Memoirs of a Witch (In Bloom Book 1.5)

The Invitation Part 3

"You need to adjust your stance, Jackie," I noted, "Your feet are a little too close together."

The Witchcraft World Conference was passing faster than I hoped. I could not believe I would be going back to Night Raven College tomorrow night.

Though I was ecstatic about returning home, I wanted to spend more time with my new friends.

After we attended several conferences for the day, Isa, Jackie, and I had some spare time before we would be called in for dinner. I suggested we explore the school grounds a little more, but they had another idea in mind: sparring.

With a proper change of attire and some wooden swords in hand, the girls and I settled on the school's sports field.

While I walked Jackie through several movement combinations, Isa stood off to the sidelines recording our training session on her phone.

"You sure you don't want to join us, Isa?" I encouraged, "It's a lot of fun~."

She shook her head, "I promised my friends and family I would do a livestream whenever I could."

"If you're the star of the livestream, shouldn't you be in it too?" Jackie asked.

"They get to see me all the time. I want to brag about mis amigas," Isa moved herself to another spot and knelt down on the ground, "Cassie, can you show us some of your moves again? With your sword?"

Jackie stepped back, giving me more room to work with. I tossed my wooden sword off to the side and conjured the one I received on my birthday from Lilia.

I ran through the sequences of motions and movements I practiced with Silver and Sebek. I had performed these so frequently I could do them in my sleep. With each step I took and each spin my sword made, I felt my breathing slow down and my focus sharpen.

When I reached my ending position, Jackie applauded. Isa cheered, "Damas y caballeros, this is Cassandra, a.k.a. Cassie, Salvatori of Night Raven College."

"Seriously? Swords?" an adenoidal voice nearby earned a glare from me.

I forced a smile and locked eyes with the intruder and her entourage, "Good afternoon, Regina and Company."

Her eyes traveled to my sword and scoffed, "Why on earth do you use that thing?"

"Have you never seen a sword before, Your Majesty?" I spun the sword, "What's wrong with it?"

"What's right with it?" she hissed, "As a matter of fact, there's nothing right about you, Cassandra Salvatori."

"Oh?" I arched a brow, "Do enlighten me then, Regina Diamande."

She pointed a finger at my tattoo, "Let's start off with that. Who would want such a treacherous mark on their bodies?"

"All witches have them, genius," I motioned towards the one on her wrist, "Including you."

She hid her hand behind her back, "I'm actually going to get it removed."

"Why would you do that?!"

My shock was genuine. My nonna told me how significant our marks were. First and most important, it distinguishes a real witch from an impostor. Second, our marks served as evidence of a connection to our magic. If our marks were removed, the bond between us and our power could be diminished or even completely severed. Lastly, the marks were stunning and a part of who we are witches. Some, had a symbol of our power inside of the moons, like mine had flowers. Others, like Regina's, only consisted of line art which gave it a simplistic, but classic look.