She lets her mind wander as she takes notes out of her history textbook. She knows the story; she's heard it every year for as long as she can remember. But her teacher continues to lecture about the importance of this point in their country's history, and as much as she tries, she can't force herself to ignore him.
"We were founded through a peace between Scientists and Magicians – the first official peace negotiation of the time. After that, dozens of other countries followed suit and the Scientists and Magicians made peace. Then, the Magicians refused to adhere to the rules set for the safety of all, and they continued to practice their magic with no limits. Scientists were being killed left and right because of their unpredictable magic, and finally a war broke out. The Scientists ruling America had no choice but to execute the Magicians, or it would have been the end of the Scientists. Now, Magicians are extinct in America, and we are a fully Scientist country. Because of this, we are the most prosperous country in the world. Miss Dawson, are you paying attention?"
She looks up from her notes. "Yes, Dr. Watson. I was just taking notes on the lecture."
He nods and goes back to his lesson. She continues making notes, glad that she chose to become a Psychology Specialist rather than a Scientist History Specialist like she had planned when she was younger.
When class lets out, she prepares for the inevitable flood of questions.
"Ally, were you really not paying attention in class?" Trish asks her, catching up to her in the hallway. "You're a prodigy. I didn't think that was possible."
"I just don't believe in all those Magician stories," she says.
"You know you're my best friend and I don't doubt your intelligence considering you're one of the smartest scientists in the world, but – "
"The term 'best friend' is a bit ridiculous. What makes me significantly better than your other friends? I suppose I'm smarter, but in that case 'smartest friend' would be the most appropriate term," Ally points out.
Trish exhales, and Ally senses a bit of frustration in her face. "Right. My point is, it's completely illogical for you to not believe in Magicians. They were real. They still live in other parts of the world. There's evidence that shows that they really do exist."
"Trish, it's all just one complex story adults tell children to get them to focus on becoming better Scientists. 'If you don't study, the Magicians will come cast a spell on you.' Things like that."
"Well, we're seventeen, and we're still hearing about them."
"We aren't technically adults yet."
Trish sighs again. "There's no winning an argument with you."
"Because my positions are better supported."
"It's really hard to be friends with you sometimes."
"Then why are you? Friendship is supposed to be about connecting with other people in an easy environment. If you feel that I don't provide that for you – "
"Ally," Trish interrupts. "Can't you just shed the skepticism and be human for a while?"
"Being human is about gaining knowledge."
"Being human is about living."
"And living is about gaining knowledge. Therefore, being human is about gaining knowledge."
By the time Trish finally decides to talk to her again, their friend Dez has already caught up with them and they're halfway to his house.
"I think being a Magician would be cool," Dez says.
"Being a Magician would mean you'd be killed," Trish tells him.
"Being a Magician would mean you wouldn't exist," Ally says.
Dez rolls his eyes. "This again. We go through this every time Magicians come up. Why don't you think they're real?"
"Because it's absolutely absurd to think that human beings can possess special powers that allow them to manipulate the world and other people however they'd like."
"How come? We can do that. We can grow hundred-foot trees in a week. We can hook people up to a machine that allows us to see exactly what they're thinking. We can cure any disease out there."
"Through science. Not by waving our hands around and muttering gibberish."
Dez knits his eyebrows. "That's not how it works."
"Oh, and suddenly you're a Magician expert?"
"I'm going to be a History Specialist, so kinda, yeah. Why are you being so defensive?"
"I'm not being defensive," she tells him.
"You seem pretty defensive," Trish says.
"Who's the Psychology Specialist here? I'm not defensive!" she exclaims.
She storms ahead of them on the sidewalk, clenching her jaw in frustration.
Dez's house is finally in view just when she's about to yell at Trish and Dez for their loud whispering behind her. But she gets distracted by a person on the side of Dez's house, kneeling on the ground. She knits her eyebrows as they get closer, trying to figure out who this stranger may be and why they're at her friend's house, but all she manages to see is that the stranger is a blond boy before he gets up and darts behind the house.
She decides to shrug it off; she has much more important things to worry about.
It isn't until she sees him in the same spot two more times when she finally asks Dez if he knows what's going on.
"Dez, do you know that boy who's been outside your house a couple times when we come home from school?"
Dez frowns, his eyebrows scrunching together in confusion. "What boy?"
"Well, I don't know. He has blond hair. It seems like he's doing something on the ground on the side of your house."
Dez shrugs. "Don't know him. Maybe he's doing a study on my grass or something."
"Yeah…maybe," Ally says. But she isn't the slightest bit convinced that that's what's going on.
"Ally, let it go. Not everything is an equation for you to solve," Trish pipes up.
"Yeah. Hey, how about, instead of arguing, we all do homework instead? We all love homework," Dez suggests.
"Fine," Trish says.
Dez nods. "I'll go get my textbooks."
He walks off down the hall.
"Um, I'm gonna go use the restroom," Ally tells Trish.
Then she follows Dez.
Dez's facial expression looked like he was hiding something, and the tone of his voice was fluctuating way too much for him to have been telling the truth about getting textbooks. She's a Psychology Specialist prodigy; Dez couldn't have actually thought he'd get away with lying to her.
Sure enough, Dez walks past his bedroom and out the back door. Fortunately, he leaves the door slightly ajar and she's able to peek out of it. But all she sees is her redheaded friend standing in the middle of the clearing behind his house, staring at the edge of the woods a few yards away.
"You're gonna get us both killed," he says to the trees. "Probably our families too. I'm not a good liar, and my friend's getting suspicious. She keeps seeing you."
A figure walks out from the darkness of the forest and stands at the edge of the trees, looking at Dez. Sure enough, it's the blond boy Ally's been seeing outside Dez's house.
She sets her jaw in frustration.
"I'm sorry," the blond says. "I've just been waiting for you to finish school like always, but it gets kinda lonely in a dark forest with the same group of people all the time. I wanted a change of scenery."
"Then make a change of scenery, dude. You can literally create waterfalls out of thin air!"
Ally knits her eyebrows, wondering if she heard him right. Maybe this boy is an Earth Specialist or something.
The blond boy looks down and mutters something she can't hear. But Dez seems to relax a bit after hearing it.
"Look, buddy, I know it's tough for you. But – "
Ally doesn't hear the rest of his sentence. All she knows is that Dez just called this boy 'buddy' after saying he doesn't know him, and Scientists are supposed to tell the truth.
"Hey!" she exclaims, opening the door loudly.
Dez yelps and turns around, and the blond boy jumps, his eyes widening to the size of saucers.
But what makes Ally freeze in her tracks is the blazing fire that spontaneously starts on top of the blond boy's head.
Dez looks at the boy, and he yelps again. The blond boy's eyes shift up, and they widen even more, which Ally didn't think was possible. Then he looks at her, and then he runs.
He disappears into the forest before Ally can even process what's going on.
"What just happened?" she asks Dez when she recovers from her shock.
Dez swallows. "What do you mean?"
"That boy you said you didn't know was just talking to you. And then his hair caught on fire. And then he ran away."
"Ally, I think you're hallucinating," Dez tells her. "Maybe all this talk of Magicians in history lately has got you all worked up."
"Dez, don't lie to me."
"I'm not lying. Let's just…go inside. Trish is probably ready to yell at us."
Dez brushes past her and walks back inside the house, leaving Ally standing alone in the clearing, staring at the edge of the woods and trying to figure out if the smoke she smells is all in her mind.
hey hi hello remember when i used to write multichaps that were actually good? well, IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN YAYYYYY! i'm honestly so excited for this story and i think it's gonna be my best one yet soooooo i hope you guys enjoy it as well! thanks for reading!
also i'm so sorry for deleting shattering deadlights with no warning. the truth is that i just couldn't bring myself to write it anymore and i honestly dreaded writing because of it, and then this idea came along and i knew that my time would be better spent if i just got rid of shattering deadlights and focused on this. so yeah sorry again...but hopefully this story makes up for it! :D
p.s. thank you normah for this beautiful cover and thank you lexy for helping me with ideas! i love youuuuuu
