As he walked to the lunch room, Aaralon couldn't get Tammy out of his mind. He needed her. He had to have her, be with her, take her somewhere isolated where they could be alone together. Somewhere like the old attic room. Yeah, the attic room. That would be perfect. Nobody would find them together there. He had to bring Tammy to the old attic room.
But the first problem was getting her to go anywhere with him. Aaralon had never been comfortable with women. The spell books had always been more reliable, easier to deal with. He'd tried asking women out once or twice, but always a crushing rejection. And Tammy was such a knockout, how would she be any different? Surely he'd never succeed. But he had to have her. Just had to. He knew that. He didn't know why -- he'd thought she was pretty before, but nothing special -- but today he just couldn't get her out of his mind. He told himself it was just an infatuation, it would pass. But he couldn't let go of the idea, just couldn't stop thinking of her.
And there she was! Eating quietly with her friends at a table. As Vlad joined the food line, Aaralon quickly ducked out and moved through the crowd toward Tammy. He stood in front of her, his tray in hand.
"Oh, hi Aaralon," she said. "What's up?"
Aaralon's mouth went dry. "Um, hi T-Tammy. Uh, I was, um, wondering, ah, if you m-might want to, um, h-hang out after c-class or s-something with me, you know..."
The other girls at Tammy's table giggled. Tammy shook her head. "Sorry, Aaralon," she said, "I've just got better things to do." She looked down and returned to her food.
Cheeks red, Aaralon ran out of the room. He buried his face in his arms against the wall of the hallway until he felt a tap on his shoulder.
It was Vlad. "What the hell is wrong with you, man? Get a grip. You knew she wouldn't say yes. Here, I saved you some mutton," he said, and presented a plate to Aaralon.
"Yeah, I suppose," Aaralon mumbled. "Thanks, man."
"Sure, bud," said Vlad. "Don't freak out on me, all right?"
"Yeah, all right."
"Look, I gotta go. I'll see you tonight."
"See ya."
As Vlad walked away, Aaralon knew he was right. He was 20. Puberty was over. He shouldn't be obsessing over Tammy like this.
The problem was, he WAS obsessing over her like this. He had tried to put on a brave face for Vlad, but even while he was talking to him, his thoughts kept going to Tammy. It wasn't going away. He wanted her even more.
About all he could do to suppress the desire was put it off. He didn't need her right now. But he DID need her tonight. He couldn't deny that. He had to take her with him tonight, somehow. He had to bring her to the old attic room with her tonight. That just wasn't negotiable. He knew it more than he knew anything else.
But she had said no, and he knew she wasn't going to change her mind.
Unless.
Aaralon had always been reluctant to try the forbidden spells. The penalties for getting caught were stiff. He had been all ready to cast his first forbidden spell last night, to try to summon a demon. But, he remembered, he hadn't done it. He'd chickened out at the last minute. After opening the books and getting it all ready, he hadn't actually done it. And he was glad... it was a relief. He didn't want to try forbidden spells anymore. Who knew what could happen, after all?
But there was only one way that he could imagine getting with Tammy. And that was through a spell.
Mind-altering spells, of course, were strictly forbidden at the College. It wouldn't do, the schoolmasters said, to have a bunch of horny teenagers using magic to rape each other. But Aaralon knew what he needed. And there was only one way to get it. He had the forbidden grimoires up there. The right spell, and she'd be his for sure.
So he cut class and headed straight for the old attic room. He found the right book, in his collection of forbidden spells: "Spells of Power over Others."
He browsed the spells. His finger passed over them. Cupid's Dart. Charm Maiden. Otto's Irresistible Seduction. And more. All with slightly varying effects. But one of them would surely get him his heart's desire, Tammy, back here to the attic room tonight. |