“Rules mean fuck-all during a full moon, witch. You should know this. We can’t kill anyone, but the headmaster turns a blind eye to everything else.” He grinned at me. “It’s in our nature to act out when it’s a full moon. Can’t fight nature, bitch.”
I cocked one eyebrow. “Great. So when I blast you with my fire magic, I can claim it was in my nature and the full moon made me do it?”
The male took a step back, no longer so enthusiastic about the idea of attacking me now that he knew I had fire magic.
“Look, let the fox go. We’re just having fun,” he huffed.
“No.” I held the fox tighter in my arms while knowing the leaves I’d spent the last hour harvesting were likely crushed beyond saving.Oh well. I could always head out again tomorrow. It would take me less time now that I knew where the flowers grew. “The fox stays with me.”
“I bet your bed is a lot more comfortable than the thorn bush I slept in last night.”
The strange voice in my head nearly made me drop the fox.
“Huh?”
“Cosmic. The goddess paired me with a dumb witch.” I looked down to see the fox rolling his eyes at me.
Is this fox my familiar?
“Goddess save both of us from the ignominy of such a ridiculous pairing.”
“Canyou hear me?”
“Duh. I’m talking to you, aren’t I? Now can we please get the fuck out of here before one of the dumb-fuck shifters tries to eat me? I swear if they try biting my cute butt, I will curse them to the demon realm and back.”
“Wow, you swear a lot.”
“Fuck you, witch.”
I gritted my teeth, caught between excitement at having found my familiar and consternation that it had turned out to be a foul-mouthed fox with an attitude problem.
Unfortunately, while I’d zoned out, the three wolves had edged closer. Before I could react, the male who’d shifted attempted to snatch the little fox. I screamed while the fox sank his teeth into the male’s hand.
A furious roar nearly popped my eardrums. The male partially shifted, revealing a set of fangs I knew were more than capable of tearing chunks from me. Only he never got to act on his anger issues. The incubus who’d behaved highly inappropriately the last time we met blinked into existence and ripped the male away from me.
I heard a horrible shriek as something bloody launched over my head.
“I hope that lunatic is your mate,” the fox said. “A dumb witch like you needs a brave and violent mate to keep her stupid-ass safe from ugly shifters with small cocks.”
“He’s not my mate,” I muttered before I peeked over my shoulder. A bloody hand lay on the floor, no longer attached to a sobbing male.
The two other wolves yelped and ran, their tails tucked between their legs. I gulped, feeling sick, while the incubus stood grinning at me, not caring one bit about the mess he’d caused. It occurred to me I ought to thank him for intervening in what could have been a sticky situation.
“Um, thanks?”
“You’re welcome.” He looked down at the male frantically trying to crawl away while clutching his severed hand. “If you go to the healers, they can probably reattach it.”
“You’re insane!” the wolf shifter cried, his pupils blown with shock and pain. “Just like your father!”
The incubus’s smile turned into something dark and feral. White-hot rage burned in his pale eyes, sending his aura black as midnight.
“You’re comparing me to my father?”
“Oops, something tells me the lunatic has daddy issues,” the fox chuckled in my head.
Before the wolf shifter could say another word, the incubus gripped his head and twisted. The male’s scream cut off abruptly as his head detached from his body. I choked in horror.
“Holy shit. I’m fanboying like crazy in case you’re wondering why my tails are flapping like flags in a strong wind.”
