Her visits would also feature the opportunity for posed photos. Ivy Bishop—Autumn’s cousin and amateur photographer—showed up to the meeting full of ideas. She suggested that we donate all the profits of her photography to the local animal shelter. All Ivy wanted was to cover her expenses and, in the process, gain some publicity for her blossoming photography career.
Marie Rousseau was also at our meeting, and she was happy to do my makeup again. Besides being a tattoo artist, Marie did event staging and makeup effects professionally, so she was happy to donate her time and talents, after all it was good advertising for her too.
I didn’t get nervous until Marie started making noises about switching up my hair and makeup each time. Ivy jumped on the bandwagon saying she wanted to go through my wardrobe to help coordinate my outfits/costume.
After our emergency SPF (Sugarplum Fairy) meeting, as Ivy called it, reality set back in. I did my weekly grocery shopping, came back to my apartment, started the laundry and cleaned house. I enjoyed living above the shop for the past five years. The bathroom and bedroom were nicely sized, and there was even a dedicated space for a stackable washer and dryer in my hallway.
The living room/kitchen was divided by a breakfast bar, and the area rug over the old wood floors was a modern pattern of gray, black and lavender. In the living room, the gray couch had touches of my signature color on the pillows. Plus, the plain white kitchen cabinets were a good foil for the pops of purple that I’d added with accessories and dishes.
Ivy wasn’t scheduled to raid my closet until later, so I plopped down on the couch. “What in the world have I gotten myself into with four more appearances?” I wondered, surveying my little purple palace.
The remnants of the banishing spell I’d cast the night before were still on the coffee table. I’d taken advantage of the dark of the moon and scattered hydrangea blossoms around my miniature cauldron. The gray candle I’d burned to neutralize my previous spell’s effects was spent. The jingle bell Tank had gifted me with was inside the cauldron next to the candle holder. I felt confident that any unintended fascination my first spell might have caused had been safely nixed by last night’s spellwork.
With that under control, I decided that now was as good a time as any to decorate for Yule. I hauled the totes out of the tiny second bedroom that I used for an office and got to work. My little balcony overlooked Main Street and was already draped in evergreen garland and white lights.
To jazz it up a little more, I decided to add another strand of lights—in purple. I tossed my coat back on and worked the additional lights into the garland. I stood on the balcony and gauged the Main Street traffic below me. “Shoppers will be able to spot us from a block away with the addition of the purple lights.” I shivered in the cold wind, let myself back in the sliding door and got to work on the rest of my decorations.
Tank sat on top of the totes, flipping his tail. I patted him on the head and began the set-up of my own apartment-sized tree, strategically placing the four foot artificial evergreen on top of a tall round table in my living room.
I sang along with the holiday music that was playing on the radio, ignored the cold front that was roaring through town, and decorated. The artificial garlands were fluffed up and added over my windows. I plugged the garlands in, and the tiny white lights beat back the dark. My Yuletide accessories were placed around the apartment, and I was finishing up the final touches on my own tree as Ivy arrived. I opened the door to a gust of wind that had me shivering.
“Hi ya, Vi.” She gave me a one-armed hug.
“Hey Ivy.” I shut the door behind my favorite Gothic girl.
“That’s a cool tree!” Ivy went for a closer inspection.
“Thanks.” I bent, plugged the tree lights into a timer and plugged it in.
“I like the purple and white ornaments.” Ivy ran a finger over a poufy sheer bow I used as a tree topper.
Tank came barreling out to see who had arrived. He ran to Ivy, head butted her leg, and made her chuckle.
“Hey big guy.” Ivy patted the cat on the head.
“I was thinking about making some hot chocolate,” I said, snapping the lid shut on the tote that had held all the ornaments. “Do you want some?”
“That does sound good.” Ivy draped her black Peacoat over a chair and revealed her Nightmare Before Christmas sweater.
I carted the totes back to the second bedroom and went to the kitchen. While I started the cocoa, Ivy sat on a barstool and filled me in on the latest gossip.
“Did you hear that Leilah Drake Martin is moving out of town with her mother over holiday break?”
I set two mugs on the counter. “Really?”
“Yeah.” Ivy smiled. “She failed a bunch of classes this semester, and word is that old man Drake has finally had enough of his daughter’s drama—and cut her off without a cent.”
“That would be a good thing for Autumn and Duncan.” I dropped a few marshmallows in the mugs. “I admit I was worried about her conjuring up all sorts of trouble for them with the wedding.”
Ivy nodded. “I know Leilah is Duncan’s cousin, but I’m not afraid to say that I want that bitch gone and out of William’s Ford.”
“Agreed,” I said. “We don’t need that sort of magickal chaos in town.”
“What’s with the banishing spell?” Ivy tilted her head towards the spell components still on the coffee
