Chapter 33

On the way to bringing Penny the scarf Ruby had made for her, the summon had asked Pyrrha what Port meant when he called her Pyrrha's girlfriend. A stumbling explanation followed, along with the note that the old man was mistaken, as his meaning did not accurately reflect their relationship. Pyrrha was greatly relieved when Ruby accepted the rambling definition without further question.

Penny had been thrilled by the gift, hugging both Ruby and Pyrrha a little too tightly. One day she would get a feel for her strength...hopefully. A quick visit to the apothecary to pick up a few simple ingredients was next, then the pair were on their way to Weiss' home to deliver another scarf.

"What's Solstice?" Ruby asked as they walked side by side along the cobblestone path that led to Glynda's house.

"It's a yearly event, and an ancient holiday." Pyrrha replied. "The winter solstice marks the shortest day of the year. It was originally celebrated by sun worshipers, praying for the return of the holy orb after its time of rest, but it has come to be connected with many meanings for different peoples. Mostly it's just a time to be with loved ones, during which gifts are typically given and received."

"Oh, okay." Ruby nodded. "And what's the Solstice Festival?"

"It's Patch's largest yearly gathering." Pyrrha explained. "Merchants and craftsmen from all over the island, and even a few from the mainland, set up temporary shops in the town square. Their products are often discounted, and usually they even give some away. There's food and drinks and games too. At sunset there's a big party, and a fireworks display after dark...as long as it isn't too cold. Then the next day, after everything is cleaned up and the stalls have been taken down, there's a big town meeting."

"What happens at the meeting?" Ruby inquired.

"Mostly people stand up and thank those that helped them over the course of the year." Pyrrha answered. "It's mostly a way to publicly acknowledge all the nice things that happened, and the good people responsible for them. It's also a good time to make important announcements, since the whole town is there."

"I'm gonna' have to thank a lotta' people." Ruby mused.

"I think a many will be thanking you." Pyrrha noted. "Even if indirectly, you've done a lot of good here."

"I bet you and Glynda get lots of praise." Ruby guessed.

"We do, though not as much as you'd expect." Pyrrha allowed.

"Aw, why?" Ruby asked.

"As witches...we mostly work in the background, if we can help it at least." Pyrrha explained. "And some people are still a little uncomfortable with magic, and that makes them uncomfortable with us."

"That's a little sad, but I guess it makes sense." Ruby commented. "What about Weiss? Do many people thank her?"

"Hah." Pyrrha could not stifle a laugh. "You'd think she was the most popular person on the island. Who knows, maybe she is, even if she does usually keep to herself."

"Would it still be that way if they knew she was a vampire?" Ruby inquired.

"I…" Pyrrha paused, mulling the question over for a moment. "I really don't know. The townsfolk aren't always the most accepting of the supernatural, and vampires are feared by most."

"But if she helps them so much, why would it matter what she is?" Ruby pressed. "She's still the same person."

"I know, but not everyone agrees with us." Pyrrha sighed. "To most, vampires are monsters, just like the Grimm. They're afraid, and when people are afraid...fear does terrible things to our minds."

The embarrassment from earlier in the day was gone, now Pyrrha was worried. Weiss' vampirism was secret for now, but it could not remain so forever. When word got out...Pyrrha just hoped things would not get ugly.

It had been quite some time since Velvet had last stepped foot in Glynda's laboratory, and like the witch herself, little had changed. It still held the same burnt chemical smell, masked by exotic scents and hints of lemon, remnants of the occupant's favorite tea. The same tables were scattered with the same books, scrolls and papers, the same meticulously categorized ingredient shelves lined the walls, and the same sense of vertigo halted Velvet's movements as she entered, indicative of the reality altering magic Glynda employed. That magic was used to change the size of the room to whatever domain the witch required, now it was about double the length of the physical area that existed beyond the bounds of the spell.

"Trips to the basement are rarely so educational." Glynda began, picking up a length of chalk. "Do try to pay attention, this will be a tad more complex than your own effort."

"Yes ma'am." Velvet nodded, taking a nearby seat and watching as the witch began her work.

Glynda was meticulous in setting up the ritual. Velvet watched in awe as the master witch made the circles and laid out the offerings. Her attention to detail had been nearly obsessive, but Glynda managed to match that perfection effortlessly. The basement floor was marked with three summoning circles, each roughly two meters in diameter, lined with specially made chalk. They were ringed with candles and contained fresh rose petals and a small vial containing a white liquid Glynda called "Lover's Essence." Velvet knew what it really meant.

The witch chalked lines to a fourth circle and instructed Velvet to stand at its center. "Why am I in a circle?" The seamstress asked, confused.

"It will direct the summons' attention and make binding simpler once you've made your choice." Glynda explained. "And it will protect you should one of the summons attempt anything unsavory."

"Oh that's...good." Velvet managed, suddenly very wary of her limbs' positions within her circle. "What was that about binding?"

"Summons can be unpredictable and potentially dangerous." Glynda noted. "Binding one to you is another safety measure."

"So how is this going to work?" Velvet inquired.

"Relax." Glynda instructed, laying a gentle hand upon her shoulder. "All will become clear as the ritual unfolds."

Velvet was less than encouraged by that answer, but she could understand Glynda's reluctance to tell her more than was necessary. She had done enough damage with her dabbling in magic, and more knowledge would only encourage further meddling with forces she could not control.

Glynda regarded the circles with a scrutinizing eye, mumbling beneath her breath, before walking over to a refrigeration unit, pulling it open. "A common misconception is that catalysts should appeal to the summoner. In truth all it does is influence the...aesthetic. A lemon will not bring forth a sour companion, a cherry will not bring forth something sweet." She pulled forth a plate of ice cream, placing it within the first circle. "Aspects are a strange occurrence. They are born of elements, but identify as specifics as time goes on. Those drawn to humanity are among the most varied. Luck, time, lust, dreams...they are more akin to humans than they may ever admit, yet they are also very far." Glynda picked up a jar of red and white boiled candy from one of her shelves, dropping a few pieces in the middle circle. "Do remember this. They will understand you, but they may at times be vexing to you. It is during these times you must be clear. Do not allow them to mislead you." Velvet nodded in affirmation as Glynda replaced the jar. She picked up another, containing some manner of brown beans - coffee or cocoa - to sprinkle in the final circle. "Do you feel you are ready?"

"Yes." Velvet nodded. She was as ready as she would ever be. "I am."

Glynda cleared her throat and turned her focus to the summoning circles. She began speaking in a tongue Velvet did not understand, though it was similar to the one used in her own attempts. As the witch spoke, spreading her arms wide, tall oval-shaped portals formed inside the circles. The offerings were absorbed into them, and they tinted pink, red and gold respectively. The flames topping the candles burned with increasing brightness, rapidly consuming the wax below. As Glynda spoke the final few syllables of the incantation, a figure appeared from each of the portals - two in the case of the center, red one. With a final blinding flare, the portals disappeared and the candles faded to their original intensity. The summoning was complete.

"Oh look Melanie, it's another orgy." Came an alien voice. Velvet blinked, her eyes adjusting to the now dim light, the scene before her becoming visible.

The leftmost circle contained a rather short young woman, seemingly in her late teens, clad in a loose white top and black cincher. She radiated smugness, smirking as she regarded Velvet through mismatched eyes, pink and brown, and white...they changed with each blink. Her long and flowing hair remained a consistent split, half pink and half brown. The middle circle contained twins, identical in all but the color of their attire. They shared the same black hair that shimmered in the candlelight, but their dresses gleamed an almost ethereal red and white, one color for each. Their green eyes gazed at the scene, seemingly bored by the presentation.

The third...was a surprising and intimidating departure. Taller than the others by a notable margin, she wore no clothes to speak of. Instead her pale skin showed from the waist up. Her legs from the knee down seemed to resemble some kind of...bone-like material, shaped in a way that resembled heeled shoes. Her clawed hands and forearms were of the same material, as was her crown, which curled back into a pair of spiraled horns. She regarded Velvet with a cool amber gaze. And only Velvet. She could barely look away.

"Or are we simply entertainment?" The white-clad twin continued.

Glynda scoffed lightly. "This is neither an orgy nor a party. You have been summoned for companionship."

"This one seems rather nervous, is it her first time?" The other twin asked. Velvet felt an annoyed pang. The twins hardly seemed interested. Were they not supposed to want her? Maybe this was a mistake. She glanced toward the smallest summon and found a far more interested look...a far more hungry look.

"Awfully generous of you." The white-clad twin mocked. "We have not experienced a virgin in...quite some time." She scanned Velvet's form. The pink and white summon winked, her brown eye changing to pink, briefly matching its twin. A flicker of flesh saw her tongue flick out to lick her lips.

"Velvet, what do you think of them?" Glynda asked.

Velvet blinked, looking from the smallest summon to the witch. Suddenly she felt a lot less sure, so many eyes upon her - hungry, bored...patient. The golden-eyed summon seemed to dull, her gaze more bronze now. A flicker of movement revealed a tail behind her rear, the same bony material curling by her left foot. "I uh...I'm sorry if I interrupted anything. I don't want an orgy. I'm just a bit lonely and…" Velvet heaved a breath, nervously brushing her hair over her shoulder. "You're all...interesting. I'm just uh...I've never really done this before."

The smallest summon took a step forward, startling Velvet. She felt Glynda tense in her periphery, but could only focus on the summon. She was borderline predatory in her demeanor, walking the line from her circle to Velvet's.

"Uh...hi?" Velvet managed, taking a step back as the summon crossed the chalk. It merely stood for a moment, gazing up at her, head quirked adorably to the side. Then the summon reached up, cupping her face, gentle and smooth, impossibly so...until Velvet felt herself yanked down, lips meeting her own in a surprisingly aggressive kiss - her very first. It tasted of strawberry, delicious and alluring, but it was all tainted by the sheer feeling of force behind the action. No matter how pleasurable the act, it did not feel right. "Mngh hey wait…" Velvet pulled away, taking a sudden breath. She had not realized she had been holding it. "That's...that's not really what I'm after…" Not really, if she just wanted someone to be physical with, she could have approached any number of the island's inhabitants. It was not the physical aspect that allured her...at least...not to that extent.

"Then why summon succubi?" A stronger, clearer voice inquired. The smaller summon huffed, turning on her heel as she began retracing the line to her circle.

Velvet turned her attention to the tallest summon. "Huh?" She exclaimed in a daze. The summon's eyes caught every ounce of Velvet's attention. They were no longer bronze but a metallic brown, so notable as the succubus began her own approach. Her stature should have been intimidating, but Velvet instead found it...impressive.

"Our kind feed off the lust of mortals, the desires and pleasures you hold dear provide us sustenance." The summon began. Her eyes seemed flecked with gold, glimmering as she stared. "It is in our nature to use you, offering your deepest fantasies in exchange for your essence. Yet you do not desire such intimacy. You are not lustful."

"I don't want sex, I just want...I want someone to be there for me." Velvet tried to explain.

"So you summon a sex slave?" The summon pressed.

"I don't want a slave!" Velvet protested. "I just want someone so my home doesn't feel so damn empty all the time!"

"Then why the binding?" The summon countered.

"For her protection." Glynda answered.

"Oh yes, protection from the big, scary demons with pretty eyes and cute lips." The summon waved a clawed hand at the smallest summon, who stuck her tongue out in response. "Or the perpetually bored twins who keep whispering about how you'll look tied to your bed." She gestured to said twins, who scowled in disapproval. "Look at me. This is what you have summoned, not these glamour visages. This is what you wish to warm your home. Why this and not a true familiar, an empath perhaps?"

"Because Succubi are empaths, unless everything I've read has lied to me." Velvet replied. "You understand what I feel, and you want to use that to get what you want. It's that simple. I don't have to worry about using you or hurting you, because you want what you want and I get what I need. Don't you want me?"

"What I want is for you to understand what you ask, what your soul cries for." The summon reached out with a single talon, poking Velvet in the chest firmly, but not hard enough to do harm. The chitin of her forearms curled around the limb like ornate armor, it was beautiful. "You want for company, but what you desire is care. What a succubus can offer is only a facsimile of this desire."

"And I know that." Velvet nodded. "I don't expect something deeper. I'm not a fucking child. I just want to feel like I'm not alone. Is that really so much?"

"To ask of an inherently selfish being?" The summon raised her brow. "Ask the others, they will answer truthfully. You are prey to them. They want what you offer and will take until you are spent. Perhaps a night with them will stave off your ailments until something genuine can fill the void, but to expect something that truly benefits you is to invite heartbreak."

"So what about you?" Velvet asked. "Why aren't you like them?"

"Because I have seen the deepest desires of man, the darkest depths of the human heart." The summon answered. "I have feasted upon kings and queens, warlocks and wizards, left apprentices hollow and scarred. I gave all they desired and took in equal measure. I no longer hunger like a mewling pup. I tire of suffering, perpetuation and cruelty, the evils humans inflict upon themselves because they think a few words and pretty pictures will wipe away their pain." Chitin heels harshly kicked at the circle's edge, the air itself flared with energy. Velvet's hair stood on end as deep brown eyes glowed gold once more. "You have a mortal existence, a life to value. To gift me any measure of it would be a tragic sacrifice." The clawed finger found its way beneath her chin, rough, real, holding her gaze firm. "You can do so much better."

"Maybe." Velvet shrugged. "But right now this is what I want."

The summon hummed, edges of her mouth twitching upwards. "Very well then, the choice is yours." Turning on her heel, she strode back to her circle, regarding Velvet with an expectant look. "The little one will fill your heart with joyful ecstasy, the twins will wring you dry, they will be merciless. You will be satisfied, you will be happy, until you discover what true happiness is, but if all you desire is the idea of companionship, I shall fulfill this to the best of my ability. As you humans say, it's no skin off my back."

"And if I say no?" Velvet wondered, looking to Glynda.

"They return to the void, awaiting their next prey, and we discuss further options." Glynda replied.

Velvet took a deep breath and considered the summon's words. True, company was what she wanted, but care was what she missed. She was young when the bandits took her family, and in her trauma her grandmother had been very careful with her recovery, doting on her, in her own way, even as she grew too sickly to do so. Velvet missed her presence, missed her kind and encouraging words, her praise, her embrace...her cooking. Nothing would ever replace her family, nor her grandmother specifically. But if this summon could at least try, offer that facsimile, perhaps she could recover again. Perhaps she could find a new sense of normalcy. And maybe, just maybe, as foolish as all would make it seem, the summon would become more than just a presence - a friend, a companion. It was a fool's hope, but Velvet was a fool, a lonesome fool, willing to bind herself to a summon for the chance of reprieve.

"I'm sorry for wasting your time...even if it doesn't have much meaning to you...or my apologies." Velvet looked to the smaller summon, who merely shrugged, and to the twins, who rolled their eyes. "But I accept your offer." Upon meeting the taller summon's eyes, she immediately seemed to slump, just a minuscule amount - in relief or disappointment, Velvet could not tell, but perhaps in time she would come to know.

"Very well." Glynda waved her hand and two of the circles erupted once more, leaving emptiness in their wake.

The taller summon strode forward once more. "I can promise nothing, but to offer my all." She spoke, stepping back into Velvet's circle.

"All I want is a little." Velvet smiled.

The summon seemed to find this amusing, her smirk softening to a smile, until she looked to Glynda. "How do you want to go about this?"

"Thoroughly." Glynda responded. "You are a guest in my domain. This island and its people are under my protection. What you do in the privacy of Velvet's home is of no concern to me, but in public you will glamour yourself."

"Obviously." The succubus huffed. "Do you have preferences?"

"Just...be yourself...if you have a preferred form other than this." Velvet answered.

The summon grinned, lifting Velvet's hand in her own. "Tell me truthfully, does this not upset you?"

"No...not really." Velvet shrugged, running her fingers along one of the spiral grooves. "I like it actually...it's strange, but interesting. The sketches don't do you justice."

"Oh, so you did know what to expect?" The summon wondered.

"Only a little." Velvet confirmed.

"Focus." Glynda clicked her fingers. "More than your pledge, you are responsible for Velvet's protection, do you understand?"

"I've never allowed any harm to come before...at least none that wasn't asked for or expected." The succubus grinned.

"And should any harm come, expected or no, I will personally ensure you live only to regret it." Glynda threatened with a glare. "Velvet is under my protection. Any who cross me pay dearly."

"Yes, yes, if you harm one hair and everything you humans love to bluster." The summon rolled her eyes, before meeting Velvet's own again. "Is there anything you wish to say?"

"I...don't think so just...I appreciate it, your honesty...can you keep that up?" Velvet requested.

"I think that may fall beneath harming one hair, to say the least." The succubus warned.

"I've been through a bunch already." Velvet chuckled. "I can take some blunt honesty."

"Fine then, honesty is a virtue and all." The summon nodded.

"Glynda?" Velvet asked.

The witch fixed the summon with a long, stern look, before letting loose a pent up breath. "Very well then, this won't take long."