Aries: Swinging into Spring

by Sèphera Girón

* * *

  Toni walked along the boardwalk and stared out into the ocean and the blackness of the night. This was all madness, but she had to see Natasha. Lucy had told her it was part of the plan, the big picture. When Toni was ready, Natasha would appear.

  It shouldn’t be hard to find Natasha. How many times had Toni gone walking at night and run into Natasha somewhere? They had similar biorhythms or maybe just schedules. Toni worked late nights sometimes, and Natasha was up all night. Their paths were bound to cross.

  Toni wondered if Natasha would be having another beach-time stroll with Gus. It was so late that it was nearly dawn though. Maybe they’d already gone home. Tomorrow would be a regular workday, although she doubted that mattered to either one of them.

  Toni made her way down to the beach. It was damp, and sea salt sprayed her from the exuberant waves. She hugged her coat tightly around her. A chilly wind blowing up and distant thunder boomed like fireworks as blue flashes of lightning lit the sky in the distance.

  The storm would be heading toward them soon.

  The modern Prometheus. The god who had something to do with fire. The spark of life?

  Wasn’t the monster made from lightning? Would Violet and Norm be monsters too? Would they be horribly disfigured?

  She’d meant to ask Lucy which was more important, the lightning or the new moon.

  Maybe in witchcraft it didn’t matter.

  All the things Lucy had told her and Maggie swam through Toni’s head. It was too much to understand, too much to think about, even for a witch. She just wanted to do what she had to do, the minimum of what she had to do, to make the situation right again and then be on her way. She would never cast spells with Violet and Norm again, or with anyone she didn’t know, for that matter.

  She thought of the dream demons who had slipped through the cracks to visit their pleasures on her flesh. Conjuring the demons for pleasure shouldn’t have been a big deal, certainly not something that ended in death. Maggie was probably right. Weldon’s brother, Ben, probably was the cause of things going wrong.

  Toni mentally willed Natasha to go for a walk, to want to be by the ocean no matter how frigid and unforgiving the wind was growing. She walked carefully along the beach, pleased the lighting along it and the boardwalk had been turned on since her last sojourn with Sid.

  She thought about Sid and how upset he was about what had happened. He didn’t understand that she had no real beef with him despite her initial disappointment. Sure, he had been a coward, but he wasn’t a witch either and the whole ordeal had freaked him out. She hadn’t been too particularly fond of seeing the demon ghosts herself. And she, as a witch, was prepared for strange things such as demons showing up. Poor Sid didn’t know what had hit him.

  The waves crashing relentlessly seemed to mock her as she trudged back up to walk along the boardwalk. But her persistence was rewarded when Natasha appeared at the far end of the boardwalk alone. She glided softly as if she were but a mere shadow.

  “Natasha,” Toni said excitedly to herself. She hurried toward the tall, lean woman.

  Natasha grinned at her in the darkness, her teeth long and white. “I heard you calling,” she said in her thick Hungarian accent.

  “I did call,” Toni said. “I just couldn’t believe you heard me.”

  “You called, I came. What do you want, Toni?” Natasha asked as she continued to walk along the boardwalk.

  “I need your help, Natasha. Lucy told me to ask you. I don’t know if it’s possible, but if it is...”

  Natasha stopped and held Toni’s hands.

  “Slow down, darling Toni. You worry so very much. I will help you as I can.”

  “It’s this... God, it sounds so awful saying it out loud. I need your help. I need body parts. Flesh and blood. Mostly skin.”

  “Ah…” Natasha nodded. “Skin. Body parts. You want me to commit murder then, is it?”

  “No, Natasha. Not at all, not murder.”

  “How do we get these… things, then?” Natasha said.

  “Lucy said you have ways…you have... ways...” Toni stammered.

  Natasha nodded. “Ways… yes, I suppose that’s one way to say it.” She grinned. “Ways… I kind of like that.”

  Toni looked at her, not sure if Natasha was teasing her or mocking herself or not being funny at all. She was never too sure how to take Natasha.

  “I can help you, a bit. I don’t know if it’s all… but a bit. You’re lucky you came to me when you did. In a week, I wouldn’t have these things anymore.”

  “Thank you, Natasha,” Toni cried as she hugged her.

  Natasha nodded at the hug and turned to face Toni. “Is that all?”

  “Yes, it’s all,” Toni said. “It’s enough, isn’t it?”

  “I will bring the items for you by Tuesday at the latest,” Natasha said.

  Toni stared at her and slowly walked away. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest. She was excited that things were falling into place even though they shouldn’t have been out of place to begin with.

  Chapter Nine

  The moon in Pisces makes you overemotional and moody. Be prepared for people changing their minds.

  On Tuesday, Maggie met Toni after work, and they decided to have dinner at the pub where they played darts. Toni was famished and ordered shepherd’s pie while Maggie stuck to a veggie wrap. The boys would be arriving later after their shifts.

  “I brought it,” Maggie said.

  Toni looked at her, wondering what she was talking about for a moment, and then remembered.

  “That claw thing?” Toni said.

  “Yeah. Can you believe that after all this time I finally have a use for the damn thing?”

  “I can believe anything these days. We saw demons,” Toni said. “I never see anything.”

  “And we’re going to make everything right again once more,” Maggie said. “Aren’t we?”

  “Apparently so. Natasha is going to get us what we need. Later on tonight,” Toni told Maggie. “I have to meet her.”

  “I don’t like how that part of things is going to go at all,” Maggie said.

  “Me neither,” Toni said.

  They picked at their food in silence, humming along to “Honky Tonk Woman.”

  By the time they were on their second beers, Weldon arrived, looking tired and nervous. He sat patiently after ordering his wings, waiting for Sid to arrive before the girls shared the latest development so they wouldn’t have to relay it twice.

  “It’s going to be a long week,” Toni sighed.

  “I’ll be glad when I know what’s going on,” Weldon said. “Judging by your faces, it’s not going to be a barrel of laughs.”

  “Not by a long shot,” Toni said.

  “Sid did say he was coming, right?” Weldon asked, looking at his watch.

  “Yes, he said he was coming. He’ll come.” Toni nodded self-assuredly.

  Only a few minutes later, Sid decided to make his appearance. He hugged everyone in greeting and sheepishly took a spot at the table.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “What isn’t?” Toni said.

  “So let’s begin,” Maggie said.

  The girls recited what they understood about the spell and the skin grafting.

  Weldon shook his head. “It isn’t possible. They could never be alive from that much grafting. Surely it would kill them.”

  “People survive skin grafts all the time,” Maggie said.

  “Still, that’s in a hospital, not a bunch of clowns like us trying to deal with it all. God,” Toni sighed and put her head in her hands.

  Sid put his arm around her. “‘Hey, Toni. I know I sucked ass before, but this time it’s going to be different. This time, I’m here for ya. Skin grafting or no skin grafting”

  Toni turned and smiled at him. “I really appreciate that, Sid.” She nodded. “But I don’t want you to be something you’re not. Come if you like, but don’t expect me to beg.”

&nb
sp; “No one is expecting anything,” Maggie said. “Just chill, you guys. We have enough shit.”

  “Yeah, like the song, man. ‘Stay cool,’” Sid sang.

  “Sure,” Toni replied as she drained her beer glass. “So Friday at 11:00 we’ll meet. Right? New moon and all.”

  “Yep,” Maggie said. “Friday at 11:00.”

  “Can we play darts now?” Weldon asked.

  “Yes, we can,” Toni said. “Yes, we can.”

  * * *

  “Bend over,” Toni demanded.

  Sid was tied at his wrists and his ankles and was having trouble balancing. Toni stopped her flogging long enough to caress him with the butt of the flogger’s handle.

  “Bend over,” she said firmly. “I can’t find your ass.”

  She refrained from laughing at his skinny, little ass as Sid dutifully obeyed. She brought the flogger down again and again repeatedly on his buttocks. With every slash, Sid winced but didn’t say a word. He played the role of the slave nicely, she mused.

  She brought the flogger down harder. This time the strikes left angry, red slashes. Toni smiled at the sight of them and brought the flogger down repeatedly until he cried out his safe word. She stopped flogging him as he caught his breath.

  “What’re you so angry about?” Sid asked.

  “I’m not angry. I’m punishing my cowardly slave,” Toni said haughtily.

  Sid looked up at her. “You’re never going to let that go, are you?”

  “No, never,” Toni said smugly. “A woman’s prerogative and all…”

  “Very well, beat me as much as you like. I’ll never convince you how sorry I am,” Sid said.

  “Nope, you never will. And in fact, I will enjoy this whipping more than you,” Toni said as she brought the flogger down on his back and on his buttocks. He leaned heavily over the bed, his head resting on the mattress, his ass hanging off the end, his hands tied behind his back.

  One.

  Two.

  Three slashes with the flogger.

  Toni jumped up on the bed. Sid looked up at her.

  “Stay where you are, slave,” she commanded as she crawled in front of him. “I want you to eat me. Eat me all up,” she said, spreading her pussy lips open. She scooted forward until Sid was able to tongue her clit in the manner that pleased her the most.

  “Oh yes, baby, that’s so good. Lick me all up,” Toni said as she edged closer to his mouth. Sid ate her as best as he could with no hands or feet to use to help enhance her pleasure.

  “I love watching you eat my clit,” she told him. “All tied up like that, what else is a boy going to do?”

  Sid tongued her clit, and instinctively she grabbed his head to push it farther into her pubic area.

  “Oh, yeah, slave boy, you eat my cunt until I come, you understand me?” she cried out as he tongued her faster and harder. He was falling into her as she thrust her hips into his face.

  “Come on, boy. Now! Eat me now,” she called. His tongue searched her out, rubbing against her until at last she cried out as she orgasmed. “Yes, that’s it, that’s it, slave boy. Eat me now,” she yelled as her legs twitched and quivered around his head.

  He hummed and moaned into her, sending delicious tingles coursing throughout her body.

  Toni lay still for a moment, relishing her ecstasy, then she popped up and slid off the bed. When she stood up, she went over to Sid.

  “Stand up,” she said. “Face me.”

  He squirmed and wriggled around, facing her, his cock fully erect.

  “Sit down,” Toni ordered.

  It was difficult to sit on the bed with his hands and ankles tied, but Sid complied. His cock stood rigidly between his legs. Toni leaned over it, her mouth open. Instead of sucking on it, she stood again. Her eyes danced with amusement.

  “You want me to suck your cock so bad you could scream. Don’t you just ache to feel my warm, moist lips wrapped around your engorged, throbbing head?”

  He nodded silently.

  “What’s that?” Toni asked. “I can’t hear you.” She found the flogger again and brought it down on his thigh.

  He bowed his head. “I want you to suck my cock, mistress,” he whispered.

  “That’s better,” she said as she leaned down toward him again. She ran her tongue along his shaft, playfully lapping at it. Sid sighed and closed his eyes.

  “Slave,” Toni barked.

  He sat up and opened his eyes. “Yes, mistress.”

  “You must watch me, I command it.”

  “Yes, mistress.” Sid complied.

  Toni leaned over him again, licking his cock. This time she took it fully in her mouth, sucking his shaft up and down in agonizingly slow motion. Sid trembled beneath her touch.

  She stood up.

  “Did that please you?” she asked.

  “Yes, mistress, very much,” Sid said.

  “Good,” Toni replied. “Perhaps you’ll like this too.”

  Toni went over to the nightstand and retrieved a condom from the little drawer. She slowly unpeeled it, making certain he watched her. She carefully unrolled it onto his cock and turned to throw away the wrapper.

  Toni turned around, rubbing her round apple cheeks in front of him. She massaged her ass, spreading it open and shut for his amusement. When she was finished with her little dance, she sat on him. She used one of her hands to hold herself on his leg and the other to play with her clit. She rode him up and down, his cock hardening with every thrust.

  “I’m going to milk your cock dry,” she said.

  “Fuck me, mistress. Fuck me ’til you come,” he cried.

  “I’ll fuck you ’til I come and come again,” Toni said as she pumped herself up and down on him, rubbing at her clit faster. The rush of feeling his hard cock deep inside her and her fingers dancing along herself teased her already swollen pussy to climax once more.

  “Oh, God,” she moaned. “I’m coming.”

  Sid thrust into her harder, leaning back on his bound hands, his lean hips pumping into her furiously.

  Toni tensed and trembled on his shaft. Her come leaked down her legs and soaked his groin.

  She stood up, turned and faced him, rubbing her pussy juices along her thighs. She slipped her fingers into her cunt and pulled them out and let him watch as she sucked her own moisture from her fingers. His eyes were wide with lust, his cock hard and ready as she lowered herself onto him.

  “You can fuck me more. I know you can,” she whispered as she nibbled his neck. She leaned on him until he was lying back on the bed, then crawled up on him until she was able to fuck him using her hands and feet for leverage. Toni fucked him quickly, still throbbing from the orgasm she had enjoyed moments before. She angled herself so he was hitting her G-spot and shouted as she came again, a flood of juices pouring from her.

  “Oh God,” Sid said from under her. “I can feel your come dripping down my legs.”

  “You turn me on so much,” Toni whispered into his ear. “Come in me.”

  She gripped him tightly, urging him to come with the grinding of her hips.

  “Come on,” she cried out, riding him as she held on to his shoulders, brushing her tits in his face. He tried to catch her nipples with his teeth and hardened inside her. She bobbed up and down, meeting his thrusts, clenching him with her swollen flesh.

  At last, he could hold back no longer and released with a cry. Sid shuddered and moaned and Toni continued to squeeze her cunt around him. As soon as every drop was milked from him, Toni stood up. She rolled him over and untied his hands.

  “Oh God,” he cried out again, moving his hands. “That was amazing.”

  “It was,” she agreed. “One of the best orgasms I’ve ever had.”

  She happily leaned over to kiss him.

  Wasn’t every come the best come she’d ever had?

  Chapter Ten

  The dreaded day had arrived. The sky was dark and heavy, even at dusk, and there was sure to be a storm at some point that
night. Toni looked in the distance, hoping to see a flash of lightning. The dark, rolling clouds obscured the vibrant reds of the sunset.

  She hefted the incredibly heavy cooler of God knew what up the stairs of the house that had been formerly known as Violet and Norm’s. Hopefully it would be theirs once again. She had several metal coat hangers looped around her arm.

  Maggie and Weldon were already inside, preparing Violet and Norm for the evening’s festivities. She had no idea whether Sid would show up or not. He had promised, so she hoped for the best. But she had told him, too, that it didn’t matter if he came or not, that he had to be true to himself. And she figured she was only kind of lying about that.

  She wanted him there. She had a sense his energy was important to the ritual as well, as he was there when things went wrong. But since he wasn’t a witch, it wasn’t that important for him to be there.

  Maggie had lit many candles all around the room and was burning incense. Violet and Norm lay in the middle of the floor. Toni, Maggie and Weldon had retrieved them from the freezer the night before in hopes that they would thaw enough for the ritual. Toni was amazed they had managed to store the bodies for three days without a single person noticing. It made her realize how truly unobservant people could be. Or maybe the cooks and other waitresses just didn’t care that much about what was in the freezer at work.

  Toni wondered how many bars she had worked in where body parts may have been stored unbeknownst to her. She figured it could actually be a rather routine event in a town such as Hermana.

  She didn’t want to think about that.

  Toni stared at the lifeless, waxy figures on the floor. Their faces and their bodies were torn and ruined.

  Toni wasn’t sure they had thawed at all.

  “Will it work if they’re still frozen?” she asked Maggie.

  “Will it work if they aren’t?” Maggie asked. “Who knows?

  “I just hope it works,” Toni said. “Here’s the stuff from Natasha.” She pointed to the cooler.

  “Where did she get it?” Maggie asked.

  “I didn’t ask and she didn’t tell.”