Page 114 of Charmed, I'm Sure
The second the Sheriff’s car disappeared down my driveway, I bolted into the kitchen, flinging magic left and right, yanking herbs and ingredients from their resting places in the cabinets.
I had no idea what I actually needed—so I called foreverything.
“Ostende te. Veni ad me,” I demanded, clearing space on the island.
A warmth washed over me as the family grimoire shot from the shelf, floating to rest in the open space before me. Its cover flew open, pages flipping of their own accord before settling on the index of incantations.
My magic churned in my veins, feeding the fire in my belly as I ran a finger down the list.
But there was nothing.
I needed somethingmore.
I wanted to—no,neededto punish this godforsaken town for all the shit it had put me and my family through.
“Maledictio,” I growled, teeth clenched, watching as the pages fluttered toward the back of the book.
Nothing. Just a blank, time-stained page staring back at me.
“Fuck!” I slammed my hands onto the counter so hard my wrists ached. My eyes squeezed shut as frustration clawed at my ribs. But when I opened them again, an icy chill ran down my spine.
Words had begun to appear.
Cautela, maga.
Tenebrae ultra imminet.
Maledictiones omitti non possunt.
Latin. Of course, it was fucking Latin.
Taking a slow, measured breath, I forced myself to focus, calling on the long-buried lessons Aunt Evie had drilled into my head since childhood.
“Caution, witch. Darkness looms beyond. Curses cannot be undone? No shit!”.
Ignoring the blatant warning, I tried to flip the page—but it wouldn’t budge.
“Help me!” I screamed, trying to force the paper to move. Then one final line appeared at the bottom of the page.
Solus sanguis ligabit.
Only blood will bind.
The words burned into my vision. I read them once. Then again.
Frustrated beyond reason, I grabbed a knife. I’d no sooner pricked my finger, a whirlwind of magic whipped through the room.
“Magnolia Bellevue!”
Aunt Evie’s sharp voice sliced through the air just as the grimoirevanished—summoned to her hands as she and Maddie stood across the kitchen, their eyes wide in horror.
“What in the name of the Triple Goddess were you thinking?” she hissed. “We donotdo dark magic.”
“We don’t doanything!” I screamed back. My heart was hammering in my chest as I fisted my hands in my hair and tugged, looking for something—anything—to ground me.
“Magpie—”
“No. Absolutely not.” My voice was calm—too calm. Like the air before a storm. “You don’t get to stand there and coddle me like I’m still the little girl who came into this house twenty-two years ago. For years we have sat around and donenothing. Years of being sneered at and ridiculed. Of being the fucking town pariahs. And I ignored it like you taught me, held my head high and let it roll off of me like water. But enough is enough.”
