Pandora answered on the third ring. “Hey, Undrea, what’s up?”
“Hi, Pandora. I won’t keep you long, but I have a quick, random question for you.”
“Shoot.”
“What’s a rare witch?”
“You mean like the rarest kind of witch? I’m not sure. I’d have to ask my mom. Or Alice Bishop. Although she might qualify as a rare witch, all things considered.”
“No, I don’t mean the rarest kind. I mean like if it were the same thing as a green witch or a Celtic witch or a fire witch. What’s a rare witch?”
“That’s…not a thing.”
“Listen, someone just told me they were a rare witch. It has to be a thing.”
“Hmm. You should ask my mom. I can give you her number.”
“I don’t want to bother her.”
“She won’t care. In fact, I’ll text her and let her know you’re going to call.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive. If she doesn’t know, she can ask around. Maybe even ask Alice Bishop. Although besides them, I’m not sure who else could answer this one for you. Mattie isn’t as tied in as the rest of us.”
“Which is why I called you. I thought you’d have a better shot at answering this one.” Mattie hadn’t joined the coven. She said Celtic witches were solitary creatures and the bees were all the coven she needed. “Okay, I’ll call your mom.”
“Great. I’ll text her, then send you her number.”
“Thanks. Oh, hey, are you going Friday night?”
“Insomnia? You know it.”
“Awesome.” Undrea smiled. Pandora was married to Cole, one of the professors at the local academy, but she still liked to get out with her friends when she could. “See you then.”
They hung up, and Pandora’s text came in shortly after.
Undrea dialed Corette Williams’s number, feeling a little nervous. Corette ran the bridal shop in town, but she was also the secretary of the Nocturne Falls coven, which made her a pretty important and powerful witch.
But then, that was why she was a likely candidate to answer Undrea’s question.
Corette answered right away. “Good evening. Is this Undrea?”
“Yes, ma’am. Pandora said I should call you.”
“I’m happy to help. What can I do for you?”
“Someone just told me that they were a rare witch, and I was wondering what that means?”
Corette laughed softly. “I haven’t heard that a while. Let me see…how to best explain. A rare witch is often what very weak witches call themselves. The only thing rare about them is usually how little power they wield. It sounds impressive to the uninformed, but it protects the witch from claiming powers she doesn’t have.”
“So a witch could get in trouble for that?”
“If someone really wanted to make an issue of it and bring it up to the council, the witch could find themselves in a little bit of trouble. Censured, perhaps.”
“That’s interesting. So you think this woman is a witch but not a very strong one?”
“Yes, that’s right. Most rare witches have a very thin bloodline of magic. So thin that at best they might be able to light a candle with their magic or stir a cup of tea.”
“Or find where someone lived?”
“Yes, something like that.” Corette paused. “Did this person know you were a mermaid?”
“No, but she knew I wasn’t human.”
“That might be the extent of her powers then. Being able to tell you’re a supernatural but not what kind.”
“Huh. Would another witch be able to tell how powerful she is? Or isn’t, as the case may be?”
“Possibly. But weak magic is hard to detect. There are plenty of humans with a tiny strain of power in them, and it amounts to no more than knowing when the phone is about to ring or having a strong hunch that comes true. That kind of thin magic often manifests as a weighted feeling or premonition. All of those people could just as easily call themselves rare witches too.”
“So I have nothing to worry about from her?”
“I would say no. Just a moment, now. Did this woman threaten you?”
“You could say that.”
“That’s another matter altogether. You could absolutely file a complaint with the council, if you so desired.”
“I don’t. I really don’t think this is going to turn into anything. She’s just mad about something she can’t control. But, for the sake of curiosity, what would I have to do to file a complaint?”
“You’d have to appear before three members of the local coven, explain your case, the threat that was made, name the woman, and swear on your own supernatural abilities that you’re telling the truth. It’s actually a very simple procedure. It might not be a bad thing to do, either. It would establish your case now. And if she were to approach you again, you’d already have things underway.”
Undrea nodded, but she already knew this wasn’t something she could do. Not if swearing on her own supernatural abilities meant revealing what she was truly capable of. It wasn’t a chance she wanted to take. “I’ll think about it. Thank you so much for all of this information. I feel a lot better now.”
“You’re very welcome. Let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help.”
“I will. Have a good night.”
“You, too, Undrea.”
She hung up and thought about what Corette had told her. Getting the complaint underway wasn’t a bad idea, but not if it meant admitting the truth about what she was. That wasn’t something she was about to do.
Not for Nina, the weaksauce witch.
Ethan wasn’t quite sure what to do. Nina couldn’t just refuse to break up with him. Could she?
He understood her point. Whoever went out with him had to be prepared for a certain amount of pressure and scrutiny because she would eventually become a news article and because of that, a minor celebrity. She’d be scrutinized and criticized. That was just the way of things in his life.
But was that such a big deal? He lived under the same magnifying glass and he’d learned to ignore it.
As for his blacking-out issues, was it so difficult to care for him on those rare occasions? He didn’t think Nina had ever done more than get him to a safe place to lie down. Not that he could remember anything that happened when those episodes took place.
In his opinion, those things weren’t enough reason for Nina to act like she was his only option for a partner. That was ridiculous. And the longer he thought about it, the angrier he got. He waited for her to return, which she finally did after what seemed like an awfully long time to get almond milk.
“Nina, it’s over between us.”
“I already told you that it’s not.” She walked past him and into the kitchen.
He followed her. “Saying that means nothing. Just like your refusal to accept what’s happening changes nothing. Refusing to believe the sky is blue doesn’t make it green.”
She took the almond milk out of the bag, stuck it in the refrigerator, then turned to look at him. “Ethan, you are a brilliant man in many ways. Knowing what’s best for yourself on a personal level isn’t one of them. Look at the state of your love life when I met you.”