司氏姐妹 第23章：土氣火水

第23章 – 土氣火水

 

「情況不對，」瑪拉說道。

 

當姐妹們走近塔瑪尼巷尾，司家住宅顯得詭異的黑暗。通常法媽在家時總是燈火通明，雖然她們的房子從外面看起顯得破舊不堪。

 

「你們看！」米娜說，指著屋頂。 「閣樓上有光」。

 

這是一種奇怪的光，不象蠟燭或燈泡一樣是黃色或白色的。相反，光線是黑暗的，儘管可以肯定它是亮著的。不管什么，姐妹們一致認為， 她們的母親最有可能在那里。

 

「也許她在做某種咒術在尋找我們，」瑪麗說。

 

「請不要弄出太大的聲音，」瑪拉說。 「以防萬一。我有一個非常奇怪的預感。」她推開門，姐妹們躡手躡腳地爬上樓梯，來到閣樓，詭異的黑光從門下方的裂縫中流出。裡面，可以聽到兩個女人在輕輕地聊天。

 

「好吧，如果你想做就快做吧，」一個說。

 

「這是媽媽。」摩根小聲說。

 

「誰是另一位呢？」米娜問。

 

 「哦，不用擔心，司法媽...我會的...」 另一個聲音說：。 「不要不耐煩......畢竟......死亡只能有一次......」

 

此時，摩根推開了門，四姐妹衝進去。亨特夫人從法媽坐著的木椅邊向後退了一步，法媽仿佛被一條無形的繩索捆綁著，她轉身面對姑娘們。一圈黑色火焰把她們包圍起來。

 

「你！」摩根呸的一聲。

 

「從我們媽媽邊上滾開！」米娜喊道。「

 

「對，」瑪麗說道。「 原來是你......我簡直不敢相信。你真變態！ 你殺了自己的兒子！而讓瑪拉在所有這些時候感到有罪。」

 

瑪拉沉默不語，她綠色的眼睛對著黑色火焰閃爍著憤怒。

 

「啊......姑娘們......真是驚喜，」亨特太太說。「但請平靜下來，沒有必要這麼不禮貌。我不希望任何人受到傷害......」

 

閣樓的窗戶被一陣強風吹開，亨特夫人站著的地板也震動起來。她踉蹌了一下，試圖穩住身體，仍然倒在木桌上。黑色的火焰熄滅了，法媽用一個突然的姿勢站了起來，仿佛突然從繩子的捆綁中掙脫。一會兒蠟燭上燃起自然的光芒，她站在女兒們前面，抬起手臂保護她們。

 

「你可以做任何事來對付我，」她說。 「但是你敢對我的女兒們動一個手指，不管是瑪拉，還是其中任何一位。全鎮的人將聽到真相！」

 

亨特夫人恢復了平衡，一圈黑色火焰又圍住了司氏全家。她對著窗戶揮了揮手臂，窗戶砰的一聲關上。然後，她放下她的手，穩穩地對著地面，直到地顫停止。

 

「哦，一場多麼好的表演啊！」她說。她對米娜點點頭。「我看你也已經開始小雞學飛了，小不點。而你，」她對瑪拉說，「我最親愛的媳婦，已不再哭哭啼啼，是嗎？為什么，難道悲傷是如此短暫？還是你從一開始就不愛他呢？」

 

說完最後一句話，亨特太太彎起嘴唇，咧牙咆哮，並把她的手指向瑪拉。瑪拉的婚紗下擺飛揚起來，纏住她的脖子，勒緊了她。瑪拉跌倒在地，拚命用雙手拉扯著 纏在脖子上的布，又一陣強風吹過閣樓，吹起桌子砸向亨特太太的頭。摩根和瑪麗幫她們的姐姐拉松衣服，並幫瑪拉站起來。

 

「我當然愛他，你這個巫婆，」瑪拉說道，房子開始搖晃。「我愛他遠比你任何時候都多。我從來沒有像你這樣想擁有他！「震動把亨特夫人推向對面的牆上，而姐妹們也緊貼著這邊的牆壁，互相支撐著。

 

法媽看著瑪拉，撫摸著她的頭髮。 「親愛的，如果你不停止，我們所有的人要與這房子一起倒塌了，」她說著，抓住瑪拉的手。晃動顫抖著停了下來。亨特夫人站了起來，圍著司氏全家的黑色火焰燃燒得更高。

 

瑪麗扯了扯母親的胳膊。

 

「我們的手鐲！」摩根說，「可以暫時推遲我們的處罰時間嗎？這是一個緊急情況。」

 

法媽微笑的看著她紅頭髮的女兒，擁抱了她。 「真是很高興你回來了。是的，你是對的，讓我摘下這些手鐲。」她把手鐲輕輕地從瑪麗和摩根的手臂上褪下。當摩根的手鐲剛滑過她的手指的那一刻，明亮的紅色火圈在亨特夫人周圍燃起，對映著她們周圍的黑色火焰。瑪麗召來了一條水帶，想把周圍的黑色火焰撲滅。有一時刻，火焰噝噝作響的降退。然後，很快它們再次上升，比以前更高。

 

亨特夫人在房間的另一邊笑了起來，她的眼睛在火光照耀下透出紅光。她打了個響指，瞬間摩根的紅色火焰被她自己的黑色火焰所取代。她輕鬆地走過它們，笑著一步一步地向司氏家人逼近。

 

「聚會時用的小把戲，」亨特太太說，她的嘴唇卷縮成一個微笑。 「它們真的很不錯。我必須說，如果你們姑娘們沒有碰到這件事，它們有一天真的會非常有用...也許在馬戲團，與一個演出隊一起..真可惜...這么好，這麼漂亮的小姑娘要被浪費...你知道，我剛才告訴過你的母親，當你一直在練習你的聚會用的小把戲時，我一直在控制著整個城鎮......你根本無法與我相配......即使你們大家一起來......」

 

火焰把司氏全家周圍的空氣烤得更熱，並慢慢推進，姐妹們不得不緊緊地擠作一團。亨特夫人走向姐妹們，用她那軟軟而懶洋洋的語氣說著。 「我在想......」她說，「悲劇的火災燒光了司氏住宅...現在看起來可能太可疑......啊，但是不管怎樣，誰會來關心質疑呢...它只會讓全鎮的人放下一個巨大的包袱...是的...這不是最漂亮的方式，但是......「

 

法媽把她的女兒們靠得更緊，閉上她的眼睛快速思考著。她知道她們應該有些辦法。魔術是為了幫助善者和懲治邪惡而創，自從她是一個孩子，她已知道這點。必然有某種魔咒存在......她的手指觸摸到她手中冰冷的翡翠手鐲。即使在熱烤中，它們仍然像石頭一樣冰涼。她想到了另外兩個放在盒子里的手鐲，那兩個早些時候被亨特夫人拿起過的手鐲。是的，這些手鐲體現了魔術的法則。製造這些手鐲時，加進了魔咒，來預防女巫們可能會讓她們的權力欲－－她們控制世界的慾望－－來控制她們自己。它們的作用是馴服本性善良的人們頭腦中可能的邪惡思想，警告那些還不知道自己魔力限制的年輕女巫。那麼對那些已經成長，但仍還未學好功課，吸取教訓的老巫婆有什麼辦法呢？一定會有什么辦法去馴服她們 …法媽努力思考著－－如果她能把她的魔法經書背得滾瓜爛熟該多好啊！但它現在正躺在黑色火環另一側的地板上。

 

然後，她突然想到。是的！那個魔咒就在她用來做這些手鐲那個的後面......其實，她相信她可以利用這些手鐲 …她伸出手去拿那個放著其他兩個手鐲的盒子，盒子唆的一下透過火焰向她飛來。隨著噝噝幾響，木盒子化成灰燼，但兩只手鐲卻完整地掉落在地，當法媽撿起它們時，它們與她拿著的其他兩個一樣冰涼。

 

「土，氣，火，水，」她低聲說，在手裡轉動著手鐲。她的女兒們看著她，知道​​她在想著什麼東西，等待著她的指示。同時，黑色的火焰越燒越熱。 「土，氣，火，水，」法媽重復了一遍。她轉向她的女兒們。 「做好准備，」她說。 「當我說出你們的元素名稱時，把你們的元素加進去混合。」

 

「加進去什么？」摩根問。

 

「噓，」瑪麗說。「你看著辦吧。快點，媽媽！」她的臉泛著粉紅色。

 

法媽把4個手鐲扔向空中，它們漂浮在那裡，一個疊著一個，像是一隻厚厚的玉手銬。它們在空氣中旋轉著。亨特夫人停下腳步，好奇地看著它們。

 

「這又是什么新把戲？」她說。 「請盡量上演。我很感興趣看......」她雙臂抱肩等待著。

 

法媽站得高高的。雖然她是一個矮小女人，但她說話時似乎蓋過了亨特夫人：

 

「行使魔術的法力是大自然給予的一份禮物。魔術不屬於任何人。它屬於上天和大地。它應該只是偶爾使用，去創造，去帶來快樂和喜悅，而不是去摧殘或逼迫。像你這樣使用魔術，亨特太太，是濫用。你不配得到你所給予的，你肯定也沒有掙得它。魔術是屬於大自然的，因此，它應當被大自然收回。」

 

法媽閉上眼睛，開始背誦一首中國古詩，她的女兒們知道這首詩也是一個咒語。翡翠手鐲飄向亨特夫人的頭上，浮在那裡。

 

「土和氣，」司法媽說道，碰了碰瑪拉和米娜。窗戶被風吹開。瑪拉和米娜將目光集中在漂浮在亨特夫人上方的翡翠手鐲上。這是今晚第一次，她看上去顯得害怕。也許是因為她不明白對方在說什么。也許是因為，站在手鐲的下面，她不能動彈。泥土從窗口飛旋進來，在旋轉的手鐲周圍形成了一個旋渦。

 

「火與水，」法媽繼續說。摩根和瑪麗把她們的目光轉向了​​手鐲。一舔火焰加進了風塵的旋渦，一條水帶也旋進了混合物中。

 

「大自然的元素，」法媽說著，手鐲飛速轉動著，四種元素在亨特夫人頭上的一個小旋渦里混攪著，直到手鐲變成一個閃亮的光球而消失無蹤。

 

「拿回屬於你的東西！」法媽喊道，在一瞬間里把她的胳膊往下移動。光球快速擴張，直到包圍住亨特夫人。一聲細小的尖叫聲划破了閣樓上的空氣，黑色的火焰熄滅了。

 

法媽深深地吸了一口氣，重新舉起她的手。光球暗淡下來，隨之熄滅。亨特夫人站在閣樓的中間，似乎毫無損傷。她的頭髮稀疏垂落，她的眼睛泛著暗淡的藍光。她曾經高聳的顴骨顯得柔軟而下垂，突然之間，她看上去像是一個老太婆。即使她曾經的金發，看起來也是灰白多於金色。在她的脖子上是一個沉重的翡翠頸環。

 

亨特太太看著她的手，手上的皮膚突然變得滿是皺紋，青筋爆突。顯然她也用魔法保養著她的美容。她眨了眨她的眼睛，眼淚從眼角流出來。 「我已經老了......」她說，捂著肚子，抽泣著。

 

司法媽和司家4​​姐妹一起舒了一口氣，大家抓著對方的手，無法相信自己的眼睛。她們沉默地站著，看著面前哭泣的老婦人，直到瑪拉離開大家，小心翼翼地走向亨特夫人。她扶起那把被打翻的椅子，輕輕地扶著亨特太太的胳膊，帶她坐在椅子上。

 

「請坐，婆婆，」瑪拉說。 「現在告訴我您對我的丈夫做了什麼。」

 

 

Chapter 23： Earth, Air, Fire, Water

 

Something』s wrong,」 Mara said.

The sisters were approaching the end of Tamany Lane, where the Switch residence was eerily dark. Even though the house did look dilapidated from the outside, when Fa was home the lights were usually blazing bright.

「Look!」 said Mina, pointing towards the roof. 「There』s a light in the attic.」

It was a strange light, not yellow or white like candlelight or a lamp. Instead, the light was dark, even while it was definitely lit. Whatever it was, the sisters agreed that it was most likely where their mother was.

「Maybe she』s doing some kind of spell to find us,」 Marie said.

「Let』s not make too much noise,」 Mara said. 「Just in case. I have a really weird feeling.」 She pushed open the door, and the sisters tiptoed up the stairs to the attic, where the strange black light was flowing out from the crack underneath the door. Inside, two women could be heard softly chatting.

「Well, if you』re going to do it just get it over with,」 said one.

「That』s Mom!」 whispered Morgan.

「Who』s the other one?」 asked Mina.

「Oh don』t worry, Fa Switch…I will…」 said the other voice. 「No need to be so impatient…after all…death only comes once…」

At this, Morgan pushed open the door and the four sisters burst inside. Mrs. Hunter stepped back from where Fa was sitting on the wooden chair, as if bound by invisible ropes and turned to face the girls. A circle of black flames surrounded them.

「You!」 Morgan spat.

「Get away from our mom!」 Mina shouted.

「Yeah,」 said Marie. 「You』re…I can』t believe it. You』re sick! All this time you』ve been making Mara feel guilty and you killed your own son!」

Mara was silent, her green eyes shining with fury against the black flames. 

「Ah…girls…what a surprise,」 Mrs. Hunter said.  「Settle down though…no need to get impolite. I wouldn』t want anyone to get hurt…」

The windows in the attic blew open with strong gusts of wind, and the floor shook where Mrs. Hunter was standing. She stumbled, trying to catch herself, and fell into the wooden table. The black flames went out, and Fa stood up in a sudden gesture, as if breaking free from ropes. In a moment the candles were lit with natural light and she was standing in front of her daughters, her arms raised to protect them.

「You can do whatever you want to me,」 she said. 「But don』t you dare raise a finger to my daughters. Not Mara. Not one of them. The town will hear the truth!」

Mrs. Hunter regained her balance, casting a circle of black flames around the Switch family. She swept her arms over the windows and they slammed shut again. Then, she lowered her hands, steadying them over the ground until the trembling stopped.

「Oh, what a nice show,」 she said. She nodded towards Mina. 「I see you』ve started dabbling too, little girl. And you,」 she said to Mara, 「my dearest daughter-in-law. No longer sniveling, are you? What, is grief so transient? Or did you never love him to begin with?」

With her last words, Mrs. Hunter』s lip curled into a snarl, and she threw her hands at Mara. The skirt of Mara』s wedding gown flew up and wrapped around her neck, strangling her. As Mara fell to her knees, tugging at the cloth with her hands, another gust of wind blew through the attic, lifting the table up and throwing it against Mrs. Hunter』s head. Morgan and Marie tugged the dress loose on their older sister, and helped Mara to her feet.

「I did love him, you witch,」 Mara said, as the house started to shake. 「I loved him more than you ever did. I never wanted to own him, like you did!」 The shaking ground pushed Ms. Hunter to the wall opposite the sisters, while the sisters clung to the walls, supporting each other.

Fa looked at Mara, stroking her hair. 「The house is going to fall with all of us in it if you don』t stop, dear,」 she said. She clutched Mara』s hand. The shaking quivered and stopped. Mrs. Hunter stood up, the black flames around the Switches flaring higher.

Marie tugged on their mother』s arm.

「Our bracelets!」 Morgan said, 「Can we temporarily postpone grounding time?  I would call this an emergency.」

Fa smiled at her red-haired daughter and hugged her to her chest. 「It』s so nice to have you back. And yes, you are right, let me take those bracelets off.」 She slipped the bracelets off of Marie and Morgan』s arms. The moment Morgan』s bracelet slipped past her fingers, a bright red circle of fire lit up around Mrs. Hunter, mirroring the black flame around them. Marie conjured a streak of water to put out the own circle of black flame. For a moment, the flames sizzled. Then, they rose again, higher than they were before.

Mrs. Hunter laughed from the other side of the room, her eyes glowing red in the light. She snapped her fingers, and in an instant Morgan』s red flames were replaced by her own black flames. She stepped through them easily, laughing as she advanced towards the Switches.

「Party tricks,」 Mrs. Hunter said, her lips curling into a smile. 「They are really very nice. I must say, if you girls hadn』t gotten in the way they really would have been very useful one day…in a circus, with a performing troupe, maybe…such a pity…such nice, pretty little girls going to waste…you see, like I told your mother earlier…while you』ve been practicing your little party tricks I』ve been controlling an entire town…you are no match against me…even all together…」

The flames heated the air around the Switches, edging so that the sisters had to huddle closer together. Mrs. Hunter walked towards the sisters, speaking in her soft lolling way. 「I wonder…」 she said, 「Tragic fire burns down Switch residence…now would that look too suspicious…ah but no one would care to question anyhow…it would all just be a huge relief to the town…yes…it』s not the prettiest way, but…」

Fa gathered her daughters close together, closing her eyes and thinking fast. She knew there was something they could do. Magic was made to help the good and punish the evil, she had learned since she was a child. There must be some sort of spell…she fingered the cold jade bracelets in her hands. Even in the heat, they remained cool like stone. She thought about the other two bracelets in the box, the ones that Mrs. Hunter had picked up earlier. Yes, these bracelets were manifestations of that law. The bracelets had been forged with a spell that knew witches could let their powerlust—their desire to control the world—take control over them. They were meant to temper the evil in people who were fundamentally good, as a warning for young witches who didn』t yet know the limits of their power. And what about old witches, grown witches who had learned their lesson too late? There must be something to temper them too…Fa thought hard—if only she could read through her scroll! But it was on the floor, on the other side of the ring of black fire.

Then, it came to her. Yes! It was the spell right after the one she had used to make these bracelets…she believed she could use these bracelets in fact…she reached out her hand to the box that held the other two bracelets, and it zoomed towards her through the flames. The wooden box sizzled and turned to ash, but the two bracelets dropped neatly onto the floor, and when Fa picked them up they were as cool as the other two she held.

「Earth, air, fire, water,」 she whispered, turning the bracelets over in her hand. Her daughters looked at her, knowing that she had thought of something, waiting for their instructions. Meanwhile, the black flame burned hotter. 「Earth, air, fire, water,」 Fa repeated. She turned to her daughters. 「Get ready,」 she said. 「When I say the name of your element next, add it to the mixture.」

「Add it to what?」 asked Morgan.

「Ssh,」 said Marie. 「You』ll figure it out. Hurry, mom!」 Her face was glowing pink.

Fa tossed the four bracelets into the air, where they floated one on top of each other like a thick jade cuff. They rotated in the air.  Mrs. Hunter stopped walking and looked curiously at them.

「What trick is this, now?」 she said. 「Please, do perform it. I am so interested to see…」 She folded her arms and waited.

Fa stood tall. Though she was a small woman, she seemed to loom over Mrs. Hunter as she spoke:

「The power to perform magic is a gift given by nature. Magic does not belong to anyone. It belongs to the Heavens and the to Earth. It should be used discretely, to create, to bring pleasure and joy, not to destroy or to coerce. To use magic as you do, Mrs. Hunter, is abuse. You do not deserve what you have been given, and you certainly have not earned it. Magic is given by nature, and so it shall be taken back by nature.」

Fa closed her eyes, and started to recite a poem in Chinese, a poem that her daughters knew was also a spell. The jade bracelets moved above Mrs. Hunter』s head and floated there.

「Earth and air,」 Fa Switch said, touching Mara and Mina. The windows blew open. Mara and Mina focused their eyes on the jade bracelets floating above Mrs. Hunter. For the first time that night, she looked afraid. Perhaps it was because she could not understand what was being said. Perhaps it was because, standing underneath the bracelets, she could not move. Dirt swirled in from the window, turning in a cyclone around the rotating bracelets.

「Fire and water,」 Fa continued. Morgan and Marie turned their gazes to the bracelets. A lick of flame swirled with the dust and wind, while a streak of water twirled into the mixture.

「Elements of nature,」 Fa said as the bracelets turned quickly, the four elements mixing together in a small cyclone above Mrs. Hunter』s head until the bracelets disappeared in a glittering ball of light.

「Take back what is yours!」 Fa shouted, bring her arms down in a flash. The ball of light expanded until it surrounded Mrs. Hunter. A thin shriek pierced the attic air, and the black flames went out.

Fa breathed deeply, bringing her hands up. The light dimmed and went away. Mrs. Hunter stood in the middle of the attic, seemingly unscathed. Her hair fell limp and her eyes were dim and blue. Her once menacing cheekbones softened and sagged, and she looked, suddenly, like an old woman. Even her once blonde hair now looked more white than blonde. Around her neck was a heavy jade ring.

Mrs. Hunter looked at her hands, the skin on them suddenly wrinkled and spotted with veins. Evidently she had used magic to preserve her beauty as well. She blinked tears out of the corners of her eyes. 「I』m old…」 she said, clutching her stomach and sobbing.

Fa Switch and the four Switch sisters let out a collective breath, clutching each other』s hands, unable to believe their eyes. They stood silent, looking at the crying old woman before them, until Mara detached herself from the group and walked gingerly to Mrs. Hunter. She pulled the chair that had been knocked over up and touched Mrs. Hunter』s elbow gently, leading her to sit in the chair.

「Please sit, mother-in-law,」 Mara said. 「And tell me what you have done with my husband.」

 

• [11/25]The Switch Sisters: Chapter 20 -- The Silver Key
• [12/03]司氏姐妹 第21章：巫婆
• [12/03]The Switch Sisters: Chapter 21 - Witches
• [12/16]司氏姐妹 第22章 - 廢墟下
• [12/16]The Switch Sisters：Chapter 22 – Under the Rubble
• [12/23] 司氏姐妹 第23章：土氣火水
• [12/30]司氏姐妹： 尾聲
• [05/16]司氏姐妹Kindle版在Amazon出版

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