Envy painfully tangled around Castor's heart as Lucien blushed all adorably for Sebastian. Vampire venom had a special allure on humans, and he suspected that was why Lucien appeared so enchanted by him. It boiled his blood to think about Sebastian cozying up with Lucien and snacking on him in Castor's own damn bed.

They could've at least moved to the floor or literally anywhere else. It was petty to intervene when Sebastian offered to get Lucien's coffee for him, but Castor couldn't help it. He knew everything that Lucien liked, from the way he wanted his coffee to how he preferred his scrambled eggs drizzled in spicy hot devil's sauce.

Lucien had never made any indication of fancying men before. As Castor shoveled a strip of crispy bacon in his mouth, he couldn't help but watch the two of them closely. While he trusted Sebastian not to hurt Lucien on purpose, he knew firsthand what it was like for a vampire to get lost in their bloodlust.

It wasn't long before his dad came downstairs. His mom had always joked about how he could just sleep through an apocalypse. He wore his cotton flannel pajamas and smiling spider socks as if he'd just rolled out of bed.

"Morning." He greeted them with a sheepish grin, then his expression shifted when he noticed Sebastian perched at the table. "Oh, um, who's your new friend?" Dad took a cautious step toward his mom, resting his hands on her shoulders.

"That's Sebastian," Castor said through a mouthful of bacon. He paused to wipe his mouth with a napkin. "Remember? The vampire doctor I told you I met in Nevermourn?"

His dad nodded. "Oh, right. Well, it's good to have you here this morning, Sebastian."

"Thank you, sir. I appreciate your family for having me," Sebastian said. "It's been a long time since I shared breakfast with someone like this. Even if I couldn't eat the food Castor made, which smells delicious."

Castor gave him a half smile, his heart sinking like an anchor in his chest. It was ridiculous for him to feel jealous. All Sebastian had done was feed for nutrients, or whatever it was that kept the vampires going, and Lucien willingly offered himself up. Besides, it wasn't like either of them even had interest in guys.

Once they had finished breakfast, Castor and his mother cleaned the dishes. He was trying his best not to think about Lucien snuggling up against Sebastian in his own bed and basking in all the lustful sensations that vampire venom brought. But it was really hard not to.

"Do you mind opening the shop for me today?" Mom asked. "I want to get a few things done around the house, but I should be over there in an hour or so."

"Yeah, of course."

After the dishes were cleaned and put away, Castor got back with Lucien and Sebastian to give a rundown of their plans for the day. He just needed to spend some time at the emporium, then they could head back to Nevermourn at nightfall since it would likely be safer for Sebastian then.

"Sounds good to me," Sebastian said.

"I don't mind helping you out around the shop too," Lucien added.

There just better not be any more intimate blood sharing moments between his two friends either.

🪄

Familiar scents of incense, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon drifted throughout the emporium when Castor lit the candles around them. The shop was like a second home to him. Despite how many wizard families besmirched their name, many of them still shopped at his mother's emporium for their wizardry supplies.

"Very cozy," Sebastian remarked.

"We always want customers to feel welcome here," Castor said. "Even if they're uneasy around us."

"What can I do to help out?" Lucien's open, loving nature eased a bit of the sting from the morning, and Castor went to his side with a small smile.

"Well, there's some elixirs in the back that need to be restocked if you want to help me with that," Castor suggested.

"Of course." Lucien agreed.

"Anything you want me to do?" Sebastian asked. His once crimson eyes glowed a soft hazel with his glamor magic. "I can bring out the heavier boxes for you."

Honestly, he could go sit in a corner and stare at the wall for all Castor cared, but instead he replied, "Sure, that would be great."

Castor led the both of them to the shop's backroom and directed Sebastian on which boxes to bring out. He carried them out with ease, not even bothering to use his magic like Castor would have.

"Jeez, he's really strong," Lucien remarked.

"Yeah, sure. For a vampire," Castor huffed under his breath.

"What?" Lucien frowned.

With Sebastian out on the sales floor, Castor cracked the door shut behind them. "Be honest with me, are you attracted to Sebastian or is it just his venom making you feel all weird?"

Lucien blushed. "Why would you even ask such a thing?"

"You stare at him like you're a schoolboy pining after his first crush." Castor reached down for his hand, gently tracing his finger over the pinpricks left on his skin. Despite how he channeled his healing magic into them, the tender red dots wouldn't vanish. "I messed around with a vampire before and just want you to be careful."

"What? When?" Lucien's eyes widened.

"Sometime after we'd graduated wizardry school," Castor replied. "It hadn't been anything serious. She had wanted blood fresh from the source, but she never considered my well-being when she fed. I was grateful for Sebastian saving my sorry ass that night because I had to have a blood transfusion and he had to flush her venom out of my body."

"Gods, you never told me about that." Lucien hugged him. "I'm so sorry. You didn't deserve that."

"It's really fanged up to look back on, but she was a beautiful woman who'd shown interest in me. I couldn't resist her. I never brought it up before because I was embarrassed," Castor admitted. "Only Sebastian and my folks know about her."

"I'm glad you told me." Lucien pulled away, only to rest his arms on Castor's broad shoulders. "Some day, you'll find someone who loves you unconditionally and she won't use you like that horrible vampire did. You're an amazing guy. Anyone would be lucky to have you."

"Thanks, I guess." Castor went to wrap his arms around Lucien's waist, but hesitated and kept them at his sides instead.

"And my feelings toward Sebastian, they're mostly lust. You know, the allure of being in a forbidden relationship with a vampire. My folks would honestly kill me if they knew I did anything with him. They expect me to marry a woman from a respected family around here and settle down."

"Do you want that?" Castor asked.

Lucien shrugged. "It doesn't really matter what I want. You know how my folks can be. Now that Charlotte's gone... they'll probably push even harder for me to settle down and start a family."

Suddenly, the door eased open and Sebastian poked his head inside the room. "You guys okay in here?"

"Yeah, of course. Just got to talking. Let me help you restock." Lucien hurried back out onto the floor, brushing past Sebastian.

"I already got everything out," Sebastian said. "Your mom labels her elixirs and potions similarly to how my mother had when I worked in her clinic many moons ago, so they were easy to stock. Wands and crystal balls weren't too tricky for me to figure out either."

"Oh, damn. Well, thanks." Castor stepped out onto the floor with them. "There's not much else we need to do yet, so it's fine to just lounge around for a while. After Harvest Fest, we get a slow month until Founder's Day comes along."

"Interesting," Sebastian said. "We have our own Founder's Day in Nevermourn too, but it's not until next year."

Lucien had moved over to their section of mirrors, eyeing them curiously before picking up a portable one shaped like a witch's hat. "Hey, Sebastian, would you let me peek into your mind?"

Castor frowned. "Why the hell would you want to do that?"

"Yeah, what Castor said." Disbelief washed over Sebastian's face. "Why do you want to do that?"

"Sorry, I should have started off with context," Lucien said. "I want to look back at last night when you were attacked. You told us that you saw the hunter and I want to compare his build and looks from the guy who killed Charlotte."

"Why did it just occur to you to do this?" Castor asked.

Lucien shrugged. "I just saw the mirrors and remembered those times my mother used it on me when she thought I was up to something as a kid. If you're not comfortable with me doing it, I won't. I know a lot of people can't tolerate the headaches it gives."

"You can." Sebastian approached him with weary steps. "What exactly does this entail? What do I need to do to prepare for it?"

"Just take a seat." Lucien retrieved a packet of summoning salt from his robe's pocket and placed the mirror on the counter.

Castor pulled out a chair for Sebastian, watching Lucien curiously as he worked his magic. Mind altering spells were typically only used by those on the council. Not even his folks knew how to perform such magic, but Castor remembered his mother warning him about how dangerous it was to tamper with someone else's mind and memories. It could easily make a wizard lose their sanity.

Hearing how Lucien's mother had used it on him a lot as a child had him concerned. That kind of powerful magic wasn't supposed to be used against children. Their minds were already too delicate.

"I promise I'll be gentle." Lucien touched Sebastian's arm before raising his wand to slice a small cut on his finger to dribble onto the mirror.

With Sebastian's blood trickling down the glass, Lucien chanted foreign words to Castor as the spell rippled through the air. It reeked of sulfur and burnt blueberry pie. The blood swirled around to his command, forming a pentagram in the middle of the opaque glass.

"This is the part that really hurts," Lucien warned. "I'll do my best not to make it last too long."

"Don't worry, I rarely experience pain like you weak wizards." Sebastian teased with a smirk.

Famous last words.

Shadows consumed the emporium as Lucien focused his magic into the pentagram on the mirror. The glass shifted, static filling what was once a reflection of the ceiling. Sebastian winced but he didn't instruct him to stop. Within seconds, the hazy image cleared and Castor got a delightful eyesore of earlier that morning with Lucien pulling his fingers away from Sebastian's lips.

"I need to go back further," Lucien cleared his voice as his ears burned bright red.

"Oh no, I really wanted to see that." Sarcasm oozed in Castor's tone.

Further into his memories, and a hazy image of Nevermourn appeared in the glass. Vampires scrambled down the pavement in their cloaks. It took a moment for the killer to emerge, and Castor studied the figure closely for any identifiable features on him. The build of the man seemed similar enough, but it was hard to be certain.

However, something that caught Castor's eye when the man's hood fluttered down in the wind, was his slightly pointy nose. That was less common among Marusticians, especially wizards. It was very common among the fae folk though.

Perhaps their killer was half fae? They'd yet to witness him fly anywhere, but maybe he was clever in concealing his wings. It would put a huge target on him if they knew what his wings looked like or if he flew in the sky.

Lucien broke the chain that connected the two of them, then used a wipe to clean up the blood. Meanwhile, Sebastian reeled back, rubbing at his temples as his face contorted in pain. His glamor magic had faded as well, his crimson eyes sinking darker to near the color of blood

Castor felt sorry for him, likely having no idea of how potent that kind of magic Lucien had used was. It was typically reserved for criminals who committed heinous crimes, or at least, that's what he had always known. Maybe the Supernatural Council actually used it more often when they wanted answers.

"Do you think he's the one who killed Charlotte?" Castor asked. "The body build matches. I can't see many features, aside from his light tan skin and pointy nose. Could be he's part Fae."

"That's a good point." Lucien agreed. "I hadn't even considered that."

A sudden potent surge of magic sent chills down Castor's spine. One glance at the door and he cursed under his breath. "Crystal balls. It's the damn Supernatural detectives."