It´s the day before selection day and Hecate needs to talk with Ada about it. Hecate transfers herself directly into Ada´s private rooms, when she can´t find her in her office.
"Ada? Are you here?"
"Yes, dear. I´m in the bathroom."
"Ada, I need to talk with you about-," Hecate begins and stops mid-sentence, when she enters the bathroom. "What... is ... this?"
"That, my love, is a washing machine." Ada answers cheerfully and smiles proudly at the younger woman.
"Yes, I can see that."
"You do?" Ada looks amused at Hecate.
"I do. Just because I prefer to use magic instead of...these things," Hecate gives the washing machine a disgusted look," does this not mean, that I´m living on a different planet." Ada chuckles. "What I meant was, why do you have one?" Hecate takes a closer look at the washing machine but keeps safety distance, you never know. "Why don´t you use magic like the rest of us?"
"You know that I like to use my hands from time to time." Hecate coughs, when she hears this and raise her eyebrow. "Something the matter, Hecate?"
"No, not all." Hecate smiles innocently at her.
"Well, I thought it would be fun to do the laundry myself. To take things slowly. I think it must be very relaxing."
"Fun? Relaxing? How can this be fun? It takes hours and then you have to handle the wet clothes and wait for them to dry." Hecate twists her mouth once more.
" You only say this because ordinary people use it." Ada knows, that Hecate looks down on non-magical people, but she believes, that Hecate secretly envies them for their creativity because the last time they were in London, they visit the Science Museum and Ada could see how interested Hecate was. Hecate denied it later but she couldn´t fool her wife. She knows her too well. An idea is forming in Ada´s head, while she flicks through the manual. " I bet you can´t handle this washing machine."
Hecate gasp. "Me? Not being able to handle...this?! You forget, that I brew potions of the highest level. I could definitely handle a washing machine." Hecate waves her hand dismissive.
"Well, prove it?"
"What?"
Ada puts down the manual and walks over to Hecate. "How about a little bet?"
"A bet?" Hecate folds her arms in front of her, thinking about Ada´s suggestion. "And what will the winner get?"
"Lets see. How about breakfast in bed for the rest of the week?" Ada looks over the rim of her glasses up to Hecate and puts her hands on Hecate´s waist.
"Well, that does sounds tempting. And all I have to do is wash your laundry?" Hecate points at the laundry basket, that stands on top of the washing machine. "And then you´ll bring me breakfast?"
"Yes, that´s correct but what makes you so sure, that I´ll bring you breakfast?"
"Because I´ll win."
"So, the bet is on?"
"It sure is." Hecate answers self-confident.
"Good, then I better leave you to it." Ada steals a kiss from her lover´s lips before she disappears only to show up again a second later. "And don´t you dare to dry the clothes by magic."
Hecate is about to reply but Ada puts her finger on her lips. "I know you, Hecate. Don´t forget that." Ada winks and disappears again.
Hecate immediately gets down to work and puts Ada´s sweaters into the washing machine. "Now, what to do next?" Hecate looks bewildered at the buttons. Frowning, when she´s pressing one or two and nothing happens. Pendell comes into the bathroom, jumps on the washing machine and is looking curiously at Hecate.
"Oh, Pendell. What shall I do? This damn thing won´t work." Pendell meows, jumps from the machine again and the manual falls on the floor. Hecate picks it up and flicks through it. " Thank you, Pendell. I knew I could rely on you but if you ever tell Ada about it, I´ll turn you into a mouse." Pendell´s brushing against Hecate´s legs. She knows every well, that Hecate would never do any harm to her and that she has a soft spot for Ada´s familiar.
After Hecate studied the manual, is it only a matter of minutes until the machine is running.
Nearly 2 hours later. Hecate gets the clothes out of the machine ( not without pulling faces) and puts it into the laundry basket, .
"Oh, why, Ada? Why can´t you be like other witches?" Hecate loves Ada for her little quirks but sometimes she´s taking it too far, like in this case. Hecate walks into the bedroom, summons a laundry horse and puts the clothes on it. Hecate takes the last piece of clothes from the basket and stops in her movement, when she notice what it is.
"Strange. Since when is Ada wearing a pink bra? I´ve never seen this one before." Hecate exams the piece of fabric and all the colour drains from her face. "Oh, no! That can´t be! It´s mine! How could that be?" Pendell looks briefly up and continues licking her paws, she really couldn´t care less about Hecate´s calamity.
Hecate waves her hand over the bra and hopes that the pink colour will disappear but the opposite is true. The bra gets more pink with every wave of Hecate´s hand. Hecate is panicking, when the bra has finally the colour of Ada´s sweater. "What shall I do?!" Hecate stares at the pink piece of fabric in her hand. "Ada mustn´t see this. She´ll bring this up every time I open my mouth and chaff me about it." Pendell meows. "Okay, Pendell, there´s only one solution. I know, she said no magic but this is my bra and I can do with it whatever I like, don´t you agree?" Pendell jumps from the bed, walks over to Hecate and sits down at her feet. Hecate sighs relieved, when the bra disappears. "Well, that was close and that is our big secret now, Pendell." Hecate bends down and strokes her behind the ear before she leaves Ada´s room to get her.
But what Hecate doesn´t know,is, that the transformation spell went wrong and the bra didn´t end up in Hecate´s room...
Ada is looking through some papers for tomorrow´s selection day, when suddenly a piece of fabric materialized right in front of her. She picks it up and is mildly surprised, when she sees what it is. Ada takes a closer look and she immediately sees, that it´s one of Hecate´s bras. "But why is it pink?" Ada mumbles. "Oh, I see." Ada remembers, that she read in the manual, that clothes can part with colour and that you have to sort them before you put them in the machine. Ada grins, while fumbling with that bra in her hand. "Well, it seems, that someone lost her bet." Hecate appears in her office and Ada can hide the bra under her sweater just in time.
"The washing is done, Ada." Hecate walks casually over to Ada´s desk. "It seems that I won the bet and you´ll have to bring me breakfast." She leans over the desk and smiles confident of victory at her wife.
"Not so fast, Hecate. You don´t mind, that I check the laundry first before I call you the winner?"
"Of course not."
Ada walks around the laundry horse, while Hecate stands with crossed arms and smug smile on her lips in the background.
Ada looks up. "And how did it go? Was is as easy as you thought it would be?"
Hecate clears her throat. "Yes, yes it was." Hecate quickly changes the subject, she knows that Ada can read her like an open book and fears, that she might find out, that it was everything else but easy. "You can clearly see, that I´ve won the bet and I demand my reward." Hecate walks over to Ada.
"Not so fast, Hecate. I think, there´s something missing."
Hecate looks puzzled at her. "Missing? I put all the clothes, that were in the laundry basket, into the machine."
"I could swear, that there was a bra among the sweaters."
"A- a- a bra?" Hecate stutters, getting visible nervous. "N- n- no, there wasn´t a bra."
"Really? Mhhh, I wonder, who´s bra that is then." Ada pulls the bra from under her sweater and shows it to a very baffled Hecate.
"What... how... how did you get it? I transferred it to my room."
"Well, apparently something went wrong and your bra landed on my desk. Not that I mind." Ada grins and Hecate is blushing. "But that means, that I´ve won our little bet."
"But I didn´t know, that you still have my bra not to mention, that it was among your sweaters," Hecate protests.
"Well, okay. Maybe it was partly my fault and therefore you don´t have to bring me breakfast to bed."
Hecate can see the sparkle in her wife´s eyes. Hecate puts her hands on Ada´s hips and pulls her a bit closer. "You are up to something, aren´t you?"
"I want you to wear it." Ada holds the bra up.
Hecate arches her eyebrow. "You are kidding!?"
"I´m not. I would really like to see you wearing it. Please." Ada looks at her with puppy eyes.
"You know, that I hardly ever refuse one of your requests but it´s pink." Hecate looks at the bra in horror.
"I´m sure it´ll suite you." Ada starts kissing Hecate. "And no one will ever know. It will be our little secret."
"Well...´," Hecate has problems to concentrate, when she feels Ada´s hand on her bum. "I...I could...erhm...maybe put- put it on but only once and afterwards I´m going to burn it."
"Whatever you like, my love." Another kiss. Ada waves her hand and the laundry horse disappears.
"What? Now?" Hecate asks surprised, when Ada hands her the bra.
"Of course now."
"But-"
Ada makes one step back and clicks her fingers. Hecate is wearing nothing but her black knickers and the pink bra now.
Hecate looks at Ada in disbelief. "You didn´t."
"I did and I can´t say that I regret it." Ada lets her eyes wander over Hecate´s body. She steps closer and her finger brush over the thin fabric of Hecate´s bra. Hecate can feel how her body is immediately reacting to Ada´s familiar touch, much to her wife´s delight. Ada wraps her other arm around Hecate´s waist and whispers into her ear. "Even more beautiful than I thought you would look like." They begin to kiss and Ada is Hecate gently pushing backwards until they reach her bed and Hecate has to sit down. Hecate looks up at her and she can see the lust and passion in Ada´s eye, when she looks down at her. This time Hecate clicks her fingers and Ada´s clothes disappear.
"I think we are even now," Hecate smirks and pulls Ada onto the bed.
Ada lays in Hecate´s arms, her hand gently stroking over Hecate´s side. She can still hear Hecate´s raised heartbeat and she feels kind of proud, that she´s the reason for this.
"You know," Hecate begins and Ada lifts her head. " I might keep that bra." Hecate is brushing a strand of hair behind Ada´s ear.
"You do? Don´t tell me, that you´ve suddenly develope a thing for pink?" Ada teases her.
"It´s not the bra. It´s you."
"Me? I don´t understand."
Before Hecate answers, she takes Ada and flips her onto her back, looking down at her now. "If I´d known, that a pink bra has such an effect on you, I would have bought one years ago."
24 hours later
Ada can barely hide her grin, when Hecate informs Ms Hubble, that witches don´t really do pink.
"So... witches don´t do pink?" Ada says, after Hecate transferred Ms Hubble back home.
Hecate turns around. "That´s right." Ada looks over the rim of her glasses. "Well..." Hecate comes back to Ada, "Yesterday was just the exception that proves the rule."
Ada gets up and pulls Hecate closer. Hecate can feel Ada´s breath on her lips. " What about tonight?" Ada plants feathery kisses on Hecate´s neck. "Could tonight be another exception?"
The End