The Hunter In Me

7 - Ring

"Bash! Wake up, Bash!"

Owen's frantic yelling rattled my brain, startling me awake. The world tilted, and the hurricane lamps swam, smearing in my vision, but Owen was nowhere to be seen. The basement floor was hard against my back, and everything ached.

"Finally! I didn't think you'd ever wake up," Owen continued, panicking.

I sat up to search for him. My skull throbbed with the movement and I covered my face with my palms as I waited for the pounding to stop.

"Open your eyes! You're not going to pass out again, are you?" Owen asked.

"No. I'm okay, but quit yelling. My head's killing me."

"Sorry," he whispered.

"Where are you?"

"Seriously?" Owen scoffed. "Did you forget what we were doing here?"

The smell of mildew hung in the air, and open rafters gaped, revealing old pipes and cobwebs, but Owen was still nowhere to be seen. "You mean, it worked? You're inside me?"

"Can't you tell?"

"Not really. You sound loud and clear, but not in my ears. It's like my thoughts are blasting." I held my hands out to study them for change. "So you're really in there?"

"Why are you staring at your fingers? You look the same."

I lowered them as my cheeks warmed. "I thought I'd be able to tell, but besides hearing you in my mind, nothing's different."

"Well, it's different for me. Being in the house was rough, but being trapped in the dark with no control was worse. Any longer, and I might've freaked out."

"Dude, I hate to break it to you, but you were already freaking out."

"No, I wasn't."

"Sure, okay." I bit my lip to stifle my amusement. "How long was I out?"

"How the hell do I know? Hours maybe?"

Pulling my phone from my pocket, I checked the clock. "It's almost 10:30, so it was a few hours." A sheen of sweat coated my body, and I wiped my brow with my forearm.

"Man, it's weird when you move. It's like my body's numb. I feel it, but only vaguely. I tried opening your eyes before, but it didn't work."

Bracing my palms on the cold cement, I rose to my feet and stumbled, grabbing the edge of the desk for support. I felt more like myself now that I was vertical and everything stopped spinning. "It's pretty freaking weird for me too. But you told me we'd have to practice. So, uh, how do we do that?"

"I'm not sure. All Lilla said was whoever used the spell could take turns. Why don't you get us upstairs while you're running things? There's no room to do anything down here."

"Sounds good." I clutched the railing with one hand and dragged the other along the wall's rough texture while carefully climbing the stairs. I made it to the top with my pulse racing, and the house swaying again. Weak-kneed, I clenched my teeth and posted my back to the wall, sliding to the floor. "Did you know that would happen?"

"What do you mean? Me glowing, and you passing out before inhaling me like mist? Sure, that's how it happened the last time my spirit moved into another guy."

Owen's dry monotone made me laugh. "Yeah, okay." I probed the bump on my head and grimaced. "Your witch might have warned us, though. If I'd been sitting, maybe I wouldn't feel like crap."

"Don't push on it. That won't help."

"You felt that?"

"A little."