Author's Note:
Two updates in one week? It's a miracle!
Thank you to everyone for sticking with me through the evolution of this second installment of the Adrianna Fawley series. I have to admit, I got sidetracked by several ideas for story number 3, which is actually mostly written now because of that.
joicecarolyne12 - Thank you for yet another lovely review! I promise something is going to happen soon!
Tingting26021996 - I'm so glad! I hope you enjoy this chapter as well!
Enjoy,
~Dragonwing
Chapter 7 – Summer with the Succubi:
Every summer Adrianna spent several weeks with her full-blooded succubus aunts. The locations changed often, as did the types of lessons she received, and there had most definitely been a close call or two along the way (her aunt Sephra was now forbidden from taking her niece on any "outings"). Close calls or not, Adrianna always looked forward to her time spent with the succubi. Well, most of them anyway. There were a few bad apples in every family and Adrianna's was no exception. Luckily those particular aunts tended to shy away from family gatherings unless there was going to be some personal benefit to their presence.
Adrianna also enjoyed the magical loophole that allowed her to use her succubus magic to apparate, even though she had not finished school yet. It would have been tedious travelling by more traditional methods to meet her aunts, especially since they tended to prefer more out-of-the-way locales.
She appeared in a small puff of silver smoke, her feet touching down neatly onto the soft white sands of the currently uninhabited Caribbean island where her Aunt Lilith was waiting.
Standing tall and proud, golden skin sparkling in the morning rays of the sun, Lilith was the oldest living succubus, and consequently their acting queen. She turned and smiled at her only niece, pearly fangs glistening against the radiance of her skin. Lilith was not fond of the masking charms that Adrianna's mother used to move more discreetly among humans, they didn't' work very well on her anyway. Her mere presence tended to cause such commotion that the succubus queen decided long ago that it was best if she avoided populated areas altogether.
"Aunt Lilith," Adrianna slipped easily into her own succubus features before giving the golden woman a tight hug. "I've missed you."
"And I you, dear." Lilith's voice was like a roll of thunder in a summer storm. She wrapped both arms around her niece and Adrianna breathed in the electric, earthy scent all of her aunts seemed to naturally possess.
Lilith released her. "Have you seen your parents since you left school?"
"Yes," Adrianna nodded. "They met me at the train station. Mom says they'll join us here in a few days."
"Excellent. Come, let us meditate and see how your succubus magic is faring."
The pair moved to sit on a dune out of the tide's reach. Adrianna removed the witch's robe she'd worn over her summer Muggle clothing, sighing happily at the feeling of the warm sun on her bare arms and legs. She sat next to Lilith, the sand reforming itself easily around her, and settled into the meditative state that would allow her aunt to assess her magic levels. This was the first thing Lilith had ever taught her, and these sessions had become invaluable as Adrianna's natural witch and succubus powers continued to grow and shift around each other.
Adrianna felt the slight brush of her aunt's magic against her own and gladly let the older woman in. With the sun warming her skin and the sound of the sea in her ears, Adrianna decided that this was going to be a wonderful summer.
Then the blackness reached out, striking at their joined magic like a snake, and Adrianna screamed.
OOOOOOOOOO
When Adrianna woke up the moon was high in the sky, shining bright silver and bathing her in cool, clear light. The soft murmur of hushed voices reached her from farther down the beach, speaking in the whispery tongue only the succubi used.
Slowly she sat up, feeling the dull throb of her own pulse against the edges of her skull. Someone had placed a most-likely-conjured pillow beneath her head on the sand. Moving stiffly, Adrianna stood, dusting a small cloud of sand off her legs. She felt like she'd been run over by a troll. A particularly fat troll. And, for the first time in weeks, she was actually hungry.
Her curls shifted back off her face as a light breeze blew over the island. Several yards down the beach stood a circle of at least six succubi, a small purple-ish fire burning on the sand in front of them. Adrianna carefully picked her way down the shoreline. The coarse grit of the damp sand felt good against the soles of her feet, and served to help make her more alert.
When she reached them, all of the succubi turned as one to stare at her with grave, jewel-toned eyes. Her mother Celeste was there, no concealment charms, her silver skin rivaling the light shining from the moon overhead. She wrapped Adrianna into a tight hug.
"How are you feeling?" Celeste began running her hands over her daughter's arms, back, and neck. A warm, melting sensation settled into Adrianna's skin, chasing away any residual stiffness from when she'd first awoke.
"I'm fine, mom. I promise."
As soon as Celeste stepped back, Adrianna was enveloped by each of her aunts in turn, all of them checking her over for any injuries, magical or otherwise. She knew they wouldn't' be satisfied until they were done, and so she held still until the last succubus was content that she was unhurt.
"What happened?" Adrianna asked Lilith.
The golden succubus queen's expression was grave. "It was the dark current we have all been feeling for the last year. I don't know what drew it to our meditation or how it was able to attack us in that way, but as soon as I withdrew my magic from yours the attack stopped."
"You created a beacon for it, I would think." A succubus with azure tinted skin and long silver hair mused from the other side of the circle. "Just because we've been sensing its presence in Europe for the most part, doesn't mean it couldn't reach father."
"It's possible." Lilith agreed. "And disturbing." She turned her molten gaze onto her niece. "It would seem that the art of defense will be your primary lesson this summer, Adrianna."
The half-witch frowned. "But I already take a class in Defense Against—"
"Wizard defense will not protect you from this kind of evil." Lilith hissed. "Your natural-given defenses as a succubus will prove far more essential."
Adrianna's mother squeezed her hand and she nodded. "Yes, Lilith."
The purple fire in the sand suddenly winked out, leaving Adrianna in a sea of bright, multi-colored eyes. One by one her aunts began to disappear in puffs of painted smoke, until only Celeste and Lilith were left with her.
"Good." The golden eyes across from her narrowed calculatingly. "Your training will begin tomorrow."
OOOOOOOOOO
Adrianna collapsed back against the trunk of the nearest tree. Sweat dripped down her temples, stinging in her eyes and leaving a layer of salt at the corners of her mouth. Her aunt Seshat stood a few yards away, all midnight-blue skin and sinewy muscle. Short, silver-fox hair flipped and twisted out at various angles around her face, with long asymmetrical bangs that swooped down nearly covering her left eye.
"Let's go again." Seshat ordered. "You're getting much better."
"I don't know if I can." Adrianna panted. Seshat had been training her for weeks, building her up to use her succubus abilities for defense. They'd relocated to different environments every five days or so, and were currently ensconced deep within a South American jungle.
"Don't know if you can?" Seshat frowned. "Is that what you will tell your enemies when they are throwing everything they've got at you? Will you ask them to give you a break?" Without warning, the blue succubus sent a wave of magic across the clearing at her niece.
Adrianna threw her hands up, no wand was needed for this kind of magic, calling up the last bit of succubus magic that she could pull from her core. The silver light spread into a shield around her just as Seshat's attack hit. Adrianna felt like she'd been punched in the stomach, and the shield flickered, but in the end it held. When Seshat's magic faded out, Adrianna dropped the shield and sank down onto the thick cushion of underbrush beneath the tree.
A pair of bare, blue feet moved into view and her aunt sat down next to her. She placed a gentle hand on the back of Adrianna's neck, and soon a cool, soothing sensation began to travel down her spine.
"You are strong, Adrianna. Whatever is coming, I know you will be able to handle yourself."
"Thanks, auntie." Adrianna sighed, tilting her head forward to better enjoy her aunt's ministrations.
"Now we just need to get you through the rest of your wizarding school." Seshat's tone held the usual skepticism the succubi had for the magical abilities of witches and wizards.
Adrianna giggled. "I'm very glad I went to Hogwarts, you know that right?"
"Of course." Her aunt sighed reluctantly.
"I've made friends there." She persisted.
Seshat tilted her head back against the tree, eyes closed. "Hmm…yes. You're also in love."
"What?" Adrianna's head popped up, silver eyes blinking owlishly at her aunt.
"You are in love." Seshat repeated, still the picture of relaxation.
"And who exactly am I supposed to be in love with?"
The succubus next to her snorted delicately. "Well if you haven't figured it out on your own by now, I'm certainly not going to tell you."