I'm sitting in my mom's office, looking outside the window. I can see the administrative building from here. In front of it, Nara and Jenny are talking to .

Luther is an old man. He sells herbs, as you can tell from his tri-wheel cart that's brimming with small brown paper parcels of dried herbs. He has been doing this since long before I was born, maybe even before my mother was born.

"Cassandra," mom says, trying to get my attention back to her.

She has been filling me in on her plan of action regarding Philip. She has redirected the witches sent to the wolf packs to look for him and is going to later consult with other elders to figure out what else can be done.

"Did you hear me?" she says.

I nod. "Sounds like a good plan. What about me though?"

"What about you?"

"What do I do?"

"For now, you're staying here with me. We can–"

"Mom," I say, cutting her off. "I need to be out there looking for him. We need to find him before the werewolves do. They won't let him live."

My mother shakes her head. "You're not going anywhere near him."

"He is my brother!" I tell her, angrily.

It's one thing for my mother to worry about others regarding my brother, but I am his sister. There's no way in the world he would hurt me.

"He's not the brother you once knew, Cassandra. He's not that boy anymore."

I look back out the window, resisting the urge to disagree with her. It's a conversation we've had a million times before.

When my brother left, I was angry at my mother. In spite of hearing all the things he did that made my mom kick him out, all I could remember was how good he was to me.

He was my best friend. He played with me. He protected me. He taught me spells. And then one day, he was gone. Just like that.

However, growing up, I realized my mother did the right thing under the circumstances. He was hurting everyone, and he was going to do worse.

But it seems my mother's solution wasn't as effective as we thought it would be. I have a feeling my brother will end his exile soon.

I get up and walk towards the door. Ignoring my mother's call to sit back down, I leave her office. I don't want to fight her.

Outside, I go to where Nara, Jenny and Luther are.

Luther shouts, "Cassandra! Been long since I last saw you."

He's one of the few people in my coven who calls me by my first name. Usually, I go by Ms. Winston or Zara'fu.

Zara'fu means next in line in the old language of witches. The word is used to address the next chief of the coven. The current chief of the coven is addressed as Zara'ye.

Except for a few witches and wizards, mostly elders, nobody knows the old language. It's obsolete. But some words survived the times.

"I know," I say. "Was out of town. But I'm back now. Did you hear about Philip?"

Luther nods. "I know he's your brother, Cassandra, but I'm still going to say this: That boy has always been bad news."

I agree with him, understandingly. "I need your help finding him."

"Anything I can do."

"Can you tell me the names of all the canibaliscilis suppliers in the country?"

Canibaliscilis is a genetically modified herb that can subdue rogue animals – from dragons to chimeras... to rogue werewolves. With the number of rogues my brother managed to curse, he must've found a way to subdue them first so he could cast his spell, and canibaliscilis will work like a charm.

It's not a rare herb, but it's not common either. There should only be a handful of manufacturers in the country, and even fewer dealers and suppliers. And when it comes to herb business, Luther knows everyone.

"There's only one name you've to know," Luther says. "Your brother even used to be close to him when he was younger. Moe. He's your man."

————

Nara, Jenny, and I teleport to the Ruemis market. The market exists in another dimension, a safe space away from humans and other creatures. Easy for the witches to come and leave.

You can find pretty much anything in here, any ingredient you might want. It's all here. You just have to look at the right place.

And I know every nook and cranny of this market. Growing up, I used to experiment a lot. My friends and I came here almost every week to pick something up.

We walk for about twenty minutes, crossing crowded streets and taking precarious turns where the empty crates are stacked up.

It's organized mayhem in here. Street vendors selling cheap and mostly fake herbs. Huge shops selling animal parts in wholesale. Cages displaying the goods, small magical creatures. Butcher shops right near witches' boutiques.

I always find this market both disgusting and enticing at the same time.

We reach the alley I was looking for. In there is a derelict shop that does nothing to welcome people in. Most shops have some sort of attraction or hawkers trying to lure in passersby.

This one doesn't need any. Canibaliscilis is not something everyone buys and those who need it know exactly where to come.

I tap on the door. A stubby man opens it. "It's your Zara'fu, I'm here to see Mannis Moe."

––––

After my talk with Mannis, I drop Nara and Jenny at home and take my car to a private meeting with the chief of another coven.

Mannis wasn't very useful. He did confirm that someone recently bought a large amount of that herb from him, but from his description of the buyer, the buyer could be any random young guy.

However, I did cast a detector spell in Mannis's shop in case Philip or anyone who has been in contact with Philip visits that place. I'll know immediately if that happens.

By the time I'm near my coven's land, returning from the meeting, it's late at night.

I see a figure appear in midst of the headlight, causing me to brake suddenly. I jolt to the front and back, almost breaking my shoulder.

Once I'm over the initial shock I look at the guy who I almost crashed into.

Philip.

Hurriedly, I unbuckle my seatbelt and rush out of the car. I run towards him but stop a few feet away, unsure whether to hug him or not.

It took me a second to recognize him through the windshield. He has grown a lot. He has become taller, wider, and has a thick stubble. It's his grey eyes that gave him away. If it weren't for those I wouldn't have recognized my own brother.

He smiles at me, the gentle smile I've seen a lot of times before, but not for a long time.

My eyes tear up.

"You've grown so much," Philip says, and I realize it's not just his appearance but his voice has changed, too. He doesn't sound like a boy. He sounds like a grown man. Which I suppose, he is now.

Unable to stay away anymore, I cover the distance between us. He opens his arms in time for me to wrap my hands around him. "I missed you," I tell him.

He hugs me back. "I missed you, too, Cassie. Don't worry, I won't leave you alone again."

At that, I break away from our embrace. "Philip, what've you done? What are you trying to do now?"

"I'm doing what our mother should've done a long time ago."

"Philip, please! Stop this. Let it go! Just come back home."

He gently strokes my head. "You're too young to understand this, but I'm doing this for you, too. You deserve a world where we rule above everyone else."

"No, Philip. This is wrong! You ca–"

"I told you, Cassie. You're too young to understand."

"I'm not a child anymore, Philip! You just said so yourself: I've grown. You're wrong, and if you don't stop, they'll hurt you! The werewolves and witches are looking everywhere for you!"

"You think your brother is that weak that I'd let them catch me? That hurts, Cassie," he says with a fake expression of hurt.

"I'm serious, Philip. Please come back home."

"Why else you think I'm here? It's time I return to take what's rightfully mine," he says in a serious tone.

I take a few steps away from my brother in shock. That's when I notice the men at our sides standing nearby the trees.

"Wh- What are you thinking? Why are you here?"

"I told you why I'm here," he calmly says.

"You can't!" I shout at him. "You can't do this to ma!"

"It's time she steps down from her position, Cassie. I'll be your new chief."

"No! You can't challenge, mom! You can't do this to her! It'll destroy her! Please, Philip. She loves you very much. Please don't do this to her."

He smirks. "If she'd loved me she wouldn't have so brutally kicked me out."

"You left her no choice. She has not been the same since that day. It hurt her more than it hurt you."

Philip shakes his head. "Nothing can change my mind, Cassie. Don't worry, I won't hurt her, but I will take the title from her. In time, you'll know it was for the best."

I wipe away my tears and laugh bitterly. "You've been away too long, Philip. Way too long. You don't have the right to challenge her."

"I'm still the rightful heir, Cassie. Even after she kicked me out, I still have the right to challenge her."

"Oh, I'm not saying you don't have the right to challenge. Just that you won't be able to challenge her."

Confused, he asks, "What do you mean?"

"The title of the next chief is not hers to give away. She's already made me the Zara'fu."

Philip looks shocked. I was right, he really has been away far too long.

He grabs me and says, "Why would she do that? You're too young to be a Zara'fu."

I laugh again. "You know it's funny how you keep repeating I'm still young." I stop laughing. "You left me to grow alone, and now you're back acting like this? Get this in your head: I am going to be the next chief of our coven, and if you want that title then feel free to challenge me anytime you want."

He shakes his head and then shakes me. He speaks through his teeth, "No. I'm not fighting you. You'll hand over me the title yourself."

I push away his hands that are holding me. "And why would I do that? I've as much right as you over our mother's title. You had your chance to take it but that chance is long gone now. Now it's my time."

It's Philip's turn to laugh. "You're right – you have grown up. The little Cassie I knew who always ran after me would never talk like that."

I swallow the guilt and keep my stern gaze.

"The brother I knew would've never left me alone that I would grow up like this."

His eyes become kind again. "I'm sorry, Cassie. I never meant to hurt you. It was mo–"

"Don't blame our mother," I shout. "If you hadn't been so hell-bent on starting a war with the others, then none of this would've happened!"

He angrily says, "That's enough, Cassie. I'm going to get the title from you one way or another. Look around you. Even though I can't bring myself to hurt you, one of them can easily win against you."

I smile. "What're they waiting for then?"

He smugly smiles. "You think you're strong enough to take them all alone?"

I open my mouth to say, "Bring it on," when another voice speaks first.

"She's not alone."

Leon.