moon cycles and raven feathers [r. lupin]

| 22 |

december 23rd, 1976

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ* *✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*

catherine always knew that her mother would have her take over the witches institute and become the new coven head when the time was right but she never quite knew when that time would be. after all, both women knew that the work could fall to a young witch just as easily as an older one. her mother, for instance, had been only 21 when she took the position, replacing lilith creech who met her untimely demise at the hand of a curse gone wrong. she was one of the youngest coven heads in recent history and for the past 25 years she had made her name known, cementing herself in history books for decades to come.

everyone knew othella webster would sooner shatter her wand than have anyone other than her daughter supersede her, but they didn't know when, catherine didn't know when.

now she did.

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ* *✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*

the morning after her aunt clara had left webster manor was a quiet one, that was until her mother, seemingly out of nowhere, began to talk about the institute.

"...i took over when i was very young, very very young. just a hair older than you catherine. now of course that was solely circumstantial and if the stars hadn't aligned i would've had to wait much longer but it was still quite helpful, starting out early on."

her mother spoke while making herself a cup of tea, something cath assumed that she must just now be getting used to. her father always used to brew the couple's morning beverages, in the last few years of their marriage it became one of the only times they would really speak to each other.

looking up from her tea she gazed at her daughter.
"of course you aren't going to take over right away but you'll start working under me this summer." she beamed at her daughter, "doesn't that sound wonderful? we'll get everything worked out while you're here."

"so wonderful mother, i can't wait."

she hoped her mother wouldn't fuss over the sarcasm that laced her response. it wasn't that she didn't want to take over her mother's position, she really did, it was that it was happening so fast. her story was being written at lightning speed and she wasn't quite sure how to deal with it, after all she couldn't exactly just tell her mother that she wanted to slow down.

othella hadn't noted her daughters tone, or if she did she choose to ignore it and didn't respond anymore, instead she just let her words hang in the air. there was no getting out of what her mother wanted, or at least no way she could think of.

cath took her mother's silence as a cue for her to excuse herself to get ready for the day but as she tried slipping out of the kitchen and up to her room her mother stopped her.