Sympathy for the Demons (Promised to the Demons #1) - Lidiya Foxglove Page 0,15
vowed to die in order to protect their freedom, fear had fixed them in place.
“Ow!” Helena cried as the warlock zapped her.
“We have to help her,” I gasped, taking one hop forward in the grass. “If we don’t, we’ll be killed anyway, or we’ll have to go home and answer to our wizards about why we left. If we all put up a defense around her, we can help.”
“Okay,” Shawnda said. “Let’s—let’s do it.”
“All together now,” Bjorn said. “We’ll have to turn.”
“We’ll transform on the count of three,” I said, taking another hop forward. Shawnda was right with me, since robins have their own sort of hop. Grady slithered next to us.
“Three…two…one…”
I forced myself back into human form, although it had never been so hard because I was terrified of becoming a target. The other familiars came with me, every last one of them, and we ran toward Helena to protect her.
I reached out a hand to grab Henrietta, trying to form a defensive wall as I shouted defense spells. My magical voice felt rusty, but I was finding it again as the spell went up. I felt our magic hum together, finding a frequency that matched, and our defenses strengthened by the moment.
We’re actually doing it. We’re protecting her.
My fear started to vanish as I got into the fray. I didn’t feel anything so much now. All that mattered was the moment at hand, and protecting Bevan’s witch. I wished I had a witch like her, who was risking her own neck to help familiar-kind. He must really love her, because I still loved Bernard even though I also wanted to hate him. If Bernard actually encouraged me to do magic, I would be in heaven.
It felt so good to do what I was meant for. Protecting a loyal witch.
My moment of triumph didn’t last long before I was taken off guard by a flash and a hot pain that shot through my body as one of the wizards struck me with lightning from behind. I didn’t even realize my defensive spell could be breached before I was knocked down.
“Urgh…” I let out a little groan as I struck the ground. The pain had ebbed from the initial strike, but it was still a hot, potent feeling that made me feel scared for my safety but also more alive than I’d felt in a long, long time. I tried to move, to get back into the fight, but my body was slow to respond.
A few other familiars were also on the ground now. Although I wasn’t used to seeing their human forms, I recognized them easily. They still looked like themselves.
“Tina…are you all right?” I asked. The sparrow girl was curled into a fetal position, clutching her arm.
“I’m okay,” she said. “I just need a second…”
“Yeah,” I gasped. My vision was a little starry.
I was afraid to lift my head until I had recovered a little more. Magic was still flying around us. “Is Helena all right?” I asked, as if anyone would know.
I have to protect Bevan’s witch…
If only I had a connection to her, I would know exactly where she was and if she was in danger, but instead I was operating blind.
The fight seemed to be going all right without me. One of Helena’s men was threatening the wizards, and it seemed to work. They actually retreated.
Oh, thank goodness. I can rest a little longer…
I took a few long minutes for the pain to dull to a throb, and I scrambled to my feet, brushing a streak of dirt off my skirt. I saw Helena hurrying to the house to protect the Way of Paths.
Suddenly there was a ripple in the air as more wizards were entering the fray. I took a step back.
Bevan appeared to help protect us, just as he promised, and he had a lot more familiars with him now.
“Helena, I’m here!” he said.
“I didn’t call you!”
“I know. But you never do, so what else is new? We’re here to help you fight.”
He was grinning at her, and it was strange, because Bernard never called me to help him fight either, but the vibe between Bevan and his witch was completely different. They were trusting and friendly—just independent. Although I wished I had a wizard to serve who seemed to care about me, I also didn’t like seeing Bevan so close with his witch.
“Do you have a crush on him?” Henrietta whispered behind me.
I jumped. “No! No! That’s—silly. Familiars don’t get crushes!”