The welcoming ball was trashed. Matriarch Thalassa returned fuming. Her face was still stone cold like the icy cunt that she was, but Rueben was pretty snappy, agitated, he’d swooped down and tried to attack several familiars.
“Call everyone and tell them to drop everything what they are doing” she commanded “ there is an emergency Sabbath and everyone is required by the council to attend” with that she entered her office and slammed it with a flick of her hand.
“Iaron! Pion!” I called, two young boys ran to me. Iaron was my cousin, he did not have the Magdiwang curls, his straight hair was in a short sharp bob and is quite thin, he had a sharpness at his face with his eyes, high cheekbones, chin, and narrow face but with his gorgeous eyes and bee stung lips and doll like mannerism he is quite the eye catcher, a beautiful leopard was at his side, Adevia.
Pion on the other hand was taller than me he was darker too. He was long and lean, and freckled. His curls were loose and were in undercut. He had thick manicured brows and long heavy eyelashes that are in a perpetual bedroom eyes. He was handsome in a classic sense while Iaron could have been walking in Milan Fashion Shows and he’d fit right in. A strong and muscled jaguar trotted to his side, Derella.
These two were dressed in the same black silk sweater and white inner shirt with a small peter pan collar, paired with black slacks and sneakers. “call everyone immediately and tell them to prepare as soon as possible, there is an Emergency Sabbath this evening and all of us is required to attend, so drop everything and clean yourselves up, we don’t want to be like those boring manatees.”
The two nodded and went off to do their tasks. It was horrible. Vanessa couldn’t choose what to wear and in the end I let her use her new dress and promised to take her shopping the next time. While Caissa on the other hand was fast; she dressed well though it was a bit drab so I got her a gold feather brooch. The rest finished on time.
I was wearing a simple see through black dress shirt with the only opaque covering in my body was the embroidered Spider-lilies on it, paired with a pleated pant that reminds me of a traditional Japanese hakama, to combat the cold I got myself a vintage black kimono; a gift from a client.
Matriarch lead us without so much as a simple greeting. She knew that if we ever embarrass the family, they’d wish they were dead. The travel to Moonlake Estate was a long quite one. I did not ride with the main family of course, so I was stuck with my closer kin. Everyone was quiet. Iaron was reading on his phone while Pion was playing a game, I knew ‘cause his brows were furrowed in concentration. While I just stroked Malice’s fur.
The car came into a halt. We were there. The Moonlake Estate was a gorgeous sprawling garden in the centre of a concrete jungle. Huge thick walls slathered with high security wards to keep anyone from entering and leaving here without the Binayaan family’s leave.
I immediately get out and opened the door of the limousine that the head family was in. Matriarch Thalassa was last to step out. She was tall and black all the way. Black quartz glass and a simple boat necked floor length dress with a pair of black studded pearl earring as her only accessory.
“Tell me which families do you recognize” she commanded. Malice climbed over to my shoulders to help me look at any signs that might point out a clan’s identity.
“huge working dogs as familiars, and the familiar stiff poses of these witches pegs them to be the war witches, Sienes’” I pointed the group of witches on the right. Fifteen witches standing at attention like navy seals together with their mutts, was easy to spot their Matriarch was clearly the one on front giving instructions on her side is a huge wolf like dog that I could care less to identify, whose body was scarred all over.
“the happy family led by that old woman; with sprites and woodland critters for familiars; they are definitely Pinagpalas” I said looking at the laughing group. They were all wearing black as prescribed in a Sabbath. But they have fun trinkets and their messy red hairs are what sets them apart from us.
“I saw a Binayaan girl earlier as I stepped out” I said. Matriarch looked at me signalling to continue “ she was a bit older than Vanessa and Caissa probably by a year. She had the traditional crocodile familiar and she was in wheelchair”
“It’s Valentina.” Matriarch Thalassa turned to face us “We are here today because…someone is dying. I am expecting each and every one of you to be on your best behaviors” with that she entered the mansion. Leaving us to interact with the other families.
Most of us as expected, steered away from lesser families. Occasionally chatting to equal families like the Umbals and the Sienes’ here and there; the air was tense.
“Hello Matriarch Deborah” I bowed to the Pinagpala matriarch. She was small and hunched over like an old prune. She was very old, her hair was white, all semblance of redness had been washed away by age. Beside her two witches stand, only one I recognized. The witch in the stall that morning; “To you two as well.”
“what brings you here Magdiwang witch?” the matriarch asked. Supporting her was her familiar, a strong buck. Its huge antlers had branched over and over like a magnificent tree. Despite her age her magic is still strong. I smiled and Malice bared its fangs in a smile too.
“Nothing…it’s just my matriarch said that the Binayaan Matriarch is dying, is it true?” the old woman paused. And then she laughed, the other two red head witches just looked at each other.
“Silly boy” the old matriarch wiped the tears off her face. “It’s not for you to know” with that she turned around and walked towards the mansion. The two witches not far behind. Malice chittered. I stroked his fur to calm him down.
The air was tense. I know someone is going to die soon. But who, I took a gamble with the Binayaan Matriarch dying, but from the looks of it, it’s not her. The Sabbath bell rang and everyone stopped whatever they were doing and returned to their families.
The second time it rang everyone started praying. Each family had a different way of praying.
The Umbals were flame witches. So they gather around and lighted a huge bonfire and prayed, feeding the flames with their own magic as their foxes would sit in silence. The flames would dance and change in colour I find it to be quite beautiful.
The Pinagpalas were simpler they would kneel and touch the ground with their hands and murmur their own prayers.
The Sienes’ were surprisingly loud. They had distanced themselves from the others as not to disturb but the wild clanging and banging of their weapons in a wild rhythm paired with deep drowns of prayers could still be heard.
Our was the simplest. We’d call our familiars to us and touch them with one hand while the other touches the left chest to feel the two hearts beating as one, one soul split into two bodies.
The other families did their own thing too but I could care less about them.
The Sabbath bell continues to sing its sonorous sounds for quite some time Vanessa was with Desideria praying, and Caissa was with no one her familiar left in the old manor. I turned my attention to the doors as the bell’s sound slowly comes to a halt.
The Seven Matriarch of the council emerged. So the Binayaan Matriarch is not the one dying, she was the oldest among all of them, she had come to serve four great Witch Queens in the past, and here she still stands.
“The Witch Queen is dying.” Matriarch Thalassa announced. “The signs have pointed that the queen of ours is dying. And today officially the Council of Witches officially announced the search for this era’s Seeds. Any witch within the age of 18 to 22 is a prospective seed. Every family is to send out all their witches that shows signs of ascension here for the selection.” She raised a flute of champaigne “TO THE NEXT QUEEN!”
“TO THE NEXT QUEEN!” the others cheered as they dispersed, servants came out and served foods and drinks to all the witches there.
I snorted at that. They are cheering because a person is dying. True, the Witch Queen or rather Louise was a pathetic excuse of a queen. She immediately ran away from the island as soon as she was crowned. The council could not take it away from her, no one can, only mother Death could.
I heard that the council wished and even some dare say tried to work some nasty hexes to kill the queen, but Magic saw fit to keep her alive, until now I suppose. The ball would be perfect Vanessa and Caissa are already eighteen and with the call for the seeds, it would be too perfect for matriarch Thalassa to pass up.
“Pionn, Aaron” I called to my cousins, they bounded to me immediately “Prepare the other cousins there will be a ball to our new queen, soon”
