A Thoroughly Modern Witch Read online

  A THOROUGHLY MODERN WITCH

  A Halloween story

  Tales from the Magi Saga

  By

  Andrew Dobell

  By Andrew Dobell

  Book list

  Wasteland Road Knights

  Liberation

  The New Prometheus - Cyberpunk

  When Frankie’s brain is transplanted into a Cybernetic body after being shot, she must go on the run from the mega-corporations who want her and her cyber-body’s designer dead.

  The New Prometheus

  The Prometheus Gambit

  The Prometheus Trap

  Prometheus Vengeance

  The Magi Saga – Urban Fantasy

  When Amanda discovers she’s a Magi after being attacked by a werewolf on the streets of NYC, she’s introduced to a magical society and drawn into a hidden war for the fate of mankind.

  Epic Calling: The Magi Saga Book 1

  Shadows of Darkness: The Magi Saga Book 2

  Black Dawn: The Magi Saga Book 3

  Infinities’ Edge: The Magi Saga Book 4

  The Magi Saga Short Stories

  Only available through my mailing list;

  www.andrewdobellauthor.co.uk

  The Angel of Tarut: The Magi Saga Prologue

  His Love: A Magi Saga Short Story

  Casino Red: A Magi Saga Short Story

  Anthologies I am part of:

  The Expanding Universe – Sci-Fi

  Summer of Magic – No longer available.

  Alchemy & Arcana

  For more of Andrew’s work, visit:

  www.andrewdobellauthor.co.uk

  Amanda

  Halloween was fun this year. I’m not sure what got into me, really, I just wanted to have some fun, and the opportunity presented itself. I’d also had a few drinks, and that always helps these things happen.

  Not that I recommend using Magic while drunk, of course. That’s asking for trouble. No drunk casting, kiddies!

  Anyway, I’m rambling.

  So, I was at the Dark Side nightclub on Halloween. Probably one of the best places to go for a great night on my favourite holiday of the year. They always throw awesome Halloween parties. They just know how to do it right. All the staff dresses up and the venue, a disused church, is perfect for it.

  So anyway, I was keeping Howie company that night. He was dressed as Frankenstein's monster, which looked awesome on him, I have to say.

  I myself, well, I should have gone to more effort, really, but I was feeling a little flippant, and so I just threw on a witch’s hat and called it a day. I thought it was vaguely hilarious, anyway.

  I’ve spent way too much time in that nightclub and know most of Howie’s team there now, so it wasn’t much of a surprise when Jay came and sat next to me. I’d been sat at the end of the bar, chatting happily to Howie between him having to deal with security issues. I said ‘hi’ to Jay, but he seemed a little down...

  Hell, why am I telling you this? Why don’t I share the story from Jay’s point of view? I got the details of it from his memories later anyway.

  I’ll pop back in later.

  Jay

  What a night, Jay thought, and it was only half done. But Jay had finished his shift and was frankly done. He’d changed back into his regular clothes and had headed back out into the club. The night was still young, it was Halloween, and anyway, he wanted to see Isabelle again.

  She was on the main bar on the ground floor, so he wandered over and spotted Howie and Mandy at the end of the bar. Howie looked great as Frankenstein's monster and seeing his boss dressed up like that had made his night. Mandy hadn’t gone to quite so much trouble, wearing her usual ripped jeans and a denim jacket, but she did have a witch’s hat on. So, at least she had done something. Jay felt a little out of place now that he’d removed his uniform and thus his costume, but he didn’t mind that much. There were plenty of people in here without a costume on.

  ‘Hey, guys,’ he said as he took the stool next to Mandy.

  ‘Hi, Jay,’ Mandy said.

  ‘All done for the night?’ Howie asked.

  ‘Yeah, thought I’d get a drink. The night is young.’

  ‘Sure you did. Isabelle is over there,’ Howie said.

  He felt the heat grow in his cheeks as he blushed and gave Amanda a sideways glance. ‘Oh, is she?’ Jay said, trying to sound all cool about it.

  ‘Like you didn’t know,’ Howie said.

  ‘I don’t know what you're talking about,’ Jay said, and suddenly found one of the drink mats incredibly fascinating.

  Amanda

  Look, I thought that was a little cruel of Howie, to be fair, but then, I guess that’s what guys do. It was playful, but I could see that Jay was embarrassed, so I did give Howie a little frown, which he rolled his eyes at.

  Anyway, back to the story.

  Jay

  ‘What can I get… oh, hi, Jay, you want the usual?’ said Darleen, one of the barmaids on that night, when she suddenly realised who he was.

  Jay looked up and smiled. He liked Darleen, not least because she was one of Isabelle’s best friends. She was always kind to him, she knew he had a crush on her mate and did her best to help him get in with her. Not that it really helped any. ‘Yes, please,’ he said.

  ‘Sorry, I hadn’t spotted it was you, I would have let Izzy come over and serve you otherwise,’ she said in a low tone as she passed him his drink. ‘I’ll let her know you’re here,’ she said.

  ‘Oh, no need...’ he said.

  ‘Don’t worry, I’ll be all casual about it,’ she said as she walked off. Jay watched as Darleen walked over to Isabelle and started chatting with her. After a moment, Isabelle looked over and smiled. Jay waved back to her, wanting the earth to just open up and swallow him whole.

  ‘You like her?’ Amanda said next to him.

  ‘It’s that obvious is it?’

  ‘Pretty much. Does she know you like her?’

  ‘Yeah. She does.’ He sighed, wondering if that was half the trouble.

  ‘So, what’s the problem? Why not ask her out?’ Amanda asked.

  ‘She’s not interested in me. I mean, look at her,’ he said. Isabelle was gorgeous. Slim and attractive with dark, striking eyes and cheekbones you could chop wood with. She had a figure to die for as well, and always wore clothes that showed it off, such as that low cut top she had on tonight. He looked over at her. She was leaning over the bar, her chest thrust forwards, chatting with some guy. An obvious douche by the looks of things. He was big, in shape with muscular shoulders, and a short buzz cut hairdo. He was throwing his money around as well.

  How could he compete with that? He was a nightclub doorman, and this guy looked like the type to own a brand new Austin Martin or something.

  ‘I’m looking. She’s just a girl. A person, like everyone else in here,’ Mandy said.

  ‘Yeah, but I’m not in her league. Nowhere near,’ he said, taking a drink. He’d already had a couple earlier at the end of his shift in the backroom, and he felt his head spin for a moment.

  ‘Nonsense. All this out of my league stuff is just shite. If she likes you, then your good to go, surely.’

  ‘I wish it was that easy. Hey, you’re a witch, right? How about a love potion?’ he asked, referring to the half-hearted attempt at a costume that she was wearing.

  Amanda

  I’d be lying if I said I didn’t catch my breath at that moment. It took me a second to realise he didn’t actually know I was a Magi, but was instead making a joke by referencing the hat I had on. Still, that livened things up for a moment.

  Jay

  Amanda looked surprised for a second before she laughed. She’d probably forgotten she was wearin
g the hat.

  ‘Well, love potions are a little old school these days, and frankly, a little rapey, don’t you think? They were the date rape drug of yesteryear.’

  ‘I’d never really thought about it like that before,’ Jay said. But she was right, he thought. That whole love potion thing was not really very fair to the victim, was it? It gave him a new perspective on some of those old fairy tales, that was for sure. ‘But now you mention it, yeah, it doesn’t sound good at all. It’s strange how these things change,’ he said, feeling his head spin again.

  ‘So, you’re not going to go and talk to her?’ Amanda asked.

  ‘Not now, no, she’s a little distracted, I think. She’s not interested in me,’ he said, feeling his head wobble once more.

  He wasn’t sure what happened next, but he suddenly found himself standing in an alleyway not too far from the club by the looks of things. His head was all foggy, and he wasn’t sure how he got there. Amanda was standing before him, though, smiling at him and holding onto something. What was it, he thought, and peered at it, trying to keep his vision steady?

  She was holding a witch’s broom.

  ‘Isn’t that a little old school, too?’ he asked.

  ‘I may be a thoroughly modern witch, but some of the old ways still have their benefits, and they can also be fun,’ she said with a smile as she turned away from him and swung her leg over the broom. ‘Jump on,’ she said.

  She must’ve been even more drunk than he was if she thought they would really be able to fly, but the whole scene just made him smile, and he thought it would be mildly hilarious to run through the streets, straddling a broom on Halloween. So he walked over to her and threw his leg over it as well, grabbing the stick with both hands.

  Suddenly, they were rising up as if the broom was powered by something as it lifted them higher and higher. They were picking up speed, too, and suddenly they were shooting forward and zipping through the concrete canyons of New York. They swooped between the buildings, their glowing yellow lights whipping past them at breakneck speed.

  Jay held on tight, his hands in a death grip as fear and excitement flooded his body. This couldn’t be real, he thought as the air rushed past him, buffeting his face as they zipped left and right, flying along the avenues of Manhatten faster than he could follow.

  ‘Having fun?’ Amanda called back to him.

  ‘This is incredible,’ he said.

  ‘I wouldn’t have given you a second chance, you know. You either got on when I asked, or you didn’t. If you hadn’t grabbed the opportunity with both hands, literally, in this case, you would have missed out. You can’t live your life without taking risks. Sometimes, you just have to take a chance…’

  Jay felt his head grow foggy again and the scene spun. Was he that drunk?

  Suddenly, he got a strong whiff of coffee as he gripped the edge of the stool he was sitting on and looked to his left. Amanda was still sitting next to him, smiling at him and offering him a coffee.

  ‘You phased out there for a moment, are you okay?’ she asked.

  ‘Uh,’ he said, looking around him and checking that he really was back in the nightclub. ‘Yeah, I think so.’ Had he imagined all that? Had he really been outside or had he just blacked out for a moment?

  ‘Like I was saying, sometimes you just need to take a chance and live your life. Otherwise, you might never know. I mean, what’s the worst she can say?’

  Jay took the mug of coffee and sipped at it, thinking it through. She was right, magical broom ride or not. He needed to ask Isabelle out. She might say no, but at least he’d know how she felt, he thought.

  After a few more sips, Jay got up. ‘Okay, I’m going to give it a try,’ he said.

  ‘Good for you,’ Amanda said.

  Jay walked along the bar, looking at Isabelle, hoping to catch her eye, and as he moved, she did happen to look up. He smiled at her and inclined his head, indicating he wanted to speak with her.

  She nodded and met him at the other end of the bar.

  ‘Hey, what’s up?’ she asked as he stepped up to her.

  ‘Hi, I was wondering if you might want to go get a drink with me sometime?’ he asked.

  ‘Oh, um, well, maybe, but not right now. Just as friends, of course,’ she said.

  ‘Aaah, well, okay…’

  ‘Oh, you were asking me out on a date?’

  ‘Well, yeah, kind of.’

  ‘Aaah, well, not now, sorry,’ she said. ‘I mean, no offence, but, you’re not really…’

  ‘Your type?’ Jay offered.

  ‘Well, I was going to say in my league, but sure, that, too.’ She smiled as she moved away, back to the guy she was flirting with.

  ‘Okay, no worries. That’s fine,’ he said, even though everything really wasn’t fine at all. It felt like the bottom had just fallen out of his life and he was now in freefall. He wandered back around to his seat feeling utterly dejected and settled himself back down with a sigh.

  ‘She said no. She said I wasn’t in her league…’

  ‘Oooh, I’m sorry,’ Amanda said. ‘That was a little harsh of her.’

  ‘It’s okay. I’m not sure what I was expecting, to be honest. I probably got my hopes up a little too much, I think,’ he said.

  Amanda

  I felt sorry for him. He didn’t deserve that. Jay was a nice guy. He was always willing to help out others, but I wasn’t about to work some Magic and twist the girl's mind to get her to agree to a date with him. I could, sure, but that isn’t really what I do. And anyway, she was being a bitch. I got the impression that she actually did kind of like him, but for whatever reason, Isabelle thought he was below her. I really did want to slap that notion out of her head and get her to see the truth, but instead, I resigned myself to consoling him and tried to get him to see the brighter side of things.

  ‘You never know,’ I said. ‘You might be able to show her your true colours someday, and maybe she’ll change her mind?’

  And then an idea formed in my head.

  Jay

  ‘Be a mate and take this outside, will you?’ Howie asked Jay. He’d spent the last half hour doing his best to forget what had happened and was trying to enjoy the night. Isabelle and Darleen had finished their shift, and Isabelle was nowhere to be seen anymore, and neither was the douche she’d been talking to. He’d felt sure they were laughing at him, but he was probably just being paranoid.

  Darleen, however, had come over and joined him and done her best to offer some sympathy.

  ‘I don’t know, she can be a bit harsh sometimes. I think it’s a defence mechanism of hers. She does like you, I know she does. She’s told me before, but she’s always getting interest from the big guys, you know? The college quarterbacks and those guys with money to throw around and I think it’s gotten into her head a bit and she thinks she can… you know…?’

  ‘Do better than me?’

  ‘Well, when you put it like that, it doesn’t sound very nice.’

  ‘Hey, Jay? Can you help?’ Howie asked again.

  Jay looked over and saw the large bags of garbage that Howie was handing to him. He turned back to Darleen. ‘I won’t be a moment,’ he said, took the bags from Howie and made his way towards the rear door. He kicked it open and walked outside into the alleyway. It was dark out here, and there were always drunk revellers either taking a piss or having a quick fuck with their one-night stands. Jay didn’t spot anyone right away, walked over to the dumpster, and threw the bags into it with two loud bangs.

  A girlish yelp sounded just next to him, and Isabelle stumbled out from next to the dumpster, pulling her skirt down over her hips. She looked up at Jay and froze. The douche she’d been talking to at the bar wandered out behind her, zipping himself up.

  ‘Hey, what the fuck? We weren’t done,’ he said to her before he noticed Jay.

  ‘Jay? What the hell are you…’ Isabelle asked.

  Jay held his hands up. ‘Just taking out the trash,’ he said, taki
ng a step back.

  ‘You’re that idiot who asked her out, aren’t you? Are you stalking her?’ the douche asked.

  ‘No, no, I’m just working here. You can go back to whatever you were doing,’ he said, feeling very flustered. Isabelle looked very embarrassed and uncomfortable as she finished straightening her skirt and top out.

  ‘Is this what you wanted?’ the douche asked, pulled something out of his pocket and threw it at him. Jay caught the small bit of black fabric and looked at it. They were a pair of girl’s undergarments, and suddenly the penny dropped. They were Isabelle’s.

  ‘Hey!’ Isabelle said, in horror.

  ‘Um, no,’ Jay said and held them out in Isabelle’s direction. She grabbed them from his hand. ‘But, what the fuck, dude?’ he asked the douche. ‘That was a dick move.’

  ‘What did you say?’ the douche asked, stepping into Jay and getting all up in his face.

  The rear door opened again behind him.

  ‘Hey,’ Darleen called. ‘I have another bag of… What’s going on here?’

  ‘It’s nothing,’ Jay said, backing off from the douche. ‘Just a misunderstanding.’

  ‘Oh, I understand it just fine, and I’m going to… to…’ the douche trailed off, his attention suddenly drawn to something behind Jay. He backed up, a look of abject fear washing over his face as he eyes grew wider. As he backed away, a dark stain appeared and started to grow on the front of the douche’s trousers.

  Jay raised his eyebrows. Was he pissing himself?

  Isabelle looked scared, too, and moved towards the douche, only to suddenly get a whiff of the urine running down his leg. She hesitated, screwing up her nose.

  The douche looked down at himself and then over at Isabelle, who was looking at the wet patch as well. ‘Get away, slut,’ he said as he backed up further.

  A deep throaty growl sounded behind Jay, making him spin around to look at whatever had scared the douche so much.