Third Person: Willow wasn't that good at magic yet, but she was getting there. School and learning came naturally to her, and this translated well to learning the occult, too - but the real motivation behind getting good at it was that she'd become so used to being the acknowledged straight A student, as having that as her identity, that she didn't want to accept that she could be anything less than an equivalently straight A witch.
She placed an orange candle, harvest orange not fruit orange, and sank down onto folded legs before her tiny altar. A small handful of nuts and a whole apple sat next to the candle, symbols of the fruit of the Earth. "Demeter, bless us with your bounty," she murmured, the candle wick flickering alight. "Bless us as you mourn the departure of your daughter to the underworld, for we walk in the shadow of mortality as well and need your goodwill."
That was the entire spell, more of a prayer than a spell really, but her words broke the settled hush of a waiting room. The shadows by her bed and window and book stand grew longer to Willow's eye, the night dark and crisp. She sat, waiting, for several long moments.
Then she smiled and popped a walnut into her mouth. "This is pretty good bounty if I do say so myself," she joked to no one, easily imagining Xander or Buffy there beside her.
But she was alone, and that was fine for now. The thrill of success was flushing her, making her eager to keep going. Willow shifted her weight, resettled herself, and took the now doubled amount of nuts off the table. The apple was moved into their place. "Demeter," she began. Then took a deep breath, admonishing herself to focus better before attempting a spell. "Demeter, bless us, for we walk in the shadow of mortality..."
8/8 yesssss
She placed an orange candle, harvest orange not fruit orange, and sank down onto folded legs before her tiny altar. A small handful of nuts and a whole apple sat next to the candle, symbols of the fruit of the Earth. "Demeter, bless us with your bounty," she murmured, the candle wick flickering alight. "Bless us as you mourn the departure of your daughter to the underworld, for we walk in the shadow of mortality as well and need your goodwill."
That was the entire spell, more of a prayer than a spell really, but her words broke the settled hush of a waiting room. The shadows by her bed and window and book stand grew longer to Willow's eye, the night dark and crisp. She sat, waiting, for several long moments.
Then she smiled and popped a walnut into her mouth. "This is pretty good bounty if I do say so myself," she joked to no one, easily imagining Xander or Buffy there beside her.
But she was alone, and that was fine for now. The thrill of success was flushing her, making her eager to keep going. Willow shifted her weight, resettled herself, and took the now doubled amount of nuts off the table. The apple was moved into their place. "Demeter," she began. Then took a deep breath, admonishing herself to focus better before attempting a spell. "Demeter, bless us, for we walk in the shadow of mortality..."