Page 31 (1/2)
A fter watching Silas - and a very be slowly lifted up into the branches of Benjaht for the Old Quarry Morwenna&039;s predecessor, Madaaric, had run the Wendron Witch Coven froh up in the walls of the Old Quarry deep in the Forest Madaenerally unlaht at a full moon when the old witch had taken a fraction of a second too long to Freeze a olf that she had found lurking in the heaps of mouldy clutter at the back of her cave
One of the first things Morwenna had done when she became Witch Mother was to start the Witches&039;
Summer Circle on the hill It put an end to all the petty feuds and personal hexes that had been rife a the witches, which life in the oppressive Quarry had encouraged Morwenna liked to oversee all the details of thethe Old Quarry safe and welco for their eventual return on the day of the Autumn Equinox
Morwenna took the shortcut to the Old Quarry - a hidden path that descended into the secret valley of the Blue Star Firs, trees that grehere but there As she entered the valley a heady scent of Blue Fir resin filled the air, a scent that made unprepared travelers sleepy and easy prey for the blue snakes that infested the high branches of the firs But Morwenna ell prepared She took out her green-spotted handkerchief, shook a few drops of pepperainst her nose Morwenna eed from the valley and stopped for a moment by the Green Pool - an ancient pond cut deep into the stone floor of the Forest She kneeled down, dipped her hands into the cold water and drank Then she filled a small water bottle and continued on her way
About half an hour later, Morwenna was cla down the end of the steep, rocky path that led to the Old Quarry She jumped nimbly from the last boulder and stepped onto the smooth Quarry floor
She stood for a moment to catch her breath and looked up at the expanse of rock rising up in front of her The Old Quarry was roughly seh it was formed from the pale yellow stone that had built many of the Castle&039;s older houses - and indeed, the Palace - the rough-healls that stretched up into the tops of the trees were ominously dark, streaked and blackened with soot from the fires from hundreds of years of occupation by the Wendron Witches The walls were also horeenish-black color and gave off a disot damp Dotted here and there in the rock face were the even darker shapes of entrances to various caves that had been exposed by the quarry up to it that the witches had laboriously hacked from the rock when they first took over the Quarry It was in these caves, safe froht creatures of the Forest - most of the time at least - that the Wendron Witches lived in winter
Today Morwenna wanted to check and secure the lower caves It was no fun to return to the Quarry on a cold, wet Autu, to find that a pack of Forest wolverines had decided that your caves suited them much better than you - and were ready to prove it
The only thing Morwenna actually liked about the Old Quarry was that it was one of the few places in the Forest with soround She headed purposefully across its wide, yellow stone floor She approvingly noted that all looked swept and tidy and nothing had been left outside - or if it had, so had already eaten it and saved her the trouble of clearing it away As she neared the bluish-black shadows at the foot of the rock face, a sudden e cave startled her
Morwenna stopped dead Very, very slowly, she drew her green cape around her so that theher blend into the shadows And then she waited, chanting under her breath the witchy words, "Though you may see, you see not menot menot me"
But Morwenna ht glow as she stared into the shadows, searching, scanning - and suddenly a flash of white caught her eye Morwenna caught her breath - as it? What great white creature was inside the cave?
Morwenna saw the white shape move toward the front of the cave Quickly she did a basic Safe Shield Spell - one of the organic witch ones She was preparing to do a Freeze on the creature as soon as she could see it properly when the large white shape alasped and dropped the Safe Shield
"Ephaniah!" she cried out "Ephaniah!" For there was nothe rat-man even from a distance
Ephaniah Grebe stopped and blinked into the light He looked startled at hearing his nanized the voice immediately "Morwenna," he squeaked excitedly "I had so hoped to find you
And here you are!" He set off toward the witch, lied Ephaniah so tightly that the rat-s squashed by the witch&039;s grasp
Morwenna stepped back and looked Ephaniah up and down "You&039;re li," she said, concerned
"Oh, just my bumblefoot," muttered Ephaniah
Morwenna, like many witches, understood Rat and Cat Speak "Come to our Circle I&039;ll make you a compress," she said sympathetically
Ephaniah&039;s eyes sretfully "Unfortunately I cannot stay I have soes of my own to take care of," he said
Morwenna raised her eyebrows "You have?" She sounded surprised, although she had not meant to
Hastily Ephaniah said, "No, no Nothas occurred at the Wizard Tower I have the ExtraOrdinary Apprentice withfrom the Queste"
"The Queste?" said Morwenna "So it is ti talent What a terrible reward for seven years of hard work" Morwenna stopped, confused
"But surely the boy is too young? He has not been Apprentice for three years yet"
Ephaniah&039;s squeak fell to a whisper "Morwenna, I have co the Queste, they are also - "
"They?" asked Morwenna
"I also have the Princess and an ex-member of the Manuscriptorium staff with s by halves, do you, Ephaniah? The Princess in the Forest, eh? That must be a first"
"I need your advice They have lost their brother"
"In another Time, so it seems"
"You know?"
"A witch ossip" Morwenna smiled
"Ihave a favor to ask," said Ephaniah hesitantly
"There is no har"
Ephaniah took a deep breath "I have come to ask you to show theht-heartedness at seeing Ephaniah vanished She took a step back as if to distance herself frohed "Ephaniah, this knowledge is not ive It must be paid for"
Ephaniah&039;s eyes pleaded "But itlives - or more"
"Then you have just raised the price"
"Morwenna - please"
Morwenna sh," she said "Spend the day at our Circle I will dress your foot and then we shall talk Yes?"
Septimus and Beetle enjoyed the Summer Circle that afternoon - Jenna did not While Morwenna was fussing with a large green poultice on Ephaniah&039;s swollen foot, Septi witches Septimus even had some beads braided into his hair - much to Beetle&039;s auest tepee, keeping a tight rein on Ullr and watching with awitches She hty, confident attitude Con - with their bright beaded tunics, fingers heavy with silver rings, the tangles of beads and feathers woven into their hair and their general air of sunburned grubbiness
Ephaniah sat by the campfire with his foot covered in an unco to think how he could persuade Morwenna to show the - foolishly, he now realized - promised Morwenna&039;s help, he could not bear to let Jenna and Septi that Morwenna asked, but she would not naht under the an to fall and - with the TransforhtUllr - the atmosphere became electric The witches crowded around Jenna and the panther They said not a word but their bright blue eyes glittered in the darkness: everywhere Jenna looked two points of blue would aze briefly and then look away Ullr seemed unconcerned He lay down at Jenna&039;s side and, apart from a watchful twitch of the end of his tail, he did notlast, the unco around the witches&039; campfire caratefully onto the pile of rancid goat furs in the guest tepee
Exhausted, Jenna fell fast asleep with her ar to the desultory chatter of the witches settling down for the night and the sporadic screeches and screahttime creatures far below in the Forest
Septiht, as he lay under a daoatskin and sneezed for the umpteenth time You never really knehere you ith a Wendron Witch The events of the evening kept going through his head It had started well enough, even though Jen had sees and cushions were spread for them to sit on and the entire Coven had been introduced and had joined the three witches apiece to carry them - were hauled off the woodpile and thrown onto the fire He had watched the flae of hope and possibilities that an evening around a blazing ca duty had served an extremely tasty wolverine stew, and even the witches&039; brew had tasted good All was going well, until Ephaniah had once h someone had thrown a switch - a frosty silence fell Suddenly Septih he was surrounded by a circle of wolverines rather than witches