Monster Baiter (An Obscure Magic Book 6) (11 page)

She woke up being carried out of the workshop. “What happened?”

Magnus was looking like himself again. “You managed to remove the curse on the flute case.”

She smiled and leaned against his chest. “Oh good. I think it gave me a hallucination. Shit got weird.”

Magnus pressed a kiss to her temple. “Yes, it did. I am surprised you aren’t complaining about me being a quarter demon.”

“Oh. That. That was real?”

He was carrying her into the house and heading for her bedroom.

He set her down in her bed and smoothed his hand over her head. “Yes, it was real.”

She smiled and touched her head. “I think I got a concussion.”

“Likely. You hit the wall a few times.”

She blinked. “That was real?”

“Yes. I think I should use a healing charm on you while I tell you the story of my family.”

She looked up at him. “You are going to tell me a story?”

He shook his head with a smile. “Yes, I am.”

He lifted her up again, turned and sat on her bed, propping himself against the headboard before he began to tell her about his family. She was settled across his lap.

“I come from a long line of unicorns. Nine generations were all unicorn shifters. Each member found their match and donated their horns as necessary for healing spells.”

He hugged her. “My mother told me that she was on her way to heal some locals when Arion appeared in front of her. What followed was short and violent, but he couldn’t keep her because of her nature, and the demon blood became the recessive gene. She got away, and I was the result.”

“You look human. Your aura registers as that of a mage.”

He chuckled. “Yes, it does. That is how I was able to be in the guild for hundreds of years before I faced off against Arion in a public place. I managed to wound him but exposed myself in the process. That is what instigated my time in amber.”

“You got taller and you have horns.”

“Yes. I only need that form to fight.”

She looked up at him. She pressed her hand to his cheek. “Still not a monster.”

He blinked rapidly. “That is not what the guild thinks.”

“They aren’t cursed to know a monster when they see it. You are not a monster.”

He held her and smiled. “I can heal the rest of your damage if you will let me.”

She nodded. “That would be for the best. I think I cracked my skull, and I am not up to calling my parents.”

Magnus smiled, and he got bigger. His thighs widened, his shoulders grew broader, his fingernails became thick claws, and the horns sprouted from his forehead.

“You broke a horn off.”

His voice was deeper when he said, “It regenerates for every transformation. It is unbreakable for anyone but me.”

She watched as he bent his head to her, his horns gently resting against her skull. A wash of cool energy ran over her skin like melted snow.

She breathed deep and relaxed against him as the energy crept under her skin and fixed all of her cracks, bumps and bruises.

“Do you often get battered like this on your missions?” He stroked her cheek softly.

“More often than not. Most monsters don’t come quietly, and Arion was definitely a monster. Is there any of him left?”

“No, he shattered, and the energy returned through the vortex to the demon zone. Orbithon might come after you one day, but Arion is over.”

“Good. Is it safe for me to sleep now?”

“Sleep. I will watch over you.”

She nodded and let the fatigue of the day go, embracing healing sleep.

* * * *

Delwin walked in with a cup of tea, saw Magnus’s shifted shape cradling Sophia as if she was fine porcelain and slowly backed out. They were working out their relationship, and if this kind of trust was the start, he wasn’t going to interrupt them.

He snuck back into the kitchen and picked up the phone. He dialled quickly, and when the familiar voice answered, he whispered, “There has been some progress. She’s trusting him.”

* * * *

Lillian DeMonstre smiled into her phone. “Excellent. Keep me posted as to progress.”

“This is a little odd, ma’am.”

“I know, but she can’t back up now. I don’t want her putting barriers between herself and possible happiness. He is the best candidate I have found. Keep me informed, Delwin, and I will keep your grandmother at bay.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The phone went silent, and Lillian let out a long sigh. Two years of negotiations and machinations had finally given her daughter a chance at a partner and, hopefully, a husband.

The biggest hurdle was Magnus’s own nature. The unicorn in him was attracted to purity, but the demon in him was repelled by it. He tended to lock up around virgins.

Lillian didn’t know what had happened, but somehow, they both had to push past their inclinations and find each other. If they were in the trust phase, they would be lovers soon.

Lillian looked over to where her husband was cheerfully talking with a client. She wanted a grandchild so she could enjoy her daughter again. Her daughter hadn’t been hers for twenty years, and it made her heart ache that her little girl had to go out there and face perverse danger night after night. Now, finally, there was a chance she wouldn’t have to continue on alone.

She opened her eyes and was confronted by Magnus, his face only inches from hers. “Why do you wear long tunics?”

Sophia thought about the answer and settled for, “I have to wear so many costumes that I like to just be myself when I can. The tunic is the most basic form of clothing available, and I like it. It is shapeless and comfy.”

“You don’t like advertising your body.”

She wrinkled her nose. “That is another way of saying it.”

He stroked her cheek. “You are lovely no matter what you wear.”

She blushed. “Thanks for that.”

“I spent a week as your electronics; I have seen you from every angle. You are kind to those who are hurt and confused, and practical when there is a job to be done. That doesn’t just come from training; it comes from your soul.”

She was already blushing an inch from him. There was nowhere to go. “Thanks for that... again.”

He chuckled and pulled her in for a hug. They were lying face to face on her bed, and her clothing had been removed. He was naked as well. She stiffened up at the impact of all that hard skin, and he stroked his hand over her spine. Her relaxation came in tiny increments, but he didn’t seem to be in a hurry.

“You have seen my nature. Do you understand why I did not lunge for you the moment that I saw you?”

She nodded; her nose rubbed the crook of his neck. “I understand. Attraction and repulsion in equal measure become a static state.”

“Of course you would understand. Well, attraction is winning, and the repulsion died with Arion.”

“Gee. I feel so special.”

He chuckled. “You know the constraints of magic and the nature of beasts.”

“I do. I just hate to be on the receiving end of that kind of attitude. Just because you understand something doesn’t mean you like it.”

Magnus continued to stroke her back. “I will make you a deal. I will be your partner when you go out as the Cursed One, and you will have dinner with me once a week. Oh, and we will share the bed.”

She frowned. “That is a lot of demands. What do I get out of it?”

“One of the greatest mages of the ages and a companion who understands your nature as well as you do.”

Sophia looked up at him. “You are serious?”

“I am. I will prove that I am the best candidate to be your mate, and I will do it by the effect of proximity.”

She was quiet for a moment and then asked, “How many other bicorns are their out there?”

He chuckled. “As far as my mother has been able to tell, I am the only one.”

“And you were slutty enough that you couldn’t find a woman you hadn’t slept with to ask for your freedom?”

He rubbed his chin on her head. “I was following my baser instinct and that led me to the married ladies of the Mage Guild. When an irate husband caught me, it spurred on my transformation and the amber came next.”

“So, you were punished for being promiscuous more than for being a creature.”

“The Archmage certainly wanted to kill me, and he did try, but it was thought that the amber would leave the building standing.”

“And you went quietly.”

“I hadn’t aged up until then. I could wait for the chance to come out and look for a proper mate, fighting my instincts the whole way.”

“Why was it a concern? Why want a family? And why did you need a mate to do it?”

“That is the unicorn part of me. I want children, always have. The mix of chaos in my loins kept me from procreating. That is why my mother encouraged the guild to put me in amber. It would give me time to balance myself out. It did. When they came to me, I was more than ready to serve you in any capacity. My time with you gave me a respect for your thoroughness and intellect. My body was just the last to follow the path.”

She burrowed into his embrace, pulling herself tight to him. “Remind me to tell you of the first Cursed One. She had a pen pal that turned into her partner, and they founded our dynasty, such as it is.”

“I think I would like that story, but now, Delwin has made dinner, so we need to get you up and fed.”

She reached up and stroked his forehead. “The horns are very pretty when they are there.”

“You don’t mind the monstrous look?”

She chuckled. “I keep telling you. I know what a monster looks like, and you are not it.”

Eventually, they stopped cuddling long enough to get up and have part of the meatloaf casserole that Delwin had created. He hadn’t skimped on the cheese, and it was appreciated.

Lillian settled on her chair in the Patchwork Dragon. The chai blend was aromatic, and the milk gave it the appearance of the mist over the mountains.

Her companion arrived with all the grace and elegance of her kind. A double shot latte with chocolate sprinkles was her potion of choice.

They sat and sipped at their drinks for a minute, and then, Elsinor smiled. “Thank you for the idea. I never imagined that he would go after your daughter. She is so very superficially pretty.”

Lillian inclined her head. “Thank you. As your son has all the grace and charm of an ancient barbarian, it will be a good match. She pulls out his intelligence, and he reminds her that she is more than her curse.”

Elsinor cocked her head. “It has been two months, and she is still a virgin.”

Lillian quirked her lips. “If you say so. I believe they are becoming familiar with each other before finally completing the cycle. They are not in a hurry, so we should not be in a hurry.”

Elsinor scowled. “I want a grandchild.”

“Don’t lose your serene aura, your horny highness.” Lillian sipped at her cup.

She had met the unicorn in school, as her student. As time passed, they realized they had points of commonality and that included their desire to see a better future for magic. When Lillian married a DeMonstre and became the female companion to the Cursed One, it gave her a different perspective than had been held before. She wanted to choose the best guardian for her own daughter, and for decades, it had been Sophia herself.

If Sophia had to have a partner, he had to be strong, smart, witty, and the fact that he could still take over technology to spy was a very handy feature in a Cursed One’s companion.

“I told you about my nature in confidence.”

Lillian waved it away. “In modern vernacular, it just means that you seek out sexual companionship.”

Elsinor’s elegant hair was curled befitting a 1950s’ heroine in a spy novel. When she frowned, it was the cutest pout. She couldn’t help being herself, even if she had once been touched by evil.

“I don’t know what will become of them if they continue this slow waltz toward sex. Someone might get in between them and block their attentions.”

Lillian blinked. “You really haven’t seen them together. You can’t even get a sheet of tissue paper between them. Their pace is their own. We just have to wait for the final result.”

“I want the girl named for my side of the family.”

Lillian chuckled. “If the Cursed One is a girl, it will be named after her side of the family. Your name will be second. If it is a boy, we can call him Elsinor all day long.”

Elsinor scowled. “Arm wrestle you for it.”

* * * *

Jennifer looked over and watched the two beautiful women square off and battle over the name of a child that hadn’t even become reality.

Jennifer smiled at the images that overlaid the women. One had a tremendous mane of hair and a solid horn; the other was made of coursing flame and power. It was a pretty fair fight.

Of course, Jennifer already knew the name of the little one that would arrive in just over a year. The little girl would buck convention in every sense. Her several sisters would also throw a wrench into the DeMonstre works as they went from one Cursed One to a small squad that could reach farther and work together.

The next generation was definitely going to mix things up, but the first baby was still going to be named—

She turned toward the server touching her elbow. “What?”

“Jennifer, table three wants a reading.”

Jennifer smiled and headed for table three. Her life might have been changed by magic, but for her, it was for the better.

For Sophia, things were just about to get very interesting. Her mom was one tough mage.

That’s right. Another one with no sex. Fortunately,
Binding Magic
will have it. It is already built in.

Sophia needed a bit of a transformation from monster hunter into fiancé. It took some doing, but I think I got her there.

Thanks for reading. I hope to have
Binding Magic
out in 6 weeks or so. Hopefully sooner.

Viola Grace