Page 28 of Witch's Exile
12
DEJA
"My first body was the first human woman ever created," I explained.
"You're Eve?" Chase squeaked in shock.
"No." I turned to face him. "I'm Lilith, Adam's first wife. Eve was my replacement for him because the so-called Almighty fucked up on his first try."
Sal threw his head back with a laugh. "You mean he made you absolutely perfect, beautiful."
"How were you a fuck up?" Now Chase was the one burning with curiosity.
I grinned. "I refused to be subservient to my husband. He created us both from Earth, so I always felt I should be his equal. When he made Eve from Adam's rib, well, I guess that solved that problem for him." My grin grew wider. "But when Lucifer tempted her with the forbidden fruit, he proved even the meekest, most submissive women have curiosity and a thirst for knowledge. It's such a shame the Almighty saw that as the downfall of his perfect creation."
"So how'd you get involved with demons?"
"You've heard of the fall of Lucifer, right?"
Chase nodded. "Yeah, he used to be an angel, right? And then rebelled and got thrown out of heaven?" He ran a hand through his golden brown hair. "Fuck me sideways, are you telling me that angels exist, too?"
"There wouldn't be any demons without angels," I teased. "And you're right. Lucifer rebelled along with two others-- Beelzebub who oversees Hell with him, and Ashtaroth." I paused to taste Ash's full name in my mouth. Fuck, I wished he was here. He'd find these shifters utterly fascinating. "He saved me from the Almighty's wrath and took me to Hell with him. Lucifer found me a hell of a lot more useful than the Almighty did. Ash was in love with me and I fell for him too, literally." I smiled at the memory. “He and Lucifer thought I needed more demons for protection so Sal and Raum were created for me. And,” I waved my hand casually, “As they say, the rest is history."
A comfortable silence fell around the fire as our new friends absorbed my story. Sal placed the first elk steaks on the grill and returned to his spot next to me, kissing my cheek.
"I've always suspected witches and demons are closely related." Orion scratched his salt and pepper stubble thoughtfully as the fire hissed with the first drippings of elk fat. "Always seemed to be lots of similarities, especially down south. Even I could feel the black magic in the air down there."
That gave me the perfect opportunity to ask him my next question.
"Do you know how shifters originated?" I asked. "Until I met Mr. Jacob here," I leaned over and ruffled his thick orange hair. "I thought shifting was purely a demon ability. And not all of them can."
"No one knows for sure." Orion smiled warmly at me from across the fire. "The ongoing theory from our historians is we come from a human mating with a demon who ah, shifted during the time of climax."
Sal began choking and spitting from the wine he just drank while I stared awkwardly and blushed.
"Oh. I see," was all I could say.
"You can imagine biology or mother nature or what-have-you does not approve of such a union," Orion went on with a teasing grin. "So the children born of that union essentially lost the genetic lottery. They can shift at about age five and have animal-like senses but have no other magic abilities."
"We haven't lost anything," Astrid said a bit defensively, holding Jacob tightly. "We're just different. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with us."
"I agree, my love." Orion looked at her fondly from across the fire. The ache in my chest grew deeper when I heard Ash's term of endearment for me come from his mouth. I tried my best to swallow my envy of Astrid surrounded by her family here, whole and complete.
"So you two must have seen some crazy shit since well, the beginning of time and now." Conan added more steaks to the fire and I was grateful for the subject change. "How about some stories?"
Sal and I ate our fill of elk steak as we laughed and swapped stories with our new friends. The sun had long disappeared and Jacob was out cold against his mother's side by the time we stood to head back. Astrid insisted on sending us home with several pounds of meat carefully wrapped in butcher paper.
"Come see us anytime, for any reason." She pulled me into a hug and her large blue eyes were serious when she pulled away. "If you need to get away again quickly, we can help."
"Thank you," I said earnestly. "For everything. Your hospitality, understanding, everything. I mean it."
"Except shooting you." Her lips pulled into a smirk.
"Yeah, except that," I laughed. "But the steaks and wine were great, so I'm over it."
We said our goodbyes and began making our way carefully through the dark woods. I cast a small ball of fire to light our way as Sal and I walked silently side by side.
"That was... really something," he breathed after a few moments of silence.
