Of all the controversies that had stemmed from the supernatural being revealed to the world, one in particular had stood out: the new laws against conjuring currency.
There had been a time where witches could get away with poofing coin and cash into existence, utilizing their magical capabilities to remove any concern over providing for themselves. As long as they were careful, those with a bone to pick with spellcasters wouldn't generally take notice, and they could comfortably live without needing a monotonous day job. The World Witches Council had, to its credit, been trying to crack down on that practice for years - but witches and other paranormal creatures being thrust into public knowledge had made it an urgent issue. Within six months of the Veil lifting, every major country had passed laws restricting what could and couldn't be conjured, and established police forces to apprehend violators.
It had a practical reasoning. Thousands and thousands of witches across the world, poofing money out of nowhere - it was just begging for the planet's entire economic system to collapse as hyperinflation unlike anything ever seen before became a possibility. Other commodities, things like food and water and electricity, were equally regulated now, mostly thanks to the corporations that provided such goods not wanting their business model to fall apart at the seams. Most witches utterly despised these new restrictions, but had little choice other than to go along with it, hoping that, at the very least, being able to practice magic openly would compensate for having to live more like normal, boring mortals capable of making the law of conservation of energy and mass go and eat shit.
And it presented opportunities to even run of the mill humans - humans like Clarissa. A young writer, fresh out of high school and trying to launch a career, she was mostly making ends meet with a crummy retail job, with very limited success. The perky blonde had a roommate previously, but not long after the veil lifted, they'd revealed themselves as a werespider and fucked off to go join a commune of arthropods in Arizona. That left her trying to pay rent alone in San Francisco right as a massive cultural shift was sending rent prices even higher - and that had been about as successful as one could expect. She'd been forced to look for a new place to stay and a roommate to bunk with, and after rejecting a few dozen candidates, she'd finally found one who seemed absolutely perfect.
Cute, pretty, and utterly sweet, Marina had been both the subject of Clarissa's interest from the get-go, and of a little bit of a crush. The Greek girl was a witch who'd just graduated some fancy-pants academy for young witches, and now was settling down in the city by the bay to pursue a technology career - withces, as it turned out, made for excellent engineers, and that was before you got into the value of enchanting cutting-edge electronics. It paid well, but things were still tight, and she needed somebody to help pick up the slack. Clarissa had, to her immense excitement, been Marina's absolute favorite candidate - they were currently sitting and laughing after several hours of chatting, Clarissa feeling increasingly hot under the collar just looking at this gorgeous, funny, brilliant woman she might well be living with soon.
"-which is how I leanred never to give a mermaid your number, ever." Clarissa giggled as Marina finished her story, tucking a strand of blonde hair back behind her ear. "But seriously," the witch continued, "I'm thinking this could really work. There's just, ah... one... slight thing we need to talk about. I promise, it's.... it'll sound weird at first, but trust me, it's not bad."
The blonde shrugged. "Hey, I've been getting real used to weird lately. Lay it on me."
Marina took a deep breath. "Okay... I told you I'm looking for a roommate, and... that's true. Totally true. What I didn't quite mention is... I'm looking for something more than that. I need... I need what you'd call a... bodymate."
"A... what?"
"Another person who... shares my body." She let out a long sigh. "Okay, see... witches are outnumbered by humans, like... really outnumbered. There's a few hundred thousand of us, and a few billion of you. Soooooo... the council... they're offering rewards, for... for making more witches."
Clarissa raised an eyebrow. "So... you need a baby daddy?"
Marina laughed. "Yeah, nooooo. Most witches are like... living beacons of lesbianism. We make women gay just by being around them." Which would explain the sudden upswell of gay adoration Clarissa had developed since walking in here. "We can't give ourselves magic dicks that are actually fertile, so... that leaves... conversion. If a witch shares a body with a human long enough, then when that human seperates... all the magic they absorbed will leave them a witch too. The council offers a pretty hefty stipend to witches who do it... so... that's what I really need you for."
As the realization set in, Clarissa's big blue eyes were growing as wide as dinner plates. "You... you want to make me a witch? And, what... I'd have to just... share your body? How does that work."
"I'd cast a spell to merge us into one person," Marina explained, "Exactly how we blend is up to you. We can be half and half, you on one side and me on the other, two heads on one body, a total fusion combining our features... it's pretty variable. You'll still be you in there, as your own person, but we'll be able to communicate mentally... we'll share sensations and control of the same body. Or, hell, you can just get fully absorbed into one part of me if you want to spend a few years vacationing as my boobs or something."
The thought was tempting. "Holy shit." She ran a hand through her hair, overcome with shock. The whole idea of sharing that drop-dead amazing body... oh god, it might get her wet if she thought about it too much. Years being right there, as close to Marina as one could possibly be - and when they finally split, she got to be a nigh-immortal wielder of magic, able to bend the laws of reality to her will... this was sounding like all upsides to her. Best of all, she wouldn't need the shitty job anymore! There was only one answer she could give. "I am so, so on board!"
Relief flooded Marina's beautiful features. "I... great!" She seemed surprised - no doubt some moron or another had turned her down already. Their loss as far as Clarissa was concerned. The blonde's heart rate jumped up as Marina stood and walked over to her, taking Clarissa's hand and pulling the young woman to her feet. "Okay... so... best thing to do, is you come by for dinner tomorrow night, and in the meantime, think about what kind of merge you want. Then after dinner..." She smiled, and it practically melted Clarissa's heart. "We'll come together."
There were a few other things to work out before Clarissa departed, little logistical things that proceeded Marina sending her off with a quick kiss to the lips that she quickly retreated from in embarrassment. The little bit of a smooch had Clarissa's head spinning for the whole night, and for the whole rest of the day as she attended to her affairs. Quitting her job, telling her boss to eat shit, telling her parents and friends what she was doing, letting her landlord know she'd be leaving soon. All the while, she was debating just how she wanted to be blended with the new object of her affections - but by the time she showed up at Marina's the next night, dressed in a sexy black evening dress and done up to her prettiest, she'd finally decided what she wanted...