A Modern Witch - By Debora Geary Page 0,49

had a little brother; it must be fun.”

“Oh, they can get tiresome at times. I have three, and it’s probably good I couldn’t teleport as a child.” Jennie smiled. “Who knows where they might have ended up. Did you hear the story of when Jamie ported himself and Nell to Chinatown?”

Lauren shook her head.

Better she starts learning about witchling antics now, Jennie thought. With the kind of power this one has, it won’t be surprising at all if her children have magic. A toddler with her channeling abilities could pull off all kinds of mischief.

She began sharing one of her favorite stories. “Nell was babysitting her three little brothers—Jamie’s a triplet. They were digging a big hole in the back yard. She was about fourteen at the time, and the boys were five or six. Anyhow, she laughed and asked if they were digging a hole to China.

“Jamie must have picked up on the image in her mind, and he ported them both there. He didn’t have a lot of control over his teleporting skills yet. Fortunately, Aervyn is mastering his younger than Jamie did.”

Lauren tried to imagine. “He teleported them to China? For real?”

Jennie laughed. “Fortunately, no. Nell had never actually been to China, so the image in her mind was from Chinatown in San Francisco. That was when we discovered Nell’s true talents as a spellcaster. She managed to reverse the spell and harness Jamie’s talents to get them back home. It took her three hours, though, and there was quite the panic when Jamie’s brothers said he’d gone to China with Nell.”

Jennie smiled at the memory. Neither of her daughters had ever manifested power, so she’d enjoyed the antics of her sister’s children and envied her just a little as well.

“I can only imagine,” Lauren said. “I’ll be sure to let my parents know how easy they had it. I’ve been meaning to ask someone, though. It seems like most witch talents show up in children. Why didn’t mine?”

“Oh, they likely did. You’ve probably always picked up some images and feelings from other minds. Given how sensitive you are, you also probably learned to block them from quite a young age. In a witching family, we’d have seen the signs and tested you early. You’d have grown up knowing you were a witch.”

“So, you think my parents just didn’t recognize what they were seeing?”

Jennie shrugged. “There might not have been much to see. Mind talents are often subtle. Children with elemental powers are usually harder to miss. Ask Nell about Aervyn’s first weeks sometime. Speaking of, he’ll be here this afternoon to practice with you, and we have work to do first. Let’s get back to it. Tell me what’s happening when you try to create your barriers.”

Lauren sighed. “I thought you were linking so you could see.”

“I am, and I did. I want to hear how it felt for you.” Something is getting in the way of those walls, Jennie thought. Let’s see if the girl is self-aware enough to figure out the problem.

“Well, I visualize the bricks just like Jamie and I drilled. That part works fine. When I try to pull them into place, though, it’s like there’s a bunch of friction. In Chicago, they just slid smoothly down.” Lauren paused. “It’s like part of me doesn’t want them and is resisting.”

Now they were getting somewhere. “Ah. And what do you want?”

Lauren squirmed. “I want Cat Woman. Not the illusion part, but when Aervyn and I joined, it felt totally different. Strong and flexible—like I could see anything I wanted. I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but the bricks are like being locked in a prison. Jamie’s gizmo, too.”

“Good.” Jennie was pleased. Lauren was quick and resilient, even if she wasn’t all that pleased about her newly-discovered mind powers. “The bricks were necessary to keep you protected when Jamie’s precog blew your channels open. Usually we try to do that a bit more gently.”

“It wasn’t his fault.”

For an only child, Lauren had impressive sibling loyalty. “Trust me, I know how easily surprises can happen when you’re training a new witch. He did well to get you here. Mind magics are not his strength. That little gizmo of his was inspired—he’s a highly creative witch.”

“He is. I like to think I’m fairly creative too. Can I try something different for a minute? I want to try something a little bit like what Aervyn and I did. Maybe you can tell me why it’s different than