High Witch

They traveled for the rest of the day, then arrived at a tavern at nightfall. It was a small place, a bar with a few rooms on the first floor. Brayden unlocked the door to their small room, then dumped his satchel on the ground. Ariel walked in after him, and he shut the door.

“I’m exhausted,” he said, stretching and yawning. Ariel smiled weakly at him, but he could tell she was tired, too. She looked worn out, her eyes sad. Brayden brought her into a hug.

“We’ll get some sleep. We deserve to rest,” he murmured. She leaned against him, and he wondered if she was going to fall asleep in his arms. He sighed deeply.

“Oh, Ariel. I’m so sorry this is happening to you,” he said. She looked at him.

“It’s happening to you, too,” she said softly, voicing the fact that they’d only just met, and were now entwined together. He kissed her on the forehead.

“It’s alright...let’s just get changed.”

They stood there awkwardly for a moment, then Brayden smiled. “I’ll turn around. Take your time.”

He turned and covered his eyes. He heard Ariel getting undressed, and resisted the urge to look at her. After a while she tapped him on the shoulder.

“Your turn,” she said softly. She was dressed in a long nightgown. Brayden went to one of the satchels and got some clothes to sleep in. He glanced at Ariel, and she had her hands over her eyes. He thought it was very sweet.

He got changed, then went up and kissed her once more. She looked at him shyly, then looked down.

“Ariel, we don’t have to do anything,” he said softly. “I don’t want you to feel you have to, just because we’re staying together. Don’t feel pressured, just because we already have.”

She nodded, still looking down. Brayden took her hand and led her to the bed, which was next to the window. He moved aside the blanket, and she climbed in first. He lay down next to her, putting his arms around her.

“Goodnight, my love,” he whispered, holding her closely. She rested her head against his chest, snuggling against him. They were warm together under the blanket. Brayden knew he would drift off to sleep soon. He felt Ariel’s breathing slow down, and felt incredibly comforted by being so close to her. He’d been wanting to lie down with her all day. He closed his eyes, and slipped away.

Brayden awoke to sunlight streaming through the flimsy curtains of their room. He blinked a few times, wondering what time it was. Ariel was fast asleep, still lying up close to him. He shook her shoulder a little.

“Wake up,” he said, his voice coming out croakier than he’d meant. She made some muffled sounds in protest, then looked up at him.

“I’m still tired,” she murmured, putting her head back down. He smiled.

“Me too. But we can’t stay here all day.”

They lay in silence for a while. “What do we do next?” Ariel asked. “Do we just keep traveling? I have to practice using my magic. I don’t want to be useless if they find us.”

Brayden held her more closely. “Don’t think about them finding us, Ariel. Don’t think about it. But you’re right — you should practice using your magic. I want you to have complete control of your powers. I have an idea of what magic you could do first.”

She raised her head again. “What?”

He looked at her fondly. “I’m surprised you wear spectacles. Especially given that you could fix your eyesight so easily.”

She frowned at him. “I can use my magic on myself?”

“Of course! You really just have to decide to be able to see. Just concentrate on making your vision clearer. But don’t hold back, Ariel. You have to use your full strength.”

She sat up and stared at him for a moment. She took a deep breath, then shut her eyes. She sat there for a long while. Brayden watched her closely.

“Don’t hold back,” he repeated softly.

Ariel opened her eyes and looked at him. She looked at him closely, as if she was drawing her power from him. Brayden became very nervous. He couldn’t breathe. She kept looking at him, but he realized she wasn’t seeing him. She was so still she seemed frozen. He held his breath again.

Suddenly she threw her head back, and the brightest light he’d ever seen shone from her eyes, huge, stunning. He looked away, blinded. He felt heat radiating from her. Eventually the light faded, and Brayden was able to look at her again. Her face was flushed, her cheeks pink. But her eyes — her eyes were an even brighter blue, even more vivid than before. She looked around the room. He sat up so he was next to her.

“Well?” he asked. She smiled at him.

“I can see everything,” she said. “For the first time, everything’s clear. Oh, Brayden.”

Ariel threw her arms around his neck, and he laughed, holding her. He loved the feeling of her softness against him. His heart began to beat a little faster, and he desperately wanted to kiss her. As if she knew what he was thinking, she kissed his neck.

“Brayden,” she murmured, kissing his neck again. He felt a quiver run through him. He moved her slightly, so her mouth was close to his. He kissed her, holding her tight. She clutched his shirt, kissing him back passionately, her breath coming out in gasps. He moved his mouth against hers, pressing her body to him. He moved her so they were lying down on the bed. His hands traveled down her body.

“Ariel,” he gasped, kissing her neck, his mouth moving over her throat. She cried out in pleasure, and he began to undress her. They started making love, Brayden kissing her as he moved inside of her. It was the most intense experience of his life. She kept moaning, clinging to him, moving with him. He couldn’t believe how amazing it felt. It had never felt like this with anyone else. He’d never felt so connected with anyone before.

They lay next to each other when it was over, looking into each other’s eyes. He didn’t want to leave the room. He just wanted to lie with her all day. She smiled at him.

“You’re amazing,” she said. He looked at her in wonder.

“So are you,” he whispered. “So are you.”

She kissed him gently. He drew her to him, holding her. He felt so much love for her in that moment. He didn’t want to leave her side. They just had to keep away from Julius.

“What do you see?” Julius asked. Nadia sat with her eyes shut, concentrating. She looked at him, her dark eyes cold.

“I see them at an inn in a week’s time. I can see the sign over the door. It’ll be no trouble to find them. We can catch them easily.”

Julius nodded. He went and looked out of the window, thinking, his hands clasped behind his back. Nadia came and stood behind him.

“She’ll be easy to kill,” she said, putting her hands on his back. Julius suppressed a shudder. He didn’t want her withered hands touching him. He’d grown tired of her so long ago, could barely remember the last time he wanted her. He remained still.

“Leave me now, Nadia,” he said. “I have to plan.”

She obediently left the room, shutting the door behind her. Julius continued staring out of the window. He wondered over the things that had happened recently. Despite his disgust at his fifty year old wife, she had been very useful. Once he’d told her about Ariel, she’d had a vision of her going to the inn, and meeting Brayden. Nadia had embedded the dreams in Brayden’s mind, ensuring the two would fall in love. Then he’d just had to give Ariel a reason to leave, with the false marriage proposal.

A small smile touched Julius’ lips. Now that Ariel was in love — now that she had something to lose — turning her would be so much more satisfying. The bond was always stronger, the witch’s addiction to him deeper, darker, if she killed the one she loved. He wanted that bond with Ariel. He craved her so much he could barely stand it.

He thought about her, this new witch. She was beautiful, she was powerful, she was young. He was desperate to mold her, transform her from the shy, quiet thing that she was, into the strong witch she could be. She was perfect. She was a storm of power, waiting to be unleashed. She was ready for him to take her, ready to be changed.

He found it a disturbing coincidence that Brayden was distantly related to him — he would tell Ariel things he didn’t want her to know. But Julius would still make it work. He enjoyed the chase. He enjoyed the hunt. He craved that sweet moment, that moment when she would kill her lover, and the change would be complete. He wanted it so much he could almost taste it. He wanted her to be dark. He wanted her.

He would have her, soon enough. He sighed. This time, this time before he would become young again, made him weary. Fifty was too old — he was glad he’d found Ariel so quickly, after searching for a new witch. He wanted to start again. He was ready to start over.

Nadia would fight her, and bring her to him. His slave would obey him one last time. He didn’t relish killing Nadia, but it was necessary. He couldn’t turn Ariel while he was bound to another. He would do it, as he had so many times before. It would be worth it. Because he would have Ariel.

He wanted her.