Chapter 3

The celebration of Lammas, or Lugnasadh, was the the celebration of the upcoming harvest. Omen baked her own bread. The whole house smelled like a bakery in the morning and whetted everyone's hunger.

It was one of the Sabbaths that a Wicca celebrated and it was all about honoring nature.

Maddie had brought her belongings from her house to Omem’s house the day before. She had taken up residence in the bedroom with the large balcony. She loved having a balcony with patio doors. She loved to sit outside in the evening to do her meditation. She also enjoyed feeling the cool night air on her face when she lay in her bed. Especially when she was nice and warm under her duvet.

Maddie hadn't really spoken to Silke anymore. Silke was busy with all kinds of assignments from Omen and even Raven had been more absent than present. Something with working at a mission or something like that. Whatever that meant.

Friends of omem also came by. They belonged to her coven. A witch community of no more than thirteen members, headed by a high priest. 

They arrived well before lunch to help with the preparations.

Jente was a real farmersdaughter, who was solidly built, a real Frisian woman sober and calm. She did everything with calmness and self-evidence, that left no room for doubt.

Liza, on the other hand, was very busy and fussy. Omem called her to order because she made her nervous. She had short, dyed black hair and equally dark eyes. She was short in stature and very thin.

That was because of her busy nature, according to Jente.

Anke had long, gray hair, and that alone made her look like a modern witch. She was a real mother hen, lovingly squeezing Raven's cheek as a greeting, something he hated.

She wanted to know how everyone was doing and she was so concerned with it, that omem had to bring her back to class.

‘Baking bread and making jam Anke.’

To which Anke nodded and went to work diligently.

Maddie and Silke, silently decorated the dining room with fruit and bowls full of flowers, as befits the celebration.

Maddie looked at Silke for a moment, who intrigued her very much with her gruff expression that suddenly disappeared when she looked at someone. Was that lovely facce real or was that gruff just the expression on her face? There was something mysterious about her, something indefinable.

Because it was still warm outside, the patio doors were open.

Silke looked intensely at Raven now and then, she tried to catch his eye, which he consciously ignored.

At least it seemed that way, Maddie thought.

Ravens bright blue eyes had a thoughtful, worried look. He was busy working outside, already put down the barbecue and prepared the large iron dish.wherein the evening, they could warm themselves by the fire when it cooled down. Raven already lit the fire, because it was also part of a ritual that took place later in the afternoon. He chopped some more wood. 

And he pulled chairs and a table out of the shed into the garden so they could sit outside. Maddie watched him. She didn't know why, but his sight had a strange effect on her lately. She even noticed the movement of his muscles, which were visible under his shirt.

She suddenly caught his eye and flushed with shock. As if he could have read her mind, he smiled understandingly.

Maddie quickly continued decorating the dining table with nuts, fruit, and a grain circle. It had a pitcher of apple cider and a large pot of herbal tea, drawning on an old-fashioned tea light.

Silke lit the candles, which were arranged in silver candlesticks along the length of the table. White, for the energy to start something new, give protection and support the meditation.

 A silver candle that stood for the power of the Goddess and therefore for insights, clarity in dreams, and telepathy. A golden candle that represented the strength of the Gods, success, happiness, and wealth.

The preparations were finished and everyone took a seat around the large dining table to make corn dolls. A ceremony to be grateful for what you had sown in your life that year and could almost reap. 

Omem made hers, with a red ribbon, to hang over the large fireplace in the library for the rest of the winter, in honor of Cerridwen, the Celtic mother goddess.

Silke chose yellow ribbons for her grain doll.

‘That means Spirit and decisiveness,’ said Liza, ‘action and wealth.’

Silke smiled a little, her eyes kept sliding to Raven.

He kept ignoring her and that annoyed her immensely, Maddie saw. 

Maddie smiled and was surprised at how she felt about that. She was glad he ignored Silke, but she wasn't sure why.

Raven thought purple was the most beautiful color.

‘Fits your name as a messenger,’ Laughed Jente.

Maddie looked around without understanding.

‘Why then does that suit Raven? And what about a messenger? ‘she asked. ‘Raven's name means messenger,’ Jente explained. ‘And the color purple means that he can explain and pass on messages well.’ 

Maddie did not understand much. What kind of messages? She chose a white ribbon herself. Cleanliness, spirituality, and dreams, she knew.

Omen poured the tea and took the bread out of the oven.

Jente brought the bowl of freshly baked cookies and the fruit salad. Everyone was ready for the ceremony.

 Omem took an ear of wheat and held it in her left hand. She waved it over the baked bread in the crop circle.

‘See here the first harvest of the grain. Baking the first bread is over. The seed was given us the Bread of life.Grateful for the harvest we share, nourishment for so all of us. ‘

Then Omen broke the bread into equal pieces to eat at lunch while enjoying the herbal tea and apple cider.

‘Keep a piece of it to crumble in the garden, as a sacrifice for the earth,’ Anke called out to everyone motherly.

‘They know that,’ Jente was annoyed. ‘It's not the first time we've done this, Anke.’

‘Just in case,’ she defended her statement.

‘It's better to say too much than be top silent,’ Liza said.

After everyone had eaten, it was time for the grain game. 

Then you took the grain doll in your hand and  you had to tell what you had done or what had happened in the past year. And what it was you wanted to harvest.

Liza was the first to act. And took up her doll.

‘Well, I went on a diet last year, so I can get back to those clothes I like in a smaller size.’

Jente sighed, ‘If that's the most important thing in your life.’

‘I can decide for myself what I think is the most important thing I have been able to harvest!’ Liza sounded offended.

‘Of course,’ Anke hushed.‘I've put a lot of time into my relationship, which makes things go much better between Arend and me.’

Jente sighed again. ‘For me, the most important thing is that I have put time and energy into myself and that I am a lot happier than I was.’

‘Beautiful,’ Silke said, but the look in her eyes contradicted her words of support. She looked around the circle with a slightly exasperated look. Maddie found that very intriguing. Why did she participate? And why was she actually there? That was also so vague.

‘For me, the most important thing  is that I have been honest and that I have been able to reap the benefits off that and  that I am now here.’ 

Silke looked at Raven a lot while she spoke. There was a special look in her eyes that only Maddie noticed. But Raven ignored Silke again.

It was Omem's turn. ‘The most important thing for me is that I have put my energy and knowledge into many young people and that as a result, I have been able to reap more peace and love in many young  lives .’

‘That ties in fot me,’ said Raven, ‘I am glad that I have been open to so much counseling and advice so that I can reap which way I want to go in life.’

His gazed briefly at Maddie.

The intense glow in his blue eyes made her feel warm and restless.

Everyone suddenly looked at her when it was her turn.

‘What matters most to me is that I can finally harvest my dreams and will know what they mean,’ she said more fiercely than she intended.

‘A good one,’ said Raven, looking at her with a serious look in his eyes. Everyone laughed and the tension that had been felt before, evaporated, but Raven's eyes remained on her.

Silke became tenser, which only Maddie noticed.

Then everyone threw their doll into the fire in the large bowl outside, as an offering to the gods, so that their harvest actually came about. 

Liza then picked up the guitar, Anke the luit, and Jente the violin. Together they made a form of Celtic music. Omem chanted and the others followed her.

‘Lugh lamfade, saga of skills.

Sun and harvest, the spear of will.

Lugh lamfada, with your might,

Bring us blessings bright. ‘

As the rhythm of the words and the music was felt throughout the body, it became a kind of meditation so no one could sit still. Raven danced with big, strange jumps that made everyone laugh. It made the energy light in the dining room and that was how it was felt in the body. It was exactly what the celebration was for.

 When everyone was happy and laughing again, Omem brought a fresh pot of herbal tea from the kitchen and some lavender cookies.

‘Tomorrow we will celebrate Maddie's eighteenth birthday,’ she said. ‘It is an important day because then Maddie can officially join the Wicca and develop as a real witch. Ww will then do the official initiation.‘

Maddie nodded. That she had agreed on with Omem a while ago.

Just like her grandma, Maddie felt very much at home in nature and the Wicca. Even though she herself had not yet performed a ritual every day or regularly participated in all Sabbaths and observances, she was eager to learn the knowledge of omem. She loved everything that had  to do with nature and all the energy she could feel.

‘Maddie, your own name means child of the light. Do you already know what your Wiccan name will be? ‘Omem asked.

Maddie nodded.

Yes, she already knew that. A while ago that name had come to her and it stayed with her. A witch name came across someone's path and suited the person, even if it was not always understood immediately why. Someone was not addressed with it, only during special rituals. It was not known to the outside world that you had taken on any other name.

That was only for the insiders to know.

‘I'm glad you're all there tomorrow,’ Omem siad.

Everyone nodded enthusiastically.

‘It's going to be so special,’ said Anke, her eyes widening. ‘I really don't want to miss something like that.’

Maddie looked at her inquisitively, it did sound very mysterious.

Liza put an end to that feeling.

‘Just act normal Anke. Your behavior gives Wicca a scary name. ‘

Everyone laughed.

In the evening they all sat outside as the wood fire burned. Raven manned the barbecue and roasted the meat. The salad, corn, and nuts were on the decorated table outside, and everyone enjoyed the fresh apple cider. 

Omem had lit incense and Maddie could smell the familiar scent of sandalwood. That had a deep meaning for her. When she and her brother were younger, they stayed at Omems house and sometimes ther were other children present. She rememberd  celebrate Christmas at omems once. Everyone slept on mattresses near the large fireplace in the library. 

Omem sitting in the wicker rocking chair and reading from one of the fairy tale books. Sometimes she told her own made-up stories.

Opi would then sit in the other rocking chair and listen. He made strange faces at the stories. Cozy and loving, that was the feeling that the scent of sandalwood meant, at least for Maddie.

She disappeared completely in her mind, but when she heard her name she landed in the present again.

'What?'

‘That you have a second name besides Maddie's?’ Anke repeated and looked at her questioningly.

'Yes. My full name is actually Magna Luna. that means big moon.’ She smiled at the circle of those present. ‘Fortunately my nickname is Maddie. Witch means, she of the light and sounds much better, I think.’She smiled at the circle of those present.

There was just too long a silence. The kind where when you feel uncomfortable

‘Magna Luna is a name of great significance,’ Anke said with great conviction.

Liza nods enthusiastically. ‘Oh yes, very big.’

It sounded so serious that Maddie wondered why. And again it was Raven who saved the atmosphere by soberly noting that a moon was always very big, which made everyone laugh freely again.

Maddie was grateful to him because she could not place that strange energy. ‘Meat is ready for the first round,’ Raven reported, winking at her. 

That made her feel special and she smiled back gratefully. The focus was on the food again and the celebration of Loenasa. Not on her.

Raven briefly returned to the barn to get new logs for the fire bowl. Suddenly Silke was behind him again. He felt her before he saw her.

‘Am I going to get this every time now? That when I'm alone somewhere, you follow me? ‘He asked in exasperation.

He looked into her brown eyes and saw all kinds of things that he did not want to see.

 ‘Raven, you haven't forgotten what we had together. Did you?. How it felt, how often we…. ‘

‘Be quiet!’ He shut her up, he was so reluctant that any of those present understood that he knew her from a long time ago.

She smiled defiantly.

‘What if I tell someone? For example  Maddie? ‘

He felt his heart skip a beat.

She grinned. ‘I think I hit a nerve there. Yes, I thought you fell back on the redhaired again. ‘

‘What do you want from me, Silke?’ He decided to play with an open mind. 

‘I want that sex you always promised me back then,’ she said smiling.

 He wasn't surprised that she just asked for that.

‘I'm not 21 yet,’ he said as if that were his excuse.

‘It doesn't matter to me,’ she laughed. ‘I am magically mature. And well, those eighteen months before you are 21? What difference will that make to your magic?’ She stroked his chest with her finger. 

He certainly remembered her. The things she made up without really having sex involved. She had made him a lot wiser then in that regard.

She laughed out loud. ‘I see you remember.’

‘I remember,’ he admitted, ‘but like I told you before, I don't want you.’ 

For a moment he saw a puzzled look in her eyes, then she smiled again.

‘Okay Raven,’ she said sarcastically, ‘maybe I should talk to Maddie after all. Then I can give her some tips and tricks. ‘And she walked away laughing.

Raven sighed deeply. He was shocked to find out who he had saved that day. Almost immediately, he was sure she was going to be  trouble. She was linked to that part of his life he wanted to forget.

But that was not possible because of her presence. Those dark brown eyes with that horrible furious look and then the great surprise and horror, came back to his retina more and more.

Raven sighed, took the logs, and walked back.

He was shocked to see that Silke had sat down next to Maddie.

‘Exciting, your birthday tomorrow, I mean,’ said Silke, as if she were fishing for something.

Maddie nodded and looked at her closely.

‘What did you say about your dream this morning? That you wanted to find out what it means? ‘

Maddie nodded again and bit into an apple.

‘All my life I have dreamed about a house I walk around in. It used to be dark, later it got brighter and less scary. In recent years there has been a kind of space under the house and it is pitch dark there. And scary.’ Maddie concluded her story.

She studied Silke. Did she think it was a strange story? Nothing pointed in that direction.

‘Omem said it will be clear to me on my birthday,’ said Maddie. 

‘Then will be fine then. Your grandmother is always right.’ Silke's voice didn't sound very interested and Maddie looked at her inquisitively. Then why did she ask about it? And why was she actually with her? There wasn't really a friendship or anything developing?

‘You recently appeared at that monument with Raven. What's up with that? Where did you come from then?’Maddie tryed again to uncover the truth.

Silke looked at her in for a moment and then smiled.

‘Sorry, Maddie I really can't say that now, tomorrow, okay?’

Silke got up quickly and walked away from her in the direction of Raven. She put her hand on his arm. He pulled it back so quickly that it looked as if it had burned himself. His gaze darkened and he glared at Silke. She shrugged and walked away.

Maddie had seen everything and did not understand. 

Raven, in general, was always the calm itself. Silke clearly understood the art of getting under his skin. Or had something happened between them that she had missed? 

Maddie suddenly saw that Granny looked at her with a worried look. 

She didn't understand what was going on. Why all that mystery? It felt like she was left out everywhere. Maddie had the feeling that she could explode with curiosity. Why did everyone know something and no one said anything about it? It made her so uncomfortable.

She was irritated, got up and walked back into the house.

As always, she went to the library. She did that more when she was upset. She fiddled with the books, not really paying attention to which book it was she was holding. It was all so mysterious and strange.

It all was a surprise for her birthday? That could be a gift! It was all mystery and vague stuff! Maddie's gaze fell on a picture of her opi. 

She picked up the gold-colored picture frame. He had always been a man of few words. For as long as she could remember, he wore a long white beard, which made her regularly tease him. that he was Santa and perhaps believed it as a small child.

He had sparkling blue eyes and a lot of humor. He always said more with his look than with his words.

When she sat on his lap as a child, his big hands held her so tight, that she thought she was in the safest place in the world.

Her world had collapsed when he died. Suddenly and without warning, he left. He went to bed early in the evening, never to get up again. It still hurt her to think about it.

They had done another beautiful Wicca ritual for opi in the woods, just outside the city and then laid him to rest in the old cemetery.

Maddie had tears in her eyes again and wanted to put down the picture frame. But it fell off the mantelpiece, through the mist in her eyes.

The glass was broken into five pieces and the frame was loose on one side. Maddie had to hold back not to cry. 

She took out the picture of opi and then a piece of paper fell to the floor. 

She picked it up and wanted to put it on the mantelpiece with the photo.

Suddenly she saw her name on the paper.

In italic letters, written in opi's old-fashioned handwriting. Her heart skipped a beat. In a reflex, she looked around, as if she was doing something that was not allowed. Then she sat down on the black leather sofa, pulled her feet up under her, and unfolded the paper.

‘My dearest granddaughter,’ she read aloud, ‘when you find this letter, you are almost celebrating your eighteenth birthday, you’re almost grown-up. I will not be there and if you are reading this, you will know why. It is difficult for me that I will not experience this personally. You are a sweet girl and I love you very much. You remind me of your Omem when she was so young. You will become very clear on your eighteenth birthday. Your dreams will be explained and you will make the journey through the halls. You will scry.

I know you have no idea what I mean, but it will all become clear to you. 

A world will open up for you. A world that you don't know yet and that will change everything you know. Whatever happens, have faith in yourself, in your feelings, and in your intuition. I know you can do what you need to do.

When you go to the depths of the house, you will understand more and more. I stay with you in mind. Big kiss, opi. ‘

Maddie looked at the letter in confusion. Read it through a few more times to understand exactly what it said. The depth of the house? Which house? This house or the house of her dreams? A different vew of the world? And why did Opi know he was dead before her eighteenth birthday? And that she would find his letter before that day had come? How could he know that before his death? Maddie got confused about it. Her brain couldn't figure it all out. It couldn't be. To do that, she first had to understand what it all meant. And she would understand all of that tomorrow?

Why tomorrow? Why not immediately? What was happening around her? Was her safe world changed again, into that of an unsafe one? She really wasn't waiting for that!

 ‘Maddie?’

Raven walked into the library searching.

‘Ah, there you are, I've been looking for you.’

With one look, he saw her confusion and the letter in her hands, tears in her eyes. 'Are you OK?'

His eyes moved worriedly over her face with the confused expression, pain, and sadness.

‘I don't understand anything, but really nothing at all. All those strange events around me drive me crazy. That mysterious thing! Everything will be delt with tomorrow! And then I also find this letter from opi, just now!

Coincidence or what? ‘She wept angrily.

He let her roar. Wiped his lock of hair across the left and took both of her hands into his.

Then he pulled her over to comfort her and stroked her head as she sobbed on his shoulder.

It felt so good, her in his arms. Confidently curled up against him. He thought, very selfishly, that he would like it to stay that way for a long time. Slowly she calmed down. But his heart rate certainly didn't. Not at all, when her beautiful eyes looked up at him questioningly and he guessed she was expecting another response from him.

‘It's all mysterious shit,’ Raven agreed then and stroked her head again. ‘And no coincidence!’

‘You think it’s not a coincidence either?’ Her gaze sought support from him again. 

‘Coincidence doesn't exist,’ he said, ‘everything always happens for a reason and opi is probably still here in mind, and keping an eye on you.’ 

He heard his mouth say what she wanted to hear, but not what he actually wanted to say. He watched her ponder and stared at her mouth. That mouth! It distracted him from everything. Then she handed him the letter.

Maddie wondered how serious he was with his statement. But she didn't see anything to prove otherwise. She could tell from the movement of his eyes that he was not a quick reader. But she already knew that.

‘And?’ She asked, after what seemed like an eternity.

‘This is serious shit!’ He uttered in surprise.

She smiled at the way he said it but also felt the serious undertone.

‘Scrying is a tough business,’ he continued.

‘What is Scrying?’ She asked, not understanding.

‘It's part of Wicca, part of witchcraft,’ Raven explained. ‘To scry is to peer into a smooth surface and then be able to see something. The future or the past. ‘

‘Kind of divination?’ She understood.

‘Something like that, it just depends on your own energy, what you can see.’ ‘Raven!’ Omem was suddenly in the library. Her voice was stern and commanding.

Raven didn't seem overly impressed and ignored her.

‘Scrying can be developed,’ he said with his eyes fixed on Omem. 

She came closer and frowned at him.

‘Raven, what are you doing?’ She asked sternly.

He explained in his own short terms that Maddie had received a letter from opi.

He got up, so that he towered high above Omem.

‘Total confusion and not having a grip on what's happening can do strange things to your head.’ He looked at omem for a moment and strode out of the library, almost as if he was angry.

Omem sat down next to Maddie on the large sofa.

She gave her grandmother the letter from opi.

Maddie saw Omem's eyes fly over the lines. Her smile, as the memory of her beloved husband, emerged and the warm, moving look in her eyes.

Then omem sighed. 

‘Opi, typically opi, to get involved in all kinds of things after his death.’ There was admiration in her voice, but also sadness about the loss. She put her warm hands on Maddie's and looked at her intently.

‘Magna Luna. You are blessed with ancestors who have practiced wicca for many lifetimes. Ancestors, Celts, who lived in different parts of the world. Wherever the Frisii came from, the ancestors of all Frisians are yours too. Mystery and strange things belong in your life. ‘She paused and stood up, looked at all those pictures and portraits of many ancestors, and looked back at her.

‘I promised your parents that I will keep you out of the world of Wicca until your eighteenth birthday. Well, the spices and the celebrations were okay. The deeper layers of witchcraft, I had to keep far from you and I did. ‘

Maddie shrugged, confused. ‘I grew up with wicca, right? And those herbs and celebrations are just part of your life omem. What deeper withcraft could there be? ‘

Maddie just couldn't imagine that there were any more secrets in that area.

Omem had a strange glow in her eyes when she looked at her, one that Maddie had never seen before.

‘What you know is nothing girl. What you know, anyone who knows anything about wicca, knows. That which no one knows, is the big secret. ‘

Omem began to tell how her wicca descended from a long line

Celtic ancestors. And that these descended from Angles, Saxons, and Jutten. These had been the inhabitants of Frisia, the old Friesland. The first witches lived in Scandinavia and Scotland, Ireland, and England, also. Omem was a hereditary witch and a high priestess, she had received all the ancient knowledge of her ancestors through her parents. And she wanted to pass this on to Maddie. But there was still so much to tell her.

‘Because you are only allowed to get to know the deeper layers of witchcraft when you are eighteen, I have initiated witches for you who come to live here. Helpers of your own age, who already have a little more knowledge of that world and who can support you, ‘Omem said.

Maddie was listening with a strange feeling, a feeling of disbelief and cynicism.

Grandma continued, ‘Your helpers are Raven, Rodolf, and Esmee.’

'What? Is Raven a witch? ‘Maddie exclaimed in surprise as if it were the only name she heard. She didn't understand. He was a witch? Grandma must have meant a Wiccan. Someone who adored nature and went with the seasons.

But Raven?

‘Who are Rodolf and Esmee?’ She asked, remembering the other names

‘Esmee is Jente's daughter and Rodolf is related to opi. Rodolf is  Opi’s brother's grandson and therfore Coram's son. And Raven is a magician by birth. ‘

Maddie did not understand. A wizard? A magician? That's probably not what omem meant, but what did she mean then?

‘Have all your friends been initiated into the deeper knowledge of the Wicca omem? And Silke? ‘Maddie was confused and looked up at her grandmother in disbelief.

‘Yes, baby. Everyone here knows the deeper ways of Wicca. In the coming days, your brain will crack and your imagination will be stimulated.

You will come into contact with the real magic in this world. It will be a lot of information. Just let it get over you. I will prepare some herbs to support you and the herbal tea that you have been drinking for years, can now be left for good. It was to suppress your deeper magic. ‘

‘Omem?’

'Yes.'

‘And the explanation of my nightmares? Does that have to do with witchcraft and magic? ‘

Maddie looked up expectantly at her grandmother, the grandmother she trusted blindly to decide what was right for her.

‘We'll talk more tomorrow girl.’

She stroked her head lovingly and slowly walked out of the library.

Maddie sat in the library for a long time, thinking.

So long that Raven came back to look for her. It was now dark and without her seeing it, he moved his hand and lit the candles that were there.

‘Maddie?’

She was shocked when he said her name and looked up at him. Her gaze passed questioningly over him. She looked him up and down as if she were seeing him for the first time.

‘A witch?’ She asked.

Raven laughed with relief, her look had worried him for a moment.

He kind of nodded and sat down next to her. He took her hand.

‘More of a magician,’ he grumbled gently.

‘No juggling, but real magic?’

He heard the disbelief in her voice and grinned.

‘Yes, I can't deny that.’

‘That doesn't exist, does it?’ Maddie tried to understand clearly what she had been told.

He saw her struggle with it and it affected him more than he thought.

He understood it was a lot take in.

‘There are many forms of magic. Love is also a form of it, ‘he began explaining.

She looked at him with a frown between her eyebrows.

But he went on unperturbed.

‘Love between two people is not tangible, yet everyone believes it when two previously strange people become deeply connected.’ He looked at her.

‘Sometimes, before the storm hits, you can feel the electricity in the air. It then gives a headache, transmits the energy to build up, and then it is released, when it finally erupts. ‘She nodded again.

‘Ever seen a Danish Dog put his tail between his legs because the energy of a small dog was threatening to him? Happened without words, without sound? Only through the shift of invisible energy.’

She nodded and smiled.

‘That's how magic is. Invisible, present, and usable for some. It is a form of energy that you cannot see or touch, ‘he further explained.

‘Well, the latter is not entirely true,’ he corrected himself, ‘you can get pretty hit by magic. Literally and figuratively.’

Maddie laughed at that imagery.

He could feel her relax again as he tuned in to her.

‘That's the longest story you've ever told in succession,’ said Maddie, and it sounded a little teasing.

Raven grinned guiltily. ‘I cantell stories, but it has to be for a reason.’

She looked at her hand in his and then into his eyes.

‘Thank you, Raven.’

He nodded and let go of her, got up, and gave her a quick kiss on her head before walking away.

 Maddie looked after him, a little confused by her feelings. 

She suddenly noticed that he had lit the candles and not the table lamps. that was weird, she hadn't seen him do it. But she had probably been so confused by all the new information that she hadn't received it. Of course, it was. What else? He's been so nice to her lately. Or was it that she noticed more?

She sighed deeply and decided to go back to the garden, where everyone was sitting around the fire pit. She caught Raven's satisfied smile for a moment and smiled back.

They all sat in the garden until late at night.