“Okay,” he replied, taking a deep breath “Well, then at the very least, we won’t have to move to a different town.”
I just gawked at him. “You aren’t mad?”
He shrugged. “It’s not ideal, but ultimately it was his fault for stabbing you. Although…” He held up a finger like he was going to chastise me. “You didn’t die. It’s very difficult for a demon to die. Your mother is over a thousand years old.”
“Oh,” I said simply, truly surprised. Now that I remembered my mother, it was difficult to attach that kind of an age to her young attractive body. I wondered if that meant I’d look young forever too.
My father continued. “Honestly, I think it’s a good thing you found a Naga to be your friend, since they have really long lifespans too.” He then looked at Jasmyn. “And it’s very nice to meet you. I’m Axel, Alyssa’s father. Thank you for getting revenge on my daughter’s behalf…” He paused. “Although you may want to be a little more discreet about it next time.”
Jasmyn lowered her gaze, looking ashamed. “Sorry,” she whispered. “I wouldn’t normally tear them apart like that, but I thought they had killed Alyssa.”
I stared at her in disbelief as my father nodded in acknowledgment. “You’ll definitely need to hide for a while, because they’re on the hunt now. You should be safe here though,” he quickly added. “They have no idea what they’re hunting for, so they would never suspect the culprit to be hiding out in a house.”
“What about me?” I wondered hesitantly, glancing down at my dark gray skin.
“For you, my princess,” he said with a smile, “it’s time to teach you how to control your magic.”
My eyes widened.
Teach me how to control my magic?
Even despite what had happened, I hadn’t really considered the implications that I had magic, having gone my whole life thinking I was normal. But I supposed I couldn’t deny it was true, which meant now I had to wrap my mind around this new reality.
I hopped off the bed and followed my father out of my bedroom into the living room. Jasmyn hesitated and then followed close behind me, slithering easily through the doorframe. Her tail trailed behind her as it weaved back and forth allowing her to move straight forward as if she were walking like a normal person with legs.
Our living room had a roughly textured rug in the middle of the wooden floor, but otherwise very little else. My father’s bedroom door was on my right at the other end of the room, with the kitchen entrance being on my left just next to me. A stone fireplace was set into the wall across from my room, currently with a large pile of logs that probably wouldn’t be used for months. Either that or we’d end up using them to cook dinner in the kitchen over the fire-heated stove.
Just outside my room was a wooden bench sitting against the wall with a long, flat, hard pillow. On the far corner of the room to my right was a rocking chair sitting underneath an oil lamp attached to the wall. I had a lot of memories of playing on the floor by my dad’s feet with wooden dolls he had carved for me.
Some of my dad’s books were stacked unevenly on a short table next to the chair, with the rest of his books shoved into a wide bookshelf on the other side closer to his room. While he was primarily a carpenter, he also did a ton of reading into subjects I didn’t have the first clue about.
Unlike in my bedroom, the ceiling was vaulted with nothing but open space between the support beams and roof.
We weren’t really poor, but my dad didn’t see the point in buying unnecessary luxuries. We had plenty of food to eat. And really, part of the reason we had money was simply because we didn’t spend it on much.
I knew my eyesight was better, but it still took me a second to realize I could see everything so clearly in the dim light, even despite the fact the room was windowless. The only light came from the kitchen window where the sun was nearing the horizon. It was dark enough that I shouldn’t have been able to see this much detail, as if there were windows in the room flooding it with daylight.
My dad grabbed a few matches to light a couple of the oil lamps mounted on the walls. He then turned towards me in the middle of the room and pointed next to him. “Have a seat,” he instructed.
I immediately looked down at my blood-stained shirt, which was surprisingly dry even though it had been covered in so much blood not long ago. I wondered if it was due to the purple fire that didn’t burn me or my clothes.
“Umm, there was fire…” I commented as I sat on the floor cross-legged where he was pointing. “And lightning,” I added.
He nodded in agreement. “I know. I saw it in the distance. You created a tower of fire full of black lightning. Your magic has grown a lot more than your mother and I thought. Honestly, I’m surprised you’ve been able to suppress it as much as you have right now. I would have anticipated you still being on fire.”
Jasmyn unexpectedly spoke up. “Oh…umm…”
My dad looked at her curiously. “Yes?”
She bit her lower lip. “I’m sort of…doing that…”
My father’s eyes widened as he reevaluated her.
I looked up at her in shock, from my seated position on the floor. “You are?” I asked in surprise.
Now that I was paying attention, it looked like her eyes were glowing slightly. Did that have anything to do with it? It probably would have been more noticeable if it were still dark in the room, but the lit oil lamps on the walls provided plenty of light now. Granted, I might not have been sure either way, considering I could apparently see in the dark in this form.
She looked at me apologetically. “Yes. I can’t control it very well. It happens like a reflex when I feel threatened.” She bit her lip again. “I’m suppressing your magic right now.”
I stared at her in shock, my voice all but gone. “You…feel threatened…by me?” I asked quietly.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I can’t help it. I know you wouldn’t hurt me, but my instincts are screaming at me to run away.”
My dad chimed back in. “It’s alright, Jasmyn. For now, it’s a good thing. Maybe we can work on teaching you how to control your magic too.” He paused. “Are there any other types of spells you can use? Or just that one?”
She nodded slowly. Hesitantly. “I can…make others do what I want…sometimes…”
My eyes widened as I tried to consider all the times I’d thought her eyes were glowing. Really, I only noticed it if it was exceptionally dark. However, Jasmyn’s ashamed expression made me wonder if there had been even more times.
“You made me show you my necklace, didn’t you?” I asked quietly.
She nodded slowly, her expression becoming pained as she stared intently at the floor. “I wasn’t trying to make you. Just sometimes when I want something, it activates on its own.”
“When else?” I whispered.
She sighed heavily, meeting my gaze with teary eyes. “Having you help me when I was wounded, asking you to bring me food, making you hug me when I needed the comfort.” Tears silently slipped down her cheeks. “All of it. I made you do it.”
I didn’t know what to say. I felt like I wanted to do all those things, but maybe that’s how her magic worked. If that was the case, then did it matter? Wouldn’t I still feel the same way? I glanced up at my dad’s pensive expression, with him appearing to evaluate her words carefully.
He noticed my glance in the corner of his eye and looked down at my hesitant composure. “Let’s try something,” he abruptly announced, looking back up at her. “Jasmyn, I want you to look at me and tell me to sit down.”
She wiped her eyes with a sniffle, and looked up at him through her white eyelashes. “W-Why?” she wondered.
“Just do it, please,” he urged her. “And really ‘want’ it. Want me to sit down next to Alyssa.”
She nodded timidly, and held his gaze. She didn’t even say anything. Suddenly, my dad dropped to his rear so fast it looked like it hurt. He sucked in a sharp breath, but didn’t otherwise move
.
“Well,” he finally said after a moment. “That was different. Now, I want you to have Alyssa stand.”
Jasmyn looked at me apologetically, before holding my gaze intently.
I felt nothing.
I did nothing.
“Try harder,” my dad encouraged. “Want her to stand. Or want her to do anything really. Walk away, walk closer, whatever you really want her to do, demand it of her.”
I felt a little shocked to have my father speak like that, especially since he just realized that we were both in a room with someone who he barely knew and could possibly make us do anything she wanted. However, as she stared into my red slitted eyes, still nothing happened. Her eyes grew brighter then, a brilliant gold as she thought of something she really wanted me to do.
But I just sat there, holding her gaze.
“That’s what I thought,” my father finally said, standing back up.
Jasmyn finally looked up at him, her expression a mixture of surprise and confusion.
My father continued. “That magic is unique to the Naga race, but it is still somewhat rare, even for them. Usually called ‘snake eye,’ it allows the user to control the actions of their prey, unwillingly so. I didn’t want to sit down, but I felt compelled to do so, like I had no choice.” He paused, glancing down at my expression before looking back up at her. “It’s ineffective on Alyssa though – probably all demons for that matter. Even when she was in her human form, it shouldn’t have worked.”
Jasmyn immediately looked at me in shock. “I can’t control her?” she whispered. Her eyes began filling with tears again as she realized I had truly done everything on my own, because I wanted to. Not because she made me.
I looked up at my father. “But why?” I wondered.
He held my gaze, still seeming completely unaffected by my dark gray skin and red eyes. Although, I suppose that shouldn’t be surprising since it was exactly how my mother looked all the time. “Because it only works on weaker creatures – like I said, on prey.” He hesitated. “There’s a reason why her instincts are telling her to run away. You are much more of a threat to her than she is to a human.”
“Oh,” I said simply, glancing at Jasmyn in the corner of my eye. She didn’t seem frightened by that fact. Instead, she seemed like she was still slowly falling apart at the realization that I did everything because I wanted to.
I continued speaking. “I suppose it makes sense now why you weren’t too concerned when you found out about her,” I mumbled.
It was more of a rhetorical comment, but he heard me. “Yes, although with your magic suppressed before, I still didn’t want to chance you getting hurt, sweetie.”
“Am I an actual danger though?” I wondered quietly, remembering the blood on Jasmyn’s hands. “Like do I have to worry about hurting either of you?”
He shook his head. “Just be careful about using your full strength. Avoid intentionally exerting yourself, otherwise you might break something.”
“No dad,” I whispered. “I mean…do I have to worry about wanting to hurt either of you?”
His eyes widened slightly as he registered that. “Did something happen?” he asked seriously.
I nodded somberly. “I like blood,” I said quietly. “A lot. I licked it off Jasmyn’s hands.”
He laughed at that. “Oh.” He continued chuckling. “No, honey. You’re still you. Just a much stronger, faster, more powerful version of yourself. You liked blood when you were very young, just like how you love meat now, but between your mother's magic and that pendant, it was suppressed for the most part. Nothing to worry about.” He clapped his hands together. “Now, let’s get started on teaching you how to control your magic before Jasmyn’s suppression weakens and you explode again.”
Chapter 4: Bonded
Learning how to control my magic was harder than I thought it would be. Surprisingly, it came naturally for Jasmyn, who picked up what my dad was trying to tell us very quickly. At first, it took her a few minutes to collect herself and listen, because she was still crying after realizing that I really had done all those things on my own. Obviously, she hadn’t forced me to be her friend, but she had still been under the impression she made me do a lot of things I might not have done otherwise.
However, once she started paying attention to the magic lesson, she got it easily.
I…did not.
When a spark of black lightning unexpectedly crackled around me, my dad decided to change his approach. “Okay,” he announced, “this is what we’re going to do, since Jasmyn can use magic too–”
I cut him off. “Wait. What?” I asked in surprise. “You can’t use magic?”
He shook his head. “No, of course not. Why?”
“But you’re a shapeshifter, right? I remember that, although…” I looked down at my gray hands in my lap. The black claws were half an inch long each, and extremely sharp. “Actually, I don’t have any idea what you can shift into…” I looked back up at him. “But doesn’t that mean you can use magic?”
He shook his head, before running his fingers through his fiery hair. “No, it’s not magic. At least, not exactly. Anyway, we need to focus. Jasmyn’s suppression spell is losing its hold on you.”
I nodded in acknowledgment. He had already explained that magical energy wasn’t infinite – it would dissipate slowly and run out eventually. It didn’t affect the same energy to move around, so it wasn’t related to the sensation of feeling tired. There was no outward sign that someone was running low on magic – only the person using it would be able to tell. However, overuse of magic could certainly make someone physically exhausted, and sleeping could help their magic recover.
He abruptly looked at Jasmyn. “I need you to get behind her and place your hands on her chest and stomach.”
I automatically sat up straighter as my friend did as she was told, placing her hands where my dad had asked, slipping them in my shirt to touch my dark gray skin. I kept my sharp claws in my lap. “What if this doesn’t work?” I wondered seriously as Jasmyn pulled me against her, my head resting against her chest. “Can’t mom make another pendant?”
My dad shook his head. “Your mother didn’t make the necklace. She bought it, and the amulet was very expensive.”
“How much money?” I exclaimed breathlessly, my eyes wide.
He shook his head again. “Not money. More like a favor in exchange – one that involved her lethal magic – the same magic in you, which means we need to focus. You can ask her yourself when she visits in a couple of weeks.”
I nodded, briefly excited to be reminded of her visit, but also feeling sobered by the idea that my magic might be a lot more dangerous than my dad was sharing. The situation was more serious than I assumed.
“Now,” he continued, “Jasmyn, that feeling I was telling you about, I need you to try to push that sensation into your hands. Hopefully, if you can reach some of your magic into her, then you can help her feel it inside herself.”
Jasmyn sucked in a sharp breath, pulling me against her tighter. “But won’t that use up my magic faster?” she wondered seriously. “What if she blows up the house?”
He shrugged, acting calmer than I suspected was warranted. Maybe he didn’t want to make us nervous, which might hinder the process. “It’s a risk, yes. But going outside right now and potentially being seen by a search party is a greater risk. Just do your best.”
She nodded and moved her body down slightly, sliding against my back to rest her chin on the top of my head as she concentrated. Her long white hair tickled the sides of my face. I tried to relax, keeping my hands limp in my lap. At first, I didn’t feel anything at all, like usual, but then I began to sense a warmth creep underneath her hands.
It slowly seeped into my body, which already felt really hot, but somehow this was different. Dissimilar to my heat. For a moment, it lingered just below my skin, before beginning to flow in a particular direction, which was a sharp contrast to the raging chaos inside of
me. It was like it was following a specific pathway that ran straight through my core.
I carefully reached my fingers up to gently cover Jasmyn’s hands with my own. I then closed my eyes as I felt the warmth rise into my head and between my thighs. After a few moments, it continued onward down my legs and arms, until I could feel her warmth enter into my hands and feet.
I got it then.
By feeling Jasmyn’s magic stay on the channels inside of me – I finally got it. I took a slow, deep breath, both our hands rising and falling with my chest, and then began trying to pull the swirling inferno within me back towards where I could feel her energy flowing.
At the same time, I gradually reached out with my own magic – gently, carefully – and pushed it into her hands. She flinched, but I ignored it, gasping when I realized that I could sense the formation of her body as I moved up her arms. The sensation caused me to realize that she could detect my shape as well. I tightened my grip on her hands slightly as I entered into her core, quickly slipping throughout her body like she was in mine.
It was amazing.
And really invasive.
I felt like I couldn’t do this with just anyone – certainly not with a guy. It was too personal. Too private.
And it would have been far too embarrassing if it had been anyone else. But it wasn’t with her, possibly because she wasn’t human. If anything, I found myself more curious and fascinated than anything.
As I slid down her tail, I discovered just how different her body really was from mine. On the one hand, it was very similar, but organized in ways I hadn’t expected below her ribs. Her lungs and heart were in the same place. And even her stomach started in the same spot, but unlike me it continued downward past what would have been her hips if she were human.
At least now I understood why she didn’t have intimate parts to cover up. Her digestive track ended about three feet away from the end of her tail, which stayed concealed behind some kind of muscled flap. It was the same location where her more intimate parts were too, higher up, but underneath the same vent.
Magicbound to a Snake Girl Page 4
