Page 106 of Impractical Magic

Delilah trekked up the hill on snowshoes, bringing supplies to Nate in the middle of a fierce winter storm. She didn’t bother asking if he’d be willing to come home.

***

Before too long, spring arrived. Under the bridge, the starling’s cage thawed but still would not release her.

Meanwhile Nate tended to his daily chores around the grove, a sharp cry pierced the air. A young fox pup had become entangled in the brambles near the river’s edge, its tiny paw caught in some thorny vines. Nate rushed to the pup’s aid, carefully untangling the frightened creature from its prickly prison. In his haste, Nate scratched his hand on the brambles, which left bloody marks across his skin.

“Ow, dammit!” he muttered. But then he looked into the pup’s eyes and had to smile. “Sorry, it’s okay—don’t be scared. Hey, are you somebody’s girlfriend, by any chance? My girlfriend is a bird. You haven’t seen her, have you?”

The pup made no reply.

Despite the pain and the steady trickle of blood, Nate gently cleaned the little fox’s wound and released it, smiling as it bounded away to join its family. He wrapped his own hand with a strip of cloth torn from his shirt and returned to watching the sky.

***

Summer came, and Nate fished in the nearby river, cooking his catch over a fire. On clear evenings, the Melrose family would join him at the grove, sitting around the fire and sharing stories about Scarlett under the stars. When morning came, they packed up to leave. But Nate remained.

***

Autumn returned to Oak Haven, and with it the glittering leaves and colorful gourds and pumpkin spice scent in the air.

One morning, Dayo and Zahir pulled up outside the abandoned building that once housed Hexpresso Yourself. Dayo’s truck was packed tight with kitchen appliances and crates of barware. Dayo went inside, opening windows to air out the musty space, while Zahir affixed a sign to the front door.

COMING SOON TO THIS LOCATION

OAK HAVEN’S FIRST BREW PUB:

DOUBLE, DOUBLE BOIL AND TROUBLE

The two friends and new co-owners spent the day cleaning and moving appliances around. They were packing up to go home when Dayo noticed one final cupboard in a dark corner of the empty shop.

“Hang on, we haven’t seen what’s inside that cabinet over there. Maybe the magicians left us a pile of spare magic wands, that’d be fun.”

Grinning, Zahir knelt down beside the cupboard. “Or how about some of those gold coins they’re always pulling out of people’s ears.” A small knob on the cupboard door refused to turn. “It’s locked . . . somehow . . . I don’t actually see how, but . . .”

Dayo rolled her eyes. “Magicians and their goddamned enchanted locks.” She grabbed a hammer and smashed the knob.

The door swung open. Inside lay a half-full bag of birdseed.

“Well,” Dayo said, “that’s disappointing.”

“Birdseed?!” Zahir poked at the bag. “What did they need birdseed for?”

“Somebody’s gotta feed all those doves they conjure out of their top hats.”

“Okay, but why bother enchanting the cabinet? Why go to that much trouble?”

“Dunno,” Dayo shrugged. “Special, magical birdseed?”

“Huh. I mean . . . maybe?” Zahir frowned. That didn’t feel like the right explanation. But he couldn’t think of a better one.

***

At the grove, the oak trees turned spectacular colors—everyone in town said it was the best leaf-peeping season they’d ever seen. But as a weary and lonely Nate tended to his chores, the spectacular autumn display meant nothing to him. Over the past year, he’d trained his mind to remain blank; he’d run out of thoughts that weren’t painful.

Today especially. Because today was the first anniversary of Scarlett’s great sacrifice. A Murmuration of Scarletts, she had playfully called it. But to Nate, it was the Beginning of the End.

He took his daily stroll as always, walking down the hill to the river and staring mournfully at the bridge. And as always, he turned away, to walk in the opposite direction.