispered. “I miss them all too, even Jaime.”

She looked at him. “Really?”

He nodded. “Jaime and all the rest of the losers,” he said, making her laugh. “Come on. I am becoming a magical being tonight.”

The sun was going down as she took his hand. As soon as he touched it, he received a feeling like a deep pit inside him wanted to open, but a sleepy voice whispered through his mind.
Not yet
. He shook his head. The voice sounded familiar, yet foreign. He looked at Autumn. He opened his mouth but when she looked at him with those green magical eyes, he closed it.