My Sorcerer

Chapter 16

“Cora!” She could hear Peirceton panic. His voice was frantic, and it was also the only sound she heard. He must have taken care of the ones who had tried to take her. “Don’t worry. I’ll fix this.” He sounded as though he were trying to comfort himself more than her.

She felt a rush of air, and then the grass that had been beneath her disappeared, changing to wood. The smell was familiar, and so was the warmth she felt. It seemed he had teleported her back to the cabin in the woods. She felt Fang lie down, wimping next to her. “I’m going to fix this,” he whispered again, as though he were trying to help Fang relax.

She suddenly felt something wet, like drops, small drops. It felt as though it were tears, but could he really be crying over her? As the tear-like water fell, she felt something beginning to happen. No, this couldn’t be... this is not a movie or TV show... tears weren’t... magic...

“Pierceton... are... you crying?” she managed to push out the words. She thought for a moment that she had spoken verbally, but then she realized she was still in wolf form. How was she communicating with him? She supposed that was a matter for another time.

The tears stopped for a moment before she heard his voice again. “You’re alive,” he whispered. She could feel the heat of his breath.

“Yes, it would seem so,” she responded, trying to laugh, but failing.

“It seems the spell is wearing off,” he said with a sigh of relief. “I don’t know what I would have done if anything had happened to you.”

“I’m fine,” she assured him as she was finally able to open my eyes and look up at him. Tears were still at the edge of his eyes, but instead of tears of sadness, they appeared to be ones of joy.

“You will be,” he muttered as he looked her over as though he were searching for something.

“What are you looking for?”

He thought for a moment and then answered her. “I believe that the kind of spell that was cast on you must have some kind of anchor. Something that causes the spell to remain longer and can even strengthen it,” he explained.

She was confused as to what he might be looking for since she was still in her wolf form. There weren’t going to be many places that an anchor could be hidden. She felt him running his hands over her fur, searching. It took him a few moments before his hands seemed to land on something. He plucked something off her fur, and instantly she began to be able to move. She felt as though her fur were disappearing. Instead of relief, a new panic set in—realizing that her fur coat was going away, she would no longer be wearing anything.

It was as though he could read her mind, and she felt the heaviness of a blanket wrap around her. And so, she was covered before she had completely shifted back to her human form.

He felt relieved as he saw her shift back. The woman he was falling in love with was now human again—her eyes open, alert, and her limbs moving. It seemed that they had put the worst behind them. For now, at least. He should have given her a moment to get dressed, but as soon as she sat up with the blanket wrapped around her shoulders, he pulled her into his embrace. She felt him shaking as he held onto her.

“I’m alright,” she whispered, but she had no intentions of leaving his embrace.

He didn’t respond, and for a long time it felt as if time had paused. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“For running?” she laughed lightly.

“For staying safe until I could reach you.”

“I’m glad you came,” she sighed, relaxing completely into his arms. “But they will come back, won’t they?”

“Most likely. Especially, now that I’ve revealed myself and they won’t send just any wizard this time.” She felt him tensing. “But we’ll have a plan before that,” he promised her.

“Maybe it would be best that I leave so you don’t get more caught up in all this...” she muttered.

“I’m not leaving you,” he responded sternly.

“But it sounded as though you didn’t even want a Fatespell,” she whispered as she remembered how he had spoken with the fairy queen. He hadn’t seemed all that pleased.

He let out a long sigh. “I know, I didn’t sound the most excited...” he admitted. “But it wasn’t because you are my Fatespell. It was because I had seen what had happened to sorcerers who had Fatespells.”

“Do not all sorcerers get one?”

“No, it is rare. Most just settle down alone or pick another sorcerer or sorceress to live with for the majority of their long lives,” he told me, sadness lacing his voice.

“What happens to the sorcerers who have Fatespells that are so bad that you wouldn’t want one?” Cora questioned.

He seemed apprehensive about answering, but finally did.

“Sorcerers who have Fatespells—especially those whose partners do not share the same lifespan—tend to outlive their Fatespells and then spend the rest of their long lives in sorrow.”

“I didn’t want that to be me, so I never wanted a Fatespell,” he finally explained. But she could see that he felt terrible for admitting how he had truly felt.

“How long is a sorcerer’s life?” she asked, now feeling a growing concern that she might one day leave him alone.

“All sorcerers’ lives are different in length, depending on what they do to maintain their longevity—and what they do to shorten it,” he responded.

“Those who are left behind by their fate spells tend to either continue living a lonely existence or give up their longevity to join them in death.”

She felt her heart tighten at his response. She didn’t want him to shorten his lifespan, and she didn’t want to cause him any pain. Now, she felt as though she were faced with a decision more difficult than anything she had ever encountered before.

They had not yet solidified their bond as Fatespell.

And so, she could still back out. He would inevitably be sad now, but the bond would not be as strong. Perhaps he would survive it and live as long as he was meant to.

Before she could continue her thoughts, he took her hand, looked deeply into her eyes, and began to speak once more.

“How long is my lifespan?” she asked before he could even get a word out.

“You were aging like a normal human until you shifted for the first time. Now your aging will slow down. You will live to be around two hundred years, give or take,” he answered as though it were common knowledge.

“That’s a long time...” she muttered more to herself. She pulled the blanket tighter around her as she stood up and walked over to the sofa. She needed to sit down. This was too much.

“It is,” he agreed, but it felt as though there was something he wasn’t saying.

“It’s not long enough, is it?”

He shook his head. “No, not when compared to how long I could live for...”

“How long have you been alive?” she asked.

“A few hundred years,” he responded, his voice quiet as he waited for her reaction.

“This... you... we... what the...” She couldn’t seem to gather her thoughts. Her emotions were flying around in her mind. She should be disgusted. He was an old man compared to her, but he looked so young. Was it a spell? She shouldn’t be attracted to him, and he shouldn’t be attracted to her. She was practically a kid compared to him. Would this be considered a moral dilemma?

“You don’t need to make any decisions right now,” he told her. She could tell he wanted to step closer to her, but refrained from moving.

“Why do you look like you’re the same age as me? Is it a spell?”

“It’s not a spell. I really do look like this. After a certain age, our aging slows down drastically. We already age slowly, but when our powers really bloom, then it slows more, similar to a werewolf shifting for the first time.”

“But you’ve already lived so much life. I must feel like a kid in comparison.”

“Not at all...” he responded, but it sounded like a lie.

“Don’t begin to lie to me now,” she implored him. “I can’t trust you if you are going to try to coddle me.”

“I’m sorry. Yes, you are very much like a child to me, but not in the way you are thinking.”

“In what way then?” she pressed.

“Just your age. I know you are young in age and maturity, but that doesn’t really register for me, not since the Fatespell has begun to take stronger hold.”

“So, it kind of makes my age matter less?”

“In a sense, yes.”

“I think I need to rest,” she blurted out. Her head was spinning. First, she finds out she is a werewolf, she is being hunted, she shifts for the first time, and now this... it was all far too much.

“Of course,” he responded quickly. With a quick wave of his hand, she was suddenly clothed, the house had darkened, and Fang was already in bed waiting for her.

She peered around the room, but he didn’t seem to be there anymore. “Pierceton?” she whispered, feeling nervous.

He suddenly appeared in front of her. “I’m just going to sleep elsewhere, but if you need anything, all you have to do is say my name, and I’ll be here in a flash,” he told her.

“Where are you going?”

“It’s kind of an in-between place,” he answered, but it didn’t feel like an answer. “I think it might be best that you process things without my presence.”

“Okay,” she agreed, but at the same time, she didn’t want him to leave. She wanted to forget all of her reservations and be near him. It must be the Fatespell bond... did it mean it wasn’t her true feelings? Did it affect her that much?

“Well, I’ll take my leave then,” he said, somewhat awkwardly.

“Goodnight,” she whispered just before he vanished.