Let’s Get Stoned
Rez
‘Foreshadowing, Rez. That’s the word you're thinking of,’Lynx says as we walk along the path in the woods.
‘Yeah. That’s the word. I’m just so nervous. This can either help and change everything or—’
‘Or, nothing has changed, and we carry on, simple as that, Rezzi-Bear. Either way, I’m here with you.’Lynx wraps his tail around my neck and squeezes, causing me to giggle. Those hugs always tickle a little bit.
‘Aww,thank you, Lynx. I honestly don’t know what I would do without you. You’re my everything.’
‘I know. That’s just how great I am.’
I can’t help but chuckle at him.
Lilith slows down and waits for me on the path to catch up and I notice she doesn’t have her bells on her shoes anymore. She probably didn’t want to scare away the wildlife out here. “You seem very close to your Familiar,” she says and smiles.
It’s a friendly enough observation, and it’s not like it’s a secret. I came here with him, so I don’t see any harm in spilling some information about Lynx.
“Yeah, I’ve had him since I was little. He showed up at my house one night during a storm, and he’s been with me ever since.” I smile down at Lynx with affection, rubbing his head.
‘You can’t get rid of me that easy, Rezzi.’
Lilith just smiles and continues on, leading us deeper into the woods. She takes the path that breaks off to the right, and it puts me on edge.God, I hope she knows her way around since I’ve never been here. Shit, the only time I’ve been in the woods since arriving, Katie May went down in flakes.The further we go, the thicker the foliage is, and the trail disappears. We finally come upon a rocky wall covered in moss. Lilith walks up to it and pulls the moss to the side, revealing a wide opening to a cave. If I would have walked here by myself, from this angle, I might have missed the entrance. At least I wouldn’t have to crouch to go in, but there’s not a lot of light penetrating deeper down the corridor. Swallowing hard, I push down my fear of that dark tunnel, even if it is giving me some creepy vibes. When we enter, with a flick of her wrist, candles light up the inside.Well at least there’s light now, it’s not AS creepy, but the atmosphere still gets a 10/10 on the ominous scale.
The scent of dried herbs and dirt reaches me as we walk. Letting my eyes adjust, I take in the room. There are tables lined up along the left-hand wall, filled with the herbs I smelled and some vials. The right-hand walls have drawings in chalk-like symbols, and I recognize a few for protection from when living with my grandparents and their practices. Well, that’s a good sign, at least.
In the middle of the room is a black and white marble altar. A white lacy cloth is lying across the top, as well as a white silk pillow.
‘Well, this is a GREAT place to be sacrificed, huh?’
‘Thanks, Tinkles, that’s what I didn’t need to think of.’But it’s all my mind focuses on, and I’m now second-guessing my choice. I just walked into the woods, not knowing where I’m at, and there’s an honest to God altar in front of me. To make matters worse, I walked into this trap with a demon—and not just any old demon, but the ORIGINAL monster.Oh God. I try shoving my shaking hands into my pockets to only remember I threw on leggings that JP gave me and a white tank top after lunch.
I take an involuntary step back, and Lilith notices.
She turns from mixing up something with the herbs and smiles at me. “Relax, Nerezza. I’m not going to hurt or sacrifice you. Besides, you’re not a virgin, and those types of sacrifices need a virgin's blood.”
I freeze in my spot with fear.How the hell does she know?She catches my stunned expression and laughs.
“I’m joking. I’ve been to Earth plenty of times, and I know the smut they portray about demons. I was just there this summer,” she says and frowns. “But I was pulled back a few months ago, so I’m not that far behind on the lingo. Come on over and I’ll show you what I’m doing.”
I hesitantly walk over, struggling to swallow my nerves, and watch as she puts together different elixirs, draughts, and shows me the spells she plans on using. She goes into great detail about how she plans on working through each level of my ‘unbinding’ and what she will do if she runs into any problems. Once she’s ready, she pours holy water over the altar, soaking the pillow and linen, and I watch in horror when I see drops heading for her arm.
It hits her skin and shines with sparkles where it hits. Noticing my concern, she smiles and says, “I’m a special breed of demon. Holy water doesn’t work on me like other demons.”Good to know. And good for her, I guess?
Next, she snaps her fingers and lights the linen on fire, but it doesn’t burn. It just makes the lacy cloth shine like diamonds. “Holy water to cleanse, Hellfire to solidify and protect. Go ahead and strip, and wrap yourself in the cloth. I don’t want to take any chances if you transform and your bindings interfere.”
Well, that makes sense. Still holding a hint of nerves that she could be sacrificing me and I’m just offering myself up without question, I strip before I lay down on the marble slab and find it surprisingly warm. Closing my eyes for a second, I find myself panicking.
‘I’m here, Rez. Right here, just take in a deep breath, hold for four seconds, and breathe out.’
Grateful for his comfort, I follow his breathing exercise for a few minutes, and I manage to push off a full panic attack.
“Okay, Nerezza, I need you to drink this,” Lilith says softly, trying not to interrupt my moment of calm.
My eyes fly open and find her offering me the potion she made for clarity and calmness. Yeah, I didn’t know that was a thing either.
Ready to get this done, I drink down the peppermint mixture which is surprisingly sweet, and lay back down, closing my eyes once more.
