Sex Magick

by Tom Raimbault

  By 11:54 pm, Daren stirred awake from his first REM cycle. Mary lay on her side of the bed, sleeping soundly with Muffin nearby. It was the perfect moment for Daren to sneak outside, crack open the family mausoleum and crack open a cold one. But perhaps his sudden need for a late night beer only covered his hidden motive for visiting the mausoleum.

  Once inside the building, Daren did open his favorite crypt and pulled a bottle of beer from the cooler. And while taking a few guzzles, he occasionally glanced over to Grandma Trivelli's crypt, or Mary's crypt as he now called it. It had been a week since he looked upon her beautiful, sleeping face. But she was Mary's grandmother—prefixed by several greats—and it would have been quite a disrespect to disturb her crypt, not to mention eternal rest.

  One beer was never enough for Daren. He soon cracked open a second, and began speaking mentally to Mary. “Well, I found out your name. I hope you allow me to call you Mary. I hope you don't feel like I'm disrespecting you by ignoring your title of Grandma. I just feel like you've become a friend. I mean you don't look like a grandma!”

  Daren set down his beer and did the unthinkable! He carefully approached Grandma Trivelli's crypt and nearly hesitated before unlocking it. After some moments with the crypt finally open; the oversized, cobalt-blue Mason jar sat before Daren. It was only necessary to carefully lift the jar and bring it before the sconce on the wall to provide enough illumination to take sight of her beautiful face.

  There she floated, sleeping so peacefully and surrounded by a tranquil, blue lighting effect. Daren discovered that it was possible to interact with her beautiful face by carefully tilting the jar, thereby shifting it to the glass. Mary had such young, smooth, collagen-enriched skin as evidenced by her lovely cheeks that were easily influenced by making contact with the glass. They probably felt exactly like his wife's. As-if able to delicately hold Mary's face in a moment of love, Daren stroked his thumb against the glass, near the area that made contact with her cheek. One could have heard the theme song to Somewhere in Time at that moment—a young man desperately in love with a woman who was separated by many decades; so many, in fact, that she was now dead. But a beautiful love goes beyond the grave. And to make this love all-the-more bittersweet; only a terrible tragedy made possible the bringing of two forbidden lovers together.

  Was it possible to stir Mary awake? Daren gently shook the glass in an effort to agitate her eyes open. They probably looked as beautiful as his own Mary's. But sadly, the eyelids remained shut. Old man Trivelli must have glued them before dropping his wife's head in the jar.

  Before ending that tender moment of Halloween night, Daren gently kissed the glass near Mary's cheek then set the jar back in the crypt. “Good night, Mary. Sleep well.” Then he closed and locked the crypt.

  Chapter 14

  The morning following Halloween (All Saints Day), Jim woke early and waited as the coffee pot brewed his first cup of coffee for the day. Not expecting immediate results from the previous night's ritual, he was curious as to whether or not it was effective.

  Jim is a sensible man, as difficult as that might be to believe. I suppose having a job that involves troubleshooting might result in the scientific method being second nature. It certainly was his intention to establish a deliberate, psychic link to the mysterious, crazy, old woman. And it was his intention to ultimately track her. But what exactly happened last night? Did elevating his sexual energies amplify psychic abilities so that the mysterious, crazy, old woman could sense his thoughts and desires? Was contact actually made, or did Jim simply have an intense fantasy?

  A witch might be able to tell you what Jim was doing. Although sloppy and maybe not a very organized ritual, Jim was using a form of sexual witchcraft in which he channeled all that sexual energy towards a specific desire while calling out to it.

  And as Jim later found out, such rituals really do work. The results most often occur when least expected. After a late night of performing sex magick, Jim returned to the ordinary world and followed his weekly ritual of attending 8:30 am mass with family at the Trinity Lutheran Church. On this morning; by the time Jim, Kimberly and the two kids loaded into the car; Jim had forgotten the previous night's activities. But out of habit, he kept the generator stone in his left pocket, neglecting to recognize that it maintained and amplified a subconscious calling to the woman he desired.

  The family exited the subdivision and traveled northbound until crossing into the old, wooded section of Mapleview. Trinity Lutheran Church is located some distance past the Hidden Lake Forest Preserve parking lot oasis. Jim had a few miles to travel before reaching the church, and for now was only a couple blocks before the historic Trivelli house. If you recall, this section of town has old, historic houses embedded along the surrounding forested wilderness highway.

  Just then, the mysterious, crazy, old woman that Jim called out to Halloween night walked along the shoulder of the highway. Wearing simply an old, black dress that might have appeared antique—possibly from a hundred years ago—she spotted Jim's approach and locked eyes with him through the windshield. With such a devious smile, her face nearly touched Jim through the windshield. He called last night, and now she was there for him.

  The sudden appearance and strange behavior of her orchestra teacher caused April to gasp and shriek as if nearly frightened out of her mind.

  Kimberly called out to her daughter, “What? What is it April?”

  “It's Ms. Lutrova! I don't know why, but she scares me!” As the car traveled further away and Ms. Lutrova was some distance behind, the sudden irrational fear faded from April as logic restored and she found her own behavior silly. “I don't know why she scared me. It was only my orchestra teacher. I guess I was just surprised to see her, that's all.”

  Kimberly smiled and shook her head, “Maybe you were just out a little too late last night and need some more sleep.”

  In the meantime, Jim carefully studied the mysterious, crazy, old woman in his mirror and made note of which house off the highway she walked in front of. The mischievous smile and eye contact was a message; an answer to his calling and a hint as to where he could find her. Then Jim asked, “What's her name?”

  “Ms. Lutrova.” answered April.

  “Miss? Is she married?”

  Kimberly smacked her husband's arm. “What difference does that make?”

  “Just wondering…”

  Chapter 15

  The autumn months of 2009 and the early part of 2010 were marked as a time of emerging “hyperdimensionality” in Jim's life. Often bizarre and very confusing, it felt as though he were in multiple places at one time. And why wouldn't Jim feel this way? Not only married with a secret mistress on the side; there was also some strange, old woman that he was obsessed with.

  Which brings us to an additional phenomenon in Jim's life that would have once been considered impossible: Just how well can one get to know another person without maintaining contact? No daily encounters with conversation, no telephone calls, no letters exchanged through the mail, no emails, no text messages; without any of these mediums of communication, becoming acquainted with a stranger is impossible. But despite the fact that weeks would pass before another encounter with Ms. Lutrova; Jim was getting to know her quite well. She was becoming a deep, personal friend of Jim's; even closer of a friend than his mistress, Amber! In fact, she was creating a gradual pull of Jim towards her direction; giving the man a sense that Amber was nothing more than a silly, little girlfriend who should soon be forgotten as he became more deeply involved with Ms. Lutrova. Initially, Jim believed these sensations to be nothing more than a series of overpowering thoughts and fantasies. But they turned real as reality itself.

  * * *

  Since her banishment from the Dickly castle, holidays were a time of hidden depression for Amber. No contact with her mother and father and no significant other to share her life with; Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year were often times to hide tears. Oh she had her daughter, Trista, to be wi
th. But the holidays lacked that special magick of sharing it with a significant other. Still so young and beautiful, it would be nice to experience some holiday romance in Amber's life.

  When would the time come when Trista's father fully surrendered and returned to the family? So many times Amber considered giving him the ultimatum, “It's either her or me.” But she had come so far and wished not to risk losing him. For now, it was necessary to play the little game of being Jim's secret mistress.

  It was a Friday evening in mid-November, Thanksgiving being the following week. Despite the undesirable circumstance, it was necessary for Amber to make the best out of this evening. Dreamy and ethereal with a symbolic, poetic approach; tonight would have to be her Thanksgiving celebration with Trista's father. Surely he couldn't be with her on Thanksgiving. Another holiday would go by without Trista being with her father.

  On this night Trista was out with friends. Being the case, Jim had been invited over and soon knocked at Amber's door. He was greeted by her warm and friendly smile. This was a special Thanksgiving dinner between Amber and Jim. For that matter, the home was illuminated by the soft glow of candlelight with the sounds of ambient music echoing from the living room speakers.

  Just like a real American boy, Jim drinks beer. But tonight was a much, too special for beer. In the kitchen, Amber cracked open a bottle of Winking Owl Merlot from Aldi and carried it to the family room table along with a tray of sliced up Happy Farms cheese and roulades of salami and cream cheese—an appetizer called pinwheels.

  “Mmm! Look at that! You went all out, tonight.” Jim was sure to be extra nice. It was kind of a stupid appetizer tray. Whoever heard of cream cheese rolled up in salami? The wine was probably cheap, too. But again, Jim was going to be nice.

  Amber smiled while placing a few appetizers on Jim's plate and pouring him a glass of Merlot. The man had better show some respect towards the hostess. Years ago, Amber made special dishes like braciole to win the heart of the man she loved. But thanks to purchasing a home in Maple Sap just to be down the street from Trista's father, finances were a little tight for Amber. Pinwheels and slices of Happy Farms cheese along with a couple cheap bottles of wine were the best she could do for tonight.

  “So, the holidays are finally here.” said Amber while sitting down next to Trista's father with her glass of wine. She clinked her glass against his, “Happy Thanksgiving!” and then took a sip. “Soon we'll be putting up the tree. You know, I was thinking that maybe you could sneak over here next weekend and help me put up the tree. Do you think you might be available for that?”

  Jim took a sip from his glass of wine. He was never a big fan of wine, but assumed he would get buzzed shortly. “I suppose I could get a sudden call on Saturday and drive over here. It sounds like a date.”

  Amber smiled.

  Wine has an interesting effect on the mind. Those unfamiliar with wine assume that the quest for the buzz is the reason for drinking it. But if one can see beyond the initial stages of wine's effect, it would soon be noticed that it stimulates the imagination and pulls out our more sensitive emotions while at the same time smoothing them out. While sitting side-by-side with Amber and hearing of how her week at work went, Jim couldn't help but wonder just what Amber's intentions were. Was it really wise to assist her in putting up the tree for the holidays? And what if Trista were to participate in this ritual?

  That's when Ms. Lutrova manifested herself in Jim's imagination in some fantasy as they sat beside one another. She so strongly reassured Jim, “At least I'm not here to ruin your marriage. I not a home wrecker.”

  Wine enabled Jim's emotions and concerns to bleed over into the psychic link shared with Ms. Lutrova. Wine enabled Jim to receive her intentions and convert them into a daydream. It was time for him and her to have a heart-to-heart talk, just to clarify some things.

  “Just what does she want?” asked Ms. Lutrova. “You should watch out for those young women who are in need of nothing more than a close friend. She already has close friends, family members or even a best friend. But always remember that a close, male companion is something different for a woman.”

  In the meantime, Amber continued to babble on about the week while pouring some more wine for her and Jim. “So I asked my cashier to just get a ladder from maintenance and reach up to the ceiling and hang the Black Friday Jewelry Sale sign. How hard was that to do? I came in the store the following morning and found it lying near the cash register, still rolled up.”

  “You want to know who she is?” Ms. Lutrova asked with a hint of soon to provide advice. “She's been through plenty of romantic relationships with other men, probably even a marriage or two. After some time, it's nice to simply be close to someone of the opposite sex; enjoy a relationship without a purpose or practical goal in mind. You might be the ideal man to share such a relationship with. Or what do you want to bet that she's had a dark past involving drugs and an eventual turn towards prostitution? Or maybe she spent some years as a sex addict. In either case, it's very possible that she's recently gone through a sudden transfiguration, now devoting her life to celibacy—a woman of chastity for a lack of better words. Then again, it might not be all that dramatic; just a realization that sex played an all-too-important role in her relationships with men. For her, it's now time to put sex on the backburner, learn to enjoy a close and loving relationship with a man in ways that don't involve wrestling naked under the bed sheets. That's dangerous, Jim! She's trying to launch an emotional affair with you! These are the types of women who wreck marriages!”

  Chapter 16

  Two nights after his unofficial Thanksgiving dinner with Amber, Jim suddenly noticed that the psychic link shared with Ms. Lutrova was beginning to wear off! Perhaps there is some time limit when it comes to magick, dictated by the passing of celestial events or the unraveling of seasons. Whatever the reason, Jim could feel the power wearing off which caused him to feel distanced from Ms. Lutrova. With no recent school orchestra concerts and no sightings of the woman out in town, Jim was beginning to sorely miss her.

  It was time for some more of that sex magick. It seemed to work quite well on Halloween. Now Sunday night Jim arose slightly before midnight to head down into the basement. You're already familiar with his protocol of avoiding sugar, alcohol, sex and excessive eating. The mind and body must be clear when following through with a magick ritual.

  Just as before, Jim placed a quartz crystal at each of the imagined points of a six-pointed star and then lit four candles to surround it. In the darkened basement at midnight, it was the soft glow of candles and the reflected light from the quartz crystals that illuminated Jim's private space.

  He sat in the center of the six-pointed star and closed his eyes. Wearing only his boxers, Jim touched and fondled that which he expected to grow stiff and swell with excitement. But what was this? After about a minute's worth of play, Jim's penis remained flaccid!

  The play grew more frantic as Jim began to panic. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he initiate an erection? Thoughts of sex and naked women were of no help. For now, it would appear that poor Jim was to experience an unpleasant moment of sexual dysfunction. And when there is sexual dysfunction, there can be no sexual magick. This would further mean no calling out and summoning the woman of his desire.

  Deeply saddened with desperate thoughts of losing Ms. Lutrova; Jim extinguished his candles and broke down the six-pointed star. He returned to bed where Kimberly lay beside him sleeping. But Jim could not get to sleep. Almost forty years old, his penis was beginning to show signs of impotence. How could he make love to his beautiful wife? What if Amber suddenly felt it was time to have sex? And what of the time when he and Ms. Lutrova finally made contact and attempted intimacy? As Ivan Trovskov was finding out, it's not easy being a real ladies' man, especially when approaching middle-age.

  It was a long night of tossing and turning, awakening every couple hours in self-absorbed thoughts and dreams of his penis.

  * *
*

  Monday morning, after reporting to the office and heading out into the field in his Mapleview Cable bucket truck, Jim pulled over to the wayside oasis of the Hidden Lake Forest Preserve. He removed the outdated palm-pilot-styled smart phone from his pocket and entered “remedy for impotence” into the search engine.

  As Jim discovered in several articles, Ginseng is an excellent supplement for ensuring stiff and sensational erections. Ginseng stimulates the production of nitric acid in the blood which can relax the blood vessels in the penis and allow for solid, sustainable erections. Not only that, Ginseng is helpful in combating the harmful effects of stress.

  Wasting not another moment, Jim peeled off for Mapleview Walmart where he stormed into the store and clicked his Ivan Trovskov black, shiny boots down the tiled floor over to the vitamin aisle.

  For only five dollars, a bottle of Korean panax ginseng was very affordable.

  “Panax?” Jim softly spoke out. “Is that like panic attacks?” Considering his daily consumption of coffee and need to take blood pressure medication, Jim wondered if ginseng was really safe. But he would never know unless he tried.

  A good sign of stable, mental health: when we can step outside of ourselves and question our behavior, we know that we are not crazy. Jim must have had some degree of mental stability, for he obviously questioned his recent behavior. Feeling as though a bad love spell had been casted on him; performing sex magick in the midnight hour of his basement; and dressing like an immigrant named Ivan Trovskov; was Jim really in his right frame of mind? Was he okay? What if the ginseng triggered further delusions?