03 – Who’s Afraid of a Little Magic?
My Viking AlphaWhen I woke up, I was still in the stupid poofy pants and in my bed. I yawn and rub my face, then I wander into the bathroom. Mommy says good witches always go potty, wash their face, and brush their teeth. That’s what I do. I can’t wait to find Puppy and pet him again. He has soft fur. I grab Specially and I make my way into our living room. On the floor is Puppy sound asleep. Mommy gave him shorts. He looks so sleepy that I don’t wake him. I get the remote and then I come sit in front of him. I turn on the TV and find cartoons. I hear Puppy make a growly noise in his sleep, so I smile and I pet him. His beard is scratchy. Then I lay back on him, using him for a pillow, and pull Specially over us. I like watching cartoons like this and my eyes drift close.
Next thing I know I’m cold because Puppy is moving away from me. “No,” I pout and roll over to cling to him.
“You are cute, pup, but you are not your mother.” His words sound super funny and I cling tighter.
“I don’t understand you. You talk weird.” I announce to him. Then I open my eyes and look at him. His head is canted, and he is chuckling.
“What a strange little tongue you have, pup.” I don’t think he understands me either. I sit up quickly and I look at him. I make sure Mommy isn’t in the room and look at him again. I am not as strong as Mommy, so I have to touch people when I use magic on them. I reach over and touch his forehead. He gets a weird look that makes me think he is going to make fun of me. Then I repeat the words I heard Mommy say last night. I am slower and speak clearly to make sure I get it right.
“Say something, Puppy,” I ask him.
“First, my name is not Puppy, it is Viggo.” He chuckles and I furrow my brow.
“No! Viggo’s dumb. Puppy.” I cross my arms. This makes him laugh a hard, belly laugh, like I told him a joke.
“You are definitely your mother’s offspring, pup.” He ruffles my hair.
“Wait! It worked!” I am excited. “I understand you!”
“Well, I at least now understand the words coming from your mouth, though I fear I may not comprehend them.” He smiles at me and I leap at him, hugging him tight.
“I am so glad Mommy gave you to me! Don’t ever leave. I’ll get you a collar and leash. We’ll go to the park. Play fetch.” I am squeezing him so tight and I can’t wait.
“You will, will you?” I hear Mommy’s voice from the door. “You’ll even clean up his doo-doo when he goes at the park? Will you sit with him when he gets fixed?” I don’t know what fixed is, but I nod enthusiastically.
“No one is touching my… doo-doo,” as Puppy pulls my arms from him and sets me aside to stand. I look between him and Mommy, who is in one of her big t-shirts. “Well, except maybe your Mother,” I see Puppy waggle his brows.
Mommy chokes and coughs, then laughs. “It does not mean what you think it does,” I hear her say to him. Then I see her face darken. “Wait. How does she understand you?” I look nervous and stand behind Puppy.
“Morrigan Finley, surely you know your own offspring is a witch?” He crosses his arms.
“I do, but this little witch should not know that spell,” Mommy’s eyes narrow as she looks at me.
“I ‘membered it from last night.” I offer proudly.
“What did I tell you about using magic without Mommy?” Now she’s crossing her arms and looking at me like I am going to get a spanking.
“But I wanted to know what he said,” I whine.
“Come now, Mate,” he tries to interject and then Mommy does her mean trick and silences him, her fingers in the air. I look up at Puppy who now looks very mad. I don’t think he’s used to being shushed.
“I don’t like it either,” I say to him.
“Lily,” Mommy’s voice snaps at me, “do not do magic without me. You could have hurt him, or yourself. You don’t want to be a dark witch, do you?” I sulk and crinkle my nose.
“No. I’m sorry.” I whine. Mommy then releases Puppy from her hex.
“I am proud of you for doing it right. Now let’s get you some breakfast. Raisins or Marshmallows?” Mommy beeps my nose, then moves to the kitchen. Puppy looks down at me, still with the angry face, then back to Mommy. I gently pet his side.
“She always does it. It’s cheating.” I don’t like it either. It’s not fair when Mommy makes me stop talking. He grunts in agreement. Mommy makes me cereal and leaves me at the table as she drags Puppy back to her room and closes the door. I try to listen to them from the table, but my crunchy cereal is too loud. I just hope Mommy doesn’t make Puppy leave.
******
Two Years Later
“What, in Odin’s name, is this torture device?” Viggo groans and fidgets with his necktie. I giggle and climb into a chair to get up to his level. I get a hold of it and loosen it a bit.
“It’s a necktie. Boys wear them when it’s important,” I smile at him.
“I would rather wear your dress, pup,” he groans again.
“I am sure we could arrange a dress for you,” Mommy interjects. She is wearing her skinny skirt and pretty blouse. I watch as she steps up to Viggo and gives him a weird smile. Then she reaches up to tighten the tie I loosened. “I did not think it was possible for you to look more handsome.”
This brings a big grin to Viggo’s face and I roll my eyes. “I’m right here!”
A few weeks ago, I got in trouble. Viggo and I practiced magic. Without Mommy. He told me I couldn’t hurt him and that it would be our secret. At first it was fun stuff, like making his hair pink for a few minutes. Then I got Mommy’s book. When he asked me if I had Mommy’s permission to read the book, I lied to him and said yes. I looked through the pages and decided I wanted to try the spell with pretty vines. I put the small ivy plant on the floor in between us, and he promised me it would be okay. He is super strong and is a werewolf. I have never seen him hurt. I read the spell as carefully as I could, making sure to sound out the big words.
The Latin words and performing the ritual needed makes the plant respond to me. I don’t fully understand Latin yet, and I did not know what kind of spell it was, only that it had pretty flowers in the picture. I watched in horror as the plant springs to life and vines grow up around Viggo. The more he tried to break free the tighter they wrapped around him. His claws tore through the ivy and it split apart, growing more strands and getting tighter around him. His face turned red and veins bulged as he struggled against it. When I finally screamed for Mommy, Viggo was turning blue and gasping for air. Mommy was furious with me. She banished me to my bedroom and made all my toys march out into the living room. I couldn’t even see if Viggo was alright. Ever since the accident, Mommy and Viggo have been playing a lot of kissy face. Mommy made us both promise not to do magic without her again. Viggo is such a grown-up. He won’t even do it in secret anymore.
“When are we leaving?” I cross my arms in a pout as I watch the two of them grin at each other. I like Viggo. He’s my Puppy, but he has been acting like he’s my daddy, and he’s not. Daddy is a warlock, not a puppy!
“Right now, come here, Lily,” Mommy helps me off the chair and takes my hand. Viggo looks confused when we move to Mommy’s altar and not the door. “What’s the matter? Big Bad Wolf afraid of a little magic?” Mommy winks at him. I giggle.
Viggo rolls his eyes and comes forward, snaking his arm around Mommy’s waist. “I fear nothing, Mate.” He growls it out. It means he is scared.
She told me we are going to see Grandma Finley, so Viggo can ask for her hand. I don’t know why she would give up her hand. It seems gross, and Viggo doesn’t eat humans. He says they are gamey, whatever that means. As soon as he touches Mommy, she gives me a wink and opens the portal. I hold on to her hand and then feel the whoosh of magic around us. I close my eyes from the whooshy air. When I open them again, we are standing outside of Grandma’s home.
Something is wrong. Grandma is always out in her garden when we come to visit. I look at the garden and it is overgrown. There are weeds everywhere. A good witch never lets her garden go unattended. I frown, but I follow Mommy and Viggo to the house. We walk up the big steps under the horseshoe. “There’s my little flower! Lily Finley look how big you are!” I turn to look at Grandma and frown.
“Why are you a ghost, Grandma?” I feel like crying.