Unfamiliar Territory - Chapter 9 (Early Access) (Patreon)

The morning was chilly enough to wake Chloe before she was ready. Harshly cold air prickled at her back, but her chest, tummy, and the insides of her thighs were clinging to the giant mass of fur radiating their cramped shelter with heat. She buried in closer… just a little longer…

They were down to their last jar of preserved food, and it was a Chloe-made concoction. Tove was brave enough to take first bite for breakfast, announcing that it was safe and letting Chloe eat her fill while she took down their camp.

"Why are you breaking everything back down?” Chloe called behind her. “It might be useful to someone else."

"No one who needs a shelter should be out this deep into wolf territory. And it's always safest for the local animals to leave things how you found them,” Tove explained over her shoulder, muscles and veins shifting with every flex of her arms. “If you dig a hole, fill it back up so nothing gets trapped in it. If you start a fire, bury the ashes so you know for sure it won't light again once you're gone.” She ripped free her handmade ropes. “The forest knows what is best for it, so we try not to disturb it, at least only temporarily if it's necessary." A clap of her hands announced their camp spot had been restored.

"I see." Chloe held out the jar. Tove cleared it of all remaining stew in a matter of seconds. “I’ll remember that,” she promised.

“When you’re back in your big, magical city?” Oh, yes, the mass of grey stone, always on the horizon. Soon Chloe would be up a turret, taking notes in pencil and decorating them with wiry flower sketches. It didn't make the information stick to her brain any better, but it brightened up her work. Not that her professors thought as much, but she wouldn't be there forever, just one more year. The most exciting one, and then she could come running back to the forest. Back with Tove.

“When…” Chloe faltered, shame shading her dream for a moment. “When I become a nature witch.”

“When does that happen?”

“Well, I start my final year once the summer is over, and then I get to specialise. Your specialisation year is incredibly important, it basically dictates the rest of your life!”

Tove rinsed the jar with some of their collected water. "You sound... excited for that."

"I am!” Chloe beamed. “It's the beginning of my magical career."

"I would think you would worry over such a constricting choice. What if you turn thirty and decide you want to dabble in blood magic?"

Chloe snorted, flinging her head back so hard her spectacles fell wonky back on her nose. "Blood magic is not real! That's an old myth."

"How do you know?” Tove folded her arms over her chest. “There are people that swear they've seen it."

"That was probably healing magic,” Chloe mused. “Sometimes it's called life force magic, by those that revere it and refuse to acknowledge its limitations. And the people that think it's glorified herbalism, they call it death magic - because they don't expect you to survive it."

"Where does the blood come in?"

"Healing magic can be messy, depending on the patient.” She shuddered. “I wouldn't even consider specialising in it, the human body is too complicated.” With her barely-usable healing theory knowledge from the academy, Chloe was too afraid to attempt to heal her own paper cuts. It was only when she thought an animal’s life was on the line she was willing to try and learn that night with Tove. Then her books had been useless anyway… “And the politics around it as a career would drive me mad. Either people expect you to perform miracles, or they view you as the person subjecting their ancient relative to some horrible ritual that never had a chance at resuscitation in the first place. All the ethics of it... I couldn't bear it."

"And there was no other career you even considered?"

"My whole family fell into either nocturnal or cosmic magic divinations, so it was assumed I would, too. If I hadn't fallen in love with nature, I would have probably picked one of those."

Tove dropped into a crouch, preparing a more comfortable position for more questioning. "Did your family want you to be like them?"

"They just want me to be happy.” Chloe smiled to herself. “I'm very lucky."

"Even if you are different?"

Chloe faltered. She still had to look up at Tove when the woman was crouching, and when she did, there was a strange look on her face. "Maybe if I had chosen diurnal, it would have been an issue,” she said, only partly joking. “But they are fine with my preference. They don't see what I see in the world beyond the walls and that's okay. All the more wilderness for me!"

“If you haven't specialised yet, what kind of magic do you do now?” Tove’s face tilted and her hair flopped to one side. “I haven’t seen you cast any spells. Not since the familiar one.”

“I don’t… have a lot of experience casting," Chloe admitted. "First year of the academy is magical theory, second year is magic building and withholding - techniques to maintain a constant reserve of power safely and securely. So… we don’t really cast our own spells very often until we specialise in a divinity. Not unless we’re channelling our magic through items or rituals, and even then it’s very basic. Once you choose your divinity, you start harnessing the power of it and it gives you more to work with. For the moment… all I have is my biological magic.”

A long humming sound and Tove nodded slowly. “I imagined magic folk started learning spells as soon as they could speak." She put on a deep, wobbling voice. "Toddlers chanting in a creepy language and summoning the elements!” Her hands waved and fingers wiggled, and Chloe laughed again.

“Oh no!" she gasped. "That would be very dangerous. We’re not allowed to attempt any magic until we’re adults.”

Tove grinned. “What spells can you do then?”

“I have more rituals than spells, I can do a water ritual?”

“We have water.” Tove pointed at the lake, easy grin in place.

“No, I mean a ritual that commands water, makes it move where you like.”

"Can you get it into one of your jars?"

Chloe bit her lip. "Um, that's quite a tight target."

"Okay, just show me what you can do and I'll be sure to look impressed.” She held a hand out and lifted Chloe to her feet when she accepted it.

It took longer to hobble back down the bank than it did to layer the chalky symbols over Chloe's skin, only now noticing that the sun had kissed her a little, the marks never showed up that well before...

It was a simple charm, it wouldn't last long and it couldn't move great volumes, but it had been an easy one to practice in the bath, so Chloe had confidence in it as a way to prove to Tove she wasn't entirely without skills. She stood just close enough for the water to cover her bare feet, partly for ritual purposes and partly because the cold was soothing on her ankle.

Ever so slowly, with great dramatic flair, Chloe lowered her hand to the river. The symbol on the back didn't even glow with how little magic she was funnelling into it, but she looked over her shoulder at Tove and pretended to look awed at her own power. Tove was still smiling, mildly and expectantly.

Chloe let forth a squirt of water from the lake, leaping in an arch, and landing on Tove's toes with a splat.

Silence held them for a few moments.

"Wow," Tove said, almost sounding sincere. "That was... well, I've definitely never seen anything... like that. I, um-"

It was impossible to keep a straight face. Watching Tove desperately fight to appear impressed had cackles doubling Chloe over, her nose almost touching the water and her glasses about to be lost to the depths. She kept one hand on the lake, held her specs on tight with the other and watched her reflection laugh.

"Was that not it?"

"No," Chloe gasped. "I just wanted to see how serious you were about pretending to be impressed."

"You could have stuck one hand in the water and spat at me and I would have given you a round of applause,” Tove said with a wink.

Chloe laughed again, her head bowed so low now that the end of her braid had been dipped and darkened by the water. "You have such a way at being both crude and kind at the same time."

Tove laughed, too, and Chloe straightened. She wanted to truly show her what she could do, or at least a piece of it. She hadn't spent two years in training for nothing.

The water drew in towards her, soft ripples approaching and dissipating at her command until she was encircled, with her heels remaining on a round, dry island of pebbles. Chloe lowered herself to her self-made-mound and sat with her feet plopped back into the icy relief of the water. Her other hand pressed palm-to-surface, and the asymmetrical symbols glowed gently with a steady release of power. The water pulled anti-clockwise, forming a wide whirlpool that swirled Chloe's private island.

A current, pushed by magical power, now separated Tove from her. Glints of silver sparkled where the occasional fish was caught in the stream. Chloe let her hands rise and fall in a relaxed tempo, bringing the water up with her, as though glued to her palms, and creating larger and larger waves until they became temporary partitions, shielding her as high as her arms could reach. Between each wall of water, Chloe was offered a glimpse back out at the world around her, at Tove watching her with a strange look on her face: brows high, a tickle of a smile rounding her cheeks, and a little chin tilt. Chloe grinned, her concentration slipped, and gallons of water fell around her like grenades, exploding with splashes that covered Chloe from crown to ground. Chalk marks were swept from her skin and with it went control of her tiny portion of river. Before the fallen tides had settled, Tove was already pulling her up and out of the cold.

She kicked her way back out of the lake, Chloe scooped against her. "That was amazing, Chloe!"

If she weren’t coated in freezing water, Chloe would be burning with mortification. "You don't have to lie to save my pride, it's pretty well destroyed already."

"What do you mean?” Tove laughed incredulously. “That was the best thing I've ever seen!"

"Until it wasn't. I lost control at the end." Because I got distracted staring at you.

"That wasn't deliberate? I thought you were trying to make a big splash."

Chloe groaned. "I made a big mess."

"Well, it was an impressive mess from where I was standing."

Chloe turned her face away from the water, which only left Tove's chest to bury into and hide from her shame. Luckily, she had put her top on already. Bouncing back up the bank, Tove carried her to what had been their camp. It was now only a backpack, some scattered ashes if you knew to look, and a few branches spread out along the tree line. With great, and appreciated, care, Tove placed Chloe on the ground beside her pack. She was soaked to the bone. At least it would probably be another hot day. With the cover of trees blocking the sun, though, Chloe wondered if she would be dry by the time they reached the wolf den. As far as bad impressions went, turning up looking like a rat pulled from a sewer grate wasn't ideal.

"How much further do you think we have to walk?" Chloe asked, trying to keep a shiver from her voice.

Tove crouched at her side with a scrunched mouth. "Hmmm... I could clear it in half a day... which means we may have one more sleep in store for us at your speed."

Chloe swivelled away, sulking. Her pride could only take so many hits in such quick succession. Tove took the end of her braid and twirled it around her hand, tenderly turning Chloe's head back towards her when her fingers reached the base of her neck. They were warm, but Chloe still shivered at the touch.

"I'm not saying it isn't possible for us to make it by nightfall," Tove said, careful and soft, as though Chloe were an animal that might spook easily. "It's just not likely. And with your sore ankle, I think it would be best for you not to push too hard. There's plenty of time. As long as I'm heading home, making any kind of progress, I'm happy."

Chloe sighed. "I forgot about my ankle..."

"Is it still hurting?"

"Only a little..."

"Then.... and this is a one-time offer, not be spoken of in front of any werewolf company..."

Chloe tilted her head.

"Wanna ride me?"

Yes.

"As a wolf, I mean."

Oh. Also yes.

"Are you sure?" Chloe asked.

"No, so make up your mind fast before I take back the offer.” Tove looked away, as though scanning for eavesdroppers. The tip of her ear was pink. “My ancestors are probably already looking down on me with shame."

"Why is it shameful?"

Tove turned back to face her. "Because you're magic folk. There's something... wrong with the dynamic it creates, I guess.” She fiddled with the skirt tie, wrapping it over and under her fingers. “It's hard to explain, but wolves don't appreciate being treated like they're owned.” Her hands halted and she laughed quietly. “Then I guess, it's too late for that now, huh?" Her grin turned sharp for a moment. "Since you made me your pet."

“I swear- I never-”

“I know.”

“I’m sorry-”

“I know.”

Chloe fell silent for a few moments. Tove watched her, waiting for an answer.

"Have you ever let someone... ride you before?"

"We carry puppies or other wolves around if they need it. But that's helping your community, it's not... becoming a human's horse."

"I see." And I really want to accept the offer, but... "I wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable, so I'd rather continue on foot."

"If you're sure... the closer we get to the pack lands, the less likely the offer will still be extended."

Chloe nodded. "I'm all packed up already, so let's make the most of the daylight we have!" And hope to goodness that the daylight dries her off before they reach werewolf company.

Tove laughed and offered her both hands to pull up from the ground again. "I like the attitude, but let's take it easy on those injuries, okay?"

Chloe nodded again, flushed from forehead to clavicle.