Witch Way

Epilogue-- The Summerland

On the bank of a large pond, surrounded by rolling hills and trees with leaves that seemed to shimmer in the soft light, the soul of a woman sat. Her toes were dipped juat barely in the crystal clear water. A breeze ruffled her golden hair, causing a lock of it to catch between her slightly parted lips.

She paid the strand no attention as she descends further into a vision. Since her death, much of her magic had been stripped away with her body, leaving only a few abilities in her grasp. Farseeing was one of them and she utilized it often to watch over those she left behind. So deep in her vision, she doesn't notice the whisper of feet across the soft grass.

"Darcie, what are you doing? " A man's voice broke through her concentration and caused the vision to fade away.

Darcie turned her head to look at the tall man, annoyance plain on her face. "If you must know, I was watching the chaos your death and the demon have left behind."

Lawrence walked over and settled beside her in the grass with a sigh. "Is she alright?"

"No, Shayla is pushing Soren away because she thinks she's damned for not knowing about the possession, my sister is locked in a tiny cabin until she is ready to right her wrongs and my mother looks to be on the verge of a heart attack from the stress. I'd say that is definitely not alright."

"I'd have to agree. But I assume your mother has some sort of plan to help our daughter? " He asked quietly.

"Yes. She's sending her here to learn more about the demon." Darcie explained as she trailer her toes across the surface of the pond.

"And? It sounds like there's more to that." Lawrence prodded. He reached up and wrapped a strand of her hair around his finger and looked at the woman who should have been his soul mate with adoration on his face.

She leaned into him gently and smiled as he wrapped his strong arms around her. "Of course. My mother loves to meddle. Mom is sending Soren here as well. She hopes it will force them to rekindle their love."

He pressed a kiss into her hair before he spoke. "Smart woman. Julia must have seen what we saw. Soren is the key to fighting the demon. Aritan is what he called himself. He's too strong for her to battle alone."

"I know. I am glad that I'll be able to see her again. Have a chance to explain her conception before I move on." An expression of pure bliss crossed Darcie's delicate face at the thought of seeing her daughter. She looked to her lover with an unspoken question in her eyes.

"Yes darling, I plan to see her too. I just hope I can take some of the guilt from her heart before she leaves. It'll cloud her judgement if I can't."

They were quiet for a while, just looking out over the water as the trees danced and played in the breeze. The serenity of the Summerland was second to none. A restkng place for souls yet to be reborn, it was untouched by evil or time. Unwilling to end the silence, Darcie held her next question back and basked in the soft sunlight that always lit the realm. Eventually reality intruded on her quiet mind and forced her to speak.

"Larry?"

He looked down at her quickly. "Hmmm?"

"Shouldn't we try and find some of the answers she seeks before she gets here? The less she has to search for, the more time we can spend with her. " Darcie's voice had taken on the quality of a childlike innocence, seeming to expect a negative response.

Lawrence moved his gaze to the ripples across the water caused by the breeze and thought abiut her question. He knew that their daughter needed to grow stronger before the battle ahead and that her search would help with that. But he had never been one to tell Darcie no, before Aritan possessed him anyway. The furrows in his brow smoothed as he thought of a compromise and he met her eager gaze once more.

"She has to search for most of the answers on her own. But I see no harm in us at least finding out a few places where some od the answers might be found. We can point her in a direction, but that's all." His tone turned stern as did his eyes.

Darcie leaned up and kissed his pursed mouth. It softened immediately under the softness of her lips. He returned the kiss with passion until she pulled away. "Thank you." She said.

"You know I'd give you the world if you wanted it." He pushed up from the ground and pulled her to her feet. Her hand was tiny and fragile in his grasp. "Well milady, it looks as though we have a quest."

She intertwined her fingers with his and laughed at his exaggerated english accent. Their bodies shimmered in the light, as all souls, do as they turned away from the pond and all it's beauty. Hand in hand they set off across the grass in hopes of finding a way to ease their daughter's path.