“Ha-ha. You’re hilarious. Now, are you going to train or get off in the courtyard?”
“Do I get a choice?” I ask, smirking up at him, then looking around his legs so I don’t miss the show. Gideon unbuttons Callum’s pants, and a drip of sweat trickles down his muscular neck. “This is fantastic, Ciprian. Cinematic even. Can you conjure me up some popcorn?”
He narrows his eyes at me like a wasp, then a full bowl of popcorn materializes over my head. Upside-down. Salty kernels rain down on me. It’s so lifelike; I swear I can feel butter in my hair.
I pop a piece in my mouth and immediately spit it out. “The taste is off, Ciprian.” I gag. “Your spell is broken.”
“It’s not a spell, and I’m not a fucking witch. I’m a demon,” he roars down at me. “Now at least try to push me out, or this wet dream is going to turn into a nightmare really fast.”
I take one last look at the steamy scene in front of me and sigh, standing up. “Fine. If you’re going to be a dick about it.”
Looking up, I find the fluffy cloud with the irregularity around the edges. I try shoving it mentally and manage to flatten it, but the vision doesn’t end. I try again, furrowing my brow and pushing harder. It dissolves like a dandelion in the wind. Before I can celebrate, the cloud rematerializes with the same shimmering edges.
Maybe Gideon’s idea of pushing isn’t for me.
This time, I only focus on the edges. I imagine working my thumbnail under it like a sticker on a used book and tug gently. Part of the illusion comes loose, so I pull harder, unveiling strip after strip of reality juxtaposed alongside the illusion. Eventually, the real Callum and Gideon are standing next totheir vision versions, staring at me with confusion and concern. Ciprian looks angry and slightly nauseous.
I muffle a giggle and focus on peeling back the last pieces of the illusion I missed. Some strips come loose easily and others hang on for dear life. By the time I finish, sweat is trickling down my back and a faint headache throbs at the base of my skull.
“Congratulations,” Ciprian grumbles. “You’re a voyeur and I’m a hundred years older.”
“What the hell did you show her?” Gideon demands, taking a step toward me and flaring his nostrils. “Sheena, are you... horny?”
“Please, stop.” Ciprian covers his mouth with his hand. “I’m going to lose my breakfast.”
Callum stares between us with suspicion, his eyes narrowing on me. “What was the illusion, Sheena?”
“Well, it was you and Gideon.” I smirk, looking them both up and down. Not knowing is killing them, and I really want to see how they react. “And you were feeling veryaffectionate towards each other.”
Once my meaning sinks in, Gideon roars with laughter. Callum rolls his eyes at his brother, but I can see how flushed he is by the idea.
“Dude, no one attacking her is going to show her something sexy.”
His criticism is the final nail in the coffin for Ciprian. He throws his hands up in the air, dislodging his hat in the process.
“I fucking know that. It was supposed to be a quick apology vision, a warm-up joke or whatever. Now I’mtraumatized.” He glares at us all. “You three are the worst. No helpful suggestions or thanks. It’s always just ‘Ciprian, your visions are too scary. Ciprian, your visions are too sexy.’ Well, fuck you all very much. I should have just killed Gideon again and been done with it.”
By the end of his rant, his platinum hair is standing on end, and the rest of us have given up fighting our laughter. Walking toward him, I pick up his baseball cap and dust it off, standing on my tiptoes to put it back on his head.
“Thank you, Ciprian. I definitely won’t forget that vision,” I say. His black eyes are still roiling with shadows like the night sky during a storm, but I see some of the tension leave his shoulders. “Could you show me something a little scarier so I can practice again?”
He nods at me gruffly. When his eyes lose focus, I square my shoulders and get ready to go again.
For the next three hours, I do my best to dismantle the mix of scenarios he conjures up with his illusions. I run through the woods with wolves biting at my heels. I dodge a witch trying to light me on fire. I even sword fight with a vampire pirate on the deck of a ship at sea.
The visions are so realistic; it’s like being dropped in the middle of a movie. I feel the tree roots beneath my feet, the witch’s flames licking at my skin, and taste the salty spray from the waves as I struggle to keep my footing.
Despite the distractions, I hunt down the weaknesses one by one, peeling back the visions a little faster each time. Once I manage to break through the imaginary sea and come back to the real courtyard, my shirt is sticking to my sweaty skin, and I can’t ignore the throbbing in my head any longer.
Gideon must be able to tell I’m gassed because he’s quick to step in.
“That’s enough for now. You did an amazing job, baby.” He wraps one big arm around my drooping shoulders, supporting me without making it obvious that I need it. The bond between us thrums happily with the contact.
I look over at Ciprian, and I’m somewhat relieved to see he looks just as exhausted as me. His pale skin is pink and splotchy,and with the way his brow is pinched together, I bet he’s fighting a headache as well.
“Let’s go get some lunch,” Callum suggests, looking between his brother and I. “I think you both might have pushed a little too hard.”
Ciprian waves off the concern, but we all notice his hand trembling. “It’s fine. I’ll nap, then go see a horror movie or something.” At my questioning look, he grins. “I feed on fear. I can do it through my visions if the reaction is strong enough, but that costs me energy as well. If I’m in a room full of scared kids, though, I’ll be full to the brim in an hour or two.”
