Under the Darkest Skies

Chapter 1

"So when can we do that thing again?" Seth pulled Becky on top of him so he could kiss her, but she snuggled into his shoulder instead.

"Hm?" Becky slid a hand down his chest to his cock and slipped the condom off, tossing it into the small garbage can they had taken out of the hotel room's en suite. "You're usually good to go in twenty or so...."

"No. The... the banshee thing. I don't remember what it's called. Does it have a name?" Seth kissed her forehead and wrapped an arm around her, drawing the blankets up with his free hand.

Becky laughed and she was sure Seth could feel her blushing against his chest. She knew what he was talking about, of course, but she liked it when he asked. Being a partial banshee had always felt like a burden, so it was nice to have one bright spot. "The deactivation? It doesn't have a formal name, no. It's not really an official thing, and not all banshees can do it." She propped herself up on an elbow and kissed him. "And I shouldn't do it too often. Too much magic is bad for a human."

"I know, but...." Seth stroked her back slowly, lingering around her shoulders before moving down again. "It's been a while, hasn't it? I thought you said once a month was okay."

"It is," Becky replied, resting her head on his shoulder again. "But I did it just two weeks ago, so you'll have to wait for a while now."

Seth's fingers stopped in the dip between her shoulder blades as he tried to think back. "It's been longer than two weeks, hasn't it?"

Becky smiled, kissing his collarbone. She would happily use her banshee magic to dampen his fertility every day if she could. It would save him a ton on condoms for starters, and she loved watching his blissful expression as the magic took hold. "Nice try, but no. I did that for you again the night you won the title, remember? And that was about two weeks ago."

"No, that was... seventeen days," Seth countered, "I'm sure of it."

"Counting the days now?" Becky kissed him again, humming softly against his lips. She didn't want to flood his system with too much magic, but a little pain relief wouldn't hurt. "Since you're so... active, the magic might filter through your metabolism faster," she allowed, "but I'm not sure. The next time I'm at The Fathoms, I'll ask around."

Seth sat up against the headboard, drawing Becky with him. "You haven't worked a market for a while. Is that okay?"

Becky nodded. "It was always more to keep my magic in check. Now that I'm using some on you," she added, curling up to his side, "that helps. I should still go every once in a while, though, just to see what's going on. It's... sort of like a family. Supernaturals tend to look out for each other. I should stop in just so everyone knows I'm okay." Then she reached for his left wrist, tracing the tattoo there. "And you'll need to get that redone soon."

"Okay, maybe I was fibbing a bit with the deactivation thing—we really need to come up with a name for that." Seth paused and shook his head. "But I thought you said the tattoo was every six months. It hasn't been that long, has it?"

"Someone has trouble remembering anniversaries?" Becky teased, kissing his neck. To be fair, she couldn't believe it had been six months either, but Bartholomew, the inker who had done the tattoo spell for Seth, had texted her a reminder a few days ago. "Good to know."

"Really?" Seth tickled her legs. "Ask me when we first kissed. Ask me when I saw you at The Fathoms. Ask when—"

Becky reached up and stroked his beard. "Okay, okay. Point taken." She knew Seth had an intensely sharp memory—at least for things he deemed important. He could probably remember what colour she was wearing when he first saw her at The Fathoms. The tattoo had been her idea, not his, and he still insisted he didn't need the protection. "But I should still book an appointment with an inker for you. I can go do some magic, you can get inked, I could get more amulets." Then she poked his side. "Maybe Liv and Rhea will go and you can hang out with them while I'm working."