The call was disconnected, leaving Tilly thinking about her sister's marriage. She didn't work. Her husband was a successful tech engineer and more than supported their classic northeastern small mansion coastal lifestyle. Her sister filled her days with lists that Tilly could never imagine the contents of, but she was alwayssobusy and hadsomuch on her plate. She kept her figure trim and lean, something she lorded over Tilly, who had gained weight that showed far quicker on her short frame in the last decade.
She would send her tips on dieting or thoughts about certain medications that could "help." Last month, she sent her an audiobook about hypnotherapy to lose the pounds, and Tilly had felt it in her chest for four days. She'd seen the cover of the audiobook every time she picked up a bite of food and every time she drank anything other than water. She saw her sister in her designer workout gear, imagining the beautiful and bold colors of lycra on herself, then feeling her heart squeeze at the mental image that didn't quite measure up to her sister's size two.
They shared their mother's and grandmother's delicate facial features: pert nose, large brown eyes with perfectly arched eyebrows. But where Fae had sharp cheekbones, Tilly's were more apple soft, plumping in the cutest way when she smiled. Which also gave her smile and laugh lines, where Fae had smooth skin without the happy lines.
She was walking up the steps of The Lost Souls when the crow landed on a tree branch needing trimming, as it was sliding into the front porch from the side.
"Are you following me? Because that's creepy."
The bird tilted its head but otherwise stayed silent and still.
Finally, she walked through the front door into a warm house that immediately felt like a hug. It was a relief after a day that had felt long and jammed full, like a folder with too many papers, some of them folded and cattywampus.
The kitchen was where she found three friends, all wearing pajamas and talking. Ursula immediately slid her a mug of hot tea that smelled like bourbon-infused vanilla and chestnut. She breathed it in slowly and let it fill her lungs, let her friend's chatter and the smell of chocolate chip cookies baking silence everything that had become loud inside of her.
Casper leaned his wiry body against her, placing his large head on top of the island, looking at her with his hound eyes. She smiled and kissed the top of his head, running her hand over his back as they talked and she filled them in on her first day at the inn.
The unspoken rule was that they were not going to talk about the night before. Three ominous strangers with their ominous threats. And frankly, it was exactly the kind of ignorance that Tilly needed tonight.
Tess showed up with homemade caramel pecan popcorn, and Bess made her put on a black cat pajama set that matched her own.
Then they ended up, her in a new set of pink polka dot pajamas that the house had conjured for her, sprawled on couches in the living room with a popping fire and vanilla candles burning, watching Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant bicker.
The day had been a good kind of exhausting, but tiresome nonetheless. Add in her sister and the particular energy she took, and sitting here with these women, no expectations other than to show up exactly how she was, felt like peace.
Ursula braided Bess's hair in a thick french braid, which prompted a hair braiding train, and she had Tess's blonde tresses in two short braids that looked endearing on her. She wondered what Tess had been like as a little girl; messy hair, unfiltered smile, unable to name the hurts her parents placed at her small feet.
They laughed and ate too many cookies, then settled down as the night and movie wound to the last few minutes. Braided heads, and sleepy comfort, a plate with only crumbs after the last cookie was snuck by one of Lady Macbeth's kids with his cute little black hands.
It was only as she was helping put the dishes in the dishwasher did she realize that on her mug was a black bird.
9. The Hunt
Midsummer is celebrated across lands and amongst the outstretched hands of many as they welcome in the long days and the blessings of light and growth.
For this coven of women, it would be the first Litha celebration, coming together to invite the prospect of harvest and bounty.
Crystal took charge of the festivities and delegated tasks for the evening to them all. There would be gathered herbs and plants for offering, flowers for crowns, food and drink for a communal meal.
Still, they hadn't spoken about the other night. They watched Crystal carefully, as though her secrets would be written on her skin or the threads of her flowing clothes, keeping them safe.
Crystal instructed Bess to invite her lovely blonde friend for a group of ten.
Bess worried that Tess would find their celebration trifling, but to her surprise, when she brought it up during a shift at TheBlack Cat, Tess got a thoughtful look on her face and told her she'd love to see what Litha was and how they would celebrate.
Eloise asked her to make a dessert to share for the evening.
"Something with flowers," she'd told her, to which Tess smiled and got a look Eloise knew well - creativity dawning.
June had the softest sunsets. This one left behind pink marshmallow clouds that Eloise said smelled like birthday cake and rose petals.
Once the sky darkened, they walked through the garden carrying baskets of food, pickings from the garden, and candles. Ten women walked barefoot with linen dresses of sage green, trailing behind them like garden brides, each carrying a candle that had been made special for this night with beeswax, rosemary, and honeysuckle.
The night creatures watched as ten gentle souls ushered ten women through the forest, their candlelight bobbing along the path in a lackadaisical meandering as they laughed and hands brushed along trees reaching down for them, ferns rising to tickle their bare feet in wonder.
They brought with them the magic poured into the world during this time. It fell from the rays of the sun during the day, filling the tender blades of green grass and the petals of the spray roses and daisies. It gathered in the eucalyptus, wild onions, and rosemary, which pressed its scent into the world boldly.
Trees drank the magic in great gulps, filling each branch and stem to bursting in hopes that a new season of leaves would fill it out.
