Sweet & Spicy Lesbian Short Stories (GirlxGirl)

The Witch of Lake Erie: Part 1

So I might have pissed off a witch.

Hundreds of spiders are crawling on the walls of my bedroom, coming shortly after yesterday's incident where snakes fell out of my car when I opened the door.

Yeah, they could be weird coincidences, but let's not live in denial. It's a hex. A gentle one, like a warning. If Callisto really wanted to get revenge, she would.

Shuddering with the heebie-jeebies, I get the vacuum and start sucking up the spiders. Waking up on a Monday sucks on the best of days, but this is pure torture.

"I'm sorry, little spideys," I say with a tremor in my voice. "She gives me no choice."

If there was one spider or even a handful of them, I could trap them under a cup and dump them outside like usual. But there is no cup big enough to trap this patchwork quilt of arachnids.

My hands tremble as I work the vacuum. If one of them gets on me before I can suck it up, I may scream.

It's been five months since I went to Callisto with bloody scratches all over me and a black cat that was actually a chimera in disguise. She fixed it in an afternoon, healing my cursed wounds, transforming Toby back into a fire-breathing monster, and banishing him from this world.

I miss Toby, but it's better this way. Ontario provincial laws prohibit keeping chimeras as pets, and I don't want that on my record.

The conditions of Callisto's work were straightforward: pay the invoice within three months, and don't adopt any more animals in case there's an ancient curse on me.

I honored the first condition and paid her in a few weeks. I have a good job as a dental hygienist and was able to pay her in installments. But not adopting a replacement pet after I lost my darling Toby?

Ugh. It's lonely living by yourself.

I thought I would be safe with two guinea pigs. There's no way these squeaky little bread loaves could be monsters in disguise.

And I don't think they are.

But I'm positive that Callisto found out I broke the terms of our agreement.

With an icy feeling in my chest, I recall the final step in her spell after she'd banished the chimera that was once Toby. She did something to me. It passed over me like a shiver. I bet she was placing a hex on me to ensure I'd be punished if I adopted another pet.

"Dammit." I cast a guilty glance at my guinea pigs, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who murmur happily in their cage.

I refuse to get rid of them. They were at the shelter for a whole year before I adopted them yesterday. They need me—and as a single introvert living in a big city, I need them.

But as I vacuum up the last spider, a rat scurries past my bedroom door, and a swarm of moths flaps through my window, which I swear wasn't open a minute ago.

All of the trapping and pest control in the world isn't going to fix this.

I call Callisto, and it goes to voicemail.

"You've reached Callisto O'Connor, Freelance Witch and Independent Apothecary serving Southern Ontario," she says in her deep, deadpan voice. It sends a pleasant tingle through me to hear it again. "Leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. If you think this is an emergency that involves a hex, curse, or jinx, please hang up and text me instead."

I hang up and text her.

Hi Callisto, this is Angee Kumar. You helped me with my chimera problem a few months ago. I'm just wondering if you've hexed me, because I've got weird stuff happening in my apartment.

I call in sick to work, then devise a system to trap the rats without harming them while I wait for her reply.

An hour later, the rats seem to have multiplied, and my phone beeps.

You adopted a new pet, didn't you? Bring it to me today so I can inspect it, please.

I bite my lip to stop from smiling. I should be ashamed, but the prospect of seeing her again sends a flutter of excitement through me. Despite all the panic of my last visit, it was one of the best days of my life. I'd never seen a witch work before, and watching her mutter spells and mix ingredients was incredible.

I type back, I adopted two guinea pigs... I'm sorry. I'll be there in 3-4 hours. If they're not cursed, can I keep them?

Dots appear to show that she's typing, and then disappear. My heart beats faster. She has to say yes. Who hexes someone for rescuing animals from a shelter?

The dots appear again, and her reply comes through.

Yes. If they're safe, you can keep them and I'll reverse the hex I put on you.

I grin. Looks like I'm making a trip to the shores of Lake Erie today.

Part 2 coming tomorrow! Read the full story right now on "Sweet & Spicy Sapphic Stories" at patreon.com/tianawarner. Plus you'll get early access to next week's story.