The wind stirred the trees outside my window. Early morning fog was rising to smear itself across a blue cloudless sky. It made the over grown yard seem to shimmer in the air, distorting the landscape until I couldn’t see the path that led down to the beach.

I gave my long black hair one last stroke with the brush, then hurried on down to the kitchen.

The kitchen stove was warm taking the chill out of the early morning. Mira lifted a banged up blackened coffee pot off the old wood cooking stove. She poured herself a second cup of coffee, then poured me one. “It’s just how you like it, black and strong enough to take the hair off your tongue.”

I heard a soft sound behind me, no more then a whisper of feet on stone. I turned around with a smile on my face.

Marianna stood in the doorway. She looked as if she’d lost another five years overnight. “How old are you now, twelve?”

She laughed softly, “I’m not sure.” She was dressed in a faded long granny gown and her feet was bare.

Mira hopped up on the counter, “What are our plans for today?”

I hopped up on the counter to sit  beside her. “We need to find the entrance to seelie realm.”

Marianna nodded, “Then hopefully they we help us go to the unseelie realm.”

“I guess that means we go to the cave today.” I wasn’t happy at the ideal.

You can stay here Marti.” Mira said, noticing my discomfort. “It should be alright if I leave the cloak here.”

“Well, we might as well go now.” Mira said. Marianna licked the jam off her fingers, “Lets go.”

We made our way down the well worn path to the cave. It seemed smaller then it use to be.

It got darker the deeper we moved into the cave. That hadn’t changed, the cave had always eaten the light. It seemed to draw the light right out of the lantern Mira was carrying.

Suddenly the cave widened out into a large room. I lit the torches along the wall. The walls were covered with ancient languages, drawings and diagrams.

There was a large pentagram on the floor. I felt it pulling at me. I walked over and sat in its center.

Closing my eyes I could feel the other trying to rise to the surface. I open my eyes and looked at my sisters. They wore the shadows we all carry in this life, it didn’t look close because the shadows could show me things about my siblings that I didn’t want to know. Dark shadows stood in the circle of the pentagram with me. They could not take hold of me without the coat.

“What does the shadows tell you about the one we seek?” ask Marianna.

“ He’s still in the shadow realm but he grows stronger.” I said.

Suddenly the shadows around me begin to boil, becoming a vortex. I had never felt such anger aimed at me. The anger blazed over me causing me to tremble like a tree in the wind.

From a long way off, I heard Maria say, “Quick, Marianna, help me, he’s trying to use Marti as a doorway into this world.

I found myself over by the books and maps. Coughing I said, “I’m sorry guys, I didn’t realize how strong the dark one has already become.”

“I think we’ll take the maps and some of the books back to the house with us.” Mira said. “It’s not safe here until we come into our true powers.”

“You might as well check and see when Mace can get here.” I said, “And I’ll see if I can fine Matt.”

Matt was our oldest brother, but he hadn’t talked to us for several years. He wanted to forget, what we were and just live a normal life. Not that I blamed him.