A Reckless Witch - By Debora Geary Page 0,32
with me tonight?” The nightmares didn’t come when she had company in her bed.
Mia rolled her eyes. “Duh.”
Chapter 8
“Two meetings in as many days.” Moira hugged Govin, noting the worry creases on his forehead. “It must be serious for you to leave your data for this long.” She looked at the rest of the group assembled in the Realm Witches’ Lounge. His wasn’t the only concerned face. It took something serious to call witches to a meeting before breakfast.
Govin squeezed her hand one more time and invited her to sit. “We have a lot of new information about Sierra, and I thought it might be good to talk as a group.”
The witching community worked best when they brought all their talents together. Moira nodded in approval. “So what have we learned about our young weather witch?”
Sophie grinned. “She’s made everyone who built an outhouse in Realm regret that decision.”
Ah, yes—the Great Poop Caper. “The poor girl probably has no idea how long that particular bit of mischief will be remembered.” Witches had long memories, especially for particularly funny pranks.
Jamie snorted. “Since people are still talking about stunts Devin, Matt, and I pulled when we were three, she’s probably labeled for life.”
They had been rather memorable young boys. She leaned over and patted Jamie’s hand. “It’s the one where you turned yourselves into ballerinas that will always be my favorite.”
Jamie groaned and looked at Govin for moral support. “See what I mean?”
Moira chuckled. In seven decades, she’d seen plenty of rambunctious witchlings turn into responsible citizens. Sierra followed in a proud tradition. “It seems to me that with all our girl has been through in her young life, a little bit of play is a good thing.”
Nell looked thoughtful. “I agree with you—but I think part of our problem is that she thinks of all magic as playing.”
“Funnels aren’t just toys.” Govin leaned forward, very earnest. “With the kind of power she has, she needs to take her magic a lot more seriously. I’m not saying fun is out of the question, but the kind of play she does right now could easily cause catastrophic weather effects. With her power, she needs to be extra careful—and she doesn’t even begin to understand why.”
Moira watched as a blanket of seriousness settled over the room. And she knew what her role was on this day. Weather modeling was far beyond her—but a witch in need of training, she knew how to handle. “We need a plan, then.”
Govin nodded, clearly relieved. “She needs training in using magic safely. That Realm stunt was funny, but only because it was in cyberspace.”
“Training, yes.” Moira shared his urgency on that, but it wasn’t all that mattered. “But we must also take care of the witch, and not just her magic. Sierra’s a young girl. She’s not a rogue witch—she’s one who doesn’t know any better.” She held up her hand as Govin started to speak. “It won’t be rules and magical protocols that keep Sierra’s magic in check. It will be love and commitment. She’s one of us now, and we need to help her feel it.”
She smiled at Nell. “Our Aervyn controls his magic because we ask him to. Sierra doesn’t have many reasons to trust us yet. We need to give her some.”
“On that already.” Nell looked very pleased with herself. “I’ve got my girls ready to help her pick paint colors for her new apartment. We can decorate in a day or two. Normally I wouldn’t suggest a gender split, but she needs sisters and aunts right now—she’s really missing Amelia.”
“Of course she is.” Moira nodded sagely. “And there’s no shame in women’s work done for the right reasons.” She smiled at Jamie. “Which leaves men and small boys as her training team.”
He rolled his eyes. “I can paint.”
Nell grinned. “Pretty sure it’s going to be girly.”
Jamie held up his hands in surrender. “Fine. I’ll help train.” He looked at Govin. “Aervyn will be useful too, I think—she likes him. I’m going to suggest Devin as well, at least for as long as he’s here.”
Govin frowned. “He’s not exactly a role model for magical caution.”
Jamie shrugged “No, he’s not—but I think he’s the one most likely to understand Sierra.”
Silence hung for a moment. Moira waited patiently and trusted Govin’s analytical mind to follow the data.
“You’re saying I’m the wrong mentor.” He sighed. “You’re probably right. What I see as reckless, Devin will see in an entirely different light.”
“Aye.” Moira leaned forward, proud of her