"It''s done," Veronica declared as she placed her hands on her hips and admired her handiwork.


    Her baby sister stared at her with a clueless expression on her face as she waved her arms at her side.


    It had taken some wrangling—and some hits to the face—but she had managed to force her baby sister into some warm clothes for their trip to the party. Now Veronica didn''t have to worry about her baby sister catching a cold.


    Echo glanced between the two as he asked, "Are you really sure you want to do this? You can''t take it back once we leave."


    Veronica huffed as she picked her baby sister up. "I already took the time to change her clothes. I''ve already made up my mind."


    Instead of responding back, Echo took to the air and flew circles above them. She ignored him as she swiped her phone and stuffed it into her pocket. Then she walked to her closet to retrieve her broomstick. With her baby sister and broomstick in hand, she headed for the window. She took a moment to shift the broomstick under her armpit so she could open the window. Cold air hit them.


    "Brr. That''s cold," Veronica said before stepping out onto the roof.


    It was a tight squeeze, especially with her baby sister in her arms. For a moment, she thought she got stuck and freaked out. Fortunately, it was a false alarm.


    She stared out at the sea of houses before closing the window behind her. Her baby sister gurgled and squirmed. Veronica grimaced, adjusting her grip so she wouldn''t drop her baby sister.


    Luckily, her sister decided to calm down and work with her. Thank goodness for small miracles.


    As she sat on the broomstick, she gripped the handle with one hand while holding her baby sister close to her body with the other. After taking a deep breath, she kicked off of the roof. They flew through the air as she guided the broomstick in the direction of the mansion. Her baby sister babbled excitedly and reached out in front of her. Echo flew by their side, making sure to keep the same pace as them.


    I hope I can still make it.


    The deadline for the party was midnight. If she arrived late, she wouldn''t be allowed to join. Unfortunately, it had taken some time for her to get her baby sister ready. The last time she checked the time, it had been almost eleven. The flight to the mansion was about an hour. It would be cutting it close.


    Veronica pushed her broomstick as fast as she dared without dropping her baby sister. The wind brushed past them as their clothes whipped around. Echo continued to follow, zipping around them. A sudden, strong gust pushed them to one side. Veronica gritted her teeth as she tightened grip on the broomstick and her baby sister. Her baby sister whimpered and squirmed at the sound pressure.


    "Don''t move," Veronica hissed as she righted the broomstick. "It''s hard enough to fly without you squirming."


    Unfortunately, her sister was just a baby and didn''t understand anything Veronica said.


    Her baby sister continued to struggle, making it hard for Veronica to focus on flying. "Cut it out. I mean it." A slap to the face was the last straw. "That''s it. When we get there, you''re getting a timeout."


    "Are you really picking a fight with a baby?" Echo asked as he flew in close.


    "You''re not helping."


    "What do you expect me to do? Just because I''m your familiar doesn''t mean I''ll be able to help. She''ll probably swat me like a fly if I get too close."


    "Just butt out if you''re not going to help."


    Echo took the invitation to fly out of range. Veronica glared at the bat before she was forced to pay attention to her baby sister, who was babbling insistently.


    "Hey, hey. IF you keep moving like that, I''m going to end up dropping you," Veronica said as she had to use both hands to keep herself from losing her grip.


    This meant she could no longer pay attention to where they were going as she grappled with her baby sister.


    "Veronica!" Echo snapped.


    She looked up and screamed. Veronica grabbed the broomstick''s handle and swerved out of the way, nearly avoiding running smack dab into the billboard. Her heart pounded in her chest as she glanced back at it.


    That was way too close for comfort.


    A sharp wail cut through the air. Her baby sister had burst into tears and was waving her tiny arms frantically.


    Rocking her baby sister, she said, "Don''t cry. I''m sorry I shouted. I didn''t mean to scare you."


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    Several minutes passed before her baby sister finally calmed down.


    Veronica nearly cried in relief, as it could have turned out much uglier. Her baby sister could cry for hours, and they didn''t have hours to deal with her baby sister''s tantrum.


    Now her baby sister was nodding away. Her baby sister''s eyes struggled to stay open.


    While she was glad that her baby sister had calmed down, she had lost time calming her down. They weren''t going to make it unless she sped things up, but that was impossible without risking dropping her baby sister.


    Just as she thought that there was nothing she could do, she was struck by a sudden idea. She glanced down at her clothes. Veronica used one hand to hold her baby sister while the other undid the belt around her waist. Then she wrapped it around herself and her baby sister before securing it. Her baby sister didn''t resist as they were tied together.


    It was a bit uncomfortable, but with this method, Veronica didn''t have to worry her baby sister would fall off the broomstick. Her baby sister didn''t seem to mind and rested her head against Veronica.


    "Looks like you were lucky to wear a belt," Echo commented.


    She ignored him and continued their journey to the mansion.


    <hr>


    "Finally," Veronica said as soon as she saw the mansion in the distance. "We''re almost there."


    Urging her broomstick to go faster, she sped through the air towards the mansion. When she was a couple yards away, she slowed down and descended. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she got off her broomstick. Her baby sister remained quiet the entire time as Veronica walked the rest of the way to the mansion. Several other witches were ahead of her and turned towards her. The moment they saw her, everything fell silent.


    At the sudden silence, she stopped in her tracks as Echo flew up from behind her and whispered, "I think you''re in trouble.


    Veronica didn''t get a word in as the mansion''s front door slammed open. A powerful force weight heavily on her shoulders, nearly sending her sprawling. She noticed that she wasn''t the only one as the other witches hunched forward or fell to their knees. A very familiar face stormed out of the mansion towards Veronica.


    The witch stopped right in front of Veronica and demanded, "What have you done?" Veronica opened her mouth, but the witch cut her off. "Don''t answer. You know the rules. Humans are not allowed her, no matter how old they are. What possessed you to break this very important rule?" When Veronica remained silent, the witch snapped, "Why are you keeping silent? Speak."


    "...You said not to talk," Veronica said in a small voice.


    "I''m giving you to speak now."


    Unable to meet the witch''s gaze, Veronica glanced at their surroundings. A crowd had formed, and the witches whispered to each other.


    "What''s going on? What''s the commotion?"


    "It''s the new witch."


    "What''s she doing here? Isn''t she like twelve?"


    "I heard she got permission to come."


    "Isn''t that favoritism?"


    "Typical. This is why you don''t bend the rules in the slightest. Give her an inch, and she''ll take a yard."


    Hey! I worked really hard to get permission. Do you know how hard it was to convince them to let me come here for the party? It took months, you know!


    She didn''t dare to voice her thoughts out loud with the host of the party looming over her.


    "You must leave and take the human baby back to where you found it," the witch declared.


    "She''s not an it," Veronica said as she mustered up the courage to meet the witch''s eyes.


    Veronica quickly lost her nerve and looked down at her baby sister, who was slowly waking up.


    "Go," the witch ordered.


    No one dared to speak, not even to gossip. All eyes were on Veronica, waiting to see what she would do. She bit down on her lip, unable to move from her spot, both from stubbornness and fear. Her legs were like a newborn fawn''s threatening to give out if she dared to make a single move. Suddenly, a wail cut through the silence. Veronica welcomed the distraction as she undid the belt and checked on her baby sister.


    At that moment, her friend burst from the crowd and stared at the scene with wide eyes before blurting out, "Veronica, what are you doing here? I thought you said you were staying home."


    "You knew about this, Leta," the witch in front of Veronica said, her tone dangerous.


    Leta frantically shook her head. "No, ma''am. I mean yes?" She took a moment to collect herself before saying, "Veronica called me earlier today to tell me that she needed to watch her baby sister since they were home."


    "And you didn''t think to inform anyone?"


    She blinked owlishly. "Are we supposed to tell in advance we''re coming or if something came up?"


    No one could argue against the innocent question. Attendance wasn''t mandatory—no one could force a witch to do something they didn''t want to even another witch—and none of them needed to notify anyone else about coming to the party, not even the host. It was just an open party for witches ages thirteen and up.


    The air around them abruptly shifted. Veronica glanced around in confusion, wondering what had changed. The witch in front of Veronica sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose.


    One of the witches stepped forward as she said, "Deville, the time..."


    "I know," Deville said through gritted teeth. Then she turned her gaze to Veronica, who flinched under the intense look. "It seems that you will have to stay."


    Immediately, protests filled the air.


    "You can''t be serious."


    "Humans aren''t allowed here. We need to kick them out."


    "You can''t let her get away with this."


    Deville raised a hand, silencing everyone.


    As she lowered her hand, she said, "Unfortunately, it''s out of our hands now. You must have felt it."


    Felt what? Is she talking about that weird sensation earlier?


    This time there was no screaming or shouting, but Veronica could hear grumbling and mumbling from the crowd.


    "You will be allowed to stay until the party is over, but there will be restrictions," Deville said. "You will be responsible for the human baby the entire time. If anything happens to it or it does anything to affect anyone here, the blame will fall solely onto you. Do you understand?"


    Veronica swallowed. "...I do."


    Deville studied Veronica''s face before turning on her heel and striding back to the mansion without a single word or glance back. The tense atmosphere didn''t completely disappear with her departure as the crowd of witches continued to stand around. For several moments, no one moved. Then many of the witches walked away after staring intensely at Veronica. Others kept their eyes on her the entire time.


    It felt like they wanted to set her on fire with just their eyes—no magic involved.


    She was about to drop to her knees when her friend stormed towards her with a serious expression on her face. Before she could speak, Leta grabbed her arms in a vice grip and stared directly into Veronica''s eyes.


    "What was that all about?" Leta hissed.


    "Oh..." Veronica glanced away as she muttered, "It''s a long story."


    "Tell me."