Secret Circle II: The Captive
Characters
Diana Meade is the temporary leader of the coven, until the leader candidates turn 17 and hold an official vote. She is pegged the “Princess of Purity” for her undying kindness and understanding and is remnicent of the Goddess Diana- Queen of all witches. Diana and Cassie agreed to be honorary foster sisters, each filling a void in the other's heart. Tall and thin Diana has long, natural light blonde hair, often described as the color of moonlight and sunlight woven together, and deep, caring green eyes.
Cassie Blake is the newly initiated coven member, replacing Chris and Doug's younger sister, Kori, after her untimely death. Although Diana and Adam seem to hold undying faith in her, the rest of the coven questions Cassie's abilities, as only her mother was a witch, her father is of questionable descent. Cassie is bound to Diana’s boyfriend, Adam, by a silver cord neither of them understands. Extremely attracted to one another, Cassie and Adam vowed to be true to Diana and suppress their enticement with each other. Cassie has light brown hair and cornflower-blue eyes, although she holds little confidence in her looks, other’s see her as beautiful.
Faye Chamberlain isn’t really evil, she’s just wicked, much like Goddess Hera. Faye enjoys toying with human boys, and is always on the lookout for a thrill. Power-hungry Faye wants more than anything to get her hands on the crystal skull that Adam found; she feels the skull, with her leadership, will grant the coven more power than they can imagine. Faye found out about Cassie and Adam’s affair, and blackmailed Cassie into finding the crystal skull and turning it over to her. Tall and voluptuous, Cassie describes Faye as “stunning but scary,” she has mesmerizing honey-golden eyes, pale, shimmery skin, and long, jet black hair.
Nick Armstrong is not the "iguana" he may seem. Coolly handsome, with mahogany hair and eyes, Nick looks the rebel without a cause. An outsider, even in his own Coven, Nick tries to hide that he would in fact do anything to protect his friends.
Adam Conant has been with Diana Meade since childhood, they always seemed destined for each other. Adam was sent searching for the coven’s master tools off the coast and uncovered a powerful crystal skull, presumable used by an evil ancestor, Black John. Adam is struggling to suppress his infatuation with his girlfriend’s “sister” Cassie. Adam is tall and strong, with hair the color of wine, and deep blue-grey eyes.
Melanie Glaser is the coven’s crystal expert. Melanie is very intelligent and has converted the coven’s ancient texts into her own “floppy disk of shadows.” As a close friend of Diana’s, Melanie is sure to be on her side when the permanent coven leadership vote comes. Melanie has short, auburn hair, and clear, intelligent grey eyes that remind people of the Goddess Athena.
Laurel Quincey is the resident herb expert, reminiscent of the Goddess Persephone. She is a vegetarian and keeps very healthy. Laurel has long brown hair and an "elfin" face. As one of Diana's closest friend, she is on the "princess of purity's" side for the leadership vote.
Suzan Whittier seems a bubbly airhead. Her cloud of strawberry-golden hair and well developed chest reminds people of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite. Suzan often says things even she doesn’t realize are brilliant, but often turn out to be so. As an ornate member of Faye Chamberlain's entourage, she is sure to be on Faye’s side for the leadership vote.
Deborah Armstrong is strong and brave, the resident Artemis. Deborah is one of Faye's best friends, and as such is sure to vote for her for leadership. With a crescent moon tattoo, wild dark hair and clear blue eyes, Deborah's look fit's her strong, honorable personality.
Chris Henderson's wild blue eyes and crazy blonde hair give a clue to his personality. With his twin brother, Doug, Chris loves heavy metal music and taking risks.
Doug Henderson's wild blue eyes and crazy blonde hair give a clue to his personality. With his twin brother, Chris, Doug loves heavy metal music and taking risks.
Sean Dulany is a quiet, somewhat nervous member of the Coven. Although a nice guy, Sean is seen as somewhat weak and is treated as such by his fellow club-members. With his small stature, Sean's birthright membership in the Coven is the only thing that allows him to be a member of the most popular clique New Salem has ever seen.
Synopsis
The Coven meets at Diana's to look for the dark energy, their pendulum leads them to the old cemetery, to find an old mound broken open. Cassie second guesses her agreement to get the skull for Faye, but Faye convinces her that finding out about Adam and Cassie would kill Diana, and destroy the coven. They find out that their principal, Mr. Fogle, was found dead by the school, crushed under a rockslide.
Cassie slept at Diana’s to look for the skull and couldn’t find it, but she had a dream that told her where to look. Suzan offers up that perhaps the person who killed Fogle did it because he saw Kori’s murder. When Cassie finally found the skull on the beach Saturday night, she knew she just couldn’t bring herself to give it to Faye, but it was too late, Faye was standing right behind her and demanded the skull. Cassie said she’d hand it over only if Faye would let her come along.
Faye scryed to Cassie’s protests and released more dark energy. Cassie decided to take the skull back. Almost a week passed with no horrible events, so Cassie began to feel safer with the unknown energy release.
The day of homecoming, Diana came down with a cold and convinced Cassie to accompany Adam to the dance. The girl’s of the Coven fixed Cassie’s hair, clothes and makeup to make her “irresistible” in honor of her first dance as a witch.
Cassie was the belle of the ball. All the guys were dying for a dance. Cassie’s first dance was with Adam; while trying to be inconspicuous, Cassie and Adam’s silver cord could no longer be denied and they kissed, but no one seemed to see it.
Cassie, to take a break from her many suitors, trekked to the boiler room alone in search of Deborah. Instead of Deb and the Hendersons, Cassie found Jeffery Lovejoy’s hung body. The Coven used Cassie’s quartz necklace as a pendulum to trace the dark energy that may have killed Jeffery. The Coven was led to the old cemetery where they encountered a black shadowy figure that immediately ran from them. Cassie lost the quartz necklace.
Later, Cassie went back to the cemetery alone to search for the lost necklace. There she noticed the graves of many of the coven member’s parents, all buried in 1976. Diana later explained that an unexpected hurricane had victimized New Salem in 1976, the parents were lost to the sea.
The Coven made plans to attend New Salem High’s Halloween dance. Cassie decided to ask Nick, but embarrassed herself in the attempt and gave up. Feeling adventurous, Cassie went for a ride with the Henderson brothers. They visited a patch to steal some pumpkins, a dog attacked, and Cassie somehow mentally warned the dog off; the Hendersons and Cassie were shocked at her power. They also and stopped by the Salem witch dungeon where Cassie came to the realization that people were getting killed in the same manner the supposed Salem witches were killed.
Cassie happened across a piece of hematite at the foundation of an old burned down house at the end of Crowhaven road, she and Deborah immediately recognized it as Cassie’s working stone, Deborah explained that it was a stone called Hematite.
The Coven decided to try to trace the dark energy and it led them to the empty lot where Cassie found the Hematite. Diana explained that this lot, #13, ironically enough, was once the home of Black John, until his death in 1696. The house remained until it burned to the ground 16-17 years previous.
Cassie built up her courage again and asked Nick to the Halloween dance, Nick accepted. Cassie dressed up as Calliope, the Greek muse of poetry, Deb was a rocker, Melanie was a spirit of wisdom, Sophia, Suzan was Aphrodite, Laurel was a nature spirit, Diana was a good witch in her ceremonial Coven costume, Faye was a bad witch in a black mirror of Diana’s white shift, Sean was a skeleton, Chris and Doug were both Zax the magician, Adam was Herne, a nature God, and Nick dressed only as Nick, “Cassie’s date.”
After the dance, the Coven held a meeting on lot 13. Diana set 4 circles of protection around the Coven and they rose the spirit of Black John to find out how to control the skull. They lost control of the spirit and it went for Cassie, but Adam dove through the 4 circles to protect her life from the hostile sprit.
Cassie learns of Crowhaven Road’s “Birthday Season,” all the members birthdays were in November or early December.
Faye’s new blackmail request for Cassie was to vote for her in the pending final leadership vote. To the shock of the rest of the Coven, Cassie voted for Faye. As her first act of leadership, Faye ordered Cassie to get the crystal skull and the rest of the Coven to meet her at the cemetery. When they activated the skull to Diana’s group’s protests, it exploded. The group then noticed that the old mound in the cemetery had cracked “like the cocoon of an insect that had burst free.” The club followed a fire-ball in the sky to Cassie’s grandmother’s house. When they entered, an evil crimson light engulfed the house. Cassie and Nick searched the house, only to find Cassie’s mother in a coma-like state. Cassie and Nick met up with Deb in the kitchen to find Grandma Howard dying on the floor. She took this opportunity to send Cassie to get their family’s Book of Shadows, which had always been hidden. She explained that their line was the most powerful of the witches, with the clearest sight. She also explained to the girls how their parents had started up a coven in their youth and how a “man in black” joined them one year; a man who they learned to late was Black John. The coven admired him and was fooled by his disguise. He saw to it that certain members married and had children, Cassie’s grandmother went on that all the Crowhaven Road babies were exceptionally bright and powerful. She told them how Diana and Faye, born to sisters, arrived at precisely the same moment and were, from the beginning, mystically linked. Grandma Howard explained that Black John had planned to make the most powerful Coven this continent had ever seen, from their generation.
Cassie’s Grandmother went on that on February 1, 1976, some of the coven members went to confront Black John, he brought the hurricane to fight them, and that’s how they died. She explained that somehow, Black John came back again, as a living, breathing man, and he was now after his coven. Grandma Howard then said some incoherent words and died.
Cassie decided that the black mail was over, she confronted Faye, comforting herself with her grandmother’s words, “there’s nothing frightening in the dark if you just face it.” Faye began to speak to the Coven.
Compiled by Melanie Glaser for the use of Circle Unity,
© 1999.
