literature

Theme Prompt - Red Tape

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She sank down onto a chair and heaved a sigh of relief. She was finally safe, free of the chains that damned Winchester had put on her. And, knowing her own magic as well as she did, her son was dead. Likely the angel was going to die too. Mortals couldn’t stand up well to her attack dog spell, dying after a short time. Whatever strength an angel had would probably only last a little bit longer.

Looking down at the books in her hands, Rowena let out a delighted little laugh. The Book of the Damned was hers along with Nadia’s codex. Power sat in her lap, power that was all hers for the taking. And she didn’t have to worry at all about the Grand Coven anymore. Not when Olivette was a hamster and the Grand Coven was nowhere near as powerful as Rowena had once believed.

The hotel room she’d taken was completely the opposite of the dank warehouse that damned Winchester had chained her up in. It was warm and comfortable, the cream and green decorating scheme reminding her a little of a sunlit field. The queen-sized bed was covered in a green and brown blanket and there were two extra pillows sitting against the headboard. She’d cast a spell on the nice young man downstairs, getting him to let her into the room at no cost. Her next spell had been to get some new clothes. Her dress was getting rather dirty and smelly. It was disgusting.

It wasn’t only her dress that was getting dirty. She needed a shower. Tucking the books underneath the bed, Rowena took a shower. She luxuriated in the hot water spilling over her, scrubbing herself with the soap twice and shampooing her hair twice before stepping out of the shower. Her new dresses had appeared in the room and Rowena chose one in red the color of fresh blood. It fit her mood and the books she was planning on looking through.

She pulled the two books out from underneath the bed and sat back down on the chair next to the desk in the corner. Opening the Book to the first page, Rowena started deciphering the symbols. Nadia’s codex was incredibly helpful though she had no idea how the witch had written it. Had she had the Book at the time? Well, it didn’t particularly matter. She had both of them now and the power was hers. The only thing left was to determine exactly how she wanted to use her new power.

About halfway through the book, Rowena came across a spell that caught her interest immediately. It told of power, a way of increasing one’s own personal power and drawing it from others. It was deceptively simple as well, needing only two ingredients besides the words. To increase her own personal power, Rowena would need a few hairs from her head and some of her blood. The spell itself was short and simple. There was no reason not to cast it, at least that Rowena could see. She pulled a few hairs out of her head and cut her thumb to drip a few drops onto the desk. She dropped the hair onto the blood and read through the spell one more time. Then, she spoke the words.

Nothing happened. She waited, studying the blood and hair on the desk. A few moments passed and still nothing. Reading over the spell again in the book, Rowena determined that she’d done everything correctly. She took a breath to speak the spell again when a sardonic voice sounded behind her.

“You didn’t really think it would be that easy, did you?” the voice asked, laughing nastily. “There’s red tape you have to cut through, dear, things you have to learn to use that Book. My codex isn’t enough.”

“Who are you?” Rowena asked sharply, twisting around in her chair to glare at an apparition that stood completely at her ease next to the bed. The woman was somewhat misty and flickered every once ina while, proof that she wasn’t alive. She wore a black dress that was tattered at the bottom. Her long hair was tangled around her shoulders. “What are you doing here?”

“I would have thought saying it was my codex would have given you enough of a hint,” the ghost clicked her tongue as she shook her head at Rowena. “I am Nadia. I wrote that codex that you’re using to read the book. And that spell you just cast won’t work. Not yet.”

“Why?” Rowena asked, settling back in her chair and resting a hand possessively over both books. “There’s nothing on the page itself saying I need anything else for the spell. And why are you here? What do you want?”

Nadia shook her head again and flickered out of existence. She appeared again on the bed, one leg crossed over the other. She appeared completely comfortable and at home. That set Rowena’s teeth on edge. Even when she’d worked with the Grand Coven, Rowena hadn’t liked being part of a group. She much preferred to lead. But Nadia had information she needed, information that she wanted.

“I’m here because my codex is free again. When it was trapped in that box, so was I as I’m bound to it,” Nadia explained, pointing towards the books under Rowena’s hand. “As for what I want, that’s twofold. One, I want revenge on the people who burned me at the stake. The Men of Letters. That, I can do myself now that I’m free. And two, I want to be alive again. The Book can manage that. I just can’t manage it on my own.”

“Oh ho ho ho,” Rowena chuckled, stroking the book. “You can’t cast magic when you’re dead, can you. You need a living witch to bring you back to life.”

“Exactly,” Nadia nodded, a pleased smile tugging at her lips. It was patronizing, the kind of smile one would give a student who’d gotten the correct answer to a difficult question. It grated on Rowena. “A living witch and one who can read my codex and the Book. That means you.”

“It very well might but what do I get out of it?” Rowena asked airily, turning her back on Nadia and pretending to page through the Book. “I can read it on my own and cast spells on my own. What could you possibly offer me to help you?”

“Like I said, there’s red tape,” Nadia replied, her voice sounding bored. She studied Rowena’s back, an annoyed look crossing her face. Surely the woman could see what she could offer? Especially after the spell failed? She’d thought Rowena was intelligent and cunning but maybe she was wrong. “The power spell failed. Other spells will fail too unless you know the key to them.”

“I have your codex,” Rowena shrugged, turning a page in the book. She didn’t bother looking at Nadia to talk to her, hoping the snub was rubbing the ghost the wrong way. She was sick of the woman’s patronizing tone anyway. “I can figure it out on my own.”

“You could,” Nadia agreed. “Eventually. And while you try, everyone who knows what the Book is will be after you to get it for themselves. You’ll be busy running rather than enjoying these... earthly delights you seem to enjoy.”

Rowena considered Nadia’s words, eyes flicking over her side of the hotel room. Running from people looking for the book would likely mean hiding in terrible places, dank and cold and dark. It would mean spending time she could be studying the book in running and hiding. And from what she’d translated of the book already, the power spell was the least of the prizes within it. Maybe, just maybe, dealing with Nadia for a short time wouldn’t be so terrible. Even with her patronizing tone. Besides, once she got what she needed from the ghost, she could always destroy her. A sly grin tugged at her lips. Yes, that was a good plan.

“Very well then,” Rowena said, turning to Nadia and nodding. She held out her hand to the ghost, waiting. Nadia rose and took her hand, sealing the pact between them. “You help me and I help you. Then we’ll both get what we want.”

“Yes,” Nadia hissed, drawing out the word like a snake. “Revenge and life.”
Rowena takes a moment to look through the book once she's safe and try to cast a spell. That leads to an unexpected ally. Enjoy and, as always, comments are :heart:

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