Editor's note: this story contains scenes of incest or incest content.
*****
A/N: Ch 00-01 was filed under Incest. Perhaps that was my mistake; that prologue is rather incest-y, even if chapter 1 isn't. Or perhaps Lauren decided that's where it should go? When I asked in the forums, that possibility came to light. Anyway, I've tried to contact Lauren without success to figure out what to do, so I guess I'll just let it stay where it is. But even though the theme does remain in the background, the pairing in this story isn't incest-y. I think it belongs elsewhere, such as noncon.
But even though the story does have nonconsent elements in it, it still includes that incest theme in the background. You have been warned!
CHAPTER 2:
History was his first class of the day. The triplets were there, and they were indeed pissed off to see him. He chose to ignore them, as if he had no clue what was going on. Best to pretend to still be a "sleeper"; that way he wasn't antagonizing them.
Sure enough, they left him alone. Was it that they really didn't care one way or another about him? Or was it that it was in a public space? He hoped the former, but wouldn't press his luck. Normally he was one of the first out the door; his next class was on the other side of the school and it took most of the break to get there. But this time he stayed behind to ask the teacher a question about his lecture just to ensure the triplets didn't leave behind him. When he did leave, he didn't obviously glance around much as that would be a give-away, but he didn't see them. He rushed to his next class and wasn't accosted either; with signs pointing to them not caring about him, he relaxed a bit.
His third class of the day was chemistry. Susan was light-years ahead of him (or anybody else), but due to their work over the weekend he was still able to somewhat keep up with her. She would make an excellent chemist. Brian pondered that in the back of his mind while they worked. Her mother was a pharmacist; that too was a 'mundane' job. Perhaps magic couldn't pay the bills? Still, all of their potions experience must translate into chemistry skill. He wouldn't be surprised to learn Susan was leaning towards a chemistry-related profession.
Brian found Susan at lunch, again with Tracey and Leah, and took the empty seat next to Susan who lit up and smiled at him.
"Worried you got rid of me?" he asked her. In truth, he hadn't known when he left her house if he wanted any part of her anymore.
"We didn't get much of a chance to talk in chemistry," she said.
"So you're a couple now!" Tracey exclaimed while Leah grinned, and Brian nodded his head in affirmation while Susan blushed.
"Have you done it yet?" Leah prodded further. Susan froze, and blushed even more heavily. Brian kept silent. "Hah, you have!" Next thing Brian knew, Susan was hiding her face in his shoulder. "Must have been good, too."
"Sorry, but I don't kiss and tell," Brian said while Susan whimpered. He did wrap an arm around her, though, and let Susan's friends cheer the development.
Susan did blush pretty, though.
Later on, Victor didn't give them any trouble in English class. In fact, Victor made a point of not even looking in their direction. That suited him just fine, and he could tell Susan was also happy with that development.
"Can you take me home from martial arts?" Susan asked him at the end of English class. He agreed, and they left for their next, separate classes.
Martial arts that evening was intense as always. Brian always left with new bruises, but that was the nature of it. Brian was sure Susan would normally have new bruises too, but given how she never seemed bruised before, chalked up that lack to magic. Then they got in his car and he started driving her home.
"I wasn't sure you wanted to still be my boyfriend," she said.
"I did have to think about it for awhile," he admitted.
"So you don't want anything to do with magic," she stated flatly.
"I don't have a problem with it per se, no. The bigger problem is the family feud."
"Oh."
"I want you to promise me something."
"What's that?"
"I want you to promise you will stay out of it. You can defend yourself if attacked, of course, but don't go looking for trouble."
"Oh, I can do that. Mom made me promise that a long time ago."
"Good."
"So, what do you mean, 'per se'?"
"We never talked about it -- too much shit happened -- but I'd like you to come to church with me."
"What, you're a Christian?"
"Yes."
"But, you're okay with magic? And you want me -- a witch -- to go to church with you?"
"I'll admit, it's weird to ask, but religion is important to me, and I want religion to be important to anybody I marry."
"Marry?"
"Not now, of course, but eventually. I'm not the kind to date a girl, knowing I won't ever marry her."
"So if I say no, then we're done?"
"We can still be friends. Let me put it this way; would you ever consider a boyfriend who hated magic?"
"I guess I wouldn't. Not that we're supposed to tell people about magic. You only know about it because of what happened."
"What sort of marriage would it be, that you couldn't share such a thing? I'd like to think you'd eventually have to tell your boyfriend about it before getting married to him."
"Yeah, but I would wait until after he proposed."
"So, back to my question. If he acted with revulsion, would you still consider marrying him?"
She sighed. "No, I guess not."
"Well, this is the same. I didn't expect to have a conversation this serious with you this fast, but after what happened..."
Susan grimaced. "I won't ever be able to forget how that date went."
"Stuff of nightmares."
"But you don't blame magic."
"The way I see it, magic is a tool, like a hammer. With a hammer, I can drive a nail into wood, or I can cave someone's skull in. Good use, bad use. It's not magic itself, it's the person that counts."
"What about, 'thou shalt not suffer a witch to live'?"
"First of all, that's Jewish law."
"Jewish law?"
"As in, it doesn't apply to the rest of us. You can tell those parts by the passages where it says something like, 'tell the Israelites'. Not, 'tell the world.' Most of the orders in the Bible are aimed at the Jews, because they were being held to a higher standard than the rest of us."
"So there are no Jewish witches?"
"I guess not? You'd have to ask a Jew about it though; they have a way of arguing around almost any law they come across. Maybe they've somehow made an exception for that. But even if there aren't any, we don't stone adulterers or burn homosexuals anymore. We're better than that. Nobody is without sin, so nobody should cast the first stone. So if using magic is actually a sin, I'm not going to persecute you over it.
"Still, I was thinking, if you're a witch, you've probably not ever given Christianity a chance. You probably think you'd simply be turned away. And while some might do so, Christ himself wouldn't. The dude hung out with lepers and prostitutes. So, we can be friends, but I can only date you until you decide Christianity isn't for you. Or, if you get baptized, I can eventually propose to you."
"Now I kind-of feel pressured."
"Like I felt pressured to accept magic if I still wanted to date you? Anyway, that wasn't my intent. But, I guess, better to get this out in the open now, rather than some time later."
"I think that's where your immunity comes from."
"Immunity?"
"To harmful magic. Your faith kept you safe. I had always thought of Christian immunity as being against all magic good and bad, because of your outright hatred of it, but I think maybe I was wrong." Susan chuckled. "There may be no such thing as saving throws, but my boyfriend has spell resistance. Who'd have thought?"
"So my faith kept me alive. Thinking about it, I guess that makes sense."
"How's that?"
"Have you ever seen a religion where it is not you sacrificing for your god or gods, but where your god sacrifices for you? Where your god or gods do not demand love, but demonstrate love for you? Would any of them sacrifice their lives for your benefit? That's what Christ did for us. The gift of that sacrifice is for all time, for those who believe in him. Why wouldn't that cover protection from magic?"
"I heard he was forcibly taken and executed."
"Yes, but he could have called a thousand angels to destroy the world and set him free. The divine, who caused himself to be born into the body of a man -- a sinless man -- sacrificed himself to absolve the rest of us of the weight of our sins. And if the guilt of our sins somehow causes us to become vulnerable to magic, then that absolution protects us. After all, magic, like religion, is supernatural. Otherwise, it would be science."
"Okay, I guess I'll go with you to church. But I'm still making you a protective bracelet."
"Protective bracelet?"
"Think of it as a symbol of us dating."
"Yes, dear." His remark made her stare hard at him, but she relaxed at his knowing smile.
"Jerk," she complained but without heat.
"Yes, dear."
"How do you know about D&D?" Brian asked Susan the next day at lunch.
"I tried it out once, but it didn't work out," she explained. "I still have my books though. It was rather disappointing, spending that money and with nothing to show for it."
"What happened?"
"The boys were more interested in role-playing sex with me than in anything else."
"Oh."
"It was a weird way of getting hit on. That's probably why there are so few girls that play D&D. I'm in a varsity volleyball game here Thursday evening; would you like to come watch?"
Brian blinked at the change of subject, but chose to roll with it. "Here at the school gym I assume? What time?"
"Seven."
"Hmm, go to martial arts class, or watch pretty girls play volleyball. I don't know, Susan, I was really looking forward to that class." Susan shoulder-checked him, but gently, and she was smiling.
"How are you still in high school?" She asked him.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm 18, but my birthday was just last month, in mid-October. I'm smart enough to have been advanced a grade, but the stupid school people wouldn't ever let me do that, so here I am. I blame the Fureys. But if you're going to be 19 soon, then that means you were held back a year? But I've seen how you study; you're smart too."
"I was a foreign exchange student for a year."
"Oh?"
"I went to Switzerland. It was fun, and very educational, but the time spent doesn't count towards me graduating. But I was ahead in my martial arts, and managed to find classes over there anyway, so I just couldn't pass it up. And it did satisfy my foreign language requirement, so it wasn't a total loss.
"I think I'm jealous."
"Sorry? But I don't think you'd want to have gone."
"Why's that?"
"Your mom teaches you stuff on the weekends, right?" He couldn't say "magic" in public, but Susan did say she learned how to do potions on the weekends. "Would you have given that up?"
"Only for a year."
