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“Coco?”
Coco was tracing circles into the counter again, over and over her fingers arced in that shape. She wanted to sink deeper into the movements, let herself follow the line around and around-
“Coco.” Her Mom’s hand landed on her shoulder, and Coco whirled around, snapped fully away from whatever thoughts those were. Emotions, inexplicable, rose in her throat once more, as they did whenever Mom interrupted one of these moods.
“Sorry, Mom!” Coco responded, flashing her Mom a bright smile. “What do you need?”
“There’s a customer out there who could use your help,” Mom said, “Just needs some bolts cut. Think you can do it?”
“Of course!” Coco said, already walking back out towards the main room of the store.
“Good, he’s right over there,” Mom followed her and pointed out a man standing near the desk, long robes cascading down his shoulders–
–Bandages wrapped around his chest–
–Warm hands pulling her away as danger slashed in front of her face–
Coco shook her head, Mom glancing down with her at confusion as she stopped. She had been thinking something just now, hadn’t she? What had…
She had a customer to care for.
“Sorry for the wait,” Mom apologized to the customer, “My daughter, Coco, will help you.”
He smiled down at her, not as warm as it should be. Not for a lack of trying, though, but it was hard not to notice the twitching of his face. Coco smiled back though, gesturing for him to follow her to the back.
“Sir, what cloths can I get you?” Coco asked finally, now that they were away from the bustle of the shop.
“I wanted a few bolts of purple cloth, and of blue cloth, each two meters in length,” the customer replied, absent-mindedly.
Coco paused for a second, waiting to see if there was more, but when he didn’t speak up again she began to unroll the cloth she needed.
Sharp lines cut the cloth into the necessary strips, not a waver in them. Her hand held firm and without fear, she now just needed to make the circle–
“You’re quite good at that,” the customer interrupted, bringing her out of her repeating thoughts. He was grinning at her, and despite his compliment, he seemed to have been waiting to give it. “Say, do you know what I am?”
Coco narrowed her eyes, looking at the man once more. His robes were embroidered slightly, billowy enough she couldn’t see what was underneath, and a pointed cap sat atop his head.
“Oh, you’re a witch, right?” There wasn’t much of a chance to see them in person, not all the way out where Coco lived. It was only luck she remembered the uniform of one.
Or, it should’ve been.
His smile grew wider, like he genuinely thought he could project enough happiness, she wouldn’t notice what was underneath it. “That’s right! Qifrey the Witch, at your service!”
–She was calling his name–
–Carrying her to safety–
–Magic wrapping around him, water following his movements as awe overtook her–
Had she been thinking of something? She blinked, and her pigment stone had dropped from her hands, ink beginning to stain the cloth.
“Ack!” Coco hurried to pick it back up.
“My dear girl, are you alright?” Professor– Mister Qifrey leaned forward, sliding down to the ground and regarding her. What should’ve just been concern in his eyes, she could see the sharpness behind.
“I’m fine,” Coco replied, pressing her hands together to stop them from shaking. “Just got lost in my thoughts for a moment, and, well, I’m sorry I almost ruined your cloth.”
“Think nothing of it,” Mister Qifrey waved her apology off, the first emotion to come out of him that seemed completely genuine.
Coco let out a breath, steadying herself, and picked up the scissors. Time to make the cuts.
Mister Qifrey remained thankfully silent as she did so, though his gaze never wavered from her. It didn’t throw her off, as it should have. Rather, she felt confident in his judgment.
“So, what use would a witch have in cloth?” Coco asked, trying to make the silence weigh a bit less while she packed up.
Mister Qifrey chuckled, “One of my apprentices love enchanting strips of cloth into different shapes, I like getting her new material to work with.”
–Hanging from the ceiling, the cloth sparkled like it had been weaved with stars–
She pressed the bag into his hands. “Thank you for shopping here!”
“Thank you,” he tipped his hat at her, and began walking for the door. “Oh, and Coco?”
“Yes?” Her breath stilled.
“I happen not to live that far from here. Perhaps you’ll run into one of my apprentices, when they come for their own needs.”
The words bubbled out of Coco’s throat before she could stop, “I can’t wait to meet them.”
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was later that night Coco found the scrap of paper. Mom was making dinner, and Coco was beating the shop to death with her broom. She didn’t know how it managed to get so dusty, every single day, but this shop would be squeaky-clean come morning.
The back rooms were less dusty, thankfully, but Coco still made sure to sweep everywhere, poking her broom underneath large racks of clothes and dressers to make sure she got everything out.
And out came a paper, fluttering with the force of her sweeping.
Coco frowned, reaching down to pick it up before the possibility of germs could stop her.
She flipped it over, revealing what was on the back.
It was a perfect circle, missing just one final dot to connect it for good.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The shopping list was pinched tightly between Coco’s fingers so it didn’t go flying off in the winds. Fall had just arrived, and nature seemed eager to remind them of that.
A few people waved as Coco walked past, calling out to ask how her Mom was doing. Coco replied brightly each time, making sure to pause to talk to each one.
People grinned at her with new wrinkles, and kids ran past with longer legs and ganglier limbs.
It was early enough that not all the good produce had been taken yet, and Coco inspected the apples, looking for the ripest ones. These chores had once been such a bore, but the small amount of focus they required was now a balm on her wandering thoughts.
She grabbed a few apples and turned to pay the vendor.
And another body smacked into hers, sending her sprawling to the ground.
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry!” A high-pitched voice babbled at her, a hand already offering her one of the apples she’d dropped.
Coco blinked, shaking the daze from her head to pay attention to what happened, looking up at the girl she’d crashed into–
–Arms holding her tight as fear shook her body, or was it the other way around–
–Words that always dripped with kindness and sincerity, trying to reason with centuries-old hate–
“I should’ve been looking where I was going,” the girl continued to apologize, shoving apples into Coco’s basket. A bit of her gaze lingered on Coco though.
“That’s alright,” Coco responded, sitting up fully and starting to pick up herself. “Thank you for helping me.”
“And thank you!” The girl gave her a thumbs-up.
Coco, somehow, didn’t have to ask for what.
They stood up, each paying for their groceries.
“So, my name is Tetia!” Tetia introduced herself excitedly, and then, like an afterthought, “What’s yours?”
“Coco,” Coco responded, feeling too like it was an afterthought. Just a routine they shouldn’t need to run through. “You aren’t from around here, are you?”
Tetia shook her head. “Nope! I’m an apprentice witch, in fact!”
Living at Mister Qifrey’s atelier, perfecting her spells that would make people happy.
“That sounds nice,” Coco replied.
“Mhm,” Tetia agreed, “Say, do you want to see a spell?”
Coco opened up her mouth, like the answer should be on the tip of her tongue, but there was nothing there. So she just swallowed and shook her head. “Nah, I have to get back to my chores.”
Tetia stumbled after her. “Mind if I accompany you? I also have groceries to get and I don’t know my way around here at all.”
“Sure,” Coco said, a wave of gratitude almost choking her. “What do you need to get?”
“Uhhh,” Tetia paused for a minute too long, her eyes wide as she scrambled for an answer. “We need, um…”
“Did you not make a list?” Coco asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Guess I forgot about that,” Tetia laughed, rubbing the back of her neck. “But I remember! I need to get some wheat and yeast to make bread. Some honey too.”
Coco shrugged and led her through the streets, stopping where she needed to. Tetia didn’t ever seem annoyed to have to wait.
“What’s it like, being a witch?” Coco asked, comparing two squash to one another.
Tetia considered it, but not for long. “Well, it’s really fun!” She began. “We get to learn a ton of magic to help people, and we work on making our own, new spells to help people even more. It’s always great to have an idea for something you realize people will like!”
“That sounds nice,” Coco replied with a nod, feeling like there should be more behind those words. But no matter how hard she searched for it, that emotion wouldn’t appear.
Tetia appeared to be waiting, too, her shoulders slumping when nothing came.
“And Mister Qifrey is your teacher?”
Tetia brightened, “Yes! He’s a great teacher. You remember him?”
“He came to buy some cloth from my store,” Coco said, “And he told me to keep an eye out for his apprentices. I guess you’re one.”
“That’s right,” Tetia laughed, “Maybe you’ll get to meet more of us? I can take you to the atelier if you want.”
A sudden offer that felt far too natural.
Coco shook her head, “Sorry, I’m normally too busy helping my mom with work to go on such a long trip–” But didn’t they say it was close? “--I hope to see you around though.”
“Oh, alright.”
Coco finished her shopping, and turned to leave when Tetia caught her by the sleeve. Coco turned back, looking at the familiar girl in confusion.
“Do you like it here?” Tetia asked, desperation leaking past her happy nature.
Coco considered it, perhaps for a second too long. “Yes, I do, I love living here with my Mom. It’s a great village, and all I could ask for.”
“Okay.”
And Coco walked away, knowing she had gifted that girl with honesty. Hadn’t she?
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Hey Coco, do you want to go into the city with me sometime soon?” Mom asked while they ate dinner, her eyes skimming the newspaper.
Coco swallowed, “What for?”
Mom pointed at an ad in the newspaper. “It says here that a witch’s atelier will be putting on a show soon. It would be a rare chance to see that much magic. Wouldn’t you like to go?”
Coco shrugged, standing up to put her dishes in the sink. “That seems like a lot of trouble, Mom, besides, I’m not that interested in magic.”
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coco was rarely given days off anymore. Not because Mom was working her harder, but because Coco would stay at the story to help on days she’d normally go running off into the fields. That must just be a part of her growing older, she supposed.
This was a mandatory day off, though, Mom ordering her to go take a break and have some fun. And who was Coco to argue with that?
She’d walked into the village first, quickly finding a group of kids her age tossing around a ball and chasing each other. But as Coco looked further, it was almost like the space that had once welcomed her… was gone.
She’d outgrown this at some point she couldn’t remember–
Coco was tracing circles with her thumb into the bark of a tree, rereading the same sentence over and over again. She’d brought out a book to read, but she’d already forgotten the plot. She’d have to start all the way from the beginning.
Coco sighed, deciding to just close the book, and laid down on her back.
Her eyes slowly adjusted to the light, blinking up and up, almost ready to take a look and see the unbroken circle of the sun–
“That’s going to hurt your eyes.” Coco raised her head at the new voice, and found a boy glancing away from her, biting his lip and his cheeks flushing.
“You’re right,” Coco agreed, with a light laugh, “I should be a bit more careful, shouldn’t I?”
He rolled his eyes at her, amused despite himself. He always needed to chill out a bit, too stressed over everything that could go wrong to appreciate the wonder that was around him. “Yes, you should.”
Coco giggled again, reaching out a hand and letting him help her up. “I’m Coco, and you are?”
“Tartah,” he replied, the name washing over her in comfortable familiarity. “I’m not from around here.”
“I could tell,” Coco said, “Where, then?”
“Kahln,” Tartah replied, and that name should not sound familiar. She rarely even saw maps–
–It was running through a street after the wisps of a robe–
–It was smelling the salty air of the sea as she waited to leave–
“Sounds like you’re far from home,” Coco said, “What are you doing around here?”
He stumbled for a moment, panic stilling his tongue. “I’m, uh, I’m visiting some friends nearby.”
“Oh?” Coco continued, “Who?”
“Uh, the apprentices at Mister Qifrey’s atelier.”
Oh, once again. She should’ve guessed. She did, actually, this knowledge felt already known, like when they reviewed a lesson at school.
Like the book she was reading, even though she couldn’t remember what it was about.
“Do you want to play with me?” Coco asked.
His eyes widened with surprise. “Sure?” The uncertainty in his tone felt right, for once.
Coco clapped her hands together, grinning even as her eyes swept the fields for something to do.
Tartah waited for her, seeming too nervous to offer up anything himself.
“Why don’t we see who can climb a tree the fastest?” Coco finally said, pointing up the tree she had been resting under.
He followed her gaze in so much confusion. “Isn’t that a bit dangerous?”
“Do you not know how to climb one?” Coco countered, but with only humor in her voice.
He flushed, “I know!”
“Then we’ll be fine,” Coco replied, “Come on, I’ve climbed trees so many times! And the view is better from the top!”
He stayed on the ground as she swung her legs up onto a branch, hovering beneath her like he was sure she would fall. She grasped the next branch, pulling herself up higher and higher.
At long last, he began to follow, carefully grabbing onto each branch and testing it to make sure it wouldn’t break.
Coco waited for him to reach the top with her, letting his eyes roam the horizon first.
“Wow,” he breathed.
Coco looked up, taking in the sight of her town, the the sky beyond, the little haze where it merged with the earth.
The sight was almost like–
–Magic.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mom had sent her out that morning to get some water from a nearby stream, given the well was very busy today. They just needed it to wash some clothes, not to drink, so it should be fine.
She spun the pail in her hands as she walked, the spin of the pail round and round in a circle–
The sparkle of something caught her gaze.
Ribbons hung from a tree that had already lost most of its leaves to the early autumn. They sparkled where the rising sun hit them, and chimed as the wind blew through them, a beautiful melody that never became a cacophony of misplaced sounds.
And in the center of them, dancing around the stream, was a young girl in robes that caught the wind within them and hair that twirled around her body.
–Silently watching them with a fond word on her tongue–
–Never looking at her with the judgment she expected, working fast as they all fell apart–
The apprentice witch spun water in her hands, separating them into clouds of droplets. The motions felt like they should be the direction, but Coco’s gaze strayed from her hands. Trying to spot something underneath that flowing cloak.
“Hello,” the young witch said, her eyes turning to fix onto Coco.
“Hi,” Coco grinned, a bit embarrassed to have been caught watching. “I’m Coco. You’re one of Mister Qifrey’s apprentices, right?”
“Yes, I’m Richeh,” she nodded. Her hands continued swirling, water pooling within them.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Coco responded, walking forwards to put the bucket down beside the stream. “What’re you doing?”
“I’m practicing a spell,” Richeh said, swirling water from one hand to another. “Professor Qifrey is a master of water magic, so I’ve been trying to learn that too.”
“That’s interesting,” Coco said, even as her eyes glazed off the spell, the swirls becoming familiar and boring now, just that same circle that was trapped in her thoughts. “So, you like learning what others can do?”
Richeh hummed, “I didn’t used to, though.”
Coco looked over at her, her own interest swirling faster than the water. Richeh didn’t need much prompting to continue.
“I was scared that if I learned anyone else’s magic, I’d forget how to make my own,” Richeh said, her voice far away and ringing in Coco’s ears. “I would stop being able to innovate by myself, to make things that are wholly my own.”
She turned to Coco, water dancing in her eyes. “Some good friends showed me that I would always exist in any spell I cast, and that I didn’t need to fear working with others.”
The water exploded behind her, a mist filling the area as, suddenly, droplets began to rain down from the sky. Coco gasped, hands flying up over her mouth, as through the water, a rainbow formed.
“A few friends helped me make this spell,” Richeh said, letting water cascade over her in a halo of light. “It's one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever made.”
It was magic.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coco recognized the voices as soon as they entered the shop. Well, voice, singular, as Tetia overpowered anyone with her. Coco looked up from her work and waved at the two familiar apprentices.
“Coco, how have you been?” Tetia bounced up to her, grinning like they hadn’t seen each other in eons. No, grinning like they should’ve seen each other yesterday, and the day before that.
Richeh waved.
There was a man behind them, hanging back at the door and trying to look like he was more interested in the shop’s wares than their conversation. But she could see the way he kept an eye on them. He’d come in with Tetia and Richeh though, so she trusted him.
–That wasn’t the only reason–
“I’ve been fine, hard at work,” Coco grinned, “What are you two doing here?”
“We just had a day off from lessons and decided to come to the village,” Tetia continued, not like Richeh was eager to speak anyway. “Do you wanna come play with us today?”
Coco looked over to Mom to ask, but she was already shooing her out. “Go, Coco! Go play with your friends.”
Tetia and Richeh didn’t need more permission, grasping her sleeves and pulling her outside. The man at the door sighed and followed them.
“What do you think we should do?” Tetia asked, clearly not having thought this through ahead of time.
“Food,” Richeh declared, “I’m a hung-Richeh.”
Tetia giggled and bought them all a pastry. Coco devoured hers, not having noted how hungry she was, while Richeh and Tetia whispered among themselves.
“Coco!” Tetia caught her attention. “Richeh and I have a game in mind, we’re gonna go set it up, then we’ll come back for you in a minute!”
Coco nodded and waved them off, finishing up her pastry and wiping her sticky fingers on her skirt.
It took her a second to notice the man hadn’t left with them.
She turned around to take another look at him. He wasn’t wearing a cap, but she had no doubt that he was a witch. His black hair was messed out, and his stubble was a bit overgrown. He met her gaze solidly, like that would hide the hints of discomfort that flicked in his eyes.
“I’m Coco, and you are?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.
He cleared his throat. “I’m Olruggio.”
“Hello, Mister Olruggio,” Coco responded politely. “Are you also teaching Tetia and Richeh?”
“Not exactly,” he said, “I’m not their teacher, but I help them sometimes.”
“Sounds like a teacher,” Coco said, ignoring the way he broke eye contact.
They stood in silence for the next few seconds, the world moving on around them. Coco got the impression Mister Olruggio was the type of person who’d normally treasure silence, where his words were finally unnecessary, but he shifted uncomfortably in this space between them.
Coco should fill it, really, but she’d felt too dried out for months to contribute much.
“What do you think of Tetia and Richeh?” Mister Olruggio finally asked, gruff and clipped like he regretted it immediately.
Coco thought for a second, her eyes straying to the place Tetia and Richeh had turned the corner. “They really like magic,” Coco finally said, a startling way for her to start her observation. Really, there were hundreds of ways she could begin, so why did her brain keep skipping back to that? “It’s good for people to… to love their craft.”
“It is,” Mister Olruggio nodded. “And they like magic in the right way.”
“What way is that?” Coco asked, tilting her head.
Mister Olruggio looked away, seeming to debate what to say. “Magic, all magic, is made for one purpose above all. Those kids understand that.”
Tetia and Richeh skipped back into the scene then, dragging Coco along and to the game they’d made, flowers blooming along the trees while they danced in the falling petals.
And Coco could almost grasp the purpose of magic, within her own smile.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mister Qifrey was waiting against their counter again, one of those days. He ordered his cloths and Coco took him to the back room so he could watch her cut, always with an approving gaze.
She wondered if he noted what she did.
If you cut off a piece of cloth and drew a rectangle on it, even if the sides were perfectly straight and the angles 90 degrees sharp, the minute you laid it on the earth it curved, ever so slightly, just enough to become a circle.
Things always returned to where they began, everything continued in a cycle. The world spun on, in the greatest circle of all.
Mister Qifrey took what he’d brought and waved goodbye, “Oh, and Coco? My atelier will be holding a magic show in a month. We’d love to see you there.”
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Almost a month had passed, Tetia and Richeh visiting every other day. Mom had started making enough lunch for their routine visitors, and Coco would wait in front of the door some days, the anticipation enough to ward off her rolling thoughts.
And at the end of every visit, they’d remind Coco she could come visit their atelier. They watched her with mournful eyes every time Misters Qifrey or Olruggio showed up to spirit them away. Coco was only slightly worried they’d stuff her in the carriage someday.
Mom even asked her why she kept saying no, and Coco could only shrug then return upstairs, drawing circles for the rest of the night.
They also talked, a lot. About what magic Mister Qifrey was teaching them, about Mister Olruggio’s latest invention, about the food they’d had for dinner last night and Richeh’s brother and Tetia’s dreams–
And about the girl Coco had never seen before, the conversation always cut short before Coco could ask, but when she saw the apprentice’s robes with a new body huddled within, she knew who she was looking at.
Her name was Agott.
–She held out the flower, and she didn’t take it–
–She grasped her shoulders, and asked why she trusted her–
–She jumped towards danger, trusting their plan–
“Hello Agott,” Coco greeted, walking closer to her. The apprentice had been leaning in one of the alleyways, her eyes meeting Coco’s as she walked past. For a second, Coco had thought she was going to bolt, but she only held still as Coco approached.
“You know my name?” Agott replied, sharp and bloody.
“Yeah,” Coco nodded, “Tetia and Richeh talk about you sometimes.”
That was the wrong answer.
Agott withdrew, folding in on herself and glaring at Coco like she had just stabbed her in the heart. “Of course, they just keep coming to visit you, probably can’t keep their mouths shut.”
“Tetia can’t,” Coco agreed, settling onto the wall beside Agott. “But I don’t know, I think wanting to share your life with someone is cool.”
“Of course you would,” Agott snorted, “You can’t shut up.”
Coco raised an eyebrow, “I can! Honestly, Tetia and Richeh are the only people my age I really talk to anymore…”
Agott flinched, scooting away from her.
“Why haven’t you ever come here with them?” Coco asked. She wouldn’t have minded getting to meet this prickly girl earlier, and everyone else from her atelier visited all the time.
Yes, this was everyone. Some picture in Coco’s mind was finally complete.
So why was some space still blank?
Agott scoffed, “And would I even get here? We visit much bigger cities regularly.”
“I didn’t mean to buy anything,” Coco retorted. “Tetia and Richeh come here to play. Why don’t you?”
“Are you asking why I’ve never come to meet you?”
“Yes.”
“And why would I?”
“Because-” Coco’s throat dried up, her brain running in circles, there was no answer, only the blankness where she began over and over again.
“Coco?”
“Because they would’ve wanted you to,” Coco finally responded, her voice wispy. “They always seem so sad, talking about you. I think they wish you were here.”
Agott recoiled, even though Coco was the one who felt like the air had been punched out of her lungs. Her brain didn’t have enough oxygen left to think with, only the circle repeating its pattern. She was tracing it into the wall again, waiting for something to come from it.
“I don’t think they should expect me to come!” Agott burst out, probably louder than she’d expected. Well, Coco didn’t mind. Her words were a reprieve from Coco’s lack of thoughts. “They keep expecting things from me, and won’t listen to what I have to say!”
Her chest heaved, like somehow expressing a simple emotion had taken the same effort as running all the way across the country.
“And they keep inviting you back to the atelier. They should really stop doing that,” Agott finished, her hands balling inside her robes.
“Do you not want me there?” Coco asked, a surprising emotion flashing through her. Hurt.
Agott scoffed and looked away. “Aren’t you happy here, Coco?”
“Yes,” Coco answered, immediately, honestly. This would always be the truth. “I love it here.”
“Then they should stop trying to make you leave your happiness,” Agott replied, “They just… they just can’t accept that you want to be here. So they should stop asking, so you don’t have to keep saying no.”
She drew her robes up around her shoulders, and made to stalk out of the alley.
“Wait!” Coco grabbed the edges of her clothes, Agott immediately spinning around to face her. “Agott, I…”
Circles, over and over in her thoughts, words lost to the repetition of scenes that she should know–
Not anymore.
“Just because I’m happy here,” Coco whispered, “Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be happy at the atelier. It doesn’t mean I might not wanna go there someday. And it is never, ever, worthless to remind someone they’re wanted back.”
Agott tore her robes out of Coco’s grip, searching her face with hurt, desperate eyes. All Coco could do was twitch and hold her hands back to her chest, the words gone as soon as they’d came to her.
Agott walked away, and Coco didn’t follow her, not yet.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Mom, do you remember that magic show you were talking about?” Coco asked as they washed the dishes.
Mom hummed.
“I’d like to go, actually. Can we still?”
“Of course.”
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The paper around Coco’s feet fluttered, the edges of the circle lifting off the ground and cutting through the air. Coco was the only thing holding it down, keeping it from taking off.
Coco kneeled down, and touched her fingers to the center.
Ink bled out of her fingertips, swirling through the circle as it formed into signs and straight lines and a language that–
–Coco could never know again.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Steady there!” Mom gripped Coco’s arm as she stumbled, almost careening sideways into another passerby. Mom huffed, “Maybe we should’ve stayed back at the room.”
This was the fifth time Mom had said since they’d left, her arm curled around Coco protectively as she shook and shuddered. Coco had woken up yesterday with a pounding headache, her feet already wearing circles in the floor. Papers had been scattered around her room over the last few days, circles within circles within circles and nothing but them.
Mom hadn’t wanted to come, seeing how sick Coco was.
But she’d begged. That, she could recall clearly. She gripped her Mom’s arms and begged to go, pleaded to be there, said she’d go off on her own if Mom didn’t take her.
Where had that passion come from? Certainly not from the circles, Coco’s eyes tracing them in the world as they walked.
People were clustered around the pavilion when they got there. Whispering to one another as they waited for the magic to begin. Mom set Coco down on one of the benches, and Coco’s hands clasped in a circle in her lap.
No one was up on stage yet. In fact, the crowd hadn’t even spotted the witches yet, as Tetia and Richeh had taken their caps off and were whispering off to the side like they were normal schoolgirls. Coco bit back a laugh.
Then, all too suddenly even though everyone was in different places, Mister Qifrey walked up onto stage. He spread his arms wide, smiling at the entire audience, but Coco could see the way his eyes rested on hers when he finally found her.
“Welcome, one and all!” He announced. “I am the Witch Qifrey, and I am here to present the wonderful works my apprentices have put together for you. Please, sit back and prepare to see the wonder of magic!”
Tetia and Richeh took the stage from different sides, Tetia skipping forward while Richeh drifted. A few people clapped, and Coco joined them.
“Hi everyone!” Tetia called over the crowd, waving her hands. “We may be only apprentice witches, but we hope to put on the best show, so–” She exchanged a glance with Richeh.
“Thank you for coming!”
The duo broke apart, pulling a veil out of thin air and spinning with it. And from that veil, Agott emerged, already ablaze. She held fire in her hands, making even her cold eyes look like flames.
She separated the flames, sparks following the flow of her hands, and spun them up into the air until they exploded in fireworks of flowers.
The sparks rained down, and Tetia and Richeh ran forward, catching them in their silks.
Agott’s hands had disappeared into her robes, and a gust of wind blew out, picking up the sparkling silks and swirling them through the air.
Kids gasped, reaching up to try to grab the hems that were far too out of reach.
Tetia and Richeh stepped back–
–The floor beneath their soles sunk just a bit–
And it lit up.
The glow illuminated them all in beauty, drawing every eye towards the stage. In a practiced dance, the three apprentices spun and drew the water out of the air. Bigger and bigger the construct formed, until it towered over all of them. And from that water, a horse emerged, raising its hooves.
It was incredible.
It was magical.
And Coco’s heart ached to feel it once more.
She was spiraling, circles leading down to her center in an eternal loop she’d never find her way through. Always so close, yet so far.
Her hands were gripping her hair, Mom’s hand on her back and whispers breaking apart in her ears.
Then, the stage cracked.
Coco felt it, not heard or saw it. She could feel that circle break, like the sudden clarity of her thoughts. Her head shot up, her eyes widening as each apprentice stumbled back, away from the darkness that shot out of the center of the stage.
The audience held still, enraptured. Fear and awe still warred in their hearts and evil took form.
This was not a part of the show.
Mister Qifrey ran towards his apprentices, water solidifying into a spear of ice. Mister Olruggio shouted at the audience, herding them out as quick as he could. His eyes still scanned their faces frantically, he was looking for someone.
But Coco couldn’t move, not as shadows overtook the ground the apprentices were on. She was rooted to the spot, even as Mom shook her, trying to snap her out of it.
In and out, another cycle of hers. She’d be clear one second, lost the next, thrown between states in a heartbeat. Neither would be the end, or would it?
Mister Qifrey lunged at the monster, but it batted him aside. He flipped through the air with ease, like he had expected it all along. He, too, wasn’t focused on the monster, searching the area for something else.
It was all going wrong. This wasn’t how magic was supposed to be.
The apprentices didn’t stay helpless. Silk created a barrier around Richeh, and she tugged Agott and Tetia toward her. The spark they had danced with earlier now coated the edge of the stage, trying to keep the monster contained.
Mister Qifrey’s eyes were wild as he jumped at it again and again, looking for a way to kill it.
This was not what magic was supposed to be.
And what did Coco know about magic?
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Once, there was a girl that drew circles, not knowing where they led, as she left them directionless.
That girl had never considered the purpose of magic, never been allowed to. Her brain would turn around when she did so, leading her back to the blank she began with.
That girl had forgotten how to wonder, so she accepted that blank, and drowned in it.
Once, there was a girl who had been brought to the city when she was young. While she was there, she made a terrible deal, one that would scar her until that scar was pried off her screaming body.
But while she was there, her eyes were bright. Because below her feet, magic lit the way. And that girl swallowed all that magic and wonder and dreamed of being a witch every night since.
That girl wore the broadest of smiles.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Don’t!” The word tore its way out of Coco’s throat, the sentence left unfinished. It wasn’t even a word anymore, just a primal emotion that drove her toward the stage, frantically running up the steps.
Agott looked towards her, immediately opening her mouth to tell Coco to stop–
–Agott never wanted Coco’s help, but that had never stopped Coco from giving it. She knew that she couldn’t offer much, but she would give it all to this group–
Tetia screeched as Coco dropped beside them, pulling a small pad of papers out of Tetia’s sleeve and tucking them into her own–
–Tetia always had two pads on her, the most scared that they’d end up somewhere unprepared. She wasn’t as good at spontaneously casting as Agott and Richeh, or so she said–
Richeh stumbled back as Coco dove forward, and added a line to the small marking Richeh had made there to summon the silks–
–Richeh didn’t speak much of herself, not even after she’d lightened up. But she would pass Coco copies of her spells, and answer all her questions. That felt more like knowing Richeh than any question she could answer with words–
And she summoned wind.
The monster flew up into the air, off balance by the length of Coco’s sigil. Some of the planks of the stage were even torn off, careening through the sky before they speared the ground around them.
And Coco’s hands held steady as they traced another spell into Tetia’s spare pad, sending all the sparks flying towards the center of the monster, where they exploded in its gut.
“Come on guys!” Coco huffed, turning to her friends. “We can’t let this ruin our show, can we?”
They stared at her with wide eyes, the light of the sparks reflecting in each.
Tetia smiled first, cascading into Coco. “Of course not!” She was upright the next second, looking at the others. “Let’s do this!”
Professor Qifrey didn’t have enough time to stare at them, he couldn’t hear their conversation. He caught the monster’s attention though, just long enough for the apprentices to scatter and begin their show.
Coco stood at the start of the stage, Mom and Professor Olruggio gaping at her.
“Please, don’t be alarmed!” Coco called out over the cacophony, a quick spell Agott had given her allowing her voice to carry. “This is a bit of a surprise, but we promised you a show, did we not?”
Tetia shot her a thumbs-up, her part of the plan was ready.
Richeh nodded.
Agott pressed her hands into the stage and completed her circle.
“It’s time for our final act!” Coco twirled, and watched the magic take place.
Professor Qifrey had left water lying all around in his fight, soaking the stage with the remnants of their horse. Now, those droplets rose, each catching the light and brightening into mini stars.
“We say a lake can hold the entire night!” Coco declared. “Let’s show you that a little rain can hold the stars!”
Around the monster, the droplets collected. They were to small for the monster to shake off all of them, sticking to its inky shape and coloring it in.
There, a bit was brown, and there, some red took over. Pink and blue ran up its hooves and its mouth opened to reveal yellow daisy patterns.
Then, silks were wrapped around its limbs. Coco reached out just in time to catch the silk hurtling towards her, sinking into the same stance as her fellow apprentices. They each held a piece of silk that was connected to one of the monster’s limbs.
“Tada!” They declared together, and pulled.
And the monster exploded into all the light it had gorged itself on.
As sparks rained down on them, they bowed to their standing ovation.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was just a second later, Coco looking out over the crowd, her chest heaving with breath after breath. Had this been the first time she’d breathed in months? It felt so.
Mom stared back at her, her hands covering her mouth, but behind that visage of fair, Coco could finally spot awe.
Then, she was pulled back, off the stage and away from the crowd.
Arms wrapped around her, someone’s–Tetia’s–head buried into her shoulder, and she was leaning back into Richeh. Agott was pressed against her side, too reserved to hug her thoroughly as always.
As always, there were four of them.
Coco laughed, choking on her own rushing tears. “I’ve missed you all!”
“I missed you too!” Tetia wailed in return, clutching her even tighter. Coco wouldn’t mind even if she bruised tomorrow, she just wanted that pressure right now.
“We didn’t know if you’d ever remember,” Richeh said, voice calm despite the tears slowly crawling down her face. “No one’s ever remembered something that was wiped before.”
“And you chose to save your mom, even though you knew that meant forgetting about magic,” Agott whispered. Coco could hear what she really meant.
“It was awful! I don’t know why– why they made you choose!” Tetia continued to sob, and Coco pulled her in.
“I’m sorry that I left you all,” Coco whispered, knowing it was loud enough for them. “I didn’t mean to, I just had to be with my Mom.”
“Besides,” she added as Professor Qifrey crouched beside them, his face open with so much pride it made Coco’s heart ache for all those closed-off and lost days. “I knew I’d remember. You guys would never let me stay forgotten.”
Professor Qifrey chuckled, “Of course, my girl. And we’re all so, so glad to have you back.”
Coco, for the first time since she’d saved her Mom so she could return home, was fully and completely Home.