foot tangled briefly in a treetop. She tugs it out and her broom lurches forward. I stifle a laugh as she lands ahead of me missing a shoe.
“Crap! Mud! My foot is soaked.” She points her hand toward the base of the trees we just cleared. “Return!”
“Geez,” she says when the shoe doesn’t return. She points up higher in the trees. “Return!”
she says louder.
I hear branches breaking, and then a clog comes flying toward us, just missing my head before hitting the ground behind us.
“You’re wearing clogs on a broomstick?” I ask incredulously. I pick it up, careful to avoid the mud covering it, and hand it to her.
“Sorry, I wasn’t exactly thinking straight at one o’clock in the morning. My mother was at me to get going so I just grabbed these.”
She slips it on her foot and we walk over to some benches surrounding a stone fire-pit, a short distance from a lean-to. Empty beer bottles litter the ground, and I’m guessing the last people here were partying rather than camping.
“We’re the first ones,” I say, scanning the sky for anyone else.
“I hope they get here soon—it feels like winter already,” Dani says. “What do you think it’ll be tonight, vamp or wolf? I hope it’s not a demon. What with that ring Connor gave you and that stupid vest you reminded me of, I don’t feel like dealing with them tonight.”
“How about a ghost? We haven’t done one of those in ages.
Dani looks around the campsite and shakes her head. “I doubt there’s any ghosts here, but we don’t usually have to hunt them because they don’t typically kill people. We just go after them when …”
“Dani.”
“I’m doing it again, aren’t I?”
I nod. “Yeah. I know why we don’t usually go after ghosts.”
“Well, I thought we’d have a hunt tonight. Look.” Dani pulls her necklace out and holds up the star, its center swirling with light. “It started just before I got to the coven house for Sascha’s initiation. But then we went home, and my mom came home, so I thought I could actually get a decent night’s sleep before my quiz tomorrow.” Dani rubs her hands together, and then pulls them under her cape. “I’m beginning to think our birthdays are bringing us bad luck,” Dani adds.
“Maybe it’s your chem quizzes. But my necklace didn’t do anything tonight—maybe it needs a recharge. Did you notice Margo hasn’t been wearing hers? I guess we are oh-for-three on her birthday presents.”
“Yeah,” Dani says. “I can’t believe she couldn’t at least pretend to like the lavender stuff. I mean, it’s totally rude to tell people the stuff they gave you smells like crappy, old-lady perfume.”
“Ha!” I say. “Maybe she figured out we only got it for her because she’s such a bitch, and lavender is supposed to calm you down.”
“Maybe she likes being a bitch.”
“Look, here comes someone,” I say, pointing up. As the figure comes closer, I see it’s Z.
Suddenly Margo comes streaking past her and lands on her feet running. “I win!”
Zahara lands and walks toward us. “I wasn’t racing you, Margo,” she says, sounding pissed.
I can hear her stud clicking against her teeth in a steady rhythm.
Margo smiles. “I still win.” She blows out a thin line of breath that freezes and then breaks up over her head. “No birthday girl yet?”
“I’m here,” Sascha says behind us and we all jump.
“God,” Dani says. “Have you been here the whole time?”
Sascha walks out into the clearing, taking a long swig from the flask. “Wolf tonight,” she says. “Gotta be quick about it,” she says in a singsong voice. “She’s supposed to meet here for a payoff.” She takes another long drink. “Oops,” she says, giggling. “I don’t think I was supposed to tell you uninitiated people that!” She throws an arm around Margo and hiccups. “But you can know!”
Margo pushes her away and Sascha falls to the ground.
“Hey!” she giggles. “That
“Crap! Mud! My foot is soaked.” She points her hand toward the base of the trees we just cleared. “Return!”
“Geez,” she says when the shoe doesn’t return. She points up higher in the trees. “Return!”
she says louder.
I hear branches breaking, and then a clog comes flying toward us, just missing my head before hitting the ground behind us.
“You’re wearing clogs on a broomstick?” I ask incredulously. I pick it up, careful to avoid the mud covering it, and hand it to her.
“Sorry, I wasn’t exactly thinking straight at one o’clock in the morning. My mother was at me to get going so I just grabbed these.”
She slips it on her foot and we walk over to some benches surrounding a stone fire-pit, a short distance from a lean-to. Empty beer bottles litter the ground, and I’m guessing the last people here were partying rather than camping.
“We’re the first ones,” I say, scanning the sky for anyone else.
“I hope they get here soon—it feels like winter already,” Dani says. “What do you think it’ll be tonight, vamp or wolf? I hope it’s not a demon. What with that ring Connor gave you and that stupid vest you reminded me of, I don’t feel like dealing with them tonight.”
“How about a ghost? We haven’t done one of those in ages.
Dani looks around the campsite and shakes her head. “I doubt there’s any ghosts here, but we don’t usually have to hunt them because they don’t typically kill people. We just go after them when …”
“Dani.”
“I’m doing it again, aren’t I?”
I nod. “Yeah. I know why we don’t usually go after ghosts.”
“Well, I thought we’d have a hunt tonight. Look.” Dani pulls her necklace out and holds up the star, its center swirling with light. “It started just before I got to the coven house for Sascha’s initiation. But then we went home, and my mom came home, so I thought I could actually get a decent night’s sleep before my quiz tomorrow.” Dani rubs her hands together, and then pulls them under her cape. “I’m beginning to think our birthdays are bringing us bad luck,” Dani adds.
“Maybe it’s your chem quizzes. But my necklace didn’t do anything tonight—maybe it needs a recharge. Did you notice Margo hasn’t been wearing hers? I guess we are oh-for-three on her birthday presents.”
“Yeah,” Dani says. “I can’t believe she couldn’t at least pretend to like the lavender stuff. I mean, it’s totally rude to tell people the stuff they gave you smells like crappy, old-lady perfume.”
“Ha!” I say. “Maybe she figured out we only got it for her because she’s such a bitch, and lavender is supposed to calm you down.”
“Maybe she likes being a bitch.”
“Look, here comes someone,” I say, pointing up. As the figure comes closer, I see it’s Z.
Suddenly Margo comes streaking past her and lands on her feet running. “I win!”
Zahara lands and walks toward us. “I wasn’t racing you, Margo,” she says, sounding pissed.
I can hear her stud clicking against her teeth in a steady rhythm.
Margo smiles. “I still win.” She blows out a thin line of breath that freezes and then breaks up over her head. “No birthday girl yet?”
“I’m here,” Sascha says behind us and we all jump.
“God,” Dani says. “Have you been here the whole time?”
Sascha walks out into the clearing, taking a long swig from the flask. “Wolf tonight,” she says. “Gotta be quick about it,” she says in a singsong voice. “She’s supposed to meet here for a payoff.” She takes another long drink. “Oops,” she says, giggling. “I don’t think I was supposed to tell you uninitiated people that!” She throws an arm around Margo and hiccups. “But you can know!”
Margo pushes her away and Sascha falls to the ground.
“Hey!” she giggles. “That
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