Magic in the Bindings

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"Are you sure about this?" Mikel questioned his friend as they loaded up the truck. The crates they were loading were heavy not only in weight but in smell. "Aren't they supposed to be Satanists or something?"

"No they're...uh." Adrian readjusted his cap to wipe the sweat from his brow. "I don't remember what it's called. It's like-witch stuff."

"Oh, great." Mikel's tone was dripping with sarcasm. "So instead of carving the family goat they'll do ‘magic tricks’."

Adrian rolled his eyes. "Look, Meli just wants us to crash the party. That's all."

Mikel glanced at the obscene amount of petrified animals. Earlier, Adrian had raided the closest pet and bait stores, cleaning them. There were rats, frogs, mice, toads, and even some lizards all packed into the small plastic crates. Mikel never did understand why Adrian liked Melinda, but he could certainly do better than a crazy witch. "Why would she wanna ruin her own party?"

"It's not hers, it's her brother's. They're celebrating his 'maturity' or whatever." Adrian loudly shut the tailgate. "Look, if you don't want the money, then you don't have to help."

Mikel didn't want any part of this ridiculous family feud, especially not with her infamous little brother, but he needed the cash. His little sister's birthday was coming up in a few days, and between rent, food, and bills, Mikel simply didn't have much cash to spare. Hell, he started walking to work just because gas prices were getting obscene.

"Okay, fine. But what are we doing with all this stuff?"

Adrian pulled himself back into his truck. The engine roared to life seconds later. "I don't know. She said to bring it around back. Now are you coming or what?"

Mikel decided not to dwell on weirdness and pulled himself into the truck.

‘/,

Theodore quietly watched the servants bustle about the ballroom. Most of them were Human, but they still knew what they were preparing for. They just didn't believe it was real.

He could see the suspicion and judgment in their eyes as they caught the young master staring. ‘Weirdo’, “Satanist’, ‘freak’, the common things you’d see pop into their closed-minds. Not that he cared what they thought, but Human-watching was a mild way to pass the time.

"Precious, what do you think?" Theodore's mother, Emeldia, tapped on his shoulder. A male servant was asking her opinion between two swatches for the table cloths.

The younger sister, Sylvie, answered modestly. "They should be short. I hate it when the cloth touches the floor."

The eldest sister, Melinda, added her opinion curtly. "They should be embroidered too. It seems classier."

Emeldia's smile was ever so courteous. "Thank you girls, but this is Theo's ceremony." Both girls looked to their brother who didn't seem to be enjoying anything about his 'special day'.

"What they said." He mumbled as he caught a group of young maids giggling in the corner. Either to belittle him, or flirtatiously compliment him, he couldn’t tell.

Emeldia smiled to the servant who hurried off. Then, turning to her son she pinched his cheek. "Come now, what's with the pout?"

"Where is Aunt Ariana?" Theo glanced at his watch as he shrugged his mother away. He’s almost met his limit of her today, but his Aunt on the other hand was over an hour late, which was a little much even for her. She was supposed to be the one who eased his mind about this whole situation, not make it worse.

Emeldia's smile was reassuring. "I'm sure she'll be here before the guests arrive." Her mind however, was brimming with irritation. She planned to turn her sister into a weasel when all the excitement was over. Of all the days to be late...

"Maybe she can't see Theo's Soulmate." Sylvie played with the edges of her dress. Blonde, almost white, waves of hair covered her face and spilled out over her shoulders.

"Don't be ridiculous. Aunt Ari sees everything." Melinda's hair, a shiny brown that was highlighted with blond streaks, was pulled back into a curly ponytail.

"Except the time." Theo's phone buzzed in his pocket. He didn't get notifications often, so it was probably from the devil Aunt herself. He checked it, expecting an apology, but instead found something else.

Aunt Ariana:

Outside, now. Don't tell anyone.

Theo frowned. Something was obviously wrong. His Mother was about to ask which wine he would prefer when he shooed her off. "I need some air." And with that he was walking away. No one argued. They knew he wouldn't listen. Theodore never handled these celebrations well.

Though, tonight's was probably the worst of them all. It was the annual Summer Solstice, which for Magicals was a very big deal. It's a time to celebrate life and bring it together. Theo turned eighteen during the Spring, so now the Solstice became something special for him.

Theo left the mansion through one of the many sliding doors. His Aunt may not be very responsible, but she was still the best she could be. Normally, she made up for stuff with rare gifts or hilarious pranks. Theo prepared for the latter as he explored the grounds.

When a Magical turns eighteen, the Solstice basically becomes a mating season. It's said that during the three days that it lasts, the Magical will find their Soulmate. Being that Theo is the only single male left in his bloodline, everyone was making a gigantic fuss over this. Especially since he'll be the one who will inherit his family home with whoever he finds.

On the very edge of the back gardens, Theo spotted his Aunt's car hiding on the back road. He headed towards it immediately. With every step a knew thought came to mind. “What if she didn’t see anyone? Soulmates are finicky things, it is possible. Or what if she saw something terrible?”

Ariana was snacking on some chocolate covered potato chips when Theodore roughly threw open the car door and slid into the passenger seat. That wasn't a good sign, and neither was the other various empty bags; she only snack-pacts when she's stress eating.

She stared at Theo with a strange expression. Ariana's typically an energetic person, so the silent treatment stiffened the air. Finally, Theo spoke up. "Well?"

"Well what?"

Her bland response made him smile, but even that was irritable. "You were supposed to be here hours ago, and now you drag me out of planning for-what? Diabetes in a bag?"

"Hey, don't act like the excuse wasn't a blessing; Goddess knows you hate all this stuff." She tossed the empty bag in his face. "Besides, these are awesome."

Theo didn't comment on the first part. He honestly still wasn't sure about how he was supposed to feel about finding his Soulmate. 'His one and only', is how his Mother described it. 'A death sentence', is how Melinda put it. "So, why are we hiding outside in your car?"

Ariana was nervous. Extremely so, in fact. She had no idea how she was supposed to say what she knew, so she tried to distract herself. "I was just wondering." She pretended to fumble inside her purse. It felt weird to look Theo in eye. "Are you gay?"

Theo sternly recoiled. "What?"

“Oops, maybe not the best choice of words.” "Or like, Bisexual-or something?" Theo thought she was being absurd, though Ari could see his panic as strongly as he gripped the car door. Her nephew was very distant from everyone emotionally, but his negativity always showed.

He answered her anyway. "No?" It sounded more like a question, but that was only because he was confused. He shook his head. “Why would she ask that? What did she see?” "Why are you asking?"

Ariana was silent for a moment as she gathered her courage. "I saw your Soulmate-in my vision, I mean."

"Okay…" Immediately, Theo's mind went blank. He already knew she’d see his Soulmate, but he never took the time to think about who he would spend the rest of his life with. "Who is she? What does she look like?" Idly, he hoped she was pretty. Mother always talked about pretty grandchildren, and he doubted that either of his sisters would ever marry.

“Deep breath, Ari.” "…He."

"...What?"

"Your Soulmate." Ariana's face was cold with a serious shade Theodore rarely ever saw. "It's a male."