Soul Song: A Witch & Shifter Romance

by Amos, Ashley

  “Wha- Drey this is not something you should be calm about! That thing is made of necromancer magic!”

  “But he brought you back.”

  “Oh it’s a ‘he’ now?!”

  “I think we should name him.”

  “Drey this is serious! That thing is made of some powerful magic and, good or bad, we just saw how it could hurt someone!”

  “He didn’t mean too. He thought you were ready.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re talking to the magic goo spider now.”

  Trent was pinching the bridge of his nose like he was getting a migraine, but Drey just hummed at the spider and scratched its “ear”, to which it shook its leg and purred.

  “He likes Ponce.”

  “Drey we cannot keep him!”

  “Him.”

  “What?”

  “You just called Ponce ‘him’.”

  Trent sputtered, growling when he couldn’t find a counter point and whirling from the room. Drey rolled her eyes, scratching Ponce’s ear again and whispering conspiratorially.

  “He’ll come around, don’t worry. He didn’t like Krys at first either, but we kept him.”

  Chapter 4: Family Tree

  When Trent returned to the house smelling of forest and sweat, Drey was in the kitchen cooking. She was wearing one of his t-shirts and short shorts while she hummed, feeding a piece of bacon to Ponce. The spider was sitting at her feet, begging with its front legs resting on hers in a way that should not have been possible for its spider body. She offered another piece with a laugh, perking when she saw Trent had returned.

  “You’re hungry after that change, right?”

  He had stopped questioning the druid’s uncanny ability to keep track of his activities a long time ago, sitting on a bar stool with a sigh.

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  Trent began scrolling through his phone when something touched his leg. Without looking, he shook it off, continuing his internet surfing until he felt that cool, wet touch again. He looked down and nearly fell out of his chair at the sight of Ponce staring up at him, one leg resting on his shin. Heart pounding, he waited for the burning freeze once more, but nothing happened. The spider huffed, seemingly satisfied before scuttling back over to Drey. Trent glared at the thing, still on edge from the scare as Drey tilted her head like she was listening to someone before scolding,

  “Ponce, you should have asked him first!”

  The spider shrank back at that, chittering as he spun in circles. His girlfriend just cocked an eyebrow with her hands on her hips, clearly not having any of whatever excuses Ponce was giving. Trent couldn’t help but roll his eyes,

  “You’re too attached to that thing, Drey”

  “No, you aren’t getting attached enough.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Ponce purred, walking back to him and rubbing against his leg, making Trent recoil.

  “That. Trent he is yours, made of magic that is bound to you and, wherever he came from, he is a part of you.

  “He almost killed me!”

  “But now you will be fine. He thinks that using my soul to revive you made able to handle the intensity of a first bonding.”

  “And that’s supposed to make me feel better? Listening to him got me killed in the first place!”

  Drey rolled her eyes, setting a plate of food in front of the stubborn man and a smaller one on the floor for Ponce before responding.

  “Has it occurred to you that this is related to the necromancers and your dreams? Ponce revealed himself for a reason. Shadow magic has been a dead art for centuries and the fact that he is here now means that something big is happening. We need to be prepared.”

  With that, she left Trent and Ponce to their food, going back upstairs and knocking on her brother’s door softly.

  “Krys? Krys, can we talk?”

  She tentatively opened the door, relaxing when the sight of her brother with headphones nestled in hair as white as hers with his back to the door came into her line of sight. She tapped his shoulder, making him jump and whirl around, only to huff in annoyance when he saw his sister.

  “Drey, what the hell you scared me.”

  “I knocked on the door. Maybe you shouldn’t have your music on so loud.”

  “It’s my room, I’ll do whatever the hell I like in it. What do you want?”

  Drey sat next to him on the bed, fiddling with her hands as she spoke,

  “I need your help. Trent isn’t keen on the idea of bonding with Ponce and it has to happen. We won’t be able to handle the necromancers without that happening.”

  “Wait, who is Ponce?”

  “The spider, his name is Ponce.”

  “Andreya, I swear if you are taking directions from a magic spider-”

  “Of course not! Not completely at least.”

  With a heavy sigh she relayed the events that had conspired after Krys left the room, halting her brother’s reactions with a flat palm until she had finished.

  “After Ponce brought him back, Trent could touch him without reacting negatively, but I also feel connected to his magic. I get feelings, like the kind I always have but more directed. I am 100% certain of events that have to transpire for us to succeed and I know it’s because of Ponce. He confirmed that the revival linked the three of us but I cannot take this step for us to win. Trent has to accept his ancestry and bond with Ponce.”

  Krys gave her a sharp look, brow furrowed with confusion and dread.

  “Ancestry? You don’t mean…”

  Drey looked him dead in the eye, swallowing thickly,

  “Trent is the direct descendant of Merlin and Ponce...Ponce exists here because his magic is awakening.”

  There was stunned silence between them for a long moment and when Krys broke it, it was with a slight tremble.

  “Does he know?”

  Drey shook her head, guilt painted across her face,

  “I couldn’t tell him. Ponce explained it to me and I just-I didn’t know how to even attempt to explain to my boyfriend that he is the descendant of someone like that. Someone he loathes, fears and is disgusted by.”

  She turned to her twin again, frustration, pain, guilt, and fear swirling within her wide eyes,

  “I need your help. Please Krys, I don’t know what to do.”

  Brother immediately reached for sister, pulling her close and rubbing her arm soothingly as he searched in vain for something to say. Silence stretched as he processed everything that had been said.

  “Drey...he deserves to know. You need to talk to him and...Ponce needs to explain as well. Trent needs a chance to come to terms with this so that what needs to happen can happen.”

  Drey nodded, pulling back and wiping the few traitorous tears that had managed to escape as she smiled emptily.

  “Ya. I’ll talk to him. Thank you, Krys.”

  “Well what kind of big brother would I be if I couldn’t at least be a sounding board?”

  “You’re only two minutes older than me.”

  “Two minutes and twenty seven seconds, thank you very much.”

  Drey rolled her eyes as she stood, scoffing and waving a hand dismissively.

  “Hardly enough time to give you any world-weary, older brother views.”

  Krys made a face, sticking his tongue even as his eyes glittered with mischief.

  “Love ya sis.”

  She rolled her eyes again, pausing in the doorway and sticking her tongue back in return.

  “Love you too bro.”

  Chapter 5: For Science

  Trent was out back when Drey found him, lying in the hammock strung up between two trees that gave a perfect view of the night sky. Ponce lay on his legs and the mage as petting him absent mindedly as he gazed at the stars. She paused, at loathe to disturb the two when they were getting along so well, but resolution steeled within her and she moved forward once again.

  “Trent, I need to talk to you.”

  “Drey, it’s okay, he alread
y showed me.”

  She stopped dead in front of her boyfriend, thrown for a loop at the unexpected words.

  “What?”

  “I know about everything. Ponce told me about my ancestor and what needs to happen.”

  Drey couldn’t help shooting the spider a grateful look before turning back to Trent in confusion,

  “You aren’t upset?”

  She climbed onto the hammock to curl next to the man, rubbing small circles on his chest with her finger as she waited on his response. A hum greeted the touch, Trent’s arm snaking to curl around her waist.

  “No. Oddly enough, it makes a lot of sense and…”

  Their eyes met, Trent’s smile making her heart flutter.

  “The magic is bound to you now too and you are the furthest thing from evil I can think of, so Ponce can’t be all that bad regardless of my ancestry.”

  He kissed her softly, smiling against her lips.

  “I appreciate your attempt to soften the blow, though.”

  “You knew about that too?”

  “Heh, now you get to see how aggravating it is to have your partner just know things constantly.”

  He teased, tugging her closer and stroking her cheek.

  “I’m aggravating, huh?”

  Drey inquired in a tone that held an electric charge of lust and interest, moving to straddle the mage and cocking her eyebrow with a smirk. Trent’s hands immediately went to her hips, inhaling sharply at the turn of events before grinning back.

  “Oh ya. You’re hands down the most aggravating person I’ve ever met.”

  “Hm, well I was hoping to do something with you, but in that case you probably wouldn’t be interested.”

  She was leaning down close, lips hovering over Trent’s, as that sly smile stayed adorned upon her lips as she slid her hands into his brunette hair. The man beneath her was smiling right back, running his hands up her back and gripping white hair as he cupped the side of her face.

  “I think we should try it out anyway, just to be sure I don’t want to.”

  This was followed by the mage closing the gap and kissing her softly before pulling back with that smile still plastered to his face.

  “Do you now? Well I suppose it is important to be thorough.”

  Another kiss, this one initiated by Drey.

  “Absolutely. For science.”

  This kiss lasted longer, teasing towards more.

  “Yes. The scientific method and nothing else.”

  They ceased their banter as the kiss finally deepened, building slowly as need began to take control. Hands were running over willing bodies, teasing at the edges of clothing and grabbing as they ground against each other. Their movements were lazy, at least at first, neither one willing to move on to the next step quite yet. Drey’s tongue was entwined with Trent’s, playing into the give and take of their mouths meeting before nipping the mage’s bottom lip. Trent growled, hands gripping her hips tighter as he moved down to suck on her neck in retaliation. Drey hummed happily, tugging on brunette locks encouragingly as the man beneath her marked up willingly given skin. The druid wasn’t content to sit quietly, however, and she used her grip on her wolf’s hair to expose his neck for her own session of marks, though she added an edge of teeth just to hear that growl rise in volume. Trent didn’t last nearly as long as she had, pulling her off and mashing their mouths together. The hammock trembled as they fumbled to move clothing that only served to create a barrier between them, the tension and want in the air making the need for contact suddenly unbearable. They were both too impatient to undress completely and Drey was more than content to strip her shorts and underwear off while Trent merely shuffled his pants down enough to allow his hardness room to breathe. There was a brief moment on pause as their eyes locked, flushed with excitement and confident in a way only brought with repeat performances. When Drey lowered herself and they were finally joined, a moment of stillness passed between them before they rocked together, moaning in unison at the feeling. Trent gripped Drey’s side with one hand while the other cupped her face, leaning up to kiss her as she rode him perfectly. Drey sighed happily, returning the endearment before increasing her pace and making them both groan loudly. Movements becoming frantic as they chased completion, the hammock’s stability tested as it swung and jerked underneath the two lovers. With a choked moan from Trent and gasp from Drey, the hammock’s violent motions suddenly ceased. The druid slumped down next to the mage, strong arms holding her close after they had fixed their clothes. Even when their breathing had slowed, they remained curled together and soon fell into the depths of sleep.

  Chapter 6: Battle Preps

  The next morning the work truly began, Krys having been tasked with locating the necromancer sect while Trent and Drey both worked together to tame the magic in Ponce. They were in the living room, each seated with a hand on the spider.

  “For bonding such as this, we need to be relaxed and open ourselves to the process.”

  Drey inhaled deeply, calming her mind and waiting for the touch of magic to rise within her mind. At first nothing happened, just silence and the sounds of their breathing. Then tingling began at her fingertips, crawling like thousands of ice cold ants up her arm and across her chest. When it finally stopped she was covered in a sheen of sweat and her eyes opened to runes as black as Ponce inked into her skin. The swirls and characters ran up her arm and, when she lifted her shirt, she could see across her chest as well. A glance to Trent showed that he had had a similar experience, but the markings completely covered his body from the neck down and he was staring at his skin now. He looked up at Drey and frowned,

  “How come you aren’t covered? This is so not fair. What is this supposed to do anyway?”

  “I honestly have no idea.”

  “Well maybe Ponce knows. Where the hell is he?”

  Trent looked around, Drey following suit as they both searched in vain for the spider. He was nowhere to be found and the druid touched the black ink on her arm.

  “I think this is him. He became the tattoos.”

  Krys chose that moment to coming bounding down the stairs, chattering excitedly as he burst into the room,

  “I found them! I know exactly where everything-”

  Drey’s brother came to a screeching halt, gaping in disbelief as he took in the ink spattered on them both.

  “Oh. My. God. Mom and dad are gonna kill you.”

  “That’s what you have to say? No questions, just that?”

  “Well it’s obvious what happened, so pretty much. What do they do anyway?”

  Trent shrugged as Drey rolled her eyes,

  “No idea. You found their location?”

  Krys brightened, walking up to them to show the location currently zoomed in on his phone’s GPS.

  “Look, it’s this empty warehouse in the Bronx. The elementals even gave me a walk through so I know my way around.”

  “Okay, so that’s settled and all we need to do is figure out how to control this stuff.”

  “We should plan on attacking tonight. The longer we wait, the more time they have to prepare.”

  Both men nodded at Drey’s suggestion, her boyfriend then sighing,

  “Alright. Let’s go outside and test this out then.”

  Dusk found both Trent and Drey collapsed on the ground, chests heaving from exertion and sweating profusely. They had tried their own magics, attacking each other, chanting and Trent had even tried changing to try and trigger something but all in vain. Krys was sitting cross legged on the patio, tossing each of them a water bottle as he remarked wryly,

  “It’s evening already. Should we postpone this until tomorrow?”

  Drey shot upright, glaring.

  “We can’t do that and you know it. There has to be something we aren’t doing right.”

  “What, Drey? We’ve been at this for literal hours.”

  “I’m thinking, give me a second!”

  “Have you guys done whatever you did t
o get the tatts in the first place?”

  Krys nonchalantly interrupted their bickering as he bit into an apple. Drey and Trent looked at each other in shock and disbelief, the druid exhaling sharply as the mage scoffed exasperatedly. Krys just chuckled.

  “I’ll take that as a no.”

  Drey ignored him, focusing inward and clearing her mind to allow the magic to guide her instead of the other way around. Like steps in a manual, images flashed through her head and her eyes snapped open; she knew what to do. She breathed deep, allowing the foreign language to spill from her tongue in words so loaded with magic her mouth itched,

  “Fire.”

  An open ball of flame appeared in her hand, as black as the shadow it was composed of and controlled by her will. With a quirk of her lips she squashed the fire in her closed fist. A glance at Trent showed that the man had figured out the trick as well, though his abilities surpassed hers and even allowed him to hover a couple of feet off of the ground. He was grinning at her when he touched the ground once more, eyes alight with excitement and completely black until his use of the power had receded. Krys stood and stretched noisily, grinning at them both,