Chapter One;

There was the occasional screech of a crow from outside my open window. It wouldn't shut up. I slowly opened my eye, to see that the time was just past six. My bedroom was still pretty dark, and it was hard for me to adjust. I sat up slowly, and yawned. The first thing I did was turn on the light and walk over to my dresser. With a sleepy gaze, I looked into the mirror. I turned on my iron and headed downstairs to make some breakfast. There wasn't anybody up yet, so I had to make some toast. I ate it with Nutella, and gradually trudged back to my bedroom again, because there was still nobody to talk to.

My mirror reflected the messiest-looking girl I had ever seen before. My pink hair was shoulder-length, and had dried by itself while I slept, so it looked like a lion's mane. I had brown eyes, you could say, although Mom calls them, "honey-colored". Thankfully, my iron was ready, so I straightened out that mess and brushed through it. This took me about ten minutes. After I had curled my lashes, applied eyeliner and mascara, I realized I was doing it all in peace. The crow was finally silent. My bangs were doing exactly what I wanted them to do, so totally was overall going to be a good day. I got dressed in a white tank from Hollister and some light pink shorts. Yes, my hair is pink, but not naturally. I was born a light-blonde, the kind people have to bleach their hair for, and my parents decided to dye it a very pastel pink. As I grew older, I got used to it and came to love my hair shade. Now that I wasn't a natural blonde anymore (I had become a brunette), I took regular trips to the salon with my parent's agreement that this pink suited me better.

I was ready for school, and ready for the neighbors to peer into my window if they felt like it. So I drew open the drapes and saw that the time had just past seven. Sunlight streamed into my room, and I couldn't stop smiling. The door to my bedroom opened as Mom yelled into it, "Wake up! Oh...have you had breakfast?" she asked immediately, always worried about my health. I just nodded, "Yes, Mom."

She thought this over for a moment, but had more questions, "With a multivitamin?"

"Sorry, I forgot."

"Orange, apple, or grape juice with it?"

"Apple."

"Will you wait for me to make a new batch?"

"Sure."

"What flavor gummy?"

"Berry."

And, finally satisfied, she shut the door with a slam. I went back to the dresser, sprayed some perfume that smelled like cotton candy, and exited my room. In the main bathroom I brushed my teeth, and gave one last look at myself in the mirror. Another coat of lip gloss was needed. Okay, good enough. I raced down the stairs, where my Father sat reading a magazine with his morning coffee. My little sister, Ami, was sitting at the table already and happy to have a chocolate-chip pancake with strawberries. I sighed, cutting it in half with a knife, and taking one half away, to her distress. I complained, "Dad...didn't we agree that Ami doesn't need this much sugar in the morning? And at such a young age?"

He continued to avoid my gaze, "Fine...I'm sorry Ami." He patted her on the head and went back to his magazine as if nothing happened. I let out a sigh again, going down to Ami's eye level, who burst out into a tantrum. The full-blown ones; with tears and flailing limbs and everything.

"Why aren't you having this pancake, Ami?" I asked, hoping she would get the right answer. But, obviously, she did not, and I had to let her eat just one half, because I didn't have the time to go through with this. "Well, tomorrow will be whole grains and fruit." My breakfast wasn't really any better, but I kept that part to myself.

Mom walked over to me, a glass of iced apple juice in one hand and a multivitamin in the other. I chewed my gummy, and then drank my glass of juice. There was no more time to brush my teeth again, so I waved goodbye to everyone, grabbed my iPhone and headed out the door. The last glimpse of them before the door closed was Ami stuffing pancake in her mouth, Dad looking intrigued by a magazine article, and Mom finally settling down at the table to eat a pancake.

x

It was nearing the end of our Grade Nine school year, and my best friend Rima Mashiro was so excited she could die. Literally, her heart was racing at dangerously high speeds. And so much so that she said she felt like fainting. I gave her a gentle smile as she exclaimed, "Grade TEN! Amu, this is Grade Ten! We are going to be one step closer to having our own apartments and jobs, being able to shop for ourselves, and finally move out!"

I nodded, "Yeah, I am pretty excited!" My heart wasn't set on it though. I never wanted to leave my family. Poor Ami, stuck with my two demanding parents. One wants her to live very healthy, and one wants her to live with the arts. But in the end, all decisions for Ami would be made by her...and with the occasional influential hints from me.

The bell rang, and our first class was over. Rima and I gathered our bags and supplies and walked out the door. But I couldn't even take a few steps outside the classroom without smashing into someone. I lost my footing and slipped, falling backwards and dropping everything. Papers scattered all around the floor, and my binder was left open. "Oh my gosh! Watch where you're going!" Rima shouted at the tall boy who had walked right into me. He had unusual colored hair, like me. It was the color of the ocean, a flat, deep blue color. His features were very attractive; his jawline, his pointed nose, and his broad shoulders.

I stared into his eyes, as they drew me in. "It's fine..." It was strange, I felt myself drifting away. He was captivating. Almost, in a way, supernaturally.

But I snapped out of it as two hands clapped right in front of my eyes. Rima was hunched over on the ground, trying to gather everything by herself. "A little help here? This is your stuff after all."

"Sorry." Once everything had been stuffed back in my binder rings or in a bag, I got up to leave. I would organize later. Rima waved goodbye to the silent guy, and I mumbled, "Sorry to you, too." As Rima and I walked away, nearly at the corner of the hallway, he spoke. His voice was as smooth as silk, but very low.

"I came here to find you."

I turned around to see him standing up. I noticed quite the crowd had gathered around this little scene. My curiosity kept me standing there, staring right back at him. A moment of tension passed by, before I asked, "What do you mean? Why?"

He showed little emotion. His expression looked very determined. The boy replied, "Well, all I know is I'm not leaving without you." He snapped his fingers and the people around me faded like mist. They evaporated, as if they were never really real. It frightened me. The walls of the building disappeared, and so did the floors, even though I was still supported underneath me by something.

"What's going on?" I demanded, running towards the guy. My goals were to attack him and demand an answer. But with a flick of his wrist, I swear I saw a wave of blue flow towards me and disappear. Now I was instantly sleepy. As my eyelids began to droop, my anger subsided. The guy laughed, and I couldn't tell if it was an evil laugh, or if he thought sleeping people were funny.

x

I awoke in a meadow. There was a vast expanse of land all around me. I was sitting in damp, very bright green grass. It was like nature went to the spa, and came back as healthy and glowing as possible. The bright blue sky above me was spotted with the occasional fluffy cloud. I was still in my same clothes since before, but I was definitely confused. Was this a dream? Had I fallen and hit my head at school?

Suddenly, the same guy appeared in front of me, jumping out from behind, "Boo!"

I screamed, feeling very defenseless. I leaped up to my feet in seconds, "You stupid shit! How did you get me here? Wake me up!" Sometimes I forgot my manners in my dreams.

He opened his eyes a little wider, shocked by my change in attitude, "Hey, calm down. This isn't a dream. If it helps, my name is Ikuto Tsukiyomi." I rolled my eyes, putting my hands on my hips, "Trust me, it doesn't."

"Okay," this 'Ikuto' character began, "I'm going to explain to you this situation. Just don't interrupt and you'll learn everything you need to know. Okay?" Yet again, I gave him one of my signature eye rolls and stormed off farther down the hill. I planned on circling a particular patch of daisies, hoping it would help me absorb information.

"This is a different dimension." Right away, I choked. My jaw dropped in awe. This guy was crazy. He had probably just kidnapped me for the hell of it, and dragged me out to the countryside. Where nobody would ever find me again. "I saw some magic in you on my hunt. Every week or so, somebody from here is sent to the magic-deprived dimension to search for someone with abilities. And boy, is the Academy going to be pleased with me! You seem to have a special gift for not one, but four elements!"

I stopped my pacing, and gave him one of my coldest stares, "And what elements would those be?" It seemed like the emotionless guy I saw earlier was a lot more playful and teasing now. Hoping the kidnapper wouldn't kill me if I played along, I pretended like the supposed 'Academy' and 'different dimension' were all real things.

"Water, earth, fire, and air. You see, everyone here has different elements they specialize in, it all comes from birth. This means that you don't really need to practice at all to become a master at a certain element. But of course, anyone can learn the basic spells that you hear of in the movies. Like making your clothes change color, or having a rabbit appear out of thin-" that is when he was cut off by a loud scream, similar to mine only moments before. We dashed down the hill, up another one, and reached the peak. What I saw both reassured me, but frightened me. The kidnapper, Ikuto, had gotten to my best friend as well!

I raced down the hill towards her, "Rima! Are you alright?" Her long and blonde curls covered her shoulders and back, and I admired her sense of fashion. She wore a light purple crop top and white high-waisted shorts. Her nails were painted mint green. I shook my head. Now wasn't the time to see what she was wearing, we had to get out of here and away from this crazy psycho!

She shook her head, "Of course not! We just got magically teleported to another freakin' dimension!" Still the same old Rima, with her attitude and everything.

"Wait," I took long, deep breaths, "you don't actually believe him do you?" How could she? Things like this don't happen. Magic doesn't exist! The world is a normal place full of normal people, and normal...everything!

Rima stared at me, looking very condescending and rude, "No...because falling asleep at school on someone's command is perfectly normal. Not to mention healthy." And she made me flush, now I felt very stupid. Trying to gain back my confidence, I turned around to face Ikuto, if that was even his real name, and said, "What do you want?"

He stared, a little annoyed, "Isn't it obvious? Your participation."

"Oh," Rima and I shared glances, and the petite blonde spoke for us, "okay then."