"Were the school hallways always this cold?". The silent question made me shiver even more.
It had been a few days since I first ingested the wattsicide, though it felt like it had been months. My limbs felt heavy while my appetite was non-existent. My veins would constantly convulse as sparks shot through them. I had quickly learned not to react to them but it was still painful nonetheless.
My appearance under the concealment stone I was wearing was ghastly. My skin was as white as the knee and my once golden eyes had turned a sorry faded yellow. Burns crawled up my arms and legs, my uniform irritated them with every step I took. Yet that one trinket hid it all.
Though the concealment stone couldn't hide everything. My slow stagnant movements, my grimaces in pain, my extreme lethargy, I had to hide that on my own.
It was lunch time at the moment, but I had no interest in eating. The nervous lump in my stomach made me feel nauseous enough. And while me not going to lunch would worry my twin, so would my battle to keep my lunch do—
My walk through the halls was swiftly interrupted by a hand grabbing my cowl. Before I could react, I was yanked towards the wall, or more accurately the closet I was passing. My kidnapper forcefully pinned me to the shelf behind me.
Large green eyes dug deep into my soul, searching for anything interesting they could get a hold of. The powerful brunette edged closer to me until our faces were only an inch apart.
It was a surprise to see the witch out of the detention pit. She was in the healing track but often got in trouble for practicing beast keeping. I couldn't blame her. Beast keeping sounded interesting to me too. I often wondered what it would be like if I had chosen that track instead of becoming an illusionist.
Em and I had to give the healer credit. She was one of the only witches in the school that saw principal Bump as much as we did.
"Whatever it is I did, Viney, I didn't do it" I wheezed to my peer. In response she…she…was she sniffing me?!
"She's right," Viney finally murmured.
"Who's right?".
"Emira said your breath smelled burnt. She's right. It does".
"Welp. Glad we settled that one. Can you let me go now?".
"Oh no, Blight". Viney's laugh was borderline diabolical. "We haven't covered why yet. What dumbass thing did you do now? Did you swallow a fire bee or try to eat some charcoal?".
She didn't mean to, she was just kidding, but Viney struck a raw chord. I couldn't stop myself from helplessly stammering. You could call what I was doing very stupid, but I had no choice!
"Com' on Edric. You know you can't hide it forever".
"I know I can't but…I'm not ready yet! Give me some more time!".
My shouting wiped the amused grin right off of the witch's face. She backed up a step, releasing her hold on me.
"Woah, man. It's okay. I'm only joking around". Viney's voice had grown softer as if she were speaking to a more fragile witch. Well, with the shape I was in, I suppose she was. "But if there's something wrong, you should talk with your sister. She's a little worried about you".
"She's worried?" I echoed, dismay causing my heart to skip a beat. "How worried is she exactly?".
"She says you seem a lot more…sluggish, like you have no energy. And she says you've been getting stuck in your head a lot more lately. From what she was saying, I figured I should check up on you".
"Son of a hellhound" I growled while my dread nearly overtook me. "Why does Em have to be so titandamn observant?".
"Is there something going on? Like something serious?".
"If I tell you, you could get very hurt" I warned, desperation lining my voice.
"So that's a yes. And it involves Emira somehow?".
At that point my fear took me out of the moment. I'd completely forgotten Viney was with me, that she was listening.
"She's going to be devastated. It's bad enough she lost Mittens but now her brother".
"What?!".
"And the worst thing is I'll have to go through the same thing Amity did. She'll have to escort me around and listen to mom torture me over and over again".
"What are you talking about?! Edric?!".
"And I won't have anywhere to run! If I try to escape, mom'll just go back to wanting Emira dead!".
Viney leapt forward and grabbed me by my shoulders. She shook me back and forth a few times, harshly reminding me that I wasn't alone.
"Your mom wants Emira dead?! This isn't a joke, is it?!". I answered Viney's question by not saying anything. My fear wasn't an act, she could clearly tell. "You need to tell someone!".
"Who would believe us, especially over mom? Besides, I'm dead anyways".
"Why?! Does your mom want you dead too?! We need to get you two somewhere safe!".
"Not that I know of but…she tried to poison Emira a few nights ago, and she…she ended up poisoning me instead".
"With what?". The urgency radiating off of the healing track witch was as strong as a griffin. My confession had thrown her into nurse mode.
"Wattsicide. It's been in my blood for a couple of days now".
Viney had to swallow the gasp climbing up her throat before she responded. For a few moments all she could do was silently gape at me.
"You know that means–".
"I know" I choked, my tears threatening to spill over. "It hurts so titandamn badly, but I can't bring myself to tell Emira".
"I won't tell Emira," Viney said after a sigh. "That's something you need to do, very soon".
"I know," I murmured again.
"I can, however, help you with the pain. I'm sure your body is covered in burns". I nodded, causing a spurt of electricity to shoot up my neck. "Stay here. I'll go get you some aloe ointment and some healing patches".
"Viney" I called as she walked out the closet door. I'm very surprised my classmate heard it. "You can't tell anyone about this. If my mom finds out you know… I can't imagine what she'd do".
"Your secrets safe with me, Edric" Viney soothed. "I promise to stay out of it".
…
"So," Emira prodded. She was forced to keep her pace slow, her inner concern sticking her to my side. "What's so important we have to meet Mittens at the refuge?".
"Can't a witch just want to see his baby sister?" I rasped, my confidence clashing with my exhaustion.
"Well, you yourself said you wanted to talk about something. What's on your mind?".
"I'll tell you when we get to the refuge".
"Or you could tell me now".
With a hop, my twin jetted out in front of me and turned around. She stubbornly faced me, her patience running low.
"Like I said, Em. I want Amity there when I tell you".
"No, Ed," my sister commanded. "This problem is clearly eating you alive. What is it?".
"I…com'on, Emira. Don't make me have to say this more than o—RAH!".
A giant stabbing pain in my neck made me keel over. Surprise pushed a large yelp out of my mouth. Great titan, those were really getting bad!
Emira let out a yelp of her own. She quickly grabbed my arms and helped me stand upright.
"Edric! Tell me what's going on! NOW!".
"Are you…sure that it…". I don't know if it was all the stress sitting on my chest, or if it was the wattsicide, but it was getting really hard to breathe.
My legs gave in. I plopped onto the needle-covered ground while I clutched at my chest with what little energy I had left. Another bolt through my neck made my heart jump. The world started shaking back and forth. A loud ringing in my ears made me dizzy.
"Edric?! Are you alright?! Edric?! Say something!".
"Amity. I need to get t…to Amity,".
"We need to get you to the healing coven!" Emira cried as she tried to pull me back to my feet. She had to prop me up against her like a broom.
"It's too late for that".
"Stop being so dramatic!" she spat. "You're gonna be fine! We just need to get you–".
The horrified gasp my sister let out made me grit my fangs together so hard they almost chipped. Another few ripples of powerful electricity flowed through me but it didn't hurt me nearly as much as Emira's shock did. While she spoke, I had grabbed the concealment stone hidden in my sleeve and pulled it off me, revealing my hellish appearance.
Her focus moved from the raw red lesions around my neck to the flickers of light running up them. That was all she needed to see to understand what was going on.
Yet she still had a thousand questions.
"You've been poisoned" she could barely push the words from her throat.
"Yeah" I wheezed. "Mom got me".
"How long have you been hiding this?".
"Ever since I ate the soup. She…she wanted to poison you but I took it instead".
"You willingly ate poison?". Emira's cry in disbelief was nothing but a squeak. "Why?".
It was as if I'd just stabbed my twin in the back. Her inner anguish had lit a blaze, but her anger was heavily overshadowed by a stunned denial. She didn't want to believe this was all real, but my pitiful state was a harsh reminder that it was.
"I didn't want mom to hurt you. She wants another amulet and she's not going to stop until she gets one". I had to take a moment to catch my breath. "If I give my soul to her, maybe she'll leave you alone".
"Edric….you…I…". Tears began to stream down Emira's face. She sniveled while a quiet sob fought it's way out. "No…No, no, no no".
"I'm sorry, Em".
"Why?" she asked again while she pulled me closer to her. "Mom…she's going to hurt you…really badly".
"We need to get to the refuge. I want to say goodbye to Amity". Emira whimpered as she thought of a good way to respond.
"Okay," she finally murmured. "Let's…Let's go see Mittens".
She had to practically carry me to the clearing in the woods and squeezing down the entrance to the refuge was painfully slow. By the time we met up with Amity and Luz, I couldn't take another step. The latter rushed up to the both of us and helped me to the ground. The former hovered over me and took in my sorry appearance.
"Great titan! What hap–". The sparks running up my neck answered my little sister's question before she could even finish asking it. "Wattsicide!".
"Wattsi–what?" Luz questioned, the human clearly unaware of the substance.
"That isn't funny!" Amity snarled. Emira started weeping, just making the younger witch shout even more. "This is a joke, isn't it?! Tell me you're joking!".
"No, Mittens" Emira responded in between sniffles. "Mom did this. She poisoned him all because she wants another damn amulet".
"Edric's been poisoned!" Luz hollered.
"And it's already in his bloodstream". Amity's ears fell flat as the gravity of the situation finally caught up with her. "There's nothing we can do for him now".
"Nothing?! There's no antidote or procedure?!". The spirit simply shook her head. "¡Dios mío! ¡Esto no puede ser real! (My God! This can't be real!)".
"I couldn't let mom hurt Emira" I mumbled. My mind was now covered in a heavy fog making my speech slower than usual. "I can't let that happen".
"But what about you?" Amity pressed. "You can't seriously be okay with being put in an amulet. Edric, she's going to use the writhe command on you!".
"It's all going to be okay" Emira soothed after shushing our little sister. "I'll find a way to help you escape, just like with Mittens".
"No, Em. Then she'll kill you".
"That doesn't matter. I'm not letting her hurt you".
"But it does matter. That's the only reason I'm dying, so you can be safe".
Another few bolts made me jolt in place. My howl in pain was now only a small puff. Despite how much it hurt, I didn't have the energy to react.
"Hey" Amity hushed. She placed her hand on my arm. It was frozen to the touch, which felt really nice on my many burn marks. "Just try to relax. It won't hurt for much longer".
"Really? How do you know that?".
"Well, when I died, I was at first really cold and in a lot of pain. But then that cold and pain went away, and I felt really…good…I guess".
"Is there anything you want to say?" Luz stepped in delicately. The contrast between the bright energetic human I'd broken into the library with, and the listless and mourn-filled human knelling beside me was haunting. I nearly didn't recognize her.
"Luz," I weakly called out. "Thanks for taking care of my sister".
"Anytime" she uttered back while her welling tears finally broke free.
My attention then fell on my two sisters. When my dulling, half open eyes fell on my twin, she grabbed my hand and bravely looked into them. Amity was also now in tears. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't hide them, not at a time like this.
"It's been fun," I whispered, not having the strength to speak any louder. "I know I wasn't the best brother but I tried".
"What are you talking about?" Emira choked. "I wouldn't want anyone else to be my brother".
"Yeah, Ed" Amity chuckled past her many hics and sniffs. "You're the best brother in the whole wide world, remember?".
"That's sweet of you, but I know I'm just some idiot".
"That's like saying Mittens is just some nerd," the older witchling laughed.
I laughed too, but it was just a few huffs. That was the last noise anyone made beside a few snuffles. I wanted to say so much more but the words I wanted to say wouldn't come out. I was way too groggy to do anything other than just lie there.
I soon took Amity's suggestion. Now that the mood had been lightened, I was finally able to relax. I fully closed my eyes. Though they were as strong as they'd ever been, I could barely feel the shots of energy anymore. Just like the ghost said it would, the cold went away followed quickly by the pain. I felt more than good. I was feeling an indescribable peace that I didn't even know was possible.
When I opened my eyes again, I was no longer on the ground. The three teens that were hanging over me a moment ago were now below me. The sight of me lying in Emira's arms seemed so surreal. The fact that the witch on the ground was actually me and not an illusion baffled me in more ways than one.
Amity looked up from my body and gazed over at me. She swallowed the lump of grief in her throat before her focus moved back to the grim scene in front of her.
"Emira," she murmured. "He's gone".
As I was slipping away, Emira tried her hardest to keep the mourn-filled storm buried deep within her away. She wanted to be as supportive as possible during my final moments. But she couldn't keep it in any longer. My twin let out an agonized yowl that fell into a sob.
In her best attempt to comfort her friend, Luz gently held her hand over Amity's. The ghost didn't hesitate to grab it. She squeezed onto it as if it were a life-preserver.
"Adiós amigo mío (goodbye, my friend)" the human said as softly as she could. I didn't understand what those weird words meant. They were in a language that was only spoken in the human realm. But I could tell by the tone of Luz's voice that it was some sort of farewell.
Then, the next thing I knew, I was in front of my mother.
Her icy blue eyes were as wide as they could be. She looked decades older than she actually was, her crow's feet looking more like gryphon's talons and her skin clammy and extremely pallor.
"What's the matter, mom?" I growled. "Were you expecting to see Emira?". Her daughter's name made her mouth gape.
"Edric!" she gasped. "Please tell me you didn't!".
"How could you?!" I shouted as if my mother said nothing. "You were going to kill your own daughter, all so you could turn her into some ghostly assassin! Well, you don't need to anymore, because you have another one now! I hope you're happy!".
"Is that what you think this is about?".
"Of course! Why else would you try to kill Emira?!".
I'd never seen my mother so devastated. She crept up to me, raising her arm so she could reach my hand. I took a step back as my glower grew more vicious. How dare she act like she cared about her kids after murdering one.
"I know you want to believe Emira's innocent but…Edric, she did something very horrible to your little sister".
It was my turn to gawk in shock. She'd found out who took Amity, though she thought Emira did it alone. How did she know? Did Katif finally talk to her, or did she just figure it out?
"Edric," the aging witch continued. "The other night, after Emira had attacked him in the marketplace, Katif came to speak with me. And after hearing what he had to say, I now know what happened to Amity. Emira stole the amulet and sold her to the Owl Lady".
My mother's voice uncharacteristically cracked. She gnashed her fangs like a wild cerberus while she stifled her anger. The very thought of the amulet now being in a criminal's possession was maddening to her.
It's as if the wicked businesswitch didn't remember what she did to the child she was so upset about. Even if Eda treated the amulet like a normal pricey possession, Amity would still be better off. At least she wouldn't use the amulet to torture her.
At that moment, I had another decision to make. I could've easily just let Emira take the fall for Amity's disappearance. All of mom's fury would remain on her instead of being on the both of us.
But of course, that wasn't going to happen.
"No, she didn't".
"I know you don't want to believe—".
"I know she didn't do it, mom. Because I did".
The two of us went silent for a moment. Mom's eyes moved from side to side as if she searched for how she felt.
"Then how do you explain how Emira's been acting these last couple weeks?" she huffed.
"Why do you think I didn't tell Emira about what I was planning? With how emotional she's been acting, she wouldn't have been able to see why I had to get rid of the amulet. So, I did it alone".
"Get rid of the amulet?! You sold your little sister to a criminal!".
"A criminal who's treating her better than her own mother did! You sent her off to murder a wealthy buisnesswitch then made her literally writhe in agony when she didn't do it!".
"Don't act like you care about Amity!". My mother's scream pierced my ears like spikes. As she stomped closer to me, her eyes started to fill with tears. She was no longer trying to keep her demeanor. All of her raw fury was let out and hurdled at me. "All I wanted was to give my child another chance at life! And yes, at times she needed to be punished harshly but in the end it would all be worth it! But you took that away from her by giving her freedom to a wild witch!".
"That wasn't freedom!" I roared back. "You kept her trapped in that damn trinket, only letting her out if she took other witches' lives! What part of that are you not understanding!".
"Oh, I understand perfectly what's going on. You never gave a damn about your little sister. She was just some well behaved snitch to you, so you got rid of her as soon as you got the chance".
"Bite your tongue, you hellhound! I loved Amity, and I still do! That's why I found her a new home! I found her someone who loves her so much, their bond is literally magical!".
"No wonder Amity always hated you. After this, I don't blame her".
That made my heart shatter. I know the only reason she said it was to hurt me but there was still a bit of truth behind it. For a while Amity had waged a war against me and Emira. She followed us everywhere she went, purposely trying to get us in trouble while we did a bunch of shit to get back at her.
Apparently, she was jealous of us. She thought mom and dad saw us as perfect, while they judged every single move she made. It took Amity dying horribly and then being locked in an amulet for us to learn that, for us all to start acting better towards each other.
"Yet I was the one who rescued her from you".
My mother let out a breathy sigh. She bowed her head down, causing all the tears in her eyes to fall down her face and onto the floor. She could no longer stand to look at me.
"What happened to you?". For once, mom spoke quietly. Her voice shook, even squeaking once. "You were such a sweet little witchling, but now…".
Her hand quaked as she lifted her finger into the air and drew a large spell circle.
"I don't want to do this".
"Then don't" I pressed, my voice now a lot softer. "You don't need to put me in an amulet. You can just let me move onto the spirit realm".
"I'm not going to put you inside of an amulet".
"Really?" I asked in surprise. "Then what are you going to do?".
Large hooks suddenly launched from the ground. They all snagged onto me, the larger ones leaching onto my abdomen while the smaller ones went for my limbs. Once they had a good enough grip, they began to sink back to the floor. As it tore my ghostly body in half, a ton of tears ran up it.
She was destroying my form, turning me into nothing but the wind.
"You're going to EXORCIZE me?! Your own son?!".
"I love you, sweetie, I truly do". The older witch had to take a moment to steady her breathing. "But I can't let you hurt this family anymore then you already have".
"Mom, please! You don't have to do this! Just put me in an amulet! I'll do whatever you say! Please, mom! LET ME GO!".
My begging got to my mother. It made her breath hitch and her body shake even more than it already was. But it wasn't enough.
In one swift movement she closed her hand into a fist, causing the chains to give one more large pull. All at once, I lost feeling in my entire body. I was no longer standing in mid-air, nor was I sitting or lying down or anything. I was just there.
Mom instantly crossed her arms, the cold draft that was once the ghost of her child chilling her to the bone. I frantically swirled around the room while I stared down at her. I watched her run towards her desk, then collapse on top of it. She let out an angered wail as her nails dug into the wood.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. The cold-hearted witch who started all of this, the witch who tried to kill her daughter and then exorcized her own son, was now on her knees weeping. She was grieving for me.
As she was tearing apart my form, she actually told me she loved me! Do you know how rare of an occurrence that was? She never said it to me while I was alive, but after she accused me of hating my little sister, of hurting the family, that's when she said I love you?!
And the weirdest thing of all was that I believed her. There was no way her violent sobbing was all an act. Yet if she loved her children so much, why would she keep hurting us like she did?
After a few minutes, I couldn't take it anymore. As nothing but a draft, I whiffed under the door to an open window. I didn't know where to go. I didn't have anywhere to go after all. But I couldn't stay in the manor any longer. My mother made it clear I wasn't welcomed there anymore.
I wanted so badly to find someone and ask for help, but how would I even do that? I couldn't talk anymore, and nobody could see me. All I could do was fly around and make people feel cold.
The best thing to do would just be to stream around the sky, keeping a lookout for what to do next. Though I had a very bad feeling that I'd be stuck doing that for the rest of my afterlife.