‘Look, Rez! A horny toad!’He laughs, and I try to stop the laugh that bubbles out, which only makes me snort instead.
I look over at the girl to make sure she didn’t hear me, but the scowl on her face proves I’ve fucked up. Well great. Just what I needed, another person to add me to their shit list. I’m making friends left and right here. Shaking my head and avoiding her now, I hold onto Lynx and look into his eyes like everyone else in the class.
‘I have no idea what the hell I’m doing here, Lynx. Care to help me out?’I ask.
He sits back on his haunches and puffs out his chest.
‘Just like he said I imagine. Picture a bridge expanding from you to me. He said Soul, so I’m assuming that’s not from our head but our chest?’He guesses.
Well, it’s the only thing to go off of, so here goes nothing.
Taking in a deep breath, I imagine a thin string that starts in the middle of my chest and uncurls like a carpet, attaching it to Lynx with a click.
‘That’s it, Rezzi. Did you hear that click? Yes, shit’s about to go down. Concentrate, let’s see what we can do.’
Smiling at him, I reach out and hold him, and I do what he suggests. I close my eyes, trying to concentrate, picturing that string getting thicker, stronger, and brighter. Heat floods my system as pain rushes down my back.
‘Ahh!’
My entire body feels like it’s contracting, and I hear Lynx shout out in pain. Suddenly, my consciousness is yanked forward into his mind.
“Lynx, you have to be patient, sweetie. She’s at the age where she’s going to want to explore her options. Let her spread her wings. She’s a teenager. Don’t you remember how that was for you?” Rezzy-bear’s mom Jillian said, smiling over her shoulder at me. She was bent over her counter, grinding up her fresh Valerian root, the scent permeating the room.
Those roots always reminded me of shit. Bear shit, to be precise. They were tainted with it. Not only do they have a potent, earthy smell, but the image of Jillian picking those roots was also seared in my brain. They were covered in shit. I had even told her that wasn’t mud, but bear shit, and she just smiled at me and said, “Even better.”
Do you know what Valerian root is used for? It’s used to help you relax and sleep better. So next time you decide to drink tea with Valerian root in it, just remember you’re drinking bear shit! Yep, you heard it here first.
Today, she decided to wear her long purple skirt and white peasant top. Her lengthy brunette curls were down her back and rippled in the slight breeze. It’s what she liked to call her witchy outfit, and she only wore it when working in her herb closet. Really, it was just the small shed in the back of her property. Rez and I spent one summer painting and fixing it up, thinking it would be our clubhouse, but we decided to claim the attic at the last minute.
“Um, no. Because one, I am a teenager, and two, she’s mine,” I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest and leaned back in the chair. Difficult women, the whole family were stubborn as mules, and that was saying something. Why couldn’t Rez just understand that we were meant to be? Hell, things would have been different if I didn’t have to play by the human rules and court my mate. I swear humans were so complicated and ass-backwards.
Now I had an image of how a human could possibly have a backwards ass. How did that work? Could they still shit? Sit? Shaking my head to clear the image, I focused back on Rez.
I had spent hours listening to mom and dad talk about how their souls reached for each other, so when I felt mine calling, they were all for me leaving home to search for it. Granted, it was unheard of to go at such a young age, but when your soul hears the cry of your mate, even at the age of nine, you have to answer the call. Thankfully, my parents had time to teach me the basics and the stuff I needed to know before I left. But it never occurred to them to warn me that I would show up with my powers practically stripped bare and in my first form crying on a stoop of a house where a six-year-old needed me. Then again, maybe my father didn’t know.
Jillian chuckled, “Ah, to be young again. Lynx, sweetie. You might not see it, but Rez is crazy about you. I see how she looks at you when you walk into the room or bring her something. You guys are inseparable. So just give her time,” she reassured as she smiled at me.
I know Rez loved me, but that was not the point. Right now, she was out on a date. A DOUBLE DATE. Was I the only one that saw a problem with that? Let her spread her wings? Yeah okay. Why didn’t she just throw Rez to all the hungry predators out there and tell them to have a go at her? I was her’s, and she was mine. Simple. I scoffed at Jillian’s audacity.
“So, Mama bear, I know I’ve asked before, but when are you going to lift this gag on me,” I asked, hoping that this time I’d get a fucking time frame.
Putting down her mortar and pestle, she looked back at me with a stern look. “First of all, it’s a binding spell, not a gag, Lynx,” she said, picking up more ingredients.
“I’m sorry, what’s the difference between the two? I’m so confused,” I asked, quirking a manicured eyebrow.
Sighing, she turned to look at me, leaning on the counter. “Lynx, I understand you're hurting, but I don’t need the attitude,” she chastised me. Turning back around to her herbs, she continued. “But for education reasons: A gag is when a spell is cast on you that keeps you from speaking of one particular instance, and it’s excruciating when you try to say something. A binding spell, on the other hand, combines multiple facets, and it doesn’t hurt. It just keeps you from talking about it around the person that it involves. Besides, I want Rez to grow up and experience a normal life.”
WHAT?
“Normal? How is sending her to therapy because she thinks she hears shit in her mind okay? Or allowing her to think she’s the only one that sees me changing or talking? Huh?” I ran my hands through my hair. “How is that allowing her to grow up with a normal life?” I spat out, shooting out of my chair.How dare she? Didn’t she understand how much she’s hurting my Rezzi-Bear?
“Enough Lynx!” she yelled, slamming her fist down on the counter. “I will not be discussing this with you again. Do you understand?” She turned her glare on me. I read the threat in her eyes before I gave in and nodded my consent.
“Now, could you please help by going into the house and getting the sage? I forgot it,” she said, and I knew I’d exhausted all avenues today with her. She always did that. Sent me off to fetch something so we both could cool down, even though she didn’t need the damn thing in the end. Typical Jillian, but I’d go and get it anyways. We both needed time to blow off steam.
Heading to the house, I try to calm the fury that was rippling under my skin. In the kitchen, I grabbed the sage off the rack in the back room. As she intended it to, the walk over had cooled me off to a point, and I knew by the time I got back to the shed we would both be back normal. Pulling two water bottles out of the fridge as a peace offering, I walked back out to her shop.
Passing the big oak tree, I noticed the door was only hanging from one hinge. Knowing that’s not how I left it, I dropped everything and ran to the shed.
