"Yes," I said quickly. "That's what we'd like to do."
The guys looked at me, but all of them were smart enough not to show any surprise on their faces. I knew they'd get with the program. "We thought about trying to take Ariel's, since she's the strongest creature alive, supposedly, but first we want to try Raphael's. If it works out, we might put Ariel's power in Lucifer and give it back when this is fixed."
Mary pursed her lips and walked into the kitchen. "I'm perfectly willing to help you take Raphael's powers, and feel a bit silly we haven't tried before, but I'm unsure about the child."
"Why?" I watched her make coffee and felt like a heel for not bringing her some. I could've magicked some, but at this point, it would've just drawn attention to the fact that we hadn't thought of her caffeine needs.
"We don't know what she is. She's not an angel. She's not a Nephilim. She's not a cambion or vampire or even human. Who knows if the spell would work?" Mary shook ground beans into a small coffee maker and then pushed a button before facing us. "It's dangerous."
I nodded. "Okay. I had reservations, but you're right. Let's scrap that idea for now and think of it as only a last resort."
She nodded. "I agree."
Lucifer, Michael, and Gabriel all murmured their agreements as well.
"Good," Mary said. "Let's get started."
She shuffled to the trusty microwave cart, which was already pushed to the side. It was where she'd kept Jellybean, in the magic room, as I thought of it. It was far more than one room. It was the whole apartment. "The spell is easy enough, but it takes a while," she said. "And whoever is absorbing the power must be present for it." She ran her fingers over several volumes of books on a bookshelf on the opposite side of the apartment. "Who is absorbing?"
I raised my eyebrows. "It'll have to be Lucifer. Otherwise, we'd have to split it, I think. We've never tested holding that much power. We wouldn't want to burn out."
Mary tutted. "Very true. I've seen that happen." She pulled out a couple of books. "It's in one of these. I haven't done it in a few years. And there's more than one version."
We tried to stand patiently while she shuffled. "No, that's for cosmic power."
I looked at Michael, to my left, with wide eyes. "Cosmic power?" I mouthed. I'd never heard of such a thing! Maybe it was a notion made up by the humans. If it existed, I would've heard at least a whisper of it.
Michael shrugged. I looked to my right, where Lucifer and Gabriel looked equally baffled.
Okay, then, it must've been a human thing.
"Ah," Mary said. "Here it is."
She turned as she read. "We need a piece of the person we're taking the magic from. Hair, skin, whatever, as long as it has his and only his DNA on it."
My jaw dropped. I'd never done a spell like this, but of course, we'd need a piece of Raphael.
Gabe cleared his throat. "Get the spell ready. I'll go search his quarters in Elysium. There's sure to be a hair or something."
Mary nodded absently. "Sure, sure." She murmured to herself as she read the spell. "A bit of oil, easy enough." She nodded at me. "I like to use essential oils nowadays. It makes the whole affair smell so nice."
I chuckled. "Connie was into essential oils."
Mary looked at me with her eyebrows raised. "Your human persona?"
I nodded.
Mary hummed as she continued reading. "After you warm the oil you charge it with magic then add the hair or bit of person. Add a bit of fresh rain to spread the magic into the atmosphere if you're not right beside the person. Easy, easy." Her finger traced along the page. "Say the incantation, add a pinch of Angelica Root..." She chuckled. "Since it's an angel. I've never done this variation. We've always had to use these spells on other witches."
She held the book against her chest and scurried over to a set of shelves filled with ingredients. "I've got a bit here. Should be enough, it just says a pinch. It calms the nerves. Probably makes the transition easier," she mused.
Lucifer held up one finger. "He is an Archangel. Does that make a difference?"
Mary shot him a look. "We'll make it a big pinch to be safe."
Luc nodded and looked properly chastised. I slapped his arm. "Hush. We know about using our magic, but she knows about spells. Let her do her job."
Mary grunted and looked at the bottles again. "It also calls for mugwort to boost energy. This must be a draining spell. Odd, the human variety isn't really." She found the bottle and set it on the counter underneath the shelves with the Angelica Root. "And White Sage. Of course. For the impurities." She winked at us. "I've already got a smudge stick made of White Sage."
"Of course you do," Michael said. "You're our miracle worker."
We were some of the most powerful beings in the universes, and we were at the mercy of a witch-woman from New Orleans and her spells. How had it come to this? I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of this before.
"I think we're ready, as soon as we get our bit of Raphael," she said. "Come on." Mary gathered up the ingredients and walked into her kitchen, leaving the doorway to the magic room open behind her. "We'll start warming the oil."
I watched in surprise as she turned on the gas stove eye. "On the stove?"
She chuckled. "Magic doesn't have to be mysterious and otherworldly. We're going to cook up this spell like we will cook up some gumbo for supper later."
She hummed as she stirred the oil in a pot with a plastic ladle. Just like she would soup. This was a side of magic I'd certainly never seen
