The Standing Daughters

The Standing Daughters were a group of witch sisters who escaped persecution in seventeenth-century Valewood (known as Valley's Wood) by sealing themselves within a stone circle at the edge of town.

About
The witches were chased from town by an angry mob led by a murderous witchfinder, and hid inside a stone circle for several centuries until they were accidentally freed by Darwin Archimedes and Andrew Wheatley. The spell used to free them created a second moon curse which acted as the focal point of their magic. The sisters used their magic to seal away the townsfolk in a "dimension of mind" to prevent them from being made sick by the second moon curse.

They gave the two detectives a test to see if their magical prowess was strong enough to bring back the townsfolk, but Darwin and Andrew failed and so they enlisted Darwin instead to help them dispel the second moon curse. After the misunderstanding was cleared up, they left to "the world made of magic" and invited Darwin to come with them, though he declined.

Appearance
The witches are described as young and righteously angry, wearing long and shabby old-fashioned cloaks and robes. Their eyes glow with magical power when they are harnessing their abilities.

Abilities
The standing daughters have the ability to seal themselves inside a stone circle, conjure up a second moon curse as a focusing lens for their magical power, and the ability to seal away the Valewood townsfolk in a dimension made of mind which led them to believe that they had merely only fallen asleep after they were freed. The sisters also appear to be able to move between worlds, as they decide to move to a world made of magic after the incident at the Valewood Public Library. They left on amicable terms with Darwin and Andrew.