She stood with her sword drawn at the center of the chaos. Wisps of cloudy, black fog swirled all around her and red lightning coursed through the sky. She did not know where she was or what was happening. Monsters surged out from the shadows as descended onto her. She raised her blade and swung, bringing her enemies down with each deadly strike. All around her she could hear cries, voices gasping for breath and begging for salvation, and as she walked onwards, their blood gathered in thick pools around her feet. With every lost soul's wail she felt a tightness in her heart that she had never felt before. Failure. Disappointment. Anguish. Pain. Anger. I couldn't save them. I destroyed them all. I am not the Savior.

Be Careful What You Wish For

A shriek of terror pierced the silence of the night.

The young girl with rose colored hair jolted awake, quickly sitting up in her bed. Short, shallow gasps were emitted from her lungs in a futile attempt to catch her breath. From the slightly cracked window, moonlight poured through the glass along with an eerie coolness than ran over her porcelain skin. For a moment she held her breath as she glanced around the room. The closet was closed. A collection of plush animals was gathered neatly in the corner. There was nothing there, nothing but the silhouette of a spider sliding down its web before the window, casting a long shadow on the opposite wall.

Still on edge from her nightmare, the girl gasped loudly as it descended toward the ground. She turned away and peered into the shadow, almost feeling as if something could come alive from it. She could almost see a face within the darkness of the spider's form, moving and blinking as if it was watching her, and the longer she stared, the more she felt drawn toward it. It almost willed her to reach out and touch it, but she felt as though it would reach back and steal her away from the mortal world. It would devour her. It did not last long, though, for the door at the far left corner suddenly creaked open. That was right. Monsters do not live under our beds or lurk within the shadows. They are only alive inside of our heads.

"Claire, are you alright?" asked a small voice in a motherly tone.

"Yeah," she began in an unsure voice. "I just had a scary dream. I'm alright, though."

"Okay then. Goodnight."

As the door closed, the girl let out a sigh of relief. She laid her head down onto her pillow once again and stared into the ceiling until her eyes became watery. There were no monsters to hurt her there. They were only alive inside her head. They were only a figment of her silly imagination.

...

Claire could already feel the heat finding its way beneath the window, which was still parted slightly from the previous night's terrors. Rays of light shone through and glistened on hundreds of tiny dust fairies that floated through the air. Outside, the trees swayed and the birds chirped underneath the summer sun, and the scent of sizzling bacon drifted into the girl's nose. She rolled out of bed and started toward the door, but before she could put her hand on the knob, she couldn't help but notice the tiny black spider that still lingered on the other side of the glass.

Her younger siblings were gathered around the television downstairs, eyes glued to an episode of their favorite show. Claire's head hung off the end of the couch. She huffed with impatience as she listened to the giggles that came from her younger sisters.

"It's the first day of summer and I'm already bored," she groaned. Her mother rolled her eyes and replied in a harsh tone.

"Well, you're not allowed about it. Find something to do. I won't have whining this summer. You're the one who couldn't wait for school to be out," she warned.

Claire glared at the television, just as the doorbell rang. "I'll get it," she offered, thinking that maybe it would give her something to do. She dragged herself to the door, unlocked it, and pulled it open. It was her neighbor, Suri Daniels.

"Hey!" the girl exclaimed. She had dark raven hair with streaks of red in it that glistened under the sunlight. Her skin was almost transparent and her eyes were nearly black. Despite her almost sickly appearance, she radiated warmth and smiled brightly. "What's going on?"

"We're going to eat breakfast soon. I think you came at the wrong time." Claire teased, yawning. Her mother came up behind her quietly. "We don't mind, Suri. You can come on in and eat with us unless you have already had your breakfast." "Oh, no, I haven't eaten yet ma'am. But I don't want to intrude."

"Nonsense, child. I guess we will just force you to eat with us then!" Her mother began chuckling. She was always welcome to guests, despite the many children already occupying the home, three of which were not related by blood to Claire. "Well, thank you, Ms. Ladden."

The mother began to serve the little children at the table when Claire and Suri walked in, parting from their conversation held outside the door. "Here you go, Suri. We've pulled up an extra chair for you." "Oh, thank you. What are we having?" "There's bacon, eggs, and pancakes. Help yourself to whatever you'd like."

Eight year old Destiny giggled. She already had syrup running down her face, and her brown eyes were filled with delight as she began to stuff herself. Suri ruffled her long black hair. She loved Destiny, for the particular fact that they were almost exactly alike in appearance. Not only that, but their personalities were identical.

The other two adopted children at the table were Caroline and Scarlett. Caroline was the youngest of the group, with silky red hair and brown eyes. Scarlett was the second youngest. She had golden blonde hair and brown eyes, as well. Along with Destiny, they were the only girls in the family who were not related. Claire's mother had worked most of her life as a social worker, and would never turn down anyone in need. Even though they did not have as much money as most, they were a generally selfless family. There were times when Claire could not understand it, though. They had no father to provide income for them. He had died when she was only eight, in a devastating car wreck, and from there on she had to help her mother lead their family on her own. Why they had even thought of expanding she didn't know.

She only had two sisters that she was related to: Sarah and Sierra. Sarah had rosy hair just as she did and was three years younger than her. They were almost identical. Sierra, on the other hand, had taken after her father, and her hair grew in brunette, but their facial features were similar. All of them together were quite the odd family.

Sitting down at the wooden table in the kitchen, they began to eat.

"So how was your last day of school, Suri?" Ms. Ladden politely asked, trying to start up a friendly conversation.

"Oh, it was fine. I'm extremely glad it's summer! I wish my mom would let me go to school with Claire, but she says that we can't afford it, especially because private schools in this town are so expensive lately. Oh well. But the last day at my school was fun anyway. Would have been more exciting, though, with people there that I could actually stand to be around." Claire smiled at the comment.

"Hah, I guess I can say the same."

She set her fork down. "You wanna come up to my room?" Suri beamed. "Sure! I'd love to." Suri had taken off before Claire could even stand up. Claire ran up the carpeted stairs and into her bedroom where her friend was already rummaging through her belongings.

The sun shone down on the room's baby blue walls and casted shadows down onto the white carpet. Claire noticed how they loomed at night, but seemed less menacing in the daytime. But she also noticed that they never really seemed to leave. It was almost like light and shadow could not exist without one another.

Her desk was over by a lamp that normally provided the only brightness in the room. Color flushed the stuffed animals pastel faces now that there was light to the day. Her wooden closet door was covered in art projects and posters.

"Your room is so plain, Claire! I didn't think you were that boring!"

Claire shook her head. "I'm not. We haven't really redecorated this place in a while…"

Suri plopped down onto the fuzzy blue and began reading a celebrity magazine.

"God, her dress is terrible," she muttered under her breath. Now she was just rambling to herself. She hadn't noticed that Claire had left the room, either. The girl headed back down the stairs to her mother, who was washing the dishes, her siblings dispersed. She sat herself down into a chair and began fumbling with the ruffles of the tablecloth.

"Need any help, mom?" she offered. "No thank you, honey. You're so sweet." "Sure." Claire rolled her eyes, sinking further into her seat. Ms. Ladden turned around and looked quite confused.

"What happened to Suri?" she asked. "She's upstairs reading some fashion magazine." Claire laughed at her friend. Just then, the doorbell rang. Her mother furrowed her eyebrows in thought.

"I'm not expecting anyone today. Could you go see who it is for me?"

Begrudgingly, Claire rose from her seat and headed toward the front door.

"It's possibly Suri's parents," Ms. Ladden called out casually.

The sun has just barely risen over the horizon. Warm colors danced across the sky with clouds as daylight was beginning to grow. She expected to see her friend's mother or father, but the figure standing in the doorway was nowhere near a relative of Suri's. Instead, it was an old man. He wore a coffee brown polo beneath a button-up argyle sweater vest and grey slacks. He had a very long, grey beard and a chocolate brown fedora covering his grey head of hair. A curious look covered Claire's face. He did not look suspicious or dangerous, but a dark feeling crept up within her.

"Who are you?" she asked. Her mother, who had been eavesdropping, pushed the child aside and scowled at her.

"That is no way to greet someone, young lady." She turned to the mysterious man. "Excuse her. How may I help you, sir?" He didn't look in any way angry at Claire. He just smiled and stepped forward a bit. "Why, hello, ma'am." His voice sounded very deep and old. "I assume that you are Ms. Ladden."

"Yes, sir, I am." "Well." He paused before speaking once again. "I have come to talk to you about your daughter, Claire." Claire stepped in front of her mother and looked up at the tall figure. "What about me?" He grinned at the pink haired little girl. "You are a sweetheart, aren't you? You seem bold and brave. Is this true?" "Yeah," Claire agreed in a guarded tone. "I guess so," she added, in a tone so soft it could not be heard by the adults around her.

"Well, Ms. Ladden, if you wouldn't mind me coming in."

The taller woman, seemingly persuaded by the man's words, stepped aside reluctantly let the stranger walk through the door. The guest quietly sat down on the sofa in the living room. Claire and her mother sat down across from him and waited for him to speak. There was a thick tension that hung in the air, and suddenly Claire found it hard to keep up her polite composure.

"Claire, you seem like a very kindhearted girl." The pink haired ten year old nodded her head slowly. "That is what I thought. My…acquaintances have been watching you for quite some time, Claire."

Her mother looked very suspicious. "Who has been watching my daughter?" "I'm going to explain this is the most logical way that I can. You could call them Fates, or the Council. They are the beings that choose destinies for young heroes. We have watched Claire quite closely for a long time. She is destined for great things."

"Sir, I don't know-" her mother started. Her voice was slowly beginning to creep upwards.

"Claire is a promising contender as a student at our special school and if you would consider enrollment…" he trailed off. Her mother glared at him. "What is this place called," she asked, "and why have you come to us so suddenly? You aren't explaining anything."

"It is called the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts. My name is Merle Ambrose. I am the headmaster there." Claire's eyes went wide.

"Magic!" she gasped in disbelief "Mom, he's talking about magic!" Claire stared, wide-eyed in her seat up at her mother, who did not look amused.

"Claire, don't be silly. You know there is no such thing as magic. Only the gods use magic. We mortals cannot." She did not tear her eyes away from the mysterious old man. "I don't know why you've come here and what you wish to achieve, but I will ask you to leave now."

The man sighed and shook his head. "I'm afraid the use of magic is not limited to gods. I do not come here with lies and fake promises. Your daughter, Claire, is one of the few children who have the…imagination to thrive in our world."

The mother pinched the bridge of her nose and huffed in irritation.

"I don't know who you think you're fooling, but it isn't us. We're not interested in this "school" of yours."

That wasn't enough for Claire. Her interest was piqued. "But what if it is real?" she suggested, cocking her head to the side. "What if magic does exist? Opportunities like this don't just happen for anyone. I could be, like, a wizard!" Her mother was about to deny her, but she wasn't finished "And it would give me something to do over the summer! You would have one less annoying child to deal with! See, I'm annoying you now, right? I don't think someone can easily fake magic, not magic that gods use, at least."

Her words escaped her mouth so fast her mother could hardly keep up. Her mother leaned to the side and thought for a moment while her daughter stared her down with her puppy dog eyes that never left the side of her face.

"And this magic is supposedly real?" her mother asked skeptically. The man had an enthralling charisma that forced the woman to listen to his words. Ambrose nodded.

"The school is centered in a location called Wizard City, one of the many worlds of the Spiral."

"And what is the Spiral?"

"It is a magical galaxy in space that looks just as it sounds." Ambrose explained. "It is filled with stars and worlds, like continents, that inhabit many strange and magical creatures. It is totally safe. No matter what happens in a magical duel, a wizard is never truly harmed. You have a health and mana status that you can refill, and it's good to go.

"There are fairies and unicorns and many mystical creatures that belong to our world. Mortals who are not of a magical status are not allowed to enter through the barrier. There is no evil in our land. It is all for fun."

The woman paused for a moment. "What is mana?"

Grinning slyly, as if he knew he had won the battle, the man continued. "It is a special type of potion that allows you to cast spells. You must have enough mana to cast a certain spell." The room was completely still for what seemed like forever. Claire thought that her mother had frozen.

"This is absurd. I don't believe one minute of this. I can't even begin to tell you how crazy this is!" Her voice rose louder. "If this is for fun then what is the point in going to study there? It's a school, correct? Doesn't sound like much of a school to me."

"This is crazy. But crazy doesn't always mean make-believe." Ambrose revealed his hand and extended it. A wisp of green smoke appeared at his fingertips. The smoke curled around his arm and arose toward the roof. Her mother certainly looked defeated. Her tensed shoulders relaxed for a moment.

"As long as it's only for the summer," her mother sighed, "then I see no harm in going." Claire was overjoyed. Ambrose steadied himself and rose from the couch, a confident look flashing in his eyes. Claire could not help herself but thank her mother over and over. Ms. Ladden suddenly turned to Ambrose and glared at him.

"This better not harm my daughter, or else you will be in great trouble," she warned. He nodded firmly.

"Believe me. We have endless means of protection. Our magic cannot harm us. We've had so many young students graduate from our summer school. All of them love it. There is much excitement and adventure to have in the Spiral. I will bring the enrollment forms shortly, and give you the time to think. I know this seems entirely out of the blue and unimaginable, but we are in need of students. Finding the right children to join us has become increasingly difficult, as of late. We need the income, and I see potential in Claire. We will meet again."

A sudden burst of silver light and stars exploded as he stepped over the threshold in the doorway, and he was gone. The woman shut the door and turned around, her eyes flaming.

"Oh Claire, tell me what I've just agreed to. I can't believe my eyes or my ears."

"But mom, you saw it, right?" Claire protested. "The green smoke and the white light! That could not have been an illusion."

Just then, Suri came hurrying down the stairs looking quite distraught.

"Claire! I was just about to quiz you on celebrity trivia when I looked up and you weren't there! I can't believe you left me!" Claire burst out laughing, but Suri didn't notice what was so funny about it.

"I was gone for a good fifteen minutes, Suri. I can't believe you only noticed it now!" Claire was hysterical. About an hour later, Suri left, and Claire pulled her suitcase out from the depths of her closet. She packed most of her shirts and jeans. She stuffed various other items including her iPod, her phone, a couple of books, and some snacks into the pockets. Ambrose had instant messaged her and told her to pack as much as she could. The instant messenger was like a texting device, but it reached its destination instantly. It had appeared on her bed within a few minutes after the man's departure. The instructions were to drive into the outskirts of town and into the warehouse district. They were to stop at a large brick building and wait near the left entrance. Claire's mother was suspicious about being near such a risky place, but she drove the girl anyway. It was a long and silent drive. They waited on the left side of the building for nearly an hour. The tension grew the longer they waited, and Claire could tell that her mother was becoming increasingly anxious. Within a short period of time, Ambrose appeared in the same burst of silver light as he had disappeared in before.

"Are you ready to depart, young wizard?" he asked. Claire was taken aback by the term "young wizard" and almost forgot to answer.

"Oh, yes. Yes I am." She smiled a wide and nervous smile. The girl said her goodbyes to her worrisome mother, and headed along with the old man. He grabbed her hand, and led her into the warehouse. There was nothing there but old crates and a door. The door stood upright in the center of the building. It looked splintered and old with its spiral shaped window in the center. He led her toward it and she hesitated.

"Don't worry, young wizard, this is the door to the Spiral. It will take you to Wizard City with me."

"Oh." she whispered in a small voice. She did not know what to feel. She was excited, but felt like she should be careful. He took her hand again and with the other, pressed against the spiral. It began to obtain a golden glow until it illuminated the entire warehouse. Her vision went black and suddenly, she stood in the center of a tree. Her luggage was gone, but Ambrose remained beside her. The air inside the tree sparkled gold and lively roots ran up the trunk. The wooden platform on which the door stood was intricately carved with leaves and wonderful patterns. They headed down the step and walked up a wooden ramp to a tiny carved door. From there on, she was in paradise.

There were the most amazing things Claire had ever seen in her life. There were six buildings in the school district that Ambrose called Ravenwood. Each building had its own tower as well. On the right of the massive tree were the green Life school, the golden Myth school, and a patch of smaller floating islands. On the left were the purple Storm school, the blue Ice school, and the red Fire school. Ambrose explained that the empty section was where the Death school once stood, but he did not go into detail. They continued forward to a large stone tunnel and entered the Commons. There was a large pond, filled by a waterfall that flowed under a tiny bridge. A statue of two wizards was placed within the water.

There were many miniature sized buildings along the cobblestone streets. The banners and flags were brightly colored with moons and stars. A small tree and a bush grew beside the pond. A massive castle stood in front of them. Ambrose explained that it was his castle. All of the buildings were made of stone with colorful tiled roofing. Behind the pond there was a wheeled cart with patterned robes hanging on it, and another bridge that lead to another tunnel and a section of houses.

Behind the castle was a fairground. A carousel spun around and around with models of a unicorn, a dragon, a lion, a shark, a flaming cat, a flaming dog, and a bat.

Around it were many small blue and orange tents decorated with stars. There were many tunnels leading to other areas of the magical world. Wizards in robes rode around on magical creatures such as gryphons and dragons. It was so overwhelming. She couldn't believe her eyes.

"Welcome to Wizard City, Claire."

Within the next hour, Headmaster Ambrose had given her a tour of the campus. She didn't quite understand the dueling and magic yet, and she hadn't met the professors either. They strolled past the Fairegrounds slowly. Claire looked up at the tunnel. It read Golem Court above it.

In the center of the court was a tall tower. A wooden sign above it read Golem Tower. The cobblestone walkway headed all the way around the narrow building and back to where she stood. Near the far right was a gate leading into a cave. A wide but low wooden door was tucked away on the left wall, somewhat enclosed between the brush. As she observed the surroundings she heard an owl hoot. She was startled as the mysterious bird swooped low over her head and landed peacefully on Headmaster Ambrose's shoulder.

"Whoo?" the owl cooed.

"Gamma, this young lady is Claire SpiritBreeze. She is the newest Life student at Ravenwood." Headmaster Ambrose looked Gamma in the eye, a look which the familiar seemed to understand. There was an unspoken conversation happening between the two, and it only made her feel tense. Her hair blew in the breeze, and the air became immensely cooler. Although he himself said that there was no danger in their world, something made her feel uneasy.

The owl rotated its neck and flew over to Claire. Gamma flapped his wings gleefully as he buzzed around her.

"Hellooo! Name is Gamma the Owl, and I am quite pleased to meet yooou! Wizards test their skills by summoning fantastic creatures and dueling. To become a master wizard, you must learn every spell in your class. Wizards love to duel! The more spells you learn, the better duelist you will become."

Claire had hardy listened to the talking bird's into, partly because she was taken aback by the fact that an owl could speak, but mostly because she felt an oncoming malevolence that she had never felt before. She could feel the air shift, and soon Gamma's hooting was cut off by a large crack of thunder. The bright blue sky suddenly turned a deadly black and suddenly, Claire could no longer see a thing.

Author's Note:

I am so nervous posting this right now. I would like to quickly thank everyone who has followed and supported me on writing this. I know that the beginning isn't perfect, and my writing could use improvement, but this chapter is entirely different from what it first was, and so much better than it had been before. Thank you to all of my Wizard101 friends and the "wizzy fandom" that have encouraged me in writing this. For the past three years I have been putting this story together, the novelization of this game. So many people have underestimated the work I've put into this and how much it's consumed my life. It seems like a silly, Harry Potter wannabe game for children, but I wrote this story to give it deeper meaning, and for people to understand that. I am constantly putting together soundtracks for each book, as if one day it would be made into a movie. I wrote to KingsIsle multiple times offering this story to them. It has been my goal and dream for years to have them publish these stories as actual books. Unfortunately, they turned me down. I was crushed. But my friends and followers were the ones that motivated me to publish them online and to keep writing. This is more than a game or a story to me. I feel like I have a connection with each of these characters. Everything in this story has some special secret meaning to me. It's up to the readers to be the critical, English teacher analyzers and discover everything I've hidden (there's a whole lot of hidden meaning in what I write.) Share this story with your friends who play Wizard101. Share it with those who don't play Wizard101 or have never even heard of it at all. This story is for everyone, to give fans of the game something to love and to attract outsiders to the game and fandom. This is only the first chapter posted, and we haven't even gotten into Wizard City yet. But by the end of this series, at the end of Khrysalis, I promise you will have a story you will never forget. Even if this does not appeal to you, please do not flame or hate. I have dedicated a large amount of my time and life into writing this. This is one of the most important thing's for me, and I want to share it with the world. Stay tuned for the next chapter. I won't let this fandom down.

xoxo.

Disclaimer: Everything Wizard101 related belongs to KingsIsle Entertainment

Claimer: I do own all original characters that are not exclusive NPCs in the live game, and all thoughts are originally mine.