Mirror of Echoes

3. Crystals & Betrayal

♣︎Agatha Harkness♣︎

Aurora's screams of frustration echoed down the hall of the little studio she's been occupying for clearly some time. Runes were carved into almost every surface of pottery and even within the brushstrokes across the walls, I could sense their heat stored. Protection and creativity. My fingers didn't dare to touch the witchcraft of her pottery. How was it possible for her to keep using her magic throughout such a long period of time when being bind from the very memory?

A particular mug sitting on the highest shelf by the window caught my eye. A chrysanthemum was carved into the surface, hues of pink and blue glaze mixed around the flower's outline and let it appear glowing in purple. Heart fluttering, I stared a little longer at the piece of pottery. The ones left bare or glazed with swirls clearly lacked the artistic styles and mostly the witchcraft.

"Are you coming?" I called out when reaching the front door. "Flower?"

A sharp pain spread along the back of my head. Turning around, I came face to face with the slightly smaller woman. Her brows remained furrowed, while I rubbed the sore spot.

"Do not," she warned, a finger pointed right at my nose. "Call me that."

Blinking my mind clear took too long and as I gained a sassy thought, she was out the door. She just hit me. This sassy little witch hit me. She had it coming. Just you wait, Aurora... just you wait. Even you had to close your eyes to sleep. At least last time I checked, she did sleep with closed eyes.

Shaking my head left and right, I tailed after her. Down the street, around the block, sat a blush-colored small town house. No doubt it belonged to her. When eyeing the lilac door and windows, I stifled a chuckle. Time may pass and people are always changing—but this? Oh, this was who she was at her core.

Stepping foot into the lavender-scented hallway, the faint creaking of the wooden flooring came to my attention. Snapping her fingers earned the air to heat and unexpected cracking and crackling sounded around me. A fireplace was singing in the living room. An L-shaped couch accommodated the small space that was left between the wall and bookshelves. Clutter sat all around the gray surfaces in front of books.

A tug at my chest had me following the instinct, leading me closer to the fire. Spying the item, causing the pull toward it, my heart leapt. Calla lilies—pink and purple.

"You kept the crown," I pointed out the item resting above the fireplace—the memory I visually recalled while doing so.

The petals remained in tact as the day they were picked off the earth.

'How was this possible?' Aurora's face formed the question without making it known. We could easily slip into our old rhythm. Her not actually speaking and me finding the question written in her features and answering regardless.

"Memories are a delicacy..." I hummed, stringing together thoughts to verbalize. "I thought I took them all."

I, myself, couldn't exactly fathom how this even was a possibility. Perhaps I didn't think she'd be strong enough... but—no. Of course, this witch held more power than she'd ever let on.

I had made exactly two cuts in her memory. One, the day we met. Second, the day I caused her heart to endure such unspeakable pain. The sort that I could still feel in my calmest dreams. It would be our latest estate—a cottage—engulfed in various vines of plants and the distant presence of her sitting by the window. I never got close enough to talk to her. All I could do was feel her pain. A constant, whenever I was reminded of her. Which was every minute when the sun rose and every minute when it had long set. Every minute when I got a chance to view the starry night.

Cupboards were ripped open, just like doors flew open and at times fell into their locks at a harsh pace. Someone wasn't happy to hear me talk about the incident of theft. Anxiety swirled through the small townhouse. She believed me at least—whether it was due to a glance into the future or actual trust.

As time moved forward, I couldn't resist peeking into her bedroom. It earned the door to swing right back into my face, but it was worth seeing Aurora's bare legs as she reached for something further up in the wardrobe. She took off her pants? My confusion turned into a thousand images of her bare skin in our sheets.

Fuuuuck...

Grunting as I let myself sink into the cushion of her couch, I knew my head wouldn't let me forget about this for the next decade. Aurora couldn't be forgotten in centuries. If even, the intensity of seeing her like this added to the years of buildup tension.

Propped down on the coffee table sat books—spell books, to be exact. How...

"I never forgot a thing about witchcraft. Erasing it from my mind did work, but you couldn't manipulate the people around me." Aurora's hair was wild and undone from the pin since I took it out. The pin that remained in my coat—my hand cupped the item through the fabric to ensure it was there after all. It was, to no surprise. "Now get your lazy ass off my sofa and help packing."

"You're doing a lot of ordering around. Wasn't that my department?" Cocking an eyebrow at her attitude, I cracked my knuckles and obliged her fine request. Stuffing clothes and whatnot else into a large bag seemed pretty hasty—not that I was complaining. I knew the faster we got out of here, the better. Selene may be clueless to her opponent on the hunt for the relict, but it wouldn't be long until she'd figure out we were a step ahead. I got the one thing she needed—two things, actually.

"Harkness, beat it and get these crystals into the bag!" Aurora hissed and her moody, anxious mood was giving me an attitude—which obviously wasn't helping my case.

"These?" I lifted one and threw it past her.

Oh, yes. Her lower eyelid tensed and I knew something was about to happen. Giddily, I waited for the blow of shouts or magic. The redhead clenched her fists until they turned white.

"I'll leave you to deal with that witch alone," she warned, but I knew deep down she couldn't. For some reason—one greatly confusing to me—she wasn't capable of leaving me in trouble. Even as she was a teenager—a baby witch—she couldn't drop matters if it was about me being in trouble. Contrary to that time, she suddenly walked to the front door, waving me outside. She was being real. "Don't ever return. I've grown tired of your face." Her nostrils blew wide—as they always did when agitated. I knew what to do—but if I were to take that step now, she'd make sure Selene would find my corpse. Our time lays in the past, I reminded myself.

"Aurora.. come on.." I muttered, grazing her shoulder tenderly. A sensitive spot. I hated to be the grown-up now. All I wanted to was match her sassy attitude and leave her be. I didn't need anyone. But I did. And I needed her. "I cannot do this without you. Remember our glory days?" A mind witch was what I needed to defeat Selene. Since my... coven has grown rather distant, it was a lost battle seeking Lilia's help at the moment. Asking for her help could go well in maybe a decade—but time was essential and we had little of it. "Please," I squeezed her upper arm and suddenly her beautiful doll eyes found mine. Hazel—brown in shadow and sunlight alike, but certain angles allowed the truth that was green to be exposed. "Flower."

Rolling her eyes and shoving me aside, she repeated her dislike for the nickname. The blush crossing the bridge of her nose didn't go unnoticed. "Get your shit together. I will not deal with your antics, Harkness."

"But you love them." I winked and earned another groan of frustration. Getting her worked up worked after all.

Holding two travel bags in her hands and having another bag and books pinned under her arms, she stomped closer to where I was still standing. "Where to?"

"Your car." I grabbed the keys from the small bowl by the door.

"How old are you, 400?" She mocked me and no matter how insulting it was, the fact that she bothered to try was adorable. She chose to insult me.

"Ouch, alright," I sighed and nodded. I deserved this. Probably. Perhaps. Eventually. "Now drive."