The Coven

True to his nickname, the headmaster of Hollow’s Grove is morally “gray”: a combination of good and evil. He does not expect to develop feelings for Willow, but “[s]omething about [her] call[s] to the parts of [him] that [he] could not seem to control, bringing [him] to the brink of what [is] acceptable” (86). Early in the narrative, he claims not to care about this young witch’s feelings or will, but this sentiment changes to an extent after he meets Willow and gets to know her. Her unconventional education renders her more independent than most of the weaker-willed and less magically potent witches at the school. While most students comply with the wishes of the Coven and Covenant, Willow flouts their so-called authority, and Gray finds her rebellious nature appealing. This instinctive affinity that he feels draws attention to the fact that, as Lucifer, he is Christianity’s quintessential rule-breaker: an angel who defied God’s authority, raised a mutinous army of angels, warred with God for control, and then fell from grace. Thus, Gray’s shifting feelings for Willow demonstrate his capacity for change, suggesting that he, too, is a dynamic character.

Although Gray seems to develop real feelings of affection and respect for Willow, he also has personal, selfish reasons to protect her, and his disregard for her consent demonstrates that on a deeper level, he does not care about her at all. The Reaping is just one example of this sinister dynamic, for he feeds on her despite his awareness of her terror at being handcuffed, blindfolded, and immobilized. Furthermore, once he drinks enough of her blood to overcome the protection afforded her by her mother’s amulet, he uses his power of compulsion to sexually incapacitate her and even claims dominium over her, demanding that his claim of ownership be kept secret from her indefinitely. Then, in one of their intimate moments, he says, “Tell me you don’t want me, and I’ll let you go” while simultaneously “sliding his hand from the fleshy part of [her] ass to where [she] bent over” (177). Thus, rather than securing her explicit and unequivocal consent to sexual intimacy, he does what he wants to and tells her that it is her responsibility to reject him, utterly disregarding the physical and psychological power that he holds over her.

Gray claims that, in his own form, he will be able to love Willow in a way that he cannot while in his Vessel, but the conclusion of the novel does not clarify whether this fundamental change will bode well for Willow, or whether Gray-turned-Lucifer will instead pursue his own aims to her detriment. Though the details in the Book of Genesis show that the figure of Lucifer exploits Eve’s free will in the Garden of Eden, Gray notably disregards Willow’s free will when she is a newborn, thereby violating her even before she can think for herself. Thus, he is a complex, round character who proves adept at deception, ruthless manipulation, and utter disregard for human life—while also possessing the paradoxical capacity to love.

Susannah is one half of the Covenant. She and her partner, George Collins, jointly lead the Tribunal that consists of the original witch families, as well as the Coven that controls Hollow’s Grove University. Both she and George were raised from the dead by Charlotte Hecate, but Susannah truly wields the power during Tribunal meetings, and she is also responsible for teaching students about the history of the witches. Susannah is Willow’s great-grandmother many times over: a Green witch of House Madizza. At first, she seems to be motivated by a desire to preserve the witches’ traditions and history, but she eventually reveals to Willow that she is working to decrease the witches’ power, thereby starving and weakening the Vessels. Willow’s choices show just how much weaker witches have become under Susannah’s leadership; Willow’s mother taught her the old ways rather than the Coven’s (and Susannah’s) new methods.

Despite Susannah’s expectation that Willow obey her by mating and breeding with whomever the Covenant chooses, the Covenant leader does try to protect Willow once she realizes that Willow is a Hecate and a Madizza; she says that she cannot divulge Gray’s real identity but admits that Gray has had Loralei’s bones in his possession all along. She advises Willow to run from the school and from Gray, urging her to save herself rather than facing whatever will result from Gray’s manipulations. This is the only time that Susannah appears to show compassion for anyone, but she does this only out of a sense of family duty. Susannah then allows herself to be taken by the earth rather than facing the possibility of that ominous future. Ultimately, Susannah does not feel real compassion for Willow but cares only about preventing the prophecy’s fulfillment. Furthermore, she cares more about maintaining her own power than about protecting the witches, and when it is clear that she is poised to lose her status, she tries to end her life.