A Witch's Way

Chapter 10

Serena screamed--though a part of her wondered why. Where was she? Half her mind was foggy, like she wasn't really her.

All she could feel was heat. Heat and pain. Her arms throbbed and her knees dug into the dirt below. The flames licked at her arms and face. They singed at her arm hair.

A hand entangled in her hair held her face there, watching something burn. A low wail tried to come from Serena's mouth, but she coughed instead.

Smoke blew in her face and up her nose, into her eyes and mouth, scorching her throat and lungs. The sickening, bitter scent and taste of it was everywhere. Her eyes, nose, mouth, lungs.

Her garden. Her garden was burning. It was burning and she was watching it. Serena felt herself struggle, the sheer pain of the nails embedded in her skull not comparing to the pain of watching her life's work burn in front of her.

Was she crying? She couldn't tell. Her vision was blurry, either from tears or the smoke stinging her eyes.

"Don't you like this? This is all that your work came to. Useless. You could've spent your time growing strong. This is what happened when you just wasted away your life gardening. Your mother was the same way. Weak. Useless. Just a pawn." Her father's voice hissed next to her ear.

Serena shut her eyes, trying to ignore the pain and the heat. It wasn't real. It couldn't be real. It couldn't be.

It's not real.

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Serena jerked up, throwing off the covers. She stumbled over Rosemary and against the door, throwing it open. She was going to be sick.

"Dearest? What's wrong? Dearest!" Rosemary shouted, watching Serena stumble into the bathroom and slam the door shut. She lowered her ears.

Serena grabbed ahold of the sink and gripped the edges, willing herself not to throw up. "It wasn't real," she whispered hoarsely, turning on the water. The cold water drained down the sink.

She touched a shaking finger towards it. It was cold enough. She cupped her hands and pushed her face into her palms, feeling the cold water cooling her red face.

Shutting off the water, she slid onto the floor and took deep breaths. The cool of the tiles on the bathroom floor kept her grounded.

"Serena dearest, open the door."

Serena lifted her head to stare at the shut door. Rosemary must be outside the door. She didn't respond--she just wanted to think. Rosemary didn't need to be in her head too.

Serena pressed her palms to her closed eyes, seeing black and white fuzz float around.

"Serena Violet Robinson, open this door right now or I will break it down. I'm supposed to take care of you."

Serena ignored Rosemary's voice once again, this time turning away from the door to face the bathtub. She pressed a hand against it, feeling the cool porcelain seep into her skin. She felt like she was burning up still.

"Serena? Are you okay?"

Serena pulled away her hand from the tub, shocked. That didn't sound like Rosemary. She felt her throat close up. Who was it?

"Serena? It's Jasper. You're okay. I promise. Was it Clark? Did he scare you?"

Serena felt herself calm down slightly. It wasn't anyone who could hurt her. "No. It wasn't Clark."