The Trial of Morrigan Crow Book 2; The Return of Morrigan Crow

Chapter 2 - Sisters and Brothers *Edited*

And Fenestra, the giant Magnificat and head of housekeeping, used the commotion as a cover to discreetly swipe a huge paw full of pink icing.

Jupiter and Morrigan looked at each other and they ended up bursting into laughters.

Frank was all right, really.

Later that night, deliriously sugared up on birthday cake and exhausted by the never-ending well-wishes of a hundred party guests, Morrigan crawled into the cocoon-like nest of fleecy blankets her bed had turned into that night (it obviously knew what an awfully long day she'd had). She fell asleep almost the moment her head touched the pillow.

Then, what felt like half a second later, she was awake.

She was awake, and not in her bed.

She was awake, and not in her bed, and not alone.

Shoulder to shoulder beneath a starry, cloudless sky, the nine newest members of the Wundrous Society stood outside its gates, sleep-rumpled and cold.

Morrigan's eyes glinted with excitement, this was it.

The gates of Wunsoc had been transformed into an enormous, unseasonably botanical welcome sign – a rainbow-coloured floral tapestry of roses, peonies, daisies, hydrangeas and twisting green vines that read, thrillingly:

Come in and join us.

The boy standing to her right – gangly-limbed, curly-headed, one corner of his mouth smeared with the remnants of a bedtime chocolate – was Hawthorne.

"Morrigan!" Hawthorne wore a big bright smile on his face. After the Show Trial and when everything had returned to normal, Hawthorne showered her with questions about her knack and what happened when she disappeared.

Morrigan had a headache for a while with Hawthorne asking her so many questions at the same time.

He craned his neck around to look at the seven other children lined up on either side of them. They too were shivering and pyjama-clad, and looked grumpy and alarmed to varying degrees. 

"Where are we?"

"One of the Wunsoc things."

"Must be"

"I was having the best dream," he croaked. "I was flying over a jungle on the back of a dragon and I fell off and tumbled down into the trees ... and then I got adopted by a gang of monkeys. They made me their king."

Morrigan snorted. "Sounds about right."

"Anyway, are you going to tell me what your-"

"Hawthorne! You are going to know it now. Well, not now, but today. The Elders and your patron would probably tell you today."

"Woah, really?!"

"What're we meant to do?" Morrigan turned to Thaddea Macleod. She was the same as Morrigan had remembered her as. Brawny, square-shouldered, pink-faced and at least a head taller than Morrigan, and a thick Highland accent and tangled red hair that hung halfway down her back.

Morrigan couldn't hide her smile to see the familiar faces around her. Unit 919 were back together again.

"Just a guess," Morrigan shrugged when all eyes turned to her when she spoke. There was awe and fear in their eyes. It sort of hurt her a bit to see fear in their eyes, just like when they first discovered she was a Wundersmith. 

"I think we're suppose to go in and join them"

And as she said it, the gates began to slowly open with a great groaning creeeeaaaak. Behind the floral welcome and the high brick walls, the grounds of Wunsoc sloped gently up to Proudfoot House, its every window lit like a beacon calling them onwards.