The Possession of Anna Drake

7 - Party Prep & Magic Fail

We were one day out from Anna’s monitor release date. The two of us had been planning our first trip outside the walls of our homes. She wanted to travel to the next town over. I wanted to be able to step out of my house without causing a lightning storm.

It had been easier since the incident with Lance. My mother spent more time teaching me how to control my emotions which led to the explosions in the first place. I hard to learn how to push everything deep down inside. She taught me about certain manufactured medications that could help me stay calm when I wanted to freak out.

Her idea was to take me on a test run into the square after Anna’s Ascension Party. I had finally gotten her to agree to make a big deal of the event. After all, she was only in her position because of my explosion. If I hadn’t killed Nidia, Anna would never have been under house arrest.

Since we had no idea what Anna’s real power was, we had decided to have it in the large underground room where mine had taken place. The entire Coven had been invited, but it wasn’t required as Anna (just like I had been) was still considered outcasted. Even though the stories about her were far less frightening than the ones about me. I was made to look like a madman while she was the innocent friend who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I was in the basement getting things ready when a cold breeze passed over me and gave me the chills. It wasn’t uncommon for there to be bits of frozen wind throughout the basement as the house has been standing for over a century, and even then, there was a house before that and even before that, so the basement was on sacred witching ground. However, this breeze was a bit different than any of the others I had experienced while taking class a few doors down. I put down the decorations and turned toward the door.

My eyes must have been deceiving me as I could have sworn a shadow with red eyes was staring back at me. It wasn’t in a menacing way, but it was enough to make me feel uneasy. I blinked, and then it was gone. Our Coven was not known to conjure demons to do someone’s bidding. We didn’t rely on Lucifer to help us get even with those who wronged us. We had our powers, and over the centuries of practice, the Evergreen Falls Coven had no reason to rely on anyone else for their work. We could conquer our obstacles without the need for other powers.

Now I’m not knocking those who require these extra boosts. There are plenty of Covens who use demons to do their dirty work. Others rely on the higher powers to help with luck and love. It depended on the age of the Coven and the power of their High Priest or Priestess. My mother was known as the top tier in our region and second in the states. I don’t think she was ever compared worldwide, but what do I know about the hierarchy. I had been shielded for the last eight years, and only in the last few weeks had I learned anything concerning my magical gifts.

“You okay?” I heard my mother’s voice from just beyond the door.

I blinked a few more times and turned back to the decorations.

“Yeah, just thought I saw something.” I laughed nervously.

I didn’t want her to think I was shaken up. I wasn’t exactly concerned, but it did make me wonder why a red-eyed shadow would be near our house. I didn’t even know what it meant.

“It happens. Spooky beings still linger in the rooms.” She gave me a silly smile and placed another box of decorations on the table next to me.

Our relationship had not been saved because she had a single motherly moment. I think we had hit that moment of understanding. She knew I needed her, and I knew she needed me. We had come to an agreement of sorts. Mind you. It wasn’t a spoken agreement. We were trying to get along until I could leave the house or pass on her title to me.

My mother loved being the High Priestess, so she would not be handing it over any time soon. I was okay with that; I wasn’t in any rush to take on her responsibilities. I didn’t even know what they were. She was so secretive with what she did. The only thing I ever saw was her lunches with the ladies and the few meetings and group practices she had over the last few weeks. It was nothing spectacular, but I knew she was hiding things from me.

“I can’t believe I’m doing this for Anna.” My mother’s voice was a little harsh.

I still had no idea what she had against the Drake family.

“Can we go one day without you complaining about Anna?” I asked softly.

“I don’t understand what the big deal is about her ascending. As far as I’m concerned, all of this could have been avoided if she had just allowed you to tell me what had happened in the square eight years ago.” She placed her hand on the top of the decorations, and they shot out of the box and pinned themselves against the walls.

I took a deep breath and dropped the items in my hand. I had been doing everything the old fashion way. No magic! Because for eight years, it had only been me and no magic. I had to learn how to do everything as if I was a human. Now I could use the essential gifts, and I had no idea how to do it.

“Mom, Anna would not have been in this situation if it hadn’t been for me. I should have told you I was feeling weird.” I pushed the decorations out of the way and growled.

“I recall a certain child telling you it was only a human girl.” My mother stated with a sneer.

I looked at the walls and the box in front of me. I was becoming frustrated, but thanks to my mother’s help, I learned to keep the electrical current buried deep down inside me. She said I would know when it was time to use it. All I had to do was wish for the power to be released, and it would do what it needed to.

“Either way, mom, I owe it to her.” I sighed. I wished I knew how to do half the things girls two years younger than me knew.

I may be able to conjure a storm that looks all scary on the outside, but I couldn’t magically compel decorations to hang themselves on the damned wall. It was a simple task, and I had no idea how to make the spell work.

“You may think you owe it to her, but I don’t. The Drake family has been a thorn in this Coven’s side for several generations.” She waved her hands, and the candles in the room began to glow. Yet another trick I had no idea how to do. Ten-year-olds learn that trick at the end of the term. I had been sitting in a prison cell instead.

“What do you have against the Drakes?” I asked calmly.

I was interested to know what she was talking about. She had never told me the Drakes had been in the Coven for generations. I mean, I knew of families that had been around since the beginning of Evergreen Falls. She had never mentioned the Drakes could have been one of them.

“It’s a long story, dear, one we don’t have time to get into right now. I need to order the food and get things ready upstairs for tomorrow.” She briskly began to walk toward the door.

I knew all she would do was go upstairs, get on her computer and make the order. She didn’t want to talk about it, which concerned me. What had the Drake family done to the Dupree family? Or worse, what had the Dupree’s done to the Drakes?

“Mom,” I called after her.

“Yes?” she said as she turned to look at me.

“How do I?” I pointed from the box to the walls.

She gave me a little smile and winked.

“It’s all inside of you. Tell the décor what you want for it to do, and it will do it.” With that, she left me in the basement alone.

I tried for over an hour to get the decorations on the walls. The magic never came, and I was forced to completing the task the old fashion way. Not that it mattered to me. I had already lived my life without the luxury. It would have made my life easier if it had come flooding back to me once the monitor had been removed.

By the time I collapsed on the couch, my mother had already started her nightly drinking binge. Part of me wondered what caused her to be the way she was. Then again, if she had wanted me to know anything, she would have just told me. We never shared tender moments, at least none like the ones after Lance broke my heart in two. I wasn’t even totally into his brother, and yet he still found it necessary to throw my life right back in my face. That was a touching bit of joy.

I chose to watch a few hours of TV before heading to bed. As I climbed the stairs, I could have sworn I saw that same red-eyed shadow leaving my room. I had been silent about it because I didn’t want to be thought stupid. Then again, plenty of witches could see the devils’ work. The question, though, was who did the shadow belong to, and did it mean to hurt me?

I watched as it fluttered over the walls and hid again in the guest bedroom. As concerning as it should have been, I was too tired to deal with it. I made a mental note to speak with my mother, but that did not mean I would do it. I could very well find my voice impossible. Besides, the next day was going to be a huge event. Anna would be arriving around noon to be pampered and prepped for her party, and I would be in my room as far away from the festivities.

As much as I hated it, I knew it was best for me to forgo the event. Mother had been kind enough to install a camera so I could watch it on television in my room. She also promised plenty of leftovers once everyone had left. I wanted to be there for Anna, but it wasn’t my time. Lance had made that clear. The Coven was divided when it came to me. Some were impressed with my powers, and others couldn’t see past the fact I had killed a child. It was just safer. Besides, we had no idea what would happen with my powers in a group of members. I could lose control and hurt someone. It was safer. I’m still not sure if it ever sunk in why I was doing it in the first place.

I entered my room and fell face-first on the bed. As I crawled to the pillows and began to close my eyes, I could have sworn the same red-eyed shadow was staring at me from the open door. It didn’t feel malevolent. All it did was watch me as I drifted off to sleep. I know it should have bothered me, but I felt at ease with the intrusion. I wish I understood why it was okay, but at the time, if it wasn’t going to kill me, I didn’t care.

My dreams were fuzzy, but I remember waking up screaming my father’s name at one point. I had this uneasy feeling in my stomach as if something had happened. A sixth sense that he wasn’t okay. I hadn’t heard from him since the night he left my mother. I had no idea where he was, and he had never once tried to reach me. I had taken it as a means of goodbye. It wasn’t that he didn’t want me. It was because he didn’t want her. Her powers were leaps and bounds above his she could have made him forget he ever had a family, and I wouldn’t put it past her. She would have done it to get even with him for leaving.

To this day, I’m still not sure why she felt compelled to get even with him at all. That is if she did it. The Dupree family name was still intact, the money was still there, and she was not dethroned. I’m not sure what hold my father had over the Coven, but it didn’t seem to falter in his absence.

I looked at the clock and noticed it was after one. I grabbed the laptop from under my bed and booted it up. It was officially Anna’s birthday. Something told me she was awake, and I wanted to be the first to wish her the best on a glorious day. She was eighteen, and soon she would be free from her binding, and we could have a normal life together.

Happy Birthday! I typed into the chat field.

It took about ten minutes for her to respond.

Thank you. I cannot wait to start a whole new chapter today.

I smiled. She was ready to forget what had happened even though it haunted me each night. I accepted I was always going to feel guilty for Nidia’s death.

I hope today is everything you want it to be. I typed.

I am sure it’s going to be that and more. Remember how we could talk without speaking? Her response made my heartbeat quicken. I had been trying to forget how she would get in my head. Part of me hoped the telepathy she had would remain a hidden secret after her ascension.

Yes. I responded. I gulped back the lump in my throat.

We won’t need these computers soon. Get some sleep, Lizbeth. We have a long day tomorrow. I watched as Anna’s icon turned red, meaning she had logged off. I followed and pushed the machine under the bed again.

She was right. Once the monitor came off, she would be able to get inside my head again. She would know everything I thought and felt. I was going to feel that intrusion I feared as a child. Maybe it would be different. She wasn’t ten anymore. She would be able to control the gifts. Right?

I laid back on my bed and looked at the ceiling. My room was dark, and the shadows through the windows began to play tricks on my eyes. I had often loved watching the movements of shadows. That could very well be why my little red-eyed friend wasn’t a concern of mine. He could very well have been the trees outside casting shadows over the walls, and my imagination made the illusion seem lifelike. It didn’t matter. Anna had been right. Things were seriously about to change.