New Release!! An Orc For Halloween
New Release!! An Orc For Halloween
Part of a Multi-Author Series Collaboration - A Monstrous Mistake
I am SO excited to present to you my latest novella! This one took me for a whirl. Not only is it a monster I’ve never written about, I had actual deadlines!
For those of you who enjoy my extramarital fun series, this one may be a stretch for you. BUT I still encourage you to try it. Those who enjoy my other paranormal stories, you will love this one.
A bit of backstory on this one. I’ve been wanting to write a story for a while now about my childhood best friend & my friendship. This gave me the perfect opportunity. Granted, a LOT of liberties were taken, obviously. I had a deadline to meet and I needed character backstories. What better way to speed the writing process along than using the backstory of our relationship starting in 7th grade!
In case you’re wondering … I got her seal of approval! She loved it, wants another follow up story & wants this in print!
She’s demanding, isn’t she! Haha.
Without further ado I present to you …. Chapter 1 of An Orc For Halloween
“Ashe, catch!”
I turned my head just in time to see the ball of clothes falling on top of me. Sora, my best friend since middle school, had decided to throw a Halloween party and deemed me the lucky one to come help her set up for it.
“Didn’t agree to clean your house, just decorate!”
She laughed, “They are all clean, just go toss them on my bed, pretty please.”
“Well, since you said please.”
We both laughed, and I walked off to her bedroom. There was always some sort of trouble we managed to get into when we were together. That was part of the fun of being lifelong friends. But there was an evil twinkle in her eye about this party that, for some reason, worried me.
“Who all are you inviting to this shindig?” I asked when I came back from her room.
“Oh, the usual people and then some not so usual people.”
She knew way more people than I did, so it didn’t shock me one bit that she answered like that.
“Maybe I should rephrase the question. Will I know anyone there tonight?”
“Uh, hello, me!”
“Aside from the hostess with the mostest, who will I be able to mingle with?”
“It’s a costume party. Meet someone you think is sexy and just have fun. Now, please hand me those skull lights. I think they will look great right here along the wall’s trim.”
“I don’t think you bought enough,” I said as I handed her the box of 100.
“Really?”
Rolling my eyes, “No, I was joking. Don’t be so literal.”
“Look, with you I can never tell. You know that.” Sora started stringing up the lights one by one. “Thanks for coming early and helping.”
“That’s what we do. Show up for one another.” I grabbed the other end of the skull lights and stood on the extra chair. We continued to string them up while singing our favorite songs from high school.
“Ashe, there is something I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while now?”
I looked over my shoulder at Sora, who was now draping orange and black tinsel along the couch and tables. “Oh, yeah?”
She nodded, “Yeah. I don’t know how to tell you this either. I’m afraid you will be mad.”
Laughing, “You’re acting like you did something awful. What could you have done? Sleep with my ex-husband?” I laughed some more at the thought of Sora and Simon together. When she wasn’t laughing, I turned around and looked her square in the eyes. “You didn’t sleep with Simon, did you?”
“God, no, he wasn’t my type. He was all yours.”
I let out a sigh of relief. “Then what the fuck is so bad that you have to act all dramatic about it?”
Sora shook her head. “I know I am making this out to be a bigger thing than it probably should be.”
“Just spit it out already.”
“You know how you always joke that when we are together, unusual things happen around us.”
“Sure, we made that joke back in high school. Why bring it up twenty years later?”
I could tell Sora looked conflicted. She started pacing back and forth. “Well, something does happen when we are together.”
“Right, that’s why we joke.”
“No, you don’t understand. Sit, please.” She pointed to the couch where she moved to sit.
Following my best friend’s lead, I sat next to her and took her hand. “You can tell me.”
She looked nervous; I didn’t understand why though. “I’m a witch.”
I laughed, “You’re a bitch? Why, what did you do?”
She shook her head, “No, not bitch, witch. I’m a witch.”
“What do you mean, you’re a witch? Are you changing religions suddenly?”
Sora laughed, “No, I’m not changing religions. I’ve always been a witch. I just lied about it all this time.”
“Like, witch on flying brooms, witch?” I pulled my hand back and scooted away on the couch some. I wanted to look at her face better as we spoke. “Like, Samantha Stevens witch?”
“Yeah, sorta like that. I have a coven. Not everyone in my family is a member. They are all witches, but not all practicing.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. My best friend, keeping something this massive from me. “So, this whole time, you can do magic?”
I didn’t know how I was feeling about this moment with her telling me this lifelong secret. For half a second, I thought she was going to tell me she was a lesbian the way she said she had something to tell me. But this was totally out of left field.
“I’m confused. Why would I be upset?”
She let out a long sigh and looked up at me. “Because I kind of used my powers to sleep with Lance.”
It took a minute to process what she was saying. “Lance? Lance my brother?”
Sora nodded, “Yes. I’m so sorry.”
“Was it against his will?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “I put a love spell on him. He said yes at the time, but I’ve been riddled with guilt over not telling you. About that, and all of this part of my life.”
“So, you raped my brother!” The look on my face must have told her how angry I was.
She threw her hands up in a defensive manner, “No, God, Ashe, no! Not in a rapey way! The spell didn’t make him do anything he wouldn’t have done willingly. It just gave him the courage to do it. Like when someone is hypnotized.”
“I can’ believe what you’re telling me.” I stood up from the couch and walked away from her and went into the kitchen. I looked around and noticed that while everything looked normal; it was arranged uniquely. The signs had all been there. Like when she burned incense before we had something serious to talk about. Or when she would do things in threes. And her insistence that whatever we put into the universe has to be positive or else it will haunt us. I just never opened my eyes enough to see it. I heard her coming and turned around. There was an anger I could feel inside of me. Anger for keeping a secret and anger for seducing my brother.
I was clinching my hands into fists and relaxing them over and over. A coping skill they had taught us back in school on how to deal with anger. “I wish you had fucked Simon,” I said to her.
Sora let out a laugh, and I shortly followed suit. “I’m sorry. Mostly sorry I never told you about this side of me.”
“Why did you hide it for all these years? We’ve been friends forever.”
“That’s the rule, the coven rule.”
“Clearly, I don’t like this coven. They are a bad influence on you.” I walked over to the fridge and opened the drawer where she kept the beer. I took one out and popped the top open. “I’m going to have a few of these right now before the party starts.”
“Don’t drink too much. That’s the other thing I must tell you.”
“What, you’re afraid I’m going to get drunk?”
She shook her head, “No, that tonight is a magical Halloween party. We’re going to be performing. So, if you see anything out of the ordinary, ignore it.”
I let out a loud laugh. “Uh huh, okay, sure. That’s great. Performing what, spells and stuff?”
“Yes, spells and stuff. I mean it, Ashe. You need to be careful tonight. Don’t get drunk.”
I took another beer from her fridge and walked back into the living room. I turned up the music and started working on the opposite wall. I didn’t want to leave her to decorate alone, but this really annoyed me. So much so, I wasn’t sure how I would think of anything else after this.
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Nice start! Looking forward to reading more.