9 min read
Calista
October 26, 2016
"Will you just come over, please? I need someone to talk to."
Reuben walked from the kitchen to the living room with a cup of hot tea in his hands and his cell phone wedged between his shoulder and his ear. With a heavy sigh, he set his tea down on the coffee table and brought the phone into eye's view. Clicking the "End" button, he set it down before picking up his tea to take a sip. He needed a good cup of tea after the troublesome month he'd had.
Reuben walked from the kitchen to the living room with a cup of hot tea in his hands and his cell phone wedged between his shoulder and his ear. With a heavy sigh, he set his tea down on the coffee table and brought the phone into eye's view. Clicking the "End" button, he set it down before picking up his tea to take a sip. He needed a good cup of tea after the troublesome month he'd had.
Within the hour, Reuben heard his front door open up. A tall 5'11" woman with chocolate skin, curled short dark brown hair and bright honey colored eyes entered the home. "I'm here. Now what're you needing to talk about, hmm?" she asked in an annoyed tone, turning to see Reuben with a bright, cheesy smile on his face sitting on one of his couches. She chuckled, crossed her arms and waltzed across the room with big strides, making her way to the other couch which sat across from him. She planted herself down and waved her hand, as if to give him permission to speak, all with a look of annoyance on her face.
"I've missed you," Reuben stated with some sincerity as he leaned forward.
"You haven't talked to me in over a month, bitch. Why call now?" she questioned, sitting herself back.
"I'm sorry. I'm a terrible person, I know. But you can't stay mad at me."
"Mhmm." A look of utter annoyance on the woman's face.
"Calista, c'mon. We're grown adults and we need to talk out our problems. You're acting like I wronged you. I've had a rough month and I need someone to talk to...seriously."
"You want to talk out our problems? Okay, fine. Lets start with the fact that you've ignored all my phone calls for the past month and-"
Reuben cut her off, "Lets actually start with the fact that you hexed my ex-boyfriend, which you can't, for whatever reason, figure out how to undo. Now he won't talk to me."
"Pfft. That boy deserved it. And you needed to wake up. He treated you like utter shit. And for the record, ignoring me wasn't very 'grown up' of you, either."
"All I asked of you was to help me perform a love spell! You purposefully went behind my back and hexed him so that he has the worst nightmares about me every time he falls asleep. I feel like you owe me an apology."
"I owe you an apology!? You should be thanking me for saving your dumb ass from that dickhead." Calista gave Reuben a death-filled glare, tightening her grip on her biceps with her crossed arms.
Seeing as though she wouldn't budge, Reuben rolled his eyes and sighed. "All I want is to make amends with you and put this behind us. I'm over Clark. Now, can we just move on and catch up, please? I have much more pressing matters to discuss."
Calista eyed Reuben up and down with a raised brow. She rolled her eyes and pursed her lips. "Fine, we can move on. I guess I kinda missed you too," she said, looking away with a smile growing ever-so-slightly on her face. "You have to admit that my hex was funny as hell, though."
Reuben chuckled. "Yeah, and I guess he kind of does deserve it," he said with a growing smile.
The two stood and hugged. Calista had been Reuben's best friend since elementary school. She is a natural witch, born with the gift, but due to her family's strict rules, was never able to practice whilst living at home, even though she would dabble here and there without her parent's knowledge. Once she moved out, however, she had free reign on all things magical. She immersed herself in her studies, practicing day in and day out; oftentimes making bad choices and messing up her incantations, but it was all a learning curve for her. She dabbled in many branches until she finally found illusion magic. Oh, how she enjoyed her illusions. She could pull the wool over anyone's eyes with that. Thus, it became her main branch of study throughout her college days.
"So, Cali, I have some news to tell you," Reuben began, grabbing his cup of tea from the table and taking a big swig and setting it back down. "I fucked up...big time."
Calista sighed and rolled her eyes. He was always so dramatic when it came to things. She was certain of that. "Oh, Reu, of course you did. So, what STD did you bring home this time?" she questioned, raising a brow.
"Ugh, it's not like that at all," he waved her words off with a disgusted look before continuing, "I was given the opportunity of a lifetime and I fucked it up. I was given this gift...a magical bottle and-"
"You were given something magical!? Well, where is it!?" Calista interrupted. She was always extremely excitable by anything having to deal with magic.
"I sent it back."
"Why the hell would you do that!?"
"Would you just shut up and listen a minute."
The woman sat back in her seat a moment, simply glaring at Reuben with crossed arms and legs in an annoyed, yet attentive fashion.
"As I was saying, earlier this month I was given this magical bottle that I had to fill with a 'soul' of some sort. It's for this experiment of sorts; they're like people, only not fully? Anyway, I figured I'd want it to be like a magical type of soul. Either a fae, vampire, dragon, or some sort of magical creature. But I messed up and wasn't paying attention. I was making a special tea for a client of mine and it required toadstools. So I brought them home and misplaced one of them. The next day, the bottle had sucked the life right out of that mushroom and was swirling with smoke. The only thing I could do was send it back. I haven't heard from the people at the lab since. I'm just pissed at myself for wasting the bottle and potentially fucking up the entire gift. So it's been bumming me out lately. Today was the first day that I've felt any sort of relief from it, and that was only due to my meditation this morning."
Calista cocked her head a bit as she listened. What a story. Magical bottles with soul sucking abilities? This sounded like some Lab 305 shit. "That sounds...interesting. This 'lab' you are referring to...it doesn't happen to be called Lab 305, does it?"
"Yes! That's it exactly! So you've heard of them? Do you-"
"Oh my god! You fucking whore! How the hell did you even get a bottle!? You're a damn mundane! What the fuck is wrong with that place!?"
Reuben's face fell into utter confusion. "Wh-what're you talking about?"
"What am I talking about!? You have the opportunity of a lifetime! I'm a natural born witch and I can't even seem to get a fucking letter back. I've been trying to get my hands on a raevan for years. I've sent multiple requests in to become a guardian and I've never once heard back. Honestly, why on earth do you want a raevan anyway? What would that bring you? Do you even realize the kind of responsibility that comes with such a thing!? Magical creatures that contain all sorts of powers you can only imagine; but it's real. A raevan would be a witch's best friend! Ugh! But no, they have to give it to the damn mundane," she spewed, rolling her eyes and heaving a heavy sigh, throwing her arms about in a fit of - what could only be considered - a grown woman's tantrum.
'Maybe it's because of your attitude and temper,' Reuben thought to himself a moment, looking at his distraught friend with a puzzled stare. But, the question she asked in that bout of rage struck him. Why did he wish to become a guardian? At the time, looking back, it sounded like something he had really wanted to be apart of. He thought it'd be fun to take care of something other than himself for once. But, in reality, what the hell was he even doing? Calista was right. This was a huge responsibility. Much larger than caring for something like an animal. This was a magical being, who could get well out of hand; and with him not having any innate magical powers, why would they choose him to care for a creature over someone well versed in magic, a natural witch no less? He was both extremely upset, and yet, strangely relieved. Upset because he had messed up the soul capture and telling Calista hadn't helped his feelings on that; in fact, she made him feel worse. But he also felt a sense of relief knowing that there was a huge possibility that the lab wouldn't accept such a boring soul choice.
Finally, after a few moments of contemplation, he spoke, "To be completely honest, I signed up because I wanted to take part in the endeavor. I met a raevan and she was intriguing. Magic or not, this was something that I was more than wiling to be apart of. But you're right, I guess I didn't consider all the consequences before sending back the soul glass, filled. What the hell do I do now?"
Reuben brought his thumb to his mouth and chewed slightly on his nail. His eyes darted about the room in wonder and shock. What was he to do? He was in the dark completely about whether or not he'd even receive a call back from the Lab. Finally, his gaze rested down the hall towards the bedrooms. The most responsible thing would be to ready a room for the creature once it was born if, in fact, they did finally call him back. Better safe than sorry, right?
Calista sighed and watched as Reuben's eyes darted down the hall in quiet contemplation. She knew exactly what he was thinking. She shook her head, rolled her eyes, and stood up. "Alright, lets go get this room ready for your future child," she said, walking towards the hallway, turning around to see Reuben stunned. "Well, c'mon. It ain't gonna ready itself!"
"I've missed you," Reuben stated with some sincerity as he leaned forward.
"You haven't talked to me in over a month, bitch. Why call now?" she questioned, sitting herself back.
"I'm sorry. I'm a terrible person, I know. But you can't stay mad at me."
"Mhmm." A look of utter annoyance on the woman's face.
"Calista, c'mon. We're grown adults and we need to talk out our problems. You're acting like I wronged you. I've had a rough month and I need someone to talk to...seriously."
"You want to talk out our problems? Okay, fine. Lets start with the fact that you've ignored all my phone calls for the past month and-"
Reuben cut her off, "Lets actually start with the fact that you hexed my ex-boyfriend, which you can't, for whatever reason, figure out how to undo. Now he won't talk to me."
"Pfft. That boy deserved it. And you needed to wake up. He treated you like utter shit. And for the record, ignoring me wasn't very 'grown up' of you, either."
"All I asked of you was to help me perform a love spell! You purposefully went behind my back and hexed him so that he has the worst nightmares about me every time he falls asleep. I feel like you owe me an apology."
"I owe you an apology!? You should be thanking me for saving your dumb ass from that dickhead." Calista gave Reuben a death-filled glare, tightening her grip on her biceps with her crossed arms.
Seeing as though she wouldn't budge, Reuben rolled his eyes and sighed. "All I want is to make amends with you and put this behind us. I'm over Clark. Now, can we just move on and catch up, please? I have much more pressing matters to discuss."
Calista eyed Reuben up and down with a raised brow. She rolled her eyes and pursed her lips. "Fine, we can move on. I guess I kinda missed you too," she said, looking away with a smile growing ever-so-slightly on her face. "You have to admit that my hex was funny as hell, though."
Reuben chuckled. "Yeah, and I guess he kind of does deserve it," he said with a growing smile.
The two stood and hugged. Calista had been Reuben's best friend since elementary school. She is a natural witch, born with the gift, but due to her family's strict rules, was never able to practice whilst living at home, even though she would dabble here and there without her parent's knowledge. Once she moved out, however, she had free reign on all things magical. She immersed herself in her studies, practicing day in and day out; oftentimes making bad choices and messing up her incantations, but it was all a learning curve for her. She dabbled in many branches until she finally found illusion magic. Oh, how she enjoyed her illusions. She could pull the wool over anyone's eyes with that. Thus, it became her main branch of study throughout her college days.
"So, Cali, I have some news to tell you," Reuben began, grabbing his cup of tea from the table and taking a big swig and setting it back down. "I fucked up...big time."
Calista sighed and rolled her eyes. He was always so dramatic when it came to things. She was certain of that. "Oh, Reu, of course you did. So, what STD did you bring home this time?" she questioned, raising a brow.
"Ugh, it's not like that at all," he waved her words off with a disgusted look before continuing, "I was given the opportunity of a lifetime and I fucked it up. I was given this gift...a magical bottle and-"
"You were given something magical!? Well, where is it!?" Calista interrupted. She was always extremely excitable by anything having to deal with magic.
"I sent it back."
"Why the hell would you do that!?"
"Would you just shut up and listen a minute."
The woman sat back in her seat a moment, simply glaring at Reuben with crossed arms and legs in an annoyed, yet attentive fashion.
"As I was saying, earlier this month I was given this magical bottle that I had to fill with a 'soul' of some sort. It's for this experiment of sorts; they're like people, only not fully? Anyway, I figured I'd want it to be like a magical type of soul. Either a fae, vampire, dragon, or some sort of magical creature. But I messed up and wasn't paying attention. I was making a special tea for a client of mine and it required toadstools. So I brought them home and misplaced one of them. The next day, the bottle had sucked the life right out of that mushroom and was swirling with smoke. The only thing I could do was send it back. I haven't heard from the people at the lab since. I'm just pissed at myself for wasting the bottle and potentially fucking up the entire gift. So it's been bumming me out lately. Today was the first day that I've felt any sort of relief from it, and that was only due to my meditation this morning."
Calista cocked her head a bit as she listened. What a story. Magical bottles with soul sucking abilities? This sounded like some Lab 305 shit. "That sounds...interesting. This 'lab' you are referring to...it doesn't happen to be called Lab 305, does it?"
"Yes! That's it exactly! So you've heard of them? Do you-"
"Oh my god! You fucking whore! How the hell did you even get a bottle!? You're a damn mundane! What the fuck is wrong with that place!?"
Reuben's face fell into utter confusion. "Wh-what're you talking about?"
"What am I talking about!? You have the opportunity of a lifetime! I'm a natural born witch and I can't even seem to get a fucking letter back. I've been trying to get my hands on a raevan for years. I've sent multiple requests in to become a guardian and I've never once heard back. Honestly, why on earth do you want a raevan anyway? What would that bring you? Do you even realize the kind of responsibility that comes with such a thing!? Magical creatures that contain all sorts of powers you can only imagine; but it's real. A raevan would be a witch's best friend! Ugh! But no, they have to give it to the damn mundane," she spewed, rolling her eyes and heaving a heavy sigh, throwing her arms about in a fit of - what could only be considered - a grown woman's tantrum.
'Maybe it's because of your attitude and temper,' Reuben thought to himself a moment, looking at his distraught friend with a puzzled stare. But, the question she asked in that bout of rage struck him. Why did he wish to become a guardian? At the time, looking back, it sounded like something he had really wanted to be apart of. He thought it'd be fun to take care of something other than himself for once. But, in reality, what the hell was he even doing? Calista was right. This was a huge responsibility. Much larger than caring for something like an animal. This was a magical being, who could get well out of hand; and with him not having any innate magical powers, why would they choose him to care for a creature over someone well versed in magic, a natural witch no less? He was both extremely upset, and yet, strangely relieved. Upset because he had messed up the soul capture and telling Calista hadn't helped his feelings on that; in fact, she made him feel worse. But he also felt a sense of relief knowing that there was a huge possibility that the lab wouldn't accept such a boring soul choice.
Finally, after a few moments of contemplation, he spoke, "To be completely honest, I signed up because I wanted to take part in the endeavor. I met a raevan and she was intriguing. Magic or not, this was something that I was more than wiling to be apart of. But you're right, I guess I didn't consider all the consequences before sending back the soul glass, filled. What the hell do I do now?"
Reuben brought his thumb to his mouth and chewed slightly on his nail. His eyes darted about the room in wonder and shock. What was he to do? He was in the dark completely about whether or not he'd even receive a call back from the Lab. Finally, his gaze rested down the hall towards the bedrooms. The most responsible thing would be to ready a room for the creature once it was born if, in fact, they did finally call him back. Better safe than sorry, right?
Calista sighed and watched as Reuben's eyes darted down the hall in quiet contemplation. She knew exactly what he was thinking. She shook her head, rolled her eyes, and stood up. "Alright, lets go get this room ready for your future child," she said, walking towards the hallway, turning around to see Reuben stunned. "Well, c'mon. It ain't gonna ready itself!"