The morning bazaar was busy as usual. Fruit stands, vegetable stalls, and the like lined the paved way where people are busy buying and selling goods. Lux and I were strolling, looking for fresh produce we could use in the manor.

“Mommy look!” a little girl said as she drags her mother and points to a certain flower stand. Bright red cursive letters were painted on it. It says: “Pinagpala’s Flower Shoppe”.

The little girl was attracted to the bright show that the vendor was doing it seems. The vendor was wearing a sky blue sun dress that hugs her curvy body and a sunhat. She was holding a tulip bulb that hadn’t bloomed yet. As the crowd gathers around her the woman was palming the tulip bulb ever so lightly, then she started to hum a gentle steady tune and as it did the tulip began to bloom. First it was a small opening, then slowly the petals began to part and its red colour deepens as she palms and hums.

“I really don’t understand why some other witch clans waste their magic on some petty tricks?” I asked lux who was clearly not listening to me. So I did what I have to do and slapped his shoulder. “Look at them! They are performing petty tricks for some quick cash. Have they no shame? They’re witches for goodness sake; they shouldn’t lower themselves to non-magic people’s entertainment.”

“Ow!” he said finally turning his attention finally to me “Why did you do that for?! You know you have the brute strength of an ogre” he frowned.

 Lux was all a Magdiwang should be, he had our black curls that he had lazily braided across his head to look like a headband which shines like the polished stones in the manor. He was also brown skinned in the most luxurious shade possible he wasn’t terribly tall; he wasn’t fat but a bit fleshy that makes him more of a boy than a man, and he had these gorgeous eyes and lashes that seems more doll-like making him like a porcelain doll of a young raven haired braided beauty that makes you unsure if it’s a boy or a girl if said porcelain doll is brown skinned. And I’m not even exaggerating. You know how hard it is to swallow the fact that every ball we throw he had the most handsome suitors out of all us cousins? It’s very hard!

“Didn’t you hear me?!” I asked, a frown forming on my lip. I suppose I am not terrible to look at, but I pale in comparison to my cousins especially Lux, I have the Magdiwang curls and colour but a bit more wiry, and my face is round like a clock and I seems to have the immunity to be coloured other than a white, so it means out here in the Angeles Region where it’s almost in a perpetual state of summer half the time and a drama set ready for that scene where the girl is ready to kiss the boy in the rain in the other half, I have a heavy case of freckles and frizzy hair. But my mom used to say that my smile is my most beautiful feature and I believe her.

“I heard you the first time” he said, forming his lips in a frown “I just chose to ignore you Caiss” rubbing his shoulder which would surely bruise, I might have slapped him again but I know he was just kidding.

“Stop acting like Matriarch Thalassa,” he said. As we settled ourselves in a nice café near the bazaar, we settled our goods below the table and tried to look for a good meal we could order “You should really stop with the ‘we’re Magdiwangs we are far more superior to any witch clan blah blah blah’ thing it’s not pretty.”

I immediately bristled like a cat upon seeing a dog. Matriarch Thalassa is our aunt, and the matriarch of the clan. She was mean as sin and haughty and thinks that she’s better than everyone and I am not like that. Okay maybe I am a bit mean but that’s just a catty attitude; every Magdiwang has one. She was beautiful as she was bitter, cold, and powerful.

“Now that’s just offensive.”

“No,” he countered “You’re being offensive-One caramel latte and you’re best omelette please” he said, there was a waiter already, and we had to stop with our earlier conversation. The waiter was tall and probably our age, 17, or older, he had a simple yellow long sleeved dress and a nice coffee brown apron.

“And you ma’am?” he asked, pen and paper ready to take our orders.

“Coffee, black and two croissants” and I wave my hand to dismiss him, Lux just gave me a lookv but I just shrugged,

“What?” I asked after he left

“You are being rude and offensive Caissa” Lux said with a sad tone, I just rolled my eyes at him “can you stop doing what matriarch Thalassa says, she’s the head of the family but she’s not always right, and you by far should know that”

That hit me hard, I know he’s right. But there were points taken for aunt Thalassa. We were one of the foremost witch clans in the country and we dominated the region. As all witch clans we are a matriarchal society and we are completely separate from the government of the country, and ruled by the great council, the collective of all matriarchs of the clans who signed the truce.

“It’s just that I don’t get it.” It was a weak defence but I just don’t, “Why do they have to show off their magic to the unlike-ours and waste time?”

“It’s not for you to get, Cais” He said, “You only have to respect the-“

“I do respect them” I said my voice rising but the people was still scarce outside the café and the people is too busy strolling and enjoying the morning sun to notice us “that’s why I don’t understand why they are doing these disrespectful things?”

“The same reason why matriarch Thalassa throws grand balls for senators and mayors and does all sorts of dark favours for them” Lux answered me with a cold tone, he deals with those sorts of things too every ball. Entertain, enchant, and even elope if he has to, men of power have peculiar taste that they don’t admit and rejects out in the open. I haven’t done that thank the stars. I suddenly felt a rush of embarrassment. Me and Vanessa, aunt Thalassa’s daughter, do not do those. Those are things that only the lesser Magdiwang does for the family.

“I’m sorry look-“

“Here’s you order ma’am and sir” the waiter finally arrived with our food and promptly left. I did not try to finish my words and we ate in silence. The gutting feeling of offending your family did not go away.

“Here’s the thing Cais’; we are not as grand as you think we are” he said pointing at me with his fork, “We are even worse than them when it comes to dealing with the unlike-ours. We do the-“

“I know what we do” I cut him off. It was rude but it sucks that Lux is rubbing it in that I was wrong.

“No you don’t” his voice was higher, he was mad. He had one eyebrow raised and he paused. Daring me to cut him off again “We do not just parade around them like some heifer; we do things for money and influence in their world, things that will churn your stomach Caissa, and we do that because of power and fame that we as a family craves; We do not live separate lives from them, we are connected in more ways than one, Caiss. Just because you and Vanessa are from the main branch and don’t have to deal with that stuff, you can live your life being ignor-“

Bang! Clang! And I snapped too. I did not know what came over me but I slammed my hands onto the table and walk off

“I’ll just meet you in the man-“I tried to hurry off and leave. I do not know why I did that, Lux was supposed to be the one who was mad but I am mad. I tried to leave as fast as I can that I did not notice a figure walking towards us.

“Where are you going, young lady?” the figure said, suddenly grabbing my hands with such force that I was yanked back.

“It’s none of your busi- gasp!”

“It’s not my business, where my family is?” Matriarch Thalassa asked. Her voice was rich and velvety. I screwed up! “Answer me Caissa”

“N-no…no ma’am” my voice cracked from the sudden rush of dread

“Good” she let go of my but she did it harshly. “Let’s go”

I nursed my probably bruised hand and ego. I looked at Matriarch Thalassa, and she really did stand out at the bazaar. She was wearing a black dress shirt with a black turtle neck underneath, and a black skirt and black stockings on black heels. The only pop of colour is the white pearl swan brooch she had pinned on her left breast. Her salt and pepper hair was tied into an elaborate bun on her back.

“Matriarch, uhm…how did you find us?” I asked, nobody saw us leave the manor and we even left our familiars out, no one could have snitched on us

“I’m a witch Caissa” She said pivoting smoothly and walked to the waiting limo “In case you haven’t noticed. We can do many things.” And she entered the limo, leaving the doors open. I immediately followed her and picked up my pace, she hates dawdling and people who make her wait.

“It’s a simple tracking spell, idiot” Lux said power walking past me, he pointed up and there I saw Rueben, Matriarch Thalassa’s familiar, flying in circles in the café, while the unlike-ours just happily went on their lives not noticing the black vulture hovering.

I entered the limo and sat beside Matriarch Thalassa, who was busy typing away in her laptop. The driver, a distant relative perhaps, went outside and fetched our things, and paid for the meal. She jogged back at the limo and drove us back as fast as she can.

We sat in silence. Silence is needed when Matriarch Thalassa is present, we do not talk unless we are given permission to do so; I learned that when she became the matriarch. The road to the manor was long and boring. We left the city just after a twenty minute ride and entered the Trifall Forest roads. The ride was smooth and quiet; so…so quiet. The only sounds really aside from the smooth engine were the clicking of the laptop buttons. Lux was not looking at me his brows were furrowed, but he did not slouch not while Matriarch Thalassa was there.

“So…” Matriarch Thalassa began, “who gave you the notion that you can leave the manor without my permission?”

“None ma’am” I said, my voice was weak.

“So why did you leave?” she inquired, she cocked her eyebrows but she did not look up at me. She typed away on her laptop who knows what. “Hmm?” she pressed on.

“It’s just the morning bazaar of the first day of the month. We just though-“

“You thought that you can sneak past the house to gallivant, walk around the city, without my permission” she said cutting me off. I wisely zipped my mouth. “I hope you’ve taken your fill of the unlike-ours and soiled witches; we’re leaving for the Ancestral home.”

My eyes widen in surprised as I heard what aunt had said. I’ve never set foot in the ancestral home since I was eight; right after it was burned down together with my mother. I felt sick in my stomach; just the thought of going there was enough to drive me sick and nauseous. The breakfast I just had threatened to come out in front. I held a hand over my mouth. Thankfully I swallowed it back down; better that than get punished for ruining the limo.

“Luxuria,” Thalassa called to the witch in front of her. Lux immediately straightened up, “Cast a sleeping spell on Caissa before she threw up on all of us.”

“Yes, Matriarch” Lux gave a surprised look at me who was also surprised, but he did what was asked of him. He curled his right pointer and thumbs together and straightened the other three together and blew on it. And I immediately dropped on the floor unconscious.