“We can wander down to the market on the sports field. You can imagine all the goodies that will greet us there. I’m sure we can get a bite to eat there as well, not that we’re hungry or anything. It just what you do on holidays—eat.”

“Sounds good. Might find some men there too,” Zoe said.

“Don’t think you should have mentioned sex as one of the attributes of your ornament, Shoana. I can imagine Zoe will be looking to buy one very soon.” Ruby said.

“It’s a natural thing, sex, and you’re just going through a cooling-off period. Maybe you should get one of the pendants too.” Zoe said.

“Maybe.” But that was the last thing on Ruby’s mind. The last thing she wanted at the moment was the complication of a man in her life. 

Shoana didn’t share any enthusiasm for the girls’ discussion. “Then later, in the still of the night, when all have packed up and crawled into their beds, we will come out to draw on the energy of the full moon. There’s maybe a dozen of us.”

“Wooooo.” Zoe added some atmosphere. “Running around in the nude under the blue moon excites me.”

“I think that was Zoe’s impersonation of a werewolf.” Ruby looked at Shoana. “There won’t be any werewolves, will there?” And the nude thing?

Ruby said that in jest but she saw something in Shoana’s response. Something that said it wasn’t a joke. A smidge of fear crept into Ruby’s mind. 

7 – Candles and rag dolls

ROWS OF MARKET STALLS covered in brightly covered canopies and large umbrellas greeted them. Ruby loved the excitement in the air—people laughing, young ones carrying balloons and licking ice creams, children running around, weaving between the legs of adults. A man dressed like a pirate sat on a timber box playing a ukulele. The warm twangy sound from the instrument added to the carnival atmosphere. 

Ruby took a deep breath. The ocean smell of the bay was swamped by the scent of freshly baked bread and sizzling hot foods. Her tummy rumbled. As they strolled through the market, Ruby picked up a light honey aroma. She found the source: a stall selling beeswax candles. Ruby picked up one and sniffed.

“Pure beeswax, love. Natural smell, no essential oils added. All natural. Will calm your nerves and help you sleep well,” the stall attendant said.

Ruby was hooked and bought a set of tea light candles, then moved on, eager to see what other treasures awaited her. A couple walked out of the next stall. They looked familiar. Ruby paused at that stall. It offered psychic readings, and had a range of books, crystal balls, and tarot cards for sale. A young girl in a summer dress sat on a timber chair, watching over the merchandise. 

A dark blue lace curtain separated the entrance from a room at the rear. Ruby peered through a slit in the curtain and saw a lady resting her hand on another lady’s hand and speaking softly. Several cards lay on the table. Tarot cards? A slight shiver ran down Ruby’s spine. She backed away and walked out of the stall.

Shoana and Zoe were looking at items on the display tables. Shoana gave Ruby a peculiar look and placed a small crystal ball back on the table, and walked out to join her. 

“You okay?” Shoana asked.

“Yep. Fine.” Ruby didn’t want to share with Shoana what she felt in there. 

Zoe joined them. “This is so great. Wow. Look over there.”

Ruby turned to see two large old brown suitcases, lids raised and filled with rag dolls of different shapes and sizes. A couple held a cute rag doll with stringy red hair. They nodded to each other and handed over the money to a middle-aged lady dressed up as a rag doll. Cute.

The couple turned, excited to have a new prized possession. It was the familiar couple. As the couple moved on to the next stall, Ruby wondered who the doll was for. The man cracked his neck and suddenly looked back as if he had forgotten something.

The shiver returned. This time stronger. It was the man from the doctor’s waiting room.

He smiled at Ruby and waved the rag doll at her. Its stringed red hair bounced around.

The cuteness about the doll was gone.

<°)))><

Ruby’s tea light candles lit the living room. The smell was sweet and natural although they had not calmed Ruby’s nerves.

Shoana gave Ruby and Zoe a robe each. They were instructed to put it on once they were at the property where the Circle was being held. Shoana stressed the Circle was by invitation only, so they were all privileged to be attending it. 

“Excited, girls?” Shoana asked.

The excitement of the unknown and finding out it was to be a private affair had quietened Ruby’s fear. She was relieved there was a robe as she had some anxiety about the event involving nil clothing. Ruby looked over her robe. It had a large star on the back of it. 

“What’s with the star?” Ruby asked, showing the back of her robe.

Zoe looked at her robe and Shoana did the same. They had no star.

“You must be the star attraction,” Shoana said. “Did you want to swap?”

“No, it’s okay. I like stars.”

“You’re a star, Ruby.” Zoe turned to Shoana. “Are there any rules we need to be aware of?”

“No, not really. Just what I’ve told you before. It’s all about getting into the Circle. No talking, no chewing, no phones—we’ll leave the phones at home.” Shoana placed her robe on the couch. “You’ll be anointed with oil as you enter the Circle, then turn left and go with the flow. The pace will be slow at first, then increases. Some will chant. It’s all about raising energy. The high priestess stands in the centre of the circle and does her stuff.”

“What sort of stuff?” Zoe asked.

“She’ll invoke the goddess or various spirits for protection. She calls the elements in.”

Zoe raised her eyebrows. “Elements?”

“Earth, air, fire, and water,” Shoana said. “When she starts doing this, the circle stops moving and we all look towards her.” 

“Then she does the call-down-the-moon stuff?” Ruby asked.

“That’s right, Ruby. Then she does the call–down-the-moon stuff.”

Ruby tilted her head. “Only asking. No need to be sarcastic about it.”

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to be. Yes, the high priestess requests the moon goddess to enter her body and speak through her. This is when healing and communicating with those in the Circle take place.”

Doubts crept into Ruby’s mind. She pushed them away. She wanted change in her life and this was the way to go. This had to be the way to go. She needed to conquer fear, and that included dealing with sarcasm.

“Does her voice change or anything?” Ruby asked, but changed her mind. “Ignore that, silly question. I’m just a little nervous.”

“That’s okay, Ruby. You’ll enjoy the experience. Now you’ll receive something to drink—it’ll be juice—don’t drink it straight away. It’s a toast to the goddess so wait until you’re told.”

Shoana walked to the door. “Let’s go girls. And Ruby, I believe you may be in for a special treat. There’s a particular goddess with a liking for red hair. She may turn up.

Ruby wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or bad thing.

8 – Circle of friends

JILL WINTER, THE HIGH PRIESTESS, stood in the park, a lone figure beneath the bare branches of a dead tree, waiting. Motionless. The only sound was the occasional flap of bat wings as they took their role in filling the night airspace, vacated by the daytime creatures, seeking fruit. The bats departed, it grew quieter, the night became still. The occasional pop broke the silence as long, sharp seedling mangrove shoots dropped from branches and speared into the mud. Her heart beat hard against her chest.