Chapter one
The Night Flight
"Avada Kedavre!"
These words rang through the silent halls in the Dregon's apartment complex. A pale, green light illuminated the seams of the front door. There was a muted thud, and then all was silent again. Initially, Jack's first reaction was to check the hallway. Of course, he knew better than that.
It was three years ago the last time Jack heard those words. It was uttered by his father, Jonathan. It was three years ago when his father was arrested. It was three years ago when he was found guilty for the murder of his wife, Jack's mother.
His mother had been writing a letter, when his father had walked through the door. She jumped out of the chair, happily surprised he was home so early, and went in to kiss him. That's when those words oozed out of his father's mouth, with that devilish grin adorned his face. The same pale, green light seeped into his mother's skin, and the terrifying image of his mother's face was permanently etched into Jack's memory. His father, holding a thin wooden stick, then walked over to the desk his mother had been sitting and pocketed the letter. Then, with a sickening pop, he disintegrated, vanished.
When his father was later arrested, he was mourning the loss of his wife. He could not explain how or why he did what he did; only that he didn't do it. Ultimately, it was Jack's testimony that put his father away. He visited his father once every year, not for his father, but for himself. His sister blamed their father for the burden she now had to carry; caring for a child of eight was not easy. Never the less, she agreed to visit Jonathan once a year with little Jack.
"The letter? Do you know who has it, Jack?" His father would ask every year. The answer was always the same, "You do, dad."
Jack still could not see why the letter was so important. He asked his sister, but often opted not to say anything. It wasn't until he would hear those same words he had heard his father utter the night of his mother's death would he finally come to understand how important his mother's letter was to some people.
The green light had long since faded, but a green shadow lingered in his mind like a fog. Jack felt a sudden urge to run as far away from the door as possible, but it were as though his feet were stuck together.
A white light cut through the deadbolt of the door, and there was a click indicating the door had been unlocked. The door slowly creaked open as the white light started to fade. A silhouette of a shaggy, scrawny man stood in the doorway.
"Where… is… the letter?" The man sounded overwhelmed and exasperated. Jack tried to move, but he was either glued to the floor or petrified in fright. "Answer me!"
The man lunged forward with a hand tightening around Jack's throat, and the other hand holding a stick trained on Jack's cheek. Jack gasped for air as the man's grip tightened around his throat. Just as Dregon was about to lose consciousness, another voice rang through the apartment.
"Incarcerous!" The man choking Jack was thrown backwards and slammed into the ground. He started to roll around violently in an attempt to free himself from several ropes that had bound his limbs together.
His sister rushed towards Jack holding a stick that looked like the man who had attacked him, but this one was slightly longer. "Jack, come on, we've got to go, now!" His sister yelled. Jack, feeling more confident now that his sister was with him, rushed to her side. She led him out the apartment and to the elevators. She frantically pressed the up button, spitting a curse out as she did so.
Jack looked at the wooden stick his sister was holding, and felt he deserved some answers. "Kerri, what's that you're holding?"
Half paying attention, she replied, "It's my wand, Jack."
A wand? But those weren't real. Only people who could use magic used wands, and he only read that in fiction novels. Perhaps his sister was just telling him something to shut him up, he had, after all, been attacked, and she looked frightened.
When the elevator finally opened, the two of them turned to step inside. Their progress was halted by a woman who was standing in the elevator, pointing a wand in Kerri's face. She had a filthy look about her, and she wore an evil-looking grin.
"Avada Keda--"
Before she could finish, Jack shouted in a rage and lunged forward. No one was going to take his sister from him; it was the only person he had left. As he did this, something astounding happened. The woman's wand disintegrated, and a red light shot forth from Jack's mouth and slammed into the woman's stomach. The woman's scream of pain was instantly muffled by her own flesh, as she collapsed into a heap. The woman had lost all her bones.
Kerri and Jack stepped into the elevator, and while Jack could only stare at the lady both confused and terrified, Kerri shoved her out the elevator. Pressing the button for the roof, Kerri stood back and waited for the elevator doors to close.
The man who had attacked them earlier had managed to free himself, and was sprinting towards the elevator, but was halted when Kerri shot a bright red light at him. After the man was forced back, the elevator doors closed.
After the elevator started moving, Kerri turned to Jack. She looked both frightened and concerned, and her eyes were flushed with tears.
"I love you, Jack."
"I love you too, sis."
"But now things have really gotten complicated, so you're going to have to trust me, no matter what I say. Promise?"
"I promise."
"Good, now listen to me, and listen carefully. When this door opens, I want you to run as fast as you can. Don't worry; I'll be right behind you. We're going to keep running, and when we reach the edge of the roof, I want you to jump without hesitating. Understand?"
"But sis--"
"You promised. You need to trust me. When you get to the edge of the roof, we're both going to jump. Okay?"
"Okay."
"Good boy. I know it's scary, but everything's going to be just fine." She held his hand as the elevator reached the last few stories. Jack didn't know what was going on, but as long as his sister said everything was going to be alright, he felt safe. He knew she wouldn't let him down.
Finally, the elevator reached the top floor and the elevator opened. The roof of the apartment complex was run down and dimly lit by starlight. Kerri took in a deep breath. "Now!"
Jack had never run so hard in his life; he could hardly keep up with his sister, who was, after all, thirteen years older than him. About halfway to the edge of the roof, Jack heard a ringing noise indicating the other elevator had arrived. Jack glanced behind him and saw the same male assailant stepping out of the elevator.
"Avada Kedavre!" He shouted. A green light sped past Jack's ear. The man shouted it over and over again, each time the spell barely missed. As they neared the edge of the roof, Jack's heart started to pound. They were going to jump off, and they were going to die.
The ground below the apartment complex looked as hard as real ground. That's why Jack knew slamming into it at terminal velocity wasn't a good thing. However, because his sister was with him, he jumped. His sister, in mid jump, quickly turned around to counter attack their assailant.
"Sectumsempra!" She shouted. The man attacking them barreled through the air as his clothing started to shred away from his torso. Blood started oozing from the slashes his sister had created. The man yelled in pain, and collapsed. Then his sister turned to Jack as they were falling, "Don't you ever cast that spell, okay?"
Even though Jack would have liked to have agreed, he was a little pre-occupied with his imminent death. His sister, gracefully as a bird, glided underneath him and told him to grab on.
Doing as he was told, he clung to his sister piggyback. His sister spread her arms wide as if she were attempting to fly. Then, she started to grow feathers. Her clothes started to recede into her skin, quickly being replaced by beautiful maroon plumes, all adorning the length of her body. Her arms became wings, her feet were replaced by talons, and her face started to grow a magnificent orange beak. Kerri was turning into a brilliant red bird, one Jack had never seen before.
With Jack on her back, the red bird soared through night sky with little effort. They climbed higher and higher, until finally the ground was invisible behind the cloud cover. The haunting night sky and the rhythmic strokes of the magnificent red avian quickly lulled him to sleep.
The pale, green, sickening light filled Jack's eyes. As it faded, he saw the face of his father. But it quickly morphed into the face of the man who had attacked him in the apartment. Then, with the familiar pop, the man disappeared and was replaced by a hideous rattlesnake. The rattlesnake coiled back, and lashed out at Jack. Jack however, didn't feel the venom oozing into his wound. In fact, as soon as the snake attacked, he heard a disgusting laugh. One that drilled deep into his mind, almost as if it was attempting to control him.
Jack jerked himself out of his sleep and found himself in a small room next to a cackling fireplace. His sister was standing over him with a cup of clear water.
"Here, drink this, you must be exhausted." His sister said handing the glass to him as she sat on the bed next to him. Jack did as he was told, and rested his head on Kerri's lap. A couple questions started to surface in Jack's mind.
"Kerri, what was that bird you turned into?" He asked. He wasn't as frightened as much as he was fascinated.
"That was a phoenix. You see, I'm something called an animagus. I'm a witch who can turn into an animal at will."
"Can you turn into any animal?"
"No. It'll always be a phoenix." She said stroking his head.
"Kerri, you said you were a witch. I thought witches weren't real?" Jack wasn't frightened of his sister. He loved her, and if she was a witch, then she had to be a good one.
"Witches and Wizards are real, Jack. Mom and dad didn't tell you because you've never shown signs of magic; we thought that you might be a squib. Someone who's born into a wizarding family but shows no signs of magic. I thought that, until now." Kerri was referring back to the incident in the elevator, when Jack made the woman's bones disappear. That meant that Jack was a wizard.
"Sis, if I'm a wizard, what does that mean?"
"It means tomorrow we have a long day. We have to get you ready for school." Kerri said. She handed him a letter.
Mr. Jonathan Michael Dregon
Somewhere Over Chicago
On the Back of Kerrigan Melody Dregon
Apparently, the letter had been delivered sometime after Jack had fallen asleep. Jack turned it over and tore away the protective seal. As he opened the letter, a rush of emotions, mostly wonderment, filled him.
Dear Mr. Jack Dregon,
Congratulations, you have been accepted to Loridan's School for Witchcraft and Wizardry! This renowned school will train you in the practices and theories of magic, as well as prepare you for relations in the magical realm. It is expected of you to be at the Chicago Midway International Airport at 7:30 A.M. and for the appropriate ticket in hand. Purchase a ticket in Loridan's name and board flight 777.
The letter went on to list all the books and materials required for classes. After looking through the list, Jack looked up to see Kerri talking to the fireplace. It wasn't until after a second glance did Jack realize the face in the fire.
"Has the boy received his letter?" The fiery face asked.
"Yes, we're going to Grotto's tomorrow." Kerri responded. "What about the special arrangements I requested?"
"They are in order; you start tomorrow. You won't have time to show the boy around Grotto's, so I'll take care of him until he's off to school."
"Won't you be busy as well?"
"Oh, not to worry, my things have already been established and unpacked."
"Well I'm sure he won't mind." She glanced over to Jack, and smiled. She knew he was listening. "Tomorrow you're going to meet one of your teachers. He's going to help you with your supplies. He's a very nice man, so I want you to be very polite."
"Okay, sis." Jack replied while he readied himself for bed. Kerri turned back to the fireplace.
"Make sure everything he gets is new, we can't take any chances." She said to the man in the fire. "Oh, and Stewart may be dead. He was standing watch tonight; one of our assailants used the Avada Kedavre curse."
"I don't believe Stewart would be so naïve as to stay in plain sight. I'll contact him immediately. It goes without saying, but Kerri, be very careful from now on. They know who you are, and who Jack is." The man stated sternly. The head in the fireplace turned around to glance behind him, and then turned back to Kerri. "Ah, that's Quinn with the you-know-what. I've got to attend to him; he's probably got some answers on this matter." The face in the fireplace disappeared, and the fire simmered down.
"Jack? Are you ready for bed?" Kerri asked. She was packing her things, preparing for her departure in the morning.
"Yes." Jack said as he finished brushing his teeth. This house is what Kerri called the "Getting Away" house. Jack and Kerri stayed here every couple of months, so there was a lot of extra clothes and supplies here. Jack settled into the bed he usually slept in. Kerri climbed into the bed beside him; it was obvious she was worried for him. He could see it on her face.
Before drifting off to sleep, Dregon wanted to ask one last question.
"Before, in the elevator, you said things just got complicated, what did you mean by that?"
"Well, before, we thought you were a squib. A squib is someone born into a magically family, but they themselves show little or no magic. We were planning to raise you as a normal muggle, and let you live your life away from magic. Since you can use magic, I won't be able to protect you, because you'll be at school."
"Why do you need to protect me?"
"Because, I'm your big sister, silly." She said smiling. It was obvious that wasn't the real reason, but he decided it could wait for another time.
As the fire died down in the fireplace, Jack slowly drifted off to sleep. This time, he did not have any dreams.