And that's the first step. Find others. Connect. And then tackle the helplessness. Because one person might not contain everything needed to make a catastrophic difference, but a few? A handful or ten or fifty?
We are not helpless. We are not alone.
And once we stop believing those lies, the darkness that used them as weaponized immobilization will know fear. They no longer have their greatest ally: darkness.
"What do we do now?" Eloise asked the question at the front of everyone else's mouth.
"We speak out loud to the world that we are not alone. That we are here to bring light to whatever darkness has been brought by The Covenant to our town. And we listen and go from there."
They joined hands and Crystal spoke about inviting the world to open its eyes, people who might have covered them to drop their hands and see truth. She gave the sky words of unity that could be carried on the wind and dropped by starlight to break apart the division that The Covenant and Rob had instigated.
Crystal spoke those words over them as they rose, hands linked in a perfect circle along with the spirits that had joined them.
There was no light of the moon, but still, a brightness glowed from nowhere. Cleopatra sat watching over them high in the trees, along with Portia. There was a war here. Each womancould feel it. Every tree, bush, and every fern frond pressed themselves closer to the earth in hopes of being cloaked in the magic that would keep them safe.
Black shadowy shapes fluttered high above, barely discernible against the dark sky, but their clicks gave away their nocturnal identities. Worms started wiggling out of the dirt, and black-spotted toads singing their trilling songs hopped along gravestones and the feet of tree roots sticking out of the ground.
Once they had finished their call to the world's magic, they opened their eyes and looked around. Cockroaches covered the jars of moonlight, the glow just barely getting through the cracks between the insects. The stars were hidden, too, by the bats swooping overhead.
Magic had been called and answered.
And so too did the darker side of magic answer.
This was indeed going to be a battle.
26. When the Moon Drinks
"You alright? You've got that look."
Jen looked at Tilly curiously. "What look?"
Tilly's head bobbed to each side a couple of times, the alcohol making her feel bubbly and light, as she thought and replied, "Like you're carrying more than you're letting on. And most people wouldn't catch on, but I'm your person."
Her smile was closed-lipped, and Tilly could feel the sadness. The truth was that she might not have noticed that Jen had something going on had she not felt a sudden desire for a rainy day, accompanied by a meal of popcorn, cheese, and apples.
It was distinctly Jen. She would get pink lady apples and a bar of dark chocolate with flaky sea salt from Dark Sweets on Main Street. It was her thoughtful food and mixed with the melancholy of a grey, northeastern rainy day; she watched her friend closer.
"Come on," Tilly urged, lightly bumping her shoulder against Jens.
Woods light aster lined the dirt trail, their purple-blue heads a merry guide along the darkness. The illumination from their moonlight jars swung in gentle arcs as they walked, drinking their summer-sweet drinks.
But Tilly laid a hand on Jen's arm until she stopped walking and turned to face her.
"Talk to me."
Jen sighed. "It's silly."
"I doubt it. And I like silly. We could use more silly right now."
"Isla."
A person could say the name of their lover and, in just that one word, say everything. Tilly felt the lead weight of the two-syllable name fall to the ground. She watched Jen struggle with wanting to pick it up or leave it be.
"Something happen?"
Jen bent to pick one of the purple-blue flowers, twisting it between her fingers. "I ended it."
Tilly thought back to Jen's opening night.
