Page 6 of With This Witch
Take, for example, little Seraphina. She’s been taught and encouraged to hide her wings, and despite multiple conversations with her family, they continue to send her in restrictive clothing. It dulls her glow and creates shame around her difference. Seraphina once asked, “Miss Petra, why am I the only one with wings?”
“Well, Seraphina, you have wings because you are a fae. Those wings give you special abilities, just like Max’s ability to run really fast, or Olive’s invisibility. Do you like having wings?”
Seraphina looks down at the table, and Petra can see the hesitation. “I think my wings are pretty.”
“They are very pretty. I love how they sparkle in the sunlight.”
Seraphina’s face breaks into a bright smile. “Me too! But Mommy says I can’t show them to everyone.”
“I know, love. There may be people who don’t like your wings, but your wings are part of what makes you you. Remember how you helped get the baby doll out of the tree when Charlie threw it up there?”
“Yeah! I flew up so fast!”
Petra opens her arms, and Seraphina climbs into her lap. “You were so fast. And if you didn’t have wings, that would still be up there. Because of you, we can still play with that doll.”
“Yeah. Can I take my sweater off?”
“Absolutely!” Petra says. “Do you want to trace your shadow on paper so we can show everyone your fantastic wings?”
“Yes! Yes! YES!” she replies, bouncing off of Petra’s lap and running to the shelf for the big paper.
As Petra watches Seraphina line up the paper under the window and instruct a human friend to trace her, Petra can’t help but feel that ember inside her ignite into a full flame. This. This is what she was meant to do. Help children of all species connect and support each other. If only it was so easy to do this in the larger adult community. Maybe she should talk to her directors about running a community event to bring the families together…
Arriving home from the day, exhaustion spawned by a day of caring for her little friends and having to make a thousand different in-the-moment decisions takes over her body. And she still has to attend tonight’s stupid council meeting. She has about an hour at home before leaving, so she decided to make a quick dinner and shower to wash the bad vibes off.
While Petra had watched Gammy navigate council politics all her life, the idea of going before them is, well, terrifying. The council is comprised of the most powerful beings from each of the factions within the supernatural community. They are the ones who determine the rules, regulations, and laws the Leeside community would follow as well as how they could engage with the human world. As much as the human and supernatural communities have been integrated within the last fifty years, there are still policies that dictate what is considered appropriate behavior, which are in place largely to keep humans safe. But it means that the council has the ability to dictate the lives of the community to maintain this order and control.
With a few minutes to spare, she dresses in dark-wash skinny jeans, a lilac blouse, a dark gray leather jacket, and black ankle boots. She tops it off with a long silver chain, small silver hoops in her ears, and her family crest ring on her right hand. She does her best to channel Gammy’s strength, hoping she looks presentable but fierce.
She leaves her apartment at seven. Walking down the stairwell, she feels a familiar pull in the pit of her stomach seconds before being whisked away through time and space to the council chambers. She hates traveling through ports. Which means it’s probably a good thing that she can’t do it herself. Through a collective agreement between the various council factions many years ago, it was determined that porting—the ability to travel magically—was reserved for council members only. The council has always been wary that the other members of the community will misuse the skill.
A wave of nausea washes over her, flipping her stomach as she finds her footing in the chambers, the room still spinning. Someone begins speaking; she’s unsure who, but she holds up a finger, silently asking for a moment to steady herself. The speaker stops and waits.
“Are you well, Miss Rose?” the speaker asks.
Shaking her head to try to clear the fuzzy feeling, Petra looks up to find herself in the middle of council chambers, which resembles a courtroom with a bench large enough to seat eight judges rather than only one. There is a small stand, presumably for witnesses, off to the right and two tables behind her. She stands directly between the council members’ bench and the tables for arguing parties.
“Miss Rose. Are you well enough to proceed?” the speaker, the vampire council representative, asks again.
Mustering whatever courage she can find, she stands tall. “Yes, Councilor Amare, my apologies.” Her magic crawls along her skin, sensing something unusual.Weird.
“Good, then let us begin,” the Councilor responds. “You have been called here because it has come to the council’s attention that the current Premier Witch, Gladys Rose, is fatally ill.”
Petra sucks in a quiet breath. Hearing it out loud is a gut punch. She fights the urge to sway, staving off the tilting of her world beneath her feet.
“This means the power attributed to the Premier Witch will be without a host, and as you are next in line, it would appear as though you would be the next vessel. However, the council has concerns about your ability to hold this title and to wield the responsibility associated with this role,” Councilor Amare says.
“That’s a bit unfair…” Petra attempts to interject but is promptly cut off by one of the other council members.
“You have continued to show your lack of interest in the larger magical community, instead spending time teaching mortal children. You have not spent the required time to train and hone your skills. You are also close friends with a witch who has been shunned from the community,” the goblin representative, Councilor Clellugs, states matter-of-factly.
Petra stares, stunned at the bluntness of the delivery and the disdain for others. “Pardon me, council members, but not once have I done anything prohibited. I have always done what is expected of me. I work with children because I find value in helping the next generation develop and grow into accepting and acceptable beings. I am helping to build a world of inclusion that I cannot say has been readily supported among all members of our supernatural community. I also want to clarify for the record that the children I teach are a mix of mortal and supernatural beings. And Daisy hasnotbeen shunned. Herfamilycommitted some atrocious acts, of which she had no part, and she has been harshly punished for crimes that are not her own. If anything, I would say you could stand to learn fromme,” she finishes.
She plays back what she just said and pales, realizing how much trouble she’s caused for herself.
“While that speech was wonderful, if not a sign of your lack of control, you failed to address your willful absence from the community and desire to hone your skills. How do you address these issues, Miss Rose?” Councilor Clellugs retorts.
“I have spent many years practicing magic under the watchful eye of Councilor Rose. She has never expressed concern about my skill level or mentioned that I needed to improve. If her level of expertise as the current Premier Witch is insufficient for you, then perhaps there is another conversation you need to be having, particularly around the value of the role of a Premier Witch,” Petra responds, making sure to look each one of them in the eye, posing a challenge as she does. They know the importance of the Premier Witch and how much the current one has done for the community. She knows they aren’t questioning Gammy’s expertise; rather, they are trying to make Petra doubt her own abilities.
