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“I’m sorry, Avery! I—oh!” I gasped, jumping up from my spot on the couch as a mouse ran over the toe of my slipper.
“This is ridiculous!” Megan complained. “I mean, they’re not as bad as roaches or spiders but I still don’t want mice running across my pillow tonight!”
“Emma will take care of it,” Lachlan promised. He turned to me. “We know this spell is aimed at you, little one. Turn it back around on Morganna.”
I frowned thoughtfully.
“Actually, I think I have a better idea…”
We got rid of the mice—humanely, I might add, by sending them into the fields and grounds surrounding the castle. But I wanted to wait before I sent the spell back. I spent some time modifying it and the next day at breakfast, we were able to see the results.
Morganna was sitting at the Fae table eating her breakfast, when a big, orange-striped tabby cat came curling around her legs.
“Eww! Whose is that?” she demanded, trying to kick the cat away. The cat, undeterred, dodged her dainty shoe and came back to curl around her other side instead.
Morganna kicked at it again, succeeding in driving it a little distance away from her. But just then two more cats came purring around her ankles. And then four more and then eight more after that.
“Very nice, Emma,” Bran remarked, as we watched the show from our table near the end of the Dining Hall. “I see you’ve upped the stakes, somewhat.”
“And you’ve implemented Morganna’s own doubling spell.” Lachlan nodded proudly. “Well done, little one.”
“Why did you choose cats instead of rats?” Megan asked. “Cats are so nice and sweet and purry—I would think rats would be worse.”
“Ah-choo! Ah-choo!” Morganna sneezed. She jumped up from the table, scratching at her perfect porcelain skin which was now covered with red blotches. “Get away from me! Get away, you awful things!” Her nose looked like a swollen tomato and her eyes were little slits in her no-longer gorgeous face.
“That’s why,” I said, as she fled the Dining Hall, being purrrsued (sorry, had to do it) by no less than thirty-two mewing cats intent on shedding all over her. “I heard Morganna tell another Fae girl once that she hated human animals—especially cats—because they made her itch and sneeze.”
“Maybe she’ll think twice about sending animals after you, now,” Bran remarked, grinning.
But he was wrong.
67
The very next day after school, Megan and I walked down to her aunt’s house to visit my mom and her aunt. Mom and Aunt Deli had been getting along like a house on fire—as the Southern expression goes—and really enjoying each other’s company.
We had a great visit, including some delicious organic veggie stew made by Aunt Deli and—to my surprise—some homemade biscuits made by my mom. Apparently, she’d been quite a baker when she was younger—before she started smoking all the time. Now that she was cured of her addiction, her sense of taste and smell were coming back to normal and, encouraged by Megan’s aunt, she had started baking again.
“Oh, biscuits aren’t hard,” she exclaimed, blushing, when Megan and I praised the light, fluffy biscuits extravagantly.
“Hard or not, these are wonderful,” Megan exclaimed. (They really did taste amazing, especially with Aunt Deli’s homemade strawberry jam on them.)
“I love them too, Mom,” I said, smiling at her. “Maybe you could show me how to make them?”
“I’d love to, sweetie.” She smiled at me. “As soon as I teach Deli, here—she has first dibs.”
“I’m going to teach your mom to cook, and she’s going to teach me to bake,” Aunt Deli said, smiling broadly. “You know I’m hopeless at everything but cookies and cornbread,” she added to Megan. “And apparently your mom is quite the bread-maker,” she told me.
“Wow, Mom—it’s so great to see you doing more than sitting in a dark room typing all day,” I said to her.
“Typing and smoking, I’m sure you mean.” She smiled at me. “Ever since I broke that nasty habit, I feel so free and so happy! And Deli has me doing all kinds of crazy things.”
“She’s taking my yoga class,” Deli said, smiling again. “And we’re going to take a pottery class together.”
“Don’t forget the stargazing and the hula dancing,” my mom added, laughing. “I don’t know when I’ve had so much fun!”
Megan and I exchanged a look and couldn’t help laughing ourselves. I knew she’d told me that her Aunt Deli had been lonely, but I had never guessed how lonely my own mom had been as well. It was so nice to see her happy and healthy—she looked ten years younger already—with a new best friend to spend time with. It did my heart good to see them together.
We waved goodbye just before twilight, because Mom didn’t want us walking home after dark, and headed back to school.
“Well, those two are thick as thieves,” Megan remarked, smiling as we headed down the street that led towards Nocturne Academy.
