The Book at the Top of the Closet

Chapter Seventeen

Well, I thought I was going to start singing in the middle of my test, but at least I passed. I was hoping for an A, but one study session doesn't quite make up for being off in another world half the time in class. Still, I pulled of a solid B, and that's nothing to sneeze at. Once the grade is off my list of things to worry about, I realize tomorrow is the first day of May. It's also the pagan holiday Beltane. I've been doing a little better at being grounded enough to get all my schoolwork done, so I think I'll reward myself by doing something special for Beltane.

Wendy and Veronica are both on board with the plan, and even though I've been too busy to meet the rest of Wendy's witchy friends, she's planning on inviting them to the park to have a Beltane picnic with us. I'm making lemon cupcakes for everyone, and this morning Veronica texted me that she has a surprise for me. She'll be here any minute to help with the cupcakes, which is good, because I secretly really hate taking things out of the oven. I burned myself retrieving a pizza once and I've never trusted ovens since- and the one in the dorm kitchen is basically fueled by hellfire, so it's even worse.

Veronica breezes in wearing a ruffled apron with big green polka dots and carrying a little paper bag with a bright blue bow. Hopping up on the edge of the counter, she slides the bag toward me, almost knocking over the empty cake mix box in the process. I grab the gift bag just in time, leaning against the counter while I untie the bow and peek inside. Nestled into a cocoon of crinkle paper is a little leather drawstring bag, the kind you might expect a fantasy character to carry gold around inside of.

Thoroughly curious now, I set the gift bag aside, holding the little leather pouch in the palm of my hand. I glance over at Veronica's face and see that she's grinning as I tilt my head to the side. She makes an impatient little waving motion, urging me to open the pouch already. I tug at the top, pulling it open wide enough to shake loose some of the contents into my hand. About half a dozen little blue stones fall into my hand, each one with a symbol painted onto it. I hop off the counter and spread the rest of the stones out so I can see them all side by side.

"You got me my own set of runes!" I beam up at Veronica, who is practically wiggling off the counter in delight.

"We're going to do readings together, right?" She asks.

"Of course! But right now we need to get these somewhere safe so I don't accidentally bake them into the cupcakes," I say. Veronica chuckles and helps me scoop all the runes back into the little leather bag, which I carefully stow in one of the smaller pockets of my backpack.

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I try not to work myself into a nervous frenzy before the picnic, but it isn't easy. I want Wendy's friends to like me, and I want to get a moment alone with Wendy, and I don't know what to expect out of any of it. We get to the park with a few minutes to spare before people are supposed to show up. Wendy spreads a picnic blanket out across the grass in a nice shady spot, and we start setting out some of the little decorations we've brought.

Wendy arranges a little goddess statue, some fake flowers, and a handful of tumbled stones on the middle of the picnic blanket. We take snapshots and selfies with our little makeshift altar, and I post a few online. Before long her friends start showing up one by one. There's a tall girl with long hair down to her waist and little decorative feathers braided in, wearing a gorgeous printed skirt. Shortly after she sits down with us, a wiry guy in a jersey shows up with a tiny girl in a pink sundress. They all introduce themselves, but I'm so nervous they may as well be speaking another language.

We all talk a little about what Beltane means to us, and they congratulate me on celebrating my first pagan holiday. After a while I start feeling ever so slightly less nervous. Wendy feeds me an apple slice with exaggerated cuteness, and I'm almost relaxed when my phone starts buzzing.