The Price of Love
The last thing August wanted to do was run downtown to the local ‘witch’ shop so his little sister could get some herbal tea.
“Why can’t you do it?” He asked as he turned the page in the book he was reading.
Sarah crossed her arms with an annoyed huff. “I got a speeding ticket, and Mum won’t let me use the car- and it’s too far to walk.” She walked across the room to sit next to him on the couch. “Please.”
August set the book down, his thumb in between the pages. “You’ll get the keys back in a week; you can wait for tea.”
Sarah rolled her eyes. “If you go, I’ll make dinner and pay for gas,” she offered.
He stared at the girl, he could tell she wasn’t going to let this go.
“Fine.”
And that’s how he ended up at the Charmed Lotus, the store that would change his life.
The bell rang and August felt immediately uneasy as he walked through the door. From the sweet scent of the dried plants and occult atmosphere, he wanted to leave as soon as he could.
Enchanting music played faintly in the background and August realized he had no clue where anything was; this was his first and last time in the store after all. After scanning shelves filled with everything from herbs to potions, he decided to ask the employee before he wasted any more time.
“Can I help you?” The girl asked.
She had long, wavy auburn hair and pale skin coated in freckles; the opposite of what you’d expect for a witch. With her army green high-rise shorts and sunflower patterned shirt. She looked a bit out of place yet perfectly blended in with the shop.
For a moment he thought that maybe she was just a normal girl working a part-time job. But from the wand and sunflower adorned pointed hat tossed aside on the desk, and the collection of crystal jewelry she wore; there was no denying what she was. A witch.
“Hello?” She asked as she waved her hand in front of his face when he didn’t respond.
“Sorry,” August said with a final glance at her name tag: Hazel. “I’m picking up an order.”
“Last name?”
“Lucado.”
His eyes wandered around the shop once again as Hazel skimmed through a large book of handwritten order forms.
“Sarah?” She questioned.
“My sister,” August answered with a bit of annoyance in his voice.
She nodded and stood up, “Your package is in the back,” she said with a smile before disappearing through a door.
Every fiber of his being felt off as he stood alone in the store. Shelves lined with love potions, voodoo dolls, tarot cards, and decor skulls; August was more and more aware of their presence with every second.
He tried to focus on something else as he absentmindedly twisted the fidget ring on his middle finger and wondered how much of a fire hazard the large, open flame wax candles that dripped onto the wooden floor were.
“That will be twenty dollars.”
“What?” August said as his attention snapped back to the desk, he didn’t even notice her return.
“For the tea,” Hazel stated and slightly raised the paper bag in her hand. “That will be twenty dollars.”
He shook his head, “Of course.”
What kind of tea cost that much?
Hazel pressed a few buttons on the antique cash register and took his bill.
“This isn’t your type of shop, is it?” She asked politely, although it sounded more like a statement.
August didn’t respond.
“Religious?” She questioned again.
“Catholic,” he said plainly.
She merely nodded and placed the bag in front of him. “Fair enough, witchcraft isn’t everyone's cup of tea,” Hazel said with a slight laugh at her own joke.
“I prefer real things.”
Hazel’s expression turned to mild annoyance as her eyes gazed across the shelves; as if she were wondering which of their many products she’d like to use on him for his comment.
“It is real, if anything your beliefs should confirm that,” She said plainly, her arms crossed.
August rolled his eyes. Part of him wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible. Another wanted to prove her wrong.
“Please, anyone with common sense knows that all this is,” he said with a gesture to everything around him. “Is nothing but mislabeled herbalism and creepy decor. There’s no way that it’s possible to curse people with dolls or see the future with a deck of cards. There’s no proof for any of it.”
Hazel leaned over to a box on the floor and pulled out one of the many circular jars as he continued his rant. She uncorked the lid and held a finger up for silence as she took a sip.
“What are you-”
His sentence was cut off as the boy jumped away from the desk, green flames blown in his direction. There wasn’t any sign of the fire on any of the wooden objects around them but August could have sworn he felt the heat.
Hazel calmly put the top back on the glass container and returned it to the box. “Care to explain how that wasn’t real,” she said in a sweet voice that dripped with sarcasm.
August grabbed his sister’s tea and left the shop without another word. He locked the car doors and grabbed the rosary from the rearview mirror the second he was inside.
He would never go to the shop again.
* * *
“Did you get it?” His sister asked the second he stepped foot in the house.
August tossed the paper bag on the table. “I did and don’t ever ask me to go there again.”
Sarah chuckled at his response.
“I’m serious, how did you even find that place?”
“Mrs. Anderson shops there because it’s all natural and the essential oils are on the cheaper side. I tried the tea at their house, and she told me where to buy it,” she said simply as she stirred whatever was cooking on the stove.
“I’m sure you could find something cheaper online,” August said plainly. He never wanted to be asked to pick something up for her anytime soon.
Thankfully the rest of his night was uneventful. Their mother came home from work at the usual time and some movie that was recently released on DVD played on the TV while they ate. Just what August needed to get that Witch out of his mind once and for all.
However by morning no matter how hard he tried to ignore it he couldn’t forget the eerie feeling the Charmed Lotus gave him. The witchcraft they openly sold and the lack of people, other than him and that girl, in the whole shop was off putting. The Catholic was glad that it appeared as if they had very few customers; however shops were supposed to be busy, not dead.
August sat in his parked car, every fiber of his being wanted to turn the key and leave, but he couldn’t get himself to do it. The boy accepted defeat as he unbuckled and entered the building. One stop, just to get it over with.
Hazel once again sat behind the large wooden desk, the only visible worker in the shop. She smiled as she conversed with an older woman dressed in all black, but they quickly wandered off to another part of the shop.
August’s legs moved on their own as he approached the register.
“Ah, if it isn’t the HevBe. Anything I can help you find today?” She greeted him sarcastically.
“What have you done to me?” He demanded.
She rolled her eyes as she leaned against the counter. “Am I supposed to know what you mean by that?”
August struggled to keep his mind straight, his thoughts had been all over the place ever since he first entered the shop.
“Did you spell me? Slip me one of those love potions or something?”
Hazel couldn’t help but laugh, “please, even witches know those are nothing but scams.”
“You have them on your shelves,” he countered.
She shrugged, “have to sell something to the tourists.”
August froze, what if he had it all wrong? What if the shop simply was a joke, nothing but a scam because they knew they could make money off of it.
“Don’t worry, I know exactly what’s cursing you,” she said, her fingers messing with the wand where it laid.
“You do?”
She hummed in response. “Curiosity. You’re intrigued by what I do, but you’re too convinced that it’s wrong.”
August opened his mouth to tell her she was wrong, but she kept speaking as she stood up from her seat.
“Lucky for you, you came at the end of my shift. I’m free to answer all your questions.”
He blinked at the girl in disbelief; was she serious?
Hazel walked around the shop and blew out all the open flames, readjusted some shelves here and there. “There’s a nice park nearby we could go to, otherwise we can stay here.”
As much as he hated the idea of going anywhere with her, the thought of staying at the Charmed Lotus after hours was even worse.
“The park’s fine,” he answered.
“Perfect.” Hazel threw her wand in a small wicker basket and put on the sunflower coated witch hat. “Let’s go.”
“You can’t be serious.”
It was one thing to call yourself a witch, but to wear the hat as well?
“You’re the one who wants answers,” she countered.
Hazel flicked the lights off and locked the door on their way out. August mentally questioned the store hours; why would they close at 3:00PM and open again from 9:00PM - 2:00AM.
“Have to make sure we have availability for the morning and night witches,” she answered as if she could read his mind. “It’s a common question,” she added.
The park was a couple of blocks away and not much conversation was made on the way there; none that he could focus on anyway. He felt like all the attention was on the two of them and prayed they didn’t run into someone he knew. The last thing he needed was to be seen with a witch.
A few kids came up and greeted Hazel as they approached the playground. She smiled and handed all of them picked flowers or stuck the stems in their hair, every now and then she would whisper something that made them laugh. Some showed off their new clothes or how well they were able to cartwheel for a few minutes until the kids got bored and went back to their games on the playset.
“Sorry about that,” she said as she brushed the dirt off her skirt from where she was kneeling.
“Don’t be.” He didn’t expect her to be so good with children.
They walked a bit farther on the beaten path until they reached a less crowded area of the park.
“So, what’s your first question?” Hazel asked to break the silence.
August thought he’d start off easy, “what was in that bottle yesterday?” He could still vividly picture the green flames she blew in his direction and the heat that followed.
She smiled and shook her head, “I don’t think you’ll like my answer,” she joked. “Have any ideas?”
He shrugged, “dyed alcohol and a hidden lighter?” It was the only thing that might make sense.
Hazel shook her head again.
“What was it?”
“A fire-breathing potion. If you get on my good side, I might let you try it.”
He should have suspected an answer like that. He was speaking to a witch after all.
Hazel sat down and gestured for him to do the same. He hesitated but eventually joined her in the grass. She placed the small basket in front of them and started to pick the flowers that covered sections of the field. August picked at the plants as well, unsure of what else to do.
“How did you become a witch?” A simple, serious question that would put a stop to his curiosity.
“I made a deal with the devil and signed my soul away at thirteen,” she answered, her focus still on the flowers.
No matter what assumptions he made, that was the last thing he expected to come out of her mouth. More flames would have surprised him less.
“Would you prefer I say that I was born into it? The Savaunt’s are one of the few witch families in the area.”
“Your entire family practices witchcraft?” He questioned in disbelief.
Hazel nodded, “everyone in the bloodline. It’s no different than families who share the same religion.”
It was one thing for the girl who had to have been in her early twenties to try and practice magic, perhaps a little too into fantasy and dissatisfied with reality. But everyone else she was related to, through how many generations? He never thought the Charmed Lotus would be a family business.
“So they were all fully aware that God exists and chose to follow Satan instead?”
She nodded once more, “yep.”
How could people know full well they were going to Hell and just pass that on to their children? This family might as well be part of a cult.
Hazel picked up a dandelion from the mix of colored petals. “Look at it this way; should this go in the basket?”
“What?”
“I’ve been picking flowers, should I pick dandelions as well?”
August stared at her, unsure of what her point was. “If you’re fine with taking home some weeds, go for it.”
She added the weed to the top of her pile. “Taraxacum are full of vital micronutrients, help strengthen the immune system, and can even be used to get clearer skin.” Hazel picked another one and held it up, “yet all most people see are ‘weeds’ that should be removed from their lawn.”
August grabbed the plant from her. He had heard dandelions carried health benefits but he never thought much of it since they were the cause of his sister’s allergies.
“How come the one who can see the beauty and resources in God’s creation is the one that follows the devil?” She questioned.
He didn’t have an answer.
August tossed any flowers he held in the basket as he moved to get up. “I should get going.”
“Have I made you uncomfortable?” She asked. “We can discuss something else, if you’d like.”
He hesitated but slowly sat back down. “What did you have in mind?”
Hazel shrugged; her fingers no longer picked dandelions for her to save but started to weave them together. “How about family? I know you have a sister since you picked up her tea; any other siblings?”
He shook his head as he thought back to Sarah, the only reason he had met the witch in the first place. Because she wanted herbal tea and didn’t like the stuff online.
“Just her and our mom.”
“And your dad?” She questioned.
“Deceased,” August answered as he nervously rubbed his arm; it had only been a few years since his passing. “What about you?”
“Technically an only child, my brother died before I was born, and my parents own the shop.”
The two continued to talk about random things like where they grew up; August’s family moved here a few years ago and currently stayed with them while he was home from college, Hazel had never left the area. Favorite colors, hobbies, and other stuff like that. As much as August wanted to deny it, he enjoyed talking to the redheaded girl who wore her witch hat with pride.
Hazel tied off her chain of weeds and placed the flower crown on his head with a grin before he could refuse. “It looks nice in your hair, really sticks out against the brown.”
August couldn’t help but chuckle; maybe he started to enjoy spending time with the girl.
They stayed in the park until the sun began to set; August walked her back to the shop and where his car happened to be parked. The two of them exchanged numbers before he got in the vehicle.
“In case you have any more questions,” Hazel smiled.
He did the same, a genuine smile.
She disappeared behind the closed door of the Charmed Lotus, and he was left with his thoughts on the short drive home. Maybe he was wrong about the young witch.
His sister greeted him the second he walked through the door. “Where have you been?”
He set his keys in the dish with a quick glance around the room, their mom seemed to be at work still. “I was out with a friend.”
Sarah nodded, her eyes glued to her phone. “So, a date?”
“What?” It wasn’t a date, far from it, but why did she think that?
She tilted her device down as she gave her explanation. “You didn’t give a name, so it must be someone new but you also didn’t say that,” she went back to scrolling. “So what’s her name?”
“It wasn’t a date,” August insisted.
“His name?”
“Sarah!”
“I just want to know who my brother’s seeing, what’s wrong with that?”
He rolled his eyes. He knew she wasn’t going to let it go anytime soon and the last thing he needed was her spreading rumors to their mom.
“Hazel, but it still wasn’t a date.”
“Last name?”
August gave her a questioning look, why did she need to know that? “Savaunt.”
She was quiet for a few seconds. “The witch?”
He stared at her in disbelief, “how could you possibly know that?”
“Her social media.” Sarah tilted the phone so he could see the open page. Sure enough the profile picture was of Hazel, sunflower covered hat and all. Her bio was mainly an advertisement for the shop with a few emojis and the hashtag ‘#YourFriendlyNeighborhoodWitch’.
“She’s the last person I expected you to hang out with,” Sarah said, but there wasn’t any judgment in her voice.
“How did you even find this, it only took you like five seconds,” August asked.
She looked at him as if to say ‘are you serious?’. “I’m a woman, I can find anyone online.”
He didn’t ask anymore questions and just accepted the answer she gave him, however ridiculous it sounded.
* * *
Over the next couple weeks, a majority of August’s time was spent with Hazel. From texting practically all day, to even a few official dates (she asked him out first). The Charmed Lotus no longer made his skin crawl whenever he was there but slowly started to feel more like a second home to him.
Neither of them had met any family members, but he didn’t mind, there was no rush. August did tell his mom about her, however he thought it would be best to leave out the witch part for now.
The bell rang as he entered the shop and August smiled at the familiar faint creak of the floorboards. He waved hello to Miss Jeanette, who popped in every few days to buy potions for her memory.
He looked around the shop, but he didn’t see Hazel behind the desk or hidden among the shelves. He glanced over at the staff door and its sign that read ‘knock for service’ instead of ‘do not enter’. With a quick knock August turned the handle to the room he had recently been allowed access to.
Hazel sat on the floor in front of a large cauldron as she poured the translucent liquid into glass bottles. Her witch hat was crooked, and he noticed the small break she took in between each jar.
“Are you tired?” August questioned as he sat down next to her.
She nodded, “I've been up all night brewing for tomorrow’s restock, I still have two potions left to make,” Hazel yawned.
He looked down at her wavy hair, streaks of black mixed into the auburn locks. Something that happened when she used too much of her magic; part of the contract and the reason most witches were depicted with pitch black hair.
“You should take a break.”
She merely laughed as she boxed up the now finished potions. “I’m almost done.”
“You’re exhausted,” he countered.
Hazel labeled the box and stacked it amongst the others but shook her head. “I’ll be done in an hour or two anyway.”
August glanced at the potion book on the floor, the last recipes tagged with half of a green sticky note.
“What if I made them?” He suggested, “it can’t be too far from cooking.”
She smiled, “I appreciate the offer, Love, but HevBes can’t make potions.”
August tilted his head at the nickname, something that had started as some sort of insult and slowly transformed to a pet name she occasionally used but never gave an explanation for.
“HevBe?”
Hazel turned from where she gathered ingredients for the next recipe and leaned against the shelves, glass bottles in hand. “It means Heaven Bound, a term used for those with a saved soul,” she informed.
August was a bit relieved to hear that. Even though he still went to mass on Sunday and prayed every day, he had started to worry about how much time he spent at the shop and how he didn’t want to admit he had fallen for the witch. No one could say for one hundred percent certain where he would spend his afterlife, but perhaps someone without a soul could know a bit more than him.
“If you’d like to help you could read off what I need?” She suggested.
August nodded and opened the book to the first tab. “Eye of newt?” He read uncertainly once she had confirmed the potion name.
Hazel held up a small bottle with a laugh, “Mustard seed. Spell books were written with false names in case anyone got their hands on them.”
He nodded once again; that made sense, and he was sure he had read something similar online. “Wool of bat?”
“Holly leaves.”
“Toe of frog?”
“Buttercup.”
August continued to read of the odd sounding names that definitely added to all the stereotypes in fictional magic, however there wasn’t anything fictional about this. He watched as Hazel threw ingredients into the boiling water of the newly cleaned caldron as he read out the steps; even if she did seem to act a few seconds before he started the sentence. He got to help be a part of creating something that did help people, even if it wasn’t the traditional ways one would expect. It felt good and he wanted to continue.
It may have only felt like a few seconds but the potion had finished brewing by the time he had voiced his thoughts. “I wanted to practice witchcraft.”
Hazel dropped the metal spoon she was using to stir at his words, too surprised that they had come out of his mouth. “What?”
August took a deep breath and pushed aside the tiny speck of doubt. “I want to help you, actually help you with things around the shop. I want to do what you do.”
She inched over to him from where they sat on the ground and placed a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth. “No.”
“No?” He had thought she would be thrilled.
Hazel stood and brushed the nonexistent dust off of her clothes. “You’re not thinking clearly. I refuse to be the reason your soul is doomed for all eternity.”
“But it’s my choice,” he countered.
She shook her head. “We both know you would never willingly sign the contract.”
Hazel held open the door to the storefront and August left without another word.
* * *
They didn’t speak for a few days, and both of them realized they needed to take a step back.
They texted every now and then, but it was nothing more than sending memes back and forth. She did ask him one day what animal he’d want to be if he could choose, and some other random get to know yous. Hazel seemed pleased when he said a cat or bird, but he might have been playing into the witch aspect a little bit with his response; not that he really had an answer anyway. After that they slowly made it back to their normal conversations.
A week later he decided it was time to go visit her at the shop; he wanted to see Hazel in person and was honestly starting to miss being at the Charmed Lotus with her.
The bell rang as he pushed the door open and August smiled at the familiar sound. He really did feel at home here; the previous chill of unease was long gone. His feet quickly brought him to the corner of the building where his girlfriend sat behind the wooden desk, a large spell book in front of her.
Hazel looked up and smiled at him, “hi, Love.”
He leaned over the counter to kiss her head before moving to sit next to her. “What are you reading?” He asked.
She messed with her wand. “One of the family books…I’ve been thinking about what you said.”
“About learning magic?”
She nodded. “I don’t want you to sign a contract- I’ll do everything I can to keep you from doing that.” She took a deep breath, “but I think I found an alternative.”
August looked up, his attention fully fixed on her. Was there really a way for him to learn without selling his soul? “What is it?”
Hazel pointed to the page she was reading; although he did his best to read it, most of the words scrambled around the page whenever his eyes reached them. Magically protected from non-witches.
“If you become my familiar, I can share my magic with you and you’ll still be a HevBe,” she explained, her voice a bit quieter than usual.
He didn’t hesitate, “let’s do it.”
She looked a bit uncertain. “Are you sure? Once we do this, there’s no turning back. Your family might not accept you anymore.”
August didn’t care, he honestly didn’t. “Positive.”
Her eyes scanned over him as if they were searching for any sign of doubt but there was nothing to find. She picked up the book, “All right. Let’s get started.”
The shop sign flipped to ‘close’ with a wave of her wand and they disappeared into the back room. She grabbed jar after jar, handing them back for him to hold; he didn’t recognize any of them.
Once everything had been found, she drew two connecting circles filled with sigils on the wooden floor in chalk and instructed him to sit. It would be a long spell but there wasn’t much he could do besides wait.
Hazel placed a cauldron between them and sat down in her own circle. It filled water as she threw ingredients in, Latin words falling from her lips. August starred entranced as the chalk started to glow. By the time she handed him a glass, he didn’t know if it had been minutes or hours, but he knew he could watch this all day.
“Are you certain this is what you want?” She asked, her hair slowly turning black.
He nodded and took the glass. He wanted to be a part of this. He wanted to help her. He loved her.
The room glowed a violent red as he took a sip, and his head started to pound. She took the glass before he could drop it and set it down; still reciting the spell as if it were second nature. His entire body ached, his vision flashed in and out. The entire room seemed to grow as he screamed in pain. He wasn’t sure if he would pass out. But soon everything died down and his screams were nothing more than weak cheeps in their ears.
August Lucado no longer sat in the spell circle, instead a small sparrow took his place.
Hazel picked him up and rose to her feet; there was barely any red left in her hair. She placed her forehead against the bird as tears rolled down her cheek.
“I told you I would do anything I could to keep you saved- I couldn’t risk you making a contract on your own.”
August’s mind screamed at him as he tried to fly out of her grasp but she held him close. He should have thought about this or asked her to explain- Hazel should have told him this is what would happen. But it seemed so obvious now; witch’s familiars were always animals. He should have known. He should have questioned.
But he was so charmed by this world, learning about everything he was too scared to discover. And this girl that he had fallen for, all because his sister whom he would never see again wanted some tea, gave him an option that he stupidly accepted. He was now trapped as a bird.
“I’m so sorry, Love…”
He had fallen in love with Hazel Savaunt, and this was the price of loving her.