AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He says it’s better, but I can still sense his loneliness. I hope that someday, he finds the complete happiness that he deserves. I never thought that those with ‘gifts’ struggle with their identities just like the rest of us. I guess I never really gave it deep thought since I believe magic and fairytales are themes for books and bedtime stories.
Hearing Seer’s story gets me curious about the others.‘Others’being Pocus. I suddenly want to know things about him that I never cared to know about other people. I want to know what he did before he joined the MC… What made him the compelling and enigmatic man that makes my heart race a thousand times faster than normal?
Would it be polite to ask Seer personal questions about Pocus? Would it be out of Seer’s place to talk about it? Would Pocus appreciate my digging my nose into his business? Why do I suddenly want to know personal things about Pocus…?
We could just fuck without getting personal… Adults do that all the time.Right?
Seer seems to sense the shift in my mood and maybe the direction of my thoughts, but he maintains an open silence, giving me the time I need to put my thoughts in order. I dig my feet into the ground and propel the swing back a little. I lift my legs from the ground, allowing the swing to move me forward and backward by itself. The back-and-forth movement, along with the spinning questions in my head, soon slows down. Seer waits patiently, a graceful smile playing on his face. It’s as if he means to tell me to just ask my questions outright instead of overthinking things.
“So…,” I start slowly, letting the swing settle into its gentle sway once more. “I know that you see visions, and Hex can see and talk to ghosts. What about Pocus? What’s his gift?”
I’m tempted to say‘power.’Somehow, I feel like the word would fit better.
“Prez can sense and even channel people’s emotions.” Seer sounds like a proud parent talking about their child’s achievements. “He can tell when a person is lying or telling the truth… Guilty or innocent. He can sense a supernatural presence.”
I throw a confused frown at Seer. “Do you mean he sees ghosts like Hex?”
“Not at all,” Seer replies. “He feels their presence instead. Not only ghosts, but demons, witches, and the like. Do you know that this place used to be a plantation house? When Pocus bought the property, he demolished the slave quarters and brought in a shaman to send off the poor spirits who’d been trapped here for years. He said he could almost hear their woeful cries bouncing off the walls. Some, like Cassandra, wanted to stay back, and he let them. He acts like he’s irritated every time Hex plays with the ghosts, but he actually doesn’t mind. He even forbade salt around here because of the ghosts.”
“Salt?” I ask with a confused frown. “What has salt got to do with ghosts?”
“It repels them,” Seer replies. “Pocus wanted the ghosts to be able to move freely around the clubhouse, so he doesn’t permit the use of salt.”
It all sounds inconceivable and a little creepy, but Pocus has got to be the most thoughtful man I’ve met. He even cares about the ghosts on his property.
“Prez can also read a person’s future.”
That actually comes as a surprise. I turn my body so that I’m facing Seer. “What? Really? Pocus has the gift of sight too?”
Seer chuckles quietly. “Not quite, but something similar. For me, the visions come without warning. I don’t get to choose what or about who I see. But Pocus can read a person’s future by touching them. He has to set his mind to it, though. The mechanics are a little more complicated, and not everyone can be read but yeah. That’s about it.”
“I can’t believe he can do all that,” I shake my head with a little apologetic laugh. “I’m sorry, it’s just…he doesn’t act like he has the ability to do all of those things you mentioned.”
Seer shrugs. “Pocus isn’t really big on flaunting his abilities. He doesn’t read people’s futures unless it’s absolutely necessary. He leaves the visions to me and just works with his senses.”
“Do you know why he’s that way?” I ask hesitantly.
Seer falls silent for a while as if trying to decide whether or not to answer my question. “I believe it has something to do with his past,” he finally says. “You see…people don’t know how to deal with others who are different from them. I was lucky to be born into a family that knew magic was a part of life, and while I had my own struggles it was different for Pocus. He and Evanesce had a rough start. They had to fight their way through a world of hate and criticism. Evanesce had Pocus to protect her, but Pocus had to fight for them both. And you know, not all scars are physical. Sometimes, a warrior comes out with his battle wounds stamped on his soul.”
My heart swells with admiration and respect for a man whom, just weeks ago, I couldn’t stand. The more I learn about him, the more my heart goes to him. As a child, he had to step up and take responsibility for his sister, and even now, he’s trying to protect everyone around him.
Who protects him? Who fights for him?
How does he still stand so tall and strong?
“Earth to Mademoiselle Abby,” Seer says, pulling me out of my melancholic thoughts. “What are you thinking about so deeply?”
I shrug sheepishly. “It’s just…Pocus has all these responsibilities and expectations…,” I trail, unsure how to voice my thoughts. “I just think it must sometimes be draining. Right? And now, he has to fight Mr. Anderson to protect his sister.” I sigh deeply and shake my head. “He’s no easy match…my boss.”
“You say these things now because you don’t know Pocus well,” Seer says with an ironic snicker. “He is an even scarier opponent. Pocus will fight to the death if necessary, but he’ll never let Anderson have his way.”
I allow a wistful sigh. “He must really love his sister.”
I wondered what she was like. I tried to imagine a feminine version of Pocus, but I doubted she looked like any of the images in my head. Maybe I would get to meet her someday…or maybe I was just getting ahead of myself.
“I’m sure you can relate,” Seer says, flashing me a curious smile. “You are quite protective of your sister.”
It’s a subtle indication to talk about myself. My mind starts to shut down like it always does whenever anyone asks about my family. It’d be unfair to lock it right now, though, not after he’d kindly answered all my questions about himself and even Pocus.
