“As long as we’re sharing…” she trails off, crosses the room, and starts digging through her bag.
The charm she’s placed on it must make it truly endless as she pulls out item after item, searching for whatever prize she’s after. She settles on a selection of glass bottles, vials, and tubes, all pulsing with unmistakable witchmagick.
“I’ve got a few things that might come in handy if we run into trouble.”
“If they’re anything like the magick you’ve already used on me, I’m sure they will.”
Her smirk falters. “About that… sorry. I mean, I’d probably do it again, but it wasn’t exactly polite to paralyze you like that.”
“All is forgiven.”
How could I blame her for doing what she could to subdue a large, unfamiliar male who was trying to follow her, trying to stop her from leaving? A flush heats my cheeks at the memory of how badly I fumbled our first meeting.
She nods and eyes my belt, considering, before she reaches back into her pack.
“Here,” she says, withdrawing a leather pouch. “This should hold everything.”
Without asking or waiting for an invitation, she reaches for my belt, and I’m too damn entranced by the sight of her long, slender fingers undoing it to say a word to stop her.
As she pulls the strap from the buckle, her eyes flick up to meet mine.
Wicked, wicked witch.
Payback, I suppose, for whatever she felt when I was on my knees before her.
The urge to reach for her, to tug her to me and slant my mouth over hers is a terrible, powerful thing. By the glint in her eye as she goes to work securing the pouch to my belt, re-buckling it, and stowing away all those witch’s tricks she selected for me, I could almost convince myself she wouldn’t mind if I did.
But now’s not the time to test that theory.
“Reach inside,” she says, and I’m powerless to do anything but obey. “Feel the long, slender tube?”
I nod.
“That’s an invisibility spell. You can pull it out and break it; the glass won’t cut you. Just drop it on the ground and let it deploy. You’ll be covered for a half-hour, at least.”
“Clever,” I murmur, fingers moving to the next glass vial. “And the round one?”
Seren smirks. “The round one is offensive rather than defensive. Maybe redundant depending on how many of those weapons you’re planning to arm yourself with, but it’ll give off a big flash and bang directed squarely at your enemies, guaranteed to give you some time to get away.”
“A useful spell.”
I’m trying to pay attention to each of the spells she explains, but it’s damned near impossible when she’s still standing so close.
Goddess, she smells good.
A rainstorm to wash me away, lightning striking stone, magick so potent and powerful it should scare me, but only makes me want to step closer.
“Got it?” she asks, and I nod hastily.
“Got it.”
We spend the next few minutes packing up supplies to last for a couple of days, getting dressed and ready to head out.
“To the Veil?” I ask, already certain a trip back to Faerie is in our near future.
“To the Veil,” she agrees. “And then to Faerie, if that’s alright with you. The cottage where you found me, there’s something about it. I can’t… I can’t exactly describe it, but the way my magick pulled me there…”
She trails off, a slight frown on her face, and I can’t stop myself from reaching out and squeezing her hand.
