Page 50 of Oh No! There's an Incubus in my Hot Spring
“My spell word?”
“Out. Very simple, but the command was clear. Young witches need spell words to shape their intents clearly for the energyto match what you want, but as you grow, you’ll be able to wordlessly cast with just ideas.”
I smooth my feet across the stone floor. “Will I always need to draw power from the mountain?”
“Once we discover what fuels your particular magic energy, you’ll be able to generate it all on your own,” he says. “And I have an idea of what it might be.”
“Oh?” I cross my arms. How could he know me better in a few days than I know myself?
“Learning. Whenever you learn something new, your aura glows radiantly.” His eyes trace a circle around my body. “Like it is now.”
I bask in his attention for a moment, liking the way he looks at me with appreciation.
“It might not be the ultimate fuel for you, but it is something,” he finally says after perusing me a good while.
“How do I know whether I used the wind, or something else to move him?” I ask.
“We try the same spell again,” he says. “But this time, I’ll be watching closely. I’ll be able to see your spell, watch it move through space, and better understand what it might be using.”
“See it how? Like, with your eyes?”
He laughs. “No, I’ll channel my awareness in the room and be able to view the flow of energy from all angles.”
“Oh! Just like you knew it was Mark outside?” I ask.
He nods. “Just like that. We’ll need something to practice on.”
“I volunteer as tribute!”Charlie says distantly.
I giggle. “All right, coming, buddy.”
I take the steps two at a time and find Apollo already in the room, holding Charlie in his palm.
“Since when are you doing this?” I ask, gesturing to the mist around him.
Apollo shrugs. “When I’m well fed, I can use many of my spells. Matter manipulation, like turning into the spring water, is as simple as changing the shape of my body. I simply stop existing in one point, dispersing the steam, and then start existing in another point.”
I’d forgotten that this body isn’t reallyhim. That because of the witch before me, Apollo is actually the mountain. “Could that be one of the spells I learn?”
He grins. “We’ll find out soon enough, I’m sure.”
We take Charlie downstairs and set him near the open door.
“Ready!”he quacks with determination.
I plant my bare feet, straighten my spine, and summon my badass courage. Charlie is an invader that I must banish. Warmth slips into the arches of my feet and zips up my spine.
“You’re drawing from me so easily,” Apollo says somewhere behind me. “Now, show me your spell.”
I take a deep breath, square my shoulders, and point to the open door with a firm “Out!”
Wind ruffles my curly morning hair and blows past me before slamming into Charlie. He tumbles bill over booty through the door.
“Wheee!”
A fluttering sensation fills me up as I watch Charlie roll through the gravel and come to a stop.
I have magic powers and a talking rubber duck.
