Wolf & Witch II: Witch Mountain

Chapter 4

All of the color immediately drained from Sean's face, and he felt sick. He was sure if someone asked him to move at that very moment, he'd lose his breakfast on the pretty table he'd just pulled Trevor off of. His panicking brain screamed at him to be chill — to play it cool.

"Yes?" Sean said, but it hardly sounded confident.

Tobias nodded slowly as if he were expecting Sean to say more. But when it became clear that the teen had nothing more to add, he seemed somewhat disappointed and leaned back, pulling the book onto his lap.

"Well, that wasn't always the case. In fact, I believe your great, great grandmother had a certain knack for transmutation curses. Fascinating, really. She may have even been responsible for the first werewolves." He drew one of the loose pages from the book and held it out to Sean. "I don't feel your involvement with the wolves is purely coincidental."

Sean's lips moved for a second, but he failed to form words. Instead, he leaned forward cautiously and took the page, almost as if he expected it to bite him. His eyes darted over it. He'd never seen the image before, but it looked like an old illustration — a few women standing next to leashed, monstrous-looking beasts.

They were very much the way his own family's grimoire had described them. Sean dared a glance up at Tobias. Even though the man had changed the subject, he hardly felt like he was out of the woods just yet.

"These aren't like the pack... I mean, this isn't what they look like when they shift."

"Of course not. These sorts of creatures were outlawed at the turn of the century. They were enemies to the coven, criminals. Rather than killing them, they were turned into beasts to protect and serve. Obviously, the wolves of today are not their posterity, but because of their origins, some facts hold true. Witches still hold incredible sway over them."

Sean shifted his weight in his seat, his stomach was still in knots.

"I assume that's why they are so ... reluctant to have dealings with us. Imagine having control over an entire pack of werewolves with nothing more than a thought." Tobias gently retrieved his page, setting it back on top of the book.

"Sounds dangerous for the pack," Sean mumbled. "I wouldn't want someone controlling me."

"Exactly." Tobias agreed. "But you may have already used some sway over them without even realizing it. There's no telling exactly how susceptible they are to a witch's natural authority over them. They are classed as type-two magical creatures. Meaning they were created by magic, but do not possess magic themselves, and thus have no innate defense to it, as we do. They need your protection. They need our protection."

Sean was reeling from Tobias's claim, and he hated the way he'd said natural authority... Nothing about what he was implying sounded natural to Sean.

"I..." Sean didn't know what to say. After collecting his thoughts for a second, he tried again. "What do you mean they need our protection?"

"Oh, I don't know... from other witches or covens that might find out about them. They've done well to hide so far, but it's only a matter of time."

"Hey, Sean?" Trevor nudged his friend's arm.

Sean pulled his eyes away from Tobias to look at Trevor.

"Mad chills bro," Trevor warned. "Something doesn't smell right..."

Sean swallowed, gently scratching the top of Trevor's head. He felt the same way, though he couldn't exactly express it to his friend at the moment.

"I'm sorry," Sean apologized, looking back up at Tobias. "I don't get what you're getting at. I didn't control anyone or make the wolves do anything."

"Really?" Tobias looked surprised as he rubbed his chin in thought. "You think it's a coincidence that you're the first to find out about them? You don't think that they gave you any special treatment? Nothing makes you think that things would have turned out differently if you were just human?" Tobias looked very unconvinced.