Page 26 of Beneath Hoof and Hollow
“I did everything right!” I protest, already knowing the blame is going to fall onto me.
“Read me the spell.” His demand comes out on a snarl.
I jump, fingers flying over the page as I quickly read the ingredients. “Collect flowering calendula,mugwort, feverfew, sandalwood, the bones of a serpent, the fat of a hanged man, the seed of life. I have it all! Look. It just says to speak the incantation and?—”
Fierdon roars. “The seed of life?”
“Yes! I brought multiple kinds! Just in case. I was overprepared. Everything should have gone smoothly.”
He stares down at the altar. “Are thosepumpkinseeds?”
I nod.
“It asked you for the seed of life and you thought it wantedpumpkin seeds?”
“They’re seeds! They give life to the plants and pumpkins! What doyouthink it meant?”
“What do you need to create life, Emeline?Humanlife?” The fire behind his carved face burns brighter. “Sperm, cum, a man’s spend!”
Heat races up my neck. “No. No that can’t be what it meant. You’re telling me the spell was asking for a man’s…”
Oh, no.
“A man’s semen, yes. Which I could have easily provided.” His monstrous hands clench by his sides.
I jump to my feet. The realization of what I’ve done slams into me. Because I used pumpkin seeds instead of a man’s seed, he became a…pumpkin hybrid? I messed up so bad. “I’m sorry. I thought…”
Fierdon is stumbling around. His massive feet drag as he walks. Muscular legs shift back and forth. He swings his arms. “This is all wrong.”
I stand, hands raised in surrender. “I’m so sorry.”
Now that I’m on my feet, I can appreciate just how tall his new form is. Could he be eight, nay, nine feet?
His fingers run along the pumpkin face, stopping to touch the stem at the top. He roars, the sound filled with anguish.
“I’m sorry.”
“Soyou’ve said,” he bites back.
“I’ll do anything to make this right. We’ll get you the right kind of body. One you can use.”
“Use?Use? Does it look like I’ll be walking into town in the foreseeable future? Blending in with the mortals? You turned me into a fucking pumpkin devil.”
“It can’t be all that bad. Maybe it will help you to defeat Itrimort. Or, I don’t know. You look strong. Surely no man is as strong as you.”
“I wouldn’t expect to match the strength of a man because I AM NO MAN.” The force of his words has me squeezing my eyes shut.
“Stop yelling! I told you I will do whatever it takes to make this right! I’ll get more ingredients. This time a man’s seed.”
“And how will you procure that?” His voice is harsh and cold.
How will I do that? I need a man to finish, sexually. Maybe if Leed forgives me, I could collect it off the sheets, or…
“Innocent little Emeline. Have you ever touched a man’s spend? Ever felt it rain down on your skin or slide, hot and thick down the back of your throat?”
Warmth fills my cheeks. The only time I’ve really seen it was when it was dripping between my legs after our encounter against the tree. “No.”
“No? Let’s change that. Educate our innocent nightingale. Shall we find out if I’m still able to produce such things?”
