Chapter 14 : The Price of Magic

*Circe* Circe's mind swirled with pain and shame. Her heart hurt, and Ivy's words still cut too deep. She couldn't stop picturing Ivy's fierce stare when she left Circe with her final threat. Worry and fear raged on like wildfire inside of Circe threatening to tear her apart. She had found herself almost feeling relief when Henry had come to tell her they had to postpone any sort of wedding plans. She ran through the woods as fast as her legs would carry her. She tried to outrun the pain, the fear, and the never-ending questions that rambled on behind her. Circe constantly looked behind her only to find that no matter how quickly she moved, all she was dreading was still stuck like glue to her shadow. The tears fell harder and endlessly down Circe's already wet and burning face. She was surprised her body could continue to produce tears after how much she had already cried. Finally, Circe stopped as her lungs burned in her chest. She felt like her heart was trying to escape through her rib cage. It was pumping so hard. She bent over and placed her hands on her knees, doing her best to catch her breath. Circe had never been in this part of the woods before. When she felt like she could breathe again, she continued to walk forward and took note of all the different trees and the feeling of these woods. It was darker here, more mysterious, with twisted tree trunks and a canopy that darkened the sky. Circe replayed all the events of the day over again in her mind. She thought about meeting Samuel and the feeling that rushed through her at the sight of him. She thought about her conversation with him, as awkward and brief as it was. Circe couldn't stand the thought that it might've been their last. She thought about all Ivy had said about the crushing weight of her mistake. Circe wandered along in the woods trying to hold her footing against the emotional struggles. She knew Ivy was right; she had come to that conclusion before they'd even talked. Though the fear of Samuel's reaction still weighed heavy on her, she could hear Ivy's piercing words. With the truth and reversing the spell, there would be no chance at all with Samuel. Circe started walking with a new sense of purpose and started left toward the haunted mountain of the witch. She did all she could to build up her courage and determination. She would force the witch to reverse the spell, no matter what it took. She would do that for Samuel. Once Circe was free, and things were set right, she'd focus on things with Samuel. Circe walked quickly and steadily, practicing what she would say. She had no idea how Raveena would act when she arrived. The witch was unpredictable. She hoped that the witch wouldn't care and simply reverse the spell, but something in her gut told her that was the least likely option. She walked on until she came to the familiar place at the bottom of the mountain. Circe paused for a moment, doing her best to further silence her fears. "It's going to be okay," Circe whispered, trying to convince herself. "You're just going to go up there and tell her to reverse the spell. Why wouldn't she? What does she have to lose? You have to do this for Samuel. It's going to be okay. It's going to be okay." Circe kept whispering and muttering to herself until she was caught off guard by a sharp and strange wind blowing down the mountain. It smelled like lilacs and something too sickly sweet, like a poison covered in sugar. Circe shivered before tightening up her resolve and pushing herself up the mountain. She kept envisioning Samuel's face and focused on putting one foot in front of the other, following the twists and turns of the eerie trail. She found herself becoming more familiar with the trees and the otherworldly feelings of the woods in this place. In the distance, Circe could hear the familiar spooky noise of the owls like a hollow chorus of fear ringing into the night. Circe found herself wishing so badly that Samuel was with her, holding her hand and helping her through this uncomfortable situation. The thought brought fresh tears to her eyes, and she used all her willpower to keep them from falling. As much as she could help it, she wouldn't show the witch her pain and fear. Finally, Circe turned the last corner and saw the house up ahead. It looked the same as it did before–simple on the outside, and holding unknown horrors on the inside. She sucked in one last big breath and forced herself to move forward. When she reached the door, it swung open before she could raise her hand to knock. For a moment, she felt frozen in the shock of it. "Aw! Little wolfy, back so soon? I thought you'd be living the dream now that your deepest desire had become your reality," the witch called from somewhere in the back of the house. Circe shivered and hesitantly stepped into the house. "Yes, come in, come in, deary. Come have a seat." A shrill laughter echoed through the house, and Circe almost lost control of the tears that threatened to fall. Finally, out of the smoke and fog of the back, Raveena appeared, looking just as frightening and striking as she had the first time. This time, however, she carried what looked like a large ferret around her shoulders. It made a weird nipping noise through its mouth, and its face fidgeted around almost like a rat. Raveena frowned, and Circe realized she had been making a disapproving face. She did her best to straighten her facial features. It was only as she moved closer that Circe realized Raveena was also carrying two cups with a swimming greenish liquid that was still steaming. Raveena sat down across from Circe with a curious and mischievous smirk. She slid one of the cups over to Circe and nodded for her to drink it. "What is it?" Circe blurted out without thinking. Her fear was getting the best of her. Raveena laughed wildly, throwing her head back. The ferret seemed a bit startled but adjusted quickly. "It's just tea, my dear. You remember our deal, yes?" Raveena asked. Circe frowned and nodded. "So there's no sense in giving you, say, poison… yet." Raveena laughed viciously again. "Yeah, about our deal…" Circe started. Raveena snapped to attention, and her laughter faded. Her eyes turned dark and narrowed in on Circe. "I want you to reverse the spell." "Oh? Unhappy so quickly? Usually, that comes years into marriage," Raveena answered with a chuckle. "No, it's–it's not that. I didn't think about all the other problems this would cause. The packs are close to war now. And today I found– " Circe's words fell short. She felt like her throat had run dry, causing her voice to die. She couldn't bring herself to tell Raveena about Samuel. It was as if she felt simply mentioning his name would open the door for Raveena to hurt him. Raveena didn't push, though. Her smirk grew wider, and she leaned back in her chair, reaching up to pet her ferret. "You met your true mate," Raveena stated as if she could read Circe's mind. Circe swallowed hard and did her best to remain still. Raveena clicked her tongue at Circe in a disapproving manner. "They always warn you to be careful what you wish for. I told you this magic comes at a price; it can also not be undone. It is what it is now." Raveena swallowed her tea in one gulp, despite it still looking too hot to touch. She got up quickly and started heading back toward the dark shadows from which she had emerged. "Wait!" Circe cried out, standing up quickly. "That can't be it! Please, reverse the spell. I'll do anything you want. Just set this the way it was–the way it was always meant to be." Circe felt as if her heart might be ripping into pieces again thinking that Raveena wouldn't help her. Raveena paused and kept her back to Circe. "Please, please help me again. I'll give you whatever you want," Circe pleaded, crying. She heard Raveena chuckle a bit under her breath before she turned around. "Such a sad, pitiful wolf. Consequences are often more than we want to deal with. However, you've already promised me the only thing I want. You have no other bargaining chips, nothing else to offer." "Please, there has to be something. I don't understand why you even wantwhat you asked for, but you can still have it, along with anything else, just please reverse the spell." Circe didn't want to give her anything, and she was hoping to delay her initial demand, but at the moment, the girl was willing to give her anything the witch wanted to get her to reverse the curse. Raveena paused and gently tapped her fingers against her chin as if considering Circe's proposal. Circe hoped and prayed so hard that Raveena would take the deal. There was nothing else Raveena could ask for that would hurt more than knowing she could never have Samuel. Raveena slowly moved back toward Circe with a different sort of glimmer in her eye. Circe felt her stomach drop when Raveena was close enough that Circe could smell the interesting concoction of whatever potion she was making in the back. Raveena held up a hand and grabbed tightly onto Circe's chin. She moved her head around as if she was examining her for ticks. It took all Circe's willpower not to pull herself from Raveena's grasp. "You'd be willing to offer me anything? Didn't we just learn this lesson? One mustn't be so vague when magic is involved. Often, that's how one ends up finding the price is too… steep," Raveena whispered. "Please, please reverse the spell," Circe begged again. Finally, Raveena let go of Circe's chin and gave her a slight push toward the door. "I told you, deary. What's done is done, and I will not waste my time making it undone. I warn you, do not come back here unless it's with my payment in your arms," Raveena snarled. The ferret turned around on Raveena to keep an eye on Circe until they both disappeared into the shadows. A new wave of panic and nausea rushed over Circe as she ran out of the house and back down the hill. What had she done? What was she possibly going to do now? Raveena was her only hope to fix things and set things right. This was her only hope to be with Samuel. Circe felt as if her whole body was crumbling to pieces, she was barely managing to keep her legs moving as she ran toward her lands and Henry's home. Part of her knew now she'd have no choice but to admit what she had done, though she wasn't sure what good it would do. She had doomed herself, her entire pack, and the Forest Pack as well, to nothing but destruction and misery for the foreseeable future. And she'd still have to give Raveena the payment she'd asked for–her first born child.