town, behind the wards?”
“Well,” Garren cleared his
throat. “Most of the items she sells aren't
exactly legal. Thane had to call to make
an appointment and get directions to her
place. Since she'll be expecting us, we
shouldn't have to worry about any booby
traps.”
Her eyes grew wide. Booby
traps? “She sounds stable.” An image of
a woman decked out in camouflage, war
paint, and packing an automatic rifle
flashed in her head.
The dirt road they had to take to
get to Irene's cabin was bumpy and
curvy. The car was already covered in a
thick layer of dirt, and Garren kept
moaning in the backseat.
“If you throw up in this car, I
will hurt you.” She peeked at him
through the rearview mirror.
“I can't help it if I get carsick.
Being in the front seat usually helps.” He
rested his head against the side window,
his eyes closed.
Thane sighed and lowered the
map. “Then why didn't you say
something earlier?”
“Because somebody had to sit in
the navigator seat, as if that’s so
important.” He let out a small groan.
“Besides, I wouldn’t want to be a
bother.”
“Too late,” she said. “Thane, you
crawl to the back and Garren climb up
here. I'd rather tolerate you next to me
than clean up after you.”
“That doesn't sound safe. Maybe
you should pull over,” Thane said.
“Don't be a wuss, Thing. Get
your ass back here.”
“Fine. Look out.” He turned
around in his seat and got on his knees.
His foot kicked her shoulder when he
pushed himself over the seat back.
“Watch it, will ya?” She almost
ran them off the road when he jarred her,
but corrected before dumping them in the
ditch.
“Sorry.”
Glancing in the rearview mirror,
she almost laughed at the sight of
Thane's legs waving in the air as he
landed on his face.
Garren made the transition a lot
smoother than his stepbrother. He
squeezed himself between the seats and
flopped down in the front. Now she had
Garren sitting next to her with a
triumphant smile on his face.
“Feeling better?” she asked.
“Much.”
They'd been driving for about an
hour. She wondered if Thane had got
them lost when he started yelling. “Right
there, that huge boulder that looks like a
foot, turn there.”
The road was full of exposed
roots
and
rocks
were
strewn
everywhere. They were probably the
first people to drive this way, ever.
This Irene lady must not do
much business.
Wincing every time she heard a
rock hit the car, she sent up a silent
prayer it didn't leave a scratch in the
paint. After fifteen minutes of bouncing
in their seats, they hit a dead end.
She cut off the engine and
surveyed
the
endless
trees
that
surrounded them. “I take it we walk from
here.”
“What was your first clue?”
Garren asked as he climbed out of the
car.
The boys stretched out their
limbs while she inspected the car for any
damage. Above the right, back wheel
well was an inch long scratch. Squatting
down to get a better look, she
whimpered as she ran her finger along it.
“There's no need to cry over
chipped paint,” Garren said, pulling her
up by her elbow. “Don't worry. I know a
guy who knows a guy who can fix it.”
“Great. If I survive, I'll be sure
to give him a call.”
Thane was already ahead of
brought along. They followed a faint
trail through the dense trees. The few
patches of sunlight that managed to shine
through the canopy overhead warmed
her skin for the brief moments she
passed through. She found herself
walking unconsciously from spot to spot
to feel the heat in the cool forest.
The air was thick with the
distinct aroma of pine needles, like the
Christmas tree lots that sprang up on
every vacant lot in November. Picking
out the perfect tree to display in the
double wide was her favorite winter
activity when she was younger. It
couldn't be too big or they couldn't get it
through the door without scraping off
most of the needles. Too small and the
tree would be drowned out by all the
ornaments her mom insisted on using.
“So, Ivy,” Thane said, breaking
her out of her thoughts. “What's your
specialty?”
“My what?” She shook her head
to bring herself back to reality. Was she
spacing out of a whole conversation?
“What kind of magic can you do?
I've never seen you practice before.”
Her brows furrowed as she
kicked a rock out of her path. She'd
rather get her legs waxed than talk about
her magic. But she knew Thane well
enough to know that once he wanted to
know something, he wouldn't stop
hounding her until she fessed up.
“I don't know what to call it. I
can move stuff around, basically. Pretty
boring.”
“Really?” He actually seemed
impressed. “That's pretty rare.”
“And useless,” Garren added as
he strolled behind them. “I can move
stuff around, too. That's why we have
hands and feet.”
She threw a glare over her
shoulder, not wanting to let on that she
agreed with him. If she had to be a
witch, why couldn't she do something
cool that she could use in a fight, like
super speed or invisibility? Her magic
didn't even work right whenever she
tried to use it, so why bother?
“But that's only the basics. If you
train hard, you could control people's
movements,” Thane said, excitement
ringing in his voice.
At first, her pulse raced at the
thrill of having such power. That would
definitely be a beneficial skill to have
when facing an enemy. But, having such
an advantage was why the Eradicators
were fighting against magic in the first
place. Her stomach churned at the
thought of the hunters. Being a witch was
more curse than blessing when people
wanted to kill you because of it.
“Well, you can have it. I just
want to go back to the way
things were
before.” She needed to change the
subject. “So, what's in the case?”
Thane shifted the case to his
other hand, showing it to her. “Some
potions Irene's going to sell. We're
trading them for a case of Goblin
chocolate.”
“Okay. I didn't realize you had
such a sweet tooth.”
“It's not for me. It's our ticket to
Califor...”
The crunching of leaves and
twigs could be heard a few trees ahead.
She held her breath to concentrate on the
noise. Her body tensed, automatically on
alert. The small dagger she always kept
strapped to her belt was now in her
hand. She was prepared for an attack.
Garren stepped in front of her and Thane
with his hands held up in front of him.
She rolled her eyes at his attempt
to protect them, but since that was his
main role in their quest, she left him to
it. After about a minute of standing
frozen in the middle of the forest, she
was about to give up when something
small meandered around one of the trees.
“It's a chicken,” she said as a
brown rooster strutted across the ground,
scratching at the dirt. A few more
chickens
followed
the
first,
all
scrounging around the forest floor for
breakfast.
“Why are there chickens out
here?” Thane asked.
She moved past Garren to get a
better look. A neighbor of hers used to
raise a few varieties and she loved to
help at feeding time.
Before she could even get close
enough to identify what breed they were,
Garren grabbed her arm and pulled her
back behind him.
“What do you think you're doing?
You don't walk up to wild animals in the
wilderness.”
She yanked her arm out of his
grip. “I'm not stupid. I just want to get a
better look.” She continued forward,
Garren a step behind her.
About ten feet away from the
birds, the rooster jerked his head up and
studied them. She slowed her steps, but
didn't stop.
The rooster had the brightest red
feathers she'd ever seen. She needed to
get closer. Garren touched her shoulder
just as they passed between two large
trees. Suddenly, a strange prickly
sensation washed all over her body. She
froze.
“Ivy, will you stop—” Garren
collided into her, almost knocking her
over. “Don't move,” he said as he held
on to her arm, keeping her upright.
“Don't move,” he shouted to Thane, who
was still behind them.
They each held perfectly still,
waiting for something to happen. Even
the chickens seemed to stare at them in
awe. She turned around to look at
Garren and gasped. His skin grew paler
and his short black hair shimmered. Her
own head started to tingle. His eyes
were wide as he pointed to her. She
reached up and touched her hair. It was
no longer curly, but felt odd, soft. “What
the hell?”
Her whole body tickled and
itched. Garren shrunk, his clothes falling
around him. His eyes were the size of
half dollars as he gaped at her. “What
did you do?”
White feathers popped out of her
arm. She covered her mouth with her
hands to keep a scream from escaping
but found a hard, pointy beak where her
lips had been. The trees around her
seemed to grow taller and the ground
came rushing up. She tried to talk, but
could only cluck.
I'm a chicken. I can't believe
I'm a freakin' chicken!
A sharp pain hit her arm, or
wing, and she turned to see a big black
rooster staring at her.
What was that for? She pecked
back.
He scratched her with his claws.
She did the same. They fought, kicking
dirt and debris up all around them,
feathers flying everywhere. They only
stopped when the sound of laughter
filled the air.
Thane bent over at the waist,
holding on to his stomach. She strutted
over to the laughing boy and pecked at
his legs and arms, anything she could
reach. This. Isn't. Funny. She punctuated
each word with a peck to his shin.
“Ow, stop that.” Thane stood and
shooed her away. Garren flapped his
black wings and crowed as he advance
on Thane, too.
“Shhh. Do you hear that?” Thane
asked.
They stopped attacking Thane
and
stood
still.
The
sound
of
approaching footsteps grew louder.
Garren stepped in front of the other two
and lifted himself up as tall as he could,
fluffing up his feathers. She rolled her
eyes, or would've if she was human.
Being a chicken, it didn't have the same
effect.
“I think we got another one,
Keishka,” a woman's voice said.
A gigantic gray and white dog
bounded over from between the trees. It
stopped a few feet in front of them and
growled, baring its teeth.
A minute later, a woman with
bright red braids came up behind the
dog. She was bundled up in a thick,
over-sized green sweater, jeans and fur-
lined boots. The wrinkles on her face
betrayed her age, but she had the step of
a much younger woman. She clutched a
brown wand in front of her, pointing it at
Thane's chest. “Who are you?”
Thane held his hands up in
surrender. “I'm Thane. I spoke with you
the other day.”
Slowly, she let her arm fall to
her side. Her gaze dropped from Thane
to the chickens at his feet. Her brow
furrowed. “They aren't your friends, are
they?”
“Yes. Can you fix them?”
She
slowly
nodded
and
examined the birds carefully. “This is
very strange.” She waved her wand over
Garren and muttered some foreign words
under her breath. Where a proud black
rooster stood, a very naked Garren sat.
Ivy's eyes swept up his body
from foot to head, until she remembered
who she was gawking at.
Ew. She blinked rapidly and
turned away. She didn't want that image
burned into her brain.
“I apologize, the traps I set up
aren't supposed to go off unless...” Irene
didn't finish her thought as she spotted
the pile of Ivy's clothes.
Fully dressed, Garren stood in
fro
nt of little chicken Ivy and waited. “I
saw you staring at me, Poison Ivy. Now
it's my turn. Go ahead, lady. Change her
back.”
Her tiny chicken heart thrummed
away in her chest. He's going to see me
naked! She flapped her wings and
scurried behind the nearest tree.
“Oh, no you don't,” Garren said
as he ran after her. “I showed you mine,
now you show me yours.”
Panic choked her as she raced
around the forest. Thane and Irene joined
in the chase. No way were they catching
her.
“Both of you, stop,” Irene yelled.
“Follow Keishka to my house, straight
ahead. I'll help your friend. Alone.”
Ivy stopped running and watched
the boys walk away, Garren peeking
over his shoulders every few seconds.
Once they were out of sight,
Irene kneeled before her and sighed.
“Hold still and I'll get you back to
normal.” She waved her wand and
repeated the words she used on Garren
and soon she was human again.
She gathered up her clothes and
dressed quickly, but right before she
snapped the leather band around her
wrist, Irene caught her arm.
The red-headed witch ran her
thumb over the iridescent tattoo on the
inside of Ivy's wrist. She yanked her
hand away and covered it with her
bracelet. Adrenaline pumped through her
body as it prepared to fight or run. What
would Irene do to her, now that she
knew her secret?
The older woman regarded her
for a moment, making her squirm. Her
blue eyes sparkled as she spoke. “You're
a witch, right?”
“So they tell me, though I haven't
ruled out Super Hero. I would totally
rock a cape.”
Irene laughed and put her arm
around the girl's shoulder. She was
shorter than her and had to stretch a bit
to manage it. “You must be Ivy. Are you
part fae?”
She scoffed. “No!”
“Oh.” Irene led her in the same
direction the others went. “Sorry you
tripped the wards. If I had known... But,
of course, how could I?” She squeezed
her shoulders a little harder. “Living
alone and outside of Salmagundi's
wards, I have to protect myself. You, of
all people, should understand.”
She did understand. Eradicators
and other predators hid in the shadows
just waiting for a chance to take down
any magical being they came upon. She
nodded. “That's an interesting spell, but
why a chicken?”
“Well, I don't want to kill or hurt
anyone. I usually take them far away and
turn them back to normal, after making