Chapter #2Spellbinding by: BeeJay My name's Nicole Montgomery, and I've got a secret.
I live in Salem, Massachusetts, with my mom, Maggie, and my little sister, Robin. Mom earns a living as a Realtor (it's a family business), so Robin and I keep the house clean and handle the cooking, in addition to regular teenager stuff. Also, Robin is trans, and has been living as a girl for two years. One day, I might tell them my secret.
I have a boyfriend, Bradley Lewis. We do a lot together. Not the big stuff, but a lot. The experts say that, if a relationship is going to last, the couple can't have secrets from each other. Which is a problem: I don't know if I can tell him my secret.
I've got two best friends, Eva Campbell and Kathy Parker. We're as close as we can get, and we tell each other everything. Well, almost everything: I can't tell them my secret.
My ambition is to become a TV reporter; maybe even an anchor. I might even make it to one of the networks. If I do, people across the country, maybe even around the world, will need to know that they can trust me to give them the truth. The only problem with that? I can't tell any of them my secret.
So what is this secret that nobody can know?
I'm a witch.
Not a Wiccan; a witch. A real, spell-casting, broom-riding, cauldron-stirring witch.
Now, maybe you find that a bit hard to believe. After all, a girl with invisible braces, and glasses that refuse to stop sliding down her nose? That doesn't sound like what witches are supposed to look like. Well, that's the thing: Witches don't look like anything. Witches are. Witches do.
How did I become a witch? I was born that way.
This is how I found out.
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It was my 16th birthday party. We had some fun. I got the stuff I wanted.
And I got one thing I didn't ask for: A big, old book.
I asked around; nobody knew anything about it.
Mom flipped through it. "There's nothing in it," she said. "Weird that a book this old has no writing in it. Maybe you can use it as a diary."
And so the Mystery of the Big Old Book was put on hold.
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That night, I was in my room, listening to my tunes, and singing along when I felt like it.
"Looks like you had a happy birthday."
I yelped. "Mrs. Walters?! How did you get in my room?" Mrs. Walters was our neighbor, who Robin and I helped out from time to time.
"I'm sorry I couldn't be at your party," she said, as if ignoring my question. "But this is much more important. Happy birthday, Nicole." She gave me a small purse.
"Thanks," I said, taking the purse. "But you haven't answered my question: How did you get in here?"
"You'll find a hint in the book I gave you."
"This thing? Mom looked at it; it was blank."
"Is it? Open it, and look for yourself."
I opened the book, and got a surprise. Instead of blank pages, I saw words:
Book of Shadows
"Book of Shadows? What does that mean?"
"It's the name for a book where we witches record the secrets of our magick."
"You're a witch?"
"As are you, Nicole. Why don't you open the purse I gave you, and see what's inside?"
I opened the purse, and saw a wooden handle inside. Pulling out the handle, I was surprised to pull out a carved stick the length of my forearm, far too long to fit inside the purse. "How did this get in there?"
"Magick, Nicole. Look at me."
I looked, and was surprised. There was a peculiar silver light in Mrs. Walters's eyes.
"What you see is my magick within me. All witches have magick, and all can see it in other witches. That is how I knew you were a witch."
I swallowed. "What do we do now?"
"Now, I must teach you the ways of magick. But first, you will need a lair, where you can practice your magick away from prying eyes." | Members who added to this interactive story also contributed to these: |