Will of the Witch [Legacy, BK 2 - Completed]

Chapter 2.1

JOHN

I sat on the covered porch, waiting for the rain to pass, thinking about the last time I'd seen it rain this hard.

The smell of coffee filled the air as I stood in line at the local brew shop with Frankie, my older sister. She was my closest sibling, but that may have had something to do with the fact that she'd practically raised me.

"I don't get why they're so hard on me," I complained. "Mom has you to follow her in Air, and Dad has Chelle and Tasha as Fire elementals. Why are they so bent on me being a part of this?"

Frankie wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "It's because you're the youngest and the only boy. They want to make sure you're included, and as different as you are, they're trying to find some way to connect with you." 

Terror filled me and I turned sharply to her. "You don't think they know-"

She smiled sadly. "As often as they ask me if you've mentioned hanging out with any girls recently, I'm sure they do. But, they haven't said anything about it, so..."

I sighed and accepted my coffee from the barista. I should just come out and tell them, but the thought of doing so didn't sit well. I didn't want to tell them.

"Are you all packed for your assignment?" Frankie asked as we took our coffee to the seating area and grabbed a worn leather couch.

Shrugging, I stared out at the rain. "I guess. I'm nervous, though. I don't want to mess this up."

"Just remember your training, and you'll do fine." She sipped at her latte, smiling at the taste.

"But I've never seen one face-to-face before. How will I know for sure, that my roommate is one of them?" I asked, picking at the cardboard sleeve of my cup.

"Don't worry, you'll definitely be able to tell."

The rain lessened to a drizzle, the sudden lack of noise bringing me out of the memory. I stepped out into the garden. It actually wasn't as easy as she'd said. When I'd first met Ezra, there wasn't anything about him that screamed Necromancer. He didn't have a lick of power about him and was just a poor country kid going to college. I remember feeling a huge sense of relief. The thought of facing a Necromancer on my own was daunting enough, without adding the fact I was also expected to kill him. It wasn't until we'd caught him at the warehouses that I'd learned what he really was.

It was just like with Hunter now. He didn't feel any different from a normal human being to me, but Ezra knew the difference.

I knelt in the mud of the garden, soaking in the raw energy from the earth, grounding myself with it, trying desperately to ease the ache that filled me. Magic was a part of me, I couldn't imagine who I'd be without it. But knowing that others like me, that my very own family, caused so much harm and pain with powers like mine, it tore me up inside.

What made me any different from them?

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Thanks for reading! Please comment & vote. I'd love to hear from you! <3  

Chapter 2.2 will go live in my Slack space later today (see profile for details) and will be posted here Wed, Dec 20th.

~ J.D.