Home > Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch

Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch
Author: Julie Abe

 

CHAPTER 1


THE ENCHANTED BOOKSTORE


The bell above the door chimed, and magic tingled at my fingertips. The scent of ink and freshly printed paper swirled invitingly in the air as I followed my parents into the bookshop.

Today was my last day as just an Apprentice Witch, the last few moments of being the unreliable Eva who summoned heads of cabbage instead of flowers or got a sunburn instead of calling down rain. Or, at least, I hoped it was the end of all that.

“Are you ready, Eva?” Mother nudged my shoulder.

I tightened my hands around the straps of my knapsack and summoned up a smile. “I’m ready.”

A set of bright, spectacled brown eyes peeped out from a teetering stack of books at the counter in the center. “Welcome to Enchanted Ink, Rivelle Realm’s one and only magical bookshop.” Kaya Ikko, the bookseller, dipped into a bow, her black tunic fluttering around her. “Ah, Nelalithimus! And Isao! I did so enjoy the yuzu lemon trifles that Nela brought to tea the other day.”

My stomach usually growled at the thought of Father’s realm-famous pastries, but today, it churned queasily.

My father smiled. “My pleasure. I’ll bring over my latest creations the next time we’re in the city.”

Kaya’s warm eyes crinkled with delight when she spotted me behind Mother. “And Eva! So good to see you here.”

“Hello, Elite Ikko!” My heartbeat fluttered as I paused in the wide aisle leading to her counter. Books lined the walls, all the way up to the dim window cut into the ceiling. One of these books would be mine, for my quest. So long as I could summon it.

“Go on, Eva. You can do this,” Mother murmured, as if she had heard my thoughts. She adjusted my pointy hat, smiling down at me.

At first glance, Mother and I almost looked like mirror reflections. We had the same inky black hair resting slightly below our shoulders, rounded brown eyes, and slight tans from summer afternoons in the garden. We even had the same black witch’s dresses.

But that was where the similarities ended.

The delicate jewel brooch at her neck and her black dress were laced with a diamond-like shimmer, marking her Grand Master status. My dress was plain black, as I was only an Apprentice, a level so low I wasn’t even considered an official witch.

And most days, it seemed, all other witches and wizards were more like Mother than me. Magic rushed through their veins, with just a drop of blood.

I definitely had more blood than magic.

Father wandered over to the non-enchanted cookbooks, and Mother picked up a book at random and pretended to be absorbed in it, to give me a chance to slow down the pounding in my chest. The book’s pages flipped without Mother turning a corner, and my heart thundered faster.

“Oh, Kaya, would you like to walk over to the Council Hall together?” Mother called.

Kaya popped back out, clutching a stack of books. “Of course, of course. But I’m waiting for the soon-to-be Novice’s book summoning, as you know.”

She’d kept her shop open for my sake. A smile tugged at my lips.

It was now or never.

And I was ready for my quest.

I stood straight in front of Kaya and stretched up as tall as I could, though I didn’t surpass even the smallest piles of magical tomes. “I’m ready to summon my book.” A shiver ran down my spine with excitement. “Can you please open the enchanted bookshelf?”

The books clattered out of Kaya’s hands. She pushed her glasses up her nose and squinted, her eyebrows knitting with confusion. “Eva? Oh, no, Eva. I—I thought you were going on your quest next year.…”

I sucked in a breath. “Next year?”

She rummaged under a stack of books, one smoking at the edges, and pulled out a square of parchment stamped with the Council’s official crescent-moon seal. Her eyes searched the page. “Eva… you’re not on the list. There’s only one wizard this year and… it isn’t you.…”

My heart pounded. “But I’ve got magic”—it had finally manifested—“and I turned twelve years old three moons ago.”

“Kaya—truly?” Mother asked, her hands clenching the book, now rattling in her grasp.

Kaya flipped the parchment over, as if expecting to see my name on the back. “In all my twenty years, this has never happened before.…”

I stammered, “How can that—I have to be on the list.”

My lungs tightened, and I could barely breathe. What could she mean? The summons I’d received from the Council had stated: Evalithimus Evergreen is hereby summoned to the Council of Witches and Wizards meeting on the first day of the fifth moon, for discussion of her witch rank. Mother, Father, and I had prepared my knapsack, Mother had gifted me a shiny new broomstick, and we’d had everything ready except my ensorcelled book from Enchanted Ink and my ticket from the Council.

Kaya shook her head with confusion. “The only person the Council listed this year—” From behind me, the door chimed, but I couldn’t pull my gaze away from Kaya. Her eyes widened at the sight of the person opening the door. “Is him.”

My heart pounded in my throat. Who—

“Elite Ikko, I’m here for my book,” said a familiar, haughty voice.

I spun around and bit down a groan.

Conroy Nytta and I eyed each other with barely concealed dislike. Even though he was only two moons older, he always acted above me. He brushed off an invisible speck of dust from his pristine black long-sleeved shirt and trousers that fit him so perfectly it looked as if they had come straight from the queen’s own tailor.

He nodded at my father, then strode to Mother and bowed over her hand, a lock of straight, dark hair falling over his eyes. “Wonderful to see you, Grand Master Evergreen.”

As if an afterthought, he added, “And Eva.”

I promised myself he’d have to call me Grand Master someday. Still, his greeting stung.

“Hello, fellow Apprentice Conroy,” I said, addressing him properly.

“Did your magic truly show up?” Conroy flicked his eyes to the knapsack slung over my shoulders.

“Conroy!” Father and Mother scolded in unison. He’d apprenticed under Mother, and living with him when we were both ten had been the worst year of my life. Conroy used to whisper—only when my parents weren’t around—how mind-boggling it was that the daughter of the most powerful witch in Rivelle Realm was magicless. My magic hadn’t manifested until I turned eleven, after he’d left for his next apprenticeship.

Conroy leaned close, out of earshot of my parents. “I’d heard rumors, but… Oh, wait, was it you who fell asleep in the stream instead of stopping the rain? Classic.” He snorted.

As if answering my thoughts, magic tickled faintly at my fingertips, longing to show off a spell or two. But unlike Conroy, I couldn’t waste a drop of it.

“I manifested last year,” I said quickly. “Mother’s been training me as her Apprentice since then.”

“Last year? And a single apprenticeship?” He raised an eyebrow. “You’ve got only one chance to pass your quest, you know. Can you even fly?” Conroy had started an enchanted snowstorm on the day he was born. Ever since, he’d been training all around the realm. Mother’s friends in the Council whispered that he’d most likely earn his Grand Master status by the time he reached sixteen. Most witches and wizards only reached the Elite rank, the third and middle tier.

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