"N-no..." I try hard not to laugh.
I take a deep breath and put a quick kiss on his lips.
"...But I think you're really cute when you're mad at me," I confess.
He growls.
"That is not the effect I was looking for. Can't you take your boyfriend seriously?"
"You're the one underestimating me, and provoking me too," I retort, my eyes going down to the pairs of abs lined up right in front of me.
Liam grabs my chin between his fingers, making me raise my head.
"Look here," he says. "Mara, I am really, really serious. I was really worried just a couple of minutes ago. Don't you disappear on me again, please."
"Sorry... I didn't disappear, though, I was just downstairs..."
"Downstairs doing dangerous witch stuff. What does it take for you to understand I worry about you? My girlfriend is a walking bomb, she loves to get herself in trouble and with nobody to help. You need to have me tag along, Mara. I am your mate. I may not be a witch, but I am your mate. Don't leave me on the sidelines. Please."
I let out a long sigh. I know where he's coming from, and... I just can't blame him. He has watched me go through hell and back, all in just a matter of days. I can understand he doesn't trust me, in many ways... I put my arms around his neck, only too happy to caress his skin. Damn, he's sexy with his post-nap hairstyle... I just want to brush it forever, but for now, we’re having a serious talk.
"Alright, I'm sorry," I whisper. "I know I should have... probably woken you up."
"Not probably," he growls. "You should have. That's it. Mara, I'm never going through that shit I went through again. If I have to put my witch on a leash, I will."
I smile and tilt my head.
"We might just try that sometime," I whisper into his ear.
Liam raises both eyebrows, and I swear I almost saw his wolf ears perking up.
"That might be–Hey, are you trying to change the subject right now?"
I shake my head, and give him another quick kiss to have him drop that frown.
"No, we're right on topic. I get it, Liam, I promise. No more leaving you. Or at least, not without telling you where I'm going and so on. ...But once again, for the record, I was literally just downstairs."
"Downstairs doing witch stuff with Nora. What was that, by the way?"
Although the conversation took a more serious tone, he wraps his arms around my waist, not letting me go at all. Not that I mind, but we are still in someone else's kitchen... Oh, well. I guess Nora must be used to half-naked brother-in-laws. Lucky her...
"I thought that with Nora's help, we... I could get rid of the curse inside me, for good. Nora's power is basically nothing but pure Light Magic. She was trying to help me clean the curse out of my body, to make it short."
"So... it didn't work, from what I understood?"
I grimace a bit.
"Not really... I don't feel like... I lost, though. It's a strange sensation, but I think the curse wasn't as... aggressive as before."
"You mean it didn't try to completely take you over?" says Liam, raising an eyebrow. "I hope we're never doing the body swap thing ever again, because that was really disturbing."
"No," I chuckle. "I think we're good on that one. No, I just think... The curse was actually trying to tell me something."
"I heard the part where it said you were a Dark Witch. Are you going to tell me that isn't complete bullshit?"
I grimace, hesitating a bit.
...Is it, though? In some ways, the curse wasn't completely wrong... Moreover, it's a very ancient being, it probably knows loads more about Light and Dark Magic than I do. I just feel like it was trying to teach me something. I've been seeing all of this as a... a bit of a black or white situation, so far. Light Magic against Dark Magic. Good witches against evil ones. Is it really that simple, though...? I keep trying to think about it, but something was off today. Really off, in the curse's attitude. I just can't pinpoint why. It wasn't as aggressive as before, and I thought it might have been because of Nora's doing, but... No, I feel like something really changed. Did I trigger something? Or is it because little Mara is gone?
