For the rest of the evening after the ritual, Maggie stayed pretty quiet, remaining at her parent’s side. They fawned over her after she returned from the Wellspring, and didn’t seem to care that she had panicked whilst there- they were just happy that she had bonded herself to the coven and went through with the initiation. Her mother showed her off to all of her friends, her beautiful daughter apparently glowing from the Wellspring’s magic. Her father was beaming; his little girl was now a fully fledged witch! Her brother was indifferent at best, envious of the preferential treatment his sister was receiving, and spent the remainder of the night with his friends smoking herbs near the treeline.

Before she knew it, the night had turned starry and navy, and it was time for everyone to depart. As she said goodbye to her parents, her mother snatched the book the girl had been clutching since she retrieved it from the coven house, much to her chagrin, scolding her. “I want you to actually try your best to be present, Maggie. Don’t think I didn’t see you earlier on the porch for the majority of the celebration. You’re going to be here all summer and I want you to spend time with everyone. Are we clear?” Her mother's blue eyes shone solemnly, and Maggie nodded glumly in response. The blonde knew that not all was lost, as she had put two more books in her suitcase, and there must have been a whole slew of them in the coven house. She had heard that the library was one of the largest rooms in the building, and she looked forward to perusing the titles later on. Maggie hugged her parents, and begrudgingly her brother, before they disappeared into the night down the same path they all drove down this morning. She had to make them proud… but how?

Once all of the newly minted witches were gathered up and shown their sleeping situation for the evening, Maggie couldn’t help but feel uneasy. She didn’t have too many sleepovers growing up, especially ones outdoors and with boys present, so this was sure to be interesting. What would her father say, knowing that a boy would possibly be sleeping right next to her? He had strictly banned dating of all types until she was a mature witch…. oh wait, she was a witch now. Did this mean she could date? Focus, Maggie, now’s not the time for that. the girl thought to herself, twiddling her thumbs as Lark bid them a good evening and headed back towards the house.

The blonde sighed, and fished her pajamas, as well as a new book, out of her suitcase before finding a private corner in the bushes to change. If she was going to be subjected to this unpleasant experience, she might as well be comfy. Maggie silently praised herself for bringing long sleeves, especially since now they were sleeping outside. Even though it was summer, it had a tendency to get quite cool at night, so the warmth of the fabric comforted her as she emerged back out to the makeshift campsite, hair thrown into a bun on the top of her head. She noticed Calypso had also changed, and cracked a smile at the girl’s choice of attire. It was fun, just like she seemed to be. Speaking up uncharacteristically, Maggie tried to compliment her.

“You look very comfy, Calyp-” She started to speak, but it appeared that the girl didn’t want to face anyone, hood up and covering her eyes as she walked away from the group and isolated herself. The blonde sighed, knowing the feeling of just wanting to be alone, and let the darker haired girl walk away. Taking the attempted social interaction in stride, Maggie meandered over to the campfire and sat down on the closest sleeping bag to the dancing flames, making the conscious decision to try not to open up her book until it was absolutely necessary.

---

Kate really doesn't want to go back to the party, even though they would happily talk to their parents, they really don't want to talk to their aunt. To find a excuse for not going, Kate look around to see if witches need some healing and it seems that everyone is good, they sigh while taking off the robe "Sure, yeah not. I feel like everyone wrist are all heal" While walking with Alayna, Kate overhearing Lucien saying that Hana Song heal job really was flawless, no scar insight and then saying that girl is going places, Kate look their wrist, it still have a scar, then remembering that they heal Rowan, Cassandra and Alayna wrist, all of the girls probably have scars on their wrist too. Kate just doesn't understand, healing magic is their strong Suit and they study the shit of out it, they guess they have a lot to learn.

After finally made it back to the party, Kate parents rush to their side and give them a big hug, sure this is embarrassing from the outside but on the inside, a hug is what Kate really need right now. "Oh Kate, me and your father are just so proud of you right now!" "Thanks, guys" Kate say to their parents "yeah, kiddo! You remain me of us when we were your age" their dad say, Kate does wonder if their parents went the feeling of pressure and low self-esteem that Kate is going though right now "You are going to have so much fun at house but I bet you will love camping!" Kate train of thoughts was cut short when they hear the word camping "Wait, everyone's going to camp in forest? They didn't tell us that" "They didn't? Huh, the teachers usually tell the students about that" Diu say "It's a witch tradition, it where you have a deep and sacred connection to nature" John say Kate and then he and his wife starting to blush "You know Kate, it was a special night for me and your mother, it's where we have our first kiss" John say in lovely pride. While Kate thinks this sounds cute, Kate jokingly starts to pretend gag and then the Shuang start to laugh with eachother.

While saying their parents goodbyes, Kate notice that their aunt Mei is no longer at the party, which it was a big relief to them. Kate mother then say to not worry about Clem, she will bring their doggy companion to the house as soon as possible, Kate does still feel bad for not bringing Clem along to the party, they didn't know pets are allowed to the party, Kate bid their parents as they watch their parents drive off and then disappeared into the trees, this is it, Kate guess this is adulthood...For Witches.

Kate then changes into their pjs and then sit down around the campsite with the other witches "Sooooo, does anyone want to tell a ghost story?"

@Qia

---

Rowan stayed around the wellspring for a while sharing her concoction around and helping people out of the wellspring. But ultimately she had to go back to the party, and she alone back through the trail. Well not alone alone she was with the group, just not really talking to anyone. After going through something like that, she much preferred to be left to her own thoughts for a while. Rowan was now in the big bad world of witches and in her mind she couldn't decide what to worry about first. Being able to live up to what her grandmother has done or the fact that even now as a fully fledged witch she still didn't have any self defense magic. Guess time would tell how she will shape up especially when she will be in close proximity to her peers. She tried to get all this out of her head but it would resurface again and again.

Coming back to the party was enough for her to forget about her worries for a bit. Then her dad picking her up in a bear hug was enough to clear her mind of it completely. "I'm very proud of you Rowan" her mom said to her. Rowan's mom wasn't one to waffle on with words, but the small amount she gave meant the world to Rowan. "Thanks mom, I uh guess I'm a witch now." Rowan couldn't help the smile spreading across her face, there was little she could do at all to hide the excitement she felt. "Also, sorry, but could you get my box garden from back home. I... didn't know if I would make it into coven so I didn't pack it for the trip here." Her mom then had her go at hugging her daughter "well luckily for you, someone believes in you a lot more than you do at the moment. The garden is already packed into the house." "Thanks mom, you're the best."

Sister Lark's proposal for a night of camping couldn't be any better. Rowan had already spent sometime camping in these woods. Of course, not anywhere so close to the wellspring though. It was still a tad to early for her to put on pajamas or anything, there was still a lot that could be done. "I think I'm going to go see if I can get us some more firewood. Also I know theres some herbs on these mountains that can make a nice tea, so I'll keep an eye out for that. I hope the ghoul that haunts these woods doesn't get me. OOOOooooOOOO." Rowan had her hands raised as if imitating a ghost before walking off with a chuckle. I mean sure ghosts really did exist, but its not like any were going to get us here.

Rowan started making her way toward the woods, she noticed a badger at the treeline looking at her. No doubt a spy of her moms trying to keep an eye on Rowan, it was comforting to know it was there and she returned a smile toward it.

Mentions: @sassy1085

---

The walk back into the woods away from the wellspring was...peaceful for the girls. Isolde couldn’t help but stare into the clouds that circled overhead, in front of the many, many stars that were out that night. Iris spent the walk pondering the vision that potion gave her, a heartless golem. That didn’t make sense to her, but she wanted to give it a try sometime. Of course, that would have to wait, since, wouldn’t you know it? Isolde and Iris were camping in the wilderness with their family tonight! A fire was already going and someone who probably had a flighty name was boiling water for tea...



”Oh, this looks fun...” Iris looked around and saw a few of the girls already in their pajamas, and god damn did Dakota and that other girl look unbelievably cute. Her eyes locked into that pretty little flannel on Dakota, she looked cute. What was she saying? Right. Camp. Iris didn’t really have anything sleep-related on her at the moment, but she had sweatpants on, so all she had to do was hang her denim coat up on a branch before sleeping. A thought ran into her head as she sat down in front of the fire. ”We should make drugs...” Iris said blatantly out loud in front of everyone. ”Who wants drugs?” She asked a little louder, giggling like a child. ”Hey! Dakota! Wanna make some drugs?”

@Hitman

---

Rather than plan to make illegal substances out in the forest, Isolde chose to snatch one of the books she brought before the camp. It was one of the books the Morden witches lived by, it had every possible piece of knowledge one could ever need when it came to wielding lightning. The front was decorated in odd, prismatic symbols that were probably meant to protect the book. Isolde simply curled up right in front of the fire to read further into the old thing before going to bed that night. It really was a beautiful night to stay outside. Isolde spent many nights like this alone. It looked like everyone came together nicely and just knew what to do. Firewood, water, drugs, everyone here seemed to know each other. She didn’t know exactly what she could do. But one of the girls did mention ghost stories, which pulled her nose out of the book.

”Well. I know a story or two from my home. None of them involve a ghost, but if you want a story, I could share.” She told the group.

@sassy1085

As the situation beside the wellspring finally began to clear up, with Summer waking up, Calypso stopping her excessive vomiting and Maggie calming down from her apparent panic attack (Charlie felt some guilt for not going over and seeing if she was okay, but he didn't know how to deal with a panic attack, and Sister Lark seemed trained and ready for that anyway), Charlie found himself looking at the scar that now adorned his wrist. It was still throbbing a bit, but much less than it had been, and it was still pretty red. Charlie wondered if he'd have it forever now, even if faint. A physical reminder of the ritual he had taken and the bond he now shared with this magical body of water in the forest. It was strange to think about.

The walk back was thankfully far more uneventful than the bonding ritual itself, Charlie finding himself glancing back a couple of times at Calypso who was carrying her vomit soaked robe over her shoulder. At least it hadn't soaked through onto the rest of her clothes, that would have been really unfortunate. He rubbed off a bit of blood that had dried on his arm as he walked, mind swimming with thoughts both about himself and about his fellow new witches. However, all his thoughts were quickly shifted asdide when the group walked out of the woods towards the house and were blasted with a wave of deafening applause from the members of the coven. Despite the stress, Charlie couldn't help but crack a smile. That was until he saw a flurry of red hair and was forced into a crushing hug by his mother.

He couldn't hear much of what his mother was saying due to the buzz of noise that was coming in from all angles, but he definitely heard words like "proud" and "achievement", so he knew that he was getting a positive message from her. But something was playing on his mind and he needed to make sure that his worry wasn't justified. So, he pulled his mother to the side and posted a question - "Mum... I know I wasn't really supposed to be in this coven. Do you think my Dad would be rather upset I'm not joining his coven?" The ginger looked uncharacteristically nervous, and his mother could tell, so she put a hand on his face and smiled at him. "I only knew your Dad for a few days. But just from those days I know that he wouldn't have cared what coven you were at. Just what kind of man you turned out to be. And he'd be proud of the man you are now." Charlie smiled and gave his mother a hug before the pair went back to the group, and Charlie went to go and grab some more food.

The evening went on, and the crowd eventually began to thin. Charlie's mother eventually left too, giving her son another hug and an embarrassing kiss on the cheek before departing with some of the other middle aged coven women, probably to go and drink some wine and talk about candles or something. Charlie gulped down some more fried okra before walking over towards the other initiates, his large bag slung over his shoulder. He was pretty excited to be spending the summer here with the others, and hoped that they were all equally as excited to be doing the same thing. If he was excited before, when Sister Lark mentioned they were going to be spending the night camping, Charlie's face positively lit up. He loved camping and doing outdoorsy stuff, and he knew lots of those outdoors camping hacks to start fires and clean water and stuff.

Charlie was a little disappointed as he arrived and found out that he wasn't going to be able to impress everyone by putting up a tent really efficiently and quickly, but sleeping under the stars was also really cool. As he saw others were vanishing into the trees to go and get changed, he went off to do the same thing, finding a secluded spot to change. He took off his hoodie, then changed from his Watford F.C kit to some Watford F.C pyjamas, a blindingly yellow t-shirt with a small logo in the corner and some black shorts. While slipping on the shirt he fell over and cursed quietly, but soon righted himself and returned to the campsite around the same time as Calypso. He chuckled good naturedly at her pig onesie before sitting down and warming his hands in the fire. He glanced over at Calypso with a smile on his face a few times before Dakota appeared.

"Oooh, ghost stories, that sounds rather fun." He heard fragments of Dakota's conversation with Calypso, and he frowned slightly. "I also know how to rig up a small fishing line, so we could perhaps go down to the creek and catch a fish to eat! While not being high, of course." He said the last part loudly.

@canaryrose @sassy1085 @Hitman

Arken, after being essentially shooed away from Summer, sort of just putzed around a bit while a few of the other newly initiated witches headed back towards the house. Camping under the stars would be a great way to end the night, he thought.

Then his thought aimlessly floated over to Hana.

Nothing about her in particular. Just...her, in general. There were many questions he wanted to ask. Conversations he wanted to have with her. For some reason, sharing a campsite with her made his pulse quicken and heart flutter a little. He has literally never felt like this towards anyone else.

How does Hana see him? Some rich, old coven family dickhead? Some guy that plays too much? UGH.

After a short while, he glanced around the wellspring again, noticing that most people have either started to or have already headed back, Arken decided that he should probably do the same. Walking through the tunnel, he spotted Hana, slowly making her way back as well.

All the healing she did previously could not have been easy on her body, he thought. Ah what the hell, the thought followed. He walked up, took her hand and just kept striding forward, back towards the party.

What could go wrong? He thought. His heart might as well have stopped when his hand touched Hana’s. He took a few steps forward, his mind completely blank. Eventually, he was able to blurt out a few words. “Ah. UM. The night. The...um...sky, sure it full of stars...” He even followed his random sentence with a few nervous chuckles. “Uh, we should get back to the group...” He said, letting go of her hand and essentially power-walking his own way through the tunnel and back to the group...

Back at the campsite, Arken made his way back into the house And got changed into something more comfortable and campfire appropriate. Dressed in a pair of athletic shorts, a plain grey t-shirt and some simple tennis shoes, he found a spot not too far from the fire and sat down. Staring up at the sky, he leaned back and propped himself up with both hands. This was it. He is now a fully initiated member of the coven. Though not in the same standing as some of the more prominent members, he can at least now claim to fully be in the coven, and not just by association and birth. He sighed softly. The magic coursing through his body was itching to be tested. He glanced around him, making sure there wasn’t someone too close as to potentially be hurt. He inhaled a steady breath and gentle placed his hands on the earth near him and let the magic run from his palms into the ground. In his mind, there was something in particular that he wanted to make. Something...comfortable. It wasn’t exactly enclosed, but it was enough to shield the elements. It made for a decent place to spend the night, given the simple sleeping bag that there were given.

The rest of the newly initiated witches were speaking about heading into the wood for a little bit of adventure and thrill-seeking. Normally, Arken would be all for it. Tonight, he had something else on his mind. The darkness that he saw during the ritual. The feeling of impending doom. Just what was that. He leaned against the earthen wall he had just made, looked up in the glittering sky and pondered.

For a brief moment, he would poke his head out and scan around the site, wondering where Hana was or what she was doing. Hopefully his actions had not caused too much trouble for her...

@Akayaofthemoon

On the way back to the party, it is mostly quiet between the two of them. Various conversations are happening around them, and it is hard not to listen in to them despite having been at the ritual herself. It is astonishing to Alayna that her experience was nothing compared to some of the others. From passing out to having a panic attack, the burning sensation she'd felt seems almost normal. Then again, when she'd accidentally burned herself the first time, her mind had not been as clear as it was during the ritual. Perhaps she is merely lucky, and the girl wonders now how Kate might have fared during the whole thing.

No...I can't ask her about it, Alayna thinks, glancing at the other person as they examine their wrist closely. She searches her mind for a good conversation topic, something to keep her companion entertained, but it's difficult to find a thing to discuss with someone like her. Someone's who's never really taken the chance to open up to the rest of her initiate group.

So, in the end, the two initiates part ways once back at the site of the party, Alayna making way for Kate's parents as they rush over to them, giving them congratulatory hugs. A feeling of envy washes through her briefly at this display, the girl looking away instinctively and scanning the area for her parents. When she spots them at one of the round tables set up for the family of the initiates, she makes her way over, an expression of hope on her face. The expression turns into one of confusion, however, once she spots her small pink suitcase on an empty chair beside her father.

"Now don't tell me you forgot already," her mother pipes up then, her voice strained with exasperation, "You're lucky I checked your room after you stormed off before. You would have had nothing clean to change into, stuck in that sweaty dress of yours."

"Well, at least you still seem to be in one piece," her father adds jokingly, his eyes sparkling as he gets up and approaches his daughter, pulling her into a tight hug.

"And I think what your mother means to say is that we're both very proud of you, darling. We work you as hard as we do because we love you and we know you're capable of so much as a witch."

Alayna has to bite her lip hard not to retort with a snarky comment at her father's excuse. She'd already said all that she had to this morning when they'd fought, and she'd rather not have a repeat of it now and make a scene. Instead, she places her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes as she hugs him back tightly, imagining that he truly loves her unconditionally as he says.

~

If she'd known that a "possible stayover" meant sleeping outside rather than inside, Alayna would have packed something different to wear. Stuck in a simple white tee tucked into her most comfortable grey pajama pants, she is more than ready to be under the sheets in one of the main house's beds. She'd only ever stayed over once before during one of her summer breaks as a child, but the experience was not one she'd forgotten. It's not every day you got to see some of the coven leaders laid back and relaxed as they were at the time, after all. Instead, the girl knows she is in for a slightly uncomfortable and cold night, surrounded by people she barely knows. Her hand instinctively shoots up then, hitting a mosquito that had landed on her arm.

Oh, yea, and bug spray for the annoying bugs that can't help but love the taste of her blood. She would have walked with that too.

Well, it could be worse, is the thought that occurs to her then, spotting Calypso in her onesie. It's a cute one, but it's also bound to catch a lot of attention, and Alayna is certain that attention is the last thing that the other witch desires after her earlier debacle. With the hood up, she would be easy to miss too if it weren't for her familiar damply tangled black hair. Alayna reaches up to pat her own, now in its usual bun at the top of her head.

At the mention of ghost stories and fishing, the witch's eyes widen. Alayna had never been in the forest, in the dark and this time, before. But...She glances at her hands briefly before smirking. She could always just light the way if needed, right?
Her hand reaches up and bats another mosquito away from her arm, a frown crossing her face as she says, "I'll join for the fishing. Not the drugs." She blinks then, catching herself.

"If...that's okay."

@KaijuBaragon

Rebecca started to turn even paler when sleeping outside was brought up. Turns out, the coven’s pretty little princess wasn’t exactly a nature girl. “Uh… you mean with all the bugs and the dirt? O-okay, I guess.” A little shiver ran through her as she tried to get her things together for this. Whatever happened, she was going to need to spend the whole day in the shower.

“Um… If anybody wants me to, I can project out and keep watch. It’ll get my body some sleep, and make sure nothing disturbs us.” The witch blinked a few times, then went to join the other initiates. I wonder if the elders have any surprises planned for us. I wouldn’t put it past them…

Cassandra, meanwhile, was quite fine with it all. The goth sorceress needed surprisingly little to get through the night, and she was one of the first ready to go. A comfortable sleeping bag- midnight black, of course- and a particularly fluffy pillow was all she took with her.

“Well, ladies, gentlemen, and various assorted others. I think it’s about high time we got on the road.” She hoisted her duffel bag on her shoulder, not really wanting to levitate it, but she was still interested in what a better connection to nature would do to her curses. It was time to find out...

---

"All right, be careful, I hear that ghoul eat people who are naturalists" Kate jokingly say to Rowan with chuckle, they watch as Rowan walk away and then make themself feel comfortable while sitting on the ground "Ok, I'll a story first and then, Isolde will tell a story. Now everyone get comfortable, cause this story, will haunt you forever...This is story called Mary Onyx, The Death Witch" Kate say in a spooky voice.

"In the 1960s, she was once a nerdy outcast, and lives in that very coven house, just like all of us." Kate points at the gothic Victorian house "Like I say, she was a nerdy outcast, pick on by the popular kids. All that Mary wants was a friend, a friend that never leave her side, a friend that well love her forever...Until one day, she got her wish. Fiona Snow, the most popular witch in the Sisters of the Dying Branch coven, wants to be Mary friend. Finally! A friend for Mary! Mary will never be a alone anymore!..." Kate pause for the effect "...Or so that what Mary thought..."

"The coven host a their annual ball party and while Fiona was crowned queen at the ball, she want Mary to be the queen. Without hesitation and filled with excitement, Mary went up stage and received her crown, Mary was so happy, she finally feel accepted by her peers and was really grateful that Fiona Snow was her best friend!....But then, out of nowhere, black liquid ooze was drop on Mary! It was all a trick! It was plan by Fiona Snow and her other friends all along! Fiona wasn't Mary friend at all, she just wants to prank her. Everyone was laughing at Mary, laughing at her! feeling so foolish to be friends with someone that cruel, Mary rush out of the coven house and into this very forest that all of us are in, right now. Everyone didn't even try to stop Mary, they just thought that she will come back the next morning....Mary didn't return the next morning...And the morning after that, and the morning after that..."

"Coven elders send Fiona Snow and her friends to the forest to go find Mary, since it was her and her friends fault that she went missing. The elders waited for Fiona and her friends to return, oh how they waited but the popular girls never return. That night, the elders hear some screams from the forest...It sounds like Fiona screams. The elders rush to find the girls, hoping that they are all right....All they find was the lifeless bodies of Fiona Snow and her three friends. There were no cuts, no marks, no bruises, the girls were just...dead." Kate pause for the effect once again.

"Elders autopsy Fiona Snow body, trying to find at least a cause of her death....But when they open up her chest....There was no heart in there....The same incident happened once again years later, when fifteen young initiates, who just turn into witches, were six of them were dead, only nine survived. One of the survivors say that they saw a ghost, a ghost that was cover in black ooze, wearing a beautiful white ball dress, her hands were black as the dark sky and she was wearing a ball crown on the top of her head. When the elders say what was that ghost named and then, she survivor say....Her name was....Mary Onyx."

"Since then, the elders put wards all over the forest, hoping that Mary Onyx won't kill any more witches and take their hearts. One of these days, those wards won't work anymore and Mary Onyx will take revenge to the coven that make her this way and kill every witch in the Sisters of the Dying Branch coven...." Kate then makes a very cocky chuckle "....And that is you tell a ghost story." Kate say with pride

"One of my cousins told me that story once and oh man, that is a story I want to tell" Kate laugh "The look on your guys faces were princele-" Kate jump when they hears something in the bushes "...What was that?...I swear that not me this time...."

Bushes keep on moving while Kate hears keep beating faster and faster. Oh shit! That story was real?! Kate thought their cousin made that story up! Is this how Kate going to die?! By the hands of Mary Onyx?! And then!.....A little rabbit pop out of the Bushes, it looks at the young witches and tilt it little head, it hops away from the groups, hopping away from the scared group. Kate nervously chuckle "O-Oh...I-I-It was just a rabbit....Thank god" Kate say under their breath "Ummm, Isolde, right? It your turn to tell a story" Maybe Isolde stories could maybe light up the mood after that little scare.

@Jumbus@Tracyarmav@Blizzeveryone

As more people joined the blonde next to the dancing flames of the fire, Maggie wondered how everyone else was feeling about the events of the afternoon and evening. Usually at home, her family would gather around the dinner table and debrief at the end of a long day- her mother would often tell some amusing stories about her clients, and her father would be stressed after a difficult set of meetings. Since she was observant and quiet, the girl would describe in detail funny anecdotes from school about the antics her classmates were getting into, but never any that involved her.

But, tonight was different and instead she sat in the middle of the clearing with people she barely knew. Kate started talking about telling a ghost story, Uaithne was boiling a kettle of water for tea, Iris mentioned doing drugs, and Charlie was pondering going night fishing. Maggie evaluated the prospects and looked at them all with raised eyebrows. First, she turned to the curly haired girl, “Iris, I don’t think drugs will do you any good right now. Who knows what was in that wellspring water that we drank earlier…” Maggie then looked at the redhead, “And Charlie, I highly doubt you’ll be able to catch anything in the dark… you probably won’t even be able to see the edge of the creek, so I hope you can swim.” She quipped with a smirk.

She was about to say something else when Jean-Luc appeared next to her, inquiring about the novel in her hands. The girl noticed he was also holding one- a fellow bookworm! “Oh, it’s historical fiction. It’s about a woman who travels through time and ends up in different pivotal moments in history. It has a bit of romance, adventure, and I really like the author’s writing.” Maggie wasn’t used to being so chatty, but she took it in stride as she explained what was in between the pages. She took a moment to examine the beautiful design on the worn cover of the book that the boy was holding. “What’s yours about? That’s a gorgeous cover- it also looks well loved.”

Kate began to tell their story, capturing Maggie’s attention. It started very unassumingly, and the blonde related to the main character’s plight of not having many friends. But quickly, it became a gruesome story of death and havoc, none of which she was interested in. The girl squirmed in her seat and became wary when the bushes began to move, but breathed a sigh of relief when it was only revealed to be an animal and not the witch in the story that they described. Another scary story was about to begin, and the blonde didn’t want to hang around to hear it.

“I’m going to politely pass on any other ghost stories- I’m already going to have nightmares about what happened at the ritual and I don’t need to add anything else to that list.” Maggie grimaced, standing up and brushing herself off before walking away with purpose from the roaring campfire and over to Calypso and Dakota. They were sitting to the side and away from most of the group, which was comforting to the blonde.

“Hey… mind if I join you two? Kate and Isolde are telling ghost stories, which isn’t exactly my scene.” The girl asked delicately, silently hoping that she wasn’t intruding on their conversation.

_{Mentions: Kate @sassy1085, Uaithne @Tracyarmav, Charlie @KaijuBaragon, Jean- Luc @Hitman, Dakota @Hitman, and Calypso [@cancan]}

Hearing Kate’s story was quite entertaining, and make Isolde close her book. But now it was time for her to tell one...

”Well, I suppose it is my time to tell a story, but this will not be one of horror. It will be one of creation. The story of my home.” Isolde’s voice dropped by half a step as she glanced around the circle of witches.

”A long time ago, no doubt before the time of our grandparents, there lived a woman high on the mountains to the north of here. She was like us, a witch, hiding from the rest of the world. She was known as Valerica Morden, the first of my people. Valerica was not like most witches, she did not practice charming, she did not practice pyromancy, she did not make potions.” She paused. ”She shaped lightning. Valerica was unlike any witch of her time, she bent the fury of the sky around her fingers, and twisted lightning to do as she pleased. Every time a storm surrounded her, she simply stood in the open fields, and practically dared the clouds to strike her down. She knew the lightning would not harm her, she did not know how, only that it would not.”

”Very few people - even in the world of witches - knew of Valerica’s existence. Valerica did not belong to a family of witches, like the Stones, she was alone, isolated. We do not know why she did not have anyone to call family, but we know that it gave her plenty of time to contemplate her magic. Overtime, some of the covens surrounding her mountainous home noticed something. The weather was unnaturally violent towards the mountains. Valerica’s magic scarred the peaks of the mountains, scorched the fields of grass, and as a result, magic energy deeper into the earth, changing the way the mountains felt about the world. In every fiber of her magic that changed the land, there was the will to bend the lightning. This is why the storms were so common. The mountains took a part of her and buried it inside themselves. It worried the families of covens that surrounded the mountains. Some tried to travel up to the top, but very few could brave the storms, let alone find their way.” Isolde paused, looking into the sky for a while before continuing.

”A long time had passed, and word of Valerica’s storms wouldn’t reach the covens until even later. The few people sent by their respective covens to search for answers never returned. Most were struck down by the storm, but the few who made it found peace. A calm sanctuary, Valerica’s home within the mountains. They, too, never came home. They became her students. Valerica taught them the ways of lightning. She taught them to understand that lightning could never be controlled, only bent. The witches were enraptured by her teachings, never before had anyone imagined harnessing such violent power, but even as Valerica’s students learned to let lightning roll through their fingers, they were afraid. They had spent months in seclusion at Valerica’s side, but in order to find the paradise she grew up in, they first had to brave a storm, the likes of which no living thing should ever see. They watched their friends die to reach this place, and they feared they wouldn’t make it home.”

Clouds drifted along in the night as Isolde continued.

”And so, to avoid risking their lives to go home, they stayed. They chose to stay in the mountains, to continue to learn from Valerica. After all, who could say they knew a way to shape lightning in their hands? They built homes, they had children, even Valerica herself took a lover among her students, whose name has been lost to time. It is believed by some that Valerica became a mother to a child that began the Morden family line, while the rest believe Valerica herself was the founder. In either way, Morden Mountain would have never received its name without her. My people owe our home to her. As I said, Valerica’s magic shaped the landscape of the mountains, as did the magic of her students. It was like she put a piece of her very soul into each of them. Mountain Rams grew to the size of horses, the night sky glowed like a star. It’s truly beautiful up there. But the most crucial part of it all, was the wellspring.”

According to the legends, the Morden family came under threat one day, nobody knows what, but it was something so dreadful that Valerica had to sacrifice herself to save her people. I suppose that is why we never knew what she defeated, no one wanted us to think of such a thing. All off the students, all of the children, and the elderly had fled to safety in the farthest corners of the valleys. Everything was silent, even the constant thunder had silenced as if watching Valerica’s final moments. In an instant, from a place on the mountains few can name, the most beautiful, brilliant, and destructive flash of lightning turned night to day. The witches never heard such a noise, Valerica’s cries of pain and rage, the fury of the sky, all in unison to destroy the unknown threat. It was beyond our wildest dreams. The culmination of all of Valerica’s power in one moment...”

Valerica died that day, her faceless enemy disappeared with the thunder. That day, the mountains were silent like the grave, and the only thing that the first witches to find the remains could see, was a faint, blue glow rising from the ground. A tree with white bark, and purple leaves. The Mountain’s Heart. Our wellspring. The resting place of the founder of the Morden family, and the cornerstone of our being. Valerica’s teaching are alive day in the texts we keep, which I brought with me, to learn about myself...”

Isolde’s story was over. It probably wasn’t what they had expected, but it was something, right?

Everything felt like it was closing in on her, getting smaller and smaller with each passing moment. The fear running rampant through her as her chest felt heavy and her throat felt clenched. She gripped the robe in one hand for dear life as she pushed herself shakily to take one more step. She kept reminding herself that the worst had passed and it would just be a bit further until she was in a wide open space. She could take a moment then to regain her composure and actually enjoy the fact that she had done it. She had become a witch like her mother before her and she should be proud she worked so hard to get to this point. Right now though, she was far from feeling any of that and could hardly focus, each step like lead. Hana just prayed she wouldn’t pass out or curl up on the path to cry.

A startled yelp almost left her mouth as she felt her hand be taken into someone else’s. She hadn’t heard anyone, too lost in her own world and she was frazzled, still shaking from the different healings as well as the crushing fear she was just experiencing. Her hand automatically held tight, her mind trying to catch up while she clung to the person who took hold of her hand, using them as a pillar of support to know she wasn’t alone. Her eyes moved from the forest floor, looking up to see who exactly had decided she needed to have her hand held only to be surprised to find Arken. She did a small glance around, noticing it was just them and felt confusion. Why was he being so strange today? She looked up to him once more, fine to walk hand in hand as they moved even though the silence was a bit odd but not unpleasantly so.

It was then that he started stumbling on words as he blurted out something about the night and stars. It was just bizarre to mention the night sky was full of stars, what else would it be full of? She raised a brow as he nervously chuckled. Did he have too much blood loss or something? She tilted her head a bit about to reply when he quickly cut her off to say they should join the group and swiftly disconnected their hands. Hana paused as she watched him power walk away, her hand tingling where his had been and feeling the loss. Panic gripping her quickly as she almost cried for him not to leave her here alone but covered her mouth instead. She wasn’t in the closet. Nothing here was out to get them. She was safe. Arken wasn’t going to be attacked with no one to help. It would be okay. She still felt rooted to the spot she was standing for a moment, whimpering as she shook harder from head to toe and took a small step forward. ’Just a little more.’

She felt physically and emotionally drained by the time she made it out of the tunnel. No one was there to greet her or cheer for her but she didn’t mind. It was nice to see everyone so happy. Hana got congrats from a few people she passed but most were focused on the ones they knew personally. She gathered her things, knowing she should probably go eat something to help with the shakes but decided not to do so. She just wanted to watch so she took a seat on the porch steps and looked out over the crowd. It felt so much more peaceful now. She had been right before, the worst of it was over and she could look towards the future. Her eyes drifted up to the sky, a soft smile as she gazed at the glittering stars.

The few moments she had to herself faded, the announcement of a camping trip for the evening giving way to excitement and unhappiness for others. Hana felt herself blush in embarrassment, having forgotten that the Elders told her to do some light packing. At least she lived here so the mistake wasn’t too bad but now she was gonna panic over what the hell to pack. Why did she wait until the last minute, literally?! She followed the group, only coming along to take note of the location before heading back to the house, getting frowned at to which she just grinned with a shrug. She started to pack up an outfit for tomorrow, quickly changing into her pajamas before rushing to the kitchen to snag a few items before heading back to the campsite. It seemed like everyone was having a good time already, arriving again just as Isolde finished her story.

She dropped her pack and stood nervously by the fire for a second before finally speaking up, ”I don’t know if anyone would be interested but I, um, I brought stuff for s’mores. I thought it might be fun to do while we exchange stories or just to have some dessert.” Hana flipped open her pack, to show bars of chocolate, gram crackers, marshmallows, and camping rods all haphazardly placed on the top. She planted herself down on the grass, still feeling a bit exhausted but excited and happy to be on this trip and in nature. She was still smiling brightly even though her nervousness at suggesting probably a childish idea but who didn’t love sweets?



Speaks With: N/A
Mentioned:(Arken)@Infinite Cosmos,

The walk back to the coven house was a sullen and silent one for Summer. The elders words had been cruel and harsh, even if a very small part of her did know that they were true. Waves of emotions overcame her, making her want to lash out. Anger, irritation, embarrassment. The leaves crunched under her feet as she walked, robe tucked underneath one arm. She could hear the inaudible conversations of the other witches in front or and behind her, but it was mere white noise, serving to do no more than further her fury. The fact that others seemed so easily happy taunted her. It always had. It just wasn’t fair.

It was in this manner that she finally reached the house, a swarm of jubilant witches immediately surrounding their newly initiated kin. While most ran straight to their relatives, Summer instead headed back to the porch, keen to collect the most precious thing she owned. The bracelet had been a gift from her father when she had been only five years old. He had called it her lucky charm, although later experience had taught her that it was imbued with magic, such that it provided protection against curses and other magic that was seated in ill will. Maybe there was a part of her father that knew she would attract enemies, or perhaps he just wanted to shield his youngest daughter from the evils of the world. Either way, it was something she cherished deeply, especially now that he was no longer present to ease her fears & worries.

Crouching down, Summer began to rifle through the pile of belongings. She found her phone immediately but her bracelet was nowhere to be seen. With each passing second she became more frantic, tossing items aside, rooting through the pile again and again and again. Finally, with tears of frustration in her eyes, she gave up. It was gone. Lost or stolen she didn’t know. But she was furious. Determined to find out what had happened to it, Summer stood up. She was about to stroll over to one of the elders and demand that it be located, when she suddenly heard an excited squeal. It was followed by a whirlwind of ginger hair and flailing limbs as she was pulled into an overbearingly suffocating hug.

Olive.

“Oh. my. god! Look at you! You are absolutely glowing!!! I can almost see the power of the Wellspring radiating through you. Oh, oh let me look—” Olive, practically bursting with excitement, grabbed Summers wrist, looking down at where one could see a very faint line. The only evidence that she had, only minutes before, cut herself with a blade. “Did you heal that yourself?! It’s perfect! I’m so happy that you’re finally using healing magic!” Clapping her hands together, she turned to look round at their mother, who was strolling towards the pair, an unreadable expression on her face. “Look mother! She’s healed herself!”

Gritting her teeth, Summer bit back the stream of bitterness that threatened to spill from her lips as her mother looked down at her wrist. She didn’t know what was worse - admitting that she had been healed by another witch or pretending that she’d done it herself. Deciding that the latter was ever so slightly more tolerable, she slowly nodded her head.

“Well, it was either heal myself or die of blood loss.” Rolling her eyes, Summer yanked her wrist away from Olive. Neither of them seemed to notice that she wasn’t wearing her bracelet and this only served to make her even more angry. The rest of the conversation was a blur. Between Olives high-pitched exclamations of excitement and her mother’s passive aggressive comments, she felt utterly overwhelmed. It was too much. Fainting, losing her bracelet, always being second best. She wanted to scream and yell and lash out. She wanted someone else to feel the same way she did. Even if just for a moment.

Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, her family left. Olive clung onto her until the last minute, her endless stream of compliments and praise being audible even as she was making her way to the town car. Her sister really never shut up. Ever. It was surprising that she managed to take pause for a breath, though Summer had, on numerous occasions, wished that she would forget to do so.

Her only relief from this horror of a day, had been the thought that she would soon be tucked up in a warm bed, where she could slip comfortably into wishful dreams. But this was soon destroyed when the elders announced that they would be camping. Outside. In the wilderness. With the dirt and the bugs and the lack of indoor plumbing. It was as if they were purposefully trying to torture her. And maybe they were. She wouldn’t put it past them. Caught up in the hellish idea of camping, she distractedly followed the others, for a moment forgetting about her beloved bracelet.

When they reached the clearing, the others immediately began to spread out, each having their own ideas about what they wanted to do. Summer on the other hand, just stood there. Her body was exhausted. She still hadn’t eaten and the aftermath of being around her sister, left her both mentally and physically drained. For a few minutes she did nothing more than look around impassively. She didn’t move to get changed into her pajamas, nor did she seek solace in the warmth of the fire. Summer was numb. The cool wind blowing through her ginger locks, the gentle sounds of the awakening nocturnal creatures, the pale & haunting moonlight. She was aware of none of it.

"Oooh, bracelet!...It's kind of pretty, actually...here, take Astro, let me try it on!"

The annoying tones of Dakotas voice pulled Summer abruptly from her stupor and turning her head, all she could see was red. A deep mist of fury overcame her as her gaze landed on the pair of witches. Even from this distance she could tell that it was her bracelet that Dakota was slipping onto her wrist. Of course it would be her. That thief had taken something so precious to her, not even questioning that it might belong to someone else. That it might be beloved and cherished by another. She just took it without thinking. Summers fingernails dug into the palms of her hands as she glared at Dakota, drawing fresh blood as she broke skin. And if looks could kill, hers certainly would have. Those who knew Summer well enough would see the warning signs and they would run. After all, anyone that's ever been to high school knows that you never mess with a bitch.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?! I should’ve known you were a thief!” Storming over to Calypso and Dakota, she ignored the rest of the witches as she closed the distance between them. Her fury cut through the peace of the clearing, the faint calls of nightly birds silencing in response to her outrage. “That’s my bracelet!” Not stopping for a second, Summer walked straight up to Dakota, before giving her a sudden and surprisingly strong shove.

“Give it back. Now.” Her deep brown eyes, filled to the brim with malice, glanced over to Calypso who had Astro clutched between her arms. Now Summer wasn’t evil but she did know how to hurt people, and she did know how to get her way. Taking a step back, she held out her arm, the air around the scruffy looking ferret shimmering for a moment before he suddenly disappeared from Calypso's arms, reappearing in the tight grip of Summer. Clutching him by the scruff of the neck, she held him away from her body so that he wouldn’t be able to claw or bite her. To be honest, she was surprised that she hadn’t spliced the creature in the process. Inanimate objects were easy enough to teleport but moving something alive, particularly something so uncontrollable, was a much more volatile process. Of course, Summer had no desire to kill innocent creatures but part of her also felt that Dakota would deserve it, if it were to happen.

“Give me my bracelet back now or i’ll be testing whether your rat can survive a 50 ft fall.” Summer didn’t smile as she spoke. There was nothing amusing about this situation and all she wanted was her bracelet back. If Dakota was stupid enough not to comply, then so be it. She could teleport the creature in mere seconds and if she tried anything, well...oopsie daisy.

@hitman @canaryrose

---

There was an alternative reason for Rowan to head into the woods. In fact, it was more like her primary reason to come all the way out here in the dark. She was still insecure about her powers and she hadn't had a chance to try them out after the wellspring. It couldn't wait until morning, Rowan had a sneaking suspicion it would weigh on her mind all night. She doesn't handle lack of sleep well and she knows it. Luckily, she had a perfect participant to help her out. The badger.

It had been following closely through Rowan woodland ventures and knew that it likely did not have a home up here. "Mum doesn't really think these things through a hell of a lot huh." She was kneeling and petting the badger. "I can't have you out in the cold all night can I. You just wait right there." Of course, Rowan didn't expect and answer from the animal but she did know it would at least comply due to her mother's magic.

Rowan proceeded to cut her right palm and place it on a nearby tree. The badger was a few steps behind watching the whole thing. At first it was slow for anything to happen, even for a moment Rowan feared that the wellspring had done very little to help her. But then the roots of the trees shifted and changed at a rate she had never seen before. A sizable hole opened up in the ground near the stump. It was a badger hole fit for a king, a badger king that is. A regular king probably wouldn't care for it. Either way, Rowan was proud of what she could do.

"I know my mom has brought you up here to look after me or something. But can you please keep that to a minimum. I don't want to be the only one here with an overprotective mom, you know? Its embarrassing..." Knowing that the badger couldn't reply she ended it at that. "Now you just stay snug in there." Now all that was left to do was find those herbs.

Sometime later, Rowan had finished her search and had made her way back toward camp. But entrances were critical when it came to scary stories around the fire. She started rustling the bushes, quiet at first and then growing in intensity before jumping out. But then quickly realized that very few were even taking part in the camping tradition. "Oh, uh, guess I'm a bit late for the scary stories then huh. I got the stuff for the tea but didn't find much firewood, which is strange being a forest and all." It was clear she wasn't telling the truth and she hadn't really been looking for firewood at all. Either way she knelt by the kettle preparing the tea. "Thanks for keeping the kettle going, shouldn't be too long before its ready. So..." she clapped her hands together once. "Whos spook-tacular stories did I miss anyway?"

---

Mentions: @Tracyarmav @sassy1085 @Blizz

@Danvers@Melissa@canaryrose@Hitman

In retrospect, Jeremy may have been a little more nervous about the initiation than ended up actually being necessary. Honestly, in a surprising twist of fate, it actually felt like he as quite well suited for it. Unfortunately, much like one of the other initiates he'd tried to talk to, Miss Abernathy, he had barely eaten, otherwise he'd have managed the whole thing with ease. However, his reason for not eating had been firmly rooted in his panic over the rumours he'd heard. Some might have said his readiness to believe Hannah on something she clearly shouldn't know anything about was sort of stupid. These people had never had their darkest, most embarrassing secrets listed one by one to their face by that idiot faker. Trying to call her bluff was a gamble he'd learnt he'd rather avoid.

Thankfully though, she really had been wrong this time. The wellspring had ended up being a lake, leaving Jeremy struggling not to turn around and not so calmly trek back to the house. Or Oregon. But it quickly became clear that there would be no swimming involved, and from that point on he found that he was able to calm himself back down rather quickly. The blood part wasn't an especially big issue, as it was quite possibly the most important component of the ink he used for his runes, especially when he wasn't connected to a wellspring. Cutting his wrist to obtain it was a bit out of his experience, generally preferring the palm of his hand or fingertips, but it wasn't too much of an issue. He doubted the elders present would let any of them die, after all. He also thought he'd managed to hide his panic fairly well when he had to take the water from the lake, keeping a straight face even as the image of a hand shooting out to grab him and drag him under repeated in his mind.

And then he drank the mixture, and realised he had never truly been until that moment.

It was as if all his life, he had been frail and unhealthy. Now though, he felt sturdy. Incredibly sturdy, as if he could stand in the path of an avalanche and never lose his footing. His senses, which he had believed to be adequate before, were now so focused and fine-tuned that it made their previous state seem as if he had been all but completely blind, deaf and numb. Part of him knew that this was not a permanent state, that he must have unconsciously reinforced himself while under the wellsprings influence, but that just meant that the wellspring had improved the scale of his reinforcement magic by a ridiculous amount. His enchantments must have had a similar boost to their output, although there was no real way to test that until he got a chance to experiment with them properly. He was excited, more excited than he might have ever felt. Right now, he felt like he could take on the whole world. And yet, somewhere deep down, he thought he felt a minuscule drop of what could only be described as pure fear. Where did this power come from? What was this wellspring? And if it was able to provide such incredible power to every witch in this coven, just how powerful could it be should it's opinion of him change? Of course, there was still a good chance that the source of the lakes power wasn't even sentient, and he was being paranoid, but he just couldn't shake the feeling that he may have just sold his soul to an entity whose motives were entirely unknown.

And then it was over.

He staggered back for a moment, almost dropping, but thankfully managed to reinforce himself enough to remain on his feet. Idly he watched the others, not really trusting himself to speak until he could be sure it wouldn't come out as a hoarse mess. He wished he had made better efforts to ensure he'd remain in good condition, as it seemed that more than a few of his peers were having issues of their own that he might normally have been able to help with. Thankfully though, it looked like there were enough of them who were ok to help the elders and keep things going smoothly. Eventually, he felt confident enough to walk back with the others, no longer needing to reinforce himself just to avoid falling on his face. He had stood by politely while the other members of the coven, of his coven, congratulated him and the others. Sadly, his mother had needed to leave very soon after dropping him off to ensure she could make the long drive back home safely, so she wasn't there to congratulate him herself.

Not too long after this, he noticed one of the elders, Lark if he was remembering correctly, had started to gather the rest of the initiates again, and moved to join them. Despite the fairly chaotic emotional state, he found himself grinning as she explained the plan. He was actually quite a big fan of camping. Not that they were going to be living off the land or anything, but at least for the night, he felt like he'd be able to put his paranoia out of his mind and enjoy himself.

This sentiment was crushed immediately, when some of his fellow initiates decided it would be fun to tell ghost stories. This was was of course wrong, as ghosts were awful. Still, he forced himself to sit in his sleeping bag and listen along, because with enough exposure to his fears, maybe he'd be able to overcome them!

He couldn't. It was horrifying.

The second story was nicer, being a distinctly non-ghost story, but he was beginning to realise that he had to either find a way to distract himself or pass out before someone else decided they had something scary to say. Thankfully, he found that distraction when Abernathy started cursing out some of the other initiates for apparently stealing her bracelet. He briefly questioned over whether or not he should actually be thankful for something like that, but came to the conclusion that it wasn't ghost stories, and was therefore preferable.

"Excuse me. I couldn't help overhearing, and I thought it might be best to step in before anyone does anything... unwise, I guess." He said, walking up to the group. He nodded to the others, one of whom he realised was the girl whose seat he'd accidentally sat at earlier. "Personally, I do feel that you should return the bracelet if it is indeed Abernathy's, but at the same time, I don't think threatening our peers familiars is a good way to settle anything. Perhaps a calm explanation of the situation and discussion would be a better way to settle it. Preferably without taking hostages."