Sorry, you're a what?

I cleared my throat and walked across the living area towards my unwanted guest. She had the good grace to put her phone down, at least. Now that I was marginally more awake and less distracted by morning bladder, I got a better look at her.

Putting aside my irritation at being woken up--and my further irritation that she'd come on in and plopped down on the couch with no invitation from me--I had to admit the girl was a looker. Straight dark hair was momentarily pulled away from her face by the sunglasses now perched on top of her head, revealing a very pretty face and pale blue eyes. Her makeup was a little dramatic, but not whorishly so, and the ear I could see sported a small hoop and two studs. Her black-and-white patterned crop top completely covered decent sized breasts while leaving a flat, toned belly exposed. A matching skater skirt left quite a bit of very nice leg exposed, and the ensemble was completed by a pair of black ankle boots with a tapered, 3" block heel.

At the moment, my visitor was relaxing on one end of my futon couch. I considered offering a handshake, but that didn't feel quite right. If she could be relaxed about this, so could I. Deciding to keep my distance, I settled myself on the loveseat that was my own favorite spot. After a few long seconds, I realized that I actually needed to say something if this encounter was going to go anywhere.

Being the smooth conversationalist I am, I led with, "So, you're here about the ad I placed for a roommate?"

My visitor favored me with a lopsided smirk, and answered very slowly, "Ye-e-es," in a clear dig at my addled state. Then the smile widened a bit, becoming more sincere and friendly, and she stood, closing the distance between us with her hand held out for me to shake. "My name's Elspeth."

I fumbled the handshake, of course, but managed to re-introduce myself, and the conversation took off. I learned that "El" was a freshman at the same college I attended, that she was new to town and didn't know anyone yet. I also learned that she had the money to be able to come here early and get herself set up without having to worry about job hunting.

"Forgive me if this is too personal," I interrupted, "but if you don't have to worry about money, why are you looking for a roommate situation? Why not just get a place of your own?"

El shrugged and replied, "I'm a social animal. I grew up with a pretty close family, and I don't want to start out in a new place all by myself. You get that, right?"

I nodded in agreement, and we moved on to a discussion of the costs and benefits of the apartment itself. El gave the living area a measuring look, and I remembered that I had chosen to procrastinate the general cleaning up the place desperately needed.

"Sorry the place is a mess," I said. "I didn't think anyone would respond to the ad this fast."

She reassured me with a casual, "No worries," and asked if she could look around.

I jumped to my feet. "Sure! Do you want me to . . ." and I realized that the entirety of the living area could be seen from where we were, and the rest wasn't a complicated setup. My bedroom door was obvious, and the bathroom and other bedroom were down a hallway barely eight feet long. El wouldn't need a guide to get the lay of the place.

So I plopped back down and gestured for her to help herself to the nickel tour. Watching her walk away from me toward the hallway was a treat. Her skirt was more than long enough for modesty's sake, but the sway of her hips as she walked revealed a beautifully shaped and perfectly proportioned ass. I'm glad she didn't look back at me, because she would have caught me staring.

Like I said, the apartment wasn't complicated, and she was back in a matter of minutes with a smile on her face.

"I like it," she said on her way into the kitchen. "It's big enough that we won't trip over each other, but small enough to be cozy. It's really a great space."

El stopped by the balcony door, and I had to turn slightly to keep her in sight. Standing by the French doors leading to the balcony, she turned and regarded me with a pensive look.

"One more detail we need to get straight," she began, "and I have to ask you to keep an open mind about it. Can you do that?"

I nodded, thinking to myself, Here we go, the other shoe I've been waiting for. What will it be?

She watched me carefully as she said, "Yep, it's the other shoe."

It took a few seconds, and I'm sure the look on my face was pretty comical when I snapped to the fact that she said exactly what I'd been thinking. It's like she read my mind!

El nodded, and replied, "It's exactly like that. I did read your mind." Before I could stutter my way to the most obvious question--namely, how was she doing that--she answered quickly, "The thing is, I'm a witch."

"Okay," I stalled, "like nature goddess, solstice Wicca witch, right?"

El shook her head. "No, more like the wave my hand and make things happen that science can't begin to explain type witch." Putting action to her words, she lifted one hand and gave me a little finger wave, and suddenly my glasses felt strange on my face.

I pulled my glasses off in a rush, and peered at them as well as I could, given that I legitimately needed them to see. My typical, nerdy, black-framed, not quite hip glasses had somehow, inexplicably, transformed into teal-framed, cat's eye shapes. I put them back on, and the prescription was the same as before. I took them off again, running my fingers all over them as if seeing the change wasn't enough to establish its reality. Nervously, I settled the glasses back on my nose and looked up to see El watching me like most people watched a suddenly discovered wasp nest.

She asked in a soft voice, "You okay there, Dean?"

I started to answer, but my mouth had gone dry. I worked my tongue around, cleared my throat, and tried again: "Um, could you put them back the way they were before, please?"

Again with the finger wave, and everything was back to "normal." I resisted the urge to take my glasses off again. I could tell they'd gone back to the way they had been when I put them on earlier that morning.

"How . . ." I started, but stopped when El shook her head before I could get started.

"I can't explain it," she said, "and if I tried it wouldn't make any sense to you. It's something passed down in my family. I grew up with magic all around me."

El was kind enough to wait while I wrapped my head around what she was saying.