Alright LJ-ers...here's the new material. Muhahaha, here is where I start to introduce the stranger things that are part of the witch/Wiccan/magick beliefs, so here is where I tip-toe onto unstable ground. Heh...(sweatdrops)

Oh, and before we begin, I'd just like to make a note. Not all witches are Wiccan. Nor are all Wiccans witches.

Read and...yeah...lol...

"Come back to our place, we'll explain to you some things." Demyx said conversationally, though his grip on my hand tightened considerably. His blue-green eyes flicked over to the redhead, who noticed the look and shook his head. If this was some kind of communication, I was ignorant to its meaning…which was probably the point of it all.

We walked for a good twenty minutes I'd suppose before a large house came into view.

"You're Wicca." The redhead said. It was a statement, not a question, and I briefly wondered if he could read my mind. Because right before he'd spoken, I'd been thinking about my mother, who is, in fact, Wiccan.

I nodded dumbly, peering confusedly up at the much taller redhead. "What's your name?" I asked quietly, not really expecting to be heard, much less receive a response.

"Axel." He said curtly.

Demyx laughed for the first time since the incident in my entryway, eyes clearing and his aura opening once more, the colors mingling with the subtle energy I could sense coming from the earth and the surrounding plant life. "His name is Ak—'' he paused to whine as Axel punched him in the shoulder. "You'll regret that later…erm, his name is Axel Aodhan."

I felt my eyes go wide at the name. Wow…and I thought my name was a pain in the ass…poor guy.

"Like I said, my name is Axel." The redhead said tightly through clenched teeth, pausing to glare at Demyx. "And his name is actually Myde."

Demyx stuck his tongue out at Axel, his eyes narrowing, but not in anger, just playful annoyance. I wondered if the dude could even get mad.

"Myde Georgian Carter?" I whispered incredulously to myself, trying to stifle a giggle. "No wonder you changed it."

Shoving me playfully, but still grasping my hand tightly, Demyx laughed. "Don't make fun of me, kido."

Axel stared at me intensely for a while as we made it to the walkway of the house. It was two stories, with a sprawling, almost random layout design and one half was colored red and the other blue and green. It was an interesting combination, and one might think garish at first sight. But the more I stared at it, the more I realized that it was a balance of fire and water. Symbolized by the colors of course, but the balance kept the mind from shying away from the unnaturally clashing colors and left you feeling peaceful on the inside. I like this house, I thought with a sigh.

We walked up to the front door and Axel shoved it open with a huff, stomping in and disappearing off to the back of the first floor. I gaped around the entryway. It was significantly smaller than the one in my house, but it was just as majestic. The tiles were dark blue with minute swirls of tranquil green. The air was moist and cool, like when you stand next to a river or the ocean, that crisp, clean smell. The walls were painted dark hues of blue, green and silver, the furniture earth tones that contrasted well with the water-colors of the walls and carpet. Everything seemed to flow, and I was nearly blinded by the intense shades wavering in the air. Candles were set up on every surface though they weren't lit, the windows open, allowing the spring air inside and lighting every surface with the sun, and I spied a dark mahogany chest in the corner, the outside decorated to look like a pirate's treasure chest, and I was instantly curious as to what was inside.

I turned to ask, only to find that Demyx was gone. Confused, yet strangely comfortable in the house, I wandered from room to room. Bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, study, living room, den, it was all here. Just in the front of the house. Hell, everything in my house was separated by floors. Here, everything was just a quick trip down the hallway away.

While I enjoyed this part of the house, its colors and overall sensation of comfort and relaxation, I was curious about the back part of the house where Axel had disappeared to. Though it was wrong to go wandering in a stranger's house, I found my feet moving me slowly down the narrow hall. About halfway down, I noticed a dramatic change in temperature. It was suddenly very humid, the colors in the air fading away to be replaced with intense, invisible energy that seemed to crackle in my ears. I started to sweat a little, simply because it was so warm, almost like walking through a boiler room. I emerged into a living room, much like Demyx's. Only it was much darker in here. The heavy scarlet drapes were drawn over the windows, blocking out the sunlight. There were red candles spread throughout the room, lighting it dimly, giving everything a smoldering glow. The blood red couch and bare floors reflected the light, but couldn't pierce the shadows in the corners.

I felt a sense of trepidation and the conflicting sensation of security as I ventured further in. The couch was large and overstuffed, piled with throw pillows and the glass table set in front of it only added to a charming, homey feel. I glanced around, arms crossed tight across my middle. I didn't have the courage to venture into the other rooms, since none of them had any light whatsoever. Although I could faintly hear the sound of a fire, snapping and popping as it burned, I couldn't see it. I thought about calling out, but for some reason, my voice died as I opened my mouth. The energy around me shot to a higher level. I looked down and could see the hairs on my arms standing on end, could feel the hair on my head lift from my scalp. What was the deal with all the energy?

"You little sneak," an amused, sultry voice whispered directly in my ear.

Under normal circumstances, I'd scream. Then again, under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have let two complete strangers who were four years older than me cajole me out of my new home and to their house, which, need I remind myself, was at least half a mile away from anyone else.

So, instead of my usual freak out, I just shrugged and didn't bother to turn. "Sorry, guess my curiosity got the better of me." I felt another presence manifest in front of me, and at first I thought it was Demyx, but then I felt something skitter across my bare foot, and that's when I squealed.

Axel laughed at me as I hid behind his taller, lanky frame. He bent down and straightened with a dark shadow twining itself around his forearm. "Chill, kid, it's just Orion."

"O-Orion?" I stuttered, my heart leaping into my throat as Axel bent down slightly and held his arm out, showing off the shadow that turned out to be a large, reptile body, a long tail curled all the way down Axel's forearm.

"Yeah, you know, my Familiar."

I felt my mind cloud over from the overload of energy and shook it briefly to clear my thoughts. Familiar…now where had I heard that word before? I knew it meant something, mom had mentioned it once…oh, but Freya help me if I knew what it was.

His tone smug, Axel clarified. I still swore the dude could read my mind. "You know, an attendant spirit in the form of a small animal to aid a witch in the practice of magick."

Now I felt dumb. I knew that. I suddenly remembered a couple of years back, when I'd really wanted to get a dog. Melissa had vehemently denied having such a creature in the house. When I asked her why, she'd claimed that they didn't make for good Familiars, and if we were going to get a pet, it would only be when I chose a Familiar. Though she didn't explain then what a Familiar was, I later went and researched it. When I confronted her again on the matter, she said that I'd have to choose a preference for what type of magick I wished to practice before she'd help me find a Familiar. She, personally, chose the practice of Yoga and Zazen, the form of Zen meditation and special series of physical poses to achieve spiritual insight and tranquility.

I'd always thought Melissa was nuts. I love her, don't get me wrong, but I'd always seen her way of living as just plain…well…insane. Now that I'd met Demyx and Axel, who appeared fairly lucid individuals, I found that maybe I'd been wrong all this time. Perhaps there was a deeper world, a deeper meaning to this Wiccan and witch deal than I'd first thought.

And if that was true, then I was in way over my head now.

"You know, kid," Axel suddenly began, startling me out of my thoughts. He crossed his arms and I couldn't keep my eyes from tracking the scurrying movement of the shadow as it crawled up Axel's arm, settling on his shoulder, that serpentine tail curling around the redhead's neck loosely. "You've got an awful lot of power. Why don't you use it?"

I stiffened, suddenly on the defensive. "And how do you know I don't use it?"

"Because you're drawing all the energy in this freaking house into your Chakra. That doesn't usually happen unless someone is prepping for a spell. And considering the blank looks you keep giving me, I think it's safe to say you're pretty ignorant in this kind of stuff."

My mouth opened and closed like a fish as I tried to come up with something to say in response to that. What could I say? Jeez, he was like a walking, talking Wiccan encyclopedia.

"You…said I'm Wiccan earlier…how did you know?" I asked quietly.

Axel watched me for a silent moment, and I felt the temperature rise around me even higher. I felt like I was suffocating under all the heat and pressure building in my body, but I didn't care. I liked the weight. Solid, real. "I just know." He whispered.

"W-where'd Demyx go?" I stuttered, feeling nervous all of a sudden. "You know what, never mind, I need to get home anyways." I turned to leave, but Axel's hand on my arm stopped me. Wow, for such a skinny guy, he certainly had an intense grip.

"If you insist on going back into that house, then at least let me give you a talisman or a charm to protect you." He let go of me and disappeared into the darkness of some other room. I swallowed hard and turned to leave, thinking I could sneak out while he was occupied, only to come to a skittering halt at the large reptile blocking the way of the hall. I wasn't afraid of much, but lizards that were the size of my head topped the list in that moment. I took several careful steps backwards until I sat heavily on the couch. It was so soft, so warm, my eyes slid closed as I relaxed involuntarily into the cushions.

Though I was otherwise occupied, the lizard still didn't move from its spot at the hall entrance, almost as if it were guarding it…or attempting to keep me in. I didn't quite care at the moment. There was something intoxicating about this room, about the aromas seeping into the heavy air from the candles. I closed my eyes completely and just inhaled. It was like I was being drugged, and my mind would have gone into a panic if it didn't just fog over.

Axel appeared next to me on the couch, a small satchel in one hand. I smiled up at him, wondering why my hazed mind was picturing him as a familiar face, as one to trust. I had this urge to be closer, and it was as if I'd left my body, watching from afar as I reached out to him. His expression darkened in confusion and he was hesitant to respond when I pulled his head down to be level with mine. There was just something about him that called out to me then. Something that made me burn from the inside, some forbidden fire rising to life.

Finally, he bent over me, his eyes staring into mine as if he could read my soul. "You're a White witch…true magick…" he murmured, leaning in to press his lips against my neck. I cried out softly as my skin was seared by the contact. It felt like that part of me had just come in contact with fire. It hurt…and yet it felt amazingly nice.

"Akuseru…" I whispered, unsure why I felt the need to call him that instead of Axel.

When he pulled back in shock, however, some part of my brain came back to life and I shoved him away, freaked about what I'd just done.

"Did you…drug me?" I squeaked, rubbing a hand vigorously against the side of my neck where his mouth had touched. Axel only shook his head, stunned and seemingly like he was regretful at not being able to say that he had. He held out the bag to me and began to quickly explain the things inside.

"There's a turquoise stone you can put on a chain that will give protection against evil eye, influences of evil forces, and sorcery. A necklace with a black lodestone with a hole in the center to keep away evil spirits and work as a powerful jinx-breaker. A pyramid crystal to put under your bed to protect you from psychic attacks and…" Axel trailed off as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a weathered looking piece of square parchment with faded ink written on the creased paper. "This is a Protection Talisman…as long as you carry it, nothing can harm you…" I took the bag and the paper, glancing down to see what was written on it. In bold, sweeping letters, the words were lined perfectly into a square, reading:

SATOR

AREPO

TENET

OPERA

ROTAS

I nodded and stuck the paper in my pocket, keeping my head down low as I quickly passed by the lizard who was watching me go almost sadly. I went down the hall and straight to the front door, breaking into a run once I was outside. I was amazed at how I could suddenly breathe, the tension that had been slowly building bleeding out with the first breath of fresh, clean air. I ran all the way back to my house, hesitant to open the door. Once I did, I stepped inside and closed the heavy oak door behind me. It shut with a clap that echoed around the empty spaces of the rooms.

Now that I was alone after that strange encounter with Demyx and Axel, I was suddenly keenly aware of how…empty the place was. In the other house, I could sense the colors, the emotions, the power of the house itself mingling with that of the residents'. But here, in my home there was…nothing. Just empty air, cold air. I shivered, wrapping my arms around myself and running up the stairs, for some reason compelled to use the left side. I didn't stop until I got to my room, slamming the door shut and locking it. I panted, feeling safe for a moment…before I got the sense of eyes on me.

I glanced nervously around the room, feeling an anger, a hardness to the room that I hadn't before. What was the deal? One weird thing after another. I was becoming more and more confused by the second.

Driven by some unknown force, I leapt onto my bed and dumped the contents of the bag Axel had given me on the comforter. I blinked down at the trinkets, trying to remember which was which. I knew that the pyramid shaped crystal thingy went under the bed, so I bent over the side to slide it under. Sitting back up, I untied the string that held the black stone thingy with a hole in the center and slid the turquoise colored stone onto it as well. I retied the knot and slipped the necklace over my head, sighing in relief as the cool sensation of the stones settled on my bare skin under my shirt. Why I felt relief, I couldn't say, but it was there, real, and I felt like I could relax. My room didn't seem quite so foreboding as before and I let out the breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.

"Okay, I think I've had enough of the craziness for one day," I announced in the quiet of the room. I retrieved my book from the nightstand and settled back against my pillow for a good hour of reading. The memory of my strange interactions with Axel flitted to the front of my mind. I blushed and reached up to place a hand over that same spot on my neck, feeling that tingling burn returning. What had that been all about anyways? And why in Freya's name did I call him 'Akuseru'?

Tossing my book aside in frustration, I buried my head under the pillow.

"Nothing makes sense anymore!"

Ahem...with this new stuff shall come explanations.

First of all: I've mentioned "Mother Goddess", "Freya", and "Woden". In Wiccan/witch culture, there is the God and Mother Goddess. They are referred to by many different names, but for the sake of simplicity, they shall remain as these three. Just note, "Freya" and "Mother Goddess" are the same thing.

Second of all: Familiar...memorize Axel's explanation of what they are, because this will come up again in this story.

Third: The talismans and charms that Axel gave Roxas...those are all REAL. I've made my own and whether you believe or not, they work. Perhaps it's simply the belief that they work that gives them their power. After all, that's the way of Practical Magick.

Finally: I am NOT misspelling magick. The added 'k' is a way to help differentiate between real magick and the stage magic of magicians and illusionists.

The set up of Axel and Demyx's house will make perfect sense later when you figure out what kinds of magick they practice. Remember, there are many different kinds!

And the scene with Axel and Roxas...yeah, that'll make more sense later too...just take it all in stride, even if it doesn't make sense now. Because it will soon enough. YAYS!

Luffles,

-Ramen