For Christmas, sorry, winter solstice, we went all the way back to the October Mountain State Forest. The villages had been rebuilt after Grief Eaters attacked in September. Last time, it had been so empty, with only ten houses and no souls in its cobble streets except for the caped Black Knights guarding it.

That changed. A parade of practitioners in colorful robes, Victorian dresses, and Santa hats marched through the streets, flanked by Black Knights ensuring that nobody broke the rules. Those who knew ice-related magic made sure we had proper snow.

The older practitioners drank flying witch's ointment around the town square as if it were beer while exchanging news. Apprentices tried riding their staves through the sky while the youngest of all, those without familiars, couldn't wait to eat from the gingerbread houses. Isa became addicted to them.

The war against the Horseman had slowly faded into a distant memory that gave rise to a bright festival. Even so, about a third of practitioners made faces as if they only arrived out of obligation.

Like Halloween, it was one of the most hotly celebrated holidays in the Society. There were tensions between the culturally Christian and the more pagan-oriented parts, and debates if we should call it Christmas or Winter Solstice.

It reinforced how small our Society was. Just a few thousand people from all across the Americas had come and represented roughly half of it. Even though the young people were overrepresented due to exams before the party, most had graying hair or white beards in the men's cases. An expected consequence of wizardly longevity.

My friends and I – except Nathan, who never arrived on holidays – found ourselves at a nice wooden table around the big fireplace. I had a feeling that it had been reserved for us, seeing how most of the robed people around the fire had to stand.

In the crowd, I tried to make out Dad who, despite how much he hated the Council, had come to see me receive praise for my accomplishments against the Horseman. Isa's parents were unaware of where their daughter sat while Darcy's and Simon's parents were near Dad, talking to other adult practitioners.

"Man, why do they have so little!" Isa said, sitting next to me as she licked the gingerbread rests of her fingers and wiped the crumbs off her beautiful red dress.

"Because you're not the only one celebrating Christmas?" Simon said.

"It's Winter Solstice," Isa said. "Christmas is in three days!"

"Yeah, but everyone here treats it like Christmas, so it's Christmas for me!"

Darcy smiled. She was clad in a black robe like Simon and me instead of wearing a more extravagant dress like Isa. "So, you want to form a coven with us?" she asked Isa.

"Yep!" Isa said. "All I need is a name! How about the Scoobie Avengers?"

"You stole that from Buffy!" Simon protested.

"Not true! Then, how about the Magic Rangers or the Horror Sentai? Weird sisters is a bit weird if we're gonna have a boy. Or two boys, if this changeling guy is part of us."

Darcy laughed. "He'd probably slap us if we knew we initiated him. How does it feel Simon, being the only boy?"

He grinned. "Well, I can't complain."

I'd have loved to laugh and joke with them, too, but this discussion with the Melas haunted my head. Speaking of the devil, Cornelius held her picture frame while the other Councillors were here in person next to them.

"My fellow Society members," Melas opened, "we have gathered for the day with many names. Winter Solstice. Christmas. It is a day of importance for everyone in the supernatural community, as it represents the peak of Winter Queen Nicvenin's strength. After the tragedy of Halloween, I am glad to announce that our relationship with the Unseelie Kingdom has improved. Autumn King Gwyn ap Nudd is willing to make amends. He claimed he had his hands tied by horrors from beyond the Otherworldly gates summoned by the cowardly Coven of Primordial Revenants. We will not forgive his inaction, but we will accept his amends.

"Many of you, particularly those living in small settlements in the Eastern United States, have seen homes and communities destroyed. While our mundane friends can reverse the property damage, we cannot reverse the loss of human life. The course of history, dare I say, has been irrevocably changed. Whether it was due to Fate or in violation of Fate, I cannot tell.

"We, as practitioners, are in a vulnerable position. We are few in number. We live at the edges of the natural and supernatural and our enemies are plentiful.

"The Enlightened deserve the blame for Halloween. But I have not come to assign blame. I have come to honor our war heroes!"

A round of applause from everyone standing roared through the crowds. I know I wasn't addressed, but Dad was here and he applauded me. Totally not nervous, guys.

Melas handed out numerous awards and medals to Hunters, who made great contributions during the battle.

"Sorcerer Andrew Wiggs, you receive a medal for your contribution in dealing the final blow to the Horseman.

"Apprentice Isabella Kelly, you receive recognition for figuring out the legend of Klaus Kringle."

Isa lifted her fingers in a victory sign. "Hey, hey! Nothing to thank me for."

"Apprentice Simon Leaf, for having discovered precious information about the Wild Hunt's nature."

He lifted a fist in excitement.

"Mage Jonathan Fuji, who trapped Lukas Weber, the true name behind the Erlking, in a containment circle.

"Mage Darcy Leaf, who gathered evidence of Lukas Weber's connections to the Enlightened."

"Apprentice Marissa Carter, for having found the Erlking's weapon and having handed it over."

I knew I was just one mention among many. I knew that most of the applause wasn't for me. But my friends made me steady ovations and that alone made me want to sink into the ground.

I didn't deserve it. My victory had come at a cost. I was bonded to the Book of Samael and it'd demand a payment later. But, now, just for a moment, I could forget about my worries and look at the proud faces of Dad, my friends, and many people in the crowd, and feel good about myself.

I enjoyed the moment while it still lasted.

[-]

Mom's house wasn't built to withstand the storm. The former witch's hut had crushed into its own footprint. Pieces of its roof and its walls lay in the garden like shards of shattered glass. Its basement was so exposed that I didn't believe I'd survive the winter in it.

Bye-bye, Summer Hill. I moved back to New York City. School was online now, so where I lived didn't matter.

I considered moving back to my Dad's old home, but I wanted to be independent. This independence was made possible through a generous grant by the Council. As a "thank you" for our contributions, they bought an abandoned warehouse in Bushwick, Brooklyn, and repurposed its roof into a loft that Simon, Isa, and I could decorate to our heart's content.

Each of us got our own room and a living room where we'd sit on a couch together, eat pizza, and play games.

We had written our exams in the Cunning Folk Academy's underground tower shortly before the Christmas party and got our graded parchments back after we stayed at the tower for a while. Simon said he breezed through them despite missing about two months while Isa claimed she barely caught up.

We promised not to look at our grades before getting to our new loft.

Now, we were here. Time to see the fruits of our work.

For me, the results looked like this.

General Magical Theory I (10 CP) – B

Warding and Defense Against Otherworlders (10 CP) – A-

An Introduction to Mundane Information Technomancy (5 CP) – A

Potions and Transfiguration (5 CP) – B+

It wasn't graded on a curve but based on how much percent you got right, much like in American schools and colleges. I didn't know about grade inflation, but many grades hinged on the professor's goodwill. From what I've heard, Professor Wiggs and Hank gave everyone an A. Thus, my results didn't shock me.

The one that did surprise me was the Potions and Transfiguration course because from what I heard, Professor Manaba graded far more strictly. General Magical Theory seemed very average.

What can I say? For the first semester, I'm satisfied. Could have been worse, you know, with the fate of northeast America resting on my shoulders for the first two months.

Isa and Simon put their parchments down.

"We're really going to do this?" Isa asked. "Our career path will now be 'wizard'?"

"I mean, bending the laws of reality to your will is the coolest job I can imagine," Simon said. "Where's the problem?"

Isa slouched back into the couch. "As long as it pays and as long as my parents don't complain."

"You haven't told them?" Simon asked.

"Pfft. They'll think I'm at a normal college. These guys here know how to forge documents and they're good actors over the phone."

"You realize you are allowed to tell them?" Simon said. "They have ways of dealing with practitioners from mundane families."

"You mean forcing them to cut off all social connections and putting their closest loved ones under a Geas?" I asked.

"Yeah," Isa said. "No thanks. I don't hate them that much. As long as I've got my freedom, I'm fine. Would be cool if the guys here were less boring and more like Nathan."

"Nathan's gonna come," I said. "They gave him amnesty. He's allowed to live with us. With how things have been going, he'll have a hard time living elsewhere."

Isa yawned. "Guess we won't live a normal life."

"Normal's over," I said. "Trust me, I tried to live between two lives. You gotta commit yourself one day one way or the other."

"Yeah, you even have your own Instagram profile now," Simon said.

Simon had his laptop folded open on the table to show what he meant. He was right. Only a three-digit number of followers, but the profile was real. Witch of Summer Hill. It didn't contain much other than some cosplay and a video of me flying through the storm.

To think that this was real. That I was a hero to some people. Unbelievable.

That's my story of how I rose as the Night Witch. What can I say in conclusion? Well, it's been one hell of a ride.

I've learned quite a lot about how this world works and that things aren't always the way they seem. Sometimes, the monsters under your bed are real, after all. And sometimes, you get stuck in a pit of despair you can't climb out off.

But the world doesn't have to be that way. Personally, I'd hate to live in a world where the strong oppress the weak, uncertainty replaces knowledge, and where we arbitrarily separate the natural and the supernatural. We're all humans, in the end, but some parts are hard to change, particularly the last bit. What can I say? I'll try my best.

I'm Marissa Alice Luisa Carter, AKA the Night Witch, AKA the Witch of Summer Hill. When the Things Go Bump In The Night and the boogeyman won't go to sleep, call me. I've got a fan page.