Chapter 20: The Needs
"Wh–what just happened?" Renar asked, reaching for Lethia's hand to stand up.
"Don't you remember? You were hugging me—no, squeezing me like I was some kind of slime just moments ago?"
Renar's last memory was of him pulling Lethia close, her body like a magnet, and after that, he found himself slumped on the floor.
"That's what I should be asking you. What are you? Why does your scent keep lingering in my mind, pulling me towards you? Are you a witch?"
Once Renar was on his feet, Lethia released his hand. But as the fox's power had faded, her legs started to wobble, weakness setting in.
Renar quickly caught her arm. He helped her walk to a bench under the canopy near the greenhouse. Lethia noticed the sun beginning to set, and with it, she no longer worried about the high UV radiation.
Lethia had already suspected that Renar had been under the fox's hypnotic influence, but she didn't expect it to cause memory loss. 'What should I say?'
"Will you believe me if I told you I got possessed by a fox spirit that can control my body however it wants and asked me to seduce you because you swallowed its bead?" Lethia asked, sitting on a long metal bench.
"Are you crazy?" Renar scoffed, chuckling in disbelief as he sat beside her, keeping a distance.
He could still smell the intoxicating scent of Lethia, still shocked by the loss of control he'd felt. But the effect had faded now, no longer making him feel like some delirious fool. He had to stay alert.
"Right? I wish I was just crazy," Lethia said bitterly, then continued, "And how would you explain the haunting scent you're talking about?"