“Oh yeah? What is it?” Maya asked.
“Well, he said he didn’t have anything, so I offered him last year’s costume.”
Smart little thing, she was backing him into a corner to wear a damn maid outfit. He could say no. He should say no. Both of the witches stared at him with a hopeful expression, grinning ear to ear.
“That would be perfect! All you need is cat ears and a tail,” Maya said.
Avery choked on a laugh, but not for the reason Maya thought.
He smiled, trying his best not to seem like an asshole in front of her friend. “Great!” he said with fake enthusiasm while Avery laughed all the way to the bathroom to get ready.
He was absolutely not wearing the maid costume.
The maid costumewas rather tight. And short. He had to make shadow pants, just so he didn’t flash his ass toward everyone. Only Avery was allowed to see “his beautiful buttocks,” as she put it so kindly.
Girls could be evil sometimes. The way they both ganged up on him and wore him down was merciless. Avery even pulled out theno touching her boobs for a weekcard. Evil.
They sat on a log near an enormous bonfire that Avery had called a Coelcerth while the sun dipped below the horizon. Tonight was the night when they were meant to go to the midnight cave. Both of them had avoided talking about it. If the final riddle really did break the bond, then…
No. He shook his head. It was better this way.
Avery held a red cup before she downed the dregs of the mysterious punch that had been passed around. He had to admit she looked positively scrumptious tonight. It was simple, butfuck, it turned him on. Students lazed around the fire, some throwing stones into it.
Felix’s brows furrowed. “Why are they throwing stones?”
“It’s tradition, you write your name on it, toss it into the fire, and then if it’s not there the following morning, you’ll die within the next year.”
“Delightful,” he said, face blank.
Maya and Avery chuckled at him, and he had to stop himself from joining in.
“How have you been going with your magic?” Maya asked her.
“Really good,” Avery said.
They had been practicing,actuallypracticing. Avery was a natural when it came to controlling his shadows. Last night, she had managed to heal her arm on purpose this time. Most importantly, though, Felix wanted to make sure she could defend herself in case something happened.
Guilt gnawed at him. Severing the bond would leave her alone and powerless for any of these witches to hurt. But he couldn’t stay here. Something in his chest tore as he thought about leaving her. He couldn’t imagine the pain when he actually did. What would it feel like not to have Avery on the other side of that thread?
Instead of unpacking it, he took a sip of whiskey, the burn numbing the pain for one blissful moment.
The harsh caw of Maya’s crow jerked him back to the present. Firelight danced over Avery’s frame, and she tipped her head back, laughing at something Maya said. Felix smiled, committing the scene to memory. Just in case.
The little witch was only inches away, but he was aware of every one of them. She turned her head toward him, a slight haze of alcohol flushing her cheeks pink. The golden sun warmed their backs as much as the fire did their front, but the heat rising within him had nothing to do with that. He couldn’t help himself; he raised his hand and tucked a loose hair behind her ear.
“Can you two get a room?” Maya said jokingly. He had to admit that Maya was growing on him.Maybe some witches weren’t so bad.
Avery laughed, a blush deepening across her face. “Do you mind getting me another drink?” she asked him.
“Sure.”
Am I her bitch now?If he was, he kind of liked it. He knew he was a cat, but if she wanted him to be her dog, he would bark instead. Woof.
Felix walked past students enjoying themselves to the music that floated through the trees, bass thumping under laughter and the crack of the bonfire. Some danced and grinded against each other, others just talked amongst themselves. The smell of burning pine swept through the forest, but still, he could never shake off Avery’s scent. He knew there was only one logical explanation for that. But somehow he still didn’t want to admit it to himself. It didn’t matter anyway. She was a witch. He was a shifter. Their worlds could never collide. No matter how desperately he wanted them to.
When he reached the table with the punch, he filled the cups with the shimmering liquid that seemed bottomless no matter how much had been taken from it. Piles of students congregated around the table playing some sort of drinking game. A girl on the end watched him looking him up and down. Oh no. Time to leave. Before he’d taken two steps, the same drunk girl materialized in front of him, wobbling on her heels.
“Oh my goddessss,” she slurred. “I loveee your costume, how did you get the ears and tail to look so real?”
