Discovering Life
Part of the Iridescence Fictional Universe
Chasing Shadows Series Part One
Pairing: Shade!Thief x Necromancer f!Reader Word Count: 3.2k Series Summary: Bound to a bloodline of Necromancers by a curse, the Shade is determined to trick the current descendant into breaking the curse while keeping his freedom. Chapter Summary: You learn something about yourself, your magic, that you'd never known. Notes: Every member of the Wanderer's Star Coven is brought to you by a slew of my discord besties and fellow authors. A prequel to this does exist for anyone who hasn't seen it yet!
[AO3]
“Seriously?
Something akin to an amused sound escaped the mage dragging you through the bland hallways of the Consortium at the tone in Hazel’s voice, you would think that being proven innocent they wouldn’t be this rough with you but as the Se’Kvia scapegoat of all things magic it just about tracked with past treatment. Your sister didn’t look amused, in fact she looked furious, and you deflated a little at the sight of your nephew clinging to her leg; all you’d wanted to do was go to his birthday party today, not get arrested for a crime you didn’t commit. Again.
“I’m sorry-“
“Not you, this is the fifth time in the month that they’ve gone and arrested you with no evidence and I know for a fact you were with Vivi and the others when your magic was supposedly detected at that artifact gallery.” Hazel was pissed and you didn’t feel at all sorry for the way the guard shrunk under her glare, the raw feeling of her magic seeping out of her sent a chill down your spine, and Ernest hurried to cling to your leg when the man finally released your restraints.
“Happy birthday, little dude, ready to go party?” His grin was bright as he nodded, you knew he was probably more afraid than he was letting on but the little half-elf was good at keeping his emotions in check already, and you looked up at Hazel as she re-centered her focus and contained her magic just as Nathan Landry came out of the main hall to investigate the swell of magic. His dark eyes landed on you and it was just like always, with almost everyone associated with the Consortium, that you watched the way his brow furrowed and his scowl deepened.
“One of these days I’m going to figure out how you’re-“
“My sister is innocent, again, and she has an alibi of ten people as well as CCTV evidence of where she was at the time you claimed she was at that gallery. How do I file a lawsuit for prejudice and wrongful arrests against the Consortium, I’m getting sick of all you dumb fucks -don’t repeat that, baby boy- and I’m going to put a stop to it.” Hazel’s tone was sharp and you smiled at the back of her head, unable to help the way your chest constricted with emotion.
Hazel wasn’t your relative by birth but she’d practically adopted you as her sister when you’d met in your shitty University, freshly an adult and no longer able to be protected by the already shaky shielding your family offered you from the prejudice of the Consortium, and the pair of you had been close ever since. Hazel had helped you find courage to stand up for yourself against the onslaught of people who hated you while you’d offered her support and care when she worked to get away from her parents’ influence.
Nathan’s face deepened in color, the man had gone from an assistant attorney to one of the most known legal representatives in Se’Kvia after the Álvarez case. The oratiomancer was one of the most respected men in the Consortium and also one of the most closed-minded, and the idea of going after the Consortium legally had probably never been something he expected anyone to do.
“Your sister is dangerous and deserves to have her magic stripped away.” Nathan’s remark was delivered with an icy glare and you met that look head on with your own scowl firmly in place, the orationmancer went to say something but Ernest’s little voice piped up before he could.
“But Auntie hasn’t hurt anyone or done anything wrong or dangerous, so why is she always in trouble? Mama always said the magic chooses who wields it and if Auntie didn’t get to pick the magic she was born with then why do you hate her for something that isn’t her fault?” Your eyes darted to your nephew and his expression was fairly intense as he met Nathan’s stern look with the innocence that came from childhood, of having minimal exposure to prejudices and influence from people like Nathan in his life, and the man tensed up a little as he stared back at your nephew.
He practically changed in a heartbeat, stance relaxing and face softening, and seeing this man you knew as stern and imposing basically change before your eyes was quite bizarre. If anything you were more than a little weirded out by how easily he went from cold to this, his tall form crouching to meet Ernest’s eyes at your nephew’s level, and the look on his face was almost affectionate. Hazel and you both locked gazes and her lips twitched in a way that you knew she was not pleased and while you didn’t want her to get arrested for assaulting a legal official you sort of wanted to see her curse the hell out of the man.
“Your mother is right, the magic chooses the person who controls it, but your Auntie’s magic is a very dangerous thing and we here at the Consortium have to protect everyone even if it means taking that away from her.” You could feel the burst of outrage bloom in your chest, ugly and coiling like a serpent ready to strike, because you didn’t even have training and he was still acting like you were a threat. You had never once hurt anyone with your magic and yet the Consortium was acting like you had.
“If Auntie’s magic was dangerous she’d let you take it away, she’s a really good person and wouldn’t be able to live knowing she’d hurt someone, but you didn’t answer why you hate her for something she couldn’t choose.” Ernest wasn’t taking the avoidance or deflection Nathan had tried to use, something about your nephew that you really truly adored, he was a brilliant kid and almost impossible to trick, it made things harder whenever he had some really advanced questions for someone his age but if you told him that it was for people a little older he would always let it go.
In this case he wasn’t going to take no from Nathan, you could see the stubborn set to his little shoulders, and your eyes stung with tears that you quickly willed away. You weren’t that lonely, angry, person you had been in the past anymore; you had a family that loved you now.
“Did your mother tell you about the Sundering? About how the Citadel turned against the Consortium?” Hazel bristled and you knew why since his tone had turned slightly condescending but Ernest’s little scowl deepened.
“Of course she did, but that was hundreds of years ago and before Auntie was even born, and my Mama Raven fought in that war and she doesn’t treat my Auntie like an enemy. I think you’re just scared because you’re unwilling to forgive or apologize for being mean.” Nathan’s nostrils flared briefly but he was saved when his name was called and you looked up to see that Oliver, the mage that had escorted you to the door, was finally either too scared or too tired of you being here.
“Ignore the kid, Nathan, we’ve got work to do.” Nathan stood up and tugged his suit jacket a little, meeting your gaze with an icy look, and then he was gone without even a goodbye. Unaware that all he was doing was further lowering Ernest’s opinion of the Consortium, the boy admittedly already thought pretty low of them.
“Let’s go have some cake, ice cream, and a good birthday party. Okay, little man?” You smiled when he squeezed your hand in his as you offered it, looking over at Hazel as she seethed beside him, but her eyes lightened when you reached out to poke her on the cheek and offered a cheeky grin.
“Yea, come on baby boy, let’s go party.”
You had thought the issue was dropped, the birthday party had gone well and using a good amount of make-up to cover the mark on your face meant that none of the parents or family members even tried to place why you seemed familiar. All too busy watching their kids run around and play, enjoy themselves, and you’d been able to see Ernest and Pearl blossom as they finally opened up to their new friends. Raven, Hazel, and all the others had been relieved to see it since the move from the Outer Rim to the Central District had been hard on the pair.
So naturally three days later, when you were lounging in your hammock among the circle of trees where the Coven met three times a week your attention was drawn to the sudden and loud burst of outrage from Treasa. Raven was crouching near you, tending to the delicate mistwhisper bushes lining the Coven’s sacred clearing and her lack of a response meant that this was something she’d known was going to happen, your brows furrowed as you watched Hazel nod and Vivi’s eyes lifted to look at you with a burning intensity in them.
Many were wary of her, for good reason since she was descended from a very old -and powerful- bloodline of Seelie Sidhe witches; and the Sidhe Courts had always leaned matriarchal in power and inheritance. Where Kassidy had a Sidhe father and human mother, inheriting mostly human features since male Sidhe traits were a less dominant gene, Vivi looked other at first glance. You knew she wasn’t angry at you but the intensity in her eyes could still send chills down your spine.
“They didn’t put anything on her record, right?” Vivi’s tone was sharp, dangerous to a degree that sent turned those chills to straight ice, but you knew that it was because she was ready to go after Nathan and the Consortium on her own. Treasa cut in before Hazel, or you, could reply as you made your way toward the circle of stone seats around the crystal alter to the Wanderer’s Star.
“I will go raise hell if they did.” Treasa was the Coven’s envoy to the Consortium, not working for the magic-governing body but working with them to ensure that the Coven was kept up-to-date on any changes in the laws or if the Consortium tried to arrest any members of the Coven. The governing body loved to take advantage of the fact that, being a Necromancer, you weren’t technically a part of the Coven in the way the Witches around you were.
“No, they had no proof again, it’s fine-” You hurried to cut in, not wanting any of them to risk themselves for you more than they already did, but it was too late.
“I don’t care if they had proof or not, they’re treating you like a lesser citizen for being born with a curse that made you a Necromancer. As if you chose this path for yourself.” With how sharp the outrage was in Skye’s voice it was pretty clear she was pissed and you flinched in response before Willow was pulling you into a gentle hug, knowing that you still had issues with people being angry around you, and Caelum clapped her hands together loud enough to earn the group’s focus.
“Has anyone actually inspected you? I know we didn’t, but are you sure you’re a Necromancer by definition and not just a Witch who can use Death Magic because of that curse?” Having lived your whole live with magic blockers, forced to keep your aura contained to avoid people staring at you, the thought of letting them near that part of you was kind of scary even if you did trust every person here with your darkest secrets. But the idea that you weren’t exactly what you’d thought, that maybe your family curse had some leeway and nobody bothered to check this whole time was tempting.
“I don’t- if they did then they never explicitly said.” You watched Caelum and Daphne exchange looks before Willow released you and tilted her head in an unspoken question, with Daphne getting up and offering her hands to you. For a brief moment you shivered and were suddenly nervous, Hazel was the only one that had interacted directly with your magic before. For so long you’d had it kept sealed, at first by force due to your family and then willingly after your first interaction with people in University before Hazel, and even with it unsealed you never let it out.
But you were curious, you had to know, and your hands slowly extended before you rested them against Daphne’s and allowed your aura to finally breathe. The chill of your magic made everyone aside from Hazel and Kassidy shiver, a natural response from those of a Light Nature when exposed to death magic, and Daphne’s hands took on a pale blue shine as she let her aura seep out to inspect yours. It felt like the lightest of touches on skin and sent gooseflesh down your arms and legs, carefully meant to convey no intent of harm to avoid your magic spiking in a defensive way, and the glow of magic that made any spell caster’s eyes shimmer like gemstones faded gently as her aura pulled back.
“I should have known- when the Wanderer’s Star guided all of us together you only assumed you were there because of Hazel -and at the time we had no reason to believe otherwise- but I can feel it, lurking beneath your curse and the death magic that comes with that curse. You’re meant to be a Witch.” Daphne’s eyes brightened since, as a Witch, you could become an official member of the coven and gain the same protections from the Consortium that the others had. Although it meant they would most likely be under much heavier scrutiny, something you didn’t quite want to cause them, you could see the way their faces lit up with delight.
Maybe it was not wanting to disappoint them, maybe it was the fact that you felt more like you belonged, but you wanted to be able to be who you were meant to be and stay by the side of your family even if it meant facing the possibility of the Consortium’s wrath.
“Queen Siora and Queen Rhodanthe are willing to support King Anwen’s request that death magic practitioners be welcomed back to Se’Kvia, that’s why more and more dark elves and lesser demons have been allowed to flee Iocrethran. Even under monitoring they get a lot more freedoms than you do, which is just a clear prejudice since they won’t touch political allies. Once you’re recognized as a Witch they’ll be backed into a corner on the constant arrests, because violating your protection laws as a member of the Coven will be seen as a risk to the refugees looking to make a home here.” Aelius’ grin was soft, as someone who worked very close with the Light Elf court she was usually the first to know most of the political sway of the agencies and courts outside of the Consortium.
Nylia stared at the clearing edge for a long moment before nodding her head, as if coming to a decision, and Vivi cast a cautious glance her way before smiling softly.
“Queen Áilís Nic Catháin has already stated that she’s been willing to move beyond the Sundering, but I’ll meet with her and seek protection for you as a member of my Coven.” It had been the biggest surprise to learn that Nylia was one of the Seelie Queen’s many descendants, forced to fight her own family to determine her strength early in life, and as one of the strongest she held a seat of influence in the Seelie Court. It was rare for her to use it, to throw her status as a royal around, but to do so for you only made your eyes water.
Vivi pulled you into a tight hug and whispered the promise that you’d be safe, making you burst into tears as the realization that you could begin to actually live a normal life set in.
“Your curse bound you to someone, something, from a realm relating to the dead.” You looked over at Daphne and sniffled, she’d taken a seat in the grass and was divining with the very wind as her sight and Ikarus was perched on her shoulder. Saphira’s quiet support as she reached out to take your hand, squeezing gently, made you smile as you leaned against her gently. The wind seemed to become more opaque before shifting and swirling into the shape of a bipedal form, humanoid, but with no features any of you could discern.
“Then it looks like we’ll have to get you trained up, find whoever this is, and force the Consortium’s hand to either drop their grudge or have the entire Magister’s Council forced to step down.” Hazel nudged you and Raven whispered something to the rowan tree as she rested her forehead against the bark, the branches groaned and shifted in a wind that didn’t blow as the message was steadily passed through the very wilding magic of the Earth itself.
“Starting, with summoning your Familiar.” Kassidy’s grin was big as she handed you a bag of silver flakes and a charcoal stick, your lips wobbled, and Hazel cast a shining trail of raw magic to show you the pattern to follow. The line of charcoal began to gleam in an iridescent way, greens and purples shining in the dark shade, and the silver flakes sparked when you began sprinkling them along the intricate circle while channeling your magic. A call was what Hazel had likened it to, opening yourself and reaching out to the entity that was meant to help you hone your magic, and while you feared a ghoul or some other ghastly thing would appear you knew that in the end death magic was something you’d live always and that it was time to accept that.
Chattering and clacking as the blinding light shimmered from the drawn lines sent a sharp relief through your very aura, a release of pressure you hadn’t known was building up, and when the glow faded you stared at the Familiar sitting there looking up at you. It was a feline, you could recognize the general body shape, but it was a skeleton feline; the empty eye sockets were blackened out and the ‘eyes’ were a toxic shade of green floating in the center.
You could practically feel its thoughts, as you were generally supposed to with Familiars, and the feline was happy. It had been waiting for you for a long time and you opened your arms with a smile, it crawled into your hug with a meow that sounded like it was faded and distant.
“I always wanted a fur baby of my own, though animals never really liked me, but I’m pretty happy with this.” Hazel was grinning as Raven rolled her eyes skyward, likely predicting the fascination that Ernest and Pearl were going to have with the new addition to their lives.
“I’m going to call you Furbie, short for fur baby.”
“Congratulations, you’re officially a Witch.”
All Fics Taglist:@hardc0rehaylz @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @musings-of-a-rose
Just Pedro Taglist@maievdenoir @beecastle @dins-cyare @littlemisspascal @writeforfandoms
Alt Taglist: @imtryingmybeskar @fan-of-encouragement @grogusmum @sizzlingcloudmentality @deadhumourist @prostitute-robot-from-the-future
Coven Taglist: @iamskyereads @ezrasbirdie @lowlights @javierpinme @starlightmornings @leslie-lyman @daddydindjarin @rook-on-bough