Under the Harvest Moon (Work In Progress/First Draft)

Chapter One: Crack In the Cauldron

Onyx slowly sipped her cup of tea while watching the droplets of rain collect on the window and eventually glide down to meet each other, forming a dewy map on the glass. It was an unusually cold day for September and she suspected that winter would be coming earlier than usual this year. She took a final sip of her hot drink and left the cup on the windowsill.  Across the room, a lengthy, shaggy-haired dog was stretched across the pile of clean laundry on the bed. Onyx walked to him and rubbed his belly, then proceeded to search for a pair of socks and a sweater.

"I don't know what I would do without you to warm up my clothes on days like this, Theo," she softly said to the dog whilst pulling a thick sweater over her head.  Onyx sat on the floor and pulled on black combat boots. "I'll be back soon. Be good, Theo," she said as she rose from the ground and headed for the front door.

Onyx slammed the door on her way out and slipped on the hood of her rain jacket. Her chestnut-colored hair hung out of the hood and began soaking up the precipitation. She heaved a sigh and started walking quickly across the street into the city park that she frequently uses as a shortcut to downtown Portland. Onyx made her way swiftly through downtown, her dark locks now completely soaked, and into her cousin's alchemy shop, Crack in the Cauldron. As she stumbled inside, she pulled off her jacket and twisted her damp hair up into a lazy knot. In front of the tiny fireplace, Onyx draped her wet jacket over a chair to dry. The small fireplace was surrounded by several chairs and decorative displays of candles, smudge brushes, and incense. Onyx made her way to the back of her cousin's shop, surprised to not find her rearranging her vast inventory.

"Jade?" she called out. 

"I'm in the office. I'll be right out, " Jade called back. 

Onyx picked up a wooden tray from behind the counter and walked through the store, collecting gem stones, a smudge brush, and a mixture of spices, tossed a pillow on the ground at the hearth of the fireplace, and plopped down. She lit the smudge bush in the fire and crossed it above the hearth and around herself before setting it down and arranging the gems around it and grinding the spices with a mortar and pestle. She closed her eyes to meditate. 

Onyx and Jade's coven discouraged, abolished even, any spell-casting magic. They taught the girls to meditate and connect their souls to the spirits and elements around them, but barred the use of "true" magic after their cousin, Alexandrine, went missing 25 years prior. The girls never got a full explanation, as they were one and three years old at the time, and they never asked. Alexandrine's mother, Rosemary, fell into a deep depression upon losing her only son.  Even as the girls got older, they never pressed Rosemary or their mothers, Sybil and Astrid, about the missing cousin. 

The bells on the front door jingled and the sound of footsteps entering the store stirred Onyx from her meditative state. She remained sitting with her eyes closed. Jade came out of her office and greeted the customer.

"Welcome in! Go ahead and take a look around. Please let me know if I can measure any ingredients for you or help you find anything specific," Jade chimed cheerfully. 

Being located in Portland, most of Crack in the Cauldron's customer demographic consisted of curious tourists and locals following a Neo-Paganism trend. Jade called Onyx to the back of the store to help her. Onyx reluctantly got up and joined her cousin behind the register counter. 

Jade nodded her head towards a man in his mid-twenties on the other side of the shop and whispered, "He practices magic. Real magic." 

Onyx raised a dark, bold eyebrow at her, "And how are you so sure?" 

She studied him as he browsed the shelves of dried plants and herbs. He was tall and stood with a casual confidence. His clothes were somewhat vintage in style, but clean-cut. The back of his neck was bare, as if his thick, wavy auburn hair was trimmed that morning. 

"He called in advance to ask if we were an authentic alchemy shop. When I told him that we are, he revealed to me that he was part of a coven and needed fresh ingredients for the upcoming harvest rituals," Jade continued to whisper, pretending to label a small basket of silver trinkets. 

Onyx picked up a box of herbal teas and began unpacking it to put on display. She didn't respond to Jade right away; as she was trying to process what it must be like to practice magic, real magic, and if he was coming to Jade's small shop of all places, was his coven just passing through the area or were they local? She had so many curiosities. The man then walked to the counter with an arm full of ingredients. 

"This is a nice little shop you have," he said to Jade with a polite smile. "I'm Jasper," he introduced himself and held a hand out to Jade. 

"I'm Jade and this is my cousin, Onyx," Jade responded with a grin. 

Jasper then reached for Onyx's hand and smiled widely as he shook it. His teeth were symmetrical and impossibly white, his eyebrows were dark and his eyes were a deep green that could only be matched by the evergreen trees in the untouched Oregon forest. 

"It's nice to meet you, Jasper," Onyx murmured as their hands disconnected. She fumbled with the rings on her long, pale fingers and asked, "What brings you to Portland?" 

"I actually live in the village of Mount Hood. The old lady that kept the alchemy shop there passed away recently and her sons chose to close the shop rather than keep up with it," Jasper sighed, but instantly regained his spirit. "So here I am!" he exclaimed, "I was actually really surprised to find you. I didn't think there were any other covens around here anymore and I was worried I would have to travel to find the supplies we need for the harvest festivals this year. We should get our covens together; it would make the rituals so much more powerful if we combined the magic of two covens!" 

Jasper was clearly as excited as the girls to meet another witch, however Jade and Onyx traded unsure looks as they didn't know how to explain that they were not allowed to use magic. 

The light in Jasper's eyes faded as he saw them hesitate and he said, "I understand if you're not interested, but the offer remains on the table."Jade had finished ringing up Jasper's items. 

"Things can be complicated with our coven, but we will keep your offer in mind, Jasper," Jade said with a warm smile. "I ran out of bags up here, so I'll be right back." She hurried to the back storage room next to her tiny office. 

Onyx cleared her throat and quietly spoke to Jasper, "Our coven actually doesn't practice magic anymore." His brows furrowed and Onyx thought he must suspect that she was lying to politely back out of his offer. 

Instead, he smiled and whispered back to her, "I guess that means we will have to meet again so I can teach you." He tossed the items he purchased into the satchel that was slung over his broad shoulders and reached for Onyx's hand again. 

"It was nice meeting you, Onyx," his deep voice was hypnotic as he pulled her fingers to his lips and kissed softly between the silver rings where her tattooed skin was showing. 

She couldn't stop herself from smiling and her cheeks flushed pink. Jasper flashed another bright smile and told Onyx he would see her again soon before strolling out of the door and walking down the sidewalk in the rain. As soon as he was out of sight of the storefront, Jade returned to the front with a stack of bags in hand. 

"Damn girl," she chuckled. Onyx turned to face her, wide-eyed and mouth gaping. "I'm so glad he sucks at whispering as much as you do or I would have walked up here and accidentally snuffed that fire I just witnessed," Jade laughed. She dramatically flipped her platinum blonde hair over her shoulder and fanned herself with the paper bags in her hand, pretending to swoon. 

"I can't believe that just happened!" Onyx gasped and put her hands either side of her blushing face. 

Together the cousins giggled and jokingly reenacted the moment Onyx just had with Jasper before they composed themselves and returned to cleaning and decorating the shop for autumn. Over and over Onyx felt her heart drop to her stomach as she replayed the moment of Jasper kissing her hand and smiling.