hands carefully away from his student's spell. Held his breath along with the rest of them as it shimmered in a shaky, but stable, spellshape.
And was the only one of them not entirely confused when she let it collapse.
Nell stared at Beth. The shape had been stable enough to activate. "Why didn't you trigger the spell?"
"I need to practice first." Beth's voice was coated in wobbly joy. "But I know how to make it now."
What kind of witch didn't want to do the actual magic part?
Her pint-sized teacher grinned happily. "One day, it will be a really good spell."
Beth's smile was nearly as big as his. "I'll practice hard."
He cuddled into her chest. "I know."
His hearing aids were showing. Nell felt something inside her heart melt. Her son, one of the most loved people in Witch Central, had just declared himself tribe leader of the different witches.
Aided and abetted by Auntie Nat.
Pride nearly took her breath away.
And she knew what had to come next - no matter how confused she still might be about their Chicago witch. She glanced at both her brothers, making sure she spoke for all three of them. Jamie and Dev just rolled their eyes in unison.
Yeah. Not much danger from a witch who was afraid to let a spell loose.
"You two work well together." Nell smiled at Beth and her pint-sized sidekick. "That will be useful in the circle tomorrow."
Her son slipped his hand into Beth's. Tribe leader, indeed.
Chapter 15
Jamie looked up as his wife walked in from the back yard, radiant from her morning yoga workout and the dewdrops on her toes. "You're up early."
She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "I wanted to get my yoga done before the girls show up."
In Witch Central, that could mean a whole lot of different people. "Which particular ones are invading today?"
She laughed, picking up the mug of tea he had waiting for her on the counter. "The first wave is the triplets, I think. Something Shay picked up from Lauren about Beth liking Christmas lights."
Uh, oh. "Let me guess - they've requisitioned your supply." Nat had enough lights to blanket half of southern California.
"Uhhmmm." She sipped her tea, eyes bright with simple morning happiness. "They want to make her feel really comfortable for her first circle."
And they had a monster affection for anything that glittered, twinkled, or shone. "Shay, huh?"
Nat only smiled.
Jamie could feel the pride layered underneath. His wife loved each of their nieces wholeheartedly, but she had a special affinity for Shay's quiet, thoughtful spirit. He tugged her closer for a hug. "The two of you are a lot of the reason Beth is still here, I think."
"Kenna, too."
And Aervyn. And possibly Lizard. "Okay, you and all the inhabitants of Witch Central under five feet tall."
Her laugh lit dark corners in the kitchen. "That's awesome company to be in." She glanced over at the Christmas light storage boxes in the corner. "You want half a bagel? The girls are going to be here soon."
He looked at the boxes. And remembered a lumpy green cookie. And read the face of the woman he loved beyond measure - and was finally beginning to understand.
This was important to his nieces. It was even more important to his wife. And she had talents that went well beyond making the back yard into an overload of twinkle. "Why don't you play your flute?"
It delighted him when her cheeks flushed pink.
He waited. Just asking was enough of a dare.
"Okay." She sighed, a little sound that melted half his brain. "I'll do it, but it's on your head if people are covering their ears."
She was a far better flute player than she believed, but he knew it didn't matter. Playing let her be a real, tangible part of the circle - and for this witch, it was suddenly very obvious that Nat would suffer through far more than the occasional wrong note.
He wondered how he'd missed the formation of Beth's army.
-o0o-
Nell walked into Jamie's back yard, amused by her girls. She grinned at Mia, who looked up first. "What are you three up to?"
"We're decorating. Lauren gave us a hint."
Tiny white lights shimmered in the grass, a magical fairy-lit morning. Judging from