The first thing I did was store all of my work, the cases of blank pendants, rings, and my engraving equipment. I did this in case the gold I had in my inventory wouldn't be accepted wherever I was going. I would need a quick source of income and creating basic enchantments would get me a huge amount of capital fairly quickly.
I thought about ransacking my refrigerator and cupboards and remembered that I didn't have a lot of food in the apartment, which was because Diane made a lot of meals and shared them with me. Since I wasn't sure where I was going, I also didn't know what the food situation was going to be like. I abandoned taking anything else unnecessary and went to my closet. I dropped off all of the clothes I had in my inventory and filled it.
The things that wouldn't fit in the closet, I tossed onto the bed. There was a huge mound of it and I shook my head. I had gotten so used to storing everything that I had stopped paying attention to what I was doing. I kept a basic outfit for myself, so I would at least have something to wear when I came back, besides what I was already wearing. I took out all the electronic remotes for the television, stereo, cable box, and movie player and left them on the dresser.
I went to the kitchen and started to drop off the bowls and plates I had stored absently and filled the cupboards. Good lord, I've been lazy! I thought and shook my head.
As an afterthought, I took a set of dishes with me, just in case. After that, I went to the bathroom and emptied the closet of the towels, hand towels, face cloths, and a dozen packs of toilet paper, boxes of tissues, and packs of paper towels. I already had my toothbrush and toothpaste stored and various other toiletries, then dumped out the electric items. Anything that needed to be plugged in, I got rid of. I hadn't had the time to figure out if I could run anything with a tiny lightning enchantment.
I went back into my secret room and took out the large cardboard box I had in there that was filled with the medieval clothing I owned. I picked out a basic outfit and stored it. It was always good to be prepared. I strode out of the room, sealed it, and took out a ring.
“Bind.” I said and the fake wall glowed and I felt the magic wrap around it and seal it closed. I left my apartment and locked the door. I hopped into the elevator and went down to Diane's floor. I didn't want to do this. I really, really didn't want to do this. I stood in front of her door, half past midnight, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was going to cry and beg me not to go.
I took out another ring and touched the door. “Open.”
The door unlocked and popped open and I went inside and shut the door. I walked through her apartment, careful of the toys strewn about, and went to her bedroom. I activated the Silence ring and crept inside and went over to the bed. Diane was laying on her side and had a pillow clutched in her arms. I knelt beside the bed and looked at her face. She looked so peaceful like that and I didn't want to disturb her.
I shouldn't. I shouldn't do this. I thought, then reached out and touched her face as I deactivated the Silence ring. “Diane.” I whispered and pet her face.
“Mmm, Damon... no, we can't... Crystal is... in the next room.” Diane whispered.
“Diane, I have to go.” I said a little louder.
“No... wait... wait until... Crystal's older. Then... she decides... we can be together.”
I knelt there, surprised by her words. She's been keeping me at a distance because she's afraid that Crystal will choose her dad over me when she's older?
I pushed that aside and leaned in close. “Diane.” I said in a normal voice.
“AH!” Diane gasped and stared at me. “D-Damon? What... what are... why are you in my bedroom?”
“Long story short, the people that kidnapped me before are after me again.” I said as a simple explanation. “I'm going to do my best to come back as soon as I can.”
Diane finally realized what I was saying. “No!” She sat up and wrapped her arms around my neck as she started crying. “No, don't leave! Please! Please, oh, please!”
I put my arms around her and held her as she pleaded and begged for me to stay. “I want to stay and I don't want to go anywhere. I never did.” I said and rubbed her back. Her little t-shirt was so thin that she could have been naked. It didn't make any difference to what I could feel. “Unfortunately, I can't fight this, not like I want to. I have to go and do what they want.”
“D-Damon.” Diane eased her hold on me and her pain filled face hurt my heart. “Run. Go away. Maybe if you...”
“I tried that the first time and I almost died.” I said and she gasped.
“You never said...”
“Why would I burden you with that?” I asked and stroked her messy hair. “You had a hard enough time dealing with me being kidnapped.”
Diane took two quick intakes of breath and let a shuddering sigh out. “I... I love you.”
“Could you repeat that? I didn't hear you?” I asked and put a hand to my ear.
Diane chuckled and pretended to slap my hand, then more tears came from her eyes.
“I love you, too.” I said and gave her a kiss. “I won't even joke that I love Crystal more.”
Diane smiled and wiped at her face. “That would be okay.” She said and moved her hands to the sides of my neck and held me tenderly and rubbed her thumbs on my jawline. “I don't mind her having a higher priority in your heart.”
I smiled back. “I want you to tell her that I have to go on a magical journey, okay?”
“Damon, she... she won't believe...”
“Yes, she will.” I said and took out a gold ring identical to the ones I wore. “I want you to give her this and tell her that I'll be back to get it.”
“D-Damon, no... you...” Diane looked down at my hands and saw that I still wore eight rings. “How many of these do you have?”
“Only a few hundred. It should be enough to give one to every girl I have to say goodbye to.” I said with a toothy grin.
Diane chuckled and pretended to slap me again. “I know for a fact the only girls you've seen the last little while are your friends.”
“I'm only saying goodbye to you and Jenny.” I said. “If anyone asks, I'm taking a sabbatical for a while.”
“Do you know how long...”
I shook my head. “I could luck out and be back in a week, with no one the wiser.”
“Or another ten years.” Diane said as her tears came back.
“Ha, no.” I smiled and wiped at her face. “I'm going to kick ass and I'll be back as quickly as possible.”
Diane took a deep breath and let it out. “You really have to go.”
“Unfortunately, yes.” I stood up. “I don't even have time to make love to you.”
Diane smiled. “You're not touching this exquisite body again until we're married.”
“Which you can't do.” I smiled back.
“Unfortunately.” Diane said and stood up as well, then she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me like her life depended on it. It lasted for several minutes, then she broke the kiss and let me go. “You get your ass back here as soon as you can.”
“It's all I am going to strive for.” I said.
“You better go before I lose my resolve.” Diane said.
I gave her another kiss. “I am so sorry that I have to hurt you like this.” I said and kissed her again. “Please, don't let it get to you. I will be back.” I walked over to her bedroom door.
“Damon?” Diane asked and I turned to look at her. “What do I tell Crystal this ring is for?”
“Tell her it's the Magic Kiss Boo Boo Fixer ring.”
Diane covered her mouth to stifle her laugh. “Wh-what... what the hell kind of name is that?!?”
“One she'll recognize.” I said and opened her door.
“Damon, how did you get into my apartment?” Diane asked.
“Nothing could keep me away from you.” I said and shut the door. I had a flash of Divine Sight and saw her breaking down into tears and fall into a depression that she wouldn't be able to fight her way out of. She tries to get a divorce, loses custody because of her depressed state, and Crystal ends up hating her for abandoning her. I opened the door and saw her on the verge of tears again.
“Will you marry me someday?” I asked and she caught her breath. I walked over to her and knelt. I took out one of my failed experiments trying to enchant a diamond ring. No matter what spell or effect I tried to put into it, all it did was make the diamond glow. It looked damn pretty when active, though.
“Oh, my god.” Diane whispered as she looked at the huge diamond. “That band will never fit on my finger.”
I chuckled. “I can do magic, remember?”
Diane opened her mouth to tell me to stop being silly, then she smiled. “I don't know why I don't expect you to act your age.”
“If you accept, you have to be okay with me spreading my seed around to hundreds of women.”
Diane made a fist and pretended to punch my chin. “I can't really tell you not to do what you need to do.”
“I promise to keep it in my pants until my balls are blue.” I said and held up my hand in the boy scout salute.
Diane laughed and held her hand out for the ring.
“Close your eyes.” I said and she did. I slipped it onto her ring finger on the opposite hand and it shrank down to fit her perfectly. To my surprise, the diamond did not. It made the thing look huge on her small hand. “Say 'ray of light' and open your eyes.”
“Ray of light.” Diane said and opened her eyes. The diamond lit up like it was powered by electricity and the facets danced around the semi-dark room. “Oh, god.” She said and stared at it.
“It only lasts about ten seconds and then...” I started to say and the ring turned off. “...there it goes. You need to wait an hour for it to do it again.”
“D-Damon, this...”
“Proof of a promise to be kept someday.” I stood up and looked into her eyes. “No matter how long I'm gone, this will always be with you to remind you that I will be back.”
Diane hugged me and gave me another kiss. “Thank you.”
I ran my hands through her hair and slid them down to touch her breasts through the t-shirt. She took in a deep breath and pressed them into my hands.
“You aren't supposed to do that.” Diane said and kept looking into my eyes.
I gave them a light squeeze. “You didn't say stop.” I gave her another kiss, then walked away. I didn't get another flash of Divine Sight, which meant I had averted a potential disaster of my causing. Just in case, I peeked back into the room and saw Diane sitting on the bed and staring at the huge diamond on her hand.
“Ray of light.” Diane whispered.
I smiled and left her apartment, locked it, then rode the elevator down to the ground floor. I walked next door where the residents of the building had free parking, climbed into my economic car that had great gas mileage, and drove over to the condo. I had one more person to tell that I needed to leave. I parked in the driveway and saw a car I hadn't seen before. Jenny's car was gone and I assumed she must have bought a new one.
I went to the front door and unlocked it, went inside, and quietly shut the door. I saw her bedroom light was on and walked over to the door. “Jenny, I need to talk to...” I opened the door and saw a man's backside as he thrust himself into... my mind shut off.
I stepped back out and slammed the door so loud that it sounded like a gunshot. I ignored the muffled scream as I ran across the living room, using my full stats, and slammed the front door twice as hard. I heard the wood splinter and ignored it as I got in the car in under five seconds. I gunned the engine and squealed the tires as I sped down the street.
I did not want to see that. I did not. No. No no no. No! Fucking NO! I yelled in my head to try and get that image out of my mind. It didn't work. In fact, it seemed to etch itself even deeper because I was trying to get rid of it. Oh, god. Oh, god!
My mind raced and I was starting to panic. I immediately switched out a ring and touched my chest and cast Calmness on myself. Serene nothingness filled my mind and I relaxed. I let it flow through me, knowing it was fake and wouldn't last very long. I didn't care.
She's my sister! Seeing her like that... doing that... I shook my head and switched rings before the spell ended and cast it again. She's a grown woman. I can't let her having sex bother me so much.
I took out a Focus pendant and put it on over the Clarity one I wore. My mind snapped into focus and smiled. I know that Diane would tell Jenny I was gone, so I didn't have to worry about it. I never should have gone over without calling first, anyway. It wasn't something to say over the phone or even text, because you never knew who was listening; but, I should have given her a heads up and maybe she would have gotten him hidden or asked him to leave.
In any case, I was the one that was wrong. I took out my cell phone and told the guys on my work crew to take the day off tomorrow. We were months ahead on the schedule and they had plenty of time to finish the building without me there to help. Of course, I had all goddamn night to do as much as I could to get them even more ahead. I took out a Fog ring and smiled.
No one will even see me. I thought and drove off into the night.
*
Jenny woke up with a start when she heard the door slam to her old room. A second later she heard another slam and it was louder and sounded like splintered wood. She got out of her brother's old bed and walked over to his bedroom door. Even though she had switched rooms months ago, she still thought of it as Damon's room. It was also why she could always fall asleep, because it was his bed.
Jenny opened the door and stepped out into the living room. “What the hell is going on out here?”
“I was going to ask you that.” Kathy said as she stepped out of Janet's old room with a sheet wrapped around her. Behind her was her boyfriend that bore a striking resemblance to Damon's physique. His face and hair were completely different however and Jenny didn't find him attractive at all. She also couldn't see what Kathy saw in him.
“I just heard two bangs that woke me up.” Jenny said and looked around. She didn't see anything, so she walked over to the light switch. Or tried to. “Ow ow ow!” She hissed as she stepped on what felt like a splinter of wood.
“Are you okay?” Kathy asked.
“I don't know.” Jenny said as she limped the rest of the way across the room and turned on the living room light. Kathy gasped and pointed at the floor. Jenny looked down at the living room floor and saw a perfect set of footprints had dug into the hardwood floors as if they were walking in sand and had torn up the wood. They went from Kathy's room and all the way over to the front door, which was half broken, the door handle was crushed, and splinters were everywhere.
The three people stood there and stared at the mangled wood. They had no clue what had happened or what to do next.
The first thing I did was store all of my work, the cases of blank pendants, rings, and my engraving equipment. I did this in case the gold I had in my inventory wouldn't be accepted wherever I was going. I would need a quick source of income and creating basic enchantments would get me a huge amount of capital fairly quickly.
I thought about ransacking my refrigerator and cupboards and remembered that I didn't have a lot of food in the apartment, which was because Diane made a lot of meals and shared them with me. Since I wasn't sure where I was going, I also didn't know what the food situation was going to be like. I abandoned taking anything else unnecessary and went to my closet. I dropped off all of the clothes I had in my inventory and filled it.
The things that wouldn't fit in the closet, I tossed onto the bed. There was a huge mound of it and I shook my head. I had gotten so used to storing everything that I had stopped paying attention to what I was doing. I kept a basic outfit for myself, so I would at least have something to wear when I came back, besides what I was already wearing. I took out all the electronic remotes for the television, stereo, cable box, and movie player and left them on the dresser.
I went to the kitchen and started to drop off the bowls and plates I had stored absently and filled the cupboards. Good lord, I've been lazy! I thought and shook my head.
As an afterthought, I took a set of dishes with me, just in case. After that, I went to the bathroom and emptied the closet of the towels, hand towels, face cloths, and a dozen packs of toilet paper, boxes of tissues, and packs of paper towels. I already had my toothbrush and toothpaste stored and various other toiletries, then dumped out the electric items. Anything that needed to be plugged in, I got rid of. I hadn't had the time to figure out if I could run anything with a tiny lightning enchantment.
I went back into my secret room and took out the large cardboard box I had in there that was filled with the medieval clothing I owned. I picked out a basic outfit and stored it. It was always good to be prepared. I strode out of the room, sealed it, and took out a ring.
“Bind.” I said and the fake wall glowed and I felt the magic wrap around it and seal it closed. I left my apartment and locked the door. I hopped into the elevator and went down to Diane's floor. I didn't want to do this. I really, really didn't want to do this. I stood in front of her door, half past midnight, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was going to cry and beg me not to go.
I took out another ring and touched the door. “Open.”
The door unlocked and popped open and I went inside and shut the door. I walked through her apartment, careful of the toys strewn about, and went to her bedroom. I activated the Silence ring and crept inside and went over to the bed. Diane was laying on her side and had a pillow clutched in her arms. I knelt beside the bed and looked at her face. She looked so peaceful like that and I didn't want to disturb her.
I shouldn't. I shouldn't do this. I thought, then reached out and touched her face as I deactivated the Silence ring. “Diane.” I whispered and pet her face.
“Mmm, Damon... no, we can't... Crystal is... in the next room.” Diane whispered.
“Diane, I have to go.” I said a little louder.
“No... wait... wait until... Crystal's older. Then... she decides... we can be together.”
I knelt there, surprised by her words. She's been keeping me at a distance because she's afraid that Crystal will choose her dad over me when she's older?
I pushed that aside and leaned in close. “Diane.” I said in a normal voice.
“AH!” Diane gasped and stared at me. “D-Damon? What... what are... why are you in my bedroom?”
“Long story short, the people that kidnapped me before are after me again.” I said as a simple explanation. “I'm going to do my best to come back as soon as I can.”
Diane finally realized what I was saying. “No!” She sat up and wrapped her arms around my neck as she started crying. “No, don't leave! Please! Please, oh, please!”
I put my arms around her and held her as she pleaded and begged for me to stay. “I want to stay and I don't want to go anywhere. I never did.” I said and rubbed her back. Her little t-shirt was so thin that she could have been naked. It didn't make any difference to what I could feel. “Unfortunately, I can't fight this, not like I want to. I have to go and do what they want.”
“D-Damon.” Diane eased her hold on me and her pain filled face hurt my heart. “Run. Go away. Maybe if you...”
“I tried that the first time and I almost died.” I said and she gasped.
“You never said...”
“Why would I burden you with that?” I asked and stroked her messy hair. “You had a hard enough time dealing with me being kidnapped.”
Diane took two quick intakes of breath and let a shuddering sigh out. “I... I love you.”
“Could you repeat that? I didn't hear you?” I asked and put a hand to my ear.
Diane chuckled and pretended to slap my hand, then more tears came from her eyes.
“I love you, too.” I said and gave her a kiss. “I won't even joke that I love Crystal more.”
Diane smiled and wiped at her face. “That would be okay.” She said and moved her hands to the sides of my neck and held me tenderly and rubbed her thumbs on my jawline. “I don't mind her having a higher priority in your heart.”
I smiled back. “I want you to tell her that I have to go on a magical journey, okay?”
“Damon, she... she won't believe...”
“Yes, she will.” I said and took out a gold ring identical to the ones I wore. “I want you to give her this and tell her that I'll be back to get it.”
“D-Damon, no... you...” Diane looked down at my hands and saw that I still wore eight rings. “How many of these do you have?”
“Only a few hundred. It should be enough to give one to every girl I have to say goodbye to.” I said with a toothy grin.
Diane chuckled and pretended to slap me again. “I know for a fact the only girls you've seen the last little while are your friends.”
“I'm only saying goodbye to you and Jenny.” I said. “If anyone asks, I'm taking a sabbatical for a while.”
“Do you know how long...”
I shook my head. “I could luck out and be back in a week, with no one the wiser.”
“Or another ten years.” Diane said as her tears came back.
“Ha, no.” I smiled and wiped at her face. “I'm going to kick ass and I'll be back as quickly as possible.”
Diane took a deep breath and let it out. “You really have to go.”
“Unfortunately, yes.” I stood up. “I don't even have time to make love to you.”
Diane smiled. “You're not touching this exquisite body again until we're married.”
“Which you can't do.” I smiled back.
“Unfortunately.” Diane said and stood up as well, then she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me like her life depended on it. It lasted for several minutes, then she broke the kiss and let me go. “You get your ass back here as soon as you can.”
“It's all I am going to strive for.” I said.
“You better go before I lose my resolve.” Diane said.
I gave her another kiss. “I am so sorry that I have to hurt you like this.” I said and kissed her again. “Please, don't let it get to you. I will be back.” I walked over to her bedroom door.
“Damon?” Diane asked and I turned to look at her. “What do I tell Crystal this ring is for?”
“Tell her it's the Magic Kiss Boo Boo Fixer ring.”
Diane covered her mouth to stifle her laugh. “Wh-what... what the hell kind of name is that?!?”
“One she'll recognize.” I said and opened her door.
“Damon, how did you get into my apartment?” Diane asked.
“Nothing could keep me away from you.” I said and shut the door. I had a flash of Divine Sight and saw her breaking down into tears and fall into a depression that she wouldn't be able to fight her way out of. She tries to get a divorce, loses custody because of her depressed state, and Crystal ends up hating her for abandoning her. I opened the door and saw her on the verge of tears again.
“Will you marry me someday?” I asked and she caught her breath. I walked over to her and knelt. I took out one of my failed experiments trying to enchant a diamond ring. No matter what spell or effect I tried to put into it, all it did was make the diamond glow. It looked damn pretty when active, though.
“Oh, my god.” Diane whispered as she looked at the huge diamond. “That band will never fit on my finger.”
I chuckled. “I can do magic, remember?”
Diane opened her mouth to tell me to stop being silly, then she smiled. “I don't know why I don't expect you to act your age.”
“If you accept, you have to be okay with me spreading my seed around to hundreds of women.”
Diane made a fist and pretended to punch my chin. “I can't really tell you not to do what you need to do.”
“I promise to keep it in my pants until my balls are blue.” I said and held up my hand in the boy scout salute.
Diane laughed and held her hand out for the ring.
“Close your eyes.” I said and she did. I slipped it onto her ring finger on the opposite hand and it shrank down to fit her perfectly. To my surprise, the diamond did not. It made the thing look huge on her small hand. “Say 'ray of light' and open your eyes.”
“Ray of light.” Diane said and opened her eyes. The diamond lit up like it was powered by electricity and the facets danced around the semi-dark room. “Oh, god.” She said and stared at it.
“It only lasts about ten seconds and then...” I started to say and the ring turned off. “...there it goes. You need to wait an hour for it to do it again.”
“D-Damon, this...”
“Proof of a promise to be kept someday.” I stood up and looked into her eyes. “No matter how long I'm gone, this will always be with you to remind you that I will be back.”
Diane hugged me and gave me another kiss. “Thank you.”
I ran my hands through her hair and slid them down to touch her breasts through the t-shirt. She took in a deep breath and pressed them into my hands.
“You aren't supposed to do that.” Diane said and kept looking into my eyes.
I gave them a light squeeze. “You didn't say stop.” I gave her another kiss, then walked away. I didn't get another flash of Divine Sight, which meant I had averted a potential disaster of my causing. Just in case, I peeked back into the room and saw Diane sitting on the bed and staring at the huge diamond on her hand.
“Ray of light.” Diane whispered.
I smiled and left her apartment, locked it, then rode the elevator down to the ground floor. I walked next door where the residents of the building had free parking, climbed into my economic car that had great gas mileage, and drove over to the condo. I had one more person to tell that I needed to leave. I parked in the driveway and saw a car I hadn't seen before. Jenny's car was gone and I assumed she must have bought a new one.
I went to the front door and unlocked it, went inside, and quietly shut the door. I saw her bedroom light was on and walked over to the door. “Jenny, I need to talk to...” I opened the door and saw a man's backside as he thrust himself into... my mind shut off.
I stepped back out and slammed the door so loud that it sounded like a gunshot. I ignored the muffled scream as I ran across the living room, using my full stats, and slammed the front door twice as hard. I heard the wood splinter and ignored it as I got in the car in under five seconds. I gunned the engine and squealed the tires as I sped down the street.
I did not want to see that. I did not. No. No no no. No! Fucking NO! I yelled in my head to try and get that image out of my mind. It didn't work. In fact, it seemed to etch itself even deeper because I was trying to get rid of it. Oh, god. Oh, god!
My mind raced and I was starting to panic. I immediately switched out a ring and touched my chest and cast Calmness on myself. Serene nothingness filled my mind and I relaxed. I let it flow through me, knowing it was fake and wouldn't last very long. I didn't care.
She's my sister! Seeing her like that... doing that... I shook my head and switched rings before the spell ended and cast it again. She's a grown woman. I can't let her having sex bother me so much.
I took out a Focus pendant and put it on over the Clarity one I wore. My mind snapped into focus and smiled. I know that Diane would tell Jenny I was gone, so I didn't have to worry about it. I never should have gone over without calling first, anyway. It wasn't something to say over the phone or even text, because you never knew who was listening; but, I should have given her a heads up and maybe she would have gotten him hidden or asked him to leave.
In any case, I was the one that was wrong. I took out my cell phone and told the guys on my work crew to take the day off tomorrow. We were months ahead on the schedule and they had plenty of time to finish the building without me there to help. Of course, I had all goddamn night to do as much as I could to get them even more ahead. I took out a Fog ring and smiled.
No one will even see me. I thought and drove off into the night.
*
Jenny woke up with a start when she heard the door slam to her old room. A second later she heard another slam and it was louder and sounded like splintered wood. She got out of her brother's old bed and walked over to his bedroom door. Even though she had switched rooms months ago, she still thought of it as Damon's room. It was also why she could always fall asleep, because it was his bed.
Jenny opened the door and stepped out into the living room. “What the hell is going on out here?”
“I was going to ask you that.” Kathy said as she stepped out of Janet's old room with a sheet wrapped around her. Behind her was her boyfriend that bore a striking resemblance to Damon's physique. His face and hair were completely different however and Jenny didn't find him attractive at all. She also couldn't see what Kathy saw in him.
“I just heard two bangs that woke me up.” Jenny said and looked around. She didn't see anything, so she walked over to the light switch. Or tried to. “Ow ow ow!” She hissed as she stepped on what felt like a splinter of wood.
“Are you okay?” Kathy asked.
“I don't know.” Jenny said as she limped the rest of the way across the room and turned on the living room light. Kathy gasped and pointed at the floor. Jenny looked down at the living room floor and saw a perfect set of footprints had dug into the hardwood floors as if they were walking in sand and had torn up the wood. They went from Kathy's room and all the way over to the front door, which was half broken, the door handle was crushed, and splinters were everywhere.
The three people stood there and stared at the mangled wood. They had no clue what had happened or what to do next.
