WITCH SHIfT

Mar

We were all at the makeshift hospital, because while no one died, we had a lot of injured. I was standing over the prone bodies of the Truesdall women. I allowed their mouths to be open but what was coming out was not what I wanted to hear.

“It is an irrevocable curse, for the last time. There is nothing anyone can do to take the curse off of him. He will be a dog to his dying day.” The middle aged woman said. Her mother was actually being treated because she had bad burns all over her skin. The youngest just looked at everyone and didn’t say a word, which was good, because I wasn’t in the mood for any of her shit.

“Lincoln, where does that put him in the shifter hierarchy?” I asked just wondering. I mean JP had been looking out for him and no one messed with him, but if he ever left town, it could be an issue.

“Being a dog, he falls under the wolves, and since he has no official pack, he is at the low end and answerable to any wolf throughout the country, even the lowest.” Lincoln admitted hesitantly. “Of course here we would never enforce the structure; we know what he was put through.”

“Thank you Lincoln,” Harvey said.

I was still thinking though and JP was getting nervous, he did that when I thought. I couldn’t blame him. “If there were other dog shifters, how many would it take to make a pack or to give him his own shifter term or such?”

“They would always fall under the wolves, but if he had a pack, he could be the alpha, and in that case he would be treated like an alpha of any other pack. There would need to be at least three members and the hardest part is that there would have to be at least one female. There has to be a chance for reproduction in order to have an official pack.”

I nodded thinking. “Mar, what are you thinking?” JP asked worried.

“Harv, if there were other dog shifters would you be interested in being an alpha.” I asked.

He laughed. “Sure, but I’m not the most confrontational guy Mar, any other Male could probably beat me up and take the position.”

“Lincoln, the alpha has to be male right? I mean we are in the twenty-first century, but I bet that hasn’t changed.”

Everyone laughed. “Shifters are old school, yes the lead alpha has to be a male, but a lot of our female shifters are alphas in their own right, and act like it.”

“So the female shifters no matter how strong they are must defer to their alpha, and if the alpha were to be killed or disappeared, what happens to the female shifters if there are no other males?” I asked.

It was the first time that I had ever seen Lincoln nervous. I had a feeling this wasn’t going to be good. “Mar we are not a perfect society, but they would become virtually slaves to any other pack that wanted them.”

“That’s what I wondered. Everyone heard that I assume.” I saw a few nods from around the room. “JP, I will need your help for this,” I said hoping he wouldn’t fight me on this.

“Oh Mar,” he said taking my hand in his. “Do you really want to do what you are thinking?”

“I think we have to. We can’t reverse it and we can’t take it off. What happened to Harvey wasn’t his fault, and if we can make his life a little better, then I don’t see how we cannot do it.”

“Ok baby, whatever you think, and just so you know, I agree with you. He wouldn’t be in this mess if they hadn’t done it to him.” JP said.

“Exactly and we can’t let them keep their magic, so it’s the best outcome for everyone.” I rationalized out loud.

I drew my own power and JP’s and we were strong enough that I only needed the two of us to do what I intended. I took and copied Harv’s curse and implanted it into the three women. Now they would all have the curse but our power had grown so much that I was able to make one more change. I couldn’t get rid of it but I could change the flow that they gave it. Now it would go immediately to the brain and it could be controlled from the user.

He would still have to change, but it would be up to him how long he stayed that way once he got there. I smiled at that. I liked the fact Harv had more control now, I was tempted to let the women suffer, but I didn’t want to punish Harv for it so I made theirs the same way as I locked their magic into the curse. They would never be able to practice magic again.

“It is done,” I said and everyone looked at me for an explanation. “The creators of the curse now have the curse and are dog shifters as well,” the women screamed but since they were still contained that’s all they could do.

“I did modify it though so they wouldn’t suffer through the long change process. Harv you have control over it now and you can change whenever you want, but I would assume you have to do it every so often or it will start to be really annoying. Another thing, you can change back once you are in dog form, so you don’t have to stay like that.”

“You mean it,” Harv asked excitedly.

“Try now if you like, and we can see.” I said and he gave me that look but he concentrated and in three seconds he was a beautiful dog wagging his tail. “Can you understand me?”

His woof was the only answer I needed. “Now change back,” I said.

He did. He was naked, but he was human. “Damn, I didn’t think about clothes.”

“I’ll take care of that,” Harper said coming forward with a long medical coat.

A loud growl came from the youngest of the Truesdall women. “Get away from him,” she snarled but she was still confined.

“Well this is different,” I said out loud.

Harv walked over to her and looked right at her. “Not another word. After what your family put me through I won’t hear anything from you.”

She actually began whining and she was still in human form. Harv didn’t seem pleased with her but when he turned back toward us he winked. You old dog Harv. “I’m going to leave them confined for the rest of the day till the doctors can get through more patients without disruptions and we have more of the coven that stood with the Worth’s to sort out and deal with.”

“I still wonder what happened to our parents,” Charlie asked and about on cue the Guardian appeared before all of us.

He looked at all of us and smiled. “Charlie right,” he asked Charlie.

Charlie nodded losing his words. I think he was star struck. “Your parents are on another plane. I had a debt to pay, and they paid it for me. They are well and whole, but will be in service to more of my kind for a while and maybe they will learn they have no real power. Speaking of power your president will be calling you soon to discuss this area being a reservation, for lack of a better term for all supernaturals.”

“I can’t tell you what to do, but I would play hard for a while and then finally accept under the most favorable conditions you can get. JP and Mar,” he said turning to us. “I am leaving. I am allowed back home now but I will drop in once in a while to check on things. I have already signed my house and all its contents over to you. JP please do not ruin the pool.” He said winking at us.

“For all of you,” he said to the group that was standing near, which was all of our friends anyway, “there are going to be trying times ahead, but if you all stick together, you will all come out happy in the end. I promise, now I need to go, I have new workers to break in at my old house.”

He was gone, he was here and then he was gone. Damn the man had a way about him. Just then Charlie’s phone began ringing. He looked at it and smiled. He answered it “well good afternoon Mr. President.”