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| Magic Spell-Forever Arts |
Feigning a headache; Ariadne sent regrets to Grandfather about missing the evening meal. Dismissing Tilde, she worked alone in her chamber, gathering the elements needed for her spell. The evening is warm, fearing that Grandfather’s allies and cronies might be about the courtyard below, she moved to close the window.
Birds and insects hummed at her window, waving them off she closed it to assure privacy. Taking her mother’s book from the chest, it opens right to the spell she will use. She scrutinized the directions one more time and begns. Pulverizing the violets and herbs in her mortar, she added a wine doctor to the compound, to make the elixir liquid. "I am ready to pronounce the spell,” she said, as she opened the chest. Lifting the silver chalice she placed it next to the mortar. Into this, she placed the mucgwyrt gathered earlier in the day. Holding the chalice high, she turned to each four quarters and chanted.
"Gaea, watch over me in this spell-working,
Empower me, with your protection
I draw on your strength and energy.
Gazing in her mirror, she placed the chalice before her and poured the elixir on the mucgwyrt. Holding the sacred candle to the mixture, Ariadne ignited the mixture, causing a crimson surge of flame to erupt from the chalice. A dense layer of smoke and vapor issued forth, instantly filling the room. Gasping for air, Ariadne fell to her knees sputtering the last words of the spell.
"To all essence, visible and invisible,
Now present in this ritual,
Depart in peace, with my thanks and blessings."
Ariadne closed the book and surveyed the chamber. The vapor is crystallized and appears as snow falling to the floor. Ariadne rose, hoping the spell was successful. As she opened her window, she heard an easy twittering of laughter coming from below. Warily looking for the source, she saw no one, only the insects and hummingbirds, fluttering merrily midst the fragrant jasmine and climbing roses. "How very odd," she murmured.
Birds and insects hummed at her window, waving them off she closed it to assure privacy. Taking her mother’s book from the chest, it opens right to the spell she will use. She scrutinized the directions one more time and begns. Pulverizing the violets and herbs in her mortar, she added a wine doctor to the compound, to make the elixir liquid. "I am ready to pronounce the spell,” she said, as she opened the chest. Lifting the silver chalice she placed it next to the mortar. Into this, she placed the mucgwyrt gathered earlier in the day. Holding the chalice high, she turned to each four quarters and chanted.
"Gaea, watch over me in this spell-working,
Empower me, with your protection
I draw on your strength and energy.
Gazing in her mirror, she placed the chalice before her and poured the elixir on the mucgwyrt. Holding the sacred candle to the mixture, Ariadne ignited the mixture, causing a crimson surge of flame to erupt from the chalice. A dense layer of smoke and vapor issued forth, instantly filling the room. Gasping for air, Ariadne fell to her knees sputtering the last words of the spell.
"To all essence, visible and invisible,
Now present in this ritual,
Depart in peace, with my thanks and blessings."
Ariadne closed the book and surveyed the chamber. The vapor is crystallized and appears as snow falling to the floor. Ariadne rose, hoping the spell was successful. As she opened her window, she heard an easy twittering of laughter coming from below. Warily looking for the source, she saw no one, only the insects and hummingbirds, fluttering merrily midst the fragrant jasmine and climbing roses. "How very odd," she murmured.
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Aha! An invisibility spell!
ReplyDeleteOdd indeed. Great piece (:
ReplyDeleteIntriguing indeed!
ReplyDeleteYes, it is intriguing. Looking forward to reading more.
ReplyDeleteSo just who was she trying to make invisible? I liked your story, some really nice lines... I loved 'vapor crystallizes and appears as snow falling to the floor'. You have a knack for this storytelling. Your 'mucgwyrt' sounded so natural... and that is not always the case with made-up words. (Oh dear, please don't tell me it actually exists)
ReplyDeleteHmmm ... a very curious spell and perhaps a curious result. Very creative use of the prompts.
ReplyDeleteI like your use of the prompt. And I like Ariadne's world. I remember her from your previous entries. Really great description of her conjuring in secret. And that vapor line is very good. Nice work
ReplyDeleteWhoops!Dangerous those spell books!
ReplyDeleteToo all who wonder, she was thanking spirits both visible and invisable, the original spell was to be about empowerment, however word constraints made me have to cut some of the spell, she is not going invisible...YET!
ReplyDeleteuh-oh.. what's gonna happen next ^^ can't wait to find out
ReplyDeleteHmmm...maybe one of the invisible spirits was expressing their happiness? Or perhaps her familiar has arrived?
ReplyDeleteInquiring minds want to know!!!!
I like your descriptions of the room, and her spell casting.
I like this. The way you left the ending, I think there might be more to this story? I hope?
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that threw me off was the tense switching between present and past.
That mucgwyrt sure seems versatile!
ReplyDeleteOh, dear! I suspect the results of this spell are not going to be what she was going for. And now, of course, I need to know what happened!
ReplyDeleteYour descriptions of her casting are evocative and detailed; it really brings the moment to life.
ReplyDeleteA very slight piece of concrit is that the final paragraph, with the insects and hummingbirds doesn't read like evening to me. I guess it would depend on the time of the year.
~Angela
I love the crystallizing of the vapors-and the way they fall like snow! That is such a wonderful image!
ReplyDeleteI really liked this piece a lot!!
Nice piece! I liked how it ended. ;)
ReplyDeleteHa! Love "how very odd". Shows that the unexpected isn't necessarily earth-shattering evil.
ReplyDeleteSome concrit for when you revisit: you've a few sentences that need some structure tweaking.
"Birds and insects hummed at her window, waving them off she closed it to assure privacy." Them and it don't modify what you intend in this run-on sentence. Try: "Birds and insects hummed at the window; she brushed them away then secured the shutters for privacy."
"Taking her mother’s book from the chest, it opens right to the spell she will use." It in this instance is the person or thing taking the book and opening the book, indicating another party in the room is doing this instead of the book opening to the required page on its own, which is what I think you were trying to say. Try: "Taking her mother's book from the chest, she wills it to open to the spell she needs." or something similar.
Again, that's all for when you edit to the final draft.
I love how you dissected the working of the spell, which appears to be as much about ritual to appease spirits as it is to get an end result. Like a science experiment, You do this before you do that and then wait to see what happens...Nicely done!