Familiar

by Roseau, Robin

  "Can you promise me you won't make me help you perform evil against innocents?"

  "No," she said. "It is not my intention to hurt the innocent, but sometimes it is inevitable."

  "Will you promise to do your best to avoid it?"

  "Yes," she said. "I will do my best to avoid it."

  "Do you promise to bind no one else like you have already bound me?"

  "I promise I will do my best to avoid binding other innocents against his or her desires."

  "That is wishy-washy," I accused her.

  "I do not know what the future will bring," she replied. "I will do my best, but I do not want to break the promises you are asking me to make. I need room for unseen circumstances."

  "Like what?"

  "Like another witch sending an innocent to kill us. Or someone stumbling on us and threatening to go to the press. For instance. In cases like that, I will do what I must."

  "You will not seek to victimize the innocent."

  "Absolutely not."

  I turned away. "Give me a minute, please."

  She didn't say anything, although she stepped closer. Her presence was unexpectedly comforting. I leaned against her.

  Finally I turned back to face her. "I do not wish to be bound to someone I feel is evil. Arianna, I forgive you for the way you have forced this on me. I know that some of it is done for your own selfish desires, but I also understand you believe this is my best chance for a good future. I am not completely convinced, but I forgive you. I will undertake the ritual willingly, but you should order me not to intentionally ruin it."

  She stared into my face. Her mouth dropped open for a moment, then she closed it.

  "Wow," she said. "I wasn't expecting that." A variety of expressions crossed her face, and I thought perhaps she wasn't sure how to take everything I just told her.

  "I will do my best to treat you well," she said. "Thank you, Moira."

  I nodded. "Make the order, Arianna."

  She thought about it. "No. You said you would do it willingly."

  "I might panic, Arianna."

  "You won't."

  "I'm scared, Arianna. I am so scared."

  "Close your eyes, Moira," she ordered. And immediately I closed my eyes. She stepped closer and brushed my lips with hers. "I won't hurt you."

  "I don't want to be a zombie or a puppet."

  "You won't be."

  "I am so afraid you are a really good actress, that if I resist, you couldn't do this. That you are going to make me do such horrible, horrible things. I keep thinking of worse nightmares. Someone with all your years of experience -- I am a child to you. Easy to fool."

  "I have not lied to you, not once."

  "But how do I know that?"

  She brushed my lips again. "You don't."

  I opened my eyes. "Can you order me not to be afraid?"

  "I can, but it won't work. I could order you not to think about the scary things that could happen, but it would be like ordering you not to think of pink bunnies."

  "Pink bunnies."

  "Moira, do not think about pink bunnies!"

  "What?" I said.

  "Look out at the lawn. Imagine it is filled with small woodland creatures. What kind are they?"

  I looked out at the yard. "Pink bunnies," I said, laughing.

  "My spell controls your body, not your mind, Moira. I can order you to do anything you are capable of doing, but I can't order you what to think or not think."

  "Prove it," I said. "Order me to give you a horrible spanking."

  "Very funny," she said.

  I took a deep breath. "I guess I am ready to begin when you are," I told her.

  "Then come," she said.

  She took my hand and led me to the place she had prepared near the trees. There was a small coffee table. On it sat a beautiful water goblet, full of water. She had arranged two chairs at the corners of the table.

  "This isn't the perfect setting," she said. "But I wanted us to be able to see each other while still touching. And we'll need to sit, as this can take a very long time."

  I looked things over. "May I make changes?"

  "Yes," she said.

  I took the chairs and rearranged them so that they mostly faced each other and partially faced into the trees, looking out over the goblet. Doing so placed the chairs closer to each other, but they were no longer facing directly over the goblet. "Will this work, or does the goblet need to be between us."

  "No. Almost anything would work, as long as we can hold hands and reach the goblet."

  She gestured me to one chair so that when we held hands, her left was closest, leaving her right nearer the goblet. I sat down and then she sat facing me.

  "What do I do?"

  "Sit comfortably," she said. "And give me your hands. You may relax however you want, but I need both of your hands in mine, and once we start, you must not pull away."

  I squirmed into the chair until I thought I was comfortable, then I offered my hands. She moved her chair closer to mine, then took my hands together in her left.

  "Do you have any questions?"

  "What happens if I have an itch, or a mosquito comes to visit?"

  She smiled. "Suppress the urge to scratch, and I already cast a mosquito-be-gone spell."

  "Seriously?"

  "Yes."

  "What if it rains?" There wasn't a cloud in the sky.

  She looked up. "Then we'll get wet."

  "What if we're interrupted by murderous puritans looking for witches to burn?"

  "In that case, we will interrupt the ritual and deal with the intruders."

  "What if I get bored?"

  "Deal with it."

  "What if I run out of questions to stall you with and admit I'm still scared?"

  She leaned forward and caressed my cheek. "I promise it will be okay. This may not be the future you would have chosen, but it will all be okay. Please try not to be scared."

  "Arianna," I said. "I really, really hope you keep your promises." I closed my eyes. "So I just sit here?"

  "Yes," she said. "Until I offer you the goblet. We start with a small sip of pure water. Then I cast the spell. When we drink, we both hold the goblet together."

  "You have both my hands."

  "We both use both hands. I will guide you. When you drink for the last time, you must drink everything that remains. The goblet will remain damp, and I will anoint both of us with what little remains. Some of this may be startling to you. Please take it all in stride."

  I nodded. "I guess I am ready then."

  She smiled and picked up the goblet. She took my hands, and then we had four hands wrapped around the goblet. She frowned and set the goblet back down.

  "What's wrong?"

  She pulled her chair closer to mine, leaving one of her knees between my legs, one of my knees between hers.

  "Let's try that again." She took my hands, then picked up the goblet. With us both holding it, she took a small sip, then she held it to my lips. I leaned forward, watching her. I hesitated, and she waited. I took a sip.

  "Thank you, Moira," she said. She returned the goblet to the table, continuing to hold both of my hands in her left. She placed her right hand over mine and began to hum.

  "Some witches hum," she said. "Some chant. Some sing. Some make wild gestures. A very few need to do none of those things. It is for focus; that is all. Call it a nervous habit, if you like."

  She continued to hum for several minutes before anything started to happen.

  "It will begin now," she said, almost humming the words. And a moment later, I felt her begin to draw the magic from me.

  It was very light, very, very light.

  Arianna held her right hand out, poised palm up over the goblet. Magic began collecting there, and she made a stroking motion, smoothing it into the goblet. The water began to glow with magic.

  She continued to pull magic from me, very slowly, depositing it into the goblet. The light from the goblet was tinged with he
r colors and mine, and it grew brighter and brighter.

  I looked up into Arianna's face. She smiled at me. Her eyes were glowing.

  "Beautiful," I said.

  Her smile broadened, but she lifted a finger in front of her lips for a moment, a gesture that said, "no talking". I nodded.

  Slowly, she pulled the magic from me. Slowly, the goblet grew brighter and brighter until it almost hurt to look at.

  The sun lowered, and still Arianna hummed.

  The air grew chilled, and still she hummed.

  I began to feel empty. And still she hummed.

  I couldn't feel any more magic inside me. The sun had set. I should have been sore and stiff, but I wasn't. And still Arianna hummed.

  Her gaze shifted to me. She caressed my cheek, and a piece of her magic left her. I felt it roaming through my body, herding little bits of my magic in front of it, and then it all exited through my hands into her. She took the last bit of magic from me and stroked it into the goblet.

  I had never felt so empty of magic. It... hurt. Just a little. More like a loss of something that had always been there.

  Arianna stopped humming. She smiled at me. Then, carefully she picked up the goblet. She moved my hands to help her hold it, never releasing contact with me. My fingers brushed against hers. She smiled again.

  She pulled the goblet to her lips, leaning forward slightly. She sipped.

  Then she held it towards me. I tried for a sip matching hers, but she lifted the goblet further, and I took a real drink of the water.

  It burned. Not like fire or whisky, but with magic. It wasn't painful, but almost like it was alive. When she pulled the goblet away, I gasped.

  She gave me a moment, then she pulled the goblet to her lips. She drank, more than I had just taken. Then she closed her eyes for a moment, the goblet inches from her lips. She opened her eyes, and they glowed very, very brightly.

  I studied the goblet. It was nearly half full, and I knew I was to drink the rest. Arianna lifted the goblet to me, but she didn't pour. She let me control it. I looked at her over the top of the goblet.

  I knew what it would mean if I drank. Oh, I didn't know the details. I didn't know if she would keep her promises. But I knew I would be bound to her even more tightly than I already was. I didn't know all the differences between being bound with her spells and being bound as a familiar, but I knew this was to be a profound moment.

  I watched her over the glass.

  And then I drank.

  I looked through the bottom of the glass while I drank. Relief splashed over her face, and intense happiness. She hadn't known whether I would do it.

  Neither had I.

  She moved closer as I lifted the glass higher.

  The magic burned on the way down, but I took it, I took it all. Finally, the glass nearly upside down, the last of the water having dribbled into my mouth, she took the goblet from me.

  "Oh, Moira," she said. "Thank you." Then with both of us holding the goblet, she dampened the middle finger of her right hand in the remaining moistness. She used her wet finger to brush over both of my eyes and across my forehead. Then she again dampened her finger and did the same to her own eyes and forehead.

  She set the goblet down and released it. Then, she spoke one word, and the goblet disintegrated into a pile of dust on the table. Magic seared through both of us, connecting in the middle between us.

  It hurt, just for a moment, and then it felt amazing, like nothing I had felt before.

  Together, we both gasped. She clasped my hands tightly, and magic surged back and forth between us, in and out, then in and out at the same time. And then, in a rush, all the magic flooded from her into me. Her eyes stopped glowing, and her aura retracted into her, rushed up her arms, and I felt it pouring into me, where it stayed.

  "Thank you, Moira," she said again. But her lips hadn't moved.

  "Oh my god," I said out loud. "Do that again."

  She started crying. "Thank you," I heard in my head. "Oh Moira, thank you. I have been so lonely, Moira. So lonely."

  "Can I do that?" I asked.

  "Think it," she said into my head.

  "Now what?" I thought.

  "Oh Moira," she said. "I heard you. Now, I think, we help each other to the cottage."

  She stood first, and before I could stand with her, Arianna fainted straight into my arms.

  Part 2

  Recovery

  It was a struggle, but I was able to half carry, half drag her to the cottage and into the bedroom. Navigating the doorway was difficult. I settled her in, then curled up next to her, pulling her into my arms.

  She was breathing, and she had a heartbeat, but I heard no words from her for a while.

  I talked to her, only thinking the words. I didn't know what to say, but I told her about growing up, and about my job. I told her how many questions I had, and wondered what we would do in Madison.

  Then I told her how scared I was, and that is when she stirred.

  "Do not be afraid," she said.

  "Kiss me," I told her.

  She struggled her way up my body and kissed me, kissed me deeply. She had no magic to use, and I knew she didn't, but it was still an amazing kiss. Then she settled back against me.

  "I don't want to be in love with you," I told her. "You are my slave owner."

  "Partner," she said. "Please, Moira. Try. Partner."

  I didn't respond.

  "How long was I out?"

  "Not long. Twenty minutes, maybe. It's full dark now, but not late. Are you all right?"

  "Yes. You have every tiny bit of my magic, but I can feel it, waiting there for me. It is all I can do not to take some of it back."

  "Why don't you?"

  "I don't know. I like it right where it is."

  "It is not safe," I said. "Take some back. Take enough you are safe, in case something goes wrong."

  "Nothing will go wrong," she said.

  "Take some back. Please."

  "A little," she said. And I felt her draw on our link. It was different than before. The magic she wanted came as one big blurp whereas before it had felt like it was flowing through a small pipe."

  "Wow," I said.

  "Yeah," she said. "Oh Moira, that was a lot faster than my last familiar."

  "You could have taken more at once," I said.

  "I know. And you're not remotely full."

  She looked up at me. "We stay here until we know our limits, and you are absolutely full. Then we return to Madison."

  There wasn't anything to say. Bayfield was my home.

  "I know it is," she said. "We will come back." She had heard my thought.

  "It's beautiful here in winter," I said. "Madison is dull and grey, but it is deeply beautiful here."

  "Snow, snow, snow."

  "Beautiful snow," I said. "Not wet sloppy snow."

  She leaned up and kissed my neck. "I need to use the bathroom."

  "So do I, but you may go first."

  "Do you believe Caroline is working tonight?"

  "Probably. Saturdays are good tip nights."

  "Then call Neal and ask him to meet us there in twenty minutes."

  "You are going to free him?"

  "Of course," she said. "I promised, didn't I?"

  "I wasn't sure-"

  She smiled and climbed off the bed, heading to the bathroom.

  * * * *

  It was more like a half hour before we arrived at the Dancing Duck. Neal had a table for us. He smiled broadly when we walked in holding hands. He stood up and hugged us both. He collected a sweet kiss from Arianna, and she caressed his cheek kindly when she was done.

  "He is a sweet man," she thought to me. "When I release him, he is going to know what he did to you."

  "Will he remember everything?"

  "Yes. I'm sorry, I can't take his memories."

  "Will you give me a few minutes with him?"

  "I'll get us drinks," she replied.

  Neal and I sa
t back down. I took his hands. "Neal," I said. "I want you to listen to me. I forgive you. Nothing that happened was your fault, and I do not blame you. This isn't the future I would have picked, but I will make the most of it, and Arianna has promised to treat me very well."

  He didn't say anything; he only looked into my face, smiling.

  I glanced over, knowing exactly where Arianna was. She was talking to Caroline. Arianna caught me looking at them.

  I studied the magic flow in the room. Now that I knew what it was, it made so much more sense. I could detect more colors, more threads connecting people.

  There was a very subtle thread connecting Caroline and Gina, the bartender. And then I realized from Gina there was also one to Neal. I wondered what those meant.

  From Caroline, there was a thicker thread connecting her to Neal. From her body language, I could tell Caroline was deeply upset with Arianna. But then I saw Arianna's magic wrap around Caroline, and the woman grew noticeably calmer. She nodded, and Arianna walked over to our table.

  "Caroline will bring our drinks," she said. "I ordered wine."

  "Wine I am paying for?"

  She laughed. "Yes. It's a modest bottle."

  "I can't afford your lifestyle, Arianna."

  "You won't have to. We will be very frugal. I know how to be frugal. I grew up having nothing. I appreciate the finer things in life, but I take a very, very long view, Moira." She thought all that, then thought, "I must focus on Neal now, and I will be drawing some of the magic from you."

  She turned to Neal. "Neal," she said. "Look at Caroline."

  At the time, Caroline was moving about the room, talking to some of the other patrons. I couldn't read much from her body language. Then I felt Arianna draw magic from me. I watched as magic flowed through her link to Neal.

  "Look at her, Neal." And then I felt more draw, and Arianna extended a link across the room to Caroline. Caroline turned and looked straight at us, her gaze settling on Neal. And even I could see from her face how she felt.

  After that, Caroline didn't take her eyes off Neal, and Neal's eyes followed Caroline. She moved to the bar to collect our bottle of wine.

  "Neal," Arianna said. "I promised you the woman of your dreams. I believe that may be Caroline, right under your nose all this time. What do you think?"