A November Witching Hour

Part IX

Isra stood with her heels over the edge of the curb and her thumb in her mouth, staring at a grey-sided house. In the middle of its roof’s pinaccle there was a 2 foot high silver spike. At this moment the samurai house’s sword was stabbing right into the heart of the sun, the edges fired orange and gold. Despite the glare, Isra’s eyes were glued to the spike. She stood, motionless (except for her cheek’s contractions as she sucked her thumb) for a half hour until the sun disappeared behind the house. Then, she started walking again towards the wood, balancing on the edge of the curb.

As her feet nestled into the leaves of the Devine Woods, she wiped her thumb on her jeans. She took careful steps as she advanced, carfully avoiding sticks and the driest leaves, for a little over a mile. She hadn’t seen a bird or even a squirrel. Finally, she heard a great chorus of crows in front of her, and she stopped, planting her feet in the soil below the leaves. Soon the bird calls were joined by a heavy padding, like a massive tom cat’s paws on stuffed sofa. She tilted her head; no sound of leaves being crushed underfoot. Whatever it was was coming toward her. Three black crows flew over her head, but she didn’t duck. She could now see a light up ahead bright enough to obscure the trees close to it.

The padding stopped and the light faded. She found herself looking into the a pair of golden eyes set in a white anglo-saxon face. It’s auburn hair flowed down to it’s shoulders, but these shoulders were not those of a man. They were fur covered and golden; a body of a lion. It was a sphinx. A multitude of crows flew around its head, and under its great belly, clearing the ground by three feet or more. The beast slouched forward six more steps, and raised it head. Isra stared into its eyes, trick mirrors of her own (her eyes shone and its were loveless). She stood between it and the town. Reaching into her pocket, she brought out a vial (its label read Blessed Spiritual Products Spikenard Anointing Oil). She got down on her knees, took off the lid of the oil, and poured it in front of her, a wall between her and the beast. “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, you shall not pass this line before the appointed time.” Before her eyes the sphinx faded, leaving just the crows.

Isra stood and wiped the dirt from her jeans.

“Praise the Lord.” She sighed, and looked around. Then, she giggled. She had made a rhyme. Kinda.