The circle pulsed.Willow’s water twined with Ursula’s fire, steam curling upward.Brielle’s earth-thrum rooted into Saffron’s light, golden vines wrapping their ankles.Together, it spiraled higher, forming a dome of color that arched over the rooftop like stained glass.
The women gasped as one, awed at the beauty.Even Brielle smiled, her fear swallowed by wonder.“It’s ...beautiful.”
“It’s power,” Saffron corrected softly.“And it’s ours.”
When at last they lowered their hands, the dome dissolved, fading into the night.They stood panting, exhilarated, their magic settling like a heartbeat shared among four bodies.
Brielle laughed suddenly, the sound bright and shaky.“So ...when do we do the lightning bolts and levitation tricks?”
Willow snorted.“Don’t get ahead of yourself.Lightning’s level three.”
Ursula added dryly, “Levitation’s level four, if you survive level three.”
Saffron rolled her eyes but smiled, warmth filling her chest.“Sarcasm aside, you’re ready for more than you think.Tonight, we took the first step.Tomorrow, we begin pushing limits.Because when the Council comes, we’ll need more than sparks and pretty lights.We’ll need a storm that can tear them apart.”
****
The firehouse alwayssmelled faintly of smoke and soap, a mix of hard work and routine.Nolan leaned back in the battered chair at the station’s kitchen table, his phone balanced against a stack of incident reports, so the video call filled the screen.Isaac sprawled beside him, boots up on the table, as Saffron and Brielle came into view.Saffron’s hair was damp, her face flushed with the aftermath of training, while Brielle looked half-exhilarated, half-exhausted.
“So,” Nolan drawled, “how many curtains survived today?”
Brielle groaned, dropping her face into her hands.“One.Maybe.”
Willow’s laughter rang through from somewhere offscreen.“It was two!She only fried one set this time!”
Isaac smirked.“Improvement.At this rate we’ll all still have our eyebrows when the Council shows up.”
“Barely,” Ursula’s dry voice added.“The girl sneezes like a flamethrower.”
Brielle lifted her head to glare at them.“You try keeping your power contained when you’ve got three witches chanting at you like a backup band from hell.”
Nolan barked a laugh, the sound bouncing off the tiled walls of the firehouse.“I’m picturing Ursula with a tambourine.”
“That’ll be the day,” Ursula muttered, but even she was smiling.
Saffron cut in, her eyes sharp despite the fond curve of her lips.“We made progress.The circle held stronger tonight.The rooftop wards flared brighter than I’ve ever seen them.We’re moving forward, and that matters.”
Isaac nodded, more serious now.“Good.We need to be ahead of whatever’s coming.”
Before Saffron could reply, the alarm klaxon blared through the firehouse.Red lights strobed across the ceiling, and Nolan was on his feet instantly, shoving the phone toward Isaac so he could pull on his gear.
Saffron’s scowl was sharp enough to cut.“You two better come back to me safe, or I’ll show you the real power of a pissed-off witch.”
“Kitten,” Nolan said, tugging on his jacket with a grin, “we’ll be fine.Promise.”
Isaac leaned toward the phone, his voice low and steady.“We’ll come back.We always do.”
“See that you do,” Saffron snapped.“Or I’ll haunt you both myself.”
The call ended as the siren on the truck roared to life.Nolan climbed into the rig beside Isaac, heart already thudding with the rush of adrenaline.He shoved down the sliver of unease that came with every fire call.Tonight, the unease was sharper.Colder.
The fire lit up the night sky long before they reached the block.Flames licked high, too controlled, too deliberate.Nolan felt the same chill that had crawled up his spine the night they’d pulled Saffron—his Saffie—out of a burning building.Back when they hadn’t even known who she was to them.
Isaac swore under his breath.“See it?”
“Yeah,” Nolan muttered.“It’s moving wrong.Just like before.”
The flames didn’t billow or shift with the wind.They leaned, curved, danced like they were listening to a rhythm no one else could hear.Nolan’s gut twisted.
