That Olde Black Magick

Arref Mak

I felt like there was a pressing weight on my chest. Discomfort like that doesn't do much for my sleep, so I woke up.

Amber eyes looked back into mine.

I sighed, "Mother's Blood, Bishop. Get off of me, would you? How can I sleep with you sitting on me?"

The glowing eyes merely blinked slowly, the velvet black face tilted a bit to the side. "Oh, dear. This is going to be such a trial. You're not very bright, are you?"

Shock. I forced myself to relax. That voice had hit my ears without him opening his mouth. Her mouth. That sounded female, actually. I took a closer look, it looked just like my friend. I took a deep breath, grabbed the impostor by the scruff of her neck. "You're wearing cologne. Who the hell are you and where's Bishop?" I got up and kept a grip on her at arm's length.

She squirmed, "A thousand miles from here by now." It was strange to get her voice without any corresponding motion from her face. I smelled magic to it. Yes. I looked harder. Some sort of permanent enchantment.

"You seem to know a bit about it. Why are you here?" I ran my free hand through my tangled hair. "How did you get in here? Who has Bishop?"

"Put me down will you? It has nothing to do with me, you know. I'm on the short end of this deal too," she winced. I eased my grip. I could tell now, she wasn't a Kit at all, just an enchanted cat. I could hurt her treating her like one of Bishop's kind.

"You talk and I'll test your story."

"Very well." Her tail stopped twitching, "He's been taken by Morgestra the Knot. She managed a major ritual to find him. As soon as she realized that he wasn't your familiar, she dumped me and took him. By now, she's probably taken him back thru the astral plane to her sanctum and will be binding him with a class four enchantment. Not my idea, I'm out of a nice job."

"I'm not particularly worried about your employment situation," I hissed. She looked worried.

"I'm cooperating. I'm really a good familiar. I've done class six work."

"Then why did this Morgestra unbind you?" I growled. I was hoping for a certain answer.

I got a smile from her on that, "Oh, she hasn't yet. She can't afford to unbind me until she has your boy in a binding. Where are we going?"

That was the answer I needed. I crossed the room, I put her down on the bureau and started getting some clothes on. "What's your name?"

She fussed with her fur, "I'm not telling you unless you promise to be my mistress. I wasn't born last year you know."

My hand slid through the sleeve of my blouse as I finished putting it on and grabbed her about the neck from the front. Her fur puffed out and her eyes widened. I went straight into her mind, pulled what I needed and backed out, releasing her. "Well, Starshine, your mistress has excellent taste but bad judgment. Bishop is sentient, not enchanted. He's likely to kill her if she tries to bind him. Yet I see in your mind that she stunned him pulling him into the astral, so he might not wake up in time."

She stared at me as I pulled a travel bag over my shoulder. "That wasn't magic. How in the Seven Hells did you do that lady?"

"The bad judgment part is me. Once I get my hands on your former mistress, Morgestra will find out how little doing class six magic means. That's my friend she's planning to enslave!"

"Okay, lady, but if he's not a familiar and you're not a witch, then how in the Seven Hells do you expect to get into the CovenWays?"

I smiled, "You just told me how."

Starshine looked nervous, "Ulp."

* * *

The CovenWays was hidden on the astral plane. I'd heard of it, but never been there. But my new accomplice, Starshine knew everything I needed in order to get there. More than I needed. A change of clothes. A certain attitude.

I knocked on Morgestra's suite door, nodding to a passing couple of witches in black garb.

"We are going to get killed," muttered Starshine standing at my feet.

I knocked again. "You want your position back. We've done all right so far. You're a familiar. I'm a witch. We know our way around and we act like we belong here, so no one bothers us."

Starshine looked even more worried, "I can't believe wearing black and carrying a stupid stick that you found makes everyone believe you're one of the Coven.. You've never been here. No one knows you." She glanced nervously around.

I knocked again. "No one believes someone would try anything like this. That's why it will work." I took a pick out of my belt bag and went to work on the door.

"That door is trapped," she cautioned.

"I know," I nodded, "remember? You told me everything?"

She hissed a groan. The door clicked open. "But it's not set to hurt someone with a key." I went in fast, Starshine scooted in as well and I closed the door. A gesture smoothed the wards back in place.

Anteroom. Chanting beyond. No time, I broke into a dash. Coming into the next chamber, I saw Morgestra working over a bowl of flames adding potions. Bishop lay on a stone square in the center of the warded area in front of her. No one else here, of course.

Damn. Nothing for it but to disrupt things, I had taken too long to get here. I grabbed a pebble from the many in my coin bag and pitched it at her with all my might.

Snap! Right between the eyes. She gasped. The chant faltered. The room tilted. Space crushed us all flat into blackness. I only had time to think-- that wasn't a class four spell!

* * *

Things came back into focus with a snap.

I was a cat. I looked up, towering over me was a redhead wearing form-fitting black from head to toe. She had my hooded cloak and was carrying a bare staff of plain apple wood I had picked off the ground on the way here.

She dropped the staff on the floor with a clatter and looked at her hands. "Seven Hells! I'm a two leg!"

I groaned. Well, I knew that tone even with my voice. Starshine was in my body! I looked quickly for Morgestra. This spell of hers had gone very wrong. That usually meant bad things for the caster as well. As I turned I saw a black flash coming at me. I rolled instinctually.

That was a problem, since all of my parts were now entirely different. I folded up in a heap of legs and slid on my chin on the stone floor. Turned out I wasn't the target.

Bishop shot past me and attacked Starshine. Mother's Blood! That meant--- I twisted my head around. Morgestra was on all fours shaking her head. The confusion of the moment wouldn't last much longer. I had a bad feeling about this.

"Bishop!" I yelled, "Snap out of it. We've got a problem!" I heard a shrieking wail as Starshine took an angry Kit attack from what I expected was Morgestra. The witch knew that I was responsible, but hadn't figured that I was changed too. This situation was extremely dangerous. Bishop's superior body against me inside of an enchanted cat? I didn't like those odds. My stolen body against Bishop inside of a mortal witch? That was almost worse.

Except Starshine was getting worked over, she had no idea how to fight in my body and little idea of just how strong and fast she was with my physical resources. I glanced again at Morgestra's body. Apparently, Bishop was still collecting his wits. I heard him mutter in soprano, "Bite my tail! I've *got* to be having a nightmare!"

No choice. I put four legs under me and launched myself at the attacking Kit to buy some time. If something didn't happen quickly, the bloody scratches Starshine was taking would turn into deadly gashes. I needed that body intact.

"Morgestra!" I yelled, "I'm going to rip your eyes out!" The warning worked well, she jumped free of Starshine and dodged me. We started tumbling across the floor flailing at each other. Starshine moaned and, shaking, crumpled to the floor. She wailed with fear. Blood ran down her hands and arms.

Great. No help there.

I managed to get the claws working well, even as I thought it was pointless against Bishop's body. Morgestra didn't know that though. She was dodging and hissing. Then I scored a slash over her eyes! Shocked, I redouble my efforts. Morgestra apparently didn't have the focus needed to make Bishop's body perform any more than Starshine was effective in mine. I had a chance!

We clawed. Bit. I dug my legs at her, trying to put the fear of a gut slash into her. She retreated quickly and we separated. Blood crept down her face. I realized I was as cut up as she was. Maybe worse. Round two would clinch this.

"Put that down!" Another voice entirely, Bishop in Morgestra's body?

I glanced over my shoulder. Starshine was on her feet, with the staff in her bloody hands. She was poised above both of us with the stick raised over her head. My eyes widened, she had no idea what my strength might do. Using a long lever arm like that to club a cat? I'd be smashed flat. I realized that both felines looked exactly the same, without a sex check, she'd hit me thinking she was clubbing Morgestra.

"Starshine," I squeaked, "I'm Bhangbadea."

"Thanks," she said and slammed the staff down on my head, "I didn't know which one of you was which." The room started making noises like a box of bells thrown down a stair. My eyes fogged. My head had been driven down into the stone floor. I couldn't move. The pain was intense.

"Good girl, Starshine!" breathed Bishop's voice somewhere beyond the black lightning.

"Lissen," my own voice, "I'm the witch now, Morgestra. You're the familiar sweetie! There's going to be changes!" I couldn't move. It hurt so bad. Stupidstupidstupid.

"There sure *are* going to be changes," Morgestra's voice. I heard scuffling. That meant Bishop was now in the fray. I opened one eye through the haze. Yes. Bishop had the staff locked in a grip that prevented another drubbing. Starshine and he wrestled back and forth. It was obvious to me that Starshine was getting the feel for my muscles. She would win. Black stars sparked at the edges of my vision.

"You stupid cat," shrieked Morgestra with Bishop's alto voice. "don't hurt my body!"

I saw a chance and I took it. I crawled near to the struggle between Bishop and Starshine. I felt around with my magical perceptions. Yes. I could feel the assembly of power in my spell rack that Starshine was now wearing. I selected a spell, trigged the words of locale and target.

The magical disruption hit everything in the room. Not my exact plan, but then-----

Blackness.

* * *

I woke up first. With a great joy, I found I was looking at my own heavily tanned hands, tasting my own blood from a split lip. I grinned. So far so good. I pushed my self up off the stone floor looking around.

Two black felines sprawled. Raven haired Morgestra face down on the floor near me. I got up and moved over to identify Bishop. I lifted one feline's hind leg. His eyes popped open, "Do you think this is really the time?"

I grinned. "Sorry. Just checking." Obviously, my friend was back where he belonged.

He rolled sinuously up to four feet, looked about. One stretch and he apparently was satisfied that he was in good shape. "I suggest we leave. I've had enough women messing around with my person."

"Not until I make sure Morgestra isn't coming back for more." I went to her side, put a hand on her forehead. I started laughing. Bishop raised a bloody eyebrow.

"It's Starshine," I smiled. "The binding spell snapped back along the axis of rotation. Starshine has an anchor to this body now."

"Does that take care of the issue?" wondered Bishop.

"Maybe." I studied Starshine's sleeping mind. Not too bright, but quite orderly. Opportunistic. I made a quick judgment. I walked over to the unconscious feline that was Morgestra. Stooping, I touched her head and inserted a quick amnesiac foray. "I think we won't have any more trouble from these two. I'm locking up Morgestra's memories of magics greater than class one."

"Grand," he sounded tired. He looked up at me.

It passed through my mind again, what it had been like to stare up from the floor at something ten times bigger. I felt the tears of flesh on my hands and arms. The blood dripping off my chin. Bruises from hitting the floor in the black out. It was all mine. The sensations were rather delightful considering. I smiled, "Don't be such a girl," I winked. "Let's go."

He spit on the floor and said nothing. We both headed for the door.

END