The Witch Patch  Ch 13/16

The trouble with family                                                                                                
                                                                                             
We return home and stable our horses then walk to the house. It’s now 2:40 pm we open the front door and walk inside. Whoosh!  Fabian gasps!  Whoa! A massive cloud of hot wax and wild berry smoke smacks us all dead in the face! Honoria and I head to the kitchen to see what’s going on.                                      
                                     
“Hey, how about some coffee Blake.”, suggests Honoria.                                    
                                     
“You know it Cuz, sounds great!”                                      
                                     
We both enter the kitchen. I immediately open the kitchen windows and door to clear out the heavy smoke and waxy-fog in the room.                                      
                                       
Velvet, Delilah & Chastity were busy making scented candles in preparation for tonight.                                      
                                     
“Well, hello there ladies”,  said Honoria, cheerfully.                                      
                                     
“Oh, hello Cuz, hello sis”, said  Delilah, Velvet and Chastity in perfect unison.                                      
                                     
“Velvet, did you and Rocky get all the dinner and party supplies?”      
“Yup we got everything on the list.        
                                     
           
“Hey Blake?” yes Delilah, guess what? “What?” “Me, Velvet & Cat made dessert for tonight.”                                    
                                     
“Really?” How lovely. What’d you make?” asks Honoria.                                                                    
     
“We made three different desserts”, said Delilah. “I made two mixed-berry cobblers and a two pound bowl of creamy whipped topping.  Velvet made chocolate chip peppermint bark bars, and Cat made a full sheet of family crested, chocolate fudge cake. She used a custom stencil and powered sugar to make a stellar sea eagle our family crest, on top of the cake..”                    
                   
“Wow! The desserts look absolutely delicious!” I said with respect and admiration. “C’mere”      
I open my arms wide and they all rush in for a group hug including cousin Honoria.                                      
                                                                                       
I squint my eyes suspiciously as a joke and ask, “Did you wrap the cake tight with tinfoil the minute it came out of the oven? so the—“                                    
                                     
“So the cake stays moist” interrupts Cat playfully, “By covering a steaming hot cake fresh from the oven, causes the cake to become extra EXTRA moist so you don’t need any frosting”, she concluded.                                                                        
                                                                       
“Okay- okay I get it. You’re not children anymore—Well you are a “Kitty-cat” and a cute little bugger at that. How was school today kiddo?” I ask.                                      
                                     
“Pretty good,” she said. “Today I had two science classes back to back, so our entire class took a trip to Echo lake.  We are studying the lakes ecosystem and how it works“                                                                      
                                                                     
“Awesome! I’m so happy to know you get excited about science like me Cat.” She gives me the prettiest smile I’ve ever seen. I hug her apple cheeks with my fingers and squeeze ‘em gently and cheer,                                                
 “Science women rock Woo-Whoo! Yeah-Yeah! Science women rule! Wooo-whooo! Yeah-Yeah!”                                                  
                                               
                                                    
                                                                       
~~~~~~~~~~~~~***~~~~~~~~~~~~                                                                      
                                                                     
Pg 14                                                                   
       
Meanwhile Fabian took off out back to the barn to check up on the young 40 lb pig roast Sawyer and MeMe butchered earlier and put on the spit at 12:30 pm, after leaving Garrison‘s orchard earlier today.                                      
                                     
They brought Mr. Garrison with them, we didn’t wanna leave him alone. Plus Klaus is like family. Anyway, it takes about five hours to roast a pig on a spit so it should be ready around 5:30 pm.                                                                   
                                                                       
I personally don’t enjoy watching any animal roast, but the Breakstone family will have it no other way, even though we are modern day witches living in the 21st century. Some of our family members choose to live life like it’s the 13th century, like the brutal Viking Witches we are.                                                                      
But, whatever, I thought…                                                          
                                                 
                                                 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~***~~~~~~~~~~~~~                                                                        
                                                                       
Pg 15                                                                    
                                                                     
Honoria?                                      
                                     
“Yeah Cuz?”                                      
                                     
“Let’s head to the solarium to the lab?                                      
                                     
What for? she asks.                                    
                                     
“You’ll see”, I reply. “Hey Honoria?”                                      
                                     
“Yeah cuz?”                                      
                                     
“I challenge you to a race to the top!”                                                    
                                     
“Lets do it!” she said!                                      
                                     
“Ready Cuz?”                                    
                                     
“I’m ready Blake!”                                                                    
                                                     
I chuckle then raise my right hand up and bend my fingers to mimic a starting-gun and pretend to fire it. “GO!” I take off in a sprint up the stairs leaving Honoria behind, laughing uncontrollably I blurt out “Eat my dust punk! Woo who!”                                    
                                     
Laughing my ass off out loud while running up the stairs, I think to myself, I might actually win this time! Oh shit! Honoria is gaining on me!                                          
                                           
I pump up my volume, until I reach step 67! Wow-wee, I am literally panting, I stop for a quick second to catch my breath, and Cuz blows right past me! “Damnit!” I squeal in delighted laughter!                                                
                                                 
“No Way!” I scream as Honoria rounds step 89. “It’s ovah, she's to far ahead!”                                      
                                     
“Hey Blake!”                                      
                                     
“YEAH?”                                    
                                     
 “EAT MY DUST WITCH!”                                    
                                     
Then makes it to the top of the stairs first! Now defeated, again, for the like the 20th time in row, over the years, I concede, but am still having a great time just the same, with my dear lovable cousin.                                      
                                     
I keep going. 97, 98 99, and done. I reach the top step wicked winded, but mange to squeeze out a breath and congratulate her then give her a high five! “Hey great run Cousin!” I said. “I definitely got my work out today.”                                    
                                     
“yeah me too!” said Honoria, then does the happy dance throwing her hands up victoriously and says “I WIN!”                                                                                              
                                                                                               
                                                                                               
~~~~~~~~~~~~~***~~~~~~~~~~~~                                                                                                
                                                                                               
Pg 16                                                                                         
                   
Honoria opens the door to the solarium. We make our way over to the lab then take a seat at the periodic table. We then work a quick spell together. 16 ounces of water, a crystal singing bowl, a vial of liquid stardust and two sets of stethoscopes. And just like that the items appear on the table in front of us in an instant! "Ready? I ask Cuz, "Yup she said, "okay let's do this I said!" I pour the spring water and the entire vial of stardust into the crystal bowl and look for my reflection.                                          
                                         
“Boo! I see you!”, Yells out my reflection!                                                                                             
               
"The oracle’s ready!" I say excitedly, then take off the ring and spit on it, then place the ring near Honoria’s bottom lip and she spits on it too.  Then into the singing bowl the ring goes gifting the power of voice to our ancestors using our saliva. We equip our ears with child size stethoscopes. Honoria then caress the rim of the crystal bowl using a crystal dongle. The bowl begins to sing, we hold hands and begin to chant.                                                                                                
                                                                                               
Wicked Warlock And Wicket Queens                  Use Our Voice, Please Speak To Me                  We look into the oracle, nothing…                                                                                                
                                           
We start again.                                        
                   
Wicked Warlock And Wicket Queens Use Our Voice, Please Speak With Me "Nothing!"                          
AGAIN I DEMAND! squeezing Honoria‘s hands tighter.                                      
                                     
Wicked Warlock And Wicked Queens Use Our Voice, Please Speak With Me                                                                                        
                                                                                               
We Wait …….                                                            
We look into the oracle again, "NOTHING!"  "Wtf?"                                                    
We wait patiently still. I look at my iPhone, 5 minutes and counting.                                                              
                                                             
“Are you sure you’re doing it right Blake?”                                                            
                                     
“I’m sure,  I say a bit aggravated but hopeful. let’s tweak the chant and try again.”                                                                                                
                                                                                               
Maximus, Madonna, Melody                                                         
Please, wake up wake up                                                           
Speak with me                                                                                                
                                                                                               
"Poof!"                                    
                                     
“Finally!” The oracle let out a puff of smoke then began to swirl and come to life. It then released a long wisp of silvery mist about the width of a long teeny-tiny pubic hair, up above the singing bowl!                                                              
                                                             
Without a second to waste we use the stethoscopes to listen to the mist by barely touching it. My hands are shaking—“Nothing!  “We Hear Nothing!”                                                     
                                                             
We adjust our stethoscopes pushing the ear pieces deeper into our ears and continue to listen. After a few seconds the sound of voices comes through but barely a whisper.                                                                                              
                                                                                               
“Let us out! Please let us out!”                                          
and then, silence______                                                                                              
                                                                                               
“Wait, what?! That’s it?!  “WAIT!” "Don't go!"                                                         
 “I need to ask you some questions!”                                                  
                                     
“We are here for you too!” I yell at the oracle! NO-NO-NO! We try again! but it’s no use, the oracle went dormant.                                                                                                
                                                                                               
I will present the ring to the elders tonight and we will discuss what happened here today, I tell Honoria. Okay Blake, she replies, good idea.                                      
                                     
I don’t think you should wear that ring, urges Honoria. I agree I’ll put it in a pull bag. We clean up and put everything away. On our way out of the solarium I grab a small satin pouch & velvet pull bag and put the ring inside it bringing it downstairs with us.                                                
                                               
                                                                                       
                                                                                               
To be continued…