Mollified Magic
Chapter 20: Saying goodbye with friends can be fun
Wednesday.
It was still early when I found myself awake and unable to sleep. The room was dark, but the first light of dawn allowed me to distinguish the various shades of gray as objects in the room. My arm was still around Molly, who was snoring lightly. I thought about how much my life had changed in the past three weeks since our first date. I entered college wanting to challenge myself and get out of my own comfort zone. Well, I've certainly done that! But I couldn't have done it without Molly.
I slowly and carefully moved my arm from around her. I didn't want to wake her; she looked so peaceful lying there. I eventually got out of bed and dressed myself. I sat in her desk chair, her grandmother's folded quilt on my lap. I stroked the quilt gently as I continued to watch Molly sleep.
I thought about my parents, the Wards. In my later teenage years, I had suspected I was adopted, but they always treated me as their own. They never showed favoritism towards my younger brother, who definitely looked like them. We never had a lot, but they were always generous with what they had.
They were both schoolteachers. My father, and I'll always think of him as my father, taught history. He taught me the need to accept the past and learn its lessons. That included the power of observation and the importance of detail. My mother taught English, and I think I got in the habit of analyzing social situations through her, only I tended to overthink them. She never taught me that; I did it entirely on my own.
Strange that I should become a Chem major. Maybe I got that from my biological mother, Amanda Brewster and the Brewster family, well-known in the magical community for their knowledge and ability for making potions. Funny I was thinking about her while grieving for the Wards.
My brother was more like Molly. He was carefree and took what life had to offer him. He thought he knew everything of course and became careless at times. I would have to bail him out from time to time because he thought he knew it all, but that only drew us closer. We could be friends whenever we weren't competing with each other.
They were gone now. It was hard to believe I would never see them again. All because of my biological father, Lord Blaze.
Their deaths were senseless and so unnecessary. The Wards posed no threat to anybody, certainly not to Lord Blaze. What was he trying to accomplish with their deaths? What was his message? That I should fear him? That I should hate him? That didn't seem to make sense.
Maybe he killed them to isolate me, as he has isolated himself. He said he didn't trust anyone, but he came looking for me the moment I gained my powers as a warlock. Perhaps he wanted to groom me to be his trusted confidant? Isolation could do that.
But if that were the case, then my relationship with Molly would have to be changed or severed. He wanted to marry Morgana to manipulate the coven, not because he cared for Morgana. Molly could pose a threat to him there, too. No wonder he invited Molly to the mansion. But if that were so, how could I stop him?
"Ward?" Molly asked as she sat up, looking at me, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," I said, trying to keep the sadness out of my voice, "I was just thinking about my family."
"I'm sorry," she said sympathetically, "We're all going through a lot right now, but you've suffered the most. I think I tend for forget that."
"They weren't just part of my history," I reflected, "They were my history. You, Agnes, and your family are all I have left, now. I'm afraid I'm going to lose that, too."
Molly got out of bed and walked over to me. She crouched down next to me and put her arm over my shoulder. It was hard to ignore her breast just inches from my face.
"I'll always be here for you," she said, "I know Agnes and my whole family will be here for you, too."
"I'm not so sure about that," I reminded her, "Lord Blaze took my family away from me. What makes you so sure that he won't take you away from me, too?"
Molly looked at the floor for a few seconds, then hugged me with both arms over my shoulders, her naked breasts pressing against me. She held me like that for a while before releasing me. She kissed me lightly on the forehead.
"I have to pee," she said, "Then let me get dressed and we'll go for breakfast."
It was still very early when we got to the dining hall. The staff was still setting up when we went through the line.
We were the first students there and we had the whole place to ourselves. As we sat near the window, Molly looked at me.
"Is there anything I can do to cheer you up?" she asked.
"You always cheer me up," I said, faking a smile, "You have a gift for it."
Molly reached across the table and held my hand. Her fingers curled around and gently rubbed the callouses on my palms.
"Do you realize how different my life has been since our first date?" I asked her. "I've not only lost my virginity, but I've experienced sex as a boy and a girl. I learned that magic is real, and I helped you become a full-fledged witch while becoming a warlock in the process. Just last night I experienced bondage, watched my girlfriend fuck two guys at once, and had two football players give me a blowjob."
Molly smiled and then laughed lightly.
"I remember you saying something on that first date about wanting to get out of your comfort zone," she laughed, "I think you've checked that box."
She paused and considered her own words. "Come to think about it, I did, too," she said thoughtfully.
We were almost finished with breakfast when Molly asked me.
"What are your plans for today? Or for the rest of the week for that matter?"
"I want to keep busy today, try to take my mind off things," I replied, "I plan to say goodbye to the team after practice, let them know about the Wards and taking some time off. Tomorrow I'd like to go home to where I grew up and do a funeral or something to remember my family."
"I have some ideas I want to work on," Molly said, "Okay with you if we meet for lunch?"
I smiled. "You know I would never refuse that. See you then."
After my first lecture class, one of the campus security officers pulled me aside.
"There's someone in the dean's office that needs to speak to you," he told me.
There were two men as well as the dean waiting for me. One was police detective Brian Rogers asking me questions about my whereabouts over the weekend. I told him I was with the Spellman's and gave them Molly's number as well as Tish's. He gave me his card and told me that the cause of the fire is still being investigated, but so far, they could find no evidence of arson or an electrical fire.
"I'd like to stop by and work on a funeral or some type of memorial tomorrow if that's okay?" I asked.
"Of course," he replied, "The bodies, or what remains of them, are in the local funeral home, since the town isn't big enough for a morgue. I'm sure the funeral director can help you arrange something."
The second gentleman was from the insurance company.
"Mr. Ward, I'm John Butterfield and I wanted to meet you and let you know about the insurance settlement."
"What settlement?" I asked.
"Your parents and your brother had a platinum life insurance policy with our company," he said, "But it is the most unusual situation I've ever seen."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"First of all, it was taken out by a third-party individual, not the policy holder," Butterfield explained.
"What does that mean in English?" I asked.
"It means that your parents didn't take out the policy, someone else did," Butterfield said, checking his notes.
"It was taken out by a Mister Ignatius Burns," he read, "Mr. Burns even paid all the premiums on the policies for the first 9 months. But yesterday, when we checked the records, we could find no trace of Mr. Ignatius Burns anywhere."
