~Chapter Ten~
Facing Your Inner Demons
The images they sell are illusion and dream;
In other words, dishonesty.
With silence comes peace.
With peace comes freedom.
With freedom comes silence.
Can you chase your demon,
Or will it take away your freedom?
~Illusion and Dream, by Poets of the Fall
Disclaimer: Me No Own; You No Sue.
Another force suddenly slammed into my side. The strength of this spell effectively knocked the breath out of my lungs, causing me to falter in my spellcasting. The magic pulsing through my veins came to a sudden, screeching halt. My teleportation spell fizzled into nothingness; it drifted into the black void of the afterlife, along with a good deal of the energy that was previously stored in my tattoos, in case of an emergency. I was also unable to summon it again, as this unfamiliar power clearly belonged to a person of the opposite element – she worshipped the powers of the light. This young woman was a white witch, and she wielded the power of wind without words, gestures, or artifacts. The only assistance that she'd had in casting the spell of cold gales was a long, slender wand.
And that capability clearly belonged to a witch of considerable skill. How wonderful.
Sammy's P.O.V.
My pink lips were twisted upwards in an audible snarl, and the words to a counterspell were already trickling over my tongue, fueling the magical force being created by the complicated movements of my hands. The large orb was formed by the powers of darkness, a spell that was created in clear opposition of these powers of light that this witch appeared to favor; it was like Umbreon and Espeon. That was a clear sign that the ensuing battle was not going to be an easy one.
But I was still gonna attempt to bring her down with my legendary Shadow Ball. It would be an awesome sight to behold! After all, I was a necromancer, and we kicked ass with the powers of darkness at our every beck and call. This stood to reason that our sidekicks were amazingly badass, as well. I mean, it was practically expected of us bad guys!
For example, King Galbatorix was magically bonded with his ancient dragon, Shruikan. Lord Voldemort was able to speak with his familiar, Nagini, and he often asked the snake for an opinion on matters concerning the Dark Side. And Sauron had, well, his mouth…
"Yay~! I called upon the powers of light to help my manager!"
Unfortunately, I didn't have a familiar at the moment. The option of sending a powerful sidekick to do my bidding and brutally attack my enemies was out of the question. This particular enemy was merely a perky nutcase, anyway, and not an actual enemy to be thwarted. There wasn't any reason for me to end her life with an awesome Pokémon Move.
What the fuck is wrong with me? I lowered the orb of darkness that was hovering calmly in front of my form, admittedly feeling quite disgusted with myself. That thing could have killed one of my friends!
Apparently, I was so accustomed to defending myself against the attacks of other witches that it had become second nature for me to cast spells at anyone other than the members of the Broken Blade Coven. We were a very strong group of magical entities, and most of the other witches in our coven walked a very thin line between love and hate, light and darkness, good and evil.
Of course, I wasn't actually a black witch and participating in the dark arts disgusted me. I was also well aware of the fact that most other entities detested black witches. The black witches that belonged to my coven were more neutral than most others, however, oftentimes leaning towards the spells favored by their passive counterparts. We still remained true to the calling of our patron spirits, in spite of that neutrality.
Caleb and Katie Jenkins were often subjected to the whims of Cerberus, the fiery patron spirit of the Hellfire Clan. My older brother, Seth, had decided to follow in the footsteps of our father, Daniel. The two older males were referred to as shadow witches, an entity with the ability to create plagues, droughts, and general discord. In fact, the two of them were proud members of the unpredictable Chaos Clan, the likes of which enjoyed tormenting the world with mischief and mayhem. Their patron spirit was the mysterious god of mischief, Loki.
I was a necromancer. Those particular magical entities were even more feared than other dark creatures, like vampires, and wraiths, and the elusive boggarts. Anubis was the patron spirit of my bloodline, too. Death was his specialty, so it wasn't difficult for me to amass a following of the aforementioned dark creatures. Thus, I was considered by many other witches to be a very serious threat to the magical community, as well as the rest of the world. Cue evil laugh here.
But, I am not evil…!
Hesitantly, I dropped the pose of an aggressive attacker and resumed a more neutral stance. This witch was merely defending her stomping grounds, or, as most witches called it nowadays, their magical territory. I found it a little strange that a witch of her caliber was working at this weird establishment, and it was even stranger that this witch considered the bulk of her magic to be rooted deep within this particular territory. I mean, it was a lingerie store!
The other witch struck a cute pose, lifting two of her slender fingers upwards in the international peace sign. "I even managed to prevent the other witch from ruining my new cosplay with her magic!" She happily chirped, "Brownie points for me…!"
I stared at her in blatant disbelief, quietly muttering, "What is wrong with this lady…?"
I'd never been very provincial; however, I was finding it hard to believe that this person was actually a witch, and a good one, too! The young woman was about average height, with a curvy figure and long, skinny legs. She'd twisted her brown hair into two thick pigtails, both of which rested above the small of her back. Her revealing costume – a red tube top, a pair of white genie pants, and pointed ballet flats – appeared to be the sort of attire that an exotic dancer might wear whilst entertaining her sultan in the heat of the deserts. Like Jasmine and Jafar.
My mind immediately latched onto thoughts of an old television sitcom that aired in the 1960s. I Dream of Jeannie was such a funny show, and it provided hours of amusement. I remembered that show fondly, even though real genies had a tendency to trick their masters into wishing for evil things. Those sneaky little entities had so much more in common with djinns that most people originally thought. Both creatures liked to steal panties, too.
Ayame grinned and patted her on the shoulder, exclaiming, "Yay~! My wonderful employee successfully prevented another witch from escaping!" His golden eyes softened into a tender gaze, and he kissed her once on the lips. "Thank you, Miine-chan."
Well, Miine was apparently sleeping with the hyperactive snake, which was admittedly an act of bestiality. And I had to admit that this was like the pot calling the kettle "black." My boyfriend could transform into a dog, so it stood to reason that my own sexuality should be called to question, as well…
She eagerly returned the tender kiss placed upon her lips and purred, "It was my pleasure, Aya-kun~!"
Based upon thatkiss, their relationship had existed for quite some time. The two of them were comfortable with each other, and their public displays of affection didn't embarrass either one of them. And the romantic nature of their relationship also ensured that he'd seen her tattoos at one point or another. It would certainly explain how the oblivious snake had known the truth behind my own tattoos!
I mean, seriously! Ayame had only seen the blue runes for a brief second. Nevertheless, he was able to determine that my heritage was magical in essence almost immediately, and with no other context clues. He'd obviously encountered another witch, someone that provided him with the prior knowledge needed to make such an astute observation.
And now, I could clearly see that the mysterious witch in question was actually Miss Miine.
The older witch smiled at me and flexed the fingers of her left hand, before loosely clasping them around the thin handle of the wooden wand. This magical instrument was made from the bark of a walnut tree, a pliable wood that was renowned for granting white witches the power of altering the weather. It also explained her excellent display of wind magic – most witches our age had difficulty controlling such a spirited element. Air liked its freedom.
I allowed my wary gaze to flicker over her form, openly searching for the separate marks of her coven and clan. There was an intricate collection of gray tattoos swirling around her stomach, the majority of which were visible to the naked eye. Normally, I'd thank the young woman for wearing such a revealing little costume, but that would make me sound like a lesbian. And I didn't want my boyfriend to dump me for being homosexual.
I sweatdropped, quietly thinking to myself – Or, Shigure might actually think that it was sexy…
That thought caused a shiver to crawl down my spine and a patch of wetness to pool in the junction between my thighs. I hurriedly returned my attention to the bare stomach of this other young woman, which was admittedly a rather weird reaction to have in regards to the thoughts of my very horny boyfriend. Maybe I really was a lesbian!
Oh, man! I mentally slapped myself in the face for pondering over my own sexuality at a time like this. Focus!
A collection of silver tattoos swirled gently around her midriff, much like the thin lines of old calligraphy, and ultimately signified that her magic belonged to the Yume Coven. That coven was famous for producing a many amazing artists, musicians, and dancers. Most of their old teachings were concerned primarily with the inspirational side of the craft. Miss Miine would definitely be considered one of these artists, too. If one believed that designing skimpy lingerie was actually an art, anyway…
Upon further inspection, I realized that something else was also hidden amongst the complex swirls – a thin, silver snake was coiled around her belly button. I found it difficult to discern the exact species of the snake, seeing as it was meant to blend in with the rest of her tattoos, but it might have been a cobra. Nevertheless, this was the mark of the Serpent Clan.
"Great," I muttered, darkly, and with an irritated scowl upon my lips. "Of all the people for me to encounter at this moment, and it just had to be a goddamn white witch from that clan…"
As a white witch, the origin of her tattoos – and the strength of her powers – was fundamentally different from my own. This person was born with the sole purpose of serving the light. Miine appeared to have a firm grasp on wild magic, too. This feat indicated the strength and purity of her mind, body, heart, and soul. In contrast, I represented the darkness that enjoyed greedily clutching at the opposite end of the magical scale. It just so happened that this particular scale was only divided into two very different sides – on one, there was good, and on the other, there was evil.
The gods had decreed that someone with my talents would be born as a necromancer. I was poked, prodded, and flayed with a pitchfork. Then, I was placed in the hands of my patron saint, Anubis, a creature that happily chucked me over to the Dark Side. I didn't get to choose my fate, and neither did Darth Vader.
I'd always been an unwilling participant in the darker aspects of life…and of death.
The brunette cocked her head to the side. "I've been wondering why everything reeked of dark magic, but there appears to be a black witch in here, so that explains the smell…" Miine mused, tapping her chin in time with the drumming of my heartbeat.
"Hey! Black witches ruin the lives of innocent people, curse them with bad luck, and often channel the powers of the Devil!" I exclaimed in horror, before hastening to add, "So, I am not a black witch!"
Miine pointed at me with an accusing finger, and she harshly demanded, "That may be true, but you are more than capable of summoning demons and the like, aren't you?"
Now, Miine was pointing that same finger at the magical mark of the Jackal, which was clearly visible through the straps of my white dress. I automatically reached over my shoulder for the comforting material of a jacket, wanting to hide the shame of my dark markings; however, the black jacket wasn't resting there, as it should have been. I'd decided to leave it back at the house, foolishly thinking that I wouldn't need its protection during my date with Shigure.
Zoey Redbird had to deal with the shame of such strange markings, as well. That young woman was a vampire, though, and she was eventually revered amongst her peers as a very powerful entity. Her tattoos were a sign of that awesome power over the five elements.
On the other hand, I was a necromancer – and a sinner, too. The Jackal was an amazing creature, one with the ability to fight creatures many times its size, oftentimes emerging as the victor. I'd figured out long ago that it was an honor to be chosen as a Jackal Witch. But at the same time, it was like being branded with the mark of the Devil.
"Yes…" I swallowed nervously, cleared my throat, and quietly amended, "I can commune with demons, spirits, and the undead – if one of those creatures is willing to speak with me at the time, anyway."
I didn't see any point in arguing over something of this nature. I'd spoken the truth, and the truth was written very clearly in black and white – there weren't any shades of gray in witchcraft. Our entire world was comprised of opposites, it seemed, and no one could challenge that delicate balance without suffering the consequences.
The Council of Elders claimed that necromancy was a sin, even though a great many of the older witches under its control were capable of summoning the very same dark creatures, too. The old hypocrites believed that it was also in their best interests to kill me and mine. There were often a number of assassins sent to our favorite stomping grounds with orders to determine the rankings and silence the more powerful members of the Broken Blade Coven. Those stupid assassins were generally sent back to their headquarters inside bloody body bags, too.
The remaining collection of corpses became my unwilling subjects in a number of dark spells, séances, and experiments. Hurray!
"You should be able to recognize the mark of my coven, too," I murmured, pulling the collar of the dress even lower and revealing the small black heart with the blade thrust in its center. "It's an ancient group of witches, one with numerous ties to the Order of Merlin."
Miine leaned forward to stare at the small mark, apparently curious, and turned her head this way and that to gain a better look at the emblem. "Well, I'm guessing that you're a member of the famed Broken Blade Clan, then?"
I nodded in the affirmative, signaling that her assumptions were correct. "'My heart is broken, but my silver blade remains outspoken,'" I quoted. That was the motto of our coven, and one that had been drilled into my head since the years of early childhood.
Miine stared blankly at me for a moment; then, the proverbial light bulb flickered to life. She gasped, "Of course! That explains everything...!" Her gaze darted over the entirety of my form, noticing the apparent lack of a wand or spell book in my hands. "You're a necromancer!"
Thankfully, Shigure and the snake had disappeared into the backroom several minutes ago. I assumed that the two of them were discussing the events of last night – those nasty, perverted males! And that was probably the only reason that those mischievous childhood friends were being exceptionally quiet at the moment. Neither of them wanted to be heard, it seemed.
The other witch appeared to agree with me on that matter, because she huffed in irritation and placed a small hand on her cocked hip. "I really need to ask for a raise…" Miine whined, "…or a paid vacation to the Caribbean!"
Personally, I would take a vacation to the Caribbean – it would be so awesome to travel back in time and meet Jack Sparrow. I smirked in amusement and automatically corrected my own error. I mean, Captain Jack Sparrow!
"You could always ask your boyfriend for a diamond ring," I cheekily suggested, since the other witch was still whining about an apparent lack of attention from her boyfriend as of late.
Miine mechanically opened and closed her mouth, before spouting, "…a…diamond…ring…?"
A cold gust of wind suddenly burst through the enclosed space, whipping against my small form with the force of a tropical hurricane. My blonde head actually jerked backwards in response to the strength of that wind spell, which the elemental witches generally called the Dark Dream of the Dragon. That one spell was capable of inflicting an incredible amount of damage on an enemy in a relatively short span of time. And I was clearly the intended target, too!
Oh, shit...! I ducked away from the grasp of a stray tendril of magic, thinking back to the attacks against that my nemesis, Yuki. This is my punishment for repeatedly attacking that damn rat, isn't it? Stupid Karma!
Miine continued to feed the elemental spell with her raw energy, and whilst remaining as silent as the grave, too. The scary zombie didn't have a taste for brains at the moment, but she still appeared to feel the need to rip my heart right out of my chest! Chocolate eyes were almost black with rage – something that appeared to be rather out of the norm for this perky young woman – and that anger was fueling the magic within her. Apparently, this was a rather sore subject for the young white witch. My bad…!
"That stupid tyrant doesn't believe that the two of us should be allowed to get married, Sammy-san," Miine muttered, shaking her head back and forth at the injustice of it all – her boyfriend was being still forced to live in the dark ages!
I wouldn't have been able to guess the name of the person causing her such grief, save for the use of that one word: tyrant. The only person that seemed to fit that description was a thin, dark, and imposing man that answered to the name of Hitler, er…Akito! He was currently the head of the Sohma family, thusly being forced to act as a god to the members of the Zodiac. The horrid young man controlled almost every aspect of their lives, even going so far as to dictate which of them could get married, and to whom.
Now that I thought about it, Akito reminded me a little bit of Voldemort, the evil fiend that had developed a rather strange obsession with snakes. Poor Ayame was more than likely gonna be molested by his creepy relative at one point or another. He transformed into a snake, after all!
I grinned in realization, quietly snapping my fingers together at the thought – That must be the reason that he refuses to give them his blessing! Akito is secretly in love with Ayame, so he wants the snake all for himself.
"Akito-sama refuses to give either of us his blessing," Miine whispered, sadly, and with this horribly depressed expression on her face. It was kinda like being in an anime!
That effectively snatched the smug grin from its perch across my lips. This young woman was suffering, and it was not very nice of me to smile at her misfortune. Granted, I didn't have to try too terribly hard to wipe that stupid smile from my face. I obviously wasn't going to be allowed to marry my boyfriend, either. That seriously sucked, and not a perverted sense, either…
"Oh, Kami…" Miine sniffled pathetically at her predicament and swiped a hand across her eyes, seemingly determined to hide her tears. "I just want to get married before my thirtieth birthday makes a surprise visit, you know?"
I sighed. Miine really wanted to get married to the eccentric snake, didn't she? The two of them were incredibly lucky to have been permitted the chance to date one another, though, considering that the decision was ultimately not theirs to make, as most people would have you believe in this day and age. Akito had the final word in romantic matters such as these because he was secretly a love guru; thus, he could forbid their marriage.
The stupid tyrant didn't even seem to realize that her biological clock appeared to be ticking like a time bomb. It would probably explode within the hour! Ayame was going to be devastated, too. I mean, his shop would be ruined!
My lips slowly twisted downwards, now taking the appearance of a very bitter scowl. I sourly muttered, "Akito is an asshole…"
That statement apparently broke the proverbial dam, so the other witch began to rant and rave about the horrible curses that she would inflict upon his house, should she actually go over to the Dark Side. I calmly assured the white witch that we would welcome her with open arms – and cookies! Free samples of desserts were always a good method of coercion.
"Oh, I'm going to give that rotten cretin a piece of my mind!" Miine exclaimed in anger, curling the fingers of her left hand into a small fist. For a moment, it appeared as though she might break her own wand in half with the force of her grip.
"I know, right?" I admittedly laughed at that heated declaration, before pointing out, "On the bright side, he would actually have a brain!" I heaved a mock sigh of regret. "Alas, Akito could no longer be cast as the Scarecrow in this retarded reenactment of The Wizard of Oz..."
Her lips curled up into a small smile, allowing the witch to express the amusement she obviously felt at my words. "Then, I suppose that would make you the Wicked Witch of the West!" Miine chirped, thoroughly amused.
Angrily, I huffed at her characterization and muttered, "I've already told you that the members of my bloodline aren't considered black witches!" I crossed both of my arms over my chest, before assuming the classic pouting stance, complete with protruding lower lip.
Miine smiled sadly and said, "Well, I wish that you were the Wicked Witch of the West, so that you could get rid of that evil man." Her chocolate eyes glittered maliciously for a moment. "I'd really enjoy watching you dethrone the Nome King."
"If that were the case," I gently pointed out, "I'd be almost as horrible as that the evil witch that cast the curse on their family in the first place, Miine-san."
Honestly, I didn't want to seek revenge for their family. There was a much more pressing matter at hand – it was always more important that a curse be lifted, rather than its creator hurt, maimed, or even killed. And I'd been appointed to this position for a reason. There were many different people involved in this situation, yet none of them were willing to be the mature adult and declare an end to this pointless cycle of revenge.
"To be honest, I'd much rather be cast as the Good Witch of the North," I shyly admitted, then ducked behind a curtain of my blonde hair in order to cover the blush staining my cheeks. It was stupid, but – "Glenda always comes to mind at times like this, because she was a beautiful, kind, and strong witch."
She sighed wearily at the end of this lengthy – and obviously depressing – monologue. "Poor Sammy-san…" Miine murmured sadly, "You really don't like being a necromancer very much, do you?"
I hesitantly stared into the depths of her hazel eyes, both of which were glowing with so many different emotions that it was difficult for me to discern the most prevalent of them. There was an overwhelming sadness burning in her eyes, of course, but smidgens of curiosity, anger, and cold speculation were present in that dark gaze, as well. The last of these strange emotions was admittedly the most important; it would determine whether or not the more experienced witch would allow me to deal with this important matter entirely on my own.
So, I proudly raised the tip of my chin, adjusting it so that the edge of my jaw was parallel with the floor. The haughty gesture was admittedly an act of excessive pride on my part, and the cold motion indicated the strength of my bloodline, too. I inhaled sharply and smiled up at her, in an effort to convince her that everything was going to be fine. The timid smile on my lips was displayed in sharp contrast to the aforementioned arrogant posture.
I was such a contradiction at times. My theme song should totally be "Hot N' Cold," by Katy Perry. The eccentric woman really understood that some girls liked to be bipolar!
"Not really, but it does have its perks." A devious glow slowly appeared within my icy blue eyes, turning the pupils an eerie white color. I mischievously purred, "And having these dark powers gives me an advantage in this situation, too."
Miine stared at me in silence, clearly trying to discern the meaning of that last sentence, which was shrouded in darkness. Finally, the voluptuous young woman inquired, "Which one of your powers are you referring to, Sammy-san?"
"Well, I'm a shadow necromancer," I explained, tapping my lower lip in thought. "My powers are generally used to summon demons, spirits, and the undead, but a portion of them are also dedicated to analyzing the curses that each of them can inflict upon their victims."
Clearly, I was hinting at something that the other witch could relate to, thanks to her involvement with the Sohma family. Miine would be able to figure it out, now, unless she was a complete and total airhead. Like Tohru!
"Oh, Kami," Miine breathed in amazement. There was a brief moment of silence, before her chocolate eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. The hope in her voice was audible as she desperately asked, "Can you…?"
I leaned even closer to the witch, cupped a hand around my open mouth, and whispered, "I can remove the curse on the Sohmas."
"That would be so great!" The brunette repeatedly jumped up and down, excited, and released a loud squeal, "I could help you control your magic, and together, we could break the curse that was placed on their family!" She squealed again. "Then, I could finally get married!"
Immediately, I thought to shake my head in the negative. "No, I think that it would be better for me to deal with this on my own, especially since it involves speaking with Akito," I protested.
Miine hesitated for a brief moment and delicately raised an eyebrow in skepticism, asking, "Do you really think that the tyrant will listen to you, Sammy-san?"
I shrugged hesitantly in response to her question, admittedly feeling rather uncertain about my ability to do so. The extent of my abilities was still wildly unknown, since the mysterious details surrounding the traits of my bloodlines had been hidden in vaults throughout the world. And I was a necromancer, not a treasure hunter with an uncanny knack for finding trouble. Thus, it served to reason that breaking curses was not a hobby of mine, nor was it my forte. That was more along the lines of something that could be done with the help of Mister Indiana Jones.
Nonetheless, I offered her an explanation. "Akito and I have already made a deal about getting rid of this curse," I admitted, placing a hand over my tattoos. "It's currently in the works, so the two of us can probably still work something out regarding the subject of marriages…"
A pair of bright hazel eyes stared into my own, glittering with curiosity. "I know that this might be a touchy subject, but there has to be a reason that you haven't done anything about it yet, right?" Miine inquired, with a small frown on her lips.
I blanched at that particular question, as it was the one that had been swimming around in my own head for almost two months, now. I'd desperately wanted to admit to all of my friends that the curse could be lifted – and immediately, too. Then, Hatori might be able to start dating other women. He might fall in love with one and get married before any of his friends! Tohru would also be able to touch her boyfriend without the fiery young man transforming into an orange cat; it hadn't put a strain on their relationship yet, but it probably would sometime in the very near future. And I didn't want that to happen.
But, I was afraid that my boyfriend wouldn't be interested in dating such a naïve and woefully inexperienced young woman anymore. That overwhelming fear far outweighed the guilt that plagued me. I was keeping this knowledge about an immediate cure as a secret from the other couples within the Zodiac. I'd selfishly decided to ignore the curse, as well as that horrible blood summons.
Miine placed a hand on one of my own, patting it sympathetically as she prompted, "What's the matter, Sammy-san?"
"Shigure might be in love with me at the moment, but he could easily choose someone else after the curse has been lifted," I whispered the admission, feeling quite ashamed of myself, and tried to remove my shaking hand from her gasp. She wouldn't let go of it, though. "And, I don't want him to leave me…"
"Oh, honey," she murmured, tenderly squeezing that same hand in between two of her own in an attempt to comfort me. "I know that you might not believe me just yet, but that man will always be in love with you."
Oh, God. I was completely silent for a moment, falling under the spell of her pretty words, the likes of which guaranteed a happy ending to this Cinderella Story. Please, I want him to be my Prince Charming…!
"Do you really think so, Miine-san?" I whispered, and my lips trembled lightly with nervous tension.
Her gray tattoos glittered with the magic of premonition. The psychic elements had been greatly diminished through the course of several generations, and it was almost as obsolete as Windows XP. Thankfully, I could tell that the Force appeared to be very strong within this one. Yoda was about to give me a fortune cookie with explicit details concerning my future!
Miine grinned widely at me, before winking in a rather conspiratorial manner. "I know it for a fact, honey!" She blinked in surprise. "Oh, I see puppies in your future, too!"
I released a small sound of laughter, and a happy expression immediately flickered over my pale face at the reassuring premonition, perhaps for the first time since early this morning. My stiff shoulders relaxed into a position of relief, allowing the rest of my tired body to follow suit for a moment. I smiled happily to myself. Now, I knew that there was a possibility of a very bright future with my boyfriend to look forward to during this ordeal.
Suddenly, I had this overwhelming urge to vomit, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the nervous tension burning in my stomach at the thought of marrying my boyfriend, Shigure. I'd always wanted to get married to the perfect man. There was no reason for me to regret falling in love with that crazy mutt, even if he was a pain in my ass at times!
No, I was certain that the cause of these feelings – pain, despair, and regret – was not human in origin. I was violently sick to my stomach, there was an unbearable burning in my lungs, and my body did not appear to want to respond to any of the orders that my brain was frantically screaming over the broken intercom. Nothing was working properly at the moment. Frankly, this entire fiasco reeked of demonic possession, and that really scared me.
I mean, seriously! Regan didn't appear too terribly thrilled about being possessed in the horror movie, The Exorcist. Why should it excite me that this was happening to me, too?
Oh, man! I thought, wryly. Where is my crazy alarm clock when you need it? Damn Lucifer for taking the day off!
I leaned forward and wrapped both of arms around the middle of my aching stomach. It groaned audibly in protest, begging me to remove the shaking appendages from their current perch on the lower half of my ribcage. My bellybutton was sticking outwards, and the area around the midriff was severely swollen, as though it had way too much food in it. Otherwise, I'd suddenly become about three months pregnant. And that was impossible.
Finally, I complied with the wishes of my gurgling stomach, choosing to lean backwards rather than forwards, in the hopes that the unbearable pain might lessen. That didn't appear to help much, either, so my magic promptly decided to take matters into its own hands, er, tendrils.
"Oh, shit!" Miine hissed through her teeth, barely able to refrain from screaming in horror at that point. She didn't want to alert our boyfriends to the situation, but…
The blue clan tattoos on my back were writhing beneath the layers of skin, pulsating with the odd magic that was slipping through the hundreds of tiny veins in my body. A sweet smell suddenly drifted through the small, enclosed room and settled over the aisle that the two of us were sitting in at the moment. Oddly enough, the aroma reminded me of honeysuckle, one of my favorite flowers. I welcomed the sweet scent at first, and then, it occurred to me that this wasn't my magic.
Miine frantically began to ask a series of questions, most of which were spoken far too quickly for me to understand. Perhaps it was another side effect of the spell. Nonetheless, I couldn't hear her panicked cries of – "Are you hurt, or sick, or mentally ill…?"
At that moment, I opened my mouth to answer the desperate questioning of the other witch, but not a single sound came out – a waterfall of blood cascaded over my lower lip, instead. I quickly closed it and slammed my eyelids shut, trying to brace myself as another wave of nausea almost knocked me over. Several more waves followed the first, though, one right after the other, and it became increasingly difficult to fight the urge to start shaking like an epileptic in the midst of a seizure. There was this strange ringing in my ears, similar in pitch to the sound of a whirring hairdryer.
A huge shadow flickered in the corner of my vision, resembling a man with wings of black and eyes of crimson blood. I squinted in the general direction of the shadow, because it seemed so very important for me figure out whether it was a human, or a spirit, or something else nefarious in nature. My muscles still weren't responding to any direct commands; thus, I had to continue staring straight ahead, oblivious to the danger looming in my future. I focused the majority of my attention on the yellow floor beneath my feet.
And the floor appeared to be getting closer, and closer, and closer, and closer…
***Author's Note***
Hello, everybody! I'm sorry that this is a week late, but here it is for all to enjoy! :D
Please read and review, per usual. I'm about to answer the reviews for the laster chapter, too, so be looking for an answer if you reviewed.
For this chapter, I hope to have 80 reviews. ;) The next chapter will be up in a few weeks - it's in Shigure's POV, by the way! Look forward to it, okay?