Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 25630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 128(@200wpm)___ 103(@250wpm)___ 85(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 25630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 128(@200wpm)___ 103(@250wpm)___ 85(@300wpm)
“We might have forgotten to mention that the tree is sensitive,” Nolan interjected.
“And it can clearly understand English,” Sky added.
“No shit!” Red barked, which sent Sky into more peals of laughter.
“Is…is it safe to go in there?” Maddox inquired.
Nolan lifted his glass and took another deep drink. “Yeah. But don’t insult the tree. I’m not fighting it off for you.”
The two earth witches crept into the living room, still keeping a suspicious eye on the tree as they returned to their prep work.
“I was thinking we’d do the standard barrier with Silvery Moonlight Aura to strengthen it,” Red murmured.
“I think the Guardian of the Dead charm would work better than Silvery Moonlight,” Mad stated.
“Yeah, who wouldn’t want to do that charm? But it requires a lot of witch hazel washed in the first full moon of the winter solstice. You got that much prepped witch hazel to toss around?”
“No, but the alternative is the Disrupt Magic Jinx, and the smell from the nettles soaked in cat urine always gives me a headache.”
Red shook his head, nose wrinkled. “That’s the worst, but I’ve found you can also use corn silk braided with iron shavings in place of the nettles.”
“But the corn silk has to be fresh. Where the hell are we going to get fresh corn silk this time of year?” Maddox glared at Red. “You didn’t say we needed to stop at the grocery store to pick up corn still in the leaves.”
“Fine. Then let’s scrap the standard barrier and go with the Seal of Tranquility.”
“Have you lost your fucking mind? The only way to cast that spell effectively is to be buck-ass naked. The windchill is minus three tonight.”
Sky held in a giggle, finally tearing his eyes away as Nolan moved to cuddle up against him on the sofa. His boyfriend’s glass was empty, and there was a nice flush to his cheeks. Sweet Nolan was a lightweight when it came to drinking, and it was adorable.
“Are they always like this?” he asked in a loud whisper.
“It’s usually worse because Moon likes to toss in bullshit nonsense to get them arguing more.”
Nolan kissed his temple and nuzzled his nose along Sky’s neck. His grumpy man was so cuddly when buzzed. “Have your magic and Grammy’s magic always leaked around the neighborhood?”
“Yes, but she had a witch friend who helped to seal the leaking magic off so that it didn’t affect more than her own yard. After a while, Grammy would drain it off and take it to the graveyard to give the dead a night to dance and play. After I moved in, we had to strengthen the barrier. We kind of let it go after she died because we were back down to one active necromancer.”
“But the fae fucked things up,” Nolan chimed in.
“So it would seem.” Sky sighed. If there was anyone his magic wasn’t compatible with, it was definitely the fae.
Redstone and Maddox bickered for another twenty minutes and got a refill on their margaritas and then finally settled on the right spells. Sky attempted to accompany them, but they chased him into the house. Thankfully, it was one in the morning, and all his close neighbors were in their fifties and sixties. It was highly unlikely any of them would be peering out their windows. Not that it was going to be much of a show. Red and Mad were simply trudging along his property line, waving about smoldering incense while chanting. It was creepy and weird, but not enough for them to call the cops.
The best Sky could do was to peek out a few of his windows, watching their steady progress. Maddox and Red might like to bicker about every little thing, but while casting a spell together, they were immediately serious. The arguing stopped, and they were focused. Sky might have been jealous of their closeness in terms of magic and having someone to cast with. The only other necromancer he’d ever known was his grandmother, and they’d had a few short years to cast spells together before she’d passed away. Of course, he still had her ghost to chat with almost every day, and she was an incredible source of magical information. However, they couldn’t cast spells together.
Tonight, he felt Moon’s absence all the more. Moon didn’t know any other blood witches. During the times that Red and Mad cast spells together, Sky and Moon would kick back and chat about silly things, forming their own precious bond.
Strong arms wrapped around him from behind, and Sky sighed as he leaned against Nolan.
“You’re missing Moon,” he whispered.
“How’d you know?”
“You’ve told me stories of how you would get drunk with Moon and heckle those two while they were casting spells.”
“Oh, yeah.” It had been a few days since he’d last texted Moon. The vampire-witch was settled in his new home in China and so full of stories of living with such a crazy clan. But that was to be expected with a gaggle of ancient vampires, a dragon, a huli jing, an elf, and a pair of cat shifters. While Sky missed Moon, he was happy that his friend had found such a perfect family.