Chapter 5

Leah woke up gasping for air, her lungs on fire.  She was drenched in sweat from head to toe. She was so exhausted that she could barely lift her head.  Where was she? What had just happened? She tried to calm down but she felt disoriented and extremely weak.

"Leah!  Love, are you okay?" Leah’s mom was by her side and so was Kamali.  "We were so worried about you and we had no way of stopping your nightmare. You shook as I’ve never seen anyone shake before. It looked as if you were having a seizure."

"Mom, where am I?  What happened?" Leah spoke, almost in a croaky whisper. Her throat burned like fire and she was still out of breath. Whatever she’d just gone through had taken it all out of her. She felt empty and exhausted.

"You passed out at the store.  We were busy bandaging up your hand when you blacked out on the bed. We tried, but there was nothing that we could do to stop it."  Her mom was shaking as she spoke.  Leah had never seen her so concerned before, and it scared Leah to no end.

"I had a nightmare.  But it felt so real."  Leah was still trembling as she spoke. She remembered every vivid moment of her dream as if it had just happened in real life. She could still smell the mossy walls and feel the dampness beneath her feet.

"I know, my Love.  We were there with you, we saw what happened."  Leah’s mom was trying to act calm, but Leah could see that what happened had really shaken her up.  Leah could sense that her mom wanted to say something to her. But her mom had kept silent, refusing to reveal what it was.

"Wait!  What?  How could you have seen what happened?  How is that even possible?  What's going on, Mom?  What aren't you telling me?"  Leah felt panicked and her words came out much louder than intended.  She was almost screaming. Something she had never done to her mom before because she respected her mom more than anyone else.

“Kamali and I were able to relive every moment that you did. We were somehow able to see all that you were seeing. Something that has never happened before.” Amber shook her head, confusion on her face. She herself felt as if she was part of the dream. She too smelt the musky earth and mossy walls. Twisting and turning through the passages of the cave with Leah.

“Who was the girl in my dream, Mom?” asked Leah, seeking answers to a question that was freaking her out. “We have no idea,” lied her mom, for she indeed knew exactly who it was. But Leah wasn’t ready to hear the story yet. It wasn’t time. But Amber feared that she would be too late to tell Leah the truth… the whole truth.

***

Emerald regally stood before her long black framed mirror in her bedroom. A bedroom decorated in red and black, her favorite colors. She was a beautiful woman with long blond hair tied into a plait that hung down to the middle of her back. She was named after her eyes which shone like bright, alluring emeralds.

She was a stunning woman, loved by few and feared by many. Emerald was a very powerful witch, almost as powerful as Amber. Most certainly trying to gain as much knowledge as to surpass her. There had always been a part of Emerald that wanted to be better than Amber. Better at everything, especially magic. But she just couldn’t receive the favor of the Goddess like Amber did. It was as if the Goddess didn’t listen when Emerald called.

Abigail sat at the foot of Emerald’s bed. “You look so striking in your black dress today, Mother,” said Abigail, as she marveled at Emerald’s beauty, wishing to be as beautiful one day. Emerald never seemed to age, she always looked impeccably dressed and had an air of greatness about her. Her presence turned heads as she entered a room.

“I haven’t seen that dress before, is it new?” Inquired Abigail, noticing the fine lace overlay as the dress hung down to the ground, pooling around Emerald’s feet. She looked so regal in Abigail’s eyes and she couldn’t stop staring at her mother.

“Yes, it is new. I bought it, especially for your eighteenth birthday ritual.” Smiled Emerald as she finished putting in her last earring and added a special emerald embellished necklace. She stepped back to look at herself in the mirror and felt that her outfit was now complete and that she looked perfect. Rather amazing, even if she had to say so herself.

“You will find a new dress hanging on your closet door to wear for the ritual tonight. You will need to wear it for your ceremony only, nothing else,” stated Emerald as she turned to face Abigail, “it has already been blessed and saged for your protection.” Emerald didn’t love many people in the world, but Abigail meant everything to her. 

“Thank you, Mother, you have gone through so much trouble. I will go and put it on immediately,” replied Abigail as she excitedly rose from the bed and made her way down the passage to her bedroom which was decorated in shades of light grey and dusty pink.

Abigail loved her bedroom. It was rather large and tastefully decorated. Her bed sat to her left as soon as she entered her bedroom. The wall to the left of her bed was home to her dressing table and a huge closet. The wall opposite her bed was made completely of windows that overlooked a lake. The wall to the right of that held a long white wooden framed mirror and her ritual table. A table filled with stunning candles, crystals of all sizes, sage, and her precious grimoire. Something she cared about most in life. The book was her heart and soul bound between two covers.

Abigail’s eyes widened in admiration for her beautiful new gown. It was a deep shade of red, almost maroon. It hung low to the ground and was made out of the softest velvet she had ever seen. It had a high neckline and long sleeves which bellowed out from the elbow to the wrist. Abigail couldn’t stop staring at it and couldn’t get into it fast enough. The dress called for her to be put on.

The dress fitted her perfectly and Abigail could feel its power as soon as she put it on. It almost hummed as it clung to her frame as if it were made especially for her and her alone. It felt like a second skin and Abigail absolutely loved it. She never thought that she’d ever own a gown like this, let alone at the age of eighteen.

Abigail turned to her white-framed mirror and admired herself. She had never owned such a beautiful gown in all of her life. She felt different as soon as she put it on as if she could feel its power coursing through her veins, causing her heart to beat faster. Her mind to clear from all other thoughts clouding her judgment. She felt focused and ready for her ritual that was about to begin. The dress was indeed powerful and made with special blessed materials. Even the cotton used to sew it had been blessed by more than one very powerful witch.

Emerald stood at Abigail’s door watching her spin in circles as she admired her new dress. A smile crept its way onto her face. “What do you think about the dress I chose for you? Isn’t it simply perfect for your ceremony tonight?”

“I’m absolutely in love with this gown and can barely contain my sadness at the thought of taking it off after the ritual ceremony has been completed.” Abigail couldn’t stop looking at herself in the mirror. It was as if the gown had transformed her into something new. Something powerful, no longer a teenager ready to transform into the witch that she was born to be. The person she’d waited to become for so long.

The full moon had almost reached its apex and Emerald hastened Abigail on. “We need to get a move on before it's too late to perform your ritual tonight.” Said Emerald as she almost pushed Abigail down the stairs and to the back door.

Emerald had already set up the altar outside in their garden. It stood upon a clear crystal slab that rested upon a pitch-black tree stump. It held moon water, crystals, a scrying bowl, and sage, along with Emerald’s grimoire on it. All the things needed for the ritual that was about to take place.

Abigail’s eyes widened as she saw the grimoire for she had never before been allowed to lay her hands upon it. Emerald kept it under lock and key as she believed that no witch should ever touch another witch’s grimoire. It would most definitely lose all of its power should that happen. Something that frightened Emerald to death for she was trying to get more power, not lose her own.

Abigail moved closer to the crystal altar, as she took her lead from Emerald. Emerald had donned a cloak with a hood that hid most of her hair, only her face was visible. The cloak was black as night and made out of pure silk. It glistened in the moonlight as it lightly swayed on the night breeze. Another thing to add to Emerald’s look of regality. Her beauty shone in the night moonlight.

A slight breeze blew Abigail's hair as Emerald looked up to make sure that the moon was in a perfect position. Emerald measuringly poured moon water into the scrying bowl as soon as the moon had reached its apex, part of the ritual that you couldn’t get wrong. She then motioned for Abigail to come closer.

Emerald put some sage in the crying bowl along with another vial of liquid. Something that Abigail had never seen her use before. It smelt sweet like honey but had the aftertaste of decaying flesh. The water instantly turned black and began to swirl. The look of it sent a shiver down Abigail’s spine for she had no idea what was about to happen. She had never attended a ritual before so tonight was extra scary for her.

Emerald stirred the mixture and told Abigail to bend over and look deep into the foul-smelling ritual bowl.

Abigail did as she was told for she never went against her mother’s wishes. She at first saw nothing, but then a face similar to hers began to emerge. A face that she knew was not her own. The face looked like hers but there were distinct differences. She noticed a girl wearing a white dress, one which Abigail knew she did not own. The girl was beautiful and graceful. She could almost be Abigail’s twin if she didn’t know that she was an only child. 

Abigail began to tremble. Her nerves got the better of her.

“I don’t understand,” said Abigail as she turned to face her mother, “who is this girl looking back at me because I know that it’s not me?” Dread started to fill Abigail. She wanted to run but knew that it would anger her mother. She was so shaken up that she felt rather nauseous.

“This is your alter-self,” Emerald began to lie, “this is your inner being that is revealing herself to you. She symbolizes your purity and free spirit. She is the light within you and the soul which inhabits you. She has revealed herself to you as a sign of light and love. You need to embrace her and know that she belongs to you, deep within your soul.” 

Emerald was angered that the vision had appeared. She was hoping for something else completely. She had no idea that an image of Leah would come through. How could this have happened? What was the Goddess trying to prove? She had after all done everything that the spell had told her to do. She had followed every step to the letter. Just as it was written down in the grimoire. A book passed down from generation to generation. What had she done wrong?

Emerald was sure that she had broken the twin bond as soon as she had taken Abigail away from Leah once they had been born. Emerald had been in the hospital when Amber gave birth. She had promised to help keep the girls apart for as long as they could, as per Amber’s wishes. She should have known better than to expect the Goddess to bend to their wishes. Had they made a mistake? Should the twins rather have grown up together knowing their love for one another and learning their strength in magic together?

Emerald was stumped and anger raged through her like fire through a burning building. She would need to come up with a lie to keep Abigail from asking more questions.

“I don’t understand Mother, this is not me. She might look like me but in my soul, I can feel that she’s not. This vision must be mistaken.” Abigail began to feel dizzy with fear and she felt tears burning the back of her eyes. She noticed the anger on her mother’s face which scared her even more. Why would her mother be angry at her?

How dare the Goddess go against my wishes, thought Emerald to herself. She could barely contain her anger. She did her best to not let Abigail see it but failed. She was seething inside.

“You need to drink from this bowl,” instructed Emerald, “you need to consume the woman within so that she can inhabit your soul.” It was what was written in the spell. The spell had already gone horribly wrong and almost caused Emerald to stop the ritual completely. Emerald could only wish that it wouldn’t do any more damage than the vision already had.

Abigail slowly bent forward, fighting against her own will. She tried to think of any excuse not to drink that water, but none came to mind. She slowly took the scrying bowl from her mother, looked her in the eyes, and drank a sip. Just one small sip. It was all that she could bare to take.

The liquid smelt of death and tasted rank. Abigail had to fight against the nausea she felt as the liquid burnt all the way down to her stomach. She fought back tears and kept a brave face. There was no way that she was going to go against her mother’s wishes. But she could feel that something was very wrong. A ritual should not be this disastrous for Abigail could feel that the liquid was doing more damage than good. 

She was in so much pain that she wanted to double up but stood strong to keep her mother happy.

“That’s a good girl,” remarked Emerald, happy that Abigail had adhered to her demand. She however had no idea what this would do to Abigail, all that she could hope for was that her spell had worked and that the final bond between the twins was broken. A bond she however knew no strength of.