Page 25 of Hex
We’re both silent for a few minutes until she finally notices me, still sprawled out on the ground from where I fell. Her brows furrow and she blinks repeatedly, as if she’s trying to make sure what she’s seeing is real, so I do what anyone in my situation would do. I wave awkwardly.
“Hi.” Goddess, I hope she’s friendly.
Her lips move, but she doesn’t make a sound and she tries again…nothing happens. Grabbing at her throat, she keeps trying to talk, getting more frustrated the longer her voice refuses to come out.
The helpless way in which she’s acting doesn’t scream danger to me, and neither does her general aura. In fact, she seems really familiar, as if I know her and she knows me.
I stand, scratching my palm on a stone in the process. It stings for a second but then a tickle makes me take a look. A small cut lies in the center and I’m either dreaming or dead again because I’m watching my skin knit itself back together, healing itself instantly.
The fuck?
It’s the least of my issues right now, so I shake my head and walk toward the girl, who is still trying desperately to talk. Standing in front of her now, I hold out my palm, hoping she understands what a handshake is.
“I’m Sage. Do you understand English?” I may as well get that out there, because I’m fighting a losing battle if she doesn’t.
She gives up trying to talk and sighs, her shoulders dropping in defeat as she nods and takes my hand. Internally, I’m relieved.Externally too, I suppose, because I grin, happy that we may be able to communicate somehow. Even if she can’t speak.
“Do you know where the raven went?” I have a suspicion that she was the raven, but this whole supernatural kyn thing is still very new to me as a whole and I don’t want to assume or offend her in any way.
Pointing to herself, she nods again, mouthing the word “me”. It’s then that I notice how dark her eyes are. They’re almost black with a very subtle tinge of midnight blue when the moonlight hits them.
“Are you…” I pause, trying to find the right words, settling on, “Are you my raven?”
Her smile grows with this nod and her eyes soften.
I don’t know whether to laugh, cry, or hug her, because just wow. I have known her for as long as I can remember, and not just in this life. I can recall her gentle caws from several of my previous ones, and the way she has always watched over me, alerting me to dangers. She has certainly saved my life more than once.
After flapping my mouth open and closed like a fish, I allow tears to spring to my eyes. I say allow…they’re coming of their own free will and I’m doing nothing to stop them. This woman has seen me in many states of mind, a few tears are nothing.
“Thank you,” is all I can think of to say to her, and she tilts her head as if to say “you’re welcome”.
But wait…
“How are you here now, like this? And where are we…? Fuck, you can’t talk. Okay. Do you know where we are?” The questions are beginning to mount up again, but I need to keep them simple.
She huffs a small laugh, the breathiness of it the only sound she seems to be able to make. Nodding, she closes her eyes for a second before opening them again and fixing them on mine.
There’s a tickle in my brain and I squint in confusion, that is, until I hear her and squeal in shock.
“I am to be your familiar, if you so choose. My name is Reina. This is the time to make your choice regarding what kind of witch you will be.”Her lips aren’t moving, but she’s definitely talking…in my mind.
Unholy shitballs.
I can recall Hack saying something about familiars and them not being a good thing to have because it means the witch is bad or some shit. I don’t really remember. A lot has happened since then. I will allow myself the forgetfulness, all things considered.
“What are my options?” I speak aloud, because I have no idea how this whole talking in the mind thing works.
“You have two choices and they are simple. One born of light, and one of the dark. They both have advantages and disadvantages, but ultimately, the darkness holds more power because you are fed by your familiar.”The way she speaks into my mind is kind of eerie and monotone, as though she’s reading from a script.
“I thought familiars were animals?” Probably not the most prominent question, but a vital one all the same. I can’t imagine walking around with a beautiful naked lady beside me all the time, unless she can freely turn into the raven. I don’t know how this works.
“When a familiar is chosen, it is a great honor, despite the grievances it can cause. We spend the first thirty years of our lives dedicated to our witch-to-be in our animal form before they arrive at the pathway, the fork in the road. It is here that all witches choose. This is the point where you decide whether to keep me in your life, as your raven, forever connected, or whether you grant me my freedom to roam in whichever form I choose.”
That’s…a lot.
“So, if I keep you, then you’re trapped as a raven forever? Why does anyone ever choose that option?” I have to admit to myself, I’m a little horrified at how brutal this new world can be. Not that I expected roses and sunshine but damn, forcing someone to live out their life as an animal, never knowing what it’s like to be free? It’s barbaric to me.
“The power is one draw, the other being a longer lifespan because the witch feeds from their familiar, extending their years by sometimes hundreds. Which is what happened to us…”
