The Other Witch Arrives
The morning Jules came to the holler for the first time, the mist hadn’t even burned off the ridge yet. Ma stood near the mouth of the path, hands tucked into her apron, giddy like she’d been waiting a long time for this moment.
Folks around the holler would later remember her as the sharp-tongued sister who stirred up trouble over Christmas, but that visit came much later. This here, this was the day the Other Witch arrived in the holler for the very first time.
*******
Down the slope came the sound of boots on gravel and the faint clink of glass jars knocking together. Then a figure emerged from the trees. Small in stature but moving like the ground itself made way for her. Long dark hair spilled down her back, and her satchel looked heavy enough to carry the cure for everything and the cause of a few new problems.
Ma ran to meet her and threw her arms around her, then guided her the rest of the way up the path towards Pa.
Ma’s voice was warm, almost proud. “Pa, this is my little sister, Jules.”
Pa leaned against the tree at the edge of the path, eyes narrowing in appraisal before his mouth curved into that slow, familiar grin that spelled trouble. “Well, well… if it ain’t the Other Witch. Holler’s been far too peaceful lately, I guess. We’re due for some chaos.”
Jules tilted her head, unimpressed but faintly amused. “That what we’re goin’ with today? Cuz I definitely got some chaos.”
“Just gettin’ started,” Pa said, gesturing her in the direction of the cabin,. “Think you can be useful in war, spell slinger? We got plenty of targets need dealin’ with.”
Jules gave him a slow smile. “Depends…you want clean hits or you want ‘em cursed so their next raid turns into a disaster?”
Pa chuckled. “Long as the stars go up on our side, I don’t care if you hex their whole clan into the dirt.”
From the brush by the path, the goblin cousins were already whispering.
“She’s gonna fit right in.” whispered Alexis.
“She’s gonna scare off half the enemy before they even match us,” Ellie Mae said.
“Pa’ll like that,” Nickie replied, snickering.
“Boy, will he ever!” exclaimed Looty.
War Barn – Afternoon
Pa had her leaning over the big map table, bases sketched out in charcoal, with markers showing where the enemy’s defenses were strongest. “That one there’s their top hitter,” he said, tapping a base. “Been cleanin’ up every match.”
Jules studied the layout, then pointed to an outer mortar ring. “If you send in your heavy stuff here, it’ll pull their whole defense off balance. And if I work a little of my magic…he might just forget which way’s up. My spells ain’t the same ones y’all got here. He won’t know what happened.”
“Hell yeah!” Pa said, clearly pleased.
Ma raised an eyebrow from across the table. “Keep it clean, Jules.”
Jules smirked. “Oh, I’ll keep it clean. Just unexpected.”
Pa was clearly amused and already a little fascinated. “Alright then, Shadow Sister. Let’s see what ya got.”
By the time they wrapped up planning, Pa had already tried “Witch Two”, “Shadow Sister”, “Hexy”, and “Not My Witch” just to see how many faces she’d make in a single afternoon.
Jules finally leaned back in her chair, folding her arms. “You keep collectin’ names for me like that, I’m gonna hex your tongue to stick to the roof of your mouth.”
Pa’s grin spread slow, like he’d just been handed a winning hand. “Your sister would be very unhappy if that happened.”
Jules didn’t miss a beat. “Mmm… I’d unhex it temporarily…” she glanced at Ma with mock innocence, “if she asked me to.”
Pa tipped his head toward Ma, eyes twinkling. “Guess I’ll have to stay on your good side then, Witchy.”
Jules smirked. “I’m sure you can manage to do that. If that tongue stays unhexed.”
Ma groaned, tossing her quill onto the table. “Lord help me, y’all are gonna burn this holler down before supper.”
Pa grinned, clearly in no hurry to stop fanning the flames. “Guess we better make it worth it.”
Three Days Later – Ma’s Kitchen
The smell of rosemary and smoke hung in the air, drifting through the open windows. Sunlight poured across the table where Ma and Jules sat, heads bent together over a spread of jars, a small mound of dirt, bundles of dried herbs, a small open notebook with strange symbols, and a small black bowl that shimmered faintly in the light.
It wasn’t just herbs and jars, though. Off to one side sat a lump of clay twisted into the rough shape of a goblin, its features sharp and exaggerated, thread tied around it. Some strange, tarry looking substance clung to it in streaks, like it had been dragged through the bottom of a chimney. Next to it looked to be nail clippings and….hair?
They spoke in low tones, Ma’s voice steady and sure, Jules’ quick and clipped, like she was stitching something unseen between them. Every so often, one would drop a pinch of something into the bowl, and the air would seem to shift, warmer, heavier, electric.
Pa stepped in through the back door, boots thudding once on the worn floorboards before he stopped short.
Both witches turned their heads in perfect unison.
Jules’ expression was unreadable, but Ma just smiled faintly. “Morning, Pa. You started work early this morning. Coffee is made.”
Pa’s eyes slid from the herbs to the flicker in the bowl, to the open notebook, to the clay goblin tied with twine, looking slightly uneasy. “Should I be in here? Or should I back out before somethin’… sticks to me?”
Jules leaned back in her chair, slow smile forming. “Depends. You planning on callin’ me another one of your little nicknames today?”
He smirked. “Wouldn’t dream of it, Sister Witch.”
She tipped her head toward the clay goblin. “Then you’re probably safe.”
Pa shifted his weight, still not entirely sure if he should sit down or make himself scarce. “Guess I’ll… just sneak past and get my coffee.”
Ma hid her grin in her tea. “Don’t trip over the salt circle on your way out.”
Pa froze mid-step, eyes quickly scanning the floor, and realized too late Jules was watching him with outright amusement. “Not funny.” He murmured.
“Funny to me,” Jules said, returning to the bowl. “Go on, now. Shadow Sister’s busy.”
Pa left the kitchen muttering, equal parts suspicious and intrigued.
Midday – Cabin Porch
Pa had been sorting through a stack of war scrolls when he spotted movement down by the edge of the woods. Jules was crouched near an old tree stump, her satchel open beside her, long skirt and dark hair billowing softly around her from the breeze. She pulled something from it, a lump of clay, and began shaping it with quick, deliberate motions.
From this distance, Pa couldn’t see the details, but the shape was familiar. Too familiar. That looked an awful lot like…..
She stuck a small pin in its side, and then brushed something dark and powdery across its face. The wind carried the faint smell of burnt sage…or maybe that was something else entirely.
Pa leaned back in his chair, one eyebrow slowly rising. “No way. She wouldn’t.” he thought.
Jules glanced up suddenly, her gaze flicking toward the porch. For a heartbeat they just stared at each other. Then she smiled, not entirely sweetly, but the kind of smile that made a man check his boots for hex marks.
She held up the clay figure between two fingers, tilting it in a slow, mocking wave before tucking it back into her satchel.
Pa cleared his throat and looked back down at the war scroll in his lap like nothing had happened. Hell yeah…and hell no, he thought.
From somewhere behind him, Ma’s voice floated out the cabin door. “Pa? You look like you just saw a ghost.”
“Not a ghost,” he muttered. “Might be worse.”
Afternoon – Porch Scene: “Women’s Business”
The cicadas were buzzing low and steady when Pa stepped out onto the porch, shine jar in hand, expecting the usual quiet evening.
Instead, Ma and Jules were already settled into the rocking chairs, half empty jars of cider between them, heads close and voices pitched in that women’s business tone, low enough to keep secrets, but not so low that a man with good ears couldn’t catch the drift.
“…I’m just sayin’,” Jules was grinning, “if the tongue works, you overlook the rest.”
Ma nearly snorted cider through her nose. “Jules!”
“What?!” Jules said innocently. “It’s practical advice. Just turn out the light and get to work, right? Tongue works? Green flag! Oh, and….” She took a sip of cider. “….and grab my hair while you’re at it, y’ know?”
Pa froze in the doorway, one boot still on the threshold. “Do… I wanna know what y’all are talkin’ about?”
Both witches turned their heads in perfect sync, identical slow smiles spreading.
“No,” Ma said.
“Yes,” Jules said at the same time.
Pa squinted. “See, that right there is why a man thinks twice before sittin’ down.”
Jules leaned back, rocking slow. “Come on, Pa. Pull up a chair. Maybe you’ll hear somethin’ useful.”
He eyed them both warily, then stepped onto the porch, lowering himself into the chair opposite. “Long as it ain’t about me.”
Ma took a slow sip, eyes glinting over the rim. “We didn’t say it was.”
Jules tilted her head. “Yet.”
Pa shifted in his chair, debating whether to retreat, but Jules was already leaning toward Ma with a conspiratorial whisper that carried just enough for him to hear: “…bet he’s wonderin’ if we’re talkin’ about him right now.”
Ma smirked and whispered back. “Oh, he knows we are.”
Jules’ grin turned sharper. “We could tell him what really gets us goin’….but then he’d never be able to look either of us in the eye again.”
Ma snickered. “Just you. He looks me in the eye just fine.”
Jules threw her head back and laughed. “YESSSS, sister!”
Pa raised his brows, his curiosity warring with self preservation. “Now I’m thinkin’ I should go back inside.”
Ma gave him a wicked little smile. “Too late.”
Jules tipped her chin toward his jar. “Sip up, Pa. Loosens the tongue. I hear that’s your favorite past time.”
Ma’s mouth dropped open and she gave her sister a playful shove. “Jules!!”
Jules shrugged. “Well..?”
Pa’s gaze flicked, almost involuntarily, toward Jules’ satchel resting on the porch rail. “That clay goblin in there?”
She caught it instantly. “Maybe.”
“…Is it me?”
Jules didn’t answer, just rocked back in her chair and sipped her cider, the silence far louder than words.
Ma gave an exaggerated sigh. “Don’t rile him up before bedtime. Please.”
“Oh, I’m not rilin’ him up,” Jules said sweetly. “I’m just remindin’ him to be good to my sister.”
Pa leaned back, grin tugging at his mouth despite himself. “You two are trouble, you know that?”
Jules shot back without missing a beat, “Not if your tongue stays unhexed.”
Ma laughed so hard she nearly spilled her cider. When she finally caught her breath, she looked at Pa with a wicked little glint. “And Pa? What happens on the porch…”
“…stays on the porch,” Jules finished for her.
Pa eyed them both over his jar of shine, suspicion written all over his face. “That’s exactly what worries me.”
Evening – Firepit, Night Before Jules Leaves
The firepit crackled low, embers glowing against the cool night air. Jules leaned back in her chair, bare feet crossed at the ankles, sipping from a jar of something that wasn’t shine but burned just the same. Ma sat across from her, a comfortable smile in place, while Pa nursed his own jar and stared into the flames like he was turning something over in his head.
After a while, Pa glanced sideways at Jules. “So… you takin’ that little clay goblin with you when you go?”
Her eyes sparkled. “You really worried about that lump of clay, ain’t ya?”
He shrugged. “Just wonderin’ if you can… do nice things to it.”
Jules’ grin widened, wicked and knowing. “I could. But that one’s more of a reminder.”
“Of what?”
She turned serious, gaze steady on him. “To be good to my sister.”
Pa set his jar down. “That’s not somethin’ I need remindin’ of..”
Ma smiled.
They sat with that for a moment before Ma’s eyes slid to Jules. “You know… you could stay. Make the holler your home. I’d love to have you here every day.”
Jules raised an eyebrow, the faintest grin tugging at her mouth. “Temptin’.”
Pa chuckled low, leaning back in his chair. “Lordy, that’s all I need. Two of ya. A handful, you’d be. Would be chaos every day.”
But Ma caught the flicker in his expression, that spark of intrigue he wasn’t about to admit to.
Jules tilted her head toward him. “Scared?”
Pa chuckled. “No.” Then, “well. Maybe a little bit. But if it makes Ma happy, I support it one hundred percent.”
For a beat, the firelight danced between them.
Then Jules leaned forward, voice dripping mischief. “Keep talkin’ like that, I might just make you a nice little clay goblin after all.”
Pa grinned, half-challenge, half-acceptance. “Long as it stays nice.”
Morning – Jules’ Departure
Mist clung low over the holler as Jules slung her satchel over one shoulder. Ma walked with her toward the edge of the path, arms linked, talking in that low, fond way that only sisters could.
Pa followed several steps behind, coffee mug in hand, wearing the kind of smirk that could go either way, satisfaction or regret.
“You sure you got everything?” Ma asked, adjusting the strap on Jules’ satchel and smoothing her long dark hair. She had tears in her eyes.
“Everything I need,” Jules replied. “And maybe a few things Pa wishes I’d leave behind.” She glanced up at him, eyes glinting.
Pa laughed. “Can’t imagine what you mean, Shadow Sister.”
Nickie and Ellie Mae were loitering nearby, pretending to sweep the porch but obviously watching every move. Some of the others were gathered near the edge of Ma and Pa’s cabin, watching from a distance.
“Don’t cry,” Jules said, rubbing Ma’s arm. “I’ll be back soon. Won’t wait nearly as long as last time. Maybe I’ll stay awhile next time, too.”
“You know,” Ma said casually, “you could stay a while longer. Get settled in.”
Pa took a long sip of his coffee, covering the faint flicker of approval that crossed his face. “Chaos…”
Ellie Mae mouthed to Nickie, He likes the idea.
Jules chuckled. “Take good care of my big sister. Or…” She tapped her satchel lightly, and the muffled clink inside made Pa raise an eyebrow.
“I told you before, don’t need remindin’.”
That earned him a slow, approving nod from Jules. “Then maybe I will come back.” She smiled.
Ma hugged her tight, the two exchanging a quiet promise only they could hear.
As Jules started down the path, Pa called after her, “Safe travels…Not My Witch.”
She turned just enough to throw him a wink before disappearing into the mist.
Nickie leaned on her broom, grinning. “Bet she’s back before the moon turns.”
Ellie Mae smirked. “Bet Pa’s hopin’ for it.”
Pa acted like he didn’t hear them. Just went back to his coffee and made his way back to the cabin.
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