In Heat - Jenlisa

Chapter 33 - Inhibition

Lisa can feel Jennie's eyes on her.

She normally adores being in Jennie's bed, but between the pot of melting wax on the desk and the strange, intense look on Jennie's face, Lisa can't help but feel a little bit of trepidation. She's never actually witnessed Jennie performing a ritual before.

"The room needs to be dark," Jennie speaks up. "Will you shut the curtains? I have to take care of other things before we begin."

Lisa nods, scooting off the bed and hurrying across the room. She has to stretch to grab the curtain cord above their bay window, her shirt riding up and exposing her lower back, but she manages.

When she turns around, Jennie is staring at her. Lisa pulls her shirt back down with heat in her cheeks while Jennie raises an eyebrow and continues placing candles on the floor. The order of the arrangement seems random, though Lisa gets the sense every detail is predetermined and exact.

In one fluid movement, Jennie rises to her feet and sets a lit candle on the desk. The pink wax has completely melted. Lisa's heart leaps into her throat at the thought of what comes next, but Jennie ignores the wax entirely and instead retrieves a pot of ink and a small, thin paintbrush.

Lisa is disappointed right up until Jennie begins rolling up her sleeves.

"What are you doing?" Lisa asks, biting her lip as she shuffles closer.

Jennie takes a seat on the bed, patting the spot beside her in invitation.

Lisa all but dives forward, scrambling up onto the bed as ordered. She peers over Jennie's shoulder and watches Jennie unscrew the lid of the inkwell.

"Lisa—you should know that there is a cost to using runes," Jennie explains. "Runes are like blessings, affording us some skill or talent we wouldn't otherwise have, but they require a sacrifice."

Lisa gulps. "Does that mean we'll be slaughtering chickens or-or other defenseless woodland creatures?" Please don't say cats or rabbits.

"No," Jennie retorts, amusement clear in her tone. "The sacrifice must be your own. Each rune has a nulling factor that automatically neutralizes the intended effect. This factor is often the action you would take to rescind the sacrifice you made for the rune's power."

Lisa frowns. "I'm not sure I understand, but go on."

"We must be careful not to activate the nulling factor while the rune is in use, or it becomes worthless," Jennie says. "As long as your sacrifice—your payment, so to speak—endures, so shall the rune. I've heard of a group of witches in Europe who offered their voices as a sacrifice for the Wisdom rune. They've maintained their vow of silence for decades, and the rune never faded."

"But—what use is wisdom if you can't tell anyone the right thing to do?" Lisa asks.

Jennie hums. "If it was easily given, it wouldn't be a proper sacrifice. Speech for wisdom, fulfillment for pleasure...this sort of magic has a cost and we, as bearers, must pay it."

Lisa nods, ignoring the foreboding feeling that blooms to life at those words. "What do I need to do?"

Jennie dips her brush into the inkwell, allowing it to drip for a moment before beginning to paint the back of her left hand with deft, sure movements. Surprisingly enough, the ink doesn't bleed; it arcs across her skin in such a cooperative fashion that Lisa almost suspects it's somehow doing Jennie's bidding.

"The nulling factor changes depending on the rune and the bearer. If I had drawn this rune—Inhibition—in its original form, it would have increased my inhibitions and influenced me to act with modesty and caution."