Witched! Read online

  Dedication

  For Evelyn Ida. Kick butt. — R.M.

  For my Mum and Dad,

  who encouraged me to draw. — S.O.

  Contents

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Epilogue

  About the Author and Illustrator

  Back Ads

  Copyright

  Chapter One

  A POP! of magic echoed in the woods. The sound bounced from tree to tree as a girl with one eye and two plump, hairy fairies landed ungracefully on the ground.

  Cora looked around. The sun was setting so the trees were dark but she recognised the tall, gnarled trunks and twisted branches — The Oak Wood. Cora peered down at the elderly woman in her arms.

  ‘Dot?’ she tried.

  The woman stirred but her eyes remained closed.

  ‘This way,’ said Tick. The fairies threw off their wigs and flew ahead, leading the way along a stream and towards a squat, round house.

  Cora followed, Scratch the cat at her heels. The last time they had been in The Oak Wood, Cora had needed help with her magic. She had discovered not long ago that she was a syphon, a magical being who could absorb magic from others. When Cora had struggled to control her new magic, Belle the hobgoblin had shown her how. Cora hoped Belle would be able to help her once more.

  Using the strength magic that she had absorbed from a large creature called a Jinx, Cora carried her adoptive guardian along the stream and up the hill. Pain pulsed through Cora’s shoulder and down her right arm from where she had been thrown to the ground in her fight with Kaede. She ignored the sharp ache.

  Tick’s brother, Tock, fluttered next to Cora, holding onto Dot’s feet. Worry lines creased the fairy’s face as he glanced down at Dot.

  When they reached the house at the top of the stream, Tick urgently rapped his small, hairy knuckles on the orange door.

  They waited for the short woman with green skin and dark hair to appear from behind the door. Seconds passed, and there was no answer.

  Tick knocked again. ‘Belle!’ he called out, knocking some more.

  Cora looked down at Dot. She hoped the hobgoblin would be able to help Dot. Cora felt her fingers clench at the memory of what had happened to her. Of who had hurt Dot.

  They had finally found the hidden city of Tynth, the place where her syphon family had lived, where she once lived. It was the sanctuary and home for all syphons. But waiting for her there wasn’t the family she had been expecting. A syphon named Kaede had been searching for her. He had not only destroyed the hidden city but also all of the syphons who had lived in it. All of them except for her, her parents, and . . .

  ‘Belle!’ yelled Tock at the door. He let go of Dot’s feet and banged his two fists on the orange wood. ‘We need your help!’

  ‘What if she isn’t home?’ asked Tick.

  Cora pushed her chaotic whirl of thoughts aside and focused on the injured woman in her arms. Dot had looked after Cora for the past five years. She was her guardian. Her friend. Dot was . . . everything to Cora.

  The silence that followed Tick’s and Tock’s knocking was heavy and long. It would have been a scatter of seconds but to Cora, it felt like many drawn-out minutes. Many minutes that Dot might not have.

  ‘She has to be home,’ said Tock. ‘Belle!’

  Cora couldn’t wait for Belle to answer. Dot in her arms, Cora held onto the witch’s magic she’d syphoned days ago and clicked her fingers.

  Instantly, Cora appeared on the other side of the orange door still holding onto Dot. The hobgoblin’s home was dimly lit with a few candles. Green vines from potted plants hung down from the ceiling, and in the centre of the room stood a comfortable chair in front of a fireplace.

  ‘Belle!’ Cora cried out. Before she could move to search the house for the hobgoblin, there were two POPs! of magic either side of her. The fairy brothers appeared.

  ‘Cora,’ hissed Tock, Scratch in his hands.

  ‘You can’t just appear in a hobgoblin’s home,’ whispered Tick.

  ‘Why not?’ replied Cora.

  ‘There are tr—’ but Tock was cut short as suddenly the fairy’s wings stopped working. So did Tick’s. Both fairies fell to the earthen floor with a thump.

  Cora turned to find that suddenly she couldn’t lift her brown boots from the ground.

  ‘What’s happening?’ asked Cora,

  Looking down, the earthen floor began to swirl beneath her. Like a brown whirlpool, it spun around and around. And then the dirt floor tugged at her, pulling her downwards. She was sinking into the dirt.

  Next to her, Tick and Tock were sinking too. They tried to fly out of the swirling dirt but it only pulled them down further, like quicksand. Scratch meowed in fright and jumped out of Tock’s hands and onto Cora’s shoulder.

  ‘Hobgoblins sometimes . . . magic traps for intruders,’ said Tock, straining against the muck that pulled him downwards.

  ‘And by sometimes . . . he means always,’ said Tick, trying to find some ground to hold onto that wasn’t moving.

  ‘Why didn’t you warn me?’ asked Cora, lifting Dot up away from the sinkhole they found themselves in.

  ‘We did!’ said the fairies together.

  Of course Belle’s house is protected by magic, she thought. Cora could have kicked herself if her boots hadn’t been stuck in a hungry floor.

  With the witch’s magic, Cora clicked her fingers. Nothing happened. She continued to sink further into the dirt floor.

  ‘Belle!’ Tick and Tock yelled.

  Suddenly, Cora was up to her knees in the hobgoblin’s magic trap. Tick and Tock, who were much smaller than her, were already up to their shoulders in swirling dirt.

  ‘Hold onto me,’ said Cora.

  The fairies reached out to her, grabbing onto her coat to keep themselves up. Gritting her teeth, Cora lifted Dot further upwards, away from the sucking, swirling brown floor. She could feel the Jinx strength magic beginning to wear off. Dot was becoming heavy in her arms. What if she couldn’t hold her any longer? Then what would happen? Where would the swirling dirt take them? She had tried to help Dot, but somehow she had just made everything worse. And what if Belle wasn’t home? What then? What would happen to Dot?

  ‘Belle!’ Cora cried out. She felt her magic take hold of her. The walls of the house shook, the potted plants swung on their ropes, the furniture rattled, pots and pans fell to the ground, and the doors around them flew open and banged closed.

  Then in front of them, a door creaked opened. Belle the hobgoblin walked into the room. Her hair was loose from its plaits and she wore a yellow dressing gown.

  ‘What are—’

  The hobgoblin stopped when her eyes fell on Cora, with Dot still in Cora’s arms, and th
en they squinted in annoyance when she saw the fairies.

  ‘Hi Belle,’ said Tick.

  ‘Love what you’ve done with the place,’ said Tock.

  ‘Please, Belle,’ Cora said. ‘We need your help.’

  Belle’s stern stare softened as her gaze found Dot. Nodding, the hobgoblin waved her hand, and the earthen floor of the house stopped sucking and swirling and returned to normal.

  Cora’s legs wobbled and shook on the hard floor. The fairies bent over, exhausted from fighting the sinking pull of the dirt. Scratch leapt from Cora’s shoulder to the ground.

  Belle walked over to Cora and looked at Dot with sharp, assessing eyes. She placed one hand on the old woman’s forehead and another on her chest.

  ‘Can you help her?’ Cora asked through short breaths. ‘Please. She is . . . she is the most important thing I have.’

  Belle peered up at Cora silently. Then the hobgoblin turned and motioned for the three of them to follow her. ‘This way,’ she said. ‘We don’t have much time.’

  Chapter Two

  Belle led Cora, Tick and Tock into a room at the back of her house. The room was lit, not with light from candles, but with light from plants, vines and flowers which hung from every corner of the room. The entire room was a glowing indoor garden. The glowing plants glittered different colours in the dark like colourful stars in the night sky. Some plants moved on their own, twirling their petals and stretching their stems towards them. Others shrunk and slithered away from Cora as she stepped past.

  Scratch sniffed a tiny red vine that snaked along the floor and then jumped back, hissing, when the tiny red vine sniffed back.

  Tock stopped next to a plant that had a long spike in the centre of its yellow flower.

  ‘That one is poisonous to fairies,’ said Belle, not needing to turn around to know which plant Tock had stopped to look at.

  Cora watched the fairy quickly pull his hand away from the pointed flower.

  Exiting the garden room, they entered a room with rows of shelves jutting out from its walls. The hobgoblin waved her hand and this time the candles in the room lit up, bathing the room in an amber light.

  Cora could see that the shelves on the walls were lined with glasses, bowls, canisters, boxes and jars. Each of them had something stored inside. She could see oozing liquid, and bubbling juices popping inside them.

  In one corner of the room sat a small bed with a neatly woven tapestry draped across it. Belle motioned Cora towards it.

  Cora stepped over and placed Dot down carefully on the soft bedding. Looking at her guardian, Cora paused. Dot was incredibly pale. Cora could see the dampness on the old woman’s forehead and hear her low breathing as it rattled in her chest.

  Scratch sprang up onto the bed and curled himself beside Dot.

  ‘Can you help her?’ Cora asked the hobgoblin.

  Belle turned and walked over to the wall of shelves. She grabbed a wooden bowl, two jars filled with red and yellow powder, and one filled with small seeds. Then she went back into the glowing garden room.

  Cora sat on the ground next to the bed. She reached over to hold Dot’s hand in hers. Kaede’s actions hung in Cora’s mind like a dark fog; the lightning bolt being pulled from the sky, Dot falling. She let the memories sit there, swirling like a dark storm as she focused on Dot.

  Tick and Tock sat at the end of the bed.

  ‘Belle knows what she is doing,’ said Tock.

  ‘Your Dot is in good hobgoblin hands,’ said Tick.

  Cora hoped so. Though a big part of her felt that this was all her fault. She should have protected Dot better. She shouldn’t have asked her to go with them to Tynth. She should have kept her away. Kept her safe. And maybe this might not have happened.

  Belle came back into the room and put the bowl and jars down on the ground with a clink.

  ‘What happened to her?’ Belle asked as she assessed Dot.

  ‘Lightning bolt,’ said Tick.

  ‘From a syphon,’ added Tock.

  Belle stopped and looked at Cora.

  ‘Not me,’ Cora said.

  ‘Another syphon?’ Belle replied. She looked at the fairies unbelieving. ‘Are you sure?’

  Tick and Tock nodded their heads.

  ‘A bad one,’ said Tick.

  Belle picked up the jars and poured some of the red and yellow powders into the wooden bowl. She mixed the powders together with her fingers and Cora watched as the powders formed a thick, orange paste. She then scattered a handful of the tiny seeds into the bowl and the paste began to bubble. The hobgoblin blew gently on the orange substance inside the bowl. The scent that wafted from the bowl reminded Cora of when Dot had accidentally burnt something on the stove. Then with a finger, Belle scooped some of the paste out and used it to draw a circle on Dot’s forehead.

  The hobgoblin muttered some words that Cora couldn’t make out, and the orange circle on Dot’s forehead started to glow and shimmer.

  ‘What is that?’ Cora asked.

  ‘It will help with the pain,’ said Belle.

  Cora nodded.

  Belle walked into the garden room again and came back with a little, glowing, blue flower still attached to its stem. The flower had dozens of black dots on its bright blue petals.

  Tick’s eyes went wide at the sight of it.

  ‘That’s a—’

  ‘Cormoraith,’ said Belle. ‘Yes.’

  ‘They’re rare,’ said Tick.

  ‘And illegal,’ said Tock.

  ‘And one of the few things that’s going to help your friend,’ said Belle.

  Cora watched as Belle carefully pulled one glowing, spotted petal from the flower. She dropped it into the bowl with the orange paste. Instantly, the petal dissolved and a tendril of black smoke stretched up and out of the bowl. A fizzing sound filled the room. Holding one of her hands in the air, Belle murmured a string of words and the paste and petal concoction began to swirl around. It swirled and swirled inside the bowl until the orange paste became a thick, blue liquid.

  Belle reached over to Dot, and gently tilting her head, she pressed the bowl to the old woman’s lips.

  Eyes closed, Dot stirred, drinking a few sips of the liquid before coughing and stopping. Belle placed Dot’s head back down on the pillow.

  ‘There,’ said Belle.

  ‘Now what?’ Cora asked, her eyes on Dot.

  ‘For now,’ said Belle, ‘we must let her rest.’

  Cora wasn’t sure if she imagined it, but Dot seemed to be doing better already. Her breathing at least had stopped rattling.

  ‘Which reminds, me,’ said Belle, turning to the fairies. ‘Did you check if you were being followed this time?’

  Tick and Tock turned to each other, alarm written across both of their faces, and then with a POP!, the two fairies disappeared.

  Chapter Three

  Cora’s stomach dropped at the thought. She hadn’t even thought about the possibility of Kaede following them to The Oak Wood. She had just been so focused on helping Dot. She hadn’t thought that Kaede could be hot on their trail, or perhaps even already waiting and watching nearby.

  Cora looked over at Dot. Her breaths continued to be slow but steady. And she didn’t look as pale anymore.

  ‘Come,’ said Belle.

  Cora stood up from the bed. Looking around the room, she spotted a small blanket folded neatly on a chair. She picked it up and placed it over Dot. She gave Scratch a small rub beneath his chin. The cat purred.

  ‘Keep her company, Scratch,’ she said.

  And then with one last look at Dot, Cora followed Belle back through the glowing garden.

  ‘Would you like some tea?’ Belle asked ahead of her.

  As they entered the kitchen, Belle stopped. Pots and pans were strewn on the floor. The hanging plants dangled upside down from their ropes. And the cupboard doors were all open. It looked like a whirlwind had whipped through the house.

  ‘Oh,’ said Cora, realising what she had done with her
magic while trying to free herself from the hobgoblin’s swirling floor. ‘Sorry.’

  Belle waved her hand, and the fallen pots and pans, cupboard doors and hanging pot plants all righted themselves.

  Cora sat at the long, wooden table in the middle of Belle’s kitchen. Tiredness seeped into her bones and muscles. So much had happened in the past few days. Not only had she been well on her way to becoming a Havoc — a dangerous magical being who has lost control of their magic — they had also been chased by syphon hunters and the council. The number of people who knew she was a syphon was growing by the day.

  Belle placed a chipped mug of boiled water in front of her. It smelt warm and sweet like hot, liquid honey. Cora reached over to pick up the mug and her shoulder screeched in pain. She couldn’t stop the grimace that showed on her face.

  Belle stopped and eyed Cora’s shoulder questioningly.

  ‘It’s nothing,’ Cora said.

  Belle held out her hand expectantly, and Cora gave the hobgoblin her arm.

  Belle turned Cora’s arm to the right.

  Cora gasped.

  Belle placed Cora’s arm down on the kitchen table and headed back into the glowing garden room. Soon she came back holding a bandage, and a glass jar filled with a green, bubbling liquid. She dipped the bandage into the glass jar until the bandage was entirely covered with the thick liquid.

  ‘Is this also the handiwork of the bad syphon?’ Belle asked.

  Cora nodded.

  Belle wrapped the bandage around Cora’s injured shoulder. The sticky bandage felt cold and warm at the same time.

  Cora remembered the last time she had seen the hobgoblin. The warlock Archibald Drake had discovered Cora was a syphon and then possessed Belle to try to get to Cora. The warlock was working with Kaede and had somehow been able to break Cora’s protection bracelet. But even after being attacked by the warlock, Belle was still helping them.

  ‘Belle, about what happened before,’ Cora began. ‘With Archibald Drake. I’m sorry. I didn’t know he was . . .’ she trailed off.

  Belle nodded appreciatively. With a tug, she tied the bandage together on Cora’s arm. ‘Try not to do any heavy lifting for a few days,’ she said.