“Have you lost your fucking mind? The only way to cast that spell effectively is to be buck-ass naked. The windchill is minus three tonight.”
Sky held in a giggle, finally tearing his eyes away as Nolan moved to cuddle up against him on the sofa. His boyfriend’s glass was empty, and there was a nice flush to his cheeks. Sweet Nolan was a lightweight when it came to drinking, and it was adorable.
“Are they always like this?” he asked in a loud whisper.
“It’s usually worse because Moon likes to toss in bullshit nonsense to get them arguing more.”
Nolan kissed his temple and nuzzled his nose along Sky’s neck. His grumpy man was so cuddly when buzzed. “Have your magic and Grammy’s magic always leaked around the neighborhood?”
“Yes, but she had a witch friend who helped to seal the leaking magic off so that it didn’t affect more than her own yard. After a while, Grammy would drain it off and take it to the graveyard to give the dead a night to dance and play. After I moved in, we had to strengthen the barrier. We kind of let it go after she died because we were back down to one active necromancer.”
“But the fae fucked things up,” Nolan chimed in.
“So it would seem.” Sky sighed. If there was anyone his magic wasn’t compatible with, it was definitely the fae.
Redstone and Maddox bickered for another twenty minutes and got a refill on their margaritas and then finally settled on the right spells. Sky attempted to accompany them, but they chased him into the house. Thankfully, it was one in the morning, and all his close neighbors were in their fifties and sixties. It was highly unlikely any of them would be peering out their windows. Not that it was going to be much of a show. Red and Mad were simply trudging along his property line, waving about smoldering incense while chanting. It was creepy and weird, but not enough for them to call the cops.
The best Sky could do was to peek out a few of his windows, watching their steady progress. Maddox and Red might like to bicker about every little thing, but while casting a spell together, they were immediately serious. The arguing stopped, and they were focused. Sky might have been jealous of their closeness in terms of magic and having someone to cast with. The only other necromancer he’d ever known was his grandmother, and they’d had a few short years to cast spells together before she’d passed away. Of course, he still had her ghost to chat with almost every day, and she was an incredible source of magical information. However, they couldn’t cast spells together.
Tonight, he felt Moon’s absence all the more. Moon didn’t know any other blood witches. During the times that Red and Mad cast spells together, Sky and Moon would kick back and chat about silly things, forming their own precious bond.
Strong arms wrapped around him from behind, and Sky sighed as he leaned against Nolan.
“You’re missing Moon,” he whispered.
“How’d you know?”
“You’ve told me stories of how you would get drunk with Moon and heckle those two while they were casting spells.”
“Oh, yeah.” It had been a few days since he’d last texted Moon. The vampire-witch was settled in his new home in China and so full of stories of living with such a crazy clan. But that was to be expected with a gaggle of ancient vampires, a dragon, a huli jing, an elf, and a pair of cat shifters. While Sky missed Moon, he was happy that his friend had found such a perfect family.
Nolan’s arms tightened. “I might know nothing about magic, but I’m happy to stand in the snow with you and heckle those two lunatics.”
Chuckling, Sky turned in Nolan’s arms and kissed his chin. “I’m happier inside, where it’s warm. Kisses are much better than making fun of them.”
As he snuggled Nolan, Sky felt a tiny magical pop. He flinched and lifted his head from Nolan’s shoulder.
“Everything okay?” Nolan loosened his hold so he could meet Sky’s eyes.
“Yep. They must have got things sealed up. It felt kind of like my ears popped.”
He’d barely finished speaking when they heard a rustling in the living room. They turned together to see the tree’s lights suddenly blink out. The branches fluttered softly, and some ornaments swayed. A tiny, inquisitive, trilling noise rose from the tree.
“That’s new,” Nolan murmured.
Sky nodded. Could the tree also feel the shift in magic? Sky was going to go with yes.
The tree pulled its roots out of the water pan and scuttled through the living room, moving for the front door.
“Shit!” Nolan hissed. He released Sky and lunged forward, trying to catch up with the tree.
“I’ll guard the back door,” Sky called, hurrying to the other door to block the tree’s exit. He had no idea what the tree was trying to do.
“Hey! Hey! You can’t go out there!” Nolan’s voice echoed down the hall, and Sky had to hold in a giggle. “They’re putting in a tree where you used to be growing. If the neighbors discover you’re missing, they’ll freak out.”
Well, freak out might be a bit of an exaggeration, Sky thought. His neighbor would bitch and moan, but it wouldn’t be that big of a problem. Unless he noticed the same tree growing in Sky’s yard later that spring. Then it would be an enormous problem.
More noises came from the tree. This time, though, they sounded more like anxious begging and whimpering. Was this a tree or a golden retriever? At least it didn’t sound pissed, like when it had discovered the artificial tree.
