Full Moon Over Astara...Continued

Chapter Two: 5 years later

         “What the hell happened to the terrible two's? Did someone change it to the fabulous fives?” Constance squealed, struggling to get the boys ready for their first day of elementary school.  “Maybe it was a good idea to tell them, she says, maybe they are ready to know why they got in trouble for using magic that scared the hell out of them” Constance rambled under breath while tying the final lace on Raziel's shoe. “Ok boys downstairs to your Aunt Beulah, who hopefully made you a proper lunch, not leftovers from when Nixon was president” Constance sneered while following the boys out of their bedroom. As they were walking towards the stairs, Raziel tugged on his Aunt Constance's pant leg, “Who Nixon?” he asked with a gleam in his eye. Refraining from laughing out loud, Constance replied “He was a very old man who lived a long time ago”. 
         “Now do you think it was a good idea to put the boys room in the attic? Hello can we say...Not thinking ahead!” Astara commented to herself while carrying urine stained blankets to the laundry room. “Come on Astara, they are just barely five years old, most boys their age wet the bed” Constance said nasally, holding her nose as to not regurgitate her breakfast, not that she enjoyed it anyway, Beulah's cooking did leave a lot of unanswered questions. “WHOA!, what the hell-o is that smell-o?” Beulah shouted as she entered the kitchen, heading for the laundry room. “Oh you know, boys being boys” Constance mocked while still pinching her nose as the smell loomed over the room. “The boys wet the bed again” Astara stated the obvious to prove a point. “It is just too far for them to get to the bathroom, they are on the third floor and the bathroom is on the second, and did we forget we have stairs!” Astara stated with concern in her voice. “Maybe it goes deeper than that, Astara” Beulah commented as the proverbial light bulb lit up in her brain. “Whoa! Beulah, did you just actually have a thought that did not involve Sesame Street?” Constance insulted from a far. “Very funny Constance...Hardy-har-freakin'-har” Beulah asserted with what seemed to be a naïve comeback, obviously not warranting a response from Constance. At that instant, hearing the boys running and screaming incessantly above her, Astara began to ponder for a moment on the day the boys had their Wiccaning. Folding the laundry from the dryer, she was reminded how frantic a day it was [much like this one] on the eve of the boys Wiccaning, just five years prior.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 years ago. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
         “Come on Constance, it's not like there are going to be any single male witches at this thing. Besides there is not enough magic in the world to make you presentable. Lets Go!” Beulah impatiently shouted while banging on the bathroom door and snapping her fingers. “Like you have so much to do, and not enough time to do it in, really Beulah, get real!” Constance crudely replied from behind the safety of a bathroom door with a lock. Astara's faint voice carried through the house and from the sister's upstairs bathroom, it sounded like a ritual blessing the sisters used to sing before each sabbat. “Blessed are we sisters three....Blessed three are we...” Astara's voice resonated a sense of calmness in the house, much like a trance-ensuing spell that only Astara could accomplish.
         “Sisters, please stop bickering, we need to conserve our energies for tonight's Wiccaning” Astara calmness was obviously infectious. Not, but a few moments later something miraculous happened, Both Beulah and Constance starting singing the same ritual song that just moments prior was coming from Astara's lips, and it seemed as though they were...dare it be said...getting along like sisters! As Astara took a deep cleansing breath and exhaled sharply, trying to conserve her energy enough for the Wiccaning, she heard a faint arguing coming from the upstairs bathroom “that didn't last long” Astara thought to herself. The commotion and constant bickering was  not aiding in the stress free night the sister's were supposed to be having.
         “How many are coming to the Wiccaning, Constance?” Beulah asked loudly as to attract attention to her question. “I don't know, ask Astara, she is the one with the list” Constance said stomping off with her nose in the air. “Is that really the best you have got Constance....Ever since you became a platinum blonde, I think the hair color is starting to effect your brain cells” Beulah stated as she darted off down the stairs on her way to Astara's room. En route to ask her for the list, both Beulah and Astara not watching where either of them are going, collide into one another, “HEY!” Astara and Beulah shout, “watch where you are going” they say in unison. Gathering each other from the floor and retiring to Astara's bedroom, sitting on her bed,  Astara and Beulah start to go over who was supposed to be at the Wiccaning. “Cosmycus and family” Beulah started to say. “Check” Astara confirmed. As Beulah and Astara sat going through the guest list and RSVP's,  they stumble upon a name that seemed to have gotten added to the list by mistake. Desperately trying to erase the name, Astara glanced longer and at just the sight of it printed on the page sent chills up her spine. “Who is this person?” Beulah frighteningly asked. “Damien” Astara whispered. “Uh, Astara that is not helpful!” Beulah responded.
         Looking up at Beulah, Astara's eyes became a dark amber color [which was a pretty drastic change from her vibrant blue eyes]. “What name did you call me?” the voice echoed with a low roar and growl. “HA! HA! Oh! HI! Yeah...Your not Astara are you?” Beulah dumb-foundedly commented as she arose from the bed in fear. “Constance! You might want to get your city slicker butt in here!” Beulah loudly pronounced. “What now!...Again with the yell-ing...” Constance said stopping dead in her tracks. “OH I don't know...Does a possession COUNT!” Beulah mocked nervously. “Hey Astara, you don't look so good” Constance said trying to break the tension.  “Again...What name art thou calling me?” the Demonic voice echoed. “Oh you don't sound so good Astara” Constance reluctantly commented. “DUH! Ya Think...Really, you are going to pull this blonde moment NOW!!” Beulah said, while trying to dodge the demon's swipes at her. Constance was looking around Astara's room for their Book of Shadows, because she knew there was de-possessing spell somewhere in the book. “Crap!, where the hell is the Book?” Constance struggled while ripping through Astara's bedroom trying to locate the last place she remembered  the Book being. “HELLO! I am dying here!...Improvise!” Beulah shouted as she got knocked out by the demon's forearm. “OH!” Constance said, turning around to notice the demon charging towards her with what looked to be an athame in it's right hand. At this moment, Constance remembered she could channel the energy from athame and with her arms raised as the athame began to glow, she began to chant, “By pure witches fire. Evil from dark and black, I banish you now from this place, leave now and get out of my face”. Hearing these words Astara started shaking profoundly as she hit the floor,“I'll be back, you can't ever get rid of me, I live inside you Astara...” the demonic spirit echoed as it departed Astara's body, 
         “Well I'll be a bean-dipped mother frito...It worked!” Constance said joyously. “Holy saltwater taffy Constance, did that spell actually work? It didn't even rhyme...What was that...a Haiku?” Beulah insulted from the floor. “Oh shut up Beulah she saved both our asses” Astara said grunting as she got up from the floor. “Astara? Is that really you?” Constance asked on the ready to recite the spell again. “Is your middle name really Agatha?” Astara said with a deep voice. “That is like so not funny!” Constance replied in her favorite valley girl tone, because she knew it annoyed her sisters. The convergence of energy from the demonic banishment, must have upset the boys for not but seconds later, Constance saw Dorian, walking down the hallway crying while holding his head in pain, “Hey little one, what's the matter, ya got a headache?” Constance said picking up Dorian to comfort him. “I think Beulah's blonde theory is starting to make sense” Astara said walking up behind Constance rubbing Dorian's head, “Hey little guy” Astara said in her baby voice, “whats a matter with you, huh?” Astara asked playfully. “My head whurts” Dorian said softly rubbing his head and whimpering. The feeling that Dorian was experiencing was not the angst of physical pain, but in fact it was his empathic ability trying to mature within him. “Oh you poor thing, what happened?” Astara asked concernedly while rubbing the spot on her head where she impacted with the floor during the reciting of the spell. “I no know” Dorian said rubbing the knot forming on his forehead. Both Constance and Astara sat in the hallway coddling Dorian and giggling, trying to cheer him up, both knowing full well what had transpired that night.
         Later that night as the full moon took its rise to the starless May night; Constance, and Beulah along with their dear friends Lunas and Cosmycus Bloodbayne and their son Amara, gathered around the sacred altar in anticipation of the boys arrival to the ceremony. Astara bundled the boys up in their ceremonial robes and walked them to the altar, praying to herself “Goddess please bless this occasion, let nothing else go wrong.” As they entered the solarium, Astara motioned for her sisters to take her side and each hold a child. The ceremony began and each sister approached the altar holding Dorian, Raziel, and Cornelius awaiting the full moon to reach it's peak, so everything would be perfect. As the moon rested upon its final place in the sky, Astara began to read an inscription appropriate for the wiccaning “Blessed friends, and fellow witches, tonight on this blessed night, we welcome Dorian, Raziel, and Cornelius Rothbane, into our circle, and into our family” Astara pointed to Constance and asked “Do you vow to protect our great-nephews from any and all danger from now until it is now again?” with a sparkle in her eye Constance replied with an emphatic “I do so vow!”. As Astara turned to Beulah she blurted out “I do so vow!”, with an irritated look on her face Astara exclaimed “I didn't ask anything yet, Beulah”, Beulah lowered her head and sighed “Sorry”. Astara placed her hand on Beulah's, lifting her chin with her other hand, looking her in the eyes, “Do you vow to protect our great-nephews from any and all danger from now till it is now again?”, with a sullen and exasperated sigh Beulah replied, “I do so vow”.
         As Astara turned around she was startled to see Cosmycus standing before her, in his purple ceremonial robe, which only meant one thing, it was Astara's turn to take the vow. Cosmycus gazed deep into Astara's eyes and with sincerity and love in his voice he proclaimed “Do you vow to protect your great-nephews from any and all danger from now till it is now again?” with a tear in her eye and sniffle in her throat Astara replied, “I do so vow”. At that moment Cosmycus raised his hands to the heavens and motioned for everyone to rise and gather around the boys, proclaiming in unison, “We all vow, from now till it is now again to protect these boys from any and all danger that may confront them, love to them, heart to them, body and soul shall it be forever, blessed be”. After the ceremony the boys started to get fussy and the girls knew it was time to put them to bed, so Cosmycus hugged the girls and kissed the boys on their way inside and walked the guests out, and then retired home with his husband and child for the evening.