Of Witches And Wolves

Chapter 3. Shifter?!

As promised, Dane showed up back at my house with a large bag of groceries. Milk, cheese, apples, oranges, lemons, limes, peaches, and all different types of meats soon filled my fridge. He even brought a bowl of homegrown cat-nip for Salem. Dane even helped me load the fridge. The house already had plates and a working dishwasher, so that never worried me.

Now, he sits on a lawn chair on the back porch. His brown eyes watch me intently. I focus my energy and magic on the bowl of dirt in front of me. I can feel the seeds in the dirt and will the seeds to open and the plants inside to sprout. Sweat beads down my forehead, my fingers ache. He takes in a sharp breath. I lose focus and open my eyes. The plants had sprouted and are in the middle of blooming. I glance up at him and he is smiling back at me.

"I did it!"

"I see that! Not only can you make plants grow, you can light whole trees on fire, push me back with the wind, lift yourself up into the air, and cause water to change direction! I'd say you are a pretty impressive witch!"

"I just started today, Dane. I'm not that great," I say to my friend, taking the seat next to him. Salem jumps from his perch on the wall to sit on my lap and falls asleep almost instantly. "Have a rough day, buddy?" I pat his head gently.

"For most witches, it takes forever to learn even the most basic of spells, and you learned it in an afternoon. How? What does it feel like to use magic?"

"It's like pushing your energy out to make what you want to happen, happen. I mean, it's exhausting, but I'll survive."

"It seems fun," Dane looks down at his lap. I glanced over at Dane with a small smirk on my face. I leaned back and imagined Dane's seat in the back of my mind and felt wind push past me and towards Dane's feet.

"Holy Goddess! What the hell?" I heard Dane's laughter before I opened my eyes. The wolf shifter was floating three feet above the ground. "Are you doing this?"

"Maybe," I giggled and let him fall back onto the chair.

"Thanks, Ren."

"No problem, Dane."

"Um, can I talk to you about Salem?"

"Yeah, what about him?" I glanced at the cat in question.

"I don't think he is an actual cat."

"What? Do you think he is a shifter or something?"

"Well, yeah. He doesn't have the scent of any old cat. He smells like a shifter, acts like it too. I don't know any cat that would sit around on a wall and follow a human, or witch, around like that."

"I suppose that's odd for a cat. "

Salem got up and stared at Dane with a nasty glare. He bit on Dane's shorts and pulled, getting him to follow. When I got up to follow, Dane shook his head.

"When shifters shift back into human form, we are kinda naked," he blushed.

"Oh! I'll wait out here."

"We'll be out soon," he smiled and shut the door behind him.

________________________

"Need pants?" I asked the cat. He meowed at me and turned. Next thing I know, I'm staring at a young man with black hair crouched down on his knees facing the other direction. After running out front to grab the clothes I had hidden behind a tree the night before. I handed him the clothes and he got dressed.

"Are you going to speak?"

"No." He hissed. When dressed, he turned to me and glared with his cat's yellow eyes. "I don't wish to talk to dirty mutts."