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<br/>​</div>Kasabian Merrick could think of no other person that was so endlessly self-absorbed as Devlin Blackmore. After leaving Colorado Springs at his parents urging, he'd settled into classes at UC Boulder and on the weekends he was pushed closer and closer to Devlin by his family as well as Kasabian's. While the Blackmore gene for being dangerously attractive was definitely present in their 23 year old son, his constant primping in front of the mirrors, fastidious designer label whoring and name dropping was close to unbearable. Add to the assortment of negative attributes that Devlin was a huge snob, and that there was no chemistry between the two of them...<br/><br/><i><br/>
Kasabian was miserable.</i><br/><br/><br/>The more desperate Devlin became to assuade Kasabian that he should be honored to serve as his familiar, the darker his magic became. Although it was never said directly to his face, there were plenty of coven members secretly talking about the sudden negative turn to the charge of metaphysical energy recently. There were even several rumors, all unfounded, that a few dead animals had turned up missing their vital organs at Walden Ponds Animal Refuge. As if that news wasn't worse, a rumor was going around about ritual circles discovered in the woods around the city of Boulder that had images of horned gods burned into the trunks of surrounding trees.<br/><br/><br/>The work of curious teenagers? Unlikely. The trees didn't only have the surface of their trunks singed, but the burn pattern continued all the way through every single ring inside the trees' trunks. Thirteen damaged<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia-cdn.tripadvisor.com%2Fmedia%2Fphoto-s%2F04%2F5a%2F00%2Ffb%2Fthe-great-yews.jpg&amp;hash=b1cd9154d2e1f784edc2640235488b96" href="https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/04/5a/00/fb/the-great-yews.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">yew trees,</a>to be exact. Naturally, the investigation team had their own ideas about the meaning of the number thirteen, often considered an unlucky number by many people. If they'd taken more time to dig up reliable occult resources, they may have found out that the yew tree, in many occult circles was known as the witches wood and the wood of death.<br/><br/><br/>More importantly, this particular wood was a powerful symbol of death and reincarnation that was often associated with sorcery and dark magic.<br/><br/><br/>Devlin Blackmore's magic was drawing strength not only from a few animal carcasses, but something more<i>ominous.</i><br/><br/><br/>Regardless if it were good or bad magic being utilized, Kasabian Merrick was no closer to being claimed as Devlin Blackmore's familiar than a lost suitcase being found by its owner at Denver International Airport. In fact, Kasabian was supposed to meet Devlin after his last class of the day, Intro to Studio Art 2, but he decided to exit from the other side of the Visual Arts Complex building before Mr. Huge Ego could self-revolve around himself. Kasabian made a beeline for his apartment, exchanging his books from his back pack for a change of clothing.<br/><br/><br/>The dark magic Devlin was generating made him feel very restless, and he needed to get away from campus so he could have some quality time to shift and be able to burn that excess energy off before he burst into flames. Kasabian was long gone by the time an irate Devlin pulled up in front of his apartment complex in Mapleton Hills to seek him out and give Kasabian a piece of his mind. He drove an hour away from the city of Boulder in order to shift into a mountain lion, one species of cat that Kasabian could shift into. He had taken down an elk while hunting, when the coyote showed up. Then he was interrupted from finishing his meal when he felt strong magic pulling at him.<br/><br/><br/>It was forcing him to transform back into a human, and Kasabian had felt nothing like it before in his life. It was as though a sorcerer's incantation had willed every single strand of DNA to reverse itself, and every cell obeyed it. So what if he streaked naked across a parking lot and was nearly spotted by a park ranger?<br/><br/><br/>Kasabian was compelled to follow the summoning spell, and drove his truck away from the state park as if he were guided by a metaphysical GPS. Upon driving into an affluent Boulder neighborhood, he half expected to be required to submit to Devlin's dominance and his dark magic, but this was not the Blackmore's estate. It was the Ardellan estate, which was extremely odd. Kasabian felt the magic touch his skin, leaving pinpricks of enchantment in a playful buzz of electricity all over his body. He had to be at the right address, there was no mistaking it. The area was rife with magical bewitchment. So after parking the truck in the curved driveway, he approached the front door and knocked.<br/><br/><br/>After a few quiet moments and some uncomfortable shifting of his feet, Kasabian was met with the smiling, yet familiar face of the Mistress of the house,<i>Mrs. Liza Ardellan. </i>Kasabian had known her since he was knee high, and he often played with her son Mihai when he was younger. The durations they spent together had been fun, but the play had always been interrupted by Devlin Blackmore. Kasabian was constantly being dragged off somewhere by him, even if it was against his will. Kasabian shivered slightly, and his alabaster complexion appeared flushed from being exposed to the cold air, but it was flushed from<i>much more than that.</i><br/><br/><br/>Only the witch wielding the magic conjuration would know<i> how much.</i><br/><br/><br/>"Hello, Mrs. Ardellan!<i>Eyyeee</i>...I was wondering if-... " Kasabian was starting to get around to the reason he'd popped by for a visit when his height was mentioned. He was lucky that she remembered his name. His face wasn't easily forgotten though.<br/><br/><br/>"Oh really? I guess, its been awhile since you've seen me." he chuckled, grinning from ear to ear. The magic made his skin tickle, and a burst of laughter poured out of him rather abruptly.<br/><br/><br/>"My Mom always has loved to shop, Miss Liza. Hahaha. Hah, yup definitely feeling my age right now!" he piped, looking as though he was about to grow icicles from his nose when Mrs. Ardellan finally came to the consensus that he should come inside.<br/><br/><br/>"Why thanks, Miss Liza. Classes?" Kasabian looked clueless for a moment, brushing back some long tendrils of silky hair that blocked him from seeing her face as she led him inside. "Yeah, something like that. No, no thanks I'm driving. Maybe another time?"<br/><br/><br/>Kasabian declined the beer, but gave his age. "I just turned 21 in November."<br/><br/><br/>Finally the questions ceased, as she returned to her book within a well-appointed, comfortable living room. Kasabian paused to say hello to the man of the house. "Hello Mr. Ardellan." his hand lifted in a wave as he greeted Mihai's father.<br/><br/><br/>It was through his chiding that the interrogation ceased, so he had Mr. Ardellan to thank. Kasabian might have done so, if the feeling of strong magic had not ramped up to an all time high. It was buzzing through his synapses the moment his gaze turned to look at Mihai Ardellan, who'd arrived just in time to meet him. He'd changed drastically since they were in elementary school together. Mihai might have been able to forget the warmth that burned within his chest like a bonfire, but for Kasabian the sensation kindled. He remembered asking his parents what it had felt like for them when the bond occurred.<br/><br/>The tingle of their skin, the building tension in the muscles, and the heat...so much heat...it was happening just as they said it would.<br/><br/><br/>"You called me, didn't you Mihai? It was you?" Kasabian blurted out, unable to control the tremble in his voice or answer Mihai's question about UC Boulder. He was sure that his Mom and Dad were as awestruck by his comment as Mihai was, but whatever trick of sorcery led to this meeting was true and meant to be.<br/><br/><br/>Mihai's hand reached out to shake his, and Kasabian's lifted simultaneously. His emerald eyes became even more dazzling as their hands made contact. It was at this moment that he'd met his witch, and the witch met his familiar.<br/><br/><br/><i>They would become inseparable.</i>