Monday morning everything started like it always did. Copia rose early before the sun began painting the sky. He lingered, as he often did, holding his fiery witch close while she slept soundly for as long as he could before prying himself from the bed to change into one of his suits and cassocks. Giving Annie a kiss on her cheek, he set off for his day.

Alone was he for the next couple hours as the rest of the ministry began to stir, readying for their days and going to the refectory for breakfast, after which they would attend morning classes or other duties and chores. There would be staggered breaks for everyone to get lunch before returning to afternoon classes and chores. Annie's class was widely talked about and her current students looked forward to her class most of all. If there was practice for the band it would be at mid evening, lasting until dinner.

For the others, and the band on days there was no practice, there was a period of free time before dinner in which many would mingle and gossip if not studying or completing assignments.

After dinner the siblings would gather in the common areas until curfew where they would return to their dorms for the night until the cycle would repeat with the next morning.

Copia tried to be home most days in time for dinner, but his work seemed to double and he was kept later than he wished more often than not. He didn't fret, though. Annie spent her mornings with Lilit before preparing for her class. If Copia was unable to return for dinner she would join her sister and her ghoul before returning to their rooms where she would page through her mother's book of shadows, the tome large and thick and packed with knowledge ready to be learned. Countless spells and incantations, chants and snippets of information behind plants and herbs and stones mixed in with random thoughts like a journal. Truly a trove awaiting for someone to learn from all it had to offer. Yet as she looked, she saw no mentions of any coven. There was much to go through so she did not fret too much.

Lilit slept most of the days, leaving her bed to use the restroom or bathe or eat before returning to the sheets. Aether would stop in at least once a day to check on and channel some extra energy into her, usually giving her enough of a boost to spend an hour or two fully alert when Annie visited.

And so went the rest of the week and the next.

Mysti was finally discharged after a week and a half in the infirmary and she resumed her duties with Ace to accompany Annie during her day, helping when she could and swatting off Ace when they tried to do her tasks for her, the ghoul still worried about their friend.

Kali had been included with the chores rotation and was often with one of the others while he re-learned the lay of the ministry, quickly finding himself at home. He would check in on Annie and Lilit if he had a free moment, but he, like the others, was not told anything other than Lilit was doing well and just recovering from overuse of her powers. It made him worry more though, still being in the dark about all that was happening. Of what has happened.

Saturday morning, the 8th of June, Copia and the ghouls set off as the sun rose to perform at a Ritual in Ireland that evening. Annie spent the day in Lilits room, left behind by her own insistence to watch over her sister, and spent her day preparing overflowing baskets of herbs and flowers for drying, cleaning and going through the book of shadows once more ever in the search for any information about covens her mother had encountered. It seemed like each time she opened the book there was a new wealth of knowledge, the passages all different from the previous times she examined the book. It was driving her crazy.

"Eldfluga," Lilit said groggily, nudging Annie's side with her foot drawing the elder sister from the book.

"What is it, buggy?" Annie looked up with a smile.

"You don't have to sit here all day, you know. I'm just going to sleep," Lilit says with a wide yawn, snuggling down into her pillow. "Go have fun. Bug Kali or something. I'll be fine."

Annie sighs and closes the book, running her hand over the hard leather cover. "I could, but I'd rather be with you. Sleeping or not."

"Annie," Lilit sighs, opening her eyes and looking over until she meets Annie's. "Go. I love you but you're also smothering me. Nothing has happened in the last two weeks. Nothing will happen in the few hours I'll be sleeping. All of you are worrying over nothing."

Annie sighs and reaches down, rubbing her hand along Lilits leg. "How can you be so sure? You heard what Aether said. It's these first two months we really need to keep an eye on you and the little one."

The blonde smiles warmly and slides her hand down to rest low on her stomach, relaxing as her thumb slides over the fabric of her shirt. "It's one of those things I can't really explain. When I think about my baby, I just know everything will be okay. You know I haven't been wrong when I get one of those feelings."

Annie regards her sister carefully, relaxing a bit at her words. It was true. Every time she had a feeling of such strong certainty for events or things yet to happen, they were never wrong and Annie learned long ago to trust in them.

"Alright. I'll be by to check on you later, okay?"

Lilit hums softly, giving a slight nod as she nuzzles back into her pillow. "Annie?"

"Yes buggy?"

"You should tell Kali. You've been putting it off but he deserves to know what happened to us. I see how worried he's been, how worried all of this is making him. He's our brother and he deserves to know."

Annie sighs and nods. "Yeah. You're right. I'll tell him later. Get some rest, Lilit. If you need me you know how to reach me."

Lilit nods and shifts a bit before closing her eyes. She's asleep shortly after and Annie smiles down at her, reaching over to brush some hair from her face before standing and covering her with the blanket. A kiss to her head and Annie picks up the hefty book and heads out into the hall. Making her way down the stairs the chimes above rang out marking the hour before the bell rang out twelve times. Lunch time.

Turning down the now familiar halls she heads towards the refectory where she joins the line and grabs a salad topped with chicken and fresh berries that looked appetizing along with a small bowl of jello before turning to look around the crowded room. The usual table was quiet with only one person sitting there, and it happened to be one she was looking for.

"Hey Kako," she chirps with a smile, setting her tray down first before the book that landed with a loud 'thump' and shook the table.

"Hey Solros!" He chirps back with a wide smile of his own. "That book sounds heavier than what it looks like."

Annie nods and sits next to him, pulling her tray over. "It is. It keeps changing, too. Each time I try to read through it all the pages are different. I haven't been able to find anything that I'm looking for."

"That was Ma's, right?" Kali looks at her, taking another bite of his sandwich.

"Yeah."

"Ma was fairly powerful, yeah? Knew a lot of stuff?"

Annie nods and starts in on her salad after giving it a quick mix, replying to him with a full mouth. "Yeah. why?"

Kali rolls his eyes, setting his sandwich down to look at her. "Book heavier than it should be. Changing information. C'mon, Annie. I thought you were the smart one."

Her eyes widen when it clicks and she sets her loaded fork down. "Why didn't I think of that sooner? It makes sense. But how do I get it to show what I'm looking for?"

"That," Kali sighs after a bite. "I can't help you with. I'm just a ghoul."

"You're more than 'just' a ghoul, Kali."

"You know what I mean," he rolls his eyes and sits back in his chair as he takes a drink from his glass. "So how's our little sister doing today? Sleeping again, I assume, since you're down here."

Annie nods, finishing the last bite of her salad. She reaches over for his glass, having forgotten to get herself a drink, and takes a sip from it making a face from how bitter it tasted. "What is this?"

Kali laughs, taking his glass back and downing the rest himself. "Pomegranate and cranberry juice blend. Made it myself."

"Need to work on your recipe then. Goddess that was..." She makes another face and laughs softly.

"No one asked you to drink it," he rolls his eyes and sticks out his tongue in a playful manner before shaking his head. "So, Lilypad. How is she?"

"Tired, but doing well. Insisted I come and bug you."

Annie sighs and sits back in her chair, extending her legs under the table crossing them at her ankles. "After lunch, I need to tell you something. Are you free?"

Kali looks at her, brow quirking up behind his mask. "Yeah. What's up?"

"It's time I to-"

"E-excuse me? M-miss Annie?" A soft voice sounds from next to her and she sits up while turning, a smile on her face.

"Yes? Oh! Nancy!" Her smile widens and she stands up, reaching out to take the woman's hands. "How are you?"

"I'm a-alright. I h-hadn't seen you around lately and was wondering if everything was o-okay?"

Annie nods and gestures to the chair next to her, sitting once the other woman does with a meek smile. "I've been alright. My sister has been sick so I've been taking care of her. Is everything alright with you?"

"M-my burn. It, uh, It's b-been really hurting l-lately."

"Annie," Kali chirps as he leans over. "Who is this?"

"Right, where are my manners? Nancy, this is Kaliko. Kali, this is Nancy. One of the Karlstad survivors. I've been treating her wounds along with the others that were relocated here. Most have healed well but her burns are giving her some latent issues."

"Pleasure to meet you!" Kali says, reaching a hand over. Nancy shrinks back slightly, looking from him to Annie with nervous eyes. He catches the look and slowly pulls back with a small smile. "Sorry. I forgot most of the siblings aren't... quite as comfortable with ghouls as others."

"You can trust him, Nance. Now, what seems to be going on?"

"I-It, uh. K-keeps swelling. A-and it hurts a lot. All the time. I-I know it's, uh, p-physically healed, but I was hoping you had s-something that could help with the pain?"

Annie nods slowly, gently biting on her lower lip as she thinks. "I'll see what I can whip up. Sounds like a topical would be best, like a lotion or something similar. How does that sound?"

Nancy's face lights up and she nods. "W-whatever you think is b-best. Y-you are the resident w-witch."

"If you're done with lunch, why don't you come upstairs with me? I have all the ingredients in my quarters. Shouldn't take but a few minutes to get ready."

"Oh! I w-wouldn't want to impose," Nancy blushes lightly. "B-besides. Siblings aren't usually allowed to go into the clergy's wing unless they're c-cleaning."

"Nonsense!" Annie stands up with a smile, hefting the book into her arms. "You'll be fine with me. Kali, can you please take care of my tray? Then meet me upstairs."

"You got it, Solros."

____________________________________

"Alright, Nancy," Annie smiles at the woman, handing her a small glass jar wrapped in a washcloth. "You're going to need to let this cool and solidify before you can use it, but I want you to apply it twice a day or when it really hurts. Come find me after a week or so and tell me how it's been working, okay?"

Nancy smiles gratefully and bows her head with a soft spoken 'Thank you' before quickly leaving the room and going back to the siblings' dorms.

"Should double your class up as a workspace for you to make these kinds of things, Solros," Kali chirps with a smile from his spot on the couch. With the other woman now gone he reaches up to pull off his mask and balaclava, tossing them onto the coffee table. "It's not exactly safe to bring strangers back here."

"She's not a stranger," Annie chirps back with a shake of her head. "But you're right. I could do what mom did, make remedies for the siblings. Goddess knows my poultice worked better on Mysti than whatever those doctors were doing."

"I'm glad she's finally recovered...."

Annie looks over seeing his shoulders slumped and head down, sighing lightly before grabbing the closest object - a small lump of fresh beeswax - and throwing it at him. It smacks against the back of his head before bouncing off, landing with a clatter in the floor.

"Oy!" He reaches up to hold his head, turning to face her. "It's not nice to throw things."

"Would've tugged your hair if I was closer," she laughs, turning back to finish cleaning up the area. "You're getting in your head again about it. She's forgiven you. You should forgive yourself."

Kali stands up and rounds the couch, picking up the beeswax on his way to stand next to her. "It's not that easy. I've loved being with you again, but I still think I should've been sent to the pits for what I did. Misunderstanding or not."

Annie holds the edge of the counter and sighs lightly, letting her eyes fall closed as she lowers her head and whispers. "If you should be sent to the pits then I should be sent away from here for what I've done, for what I've brought with me when we escaped."

"What are you talking about?"

"Since I've been here, things keep happening," she sighs lightly. "I almost killed Copia when I first woke up. Last month, before you got here, I lost control of my powers. Hurt my friends. Knocked out all of the ghouls, and I do mean all of them. Hell, last week I threatened to skin Mountain after I slapped the shit out of him."

Annie bites at her lip and squeezes her lids closed tighter. "I've caused so many problems just by being here. So much stress, and worry. And I'm scared that if I stay, someone I love could get very, very hurt if not killed. They already have gotten hurt because of me...trying to protect me. And I'm not talking about what you did."

"Then, what are you talking about?" The ghoul steps closer, worry etched deeply on his face and he reaches out to rest his hand on her back, the action causing her to flinch away and turn to face him. He sees her eyes widen with a flash of pain and fear before she quickly turns them away.

"It's time you know what happened to us, Kali. How we ended up here."

And so she tells him. She tells him about the night they were taken, about the mob and the dogs. She tells him, briefly, of the torture she endured at their hands, how she took it all to protect Lilit. Tears cloud his vision when she turns and lifts her shirt, showing him her mangled back. She tells him about the pyre as she lifts her skirt next to show the extent of the burns, covering her legs from her feet to her thighs, even reaching as high as her hip in a couple places. He pales seeing them in their entirety.

"I don't remember what happened after I started to burn. Somehow, we ended up here. Copia, he and a few of the ghouls found us in the woods by the Leshy statue. They brought us back, cared for us. Dew and Aether, they did what they could for my legs and they're not nearly as bad as they were when we were found. I woke up about three weeks later.

"Copia, he had his cassock on," Annie laughs nervously, shaking her head with a small smile, leaning back against the counter with her arms crossed lightly over her chest. "I thought he was one of them and almost killed him."

"It's a good thing you didn't. He's a good man."

Annie nods and smiles. "He is. He's been so patient with me, too."

"What exactly...is going on with you two?" Kali asks hesitantly. "Like, how did that start?"

"It's hard to explain. From the start we've had this... this connection. A bond that we both feel always reaching out to each other."

Kali nods and leans against the island, crossing his own arms after wiping at his eyes. "You said things keep happening? What things?"

Annie looks to make sure the counter is clear behind her before she hefts herself up to sit on its surface, resting her arms on her knees as she leans forward. "Well. Something attacked me in the halls. I don't know what it was, or how I got back here. I vaguely saw... someone I recognized coming to my aid before I passed out. Someone else cast a blood hex that would've killed me if it wasn't for Copia. Then there was the whole me losing control that one day. I have no memory of it.

"Then at the Ritual in Ohio... I saw them. Saw him..."

"Him?"

"Zachari. Ace went after them, so did Dew and Swiss. Ace and Swiss got hurt."

Annie chews at her lip and sighs. "There's been an ongoing issue with one of the other Cardinals as well. Thomas. He...he has some kind of grudge or vendetta against us. He's been trying to get us sent away, using any little thing in his arguments as to why we are too dangerous to stay here."

Kali growls and makes a face. "That slimeball is still here?"

"Slimeball?" Annie laughs softly.

"That man should never have been made a Cardinal. Not after what he did."

Annie looks at the ghoul with confusion, leaning back while crossing her arms again. "What are you talking about?"

Kali reaches up to rub his forehead before pinching the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "He has no regard for consent. Has gone against the teachings of free will. Years ago - and mind you I've only heard this second hand through both before and after I was reassigned, but I heard it from enough trusted people it's more than just gossip - he was known for forcing himself on the sisters. One of them ended up pregnant and when she refused to abort it he fixed it so she was excommunicated and forced out of the Ministry. Though truth be told I think that was best for her. That man would not be a good father.

"The thing you've got to know about Thomas is he is vile and cruel and will do whatever he can to obtain and keep power. He thrives on it. Anyone or anything that has more power than him he despises. Sees it as a threat."

"So why is he okay with ghouls? Ghouls are more powerful than humans."

"Ghouls are bound to serve. We're below him, thus he remains the one in power."

Annie nods, raking over the new information. "That explains what happened at Beltaine."

"What are you talking about?" Kali lowers his hand and looks at her with narrowed eyes.

"He...he pulled me aside after the Maypole. Pinned me against a tree. Asked me my motives for being here and then tried to make advances and kiss me. I knocked him back with my powers and the others phazed over and guarded me. He's been trying to get rid of us since."

"Want me to trip him on one of his strolls through the garden and make the earth swallow him up?" Kali laughs with a wink. Annie shakes her head, a soft smile on her face.

"Nah. Besides, Dew already claimed dibs on eating him if he touched me again."

"Eww. Who would want to eat that?"

Annie laughs loudly then, her smile widening. "Swiss said something similar. 'Do you want to get sick? Because eating vile trash like that will make you sick.' "

Kali joins her laughter, his eyes scrunching closed from his wide smile.

"I'm glad that the guys are the same as always. I forgot how much I missed it here."

"I..." Annie sighs as her smile falls. "Kali?"

"Yeah?"

"Why were you sent away?"

The ghoul looks at her with a sad expression before turning his eyes away. Annie continues when he doesn't answer. "When...when we were talking after the misunderstanding, you said that you deserved to be sent to the pits, that they were lenient the last time you raged. What did you mean?"

Kali is quiet for a long moment, opening and closing his mouth as though he was having trouble finding the right words. Finally, he sighs, running his fingers through his hair.

"As you know, I grew up here," he says slowly. "Lived here from the time I was born until I was reassigned. I was here when Copia moved back from Italy. I was here when he summoned his ghouls. Aether was first, summoned years prior when he was still only a priest. When he was here he summoned Mountain, Cumulus and Swiss. Rain was next. From the time he started opening up to others outside of his pack, we were friends. We grew close and...eventually became romantically involved once I was old enough. We were each other's firsts.

"We were together as a couple for a couple years at this point. We were in love, everything was so good. He got me, I got him. We were inseparable. Then about seventeen years ago..." He sighs and takes a deep shaky breath. "Everything was good. Then one day, something exploded in me. I suddenly remembered what...what I thought Ma had done. And something in me snapped. And my Rainbow... H-he w-was.. He w-was t-the first to come across m-me. We started arguing. W-we never argued. A-a-and I... I lost c-control. T-the years of r-rage and h-h-hurt that... that was a-always th-there but locked away t-took over and I...I..."

Large tears spilled over his cheeks as his face crumpled in pain at the memory, his body shaking with harsh sobs as he wrapped his arms tightly around his chest and curled in on himself. "I almost k-k-killed h-him, Annie. M-my Rain w-w-who c-couldn't even h-hurt a fly..."

Annie jumps off the counter and goes to him, pulling him into her arms. His forehead rests on her shoulder, arms tight around her waist as he cries. His whole body trembles and shudders with his sobs, her hand rising to smooth over his hair as she comforts him.

"H-his blood w-w-was all over m-me. I-it t-t-took f-five ghouls t-to p-pull me off of h-h-him. I... I h-have r-r-regretted it e-every d-d-day s-since. L-lived w-with the guilt. I s-should h-h-have been sent t-to the pits f-for it."

Annie holds him tighter, pressing her cheek against the side of his head as she tries to console him. It takes some time before his sobbing slows but she continues to hold him, her own cheeks wet with tears. He sniffles and loosens his hold on her but doesn't pull away, leaning more against her.

"Copia was the only one to defend me," he eventually says, calmed down enough he no longer stuttered. "Said that...that I was too valuable a ghoul to banish, so he arranged it for me to be sent away to another abbey. I was kept under supervision, of course. But I never had another outburst like that. Never felt such intense consuming rage. I thought about home, about Rain all the time. No one ever told me if he survived, but I figured he must have since they never came after me. I've wanted to see and tell him for years how sorry I was. To beg his forgiveness, but I wasn't allowed back. Not until now. And the first thing I do? I attack you. I attack them. I attacked him again... He must truly hate me now. I don't know how he can stand to be in the same room as me."

"Kali," Annie whispers as she pulls back, her hand on his cheek to draw his gaze to her. "Rain... He's not like that. I don't think he could hate someone, especially for that long. Maybe if you talk to him?"

"I want to, but I'm scared." Kali closes his eyes again and sighs. "Besides, while the others have been accepting of me at your behest they never leave him alone, nor do I think they will ever leave him alone with me. I don't blame them."

Annie sighs and leans over to kiss his cheek before resting her forehead against his. "Give them time. They'll see that you're the same Kali as before. The same loveable, thoughtful, amazing ghoul that I know you are."

"Am I, though?"

"Yeah," she smiles at him, reaching her hand up to stroke his cheek. "You are. Never doubt that."

"You're too pure of a person, Annie. You believe the best in just about everyone. I'm worried that's going to bite you in the ass someday."

"Eh," she shrugs. "I'll deal with that if it happens. Now. Do you feel better? What can your little sister do to cheer you up, hmm?"

Kali gives her a smile and stands tall once more, wiping at his face to brush away his remaining tears. "Do...do you know how to make Ma's dumplings?"

"Seriously? Is that even a question?"

He shrugs and sticks his tongue out at her. "Could...you make those tonight?"

Annie nods, turning to finish cleaning up the counters. "Yeah. I'm sure vorblóm could use the pick me up, too."

Kali steps over to help her, taking the pot and bowl she used to the sink to wash them out, dry them, and finally put them away.

"So...You gonna tell me what's really going on with her?"

Annie stays quiet, grabbing her jars of dried herbs and walking them back to the built in bookshelf Copia had cleared for her books and herbs. Kali watches her, a frown on his face.

"I'm not stupid, Annie. I know there's something going on. Is our sister okay? Truly?"

"I can't tell you."

"Can't? Or won't?"

Annie lets out a sharp exhale of a sigh, rubbing her forehead as she turns to face him. "I.. It's not my place. Just know she's okay. That she'll be fine."

Kali sighs again before giving a slight nod. "Alright."

"I'm sorry, Kali."

"It's fine, Solros. I trust you. So!" He claps his hands together, a wide smile appearing on his face. "What do you say we try and figure out Ma's book?"

Annie laughs softly and nods, going over to where she had set it down on the table, her brows furrowed with confusion. The book looked different somehow, but she couldn't quite place it. The book was always changing inside, yes, but the cover had always remained fairly the same. Now it looked like there was something etched along with the runes that were already there, blending in with them in a weird pattern that she couldn't make out.

"Kali, you said you think Ma enchanted this book, and that makes sense, but do you think she could have etched hints on the cover?"

The ghoul walks over and looks over her shoulder as he cocks his head to the side. "Honestly, I don't know. Maybe? You're the resident witch."

Annie sighs softly. "Just because I'm a witch doesn't mean I know everything. Ma never taught you runes by chance, did she?"

He shakes his head, leaning down to get a closer look at them. "No, but I do know this one. It's upside down, though."

"What one?"

"This one," he reaches out to point to one on the left side of the cover. "It means health, if it was right side up. Wait a second... This one here. That's upside down too. Courage. Why would Ma put these upside down?"

"I have no Idea. Do you recognize any others?" She turns her head to look at him.

"No. Sorry, sis."

Annie shrugs and sighs. "It's fine. So how do you think I find what it is I'm looking for?"

"My first thought would be with blood, but that's just because a lot of our spells and incantations require it."

"Then you have a lot to learn about witches," Annie laughs before sighing. She reaches out and places her palm flat on the cover and closes her eyes. She cleared her mind, trying to think of how to get the information she needed when a phrase popped into her head. She wasn't sure why, or where it was from, but something compelled her to say it.

"Zamran de ol."

Her hair flared up a moment, a low thrum coming from the book before the cover flew open, the pages flipping until they stop, the passages inside swirling and forming new paragraphs and sentences along with a roughly drawn map with markings on it.

"Unholy shit... How'd you do that?"

"I... I don't know. But look!" She points to the runic writing labeling the page.

ᚳᚩᚢᛖᚾᛋ᛬

ᛒᛚᚫᚳ᛫ᚳᚱᚩᚹᛋ
ᛞᚱᚢᛞᛁᚳ
ᚩᚱᛁᚫᚾᛋ
ᚻᛖᛗᛚᚩᚳ᛫ᛋᚻᚫᛞᛖ
ᛏᚹᛁᛚᛁᚷᚻᛏ᛫ᛗᛖᚫᛞᚩᚹ

"We've got them. Kali, get me some paper from the desk in the corner. I need to write this down."

He nods and jogs across the room, rummaging through the drawers until he pulls out a notepad and pen. Annie smiles and takes them from him when he returns, quickly writing down the coven names along with where it looked like they were from based on the map. She scans the pages again, looking for any other important information before writing it down as well.

"Drudic... I.. I think that's where Viktor was from."

"Who?"

"Lilit's father."

Kali nods and looks over the page again, not making any sense of the symbols written. "You can read that gibberish?"

Annie laughs and nods, doing one final look over the pages before closing the book, rubbing her hand when she pulls it away from the cover. "Yeah. Ma taught me. I can teach you, too. If you'd like."

He laughs softly and nudges into her. "I haven't had to take a class in years. What if I'm a terrible student?"

"You? Terrible? Nah," Annie laughs again. "Besides, I can just zap you if you start slacking off."

"Ha! Based on Dews reaction to them I don't think that would work on me. Besides, I'm part earth ghoul. Electricity doesn't exactly work on me."

"Wanna bet?" She lifts her hands and wiggles her fingers, raising her brow in challenge.

"What's the wager, little sister?" He smirks to her, leaning over with a playful glint in his eye.

"If i can knock you on your ass, you need to wear a dress of my choosing for an entire day, complete with makeup."

Kali laughs loudly and holds out his hand to her. "Fine, but if this does nothing then you need to make me whatever dessert I ask for for a week."

"Deal."

Annie takes his hand, smirking as she whispers 'sterkur neisti'. His face twists, jaw clenching and eyes rolling up as his body seizes and trembles harshly before his legs buckle and he falls to the floor. Annie leans over him, hands on her hips with a wide smile on her face as he pants lightly.

"You were saying?"

"That you're badass and I love you?" He laughs with a smile, laying his head back on the floor as he groans lightly. "You win. Just nothing pink. It clashes with my hair."