The Coven

Athene-

Athene dropped some of the autumn's blackberries in the cauldron. "I've been learning," she began simply, and smiled. "From the wise woman."

Nicholas snorted.

"Laugh all you want, but she was good."

"They were never good enough for the coven," he said. "They barely have any power."

"No," she said, wiping her hands on her apron. "But the coven were never trusted enough to be midwifes."

He looked at her incredulously. "So that's what you've been doing? Sticking your hands up pregnant ladies."

She slapped him up the head. "Bringing new lives into the world. Healing sick animals, tending to children with fevers, laying out the dead."

Nicholas shook his head. "But you were powerful, you could have done anything."

"And I'm doing a lot. I'm happy where I am Nicholas." She sat down beside him and looked hard at him. "I've settled down here. But you haven't. What have you been doing on your wanderings?"

Rydia

They each had seperate rooms at the tavern, at Rydia's request, even when the owner said it would be cheaper if two shared a room. But no. Rydia needed her privacy and the others needed time to think. They did not hesitate long after receiving their keys and good-nights were brief but awkward, smothered with the residue of their last parting.

Her room was small and simple but pleasant enough and both candles and matches had been provided. She lit just one candle and changed into her night clothes, wrapping a shield of air around the door and window at the same time. How cautious the increase in evil spirits had made her. After that, Rydia sat for a time, observing the map spread across the table, watching the markers move around until all lay still.

"And now they sleep as I should too," she whispered. Blowing out the candle, she curled up in the bed and drifted into a restless sleep filled with dreams of the dark presence that was lurking in the shadows, plotting, planning, scheming. She knew with a certainty that only dreamers can feel that their time was running low and she prayed that the other witches would be as eager as Persephone and Caelin.

Keleria

Crouching outside the window Keleria listened intently to what Athene and Nicholas were saying. She was shocked to find out that they hadn't seen each other before, she thought it had been a prearranged meeting. But she was more surprised and outraged to hear what Athene had been doing for the past nine years.
"How can she help those humans?" she muttered to herself, "they've done nothing but hurt us and ridicule us. We owe them nothing."
lowering herself to her knees, she crawled away from the conversation. Once she was out of the window's siteline she stood up. They were on the outskirts of the village so no one saw her strange behavior, and she felt confident that no one had seen her following them here.
Turning towards the town she made her way in search of an inn and somewhere to stay the night, keeping her head down and hiding her disgust at being so close to the humans that walked the streets. She watched them walk calmly and loathed them for their indifference to the fact that something was happening in the world around them. Their lack of power was obvious to her and it made her hate them more.
Wlking into the inn she quickly spoke to the innkeeper and made herself comfortable in her small room.

Athene-

There was a rustling outside, she jumped up and looked out the window.

"You're jumpy," Nicholas remarked.

Athene bit her lip. "Sorry," she said. "I just-" she strained, but saw no moving shape in the darkness.

"You can take my room." He began to protest and she held up a hand. "No, you're a guest. In any case, I'll have to get up at dawn to tend to the new Fulham baby and his mother, so if you sleep in the kitchen I'll wake you up. You need some sleep, I can tell."

He couldn't contradict this.

"Maybe we can talk at dawn then," she said, lighting a candle from the fire. He took it off her. "Sweet dreams," she said, and Nicholas snorted.

Athene glanced out the window again. "I just thought..." she shook her head once more. "You're being paranoid," she told herself. "No witches abroad this evening. Couldn't be."

Tempest

Tempest returned from work, kicked off her shoes, and changed into her sitting-around-the house clothes. She made a quick dinner, and ate it in the dimly lit kitchen, with the dogs eating from their bowls around the room.Once it was dark, she rounded up the dogs, and went outside. She liked to walk them when there was the least chance of her running into anyone.

"Come on," she murmered, tugging the leads a little. The dogs needed little encouragment, and she'd taken them around the green four times before they began to calm down.

~Caelin~

Caelin woke up with a start to find himself gasping and drenched with cold sweat.
His dreams, or rather, his nightmares had not been good. And the signs of the spirit were still gone.
Damn you, he thought. Damn everything[i].
He had been reliving the past in his dreams, over and over again. All the bad parts. And then there had been a tower, a tower standing high on a burning plain with lakes of fire. Something about the Coven. He had seen something about the Coven in his dreams. But what, he couldn't remember?
[i]Maybe Rydia should know about this.
He lay there for a while thinking. If he told her, she would think he was mad. He would lose her respect, one of the few things he had left in the world. And probably Persephone's too. And the others, if they saw him the way he was...
Just go back to sleep. They're only nightmares, nothing more,

Keleria woke up crying. Shocked and ashamed at herself she quickly crossed to the basin and washed her face, but she couldn't wash away the memory of the dream. Moira's face was still implanted in front of her eyes and her abmonishings were still ringing in her eyes.
Packing her things back up quickly, Keleria got ready to leave. She glanced out of the window and saw a familiar form moving through the streets. Athene was moving towards a house near the center of the village. Watching her go Keleria realsied that Athene was comfortable here, she moved with confidence and ease, almost unaware of the other people bustling around her.
How cazn she like it here?
Having finished packing her things, Keleria went to leave the inn, until someone grabbed her arm.
"What do you want?" She rounded on the innkeeper.
"Miss," the innkeeper spoke coldly, "you havn't payed."
"Are you threatening me?" she spoke softly, looking straight at him. Her intense look made his eyes flicker but he held he gaze.
"Look, hun, I don't care how mean you look, you're still a customer."
"Don't you know who you're talking to?"
"No," The man smirked, "I don't reckon I do."
"I am one of the coven," she spoke clearly and strongly, "Don't mess with me."
"The coven, eh?" The innkeeper didn't seem to be listening, "I don't care what you are, you're still a human, and you will pay."
By this stage he had dropped her arm and she was free to move. She took her pack off her back and moved to get something out of it. "May I just say to you," she smirked at him, "I'm not human."
She moved to throw something at him, when a sharp voice cut through the air.
"Keleria! Stop!"
She turned to see Nicholas walking towards her, a severe look on his face.

Athene-

Athene woke suddenly as the dawn broke. There was no noise around her, only light jutting through the shutter slits.

She got up and peeked into the next room. Nicholas was still asleep.

Quietly, she sneaked out of her cottage. She splashed her face with quickly conjured water, and soaked her hair, before plaiting it and pinning it onto her head. She pulled on her purple dress over her shift and tied her blue apron over the top, before heading down towards the Fulhams.

She passed the inn, and could have sworn she saw a familiar face. She shook her head. The cries of a newborn sounded from the Fulhams house. She went in.

"Athene," Mistress Fulham said, relieved. "I was just about to call you. He's shivering like mad, I've had him next to the fire all night and wrapped up good and warm, but-"

"What did I tell you?" Athene said sternly. "You need to rest. Go on-"

"But-"

"Go. Give him to me."

She took the baby in her own arms. "He's just cold from the air around him, that's all, he needs to get used to it. I can give him something for that."

"Can't you just conjure heat or something?" Mistress Fulham asked anxiously.

"I'm not a witch."

"Come now, the whole village has worked it out Athene, there's no use hiding behind that."

Athene shook her head, even if it was no use denying it anymore, she didn't like to openly admit it. "Even if I was, I can't conjure fire anyway. You'd need... someone else for that."

Mistress Fulham drew close. "Did you not feel it last night?" She was sensitive to magic, almost psychic in the way she could sense the tiniest shift in the magic outside. "Witches. More than one. All over the village."

Athene sighed. "I was right then. I kept thinking, I mean, Nicholas was bad enough, but... there were more, weren't there?"

"I think so," Mistress Fulham agreed quietly.

"Right," Athene said. "Well, we'll get this one warmed up, then I'll go check it out."

"You think they're a threat?"

"I'd just rather have no witches in my village, that's all."

Nicholas-

"Keleria! Stop!" I yelled across the inn, ignoring the curious looks I received from the other customers as I strode towards the two. I grasped the girl's shoulder forcefully, pulling her behind me as I drew my last two coins from one of my inner pockets, dropping them into the innkeepers hand. He examined them and stuffed them into his apron pocket.

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience, sir," I said stiffly before turning. I grabbed Keleria's arm and dragged her outside despite her protests of, "Ouch, Nicholas, stop!"

I pulled her around the back of the inn before letting her go. She scowled, rubbing her arm and glaring up at me.

"Keleria, what were you doing?" I demanded sharply, glaring back. This was not one of the ways I would've liked to meet one of my fellow Coven members whom I hadn't seen in seven years.

Athene-

Once the Fulham baby was wrapped up safe and warm, I bid his parents farewell and walked back into the square.

Nicholas was standing in the early morning light, with somebody I hadn't expected to see.

"No," I whispered under my breath. Anybody could have come, but not her.

I ran over. "Get out," I said viciously to Keleria.

She turned to me and laughed. "Get out? You're ordering me around?"

"I'm your elder, this is my territory, I don't want you here."

"Athene, calm down-" Nicholas started, no doubt he didn't want a fight to break out.

"Nicholas, if she stays here she'll kill and maim. I can't let that happen."

"We just need to talk this through," he said. "Just relax."

I bit my lip. "I'm sorry. I have people I promised I would protect here. This is Keleria. Even when she was young, she's always hated them. And I can tell she still does. I won't let her stay here!" I shrieked.

Rydia

Rydia crossed the room and opened the window, looking down at the three barely recognisable witches as they argued, shouted; bickered.

"I'm sorry. I have people I promised I would protect here. This is Keleria. Even when she was young, she's always hated them. And I can tell she still does. I won't let her stay here!" The skinny red haired girl could only be Athene and the two with her Keleria and Nicholas. Six members of the coven all in the same town, how strange.

"I'll stay here if I want to!" Keleria retorted. "You're pathetic. Living with these humans, helping them..." Keleria raised a hand, glowing red as flames danced along her fingertips. Nicholas stepped between them quickly and Rydia decided it was time to intervene before a witch war was started.

"Follow me," Rydia hissed over her shoulder to Persephone and Caelin who had silently entered the room some time ago. They both stepped forward to join her at the window and she climbed up onto the windowsill and stepped out, controlling the air currents with ease even as Caelin and Persephone allowed themselves to be caught up in the levitation spell.

"I think it's time for us to talk," Rydia announced as her feet touched the ground not far from where Athene stood.

Athene-

"Mercy!" she cried. "How many of us are there?"

"Six," Rydia said. "Calm Athene."

"Rydia, what are you all doing here? This is mad. Six witches in this village. It isn't possible."

"Anything is possible," Rydia said. "Keleria will not hurt anybody here. Calm."

"How do you know that?" Athene snarled. "You cannot order us any longer. Seven years, seven long years. I'm not part of the Coven any longer. So why are you in my village? All of you," she said and looked at each of them in turn.

"We need to talk," Persephone said. "Where shall we go?"

Persephone-

She was careful not to make eye contact with any of them. She was still shy Persephone in some ways but also strong willed in others. But they were all her elders and she would show them respect. She had a memory triggered by them all being there together. She remembered laying in her bed just before the coven separated, the others were arguing in another room, she didn't know over what though. A week later she woke up and everyone was gone, the house in disarray. She was alone, abandoned.
Persephone shook the memory from her thoughts and looked up to see if a descion had been made. Nicholas was infront of her with an expectant look on his face.
"Coming?" he asked leading the way to the rest of the group.

Rydia

The tavern seemed as good a place as any and Rydia strode straight up to the owner and requested the use of his back room. At first, he appeared to be startled and ready to argue but the flash of silver was enough to quiet him and Rydia found the room to her liking, though perhaps a little small for the six of them.

"I take it there's a reason we all just happen to be in the same place then?" Athene demanded.

"I'm sure you've felt the increase in dark magic and spiritual essence these last few weeks so I wont go into detail there but the basic plan is to re-unite the coven to combat this deadly force and save humanity..." Rydia paused. "And witches."

"What?" Keleria demanded. "And I suppose these two with you have already agreed to go along with this stupid idea? The coven is broken and I for one am not taking orders again, not to help some pitiful humans!"

"Witches too," Rydia reminded her. "And that's quite alright. I think the coven can be victorious minus one member or two and there are always more witches eager for a place." Did I push her too far? Rydia wondered. Can I count on her pride to force her to join us? If the coven is not complete with as many original members as possible, then we are surely doomed. But can she be trusted or are we better without her.

"You say it's to help humanity?" Athene asked. Rydia nodded.

"Will you join us?" Rydia asked. "I need an answer soon - there's another of us just a half day's walk from here and I hope to reach her before sunset. And perhaps the next one too, she is not much further."

Tempest

Tempest was worn out by the time she got home. Settling the dogs down for the night, she tugged off her shoes and, leaving them by the door, headed up to bed.

The next morning bore little joy. She knew that this would be the case as soon as she got out of bed. Her sleep had been fragmented and punctuated by nightmares Her fears were confirmed when she went out to the back and discovered that Rover was missing. Frantic, she checked the side door. It opened and closed, banging against the wall in the wind. She cursed. Rover had been getting rather good at opening the handle, clever creature that he was. She'd meant to have a lock installed, but that would have meant calling someone in to do it. She'd been stubbournly searching for locks in late-night hardware shops. There were two lying on her dresser, neither of which she'd managed to effectively apply to the door.


She shut the door and fixed leads to the remaining dgs before rushing inside and out the front door, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she was still in her slippers and dressing gown, and rushed up to the green, calling Rover as she went.After hours of serachin the bushes and the neighbours' gardens, she concluded that he must have gone farther than she though. She'd consider no worse explanation.

She hurrried back home, panting slightly as she reached the front door and turned her key in the lock, and dressed hastily in the first clothes upon which she could lay her hands, not caring about her apprearance. Rounding up the dogs once more, she headed off to the nearby woods.