"Angelica! You're back!" Agatha Wildspark dried off her hands on a towel and tried to give her daughter a hug, but Angelica dodged her. "Angelica? Did something happen?"

"You mean aside from that nightmare last night? What else could be more wrong than that?"

"Sweetie..." her mom said. "Whether you're a witch or not doesn't matter to me. You will always be my daughter, and you will always be a Wildspark. You are not the first to not receive a witchmark, nor will you be the last."

"But why, mom? It's not fair! I'd always counted on becoming a witch and getting my powers. I don't have a backup plan!"

"Sweetie..." her mom said again. "When you have one mortal parent, like you and Jezebelle, there's always a chance the witchmark won't manifest. Nine Hells, even with two witch parents, there is a chance it won't manifest. As for the rest--we'll help you figure that out. There's no rush."

Why did it feel like her mom was downplaying what happened? Didn't she care at all that her daughter's life was ruined?

Well...it would've been ruined if that old witch hadn't intervened. But that wasn't something Angelica could ever tell her mother.

Unlike the silvery witchmark on the nape of Jezebelle's neck, Angelica's witchmark needed to be kept hidden. The inky mark was on her left breast and would only be visible to anyone who saw her topless--which would never include her sister or mother, not if she could help it.

She would also have to be careful about how she used her magic, since she wasn't supposed to have any. Thankfully, the old witch had woven in a concealment charm into the witchmark to help make everything she did less noticeable, but it wasn't absolutely foolproof.

But, at least now she wasn't powerless. At least now she could fight for what she wanted, and she could get back at those who had wronged her. Jezebelle, for one, will soon learn what it feels like when things don't go her way for once. She'll learn what it feels like to be an outsider in their very own family.

Did Angelica hate Jezebelle? No...she didn't think it was hate. Resentment, possibly. Maybe even some jealousy.

After all, Jezebelle was dating THE Orion Locklear, the guy Angelica had crushed on even longer than her sister had, Jezebelle didn't have to study and cram for hours to get mediocre grades--she was a naturally gifted academic, nor did she struggle to make (and keep) friends.

Not only that, but their company, Twin-Z's, had been her brainchild. Angelica knew her only value to the company was being the twin of the creator: without her, there would be no 'twin' in Twin-Z's. It went without saying that Jezebelle certainly didn't need her brains to keep things operational. Still, she was nice enough to create a position that somewhat catered to Angelica's strengths, making her feel like a somewhat capable and responsible Co-CEO.

But all of that was going to start changing very, very soon.

Orion and I take a shower together, intending to get all cleaned up...but we end up having another round of steamy sex up against the shower wall. I love how he's strong enough to just hold me in place and pound me until we both cum hard, no matter where we are!

My arms are around his neck and my legs are around his waist, and his cum is dripping out of me as he slowly pulls out his semi-hard dick...then slides it back inside my quivering pussy. His hands cup my ass while he nibbles on my lower lip.

The hot water has made everything steamy around us, including our flushed skin.

"Pretty," he says, looking at me. "Your cheeks are so rosy."

"Pfft! Yours are, too," I tell him, then crane my neck up for one last kiss before I slide off his dick and tentatively place my tiptoes on the slippery shower floor. He holds me at my waist, knowing from past experiences that my legs are likely weak.

"I got you," he says, holding me.

"Mmm..." I nuzzle into his chest as the water rains down on us. "This is lovely. I wish we could do this every day."

Whoops. I hadn't meant to hint.

"What hot-blooded man would say no to sex, followed by shower sex, every single day?" he replies. "He'd have to be crazy. Especially if it's with you."

'Don't get your hopes up, Belle,' I tell myself. Twenty-one is still quite young to get engaged and married. Besides, we could do this if we simply moved in together. Maybe Orion would be willing to discuss it again if I bring it up later?

I look up at him and he grins down at me. Ohhh. He's hard again. "You're just thinking with this thing, aren't you?" I ask him, gripping his dick with one hand.

"You caught me."

* * *

Angelica could hear the shower running. She knew from seeing Orion's car out front that he was obviously here to see Jezebelle. Were they showering together after fucking? She rolled her eyes.

Quietly, Angelica swung open her sister's bedroom door and surveyed her bed. Yeah, they'd fucked, alright. But maybe there was what she needed here, if she had some time to look...

Feeling dirty, she crawled on top of the sheets and looked closely at the pillows until she found a few of Orion's short, wavy, brown strands of hair. Angelica only needed a few to get started. Once she had what she needed, she quickly left, shutting the door soundlessly behind her.

'Orion,' she thought, 'you're not going to be hers for very much longer.' The witchmark over her heart burned for a moment while Angelica imagined a future where she was Orion's girlfriend, where she was the one being loved with his glorious body.

But, first things first. She had a plan that she had to stick to if she wanted things to turn out exactly how she wanted them to. Orion was not the first thing on that list, unfortunately, so she carefully placed the hairs she'd collected in a tiny jar, ready to use when the time was right.

There were other things she had to take care of today...then, maybe, this birthday wouldn't turn out to be such a shitstorm after all.

Finally clean, Orion and I head downstairs, where Mom and Angelica are nibbling on snacks in the kitchen. It's already past lunchtime? I guess we'd been at it a little longer than I thought...Orion and I share a sheepish look before joining them in the kitchen.

"Well, look who finally decided to join us," Mom says. Except, what should've sounded like teasing sounds more like... criticism? Even Orion looks taken aback—he's known my mom for almost a decade, after all. He practically grew up with us, so he knows my mom well enough to feel that something isn't quite right. 

We share a look: does she know we've been upstairs having sex? We've done it here before, plenty of times, and as much as we like to pretend she doesn't know...she probably does. She's just never said anything to me before other than, "Be careful, Belly. You have your whole future ahead of you, and I know you know that.”

So, I am almost 100% sure that us having sex on my birthday shouldn't be a reason for her to be upset with me. Not more than any other day, anyway.

"I didn't think we were on a schedule today," I say lightly, trying to make a joke of it. "Besides, don't we get to sleep as much as we want on our birthday? Isn't that some kind of unspoken rule?"

"Sleeping, yes," mom says, looking at me with a coldness in her eyes I've never seen before. Instantly, my insides freeze. This definitely doesn't feel right.

The tension in the room intensifies so fast, it makes it feel like we've been dropped into a vacuum chamber. What the hell is going on? I catch movement behind Mom's shoulder and see Angelica smile at me: is she trying to reassure me? But...there's something a little weird about her eyes, too.

My magic is brand new. Aside from last night when the witchmark burned into the back of my neck, I haven't felt it again. Will it even work if I call upon it now? 

Cautiously, I reach out with my magic and instantly feel something ominous scurrying away, like a bug or a rat. But before I can chase after it, Angelica interrupts me.

"So what are your guys' plans for the rest of the day? I'm planning on meeting up with the girls tonight since I assumed you two would want to be...alone. We'll probably be partying pretty late." She meets my eyes and, with a certain look, she relays the rest of the message: if you want some quiet alone time with your precious boyfriend, it will have to be somewhere other than our apartment. 

"I will be taking my lovely lady out on the town for her birthday," Orion says, grabbing my hand and kissing it in front of my mom and sister. Normally, when he does silly stuff like this, they would laugh—or at the very least smile—but my mom just furrows her brow. "I suppose we'd better get going, Jezzie..."

I grab a bottle of water from the fridge, walking behind Mom to do so. Normally, when I get close to her, she'd pat my back or sweep my hair behind my ear, but right now she doesn't even look at me. She just sighs.

I pause at the front door. "See you tomorrow, Mom! Love you! Bye, Angel."

"Bye." Angelica is the only one to reply.

What in the Nine Hells is going on?? Feeling nauseous, I shut the door behind me and follow Orion to his car.