Nameless Ghoul

Bad Witch

⚠️ TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️
This chapter depicts a ritual and themes of non-consensual sex, so please be mindful of this when reading, or skip to the next chapter.

It was late afternoon before the witches and Secondo were ready to speak with him. Itzal and Sunshine headed down to Secondo’s study together.

He felt nervous. Unsure whether he could tell them everything they wanted to know.

Earth let them in and moved to stand behind Secondo, who was seated in an armchair by the fire. Seren and Helena sat on a sofa facing the hearth, and Secondo gestured for Itzal to take the one opposite. Sunshine chose to sit on the floor next to him rather than on the sofa, and he was grateful. He wouldn’t have to see her face while he spoke. She rested her head lightly on his thigh.

“We’ll try to make this as quick as we can,” Seren said gently, offering an encouraging smile. “We know this won’t be easy to talk about.”

Itzal gave a small nod, bracing himself.

“We need to know the names of the demons Santos summoned,” she continued, “and as much detail as you can recall about the rituals. That will help us gauge their power level, and the kind of threat they pose to us.”

Itzal took a deep breath and began by naming the demons he could remember. The rituals had been mostly the same each time, though the incantations changed depending on the demon.

When he reached the part where he had to describe the ritual itself, he tried to speak like an observer. Tried to describe as though he’d been watching from far away. Detached. Just the facts. But that only got him so far before his voice faltered and the words dried up in his throat.

Itzal looked down at Sunshine, and she met his gaze with a soft, sympathetic smile.

Somehow, that made it worse.

He glanced at the witches. Pity in their eyes too.

Only Secondo’s gaze was different. Steady, focused, analytical. Studying him.

“I know this is hard,” Secondo said quietly. “Saying it aloud is no simple thing. Would it help if you showed me instead? Sent me the memory directly. I can describe it for them.”

Itzal blinked, confused, then remembered what he’d heard from the others. That Secondo was rumoured to read thoughts.

“Yes,” Secondo confirmed, clearly hearing his musings. “If someone sends me a memory deliberately, I see it in images, sometimes clearer than spoken words. I often pick up impartial details the person might not think to mention.”

Itzal let out an involuntary noise, somewhere between a whine and a shaky breath, and immediately flushed with shame at the pathetic, scared sound.

“It’s okay if you can’t do it,” Seren said quickly. “You’ve helped us so much already.”

Itzal looked at Sunshine again. She climbed up onto the sofa beside him and gently took his hand in both of hers.

“I’m here,” she whispered. “Whatever you want to do.”

Itzal hesitated, torn. The shame of what they had done to him was like an itch under his skin. But he also wanted to help. To stop them from doing it to anyone else.