Page 34 of Wooing the Wiccan
He closes the front door, and I follow him into the living room. For the first time in all my visits, the overhead lights are on instead of the lamps, and even though the room is still cozy and inviting, the feeling isn’t as strong as usual. Of course, the inhospitable vibes emanating from Jared might have something to do with that.
“Where’s Marge?” I ask, desperate for an icebreaker.
“In the kitchen.”
I glance toward the kitchen and see the door is firmly shut. He doesn’t trust me with his cat anymore. The hits just keep coming.
He’s standing awkwardly in the middle of the room with his arms crossed defensively, so this isn’t likely to get any easier. I need to just… start.
“Do you have specific questions, or do you want me t?—”
“What were those people with the horns?” he blurts.
“Demons,” I reply, then realize my mistake when the color immediately blanches from his face. “Not the kind you’re thinking of. That’s important to know—hell doesn’t exist.” It’s only recently that I was introduced to those concepts and ideologies, and I try desperately to remember the details. I’ve only heard things in passing. There was no real reason for meto learn the details of human religions, especially when I know they’re completely mythological.
I might not be the best person to be answering his questions, but how do I explain that without first telling him I was born in another dimension? I’d hoped to ease him in to Earth’s history before dropping that information. “It might be better if I give you some general background, and then you can follow up with questions?” I make it a question so he’ll know he still has control of this conversation, and he nods.
“Okay.” I stop, considering where to start. “Okay. There are two planes of existence. The physical plane, where we are now, and the spiritual plane.”
“Do you mean heaven?” There’s a heavy dose of skepticism in his voice, and I remember that Wiccans don’t believe in an afterlife.
“No, not in the sense you mean. The spiritual plane is where souls go when their lives here come to an end. They can stay there as long or as short as they like, and it’s essentially an existence similar to this, only unencumbered by any physical form or being.”
His eyes narrow. “And when they don’t want to stay there anymore?”
I shrug. “They come back to the physical plane and a new life here.”
“So… reincarnation.” Stiffly, he takes a seat in the room’s lone armchair. I’ve never seen anyone sit in it before, not even Marge. Jared prefers the plush couch.
Another message I’m being sent.
Undeterred, I sit at the end of the couch closest to him. “Yes. An eternal soul is a wonderful thing and cycles endlessly between the planes.”
He gives a curt nod, and I take that as encouragement.
“Both planes—and all of existence—are made up of and connected by the life force. It’s an aetheric field that?—”
“Magic,” he interrupts. “You’re talking about magic. The energy I use when…”
“Yes. It’s in every blade of grass, drop of water, molecule of air. It ties everything together.” I feel like I’m on more solid ground here, since what I’m saying feeds into his religious beliefs. Except… “It’s also sentient.”
His brows shoot up. “What?”
“Not in the sense that it can talk”—though it’s proven to have a knack for getting its message across—“but it’s… it’s the awareness of life.” I can’t think of another way to explain it.
Jared waits, so I move on.
“Because people are people and we all sometimes need to look to someone for guidance, the life force elects leaders on both planes.”
“Itelectsthem?”
“Invests them with power,” I add. “Makes it so that their people instinctively recognize who they are and feel secure in their presence. These leaders are…” I flounder. Eventually he’s going to find outI’mone of the leaders selected by the life force, so what I say now might impact his decisions about our relationship.
But I promised the truth. “They’re the connection between the life force and the people.”
He fidgets. “That’s a lot of power. What happens if one of theseleaderslets it go to their head?”
The very thought makes me sick to my stomach. I couldnever. “The life force doesn’t choose people who have the capacity to do that. But also, investiture is rarely for life. Usually a person is selected for the qualities their people need at that time, and when those needs are met, the mantle of leadership moves to the next person.”
