CHAPTER TWENTY.
The Island Witches.

            IVY.

            Had anyone told me that not only would the plane crash on the way to Nationals, but I would also finding myself tending to Lennon Sawyer's wounds days later, I would have told them they were fucking crazy. Because of course they would be. What were the chances of two soccer teams from Coral Bay crashing into the wilderness over a decade apart? It should have been impossible—it should never have happened. I was supposed to be beating the Coral Bay Pirates at Nationals and rubbing it in Lennon's face, not fucking coddling her in the middle of nowhere like she was a baby.

                   Lennon had passed out not long after pointing out the First Aid kit and I would be lying if I said I hadn't panicked. Because I did. The way her eyes rolled into the back of her head before closing almost gave me a fucking heart attack. But after putting my ear to her chest, I could hear her heartbeat—along with her shallow breathing. I knew that she had hit her head, and that she had been bleeding, but she had been pushing through regardless which had led me to believe that she wasn't as badly injured as she could have been. But obviously I was wrong.

                    When she had passed out, I had pulled her body forward, leaning her against me to part her hair torn the middle, revealing the large gash at the back of her head. Despite there being needles and thread in the First Aid kit, I didn't think I had the experience to stitch it up. Hattie, however, could probably do a decent job—or anyone with decent sewing skills. Which I didn't have.

                 So, I had resulted in using the medical glue I managed to find. I tried to separate her hair the best I could, but it was thick and ever-flowing, which made it difficult. But once I could see the wound more properly, I had cleaned it out with a bottle of steriliser and then applied the glue along the line of the cut, hoping it would at least band it together decently enough that it wouldn't be a problem.

                 Once I was done, I examined my work. It wasn't totally fucked up—it seemed to be holding the skin together well enough and there was no more blood leaking from it.

               I sat back against the tree beside her, letting a heavy sigh fall from my lips, "You're welcome, Princess." I had whispered under my breath, a small chuckle escaping my mouth before I closed my eyes, listening to the sound of the forest around me.

                  I had always found the outdoors calming—which was why I had loved being a part of the Cadets so much, even though it was something my dad had talked me into when I was younger. Dad had always wanted a boy, and it had showed in the way he raised me.

              The moment mom was out of the picture, the cute pigtails with ribbons disappeared and my hair was left wild. Long gone we're the frilly dresses, replaced by soccer strips. Most of the times I despised my dad, not for any particular reason other than the fact he was a total fucking loser who hadn't done a single thing with his life, but I was at least grateful for everything he had taught me. How to light a fire, how to catch fish, the way of the land—all that shit I never thought I would have to use in my life. But now I relied on it.

                    The forest was calm, almost completely still. Long gone was the thunder clouds that seemed to have passed right over us. I found myself slowly opening my eyes, turning my head to face the symbol engraved on the tree Lennon had pointed out. She had gone borderline hysterical when she had noticed it—and I didn't know why. She was crying and yelling, getting angry at me for not knowing what it was. But it just looked like some stupid symbol to me, perhaps something left behind by those that used to inhabit the island long before us. But it was like it had meant something to her. And then she passed the fuck out.

                   I titled my head to look at her. She looked so peaceful with her head tipped back, golden hair blowing in the soft breeze. I hated how pretty she was—I hated her. It wasn't a lie that usually, Lennon would be my type from head-to-toe, but there was something about her I had never liked. Maybe it was my own bitterness over the life she lived. I had been raised in a trailer-park, with a dead-beat dad after my mom left us. I had struggled to make friends, since I got angry too easily and typically scared them away—but Lennon, she was the total fucking opposite.

                   She was sunshine. She was kind to people, always offering a smile to those that deserved it and even those that didn't. And I didn't believe that kind of kindness existed—it couldn't, not when the world was so cruel. Which meant it had to be fake. People like her didn't exist. Even when she could be cut-throat with her words, that seemed to only be a defence mechanism, because otherwise, she was fucking perfect. And it was infuriating.

                   I sat beside Lennon for what felt like hours, just listening to the sound of birds hollering into the air and crickets humming in the tall grass. I was just beginning to doze off when Lennon's body lurched forward as she woke abruptly from her sleep, "Whoa, chill out, Princess," I said, turning myself to grab onto her shoulders, steadying her as she swallowed in air, her eyes wide. I gave her a shake. "I managed to close off your wound for now, so you should be okay. But for a minute there, I was starting to think you weren't gonna wake up." I said as she breathed in and out before turning to face me.

                     "Sorry to disappoint." She grumbled, using the tree to pull herself up and get out of my grip.

                   I blinked back slightly, "I don't like you, Lennon—but I don't want you fucking dead," I said with a chuckle, standing to my feet and rubbing the back of my warm neck. "Everyone would lose their shit if you died, and then it would be all 'fuck you, Ivy for letting the Princess die' and honestly, that would be a real pain in the ass." I mocked, putting on a higher voice.

                  Lennon scoffed, but she didn't say anything else. Her hand reached up, softly touching the back of her head where her wound was. She winced slightly and then looked towards me, "Thanks for that." She said, giving me a small nod, a soft smile working it's way onto her lips.

                     I shrugged, "Like I said, it would've been a pain in the ass if you died." I carelessly told her, turning away so that I didn't have to witness her smile for a moment longer.

                      Silence washed over us and it wasn't until I could hear Lennon's feet shuffling that I turned back to face her. She was standing in front of the tree, tracing her fingertips over the symbol engraved on the wood. Her gaze was locked, looking in deep thought and I watched as the gears practically turned in her mind. I wondered what she was thinking about—what was going on in her head. She had been borderline hysterical when she had first caught a glimpse of the symbol, and I couldn't figure out why.

                   "What is it with you and that symbol?" I spoke up, growing agitated with the not knowing.

                 Lennon hesitated for a moment before speaking, "I know it..." was all she said, continuing to trace the shape of the symbol with her blood and dirt stained fingers.

                  I stepped towards her, "Like from a book or something?" I pushed, stepping in line with her.

                   "No, not from a book—well, not really. My moms journal," She told me, speaking without sparing me a glance. "I read my moms journals after she died. I guess I just wanted to be close to her. But this symbol... it was all over her journals. She called it the symbol of the Island Witches—also known as, the Coral Bay Pirates of '98." I blinked, trying to soak up the information she was telling me.

                  It didn't make sense to me. How could her mom have known about a symbol on a tree on the middle of fucking nowhere? I knew all about the Coral Bay Pirates of '98, everyone did. The tabloids had given them the name of the Island Witches, after they speculated the soccer team had used witchcraft after the crash. There were also rumours of cannibalism. Which was ridiculous and so nineties.

                "My moms journals were a mess, they never quite made sense, especially the ones from her teenage years after the crash. But she did write about some of the things that happened to her on that island—and this symbol was always scribbled in the margins," She continued saying before turning to face me. Her lips parted as she tried to speak, struggling with the next words to come out of her lips. "Ivy, I think it's the same island. I think we're on the same island my mom was—where the Island Witches were." I stared at her blankly, trying to process what she was saying.

                 I was beginning to question Lennon's sanity—maybe the nice girl thing was just an act, but not because she wasn't nice, but because she was fucking insane. How could something like that even be possible? Coincidences were one thing. Us ending up on the same island as the Coral Bay Pirates of '98 was another thing entirely.

                 I found myself laughing in disbelief, "You're joking, right?"

                 "No, I'm not joking!" Lennon exclaimed, her hand bunching into a fist which she waved at me. "How else would you explain it? How this symbols here and—"

                   "Maybe it's just a popular symbol! It doesn't have to be that fucking deep, Lennon!" I yelled back at her, refusing to believe that she could be right about what she was saying. Lennon Sawyer was insane—I had made up my mind on the matter.

                    Lennon shook her head, "In my moms journals, I read about what happened on the island. It was hard to understand but one thing I managed to figure out was that everyone had been right—they did use witchcraft. At first, it was just a way to make them feel better and to pass the time, but after a while, things started going in their favour after they performed rituals. Game would walk right into their camp, injuries that shouldn't have been able to heal did, they found things that helped them survive... One thing my mom was sure of, was that the island demanded blood. She said that without the offerings, the island would reject them. But when they gave in and gave it what it wanted—it rewarded them."

                       "And this symbol," She pointed at the tree. "They called it the symbol of the Goddess. They didn't see the island as a hunk of land, but as a living being—as a God. And they did everything in their power to be in its favour. They used this symbol in their rituals, Ivy—this symbol." She said, jabbing her thumb towards the engraving in the tree.

                    I stared at her, my jaw loose. And then I threw my hands up, "You're nuts!" I exclaimed, walking away from her.

                   I could hear her chasing after me, "Maybe I am! But can you think of any other explanation?" Her words made me stop to look at her. Because no, I couldn't. It didn't make any sense, but that didn't mean what she was saying did either. Nothing made fucking sense; not anymore.

                    She threw her hands up, "I mean, really, Ivy—just think about it. Don't you think this place feels weird? Like somethings always watching us, like something is—"

                     "I don't fucking know, Lennon!" I yelled at her. I threw my hand out towards her. "All I know is that you're acting insane right now! I think you might have hit your head a little bit too hard—"

                   Lennon laughed in disbelief over me, "You know what? Fuck this," She grumbled before turning her back on me, storming off ahead, kicking up dirt as she went. She then stopped for a moment when I didn't make a move to follow her. She sighed, turning to face me. "Actually, just don't—don't say shit about this, okay? Especially not to June. Just forget I said anything. I probably am crazy." And then she began walking ahead again, pushing through the brush to get away from me as quick as possible.

                     I stood there, rooted to the spot as I watched her to. Truthfully, I didn't know what I believed. It was insane to think that we had ended up in a situation so similar to the 98' Coral Bay Pirates, that much was true. But how were we supposed to justify that? I didn't believe in God, witchcraft or any kind of fucking magic. So, how could I possibly believe what she was saying? But yet, I couldn't deny what she had said. Yes, something had felt off from the moment we crashed and not just because we had crashed but because of the atmosphere of the island. Something about it felt wrong—like something was watching us, like something had been waiting for us.

                  But I couldn't even admit that to myself, let alone Lennon. I would chop it up to it being the craziest coincidence on the planet—some freak event that only happened once in a lifetime. Because if I was wrong and Lennon was right; that changed everything.

               AUTHORS NOTE.
  
              these chapters have been so late recently! i don't even have a good excuse this time other than i've been in a deep anime binge and haven't been on my phone much :')

             hope y'all liked this chapter!!

            — taylor xx