Adrian as Ash's new familiar? How the hell did that happen?

This takes place immediately after Evie passes out from Adrian's spell. Again, third person POV, unpolished prose, etc etc.

Again, massive spoilers for Mile Wish Sorrow future chapters!

"Holy shit," Adrian said, staring down at the woman, still smoking gently, passed out on the floor. "I didn't think that would work." A deep, furious growl from the wall snapped his attention to Ash, who was recovering from his stunned silence. "She's OK!" he insisted. Shakily, he added another invoked amulet to the three that he'd used to bring her down.

Ash growled again, forcing himself to calm down so he could wrack his brains for something to counter the damned spiderweb Evie had used to glue him to the wall when he'd tried to bring her down. Where the hell had she learned that? He could see her chest moving, could feel her slumbering mind—she was contained, but was she really all right? What the hell had the witch done to her?

"Kill you," Ash rasped, as he finally remembered the damned counter curse. Al's venom was taking its toll, robbing him of both power and concentration as the burning pain climbed into his chi and set up shop. The situation had spiraled so badly out of control too quickly. And her power! What the hell had Al done to her? She shouldn't have been able to access half of the energy she'd harnessed—and clearly he hadn't stepped in to fulfill his duty as anchor, which should have happened the instant she opened herself to more than one line. Deep, quiet anger filled him, a result of seeing just how twisted things between he and Al had become. He hoped the bastard was suffering as much as he was right now. He spoke the invocation and the threads began to part.

"Kill me…?" Adrian shivered at the promise in Ash's voice. "Uh, excuse me, I just saved your bacon," he protested, then stopped. "Hey. I just saved your bacon," he repeated. "Both of you. Directly and undeniably. Chew on that before you get all pissy and kill me, because if you break another bargain she'll probably mess you up."

Ash froze, stunned. Fuck. The witch was right! The web melted as the counter curse anulled it, and dumped him on the floor, where he promptly began to retch, heaving and heaving even though there was nothing to puke. Could this fiasco get any worse?

"What's wrong with you? Are you sick?"

"Demons don't get sick."

"Well…you're, uh, suffering from some kind of curse, then?"

"Suffering?" Ash rasped between heaves. "No, clearly I'm enjoying every minute. Come over here so I can tear you a new asshole." To add to his humiliation, the curse he heaved at the witch (designed to hurt, not kill) bounced off Adrian's hide without effect. In fact, it rebounded and shot straight back at him. He barely managed to counter that one, too, before collapsing on his back, chest heaving.

Adrian had cringed when the curse struck him, but now he stood straighter, smiling. He dropped a smoking disk on the floor, where it crumbled into ash. "Didn't know if that one would work, either," he said under his breath. "Cool. So, uh, here's the part where we either talk like civilized beings, or—"

With a roar, Ash redoubled the energy and lobbed the curse again. Adrian was ready for it this time. He ducked and rolled away, and the curse whistled a few inches over Evie's prone form. Shit! Watch where you're aiming, you idiot! Another curse awaited him when he rose into a crouch, but the gangly witch held up another wooden disk, this one embedded with silver, and again the curse rebounded off him and crashed into a wall. It left the disk blackened and smoking, but the witch was unharmed. A third curse struck him, and Ash grinned with anticipation—then stared in shock as the image of the witch simply wavered and faded. A moment later, a wall of orange-tinted ever-after rose around him, trapping him, and Adrian stepped back into his field of view- from his side, where yet another charm had cloaked him. A doppelgänger illusion? In an earth amulet? Despite the rising humiliation of being trapped in a witch circle in his own fucking kitchen on his own fucking turf, Ash was impressed. He forced a grin. "How about that one? Did you think that one would work, witch?"

"To be honest..? Separate charms are easy, but linking the two illusions? Took me ages to find the right alloy." Adrian grinned, pleased. "Works about half the time."

Ash scooted to the far side of the circle, away from his mess. He groaned as another icy flash of nauseating prickles shot from his chi down his spine. It wouldn't be hard to look as pathetic as he felt- perhaps he could score some sympathy points and get the witch to let him out. "…and the other half…?" he grumbled.

Adrian winced. "Uh, it usually involves me on fire. So. Can we talk?"

Talk, talk, talk. Everyone wants to talk. Ash just wanted a nice comfortable hole to hide in for the next century. How had this happened? What had he done? In what myriad and uncomfortable ways was it all going to bite him on the ass? "Sure. Talk. If you want to be useful, grind up some echinacea roots while you're talking. And shred some yarrow."

Adrian glanced at the rows of shelves. "What for?"

"If it's not obvious, I'm in rather a lot of pain. I'll need at least half a dozen curses in the next twenty minutes if you want any help from me tonight. And unless I'm with you, I'm not letting Yvette out of this room. Not until she's halfway sensible again." He grinned. "Which may take centuries. So either let me out of this bubble, or start stirring, witch."

Adrian hesitated, irritation warring with his natural curiosity. That's right, little Coven mouse. Take the cheese. You know you're dying for a chance to learn some real magic. "Fine. But you'll stay in that circle until Evie wakes up."

Ash shifted, trying to find a position that didn't make his shoulder scream. Flat on his back seemed to work just fine, save for the way the room spun. Another spike of pain screeched down the channels of his mind, where Al's venom sought the female aspects that just weren't there, encountered nothing but Ash's own defenses. Al was such a bastard. "Have to quicken them with my blood, witch."

Adrian huffed. "There's another demon in the room, uh, demon," he pointed out.

The mouse had shown its claws and teeny teeth. Ash found himself liking the witch's confidence, misplaced as it might be. "And if you so much as touch her, no power in the world will keep me from tearing out your throat," Ash replied pleasantly. Pain still rasped in his voice. "Did you really think you could lure her from me?"

Adrian found what he was looking for, and pulled the huge grey mortar and pestle toward himself. He began to pound the tough dried herbs as he spoke. "I wasn't trying to lure her away. I was trying to get her to see that she's, y'know, normal. Worthwhile. Loveable, even. She's really messed up over the shunning, and the scarred face."

Ash choked out a harsh laugh. "All demonesses are messed up."

"I like her. That's all. She's a good person who's had a shit life, thanks to you."

Ash groaned. "Do you expect me to get all weepy and apologetic? And she's not a good person, she's an untrained demoness who just about blew us to kingdom come." And I'd give a lot to know what the hell set her off just now.

Adrian paused in his pounding. "Isn't training her your job?"

Thanks for reminding me, you little twerp. "It's complicated."

"Well, we're not going anywhere. All I've got is her side of things." He glared at Ash. "Even when she's busy apologizing for you, you still sound like an asshole." He chuckled. "Hey, if I banish you from here, where would you go?"

Ash laid his head back, staring at the vaulted ceiling, with that one burned beam he'd never gotten around to replacing. He supposed things could be worse. "Try it and find out."

"I don't know what she sees in you. You know she's kind of crazy about you."

Ash closed his eyes. He was not having this conversation, not with a witch, not with anyone. He calmed himself by picturing all the curses he'd use to cut the witch down to size, were he free to do so. "She's kind of crazy, period. Who am I to question her taste in men? Add the honey next. Thirteen stirs clockwise."

Adrian grunted, but complied. "You want to get out of there? Tell me—what the hell are you after? Is she some kind of prize? You going to use her like a broodmare? Or do you just get your kicks messing with her mind until one day she's as bent as you are?"

Ash turned, trying to ease the pain in his side. He cursed Al under his breath, again. "Let me get this straight. You'll let me out of this fucking circle if I bare my poor little black heart to you?"

Adrian made a barking laugh. "Ha! Not likely! See, I got it figured out. I saved her life. Mark's gone as soon as she wakes up. Deal's done, along with all the safeguards. You stay put unless you bargain with me again, because even though I saved your ass too, you'll bend over backwards to make me regret it. Am I right?"

Ash sighed. The world spun, and he retched again. It was fortunate that he'd already turned his guts inside out, because he couldn't even turn more than his head this time. He was a connoisseur of pain, but queasiness was so much more insidious. Pain made him angry and defiant. Quease? Sapped his will, stole his strength, was bringing him to his metaphorical knees until he'd consider doing a lot more than talk to get some relief from the encroaching soul-deep malaise. Uuugh. "I'm hardly in any shape to do more than puke on you at the moment, witch. Ten stirs widdershins, then add the tu si zi powder. Slowly. If it doesn't turn blue, start over."

"You could be faking it," Adrian suggested, but Ash could hear the amusement in his voice. "You honestly expect me to believe you're powerless in there?"

"Oh for fuck's sake!" Ash had finally had it. "I was reincarnated a fucking week ago, and spent most of that time playing footsie with the damned while trying to hide my burnt aura. Lost centuries worth of curses. I finally get my woman back, only to find out that Al fucked her up, possibly beyond repair. Now I've been poisoned with Al's venom, and it's fucking up my chi to the point where controlling a line is like herding cats. You think this paltry charm could hold me otherwise? I'd burst it like a ripe boil, then do the same to your head."

"Sounds like a bad week," Adrian said. "Poor little you. Blue. What next?"

"Pick up that knife," Ash growled, "and cut off your balls, since I can't reach them." He groaned as Adrian snorted with amusement. Fuck. What did come next, anyway? "Then get the third book from the right on the second shelf. Green one. Page one seventeen. Just follow the instructions."

Adrian got up and sauntered over to the bookshelf. "So Al poisoned you? Rachel's Al? Why?"

"None of your fucking business." Way to go...that tone of voice isn't a dead giveaway at all. "At least I got him, too."

"Lover's spat?" Adrian's voice was amused. Ash couldn't help growling, a deep warning growl that made Adrian's grin fade to confusion. The witch cleared his throat. "You never answered my question. About what you want with Evie?"

"No, I didn't. Don't intend to, either."

Adrian hummed as he retrieved the book and flipped through the pages. His eyes widened at some of the curses he passed along the way. "Then I hope you're enjoying yourself in th—holy shit, you can do that?"

"Witch! Focus! If you don't fix this, you and Evie aren't going anywhere tonight."

"I rather doubt Evie's going to be up for much tonight anyway, not with her aura that unstable. Can she even cross the lines?"

"She'll be fine. It's your own ass I'd be worrying about. This little charm- and my illness- won't last forever. Then I'm going to make you very, very sorry."

"You know, you are very scary, but your threats would be way more convincing if you weren't lying in a puddle of your own vomit." The witch only laughed as Ash cursed in several languages, then raised a fist and pounded the orange barrier that bound him. Or rather, he managed a weak thunk, and pulled his singed hand away with a hiss of pain.

"It appears we're at an impasse," he finally agreed. The pain had cleared his mind a little, even as it triggered another round of pins, needles, aching chi and finally more retching. Fucking Algaliarept. He could always call another demon…but that would lead to him having to explain his predicament, and that was just too mortifying to bear. The witch was young and naïve. He could be bargained with. From the brief glimpse Ash had stolen from his mind, Adrian had been about what Ash had expected. Ambitious, curious, sincere in his concern for Evie, far too clever for his own good, and scared shitless by Ku'Sox. He could even be trusted, as far as Ash trusted any potential familiar—

Ash paused in mid-thought, a smile curving his lips. He'd known from the beginning that Al was right. He couldn't win Evie by trickery. He had to start fresh. That meant dissolving the last of the bonds that tied them, in preparation for rebuilding them correctly. Honestly. Which left Ash in need of a familiar. It galled him to have to give up the most powerful familiar a male could wish for, but what he'd told Evie long ago was true. Mutual familiarhood just didn't happen. And certainly not between mates. It was also a rather grey area, a female mating with her yazataksh, but he couldn't bend on that point. He trusted nobody else with her mind, and thanks to Al…

He shook his head, really not looking forward to having that conversation with Evie. Al would have much to answer for, if the truth became known. Hell, Evie might kill him herself.

Adrian, oblivious to the darker turn of Ash's thoughts, continued with his stirring. Ash could hardly believe his luck, a Coven-quality earth witch, stirring curses for no other reason than a burning desire for the knowledge and worry over his friend. Al had caught the Coven's top ley line user, who'd proved to be far too arrogant and set in her ways to train properly. But this one….this one was perfect. "Apparently. So answer the question. Then we'll bargain."

Perfect save for the fact that he was giving Ash orders in his own goddamned kitchen. "Why do you give a fuck?"

"Told you. I like her. She's had a shit life and deserves a break."

"So if I tell you I want to bind her to me, soul, body, and mind, until the worlds collide…that's going to convince you to let me out?"

Adrian paused, staring at Ash. "I'm not ignorant, you know. The general witch population has forgotten their origins, but we still know about our real heritage. You're serious? You really want her as a mate? Even after everything you did to her?"

Ash felt his face flush. "She'll accept me."

Adrian cocked his head, considering. "Possibly. But if you're wrong—"

"Then you get your shot at her after she fries my ass like bacon." Ash could feel the pins and needles turning into really angry, stabby pins and needles. The last of the light, blissful euphoria in his limbs was thoroughly quashed by brutal male reality.

"Like she just tried to do?"

"I don't know what the fuck that was about. Honestly. Something set her off, and then Al tried to step in and she lost it." Al. Shit. She must have shoved him out—what had that done to him? What state was he in at the moment?

"Something set her off? How about you practically fucking me in front of her?" It was Adrian's turn to flush, and he did it twice as well.

"You enjoyed it. You'll be jacking off to that memory for years, admit it."

"I didn't enjoy you fucking in my head. Find what you were looking for?"

Ash grunted. The witch hadn't denied it, had he? Amusing. "There. I told you. Now I have a proposal for you."

"Gosh, Ashmedai, we just met. And didn't you just get done telling me you already had a mate in mind?" Adrian stirred the brew before setting it over a little flame to stew. " "Can I try this one next? It'll come in handy if the elves try to screw us over with that Cŵn Annwn threat. What's your proposal?"

It wasn't a bad idea, actually. It was a low-level curse he wouldn't have considered using against that elven spell, but it would work. "Sure. Later. Turn to page two-twelve. That one first. Evie has to focus on her studies. She'll have to stay bound in silver until she can control her powers. But she won't do it if she's distracted by this Hope business. She can't wander in reality unprotected. At this point, thanks to Al, she's too fucked up inside to tap a line by herself. She needs a new familiar, and it'll be me. But I need a guardian who can walk under the sun. You volunteered. But you need more power. Become my familiar. You'll have all the power you could dream of, and more. You'll be my scion during daylight hours. If necessary, you'll be my vessel. "

Adrian stopped his flipping through the book of curses to give Ash a very skeptical glare. "Right. After all the threats and taunts, you want me to just turn my soul over to you so you can have a new flesh-puppet to play in. Not happening."

"Keep your damned soul. A curse for loyalty will be sufficient. You claim to be Evie's friend. Believe me. She needs me, and she knows it. You might think you're doing her a favor by betraying me, but her alternatives are orders of magnitude worse. Not to mention, harm me and she'll kill you. It's an instinct thing."

Adrian put the book down, and Ash could see him trying hard to contain his fear. Or excitement, perhaps. "What do I get out of it?"

"The knowledge you want. The power to defend yourself and protect your precious witches. Access to a demon kitchen, demon blood, and all the demon curses you can stir."

Adrian snorted. "Which you'd be taking, am I correct?"

"Sure. Most of them. I'll be busy training Evie."

Adrian pretended to be gazing disinterestedly at the book, but Ash could see his eyes weren't moving. "Still not seeing much benefit to myself, here. Would I have to stay in the Ever After? Call you Master and shit like that?"

Ash grinned despite himself. That would really cook Evie's bacon, wouldn't it? "Not unless you want to. I know I'd find it amusing. No, you'll be useless if I keep you here. Let's say…you give me three nights a week. Dawn to dusk."

Adrian eyed him, suspicion etching his young, course features. "You know, if you called it something else, like, say…an apprenticeship…I might be more amenable to this arrangement."

Ash blinked. "You're a witch, son."

"So? I saw the magic Pierce was flinging around when we fought Ku'Sox. I want to learn it. And I'm not taking your smut, by the way."

Ash choked another laugh. "Being my familiar means your aura's going to be black as sin anyway."

"Maybe. But it's not my smut. And any smut going on my soul is going to be my choice, not yours."

Ash closed his eyes again. It wasn't a bad arrangement, all things considered. And he was getting desperate for that nearly-done curse. Evie would be pissed off, but he'd have Adrian explain things to her. "Fuck it. This is the generation we either change or die. Might as well start breaking tradition sooner rather than later…"

He and Adrian spent another half an hour or so discussing terms, limitations, transportation, rescue in case of Coven freakout and subsequent live burial (Adrian hadn't forgotten the lesson of Pierce, that was clear), and other minute details as the curses finished simmering. Ash had a new respect for the witch, as well as a deep and abiding resentment that he'd hide away for a much later time, should the witch prove to get too uppity, or turn around and screw them all over.

Finally Adrian broke his circle and let Ash out, though by this point Ash had about as much control over his limp body as he had over the moon. The myriad conditions in the contract specified that Adrian would keep mum about the indignities Ash had suffered this evening unless given permission to discuss it.

Several doses of three different curses later, and Ash was feeling almost human again. It'd be several hours before he felt demonic again, but it was a start. His first task, after he'd ascertained that Evie was alive and well with an aura as sound as could be expected after such an experience, was to truss up his unconscious demoness with silver upon silver, then gag her so she couldn't invoke any sneaky curses she might have on her person. Then he and Adrian performed Ash's version of the ritual that would bind him as familiar. It was much more straightforward than Al's little song and dance, and the witch tolerated the new thick layer of smut on his aura far better than Ash had expected. He sent out a mental tendril into Adrian's mind, setting up various housekeeping curses that would allow him to see and hear though Adrian during the daylight, and allow him to share curses and shove power back into the witch through the familiar bond if necessary. The witch was less happy about that, but he didn't resist the invasion, having signed a contract allowing it.

Shortly after, Newt arrived with Hope, followed by Al. What Newt threatened to do with Al wasn't pretty, but a timely revelation that Rachel was still alive provided enough distraction to keep him alive, if not well. Fortunately for Al, the humiliation and agony of suffering from venom-poisoning was punishment enough for Newt.

Entanglement between Al and Evie successfully dissolved with Newt's aid, Newt appeased, and Al cooling his heels in temporary solitary confinement, sans curses, for the rest of the evening, Ash began tutoring Adrian. And he watched his slumbering, damaged demoness, wondering how in nine hells he was going to explain things to her when she woke up.