The Summer Solstice ~ Enchanted (13 page)

Rose shakes her head. “No. His family – they
aren’t followers. Not that we know of anyway. They’ve only been here for a
year.”

I shake my head. “Followers? Like a cult?”

Rose glares at me. I’m reminded of the day I asked
her if she was a Wiccan. “Followers are those who believe and know of the
Solstice. Just as we are Solstice descendants, they are descendants of Astina
Somer’s followers. You’ll meet them soon.” The way Rose speaks of all of this,
with so much confidence is bewildering. For 16 years I’ve lived in a world
where magic was make believe, and Greek gods and goddesses were merely elaborate
stories told as a form of religion. And here she is, expecting me to accept
this as if it’s all natural.

I think about my mom again, wondering why she felt
the need to keep this secret from me and take me far from my family. And then I
think of the man who I was told abandoned me when I was a baby –
where
has he been all these years?

“So my dad is a Solstice too?” I stop now, an
entire new series of questions form.

Rose’s chest rises and sinks before she adjusts her
position in the chair. Is Rose nervous? “Yes, my son – Paul – is a
Solstice.” Then she stares at me, as if expecting me to ask
the question
.

“Then why did she take me away? If Enchanters are
good – why wouldn’t she want to be a part of it all?”

“Oh Kat –.” Rose’s expressions falls,
revealing her age. She sees my impatience and places a hand on my shoulder.
“You will know everything, I promise. But there’s a lot you need to understand
first.”

Reluctantly, I change the subject. “So who are the
others?”

Rose smiles. “There are many others out there. Some
live in Apollo Beach. Some were here yesterday. Others know about me and come
to see me from time to time, but Charlotte is the only one who has remained
with me.” Rose adjusts herself in her chair. “Charlotte lost her parents many
years ago. Like you, and your mom, she was left with no one at a very young
age. She’s traveled the world, alone with her power and with a vague
understanding of her existence. It’s actually a common thing that happens in
our community.”

I tilt my head but say nothing. Rose has a lot more
to say.

“Over the centuries our kind has been split apart
by wars and circumstances beyond our control. Some Enchanters live their entire
lives without knowing what they are, or how to control what they can do.
Solstice settlements were set up around the world in order to keep whatever
communities we could together. One of those settlements is here, in Apollo
Beach. Every now and then, a Solstice will find their way here because of their
powers. If they reveal themselves to me then I’m able to help them find out
where they came from. Some stay, and some leave. Miraculously, Charlotte found
me. We help each other. She has become well aware of where she came from, what
she is, and what her purpose is. It works out for both of us. I have the
company, care, and friendship of someone who I’ve grown to think of as my
daughter. I’ve always had your grandfather as a companion–.” Her voice
catches and there’s a longing in Rose’s voice that I don’t quite understand but
I can guess that Charlotte was able to fill a void in Rose that was lost when
George passed away.

“Our bond was strong. We share great memories and
had some cherished Solstice experiences together. Now that he’s gone things
have been difficult for me. I’m used to the Solstice life but since his death,
my powers grow weaker with my age. But it’s also my choice. I’m giving my
powers up. But not until you’re fully trained.”

Fully
trained?
I store that one
away to ask later. “What happens when your power goes away? You just lose it?”

Rose nods. “Yes, once it fades completely it will
be gone forever.”

I’m nodding slowly now, understanding. “And you say
everyone gets their power at 16? Then why the visions and dreams before that?”

“I’m sorry about that, Katrina. I wanted to explain
to you, to comfort you. But it’s against our law to reveal what you possess
before your legal Solstice date. The age has always been 16 but the powers do
not come in exact time. However, the powers are uncontrollable until your legal
age. You will see that your powers will come only when you ask them to now. And
they will only grow stronger.”

I nod my head slowly and think back on yesterday
when I was mysteriously transported from the pool to the beach. My imagination
begins to go wild. When I ask Rose if time travel and teleportation is
possible, I’m immediately anxious for the answer. I wonder if it’s possible to
see my mother again.

To my disappointment Rose shakes her head. “It’s a
difficult thing to understand at first but once you begin practicing, you’ll
see. As Enchanters, we can manipulate the natural progression of things. We can
influence. We can even control the emotions and sometimes actions of others.
But we can’t rewrite history and we can’t change the future.

She allows me to process the information, and as I
do I sit back in my chair and shut my eyes.

“Didn’t you feel it?” I don’t know what she means
at first. And then I remember the sensation that came over me right before I
opened my eyes to find myself on the beach.

I nod slowly. “I didn’t know what that was.”

“That was your power. The first time you step
outside on the day of the Summer Solstice is when you receive full control of
your powers. And then the rest was me. I saw you walk outside – I almost
missed it but Charlotte was helping me keep an eye on you. I froze everyone and
then created a scene for Alec to remember while I helped you to the beach. I
knew you’d come to, feeling disoriented, and I didn’t want to attract attention
to you.”

I ask her to tell me more, about the evil that
works against the Solstice but she doesn’t want to answer. “In due time. First,
we must start at the beginning. Before we can practice magic, you must learn
the rules. Are you ready?”

I nod as wonder spreads across my face and
butterflies flutter wildly in my stomach. I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready
for this. But I follow Rose into the house, past the great room and down the
small hallway until we reach the small hallway with the few steps that lead
down to the library.

Once we’re inside she takes me up a set of stairs
and she grins at me from over her shoulder. “You know how there are secret
rooms in old libraries? All you have to do is turn the candlestick?” As she
says this, she places her hand on a wall candle and pulls it forward. She
laughs, watching my shocked expression.

The door doesn’t rotate on a mechanical floor as
I’m expecting, nor does it flip upside down to reveal a new wall. Instead, Rose
pulls on the candlestick and literally pulls a door open. Now, looking at the upside-down
candlestick I realize that it looks like a door handle.

Behind the wall is another den filled with loose
papers, uneven stacks of books lying about, and another bookshelf filled with
raggedy-spines of all shapes and sizes. An old desk sits on the far side of the
room. I see Charlotte behind the desk, a titanic-sized book beneath her crossed
forearms. She’s beaming up at me.

“Hello, Kat. I see you’ve come to your senses.”

Without answering right away, my eyes sweep the
room again. There is a line of photos hanging on the wall and I walk over to
them, fascinated. I already know who they are – direct descendants of the
Summer Solstice. The first is a hand drawn illustration of the Goddess of
Enchantment, Astina Somer. I stare at her, eyeing every detail of her features
and soaking them into my memory.

“I still don’t know what to make of all of this,” I
say this breathlessly as my eyes float across the room and land on Charlotte.

“I am going to have my afternoon tea.” Rose
exclaims with a new excitement. “We will chat later but for now, Charlotte has
everything that you need to get started.”

I watch her go, wondering when she’s going to give
me more of the story. “Sit,” Charlotte says, interrupting my thoughts and I
turn to see a chair from the other side of the den slide over and hit the back
of my legs. I gasp, Charlotte giggles like a schoolgirl. For the first time
this morning I am relaxed. The corners of my mouth turn up slightly.

“How long have you known about me?” It’s the first
question out of my mouth, though it’s not the first question I want to ask.

Charlotte smiles. “Well, it wasn’t too long after I
met Rose. I figured it out for myself after knowing you were out there. It
doesn’t take long once you understand the family tree.” Her face turns to sympathy. “How are you
doing with all of this?”

I shrug at first and then sigh. “It’s like, I know
these things are happening so it’s undeniable really. But there is a still a
part of me waiting to wake up from a dream.”

“I understand that feeling.” Charlotte makes a
face. “Imagine these things happening to you and not understanding a thing for
ten years! I can’t believe I survived this long. I thought I was going crazy.
But deep down I knew there had to be others out there.”

Poor Charlotte. “I’m glad you found Rose then.”

She smiles. “Me too.”

“Do you know anything about my parents, Charlotte?”
My curiosity has returned now and I’m dying to know.

Charlotte cringes. “I only know what Rose has told
me about them, which isn’t much. But I do know that she doesn’t want to discuss
that with you yet.” She gives me a kind smile.

I sigh. “She did say she’d tell me in time. But I
don’t want to wait.”

“One thing I believe now after spending some time
here, is that if you are destined to be a Solstice, then nothing can stop it
from happening. It doesn’t matter why you became a Solstice because it was your
destiny. The powers of the Solstice would have found you one way or another.
It’s just the way this thing works.”

“You honestly believe that?”

Charlotte nods emphatically. “I do, absolutely.
Your powers – they will be out of this world. And with you being born on
the day of the Solstice it will be so exciting to see what you can do. We don’t
know exactly what’s to become of your powers but we’re all eager to find out.

“Why?”

Charlotte’s energy springs off the walls as she
speaks. She’s so passionate. “Kat. It is extremely rare to be born from
Solstice blood under the sun of the Solstice goddess on the day of her birth.”
Her eyes are wide. “There are already rumors out there that Astina Somer’s
reincarnate has arrived. That could be you. But either way your connections to
the Solstice and all that enchants us is by far the strongest possible
connection we’ve ever witnessed.”

She sits back in her chair now, energy calmed.
“Just as our followers and other Enchanters seek Rose out, they will begin to
seek you out.”

“For what?” The thought of strangers knocking on my
door so that I can help them find themselves does not sound appealing.

“They will look to
you for leadership, healing, and – well – answers.”

Preparation for this magic stuff sure takes a long
time. Here I am, on the seventh day following my birthday, desperately wanting
to practice my powers and see what I’m capable of, but Rose insists that I
learn all of the basics before I move on.

Charlotte has become my mentor, working with me,
guiding me through each chapter, and answering questions as I have them –
and I have a lot. But she gets her orders from Rose who has me reading the
Solstice Law Book from cover-to-cover – a 3,456 handwritten textbook of
rules. The ink is well preserved but the ancient script is not so easy to
read.

I’m completely engaged with the entire chapter on
Powers. It’s over 250 pages and describes every power I am capable of and what
my restrictions are. To my disbelief, Restrictions, is a chapter well over 300
pages.

Myths is another chapter that I find myself
devouring. It describes the Solstice compared to other types of magical beings.
Such as witches, wizards, and super heroes. I learn here that the Solstice
believe in honoring his and her gods and goddesses, but does not believe in
satanic worship. Sacrifice is not a proven devotion to the Solstice nature. To
prove ones self to higher Solstice gods, one must be purely devout to the
promise of a good life.

I push the book away, exhausted from reading.
Whoever wrote this book did not have a manageable training timeline in mind.

Some ideologies bother me about what the Solstice
and I never hesitate to ask Rose. Every now and then, I notice that Rose is annoyed
by my constant curiosity.

“I have a problem with being a vegetarian.”

Rose points out that in the Law Book there is no
demand to become a vegetarian.

“There is a law to respect all living things
amongst us. Killing an animal for selfish need is forbidden.” I tell her this
as if she doesn’t know it.

Rose rolls her eyes. “You’re not killing anything
by eating it. Eating meat is left for personal choice.”

“So I can eat steak tonight?”

Rose glares over the rims of her reading glasses.
“Yes”