A Pagan Life

It was one of those sunsets where you could make out the shape of everything in the skyline.

She sat there on her aunts' porch in her aunt Elizabeth's old rocking chair, sipping iced tea to commemorate the both of them. They were her Secondhand Lions great uncles when she needed them. She even inherited the house from them. Thank goodness there was no mortgage on the house. They'd paid for it outright, leaving Evelyn with only the monthly payments to take care of. Since she was an online journalist, it was easy enough for her to take care of that. They'd each married men who turned out to be not as savory as once thought, divorced them and made a decent sum on the bargain in both cases. They met back up and decided to buy the house together in case they ever needed each other. It had strted out like Practical Magic, except there was just her, no sister. It was a cross between that and Secondhand Lions. Instead of a pig and some dogs and a lion, there were cats. She'd gotten real good at cleaning out a litter box. The rule was one cat per person, that way there was someone to clean out each litter box.

They raised her with no particular religion, celebrating all the holidays in their own traditional styles. Both aunts were Pagan, one of them having tried Wicca in order to hex her ex-husband for cheating on her. It didn't help that the other woman was a hooker.

The hex didn't work. The dirtbag ended up dying, choking on a mouthful of chips one night leaning back in his recliner wearing a wifebeater with sweat and food stains on it. That was only after she'd converted to Paganism and let go ot her anger. Well, that anger had to go somewhere. They spent the rest of Evelyn's childhood raising her and converting vengeful Wiccans to Paganism. They even had a revenge cleansing ceremony for each woman. Shortly after each one, the hurtful ex would always somehow get his just desserts anyhow. Funny how letting go gets the job done.

The aunts definitely had their own personalities. Aunt Elizabeth was more of an earth mother, very spiritual and balanced. She was the one who was Pagan from the start. She knew that not all men were like her ex-husband and that time spent on revenge was time wasted, so she forgave him in order to let go of her anger and move on with her life. Aunt Elsie was the one who'd been cheated on and wanted to use Wicca for revenge. Elizabeth eventually guided her away from that. Elsie was used to repressing her anger until it eventually boiled over into some misguided seeking of revenge, but she could still be reasoned with. She loved to have her herb garden as a way of having a creative outlet. Elizabeth's creative outlet was cooking. They both loved all animals, but found that they had the most time for cats, so that's what they picked to live with them in the house. They believed that caring for another being brought out the best in people and that it prepared one for other responsibilities in life.

Aunt Elsie and Aunt Elizabeth taught Evelyn all they knew about Pagan magic, especially how to use it contientiously. They did not want her following in any misguided, vengeful footsteps.

~

One day, he appeared, walking down the road, a big pack on his back, insisting on keeping his jacket he was apparently that damn proud of on.

He was wearing that and a charcoal gray v-neck shirt with jeans and construction boots.

It was hard to see his face at first, then as he got closer she could see he was handsome. She gided herself for filtering that out. When you're raised by two strong Pagan women, you evelop a good bullshit meter. Theven gold her she was an empath and that she was the manifestation life if The Morrigan, whose previous attempt had been when she was Morgause, which life she remembered clearly, also having remembered Rihanon, the life just before it, two good signs for channeling The Morrigan.

Who was this man who approached with a kind smile with an easy sensuality to it? She had no idea how much she would need him, but she could come to know.

~

He had a healthy enough appetite. All she had to make that night were eggs and bacon. The bagels and cream cheese she figured were for breakfast. All he asked to drink was water, no ice, which she gave him from her Brita filter.

He finally came down to it, having already given her his name, Tom, and what he did. He'd been a physical therapist and retired from that. He now was a photographer for the government. He also received royaly checks for work he'd done in some games, modeling or voicing or both.

He had an adult daughter and was a widower. The daughter was in London pursuing a fashion design career.

Though he was older than Evelyn by twenty-seven years, somehow they connected. She could come to learn a lot about herself through him.

When he mentioned his daughter's name was Katherine, Evelyn realize that she'd known her from when Katherine had been Evelyn's father's secretary.

"Are your aunts not here?" Tom asked.

"They've passed on, thought I believe they still visit me."

"I'm not actually Atheist. I'm Pagan as well. I used to work for their council."

Evelyn looked shocked, then took a moment to regain her composure.

"I'm The Morrigan...manifest." She barely choked out the word "manifest."

After a pause, during which they exchanged knowing glances, she added, "A fitting meeting then."

Tom simply nodded, then finished the last of his water at a drought.

Evelyn did she dishes as Tom told her about all his code name work.

"I will gladly join you, so long as I can have a relatively normal life."

"Sounds good."

Tom as just about to settle on the couch as a bad for the night when Evelyn tapped his shoulder and showed him to a guest room.

"There's an office that corresponds to this room across the hall with the bathroom in between. My aunts were big on the whole a room of one's own thing, even made me read the book when I was little."

Tom gave a short laugh in response.

"This will be your room for as long as you should need it. My aunts wouldn't have me do otherwise, considering your purpose in coming here."

Then she smiled at him and went up to her own room.

~

When Elizabeth came down in the morning, she overheard Tom setting up and even typing on his laptop in the office. She wrote down the WiFi password on a post-it, then handed it to him so he could use the printer before continuing down tot he kitchen to make coffee and breakfast.

By the time Tom got down where, she had laid out the bagels on their plates with a knife and napkin each. There was a plate with butter on it, a cream cheese bowl with plain cream cheese in it and a bowl with chive cream cheese in it.

"You came prepared." Tom commented as he sat down.

"I wasn't sure which kind you'd want or how toasted you'd want your bagel, so I just left everything out. Besides, there's literally two eggs left so I have to go grocery shopping after this, Why don't you tell me what you'd like and then I can buy it for you?"

"Can't I come with you?"

"If you want to."

Tom suddenly took both Evelyn's hands in his and kissed them.

"Why are you being so accommmodating?"

"Well, I want you to have what you need. Also, I had a small memory vision that I married you, but then your eyes turned green in it so I wasn't sure if it was accurate." She took a deep breath and waited to see how absured he'd find it.

He smiled at her, still holding her hands, and simply nodded.

"I did have a wife, and you look a lot like her, but she was kidnapped."

Slipping her hands out of his, Evelyn continued, "Yes. I remember something about Tori or Victoria."

"Yes, that was her name."

"I feel like I have to tell you how I got here."

Tom looked at her quizzically, then stayed silent, waiting for her to proceed.

"I wasn't really born like I said. I brought myself back. And I have no memories of my last lige except what I told you I had last night."

"You Crowed yourself?"

Evelyn simply nodded.

Tom looked impressed.

They decided to take a break by getting dressed and going out to get groceries.

As they were putting them away, however, Tom kissed Evelyn.

"Yep," he said, nodding.

"What?"

"You were her."

This shocked her so much she had to sit down.

Once Tom was done putting the groceries away with Evelyn telling him where thing went, he sat down and hugged her for a long while, not saying anything.

Finally, Evelyn got up and said, "Thank you. I needed that."

She then went into the living room to watch TV. After finishing his coffee, Tom joined her.

That night, Tom slept in Evelyn's room. Well, not so much slept...

Evelyn grew nervous and begin panting as Tom took her clothes off. She couldn't help but stare at his perfect body. He had gray hair that someho enhanced his handsomeness, especially as she looked down at his happy trail. His chest hair lad to his abs led to his happy trail led to his dick.

Even other seeming imperfections, his facial scars, enhanced his features, emphasizing the fact tht he was inwardly scarred. They also made him look tought and like he'd gotten through something. The scar on his temple emphasized his eyes and eyebrow line, which had a sardonic arch. The sar by his mouth emphasized his thin yet kissable lips that went perfectly with his face.

He had an acquiline nose and a square jawline that went down in a V. His skin was impossibly youthful looking considering his age.

His eyes were a pale cerulean blue.

His cheekbones were perfectly high enough for his eyes and his jawline.

The sight of his muscles, how they seemed and looked all in one, was enough to turn her on. The same was true of his bones. She wanted it all and was falling for it all.

For all that he was not uncomfortable being naked, he brought his hadn up to his temple scar as soon as she looked at it, looking abashed.

She deeply, desirously kissed it, sucking on his temple and licking the scar.

Then she began to suck and nibble her way down his face, down his neck, down his abs, down his happy trail and including his dick, then switching back and forth his balls and dick. She even took the opportunity to bite each buttcheek.

As she was about to switch back to sucking his dick, he stopped her.

"Don't make me come yet."

It was his turn to pleasure her. He started with his fingers and ended with his tongue. As his mouth moved to her pussy, his hands moved to her breasts.

She lost track of which thing was making her come, and of when it had gone from coming to squirting. All she knew was that the first time she squirted, he grinned up at her, his face covered in it.

Finally, he entered her after getting her more then ready for him. By the time he did, her pussy had been begging to be entered, her whole body screaming his name.

She came and squirted all at once. Then she felt him come inside of her and it happened all over again.

The sliding in did it and the feel of his balls against her as he began to speed up, slamming into her, did it too. At one point, he was all the way in to the hilt and she could feel his hips against hers. The feel of his whole body against hers did it. His scent crazed her. The taste of him was maddening. His moans drove her insane.

At one point, he looked down at her, his eyes hungrily perusing her whole body. He breathed out the word "beautiful." She smiled.

When he pulled out, she made a catlike noise of complaint. He laughed, kissed her, then rolled onto his back and waited for her to tuck her head onto the nook, the follow of his shoulder.

He chuckled and said, "Same side."

She knew he meant she'd shocsen the same side of him as in her last life. It was his right.

Just before she drifted off to sleep, she said, "I'm glad men don't run out."

He laughed.

At one point, she got up to go to the bathroom. As she got back in bed and tucked her head back in the nook, he murmured, "I love you."

She paused, happily shocked.

"I love you too."

She woke up in his arms, smelling his scent, which was so comforting and sensual all at the same time.

She went out to the porch in her nightgown and robe and slippers to sit and sip her iced tea. He soon joined her.

"I've texted my daughter about you. She knows you're my girlfriend, not that you were her mom. I'll save that for when she gets here."

She simply smiled at him and held his hand, then they both looked out at the view.