Eva woke. Her full name was Eva Michelle. When she was younger, she'd disliked "Eva",
and went by Michelle full time. Part of her missed those days.
But her new life demanded a more grown-up name. Eva was 19, though you wouldn't
know it by looking at her. She'd always been very petite for her age, and her mother had
refused to allow hormone treatments.
Eva didn't really blame her mother; there were risks involved, and there was nothing wrong
with her health. Still, she wouldn't have minded being a little taller...or having more
stamina or muscle tone.
She tried, she really did, but working out seemed to have very little benefit. Oh sure, the
muscle tone she did have would have been phenomenal....when she was 10. At 18
though, she was just weak.
Add to that how cute she was, and she was, as one of her friends put it, "a victim waiting
for a crime".
Oh she'd taken martial arts for years, and while it's true that size can be overcomed, her
sensei never lied to her. It did matter. She lacked height, reach, and leverage, and was
never able to gain the strength to overcome those flaws.
While she could defend herself, and make someone hurt, it wouldn't take much to
overpower her.
She'd always felt intimidated by men (and a lot of women too) as a result. She'd been too
afraid to enter a relationship, well, before she'd met Scylla.
That wasn't her real name, but her "Power-name". Scylla wasn't actually a Goth, although
it was an easy mistake to make. She wore similar clothing, dark colors always, her hair
dyed a dark lavender shade, and platform boots that made her just over 6' tall. But Scylla
had a girly side, that was far more gentle than she let on.
Eva had learned this one night when the two of them bumped into each other at the
library. Literally, Scy had knocked her over.
She didn't blame the taller girl for not noticing her, but Scylla had immediately crouched
down to help her up. Looking into the other girl's violet eyes and the look of concern, Eva
felt a strange warmth inside her. Actually they were contacts, Scy's natural shade was
grey, but violet suited her so well.
At first Scy had thought she was a little girl, and was very surprised to find out Eva was
only a few months younger. They'd gotten together for coffee, Scy's treat, and found out
that they had a lot in common.
True, Eva wasn't into New-Age, but she was familiar with it. And Scylla had other interests
as well.
Eva had never had feelings for another girl before, and she tried to write it off as puppy
love...but she'd never met anyone like Scylla Grey, and being near her...it was like standing
next to a high-voltage transformer.
She followed Scylla everywhere, let the other girl dress her up like some giant doll, and
even tagged along to her Coven meetings. The other girls had seemed scary at first, but
they were actually very nice.
One night, Eva had joined in. Magic wasn't real to her, not really...but the moment had felt
magical. Afterwards, she confessed her feelings to Scylla.
"Oh Thank Hecate! God, Eva, you have no idea...I felt the same way the moment I laid
eyes on you...you just look so innocent...I couldn't bring myself to seduce you."
They'd laughed about it...and then, later, Scylla showed her how a woman could please
another woman. It had been the best night of Eva's life.
The next month was pure bliss as well...until that bitch came into their lives.
Scylla had an ex-girlfriend, who'd dumped her for some guy who claimed to be a real
sorcerer. It had tore the other girl up badly, and Eva did what she could to console her
lover.
She called herself Alecto. Apparently she'd decided on Scylla's name as well, both taken
from Greek mythology. Alecto was a tall woman, even taller than Scylla. She was pretty
enough, but there was something...predatory about her that Eva didn't like.
At first Scylla was cool towards Alecto's return, and the Coven was dead-set against
Alecto..the other girl had burned a lot of bridges.
But something was wrong. Just earlier, Tabitha (one of the Scylla's coven-mates had
called her and told her the truth).
Rushing to the coffeeshop, she saw Scylla and Alecto making out. Scylla looked ashamed
when she saw Eva...but she didn't move an inch from Alecto's side.
"As if a baby like you could take Scylla from me. She's mine, little girl, and don't you
forget it!"
Eva ran...and didn't stop until she'd gotten to the park. She remembered feeling funny,
then blacking out. Could Alecto had cursed her?
She didn't want to believe it, but....what else could explain Scylla but some dark spell?
She felt pretty rested, and the tears were gone for now, at least. She sat up, and then
realized she had no idea where she was.
She was laying on a very large cot, in what seemed to be a storage room. It was dimly lit
by a child's nightlight, shaped like an old wizard in a blue robe with stars embroidered on
it.
Just then, the door opened, and she heard a gentle voice. "Come on out, Michelle, we
need to talk. Oh and watch your step."