Wolf & Witch

Chapter 1

It had been humid and rainy the last couple days, and Sean managed a grin as he observed the fog hugging the slope of tall, skinny aspens.

"That does look cool," he agreed, spotting glimpses of the Gibsons' house nestled back in between the trees.

Anna nudged him. "You know, Mrs. Gibson was at the salon today. They're celebrating their golden anniversary soon."

"Damn," he breathed, "that's fifty years, isn't it?" Fifty years... Sean could hardly imagine that. He'd only been dating Jesse for two, even though it felt like it'd been much longer.

"Yeah. Some of their kids and grandkids are coming up this weekend to visit with them."

The idea brought a genuine smile to Sean's face. "I bet they're excited."

He imagined it would be hard having your children and grandchildren living out of state like the Gibsons did.

His grandparents on his mom's side lived in town and Annalise's place was only a ten-minute walk from his. He'd grown up with his cousin feeling more like an older sister, and had a great relationship with his aunt and uncle. Just the idea of being away from his family, or the coven in general, for college filled him with anxiety.

When they got to his cousin's house, his dad was sitting on the front porch with his uncle. Each had a beer in hand and broad smiles on their faces.

"Hey, there they are!" his dad said, waving as Sean and Annalise came through the front yard.

"You both better get in there and get ya something to eat before it's gone," Tyron added.

Before he even breached the front door, Sean was hit with the familiar smell of his Aunt and Uncle's house.

His mom grew the herbs in her garden, then gave them to her sister, who dried them out for use. So, their house permanently smelled like sage, mint, lemon balm, and lavender.

The moment he got the front door open, a small form trotted past Sean's legs, and led the way into the kitchen.

The fluffy tabby cat announced himself with a few quick meows, tail held high, clearly expecting to get some sort of treat.

"Sean," his aunt called from the sink.

"Sorry, Aunt Debby," Sean said, quickly scooping the tabby up into his arms. He knew his aunt didn't particularly care for animals being in the kitchen.

"It's fine, hun, I'll open a can of something for him in a second," she said while Sean's mother pulled out bowls for him and Anna. "You can put it out on the porch."

"Thanks," Sean called, heading back towards the front door.

The orange and white cat had been an almost constant companion of Sean's for the last four years, and no one really gave him any grief over it. 'Trouble' had belonged to Sean's late best friend, so it wasn't hard for anyone to understand why he'd be so attached to the cat.

What no one else knew though, save for the man who'd helped Sean do it, was that the spirit of Trevor Hennessey was the only thing inhabiting the feline body.

Trouble was Trevor.

No one else could hear Trevor except for Sean, because he was the one who performed the ritual. Voodoo wasn't a practice their community condoned. So, no one, especially his parents, could ever find out what he'd done.

"Here's an idea, Mrs. Erikson, this time you eat on the porch, and I'll eat at the table," Trevor's voice suggested in place of 'meows'.

The tabby scowled towards the kitchen before looking at Sean, who snorted at the comment but didn't reply.