The Age of Temptation

A/N Thanks for all the positive responses to this fiction. It’s something I’ve been meaning to write for awhile but hadn’t gotten around to it. I always loved this movie. I finished outlining the plot for the rest of this story, so I’m really excited to be bringing this to you. Hope you think it’s interesting as well. Enjoy.

@

Disclaimer: I do not own The Covenant and make no money from the writing of this fiction.

@

Chapter Five

Madison had just gotten ready for bed when her cell phone rang. She looked at the screen and noticed it was her dad.

“Hey Dad.”

“Hey Sweetheart, how are things?”



“Really good. How are things for you?”

“Fine. I wanted to let you know that I’m going to get some bids on fixing up the old Marish house. I don’t know if you took a look at it or not, but it needs a lot of work.”

“Yeah, I saw it and you’re right.”

“How’s school?”

“It’s all right.”

“You making friends?”

“Yeah, some.”

“That’s good.”

“You remembering your medications?”

Madison sighed. “Yeah, Dad, stop worrying.”

“I always worry. That’s my job.”

“I know, but you don’t have to.”

They talked a few more minutes before a knock sounded on her door. “Someone’s here, Dad, I’ve got to go.”

When she opened her door she was surprised to see Pogue standing there, a huge, thick old book in his arms.

“Hey,” Madison greeted, curious.

His eyes traveled the length of her body, making her feel underdressed in her nightshirt. Then he walked into her room, making sure they were alone. “Hey, Madi. Sorry to disturb you, but there was one more book you need to read.”

Madi grinned as she took the book from his arms. “I need to read? Will there be a test or something?”

But Pogue didn’t smile. “It’s important that you read it.”

Madi looked at the title engraved onto the old leather cover. “The Book of Damnation. Sounds creepy. Why’s it so important?” She opened the flap and flipped through quickly. “Wow, this looks old.”

Pogue nodded putting his hands in his pockets as if he were nervous.

“This is about the old witch days, isn’t it? Looks more detailed than the histories Caleb gave me.”

“It is,” Pogue affirmed.

She studied Pogue’s serious face. “So why is it so important that I read about this stuff, beside it being interesting and all?”

“It’s not just about history,” Pogue said, “it’s also applicable today.” He made his way back to the door. “Just read it, Madi, read and understand. Call me if you have any questions.”

And with that he shut the door.

Madi stared at the shut door a moment wondering why Pogue was acting so strangely. Why did he want her to read this stuff so badly? He never really paid her much mind before, but now he was shoving a book at her and telling her to read them. Weird.

She flopped down on her bed on her stomach with the book in front of her as she began turning the pages, looking more closely. Again, more about the original families, just like the histories she read, but this book definitely associated them with witchery as it was called. And there was a bunch of strange things associated with it, demonic-like creatures, powers and spells.

Another knock on her door startled her from her reading. “Who is it?”



“Tyler.”

“Come in, it’s open.”

Tyler walked in, seeing her on her bed reading. He sat down near her legs, her nightshirt only just reaching past her nice rear. He wistfully gazed at the creamy skin of the back of her legs as she was totally absorbed in her reading. He thought he could easily spend a few hours between those and die a happy man.

“Are you perving on me?” she asked, noticing how quiet he was.

“No… maybe… yes,” he finally admitted. “I really like the view.”

He bent his face parallel with hers and she turned her head, giving him a soft kiss. “Hi,” she smiled softly.

“Hi,” Tyler replied. Then his eyes slid to her reading material and he sat up straight all of the sudden. “Where did you find that?”

“Pogue dropped it by a little bit ago. He insisted it was important that I read it,” she frowned. “Why do you think he wants me to read about this stuff? I mean, it‘s basically telling about the original families practicing witchcraft and other weird stuff.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, o.k. so maybe he wants me to know that our ancestors were really witches or something?”

“It’s true.”

Madison turned her head to stare at Tyler. “You read this too?”

Tyler nodded, his mind a mess. What was Pogue thinking? He better not have screwed things up.

She looked back at the book, flipping through some more pages. “O.K., so they did witchcraft. Hey, there are some people today practicing witchcraft too, the bookstores are full of ‘how to’ books on it. At least they won’t get burned for it.”

“Madi, those people buying books… they aren’t really witches, you know. They might want to be, but they aren’t. What you are reading about in that book is about power you are born with, power in your blood. No one really knows where it comes from.”

“Oh,” Madison replied, distracted by her reading, “that’s even creepier.”

Tyler closed his eyes a few moments before deciding to leave her alone with the book and let her figure it out. It would be better that way - for now. He bent and kissed the top of her head.

“I’ll let you read then. Goodnight, Madi.”

“Night,” she mumbled, drawn to the information in the book. She didn’t even notice when he left the room and shut the door.

@

OOOOO

Reid came in late from Nicky’s and found Tyler waiting up for him, frowning.



“Can’t sleep?”

“Pogue gave Madison the Book of Damnation to read.”

Reid stood still a moment, then shrugged. “That’s a good thing, Ty. She needs to know, right?”

Tyler didn’t look so sure. “I wish they would have discussed it with us first.”

OOOOO

Madison had fallen asleep reading the old book and now sprang awake as her morning alarm went off. She sighed, rubbing her eyes before closing the large tome. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she reached to open the blinds and let some light in.

She began thinking about Pogue and his seriousness about reading that creepy book. She could accept that her ancestors might have dabbled in the dark arts, but that was ancient history, wasn’t it? Nice to know but not applicable to today.

Her hand flew to her chest. Wait. Pogue’s words came back to her.

“It’s not just about history, it’s also applicable today.”

Applicable to today? She grabbed her towel and toiletry bag and made her way across the hall to the showers in deep thought. What the heck did he mean by that?

As the warm water ran over her body, a thought struck her like a slap in the face. Was Pogue calling her a witch? Her heart was starting to fill with betrayal at confiding with Caleb about her visions and psychic abilities. He must have told Pogue! And now Pogue thinks she must be a witch - because the Marishes in the past were witches.

And then she thought about what Tyler said, about how the power ran in the blood - which meant it was inherited.

Oh, God, did they all think she was some kind of freaking witch?

A lump formed in her throat at the thought of the group of friends she had been getting close to. Were Tyler and Reid, too, thinking she was some kind of freak? And then she did cry.

Madi stayed in the shower, missing breakfast, crying at the unfairness of life and the stupid assumptions people make.

OOOOO

Reid caught Madison rushing down the hall after first period and stepped along side her, trying to keep up. “Hey, you missed breakfast. We waited for you. Sleep in again?”

“No,” Madison said, curtly, not bothering to look at him. “I’ve got to go.” And she ducked into her class, think that was the end of that. But Reid followed her in, stopping at her desk as she sat.



“What’s wrong, Madi?”

She busied herself with her notebook and pencils while he stood waiting for an answer. “Please just go away.”

“Madi?”

The teacher cleared his throat. “Mr. Garwin, I believe you are suppose to be somewhere else right now.”

Reid snapped an irritated glance at the instructor, then bent down to Madi’s ear. “We’ll talk later.” Then he strode out the door, turning to look at her one more time.

Madison didn’t show up in their usual spot for lunch and Reid and Tyler couldn’t find her anywhere.

“I’m going to kill Pogue,” Tyler growled. “He freaked her out by giving her that book. I knew it was too soon.”

Reid sighed. “Yeah, maybe. We’ll find her and talk to her after school. She might just be scared.”

“She hasn’t even seen us use before, why would she be scared?”

“Don’t know, baby boy, but we need to get her to tell us what she’s thinking about all this.”

They never did find her after school and they decided check if she returned to her dorm periodically, but she hadn’t returned there as well.

OOOOO

Pogue Parry had retired early for the night, unable to sleep well the night before. He had spent the afternoon with Kate and took her out for dinner. Skiving off doing his homework, he crawled into bed early in the evening.

After a few hours of restful sleep, he awoke to someone pounding on his door. A normal person would have given up by now, but whoever it was kept knocking and knocking.

“Who is it?” he groaned loudly.

The knocking stopped.

“It’s Madison.”

Madison? Fuck. All right, this might actually be important. He turned over and sat up in bed. Unwilling to turn on a bright light, he settled for using his powers to light a single candle on his nightstand - the soft candlelight more easy on his eyes.

Another flash of his eyes and the door unlocked. “Come in,” he called out from bed, his voice a bit gravelly.

Madison heard the door unlock, yet Pogue didn’t open it. When he said for her to come in, she entered, surprised at the appearance of both Pogue and his room.

She surmised that Pogue did not have a roommate either as he lay on the only bed in the room and it was a double bed. Across from his bed was a sofa with a coffee table in front of it. It was like he redecorated his room to his liking.

The candlelight was also a nice touch, as if flickered warmly, casting a orange-yellow soft glow. But it also illuminated Pogue’s body very nicely as well.

Madison blushed to find that he seemed to sleep nude, his very buffed chest and arms exposed as he sat up in bed, reclining on his pillows. His lower half was covered by a thin white sheet. She swallowed at the sexy sight. With his long hair and perfect body, his eyes half open from sleep, he appeared as a thoroughly debauched romance novel hero.

She almost forgot why she came until her arms tightened around the Book of Damnation, reminding her.

“Madison?”

She strode to his nightstand and slammed the book down, causing Pogue to wait for her words keenly, one eyebrow cocked in question.

“You know, Pogue,” she began, a sad tinge to her voice. “I thought when I started becoming friends with you guys, that I had finally found a group of people I could be comfortable with, that I could trust.”

“You can trust us.”

Madi sneered. “Is that right? Are you guys having a great laugh about crazy Madison, the pill popping new girl? Let’s get her to believe that she’s a witch like her ancestors. Yeah, that would be a real laugh. Caleb told you about my visions, didn’t he? That I saw the witch burnings? You Sons of Ipswich, you’re fucking backstabbing cruel. Even Kira’s not as bad as you.”

She turned to leave, having said her piece.

“Madison, stop,” Pogue snapped. “Damn it, stop!”

The door slammed shut right before she could reach it and Madison stopped in tracks, stunned.

“Sit down,” Pogue said, not even rising from the bed.

She whipped around, wide eyed. “How…” Her eyes darted around as if looking for an explanation. The door… had shut on its own.

“Madison, you’re partly right. I am saying you are a witch. But I’m also trying to tell you that you are not the only one. So are we.”

“We?” she managed, through her fear.

Pogue nodded. “Yes, the Sons of Ipswich - we are witches of the blood too, like you, though we prefer the name warlocks.”

His eyes flashed and Madison gasped as the Book of Damnation rose from his nightstand and floated to the coffee table in front of the sofa. It set down and the pages turned, stopping on a certain one.

“Oh my God,” Madi breathed. “Did you…?” She pointed from the nightstand to the book.

Pogue nodded.

“But I can’t do that kind of stuff.”

“Your powers are different. That’s why you have your psychic visions. That’s part of who you are. There are probably more powers, but you suppress them with those pills you take.”

She stood there, too stunned for words. This was too much to take in. Powers?

“You mean, this stuff… it’s really… real? Powers and such?”

Pogue grinned at her stunned expression. “You just saw that they were. No one is making fun of you, Madi. We just wanted you to find out what you are - and what we are.”

“Are there more?”

“You’re the only witch in Ipswich, and there are six warlocks: the four of us you know, and Tyler and Reid’s fathers. But their dads refuse to use their powers anymore.”

“Why?”

“Using too much can kill you. That’s what happened to my dad - and Caleb’s.”

She looked at the ground. “I’m sorry.”

Pogue shrugged. “What’s done is done. Sit down, Madi, and read some more.”

Madison nervously made her way to the sofa and sat, looking at the page Pogue had opened for her with his magic.

“That is the page you should have paid more attention to,” Pogue said.

The page explained about the eldest son of the original families inheriting the blood. It also talked about something called ascending when the boy reached 18 years of age.

She glanced up. “Are you 18 yet?”

“No, not until January. Caleb is though.”

“So he did this ascension thing?”

“Yeah, he’s the most powerful of us all.”



“Do female witches ascend too?”

“I really don’t know. Caleb has been researching more on the female lines of witches since you came here. He might know a little more than I do.”

He didn’t want to get into anything about the sex magic. She needed to work on accepting all she had learned tonight. Pogue knew it must have been quite a shock.

She rubbed her face with her hands, trying to wrap her mind about all this. She was a witch? And they were warlocks? What the hell did all that really mean for her and for them?

“I have like a thousand questions…”

“I know,” Pogue nodded. “Can I suggest that you take that book again, read more slowly and thoroughly this time, then maybe we can all have a question and answer session. I’m too beat tonight.”

“Oh, yeah… sure. I’m sorry for disturbing your sleep and getting all upset at you. This is just… wow… you know?” She stood up, taking the book in her arms again. “I’m really a witch?”

Pogue laughed softly. “Yes, really. You’re one of us now, part of the coven - and part of the Covenant.”

“The Covenant?”

“A vow of secrecy about what we really are.”

She nodded. “I won’t talk about it.” Then she let out a snort. “I definitely won’t tell anyone. It’s hard enough being me and dealing with these visions.”

Pogue smiled inwardly. He knew how they’d be able to help her with that problem. But that revelation could wait - for now.

“O.K. I’ll let you get back to sleep,” she stumbled nervously as he watched her with hooded eyes. She made her way to the door, feeling very strange and her mind reeled with this new discovery. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Madison,” he murmured sexily. When the enticing witch left, Pogue through off his covers, looking at the lengthened part of him that had wished she had stayed. He wrapped his hand around his member and laid his head back on his pillow.

“I’m sorry, Kate,” he whispered, bringing himself off at thoughts of Madison sitting on top of him.

OOOOO

A/N How will Madison deal with all this? You’ll find out next time. I hope you are enjoying. Please review me and let me know. Thanks.