The Thaumaturge [Chapters 4 and 5: Abrupt Interruptions]

Authors Note: Well, this chapter turned out so long that I broke it up into two chapters, with a lot of world-building/premise-establishing. But I'm posting them both at the same time. In my defense, you all tasked me with a challenging premise with the tie between Viv and Diana, since it's still a little early in the story for a threesome. ;) 

As usual, welcome feedback!

I'm posting the next what-happens-next poll in the next day or two. I'll leave it open for about a week.

---

CHAPTER 4: ABRUPT INTERRUPTIONS I

In the end, I decided to reach out to Diana.

I have to admit, I was torn. I knew the least about Diana, after all. But she hadn't lied to me, hadn't gone on a date with me under false pretenses. Both Viv and Lauren could've told me more if they had wanted to.

I knew she was friends with Viv and Lauren, or at least on friendly enough terms to be in that photo. And that she had made me cum in my pants during a jiu jitsu class, I guess. I still couldn't believe that had happened.

Beyond that, I didn't know anything about her -- but she didn't know anything about me either. Didn't know I had met Viv or Lauren. That might be helpful.

This was one of those decisions that, in retrospect, turned out to be a big deal. You'll see why soon enough.

---

Anyway, decision made, I texted my coach.

Matt: hey, can you give me Diana's phone number or email? I want to ask if she wants to watch the next UFC fight with some of the guys.

Coach: Matt. She just joined the gym. If you hit on her I will be very disappointed.

It was a reasonable assumption.

Matt: That isn't the plan, coach. Honest.

I was being honest. Even if she was hot, and even if thinking about how she'd moved against me during class made me think she'd be incredible in bed.

Coach: OK. See you next week. You have to work on taking the initiative more btw, it looked to me like you're playing a very defensive game. Probably why she beat you. She was on offense more.

My face flushed reading that. The coach obviously didn't know it, but on offense had to be the euphemism of the century.

Matt: Thanks coach. Will do.

His next message was her phone number.

I gave him a thumbs up emoji.

---

I debated texting Diana, but decided to call. Better to get her reactions in real time. I punched the numbers in and hit dial before I could overthink this further. The phone picked up on the first ring. My heart was beating fast. Here we go.

"Yeah, hello?" A woman's voice, guarded. I recognized Diana.

"Is this Diana? It's Matt, from the gym earlier today; the coach gave me your number."

"Oh hey, Matt. What's up? Hoping to set up a rematch? You don't have to worry, I signed up for a membership after that open mat, so we can just roll again next week...unless you were hoping for a different kind of rematch..." She sounded amused.

I blushed. "N-no, uh, that is...I'm...wondering if I can ask you some questions."

"Oh yeah? About my good technique?" Even through the phone, I could hear that half-smile on her face.

I tried to muscle past the teasing, decided to opt for direct. "N-no. I'm, um...a thaumaturge. And, uh, I could use some...help understanding what that means."

I didn't know what it meant, but the word had the impact I had been hoping for: the dead silence on the other end lasted a full ten seconds. When she did respond, her voice was neutral. "Where'd you hear that word?"

I hesitated, trying to decide whether to lie, or maybe which lie to tell.

But before I could say anything, she spoke again. "You know what? It doesn't matter. You're gonna get yourself hurt, or worse, if you just go around announcing it like that. Let's talk. In person. Someplace quiet, but public. Got a favorite dive bar or something? Meet in half an hour?"

---

Thirty minutes later, I was at the Dew Drop Inn -- the same place I'd met Lauren for the first date that had started all of this. I didn't see Diana; I must've arrived first. I sat in one of the corner booths where I'd be able to see her come in. It was Sunday afternoon, and there weren't many people.

The anticipation of finally getting some answers was killing me. I ordered a beer and took big, long swigs.

Diana showed up late, nearly a full twenty minutes after me. Her eyes scanned the restaurant, noted me, and then kept scanning. I could tell she was giving the place a very thorough once over -- for what, I wasn't sure. But she seemed satisfied, and eventually approached.

Her short black hair looked a little damp. She was wearing a tank top, some gym shorts, and slides -- it looked like she had just come from showering at the gym, or maybe she was just having a lazy Sunday afternoon. The tank was a ratty Metallica t-shirt, sleeves removed. A few holes revealed a white sports bra underneath, peeking through in several places.

This outfit gave me a much better view of her tattoos than her jiu jitsu gi had. And she was absolutely covered in a head-turning number of tattoos. Most of them seemed to be of animals, done in black ink. A jellyfish and a squid wrapped around each other up the length of one arm, forming a sleeve. A gorilla on her right thigh. A lioness, or maybe a panther, on her left. Some kind of big bird of prey -- an eagle, maybe, or a falcon -- on her other arm.

Admittedly, though, my gaze mostly lingered on those gym shorts as she twisted sideways to get into the booth. Fuck, she really filled them out.

She sat down across from me just as the server was walking past. She ordered a shot of Jameson.

Her brown eyes met mine, and quirked up into that lazy smile for just a second. "If you just heard that word someplace and this is some kind of weird attempt to get me out on a date with you, you're going to regret it." I could hear the threat in her voice.

I shook my head. I opened my mouth to say something, to thank her for being willing to talk.

Diana held up one finger. "Okay, look, I don't really know you. So I don't really trust you. And beyond that, it's pretty fucking clear you have no idea what you're doing."

I closed my mouth and just nodded instead of speaking.

She continued. "But I think we could help each other out. So let's make this an even exchange of information. We trade questions. You ask one, I answer. Then I get to ask you a question. You answer it. We take turns. When one of us doesn't want to answer, we're done here."

I considered this. "How can I trust that you'll be honest?"

She laughed. "We'll count this as a freebie, not as your first question. You can't, not entirely. But I can't either, can I? I'm willing to do this because I think you can be helpful to me. So I'm going to be straight with you, as long as you're straight with me. If you think I'm lying, you should get up and leave."

I could be helpful to her? Well, that piqued my interest.

Diana must've read some expression on my face, because she added, "And, before you get some idea that you've got the advantage here, I've obviously got something you want, too: information. So you'll want to be honest with me, or I won't help you. The minute I think you're peddling bullshit, I'm out of here too."

I nodded. "Fair enough."

She sat back and crossed her arms. "So: you can go first. Ask."

"What's a thaumaturge?" My mouth was suddenly dry. Finally.

I kept my voice low. She gave a cursory glance aorund, and then responded, her voice a quiet monotone. It sounded like she was rattling off a definition.

"Thaumaturges are a type of willworker. They practice thaumaturgy: the art of transmuting effort into magic."

I blinked. Magic? But she looked serious. "What the fuck? Magic?" I was incredulous.

"That's another question and it's not your turn to ask anymore. So I'm not going to answer. But I'll help anyway." She paused and, without any ceremony, downed the shot of Jameson.

Then, she leaned forward, put her elbow on the table, and gave me that little smile. "Arm wrestle me."

I looked at her, still incredulous. "How will that help?"

I was in good shape. And we had rolled earlier today. She was strong, for a woman; but I knew I was stronger than her. She probably knew it, too.

She raised an eyebrow. "Scared you'll lose? You tapped to a girl once already today, remember?" The little smile got bigger. "And you didn't seem to mind."

"That's not why--" But I could see she was just trying to get a rise out of me. I rolled my eyes, shrugged, and reached across the table to clasp hands with her.

Her hand was warm, and her grip was strong.

I began exerting force, slowly. I didn't want to hurt her. But she was strong enough to resist, so I started applying some serious pressure. I could see the muscles in my arm cording and shifting as I struggled.

To my surprise, it felt like attempting to bend an iron bar with one hand. There was zero give, none. I applied even more force. My elbow and shoulder were starting to complain about the torque they were under. I glanced up at her in astonishment.

She looked bored, if anything, just that slight smile. "Use both hands, if you want. Just don't hurt yourself, ok?"

I brought my other hand on top of my first, throwing my weight into it, giving it all I could. Her arm maybe wavered, a tiny bit. Maybe.

And then, slowly, inexorably, she twisted her arm and shoulder, pinning the back of both my hands to the table in a single movement.

I watched it happen, disbelief on my face, resisting as hard as I could, as she pinned my hands. She did it smoothly. Controlled. The same way I would win in an arm-wrestling match against a four-year-old -- easily, but carefully, so I didn't injure them.

She let go after that, and I shook my arms out; my shoulder ached.

It was the very first time I had felt the effects of magic firsthand. 

I handled it about as well as you'd expect.

"That was--you must know some kind of trick, or--" I spluttered.

She was shaking her head, watching me. No smile now, serious again. "Whatever. You just got way more proof than most people get. If you still think magic is bullshit, fine. I've answered you, and then some. My turn to ask a question: where'd you first run into the word thaumaturge?"

My mind was reeling. Weird things had been happening, yes. But magic?

And then I realized she'd asked me a question. I considered what to do for a moment. Lie? But she'd been honest with me, I thought. I did not want to piss her off. My elbow twinged.

I opted for truthful. "I, uh, went on a date with a girl. We hooked up. Afterwards, she was texting. I got to look at her phone. One of her friends used the word."

Diana leaned forward, her voice intense. "Who?"

I shook my head, recovering my mental equilibrium at least a little bit. "No, now it's your turn to answer."

But I didn't know how to pick what to ask; questions swirled around each other in my mind, and I was still stuck on one thing: how impossible it was for her to have been that strong. "How...how'd you do that, the arm wrestling? I mean, when we rolled earlier, you were strong, but not like..."

She shook her head. "You're an idiot. What a waste of a question. I already told you -- magic. It was a spell I prepared before coming here, because I wasn't sure what I was walking into. It doesn't last long, takes a lot of power, but it's effective. There's not much point to casting that sort of spell before jiu jitsu class -- it's a lot of effort, and the whole point of class is to work on technique anyway."

A spell? I thought of the photo of her, Viv, Lauren...dressed up for Halloween, and the implication hit me. It was so...cliche. "You're... a witch?" I stammered it out, disbelief in my voice.

She rolled her eyes. "Another waste of a question, but it's my turn, so I'm not answering that anyway. Now: who were you hooking up with, when you heard the word?"

Witches. Magic. 

I refocused on her question, trying to decide whether there was some reason to only give her one name. But I opted for forthcoming, in the hopes of gauging her reactions to both.

"Um...Lauren..." I hesitated, watching her expression. She looked a little...relieved, maybe. Certainly unconcerned.

"...She was texting with Vivian," I added, after a beat.

A scowl leapt onto her face in an instant. "Ugh," she said. The derision in her voice was clear.

Interesting. "What do you have against..." But I stopped myself. I wasn't sure that was what I actually wanted to know the most. "The spell, how did you..." But that wasn't right, either. I paused, gathering my thoughts for a moment. She watched me, amused by my indecision.

What would actually help me understand what was going on? "What's...what's that mean, what you said earlier? Transmuting effort into magic?"

She pursed her lips. "Look, there are undoubtedly technical explanations for how it all works; that's not really my forte.. I was never that interested in magical theory. But basically, you create magical power, energy, better than other people. Everyone creates magic through applying willpower; that's how magical power is generated. Thaumaturges are better at it. Good thaumaturges are a lot better at it. Like..."

She mulled it over for a moment. "You ever seen those kits where you can use a potato to power a lightbulb?"

I nodded.

"Most of us are potatoes. Thaumaturges are like...actual batteries, or whatever."

The engineer in me immediately began dissecting this analogy. "Wait, but if I'm a battery, then what's the lightbulb? Is the magic electric current? The charge itself? This doesn't--"

She cut me off. "Okay, relax, Einstein. You just learned magic is real like five minutes ago. Like I said, I'm not big on the theory of it all; maybe batteries and potatoes isn’t quite right. But you get my point, yeah? Thaumaturges generate magical energy better than other people. More...efficiently. Through their effort. Got it?"

I had a million more questions, but I bit my tongue. "Okay, yeah, I guess. Your turn."

She looked thoughtful for a moment, and then: "During our jiu jitsu roll earlier, you, uh...lost control pretty fast, there, big guy. You mentioned my good technique, which I'm sure helped, but..." her nose crinkled with amusement. "Are you always so...sensitive?"

Was she really spending a question on this? My face reddened. "I, uh...I mean, not every...it was just that...you...uh..." I trailed off into silence. She had started laughing with the very first stammered word, and it only intensified as I kept talking.

"Holy shit." She was wiping at her eyes as her laughter subsided. "I thought that might be the case, but that sure confirms it. Wow. Okay, your turn."

I was reeling, trying to think about what to ask. I was curious why she had spent a question on that; I didn't think she just wanted to humiliate me, so it must be something else. I opened my mouth to ask about that...but there was something else nagging at me. I still didn't have the full story about how thaumaturgy worked. She had said I had something she wanted. Vivian and Lauren clearly wanted to stay in touch with me, too...

I went with the most straightforward question I could ask. "You said I have something you want. What is it?"

She shrugged. "I already told you. You make power efficiently, like I said. I get to use it. That strength spell I used just now? Building up that much energy myself would take...I dunno, a few hours of really hard work to prepare for, ordinarily. Think like...like running a half-marathon, or something. Thanks to you, though, I could do it a few more times today, if I wanted."

Thanks to me? I was still confused. And...running a half marathon? Another questionable analogy.

But it was her turn, now. "How long ago was it, when you saw Laur and Viv texting about thaumaturges?"

Laur and Viv. The nicknames rolled off her tongue with easy familiarity.

"Two days ago," I answered, truthfully.

She nodded. She looked satisfied with that.

"So...how did I...charge your batteries, or whatever?" The pieces were clicking into place, and I had an obvious guess. But I wanted to make sure, because it seemed...well, kind of absurd.

She leaned in, brown eyes locked on mine, knowing.

And then -- under the table -- I felt her foot, against my crotch.

"You know, Matt. You were trying to hold back...but you couldn't." She gave me that lazy half-smile again, and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Thaumaturges make effort into power. And a lot of effort went into trying not to cum in your pants, didn't it?"

I was getting hard at the memory, the intimate tone in her voice, the teasing words. The feel of her foot, gently massaging my cock and balls. Fuck. 

"My turn to ask a question. So: you hooked up with Laur. Viv, too, right?"

Most of my attention was now locked on the sensation of her foot sliding along my rapidly hardening length. I had never had a...footjob, before. Let alone in a bar. I looked around, nobody seemed to be noticing -- you'd have to be looking under our table deliberately to see it happening.

"I asked a question, Matt." Diana's voice was amused.

It snapped me back. "U-uh...yeah. Viv too."

Diana snorted her disapproval, a sour expression on her face. "I figured. Guys always want her. What was it...the big tits? The flirty personality? Never mind, those aren't actually questions. Your turn."

She had picked up the pace. I glanced down at my lap, the sight of her foot, toes curling as she kneaded, rubbing her sole along my length with just the right amount of pressure, doing all of this through my jeans...fuck, it felt incredible. How was she so good at this?

I tried to think through the haze of arousal, settling on information that might be useful to me. "Why, uh, why do you seem to hate Viv so much?"

Diana hesitated; the silence stretched, before she spoke. "We had a falling out, a year or two back. She...asked me to do something. She should never have asked me to do it. I shouldn't have done it either, I knew better. But I did it anyway. People got hurt. Things turned out badly. We parted ways. And if you press me for more details than that, I'm going to leave."

I filed that away for later. It was getting hard to focus on anything besides the physical sensations anyway. Her foot was insistent, urgent, now, moving rhythmically against me. It reminded me almost exactly of the way our jiu jitsu match had ended. I bit back a moan.

"My turn." That small smile, as she leaned forward again. "Want me to make you cum, Matt?"

"I-I--" I laughed, helplessly, the arousal of the situation, the absurdity of her asking that alongside all of these other questions, finally getting to me. "That's seriously your question?"

She nodded, sly. "I could tell you didn't want it in jiu jitsu. Not that it mattered what you wanted; I wasn't going to let you tap me. I want to know if you want it now. I could use the boost of energy after the spell I just cast..."

Then she leaned in again, smug. "...But if you want me to make you cum in your pants again, you have to ask for it, this time."

I glanced around the room. Again, nobody could see us. I felt a little ashamed. I was really going to cum from her feet, massaging my cock? But it felt so good.

I met her gaze. She gave me that knowing half-smile, and an especially slow, teasing movement of her foot against me. She knew what I was going to say. I looked away, embarrassed.

"Yeah," I muttered. I was too turned on to give any other answer.

"Hmm? Couldn't hear you." Diana was very pleased with herself.

I reddened. "Y-yeah, I want...you to make me cum."

"Mmm. Good." She continued, the sole of one foot working my length. I could feel her bring her other foot up, massaging my balls. Jesus. I leaned back, looking up at the ceiling, trying to keep from moaning.

I also knew what I wanted to ask next. "Can you teach me the spell you did? You were strong as hell."

She opened her mouth to answer me, and then glanced to our side, towards the door. Her mouth tightened. "Shit. I'm cutting this short." I felt her pull her foot away.

"What? It's my turn, and you can't just..." Frustrated -- both at the lack of the answer, and the sudden removal of her foot from my cock -- I trailed off as I followed her gaze.

Viv, trailed by a guy, had just walked into the bar. She didn't appear to have noticed us; she was turned toward the guy, laughing at something he had said.

"Yes, I can. Those were the rules. And you went first, anyway. So we're even." Diana stood, deliberately angling herself away from Viv, I noted. She leaned back towards me as she extricated herself from the booth.

"Look," she hissed. "Magical power is political. I've always been a bit of a loner; it suits me just fine. I mostly don't have anything anybody wants. But thaumaturges are rare. Everybody's gonna want to use you. Be careful who you trust." She glanced towards Viv again, and started working her way out of the booth.

"Diana, c'mon, what--"

She cut me off. "Matt, I've given you plenty to chew on. If you really want, we'll continue this another time. If I start to run low on power before our next jiu jitsu class, I'll definitely text you." She winked at me and I blushed.

And then she was gone, striding off towards the back exit. I watched her ass shifting under the fabric of the gym shorts, frustrated.

---

CHAPTER 5: ABRUPT INTERRUPTIONS II

I sat in the booth for a few more minutes, finishing my beer, processing what had just happened as my erection slowly subsided. I tried to put the arousal out of my mind, and focus on what I'd learned.

I was unconsciously flexing my hand, I realized. It ached. How strong Diana had felt, the sensation of trying to pin her hand with both of mine, was etched into my memory.

Magic was real.

I was a thaumaturge.

As much as my mind was spinning, I think I expected to feel different, or something, y'know? She had said thaumaturges turned effort into power. But I didn't feel any hidden well of power in me, any new potential waiting to be tapped.

I just felt confused. I had a million questions, and I needed more answers.

But who to get them from?

Diana was obviously avoiding Vivian. Viv had said they "didn't get together anymore" when I had asked her about her friends in that photo, last night. Whether Diana's brief summary was leaving important things out, it was clear there was some bad blood.

Viv was right in front of me. I looked up, mulling over what to do. Viv was still sitting at the bar with that guy, having an animated conversation. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I watched them for a few minutes.

Viv looked like her usual bubbly self, and seemed to be doing most of the talking. As I watched, she made some point, touching him on his forearm for emphasis. The guy looked...well, a little annoyed, if anything. Stony-faced. Monosyllabic replies.

If it was a date, it was going badly.

I could talk to Viv. Except Diana had just told me to be careful who I trusted, and had clearly been talking about Viv.

But I wanted more answers. I didn't know enough. And if Diana wasn't going to give them to me...

I stood up, walking towards Viv.

And I know what you're thinking. Wow, what a surprising decision, Matt. Who could've known you'd follow up with the hot, outgoing blonde with the great set of tits in spite of being warned against it. Really had to think hard about this one, huh? 

Look. I said before, I'm superficial, but not that superficial, okay? I didn't remember every single detail of the text message exchange I had seen two days ago, but I remembered that last message on Lauren's phone with crystal clarity:

Viv: little Laur's first thaumaturge! Finally! LMK when you know for sure

To me, that made it sound like Viv was experienced. Knew more. Would have answers for me.

That clinched it.

And besides, Diana had really turned me on, and Viv might help with that, too.

I'd just be careful.

---

Viv was sitting at the bar, facing away from me; I came up from behind her and to the side, so she hadn't seen me yet. She was wearing light wash jean shorts that were so tight and short they barely qualified as shorts, treating me to an expanse of long, tanned thigh. The t-shirt she was wearing was white, tight enough that I could see the bra strap outlined across her back.

The guy she was talking to was watching me approach over Viv's shoulder, curiosity in his gaze. He was tall. Dark blonde hair cropped close, a short beard. Biceps bulged in a polo. Tall and jacked. Maybe mid-thirties or so?

The handsome features were familiar -- I recognized him from somewhere, vaguely. A little old to be a classmate of mine, though...

And then Viv turned around, following his gaze, and saw me. Emotions flickered across her face -- first surprise, then concern -- but it landed on excitement in the end. "Matt! Hi!" She hopped off the stool and gave me a hug.

"Hi, Viv." I felt her crush her tits against my chest, and recalled again just how the date had gone last night. Especially how quickly it had ended.

"Clint, this is Matt. Matt, this is my friend, Clint." She said it as she was pulling away from me.

"We are not friends," Clint said. He said it pleasantly enough, but matter-of-factly. Like he was making an observation about the weather. He had a trace of an accent -- something Middle-Eastern or Mediterranean, perhaps.

"Friendly, though," Viv enthused. "Friendly business associates!"

Clint shrugged, as if he'd accept that label. He was wearing, I realized, a polo that had a little lion on the breast -- the school's football team logo. It jogged my memory -- he was coaching staff on the school's football team, I thought. I had seen him on the sidelines at games, at university events, that sort of thing.

He stood up, extended his hand, shook mine. He was clearly the kind of guy who viewed handshakes as a dominance ritual, aggressively squeezing my hand. His grip was iron.

But there wasn't as much iron in it as there had been in Diana's grip, just a few minutes ago. The contrast was striking.

I realized in my head that some part of me had still been feeling like maybe Diana had been pulling some trick, or that I was having an off day or something where I was weaker than usual.

But Clint was fucking huge -- and his grip wasn't remotely as strong as hers.

That was the moment I believed, in my bones, that magic was real.

Anyway, Clint released my hand after a moment and glanced at Viv. "Our conversation is concluded. And as I said at the outset, it is simple: we will continue to honor our side of the agreement -- if you all continue to honor yours."

He nodded, firmly, as if that settled things, and turned to leave.

I watched him go, curious, until Viv slapped my arm, playfully.

"Matt! Are you stalking me?"

I looked at Viv. Her smile was infectious. It promised trouble...or maybe that she had a secret she was just about to let you in on. I smiled back at her. "No. I was here already..."

"Here? Why? You weren't on a date, were you?" she pouted. "And after you didn't even text me back. What's a girl supposed to think..."

I laughed in spite of myself. I tried to remind myself that whatever chemistry I was feeling might just be Viv using me, like Diana had said. With Viv in front of me, it was admittedly hard to keep that in mind.

"No, not a date..." I hesitated. I didn't want to tell her about Diana, that was for sure.

"...maybe you were just too embarrassed to text me back, then." The words came out as a flirty purr and my face reddened. My eyes drifted down to her tight t-shirt. The way her tits filled it out was outrageous. All I could think about was how good they had felt last night.

"You're staring again, Matt," she said, amused.

"Uh, I was just...disappointed..." I said the words haltingly, distracted. I tried to pull myself together, meeting her eyes.

She arched one eyebrow.

"...that you weren't the one to explain thaumaturgy to me." Well, I finished the sentence more confidently than I had begun it, at least.

"Oh." Viv's eyes widened in shock, but she recovered quickly. "So you're...in the know now, huh?"

I nodded. How much I was in the know was very unclear. But I wasn't about to say that out loud.

"Wow. Well, hey, congrats. This calls for a drink, then." She flagged down the bartender, and ordered two shots of tequila. The bartender did a double take when she saw me, obviously a little surprised to have seen me move from hanging out with Diana, to Viv, but went to gather the shots.

"So. Who told you?" Viv pursed her lips.

I wondered how she'd react to the news that it had been Diana...but I decided to play my cards closer to my chest than that. I folded my arms and gave her a frown. "The important thing is that it wasn't you, Viv. And it could've been."

I had to admit, I wasn't actually that annoyed. It wasn't as if I had been incredibly direct about things during our date last night. And I liked Viv. But playing it up a bit seemed like a good idea.

She gave a little helpless shrug followed by an apologetic smile. "Hey, sorry, Matt. But one, I have to be careful these days. Two, you understand now, I assume. You knowing changes things."

I kept my face expressionless and didn't say anything. I wasn't exactly sure what she meant. There was a long pause. I let the silence stretch.

Eventually, she sighed. "But I should've told you. Sorry. I'm not in too much trouble, am I?" Her voice was quiet.

"As I recall, you said you were at your best when you were in trouble," I said, grinning wryly.

She broke out into a smile. "You might think so too. After all, I've got to make it up to you, now," she purred. She rested her hand on my thigh.

My heart accelerated a bit at that. "Oh?"

She nodded, seriously. "I mean, I can't have my favorite thaumaturge upset with me..."

"Am I your favorite?" I put as much skepticism into my voice as possible.

She leaned close to me, and whispered, "You're certainly in the running. Last night was a very fun start."

I felt her lips brush against my ear. Fuck.

She pulled back and grinned at me for a moment. The bartender set two shotglasses in front of us.

Then Viv picked one up and raised it. "To newfound power and renewed friendship?"

I tried to recover my equilibrium. I did my best to imitate Clint's accent. "We are not friends."

She burst out laughing.

And then, dropping the accent and filling my voice with as much implication as I could muster, I said, "At least, I hope we're not friends."

She looked delighted. "Mmm. I guess we aren't, are we? Just to power, then."

"Power is good," I agreed.

We did the shot, sharp citrus and honey hitting me smoothly. Warmth blossomed in my stomach.

Looking at Viv -- genuine smile on her pretty face, laughter still in her eyes from my joke -- I was glad I had come to talk to her in spite of Diana's warning. Maybe she wasn't playing things totally on the level with me, but I didn't care. She was funny, gorgeous, we got along great...what wasn't to like?

She met my gaze steadily, enjoying the silence, this time. "Maybe we should continue our conversation someplace more private," she suggested.

I thought about my roommates, about the likely Sunday afternoon reception I'd get if I strolled in with Viv, yet another incredibly hot woman in the space of 48 hours. They'd probably think I was hiring escorts, or something. "Sure...I've got roommates, though, so it won't be that private at my place."

"I don't. It'd be very private at mine," She had that smile on, again, the one that promised mischief.

"Your place it is, then." My mouth was dry. Fuck, yes.

"Think you'll repeat your...performance, from last night?" She glanced down at her chest in the tight t-shirt. I followed her gaze, taking in the way her tits strained against the fabric.

"I, uh..." I couldn't wait to get that shirt off her.

She didn't let me finish the thought. "I can't wait to find out."

She waved the bartender over to ask her to close out the tab. "I'll be right back." Viv stood up and headed to the bathroom. As with Diana, I stared, watching those long tan thighs flexing as she walked off.

But I was startled out of my contemplation of her legs a moment later.

"Unbelievable. What's your secret?" It was the bartender, who slapped the check down in front of Viv's empty seat.

"Huh?"

"Ten inch tongue? Ten inch dick? Are you a billionaire? What is it? You were in here two nights ago with another attractive girl, then the chick with all the tats earlier, and now Viv's taking you home. Viv never takes anybody home."

I glanced sharply away from Viv's retreating backside, to the bartender. This was not a conversation I wanted Viv to hear us having.

"And, I mean, you look...fine. Like, you're not..." She realized I was glaring at her and held up her hands. "Hey, easy, buddy, I'm not trying to roast you. Or cockblock you, I'm just impressed."

I nodded, still feeling guarded. "Thanks, I guess?" A thought occurred to me. "Hey, the guy who was here before, with Viv...are they here together often?"

"Oh, you don't want me talking about who you're getting drinks with, but happy to have me reporting on other people?" She rolled her eyes. "That's shitty. Not your stand-up personality that's attracting these women, I guess."

She had a point. I shrugged, feeling a little bad. "I guess not."

But the prospect of time with Viv was too exciting to bring my mood down much. After a moment, the bartender sniffed, and moved down the bar in a huff.

And then another thought occurred to me as she walked away.

I pulled out the photo on my phone I had screenshotted from Vivian's profile on the dating app. The one of her and her friends, all dressed up as witches. I stared at them. Viv, Lauren, Diana...there were a few others, too.

None of them were the bartender, which was what I'd been worried about. But I realized it'd probably be useful to recognize the other women in the photo if I ran into them. Diana had said to be careful who I trusted. I didn't need to be surprised by meeting one of these other witches. I stared at the photo, trying to commit the other faces to memory.

But I had to hurriedly put my phone away as Viv returned.

"That asshole," Viv muttered, next to me. She had picked up the bill. "Clint didn't even pay for his own drink. And he ordered the most expensive bourbon on the shelf." She sighed. "He's such a dick."

I glanced over at her. "He seemed friendly to me?"

She was pinching the bridge of her nose. "He was polite. They're always polite. Until they're not."

"Okay...you said he was a friendly business associate, though?" I had to admit, I was curious about her relationship with Clint. They didn't seem involved, but...

"Yeah, we have this business arrangement, but...well," she said, earnestly. "You could probably help me with the little issue I'm having with him and his...colleagues. I'd owe you one." She gave me a winning smile.

I shook my head, enjoying this. "You're in trouble, remember? You already owe me one."

"Well, we had better even the score then, huh? C'mon, I'm sure you can think of ways I could pay you back..." She pulled herself off the barstool.

I smiled as I stood as well. "I can, as it happens."

She hooked her arm through mine, and we walked out.

---

We flirted some more, on the walk back to her place. Her apartment was off-campus, one of the expensive apartment buildings...it was, in fact, the same apartment building as Lauren lived in, I realized with a sense of deja vu as we entered the lobby and got in the elevator..

Her apartment was really nice, on the top floor. I wondered if she had family money. But I didn't get much of a look at it before she was all over me.

Her mouth was on mine, her arms wrapped around me, the second the door closed. I responded automatically, kissing her back, my hands going to the small of her back. She tasted faintly of the tequila we'd had, but mostly she tasted bright, clean and exciting.

I broke the kiss off after a long stretch of our tongues mingling. The flirty banter, that kiss -- I felt a sense of impending urgency. Diana had gotten me so turned on; I knew that if Viv and I kept going, there wasn't going to be more talking.

And I wanted to talk first. I had questions, lots of them. About magic, Viv, Diana, Clint, everything. "H-hey, I actually wanted to ask you--"

"After," she whispered, urgent, in my ear. "Then I'll answer any question you want." She reached down and palmed my cock -- which wasn't fully hard yet, but was well on its way after that kiss -- through my jeans.

Well. I knew that she got power from sex with me, or whatever. That doing the sex first probably gave her what she wanted with no guarantee I'd get my answers.

But in that moment I didn't care. I wanted her.

I slid my hands from her waist down to her ass, picking her up and pulling her against me. She arched her back, pressing her full tits against my face.

I hadn't gotten to touch her last night, not really. She'd touched me, obviously. But this was my first time putting my hands on her. Her skin was smooth under my touch, and warm. It was intoxicating.

Over the last 30 seconds, I had gone from half mast to rock hard so fast that I was surprised I hadn't torn my jeans. I carried her further into her apartment.

"The door on your left," she murmured.

I carried her down the hallway and nudged it open with my foot. A bedside table lamp dimly lit up a tastefully appointed bedroom -- big king-sized bed, mahogany bedframe, nightstand, dresser and closet, vanity.

But mostly, I was paying attention to Viv. I tossed her onto the bed, lowered myself on top of her and started pulling her shirt up.

"You're so eager," she giggled in my ear. She put her arms over her head, helping me to remove her shirt.

Well, I felt some very familiar performance anxiety at the giggle in her voice, the word eager. I remember the way she'd laughed last night, when she'd started titfucking me and I realized I wouldn't be able to last.

But then she twisted and struggled the rest of the way out of that tight t-shirt, and thoughts escaped me.

Her blonde hair was fanned out around her head and neck. She had a simple t-shirt bra on, just plain fabric. With the way she was lying on her back, the bra's support mounded her tits up impressively. Her waist was lean, trim, just the hint of muscle under the bronzed skin.

Viv was looking up at me "You've done so much staring...don't you want to touch them? I mean, you didn't get to last night," she teased. She shifted her hips, grinding into my hard length.

I pushed my thick cock against her through our jeans, and reached down with my hands, kneading her tits through her bra. Fuck. They felt so good in my hands, full, soft. I started kissing her collarbone as I squeezed them.

I heard the sound of her breath catching in her throat, and then she managed to pant out, "Fuck -- yes -- your hands feel nice, keep playing with them."

There was a frantic, jumbled moment of both of us pulling the rest of our clothes off. I reached under her and unhooked her bra. While I did that, she was struggling out of her jean shorts. Then she unbuttoned my pants, moving with urgency. I helped her drag them down my thighs.

As amazing as the titfuck had been last night, I realized I liked horny, aroused, out-of-control Viv...maybe more than I liked teasing, mocking, in-control Viv.

When I rested my weight back on top of her, I could feel that my cock was against naked skin. She was shaved completely bare. I adjusted, slightly, so my shaft was pressing against wet, soft folds. I let out a groan at the sensation.

But admittedly, my attention was captured by her glorious tits. I had never seen her naked. Flawless tan skin was almost golden in the dim light; there were no tan lines. Freed from the bra, her tits fell away slightly to the sides of her chest. Her areolae were slightly darker than her tan skin, and each was tipped by a full, nut-brown nipple, proudly erect.

I reached down, squeezing them. I was obsessed with the feel of her, especially the warm, soft, round fullness of her tits in my hands. I rolled her nipples between my thumbs and forefingers and she gasped, bucking her hips against me.

"Oh--oh," Viv moaned. As she made the sound, I felt my cock grind along her wet pussy. I wasn't inside her -- but the sensation of my thick length sliding along her folds, paired with that sound coming from her -- was incredible.

Really incredible, I realized. Like...I-might-cum incredible. Shit.

The frantic urgency of finally getting Viv alone and naked had distracted me from my own physical sensations, but...a familiar cocktail of arousal, performance anxiety, embarrassment, and frustration surged in me. Between Diana earlier, and now this, I was close to the edge.

I moaned, now, as she pushed against my cock again. Fuck. I could feel how wet she was, and with her big tits in my hands...

I pulled my hips back a bit, trying to keep from blowing my load just from having her rubbing her pussy on my cock.

At my hesitation, she looked up at me. The bronze skin of her face was a bit ruddy, flushed with arousal. "Getting close already again? Are you going to--"

I could hear the teasing, flirty note creeping back into her voice. I felt frustrated, embarrassed. How could she tell so easily? I wanted her to be turned on, out of control, not teasing me.

I lowered my mouth to one of her nipples. I started by brushing my lips across it, which abruptly interrupted her, made her gasp. And then I escalated to gentle nibbles, just grazing her with my teeth as I massaged them with my hands.

"Fuck...y-yes, play with them, suck them--" She was back to moaning again. The sound had my cock twitching, but I had pulled my hips away slightly, so I wasn't getting the stimulation I had been before.

I could feel the orgasm receding. Without her grinding on my cock, I felt more in control of myself. Viv clearly loved having her tits played with...and I loved playing with her tits.

I pulled one of her nipples into my mouth, tonguing it, sucking.

"God, your mouth, I need--" her voice was wanton. I felt a lot of satisfaction at that.

But as she lost words, she arched her back, shoving her chest against my face, and shifted her hips down...right into my length again. She moaned in satisfaction at the feel of my girth against her pussy, grinding on it.

I let her grind on me for a moment. The satisfied sounds she was making were escalating; I wondered if she'd cum if we kept this up.

But this was so fucking hot. One big tit in my mouth and pressed against my face, my hand kneading the other, my cock grinding up against her bare, wet pussy...I was going to cum if she kept grinding on my length.

I'd stop, I could go down on her for a bit, maybe, and then --

Just as I was about to pull away -- she bucked her hips a little harder against me.

And the blunt head of my cock parted her folds, slipping inside her, just barely.

She let out a moan. "Ungh, you're so thick, yes..."

I was gone. The unexpected wet, tight warmth of her around the head of my cock, after teasing me for so long against her pussy, was too much. I crested over the edge immediately. With a frustrated groan, I backed out and, grabbing my length in one hand, started pumping it.

"V-Viv, I--" but I didn't even have time to warn her, to ask her where I should finish. I was cumming.

"Oh--" She looked a little frustrated, but mostly just sounded pleased. We both watched as the first rope pumped out of my cock, spraying across her abdomen and one of her breasts.

"Mmm," she purred. She reached up, fondling my balls. I groaned, bliss washing over me, as I sprayed jet after jet of cum across her abdomen and tits, pumping myself through a massive orgasm.

I collapsed next to her on the bed.

---

We had both spent a minute cleaning up, and were lying in companionable silence, staring up at the ceiling. I felt an odd mix of satisfaction and embarrassment, mixed in with a floating sensation, the high of the orgasm.

Viv, on the other hand, was all smug satisfaction. "Well, you lasted longer than last night," she said, amused. "You actually got my clothes off."

My face heated. "C'mon, I---"

I trailed off as she turned to face me, giggling and delighted. "Relax. Really. That was fun. You had questions, right?"

Right. I tried to gather my wits and what remained of my pride. "How...how do I know you can do magic?" I said the word cautiously.

She arched an eyebrow, as if offended. "What we just did wasn't magical enough for you?"

"No, I uh--" I was not at the top of my mental game. It still felt like I was floating.

But she just laughed, teasingly. "I'm kidding. God, just like last night, so clever before, but after..." she smirked. "It really is cute."

I reddened, feeling defensive.

"Anyway...look down." Viv's smile was all mischief, now.

That floating sensation...well, it wasn't just from the orgasm.

We were hovering about eight inches off the surface of her bed, in defiance of the laws of physics.

"F-fuck--" I fought my natural instinct to cringe, ball up, brace. My brain insisted I was falling, tried to reorient me to the fact that I wasn't, failed. It reminded me of how NASA astronauts described initially entering zero gravity conditions. I got a grip on myself, and watched -- slightly nauseated -- as I lifted one arm and started to rotate very slightly as a result.

Magic was real. 

I nodded, mouth dry. I was now acutely aware that the conversation we were having now was not just innocuous post-hookup pillow talk. "Okay."

Viv bit her lip, a look of concentration on her face, and we slowly both slowly lowered to the bed. "Sorry about not giving you a heads up. But I figured you might want some fairly dramatic proof."

I nodded and let out a breath.

She looked curious. "Whoever told you about magic didn't show you anything like that?"

"Uh...she did -- but..."

Shit. I ran a hand through my hair. I'd given her the gender without meaning to. I still didn't want to tell her it was Diana; I thought Viv might be pissed. And I didn't want to give away how little it felt like I still knew.

"...I-it wasn't like this," I finished. "Very convincing. Thanks."

Viv just nodded. She twisted her body to face me more fully. "What else do you want to know?"

As she turned, I watched her tits shift. Her naked body, the smooth, tanned, curvaceous length of her, was incredibly distracting. "Uh...can you teach me a spell like that?"

Viv hesitated for a moment. "...So that wasn't a spell. Spells are prepared in advance. It takes a lot less power, that way. This was an invocation. Still magic, just not prepared in advance."

I nodded, filing that away, too. "So can you teach me that...invocation, then?"

She opened her mouth to answer me, then stopped, as if distracted. When she spoke, she was a little petulant. "You've hooked up with someone since we hooked up last night," she said, sharply. "I can tell. Who was it?"

I blinked. "Uh...what? How can you tell?"

She waved her hand. "It doesn't matter how I can tell. Look, Matt. You're an adult. You can make your own decisions. You're not my boyfriend, and I'm certainly not your girlfriend. You can hook up with whoever you like. But this is a dangerous world for you, now. You've gotta be careful. Who was it?" She frowned at me, perhaps waiting to see if I'd give anything further away.

I stayed silent. After a moment, she sighed. "Fine. I can tell you don't trust me, fully. Good. There are people who -- once they realize what you are -- will use you. There are stories about thaumaturges getting locked away in basements, that kind of thing. More common in other countries, but it happens here some, too. Reliable, powerful sources of magical energy are hard to find. People guard them when they find them. You could end up somebody's pet. And not everybody treats their pets very well."

I blinked. Well, fuck. That echoed what Diana had said, but was a lot...more dire-sounding. And it made sense. But it did sound dangerous, when she put it that way. Diana wasn't going to do that, though.

"Look, I like you a lot. You seem smart. And you're a good thaumaturge, especially for how inexperienced you are. I want you around. Take care of yourself."

I flushed. I didn't know whether she meant my sexual inexperience or my...thaumaturgical inexperience.

Or both.

"C'mon, can't you...teach me some magic? To help protect myself?"

"Are you being serious?" She looked at me, expressionlessly for a moment, digesting how earnest I was.

"Ah, shit, Matt. Okay. Well, whoever told you...what you are...well, they left out an important detail." She smiled at me, sad and sympathetic. "Thaumaturges can't do magic. At all. You deliver power to others. You can't actually wield it yourself."

What? 

I was still processing this unwelcome revelation, when her phone started ringing a few seconds later. She glanced at the name, sighed, and then picked it up.

"What is it? We just talked, and we agreed..." she trailed off. I could hear an emphatic male voice on the other end of the line. Whoever it was, they sounded pissed.

Viv sat up, her expression tightening. "You know what? Fuck you. Fine. I will do it tonight." She paused while whoever it was responded. "Yeah, well, maybe I've got resources you idiots don't know about. It's not your problem. You know what is your problem? Preparing for me. I'll be there in an hour. Be ready."

She hung up and put the phone down. She rolled her eyes, and looked at me, apologetically. "I am sorry to do this, especially after dropping that bomb on you, but I have to cut our conversation short. That was a very upset....business associate, and I've got to quickly prepare to do some magic tonight."

She sat up, and started getting dressed.

I started to do the same, more slowly. "...I can't do any magic?"

It felt somehow wrong.

I mean, don't get me wrong, it was disappointing to think that I was just some...support battery, for other people.

But to have learned -- in the same day -- that there was magic in the world, but also that I couldn't do any of it, was just...

Unfair. 

She nodded, sympathetic as she put her bra back on. "I'm sorry. But it's true. Look...there's lots more I could tell you, but I have to get ready to go. Can we pick this up tomorrow? I've got a few things I'm taking care of tonight and in the morning, but we can spend some more time together tomorrow afternoon. I'll need to recharge after what I'm going to do..." she said the words, suggestively. "...And I can answer all your questions."

Conflicted, I nodded.

---

Ten minutes later, I was standing outside her apartment building. It was just starting to get dark. There was a warm, early evening, summer breeze, the kind that you only get at the start of the summer, when you know you've got months of long, slow days ahead of you.

I was still processing, I knew. But waiting to tomorrow to talk to Viv was going to be difficult.

I wanted to know more now.

Two obvious courses of action presented themselves to me:

First, this was Lauren's apartment building too. I was right here. I could text Lauren. If she was home, I wagered she'd be willing to talk.

The second option was probably slightly insane...but I could wait here until Viv left for wherever she was going, and try to follow her.

Okay, so, maybe there was a third option. I could always take Viv's advice, be safe, and talk to her again tomorrow. I didn't really like that idea, but I figured it belonged on the list, at least.

What to do?