taking
on a look of malicious glee.
“ Don ’ t shake your head at us lass. For all your prissy ways your
blood ’ s won the battle. You ’ re a witch through an ’ through girl and you ’ ve proved your powers now. Couldn ’ t hide ‘ em forever could you? Struck that
fella down you did. Whole of Pendle ’ s talking about it. More ‘ n likely you ’ ll hang for it but not if we gather
the power of three first. Won ’ t be no-one in the County who ’ ll go up against us when they hear
how powerful we are. ”
“ No. ” said I quietly.
The
fate I ’ d prayed against for all these years had finally caught me
up. Could God really be so cruel to let me fall to witchcraft when my whole
heart screamed out to Him to let me be good? Was this no more than I deserved?
A third generation witch and maybe evil did lurk in my heart; maybe there was
no escape.
“ Where ’ s your familiar girl? ” asked Mam. “ A daughter of mine is bound to have a
good familiar. ”
“ What ’ s a familiar? ” I asked.
The
veiled compliment made me blink a few times; the first compliment that Mam had
ever paid me and I didn ’ t even understand what it meant. I was still half in a daze
and conscious that I was being swept away by the conversation; not sure where I
was being swept to but knowing that I didn ’ t want to go there.
“ Your familiar girl ” said Gran. “ All got ‘ em we have. Your mother ’ s is Ball. He comes to us in the form
of a brown dog. Mine... ahhh well mine, child, is the most powerful familiar
you will ever meet. The spawn of Devil himself he is. He can be whatever he
wants to be. Most powerful demon that does the bidding of the most powerful
witch. Could ’ a been Chattox ’ s familiar but he chose me. Knew
power where he saw it he did. ”
“ Is he a dog too? ” I whispered, half terrified to find
out but needing to know if the dog I had seen could be a familiar.
“ Don ’ t you listen girl? He is whatever he wants to be. First
came to me as a boy nigh on twenty years ago. Beautiful he was, just beautiful. ”
As
Gran leant backwards in her rocking chair and heaved a wistful sign I finally
felt my knees give way as all the hope and strength left me. I sat on the floor
and tried to concentrate as Gran continued with her tale.
“ Was on my way home. Your mam was just a babe at breast. I ’ d left her with a neighbour. We still
had neighbours back then, ones who didn ’ t fear us. Ones who had no reason to
fear us; we were weak back then, without purpose. Not for long ”
I
started as Mam surprised me with a manic giggle. She was angled forward,
hanging onto every work of Gran ’ s story; a story she must have heard a hundred times over.
“ I ’ d just reached the stone pit at Goldshey when I saw him. He
looked about your age Lizzie but not the scrawny wretch you are. His skin shone
in the moonlight, white as bone and almost shimmering. His eyes were the colour
of bluebells and he had the face of an angel. He was dressed to the nines an ’ all. He wore a gorgeous coat; half
brown, half black. I could see back then. Perfect eyesight I had when I were
younger. ”
In
spite of myself I found that I was just as caught up by the story as Mam was. I ’ d always thought that my family were
the way that they were just because they didn ’ t do right by God. I ’ d never thought that there was a
story behind it; that my family had a history that might explain it all.
“ Where are you off to by moonlight fair lady ’ he said to me. His voice was like
Heaven itself. It sang to my very soul and made me want to weep. ‘ Off home to my baby ’ said I, ’ Where are you off to lad? ’ ‘ Nowhere and everywhere ’ said he ’ but now I see you I know I have
arrived. Follow me my child ’ .
Seemed
strange him calling me child. I was old enough to be his mam but I followed. I
don ’ t think I could have
on a look of malicious glee.
“ Don ’ t shake your head at us lass. For all your prissy ways your
blood ’ s won the battle. You ’ re a witch through an ’ through girl and you ’ ve proved your powers now. Couldn ’ t hide ‘ em forever could you? Struck that
fella down you did. Whole of Pendle ’ s talking about it. More ‘ n likely you ’ ll hang for it but not if we gather
the power of three first. Won ’ t be no-one in the County who ’ ll go up against us when they hear
how powerful we are. ”
“ No. ” said I quietly.
The
fate I ’ d prayed against for all these years had finally caught me
up. Could God really be so cruel to let me fall to witchcraft when my whole
heart screamed out to Him to let me be good? Was this no more than I deserved?
A third generation witch and maybe evil did lurk in my heart; maybe there was
no escape.
“ Where ’ s your familiar girl? ” asked Mam. “ A daughter of mine is bound to have a
good familiar. ”
“ What ’ s a familiar? ” I asked.
The
veiled compliment made me blink a few times; the first compliment that Mam had
ever paid me and I didn ’ t even understand what it meant. I was still half in a daze
and conscious that I was being swept away by the conversation; not sure where I
was being swept to but knowing that I didn ’ t want to go there.
“ Your familiar girl ” said Gran. “ All got ‘ em we have. Your mother ’ s is Ball. He comes to us in the form
of a brown dog. Mine... ahhh well mine, child, is the most powerful familiar
you will ever meet. The spawn of Devil himself he is. He can be whatever he
wants to be. Most powerful demon that does the bidding of the most powerful
witch. Could ’ a been Chattox ’ s familiar but he chose me. Knew
power where he saw it he did. ”
“ Is he a dog too? ” I whispered, half terrified to find
out but needing to know if the dog I had seen could be a familiar.
“ Don ’ t you listen girl? He is whatever he wants to be. First
came to me as a boy nigh on twenty years ago. Beautiful he was, just beautiful. ”
As
Gran leant backwards in her rocking chair and heaved a wistful sign I finally
felt my knees give way as all the hope and strength left me. I sat on the floor
and tried to concentrate as Gran continued with her tale.
“ Was on my way home. Your mam was just a babe at breast. I ’ d left her with a neighbour. We still
had neighbours back then, ones who didn ’ t fear us. Ones who had no reason to
fear us; we were weak back then, without purpose. Not for long ”
I
started as Mam surprised me with a manic giggle. She was angled forward,
hanging onto every work of Gran ’ s story; a story she must have heard a hundred times over.
“ I ’ d just reached the stone pit at Goldshey when I saw him. He
looked about your age Lizzie but not the scrawny wretch you are. His skin shone
in the moonlight, white as bone and almost shimmering. His eyes were the colour
of bluebells and he had the face of an angel. He was dressed to the nines an ’ all. He wore a gorgeous coat; half
brown, half black. I could see back then. Perfect eyesight I had when I were
younger. ”
In
spite of myself I found that I was just as caught up by the story as Mam was. I ’ d always thought that my family were
the way that they were just because they didn ’ t do right by God. I ’ d never thought that there was a
story behind it; that my family had a history that might explain it all.
“ Where are you off to by moonlight fair lady ’ he said to me. His voice was like
Heaven itself. It sang to my very soul and made me want to weep. ‘ Off home to my baby ’ said I, ’ Where are you off to lad? ’ ‘ Nowhere and everywhere ’ said he ’ but now I see you I know I have
arrived. Follow me my child ’ .
Seemed
strange him calling me child. I was old enough to be his mam but I followed. I
don ’ t think I could have
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