Author's Note: This chapter explains exactly what she is, if you haven't guessed already. Anyhow, sorry in advance for any grammar or spelling mistakes and yadayadayada. Please review!

Disclaimer: I'm sorry to say I do not own Harry Potter or whatever you think my story is based off of.


Harlington Academy: Beginnings and Endings

Chapter 2: Explanations

You could say I started to freak out...a little. Sure, I was expecting some sort of explanation for why I was nearly KILLED by some random guy who had been TRAINED to murder me. But seriously?! Not human?! What the heck were they talking about? I was just a normal, ordinary girl! I mean really, I had the acne and B+ grade average to prove it!

So why were they still sitting there warily, waiting for some sign of me to explode in hysterics? My jaw, which had been hanging on a loose hinge, immediately snapped back to its original place. I stared unblinkingly back at them, also waiting, but more for them to laugh and admit they were kidding around. I waited a moment…two…three…

But only until it started bothering me. "What are you talking about?"

My mother glanced quickly at my father, with the obvious look that said, "A little help here, please."

I waited patiently as my father cleared his throat and shifted his weight uneasily. "You see…Samantha…"

"You're a sorceress," my mother finished.

It took a minute to register. But even after it did, I still was confused. Sorceress? "Huh?"

"Also known as a witch, if you prefer," my father said.

Witch? Sorceress? What? Nothing made sense anymore. Either my parents were pulling a really sick prank on me, or this was a really strange dream. It was too surreal to actually be happening. "Aren't sorceresses supposed to do magic?"

My mom bit her lip, and my dad just nodded. "Yes."

It was official: my parents were going crazy, and any moment they'd be babbling about unicorns or vampires or something. "Oookay…" I rolled my eyes. "So you're saying I can, like, chant spells and brew potions and all that?"

Again, "Yes."

I suppressed a giggle. "Yeah, and next thing you know I'll be flying on a broom."

My dad sighed. Maybe he knew I was catching on to his little joke. "No, those are just stories made up by humans to entertain themselves."

I raised an eyebrow. They weren't actually taking this seriously, were they? "So you're saying there are wizards and warlocks and whatever?"

"They're the same thing as sorcerers."

Shaking my head embarrassingly, I stood up to leave. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm going to go before you start talking about Santa Clause or what not."

"Samantha Lynn Brooks," my mother said sternly. Great. She was pulling the middle name thing on me.

I waved them off. "Mm-hmm."

This time, my father spoke. "Samantha!" Then suddenly, and I don't know how, the office door slammed in my face. No one had moved it. "Now, I'm sorry I had to do that, but you have to listen!"

"W-what? H-huh? How'd you—"

"Magic is real, honey," my mother said gently.

I shook my head, backing up into the door. "Get away! You're crazy!" I slammed into the door, which reluctantly squeaked open, and dashed through the hallway.

"Samantha!" they called from behind me.

I just kept shaking my head, even as I threw myself out the back door. "No."

A warm summer breeze blew at my face, sifting through my hair. I closed my eyelids, trying to think past my confusion. I couldn't put together the pieces. Why were my parents acting so strangely? What had happened to the black-eyed stranger outside? It couldn't have had anything to do with the pile of ashes…could it?

I breathed calmly in the July heat. I could smell the grass, the flowers my mother had planted (attempted, anyways) in her new garden, the pool that hardly stirred, the dark evening sky overhead. It seemed like an ordinary summer night. But was it?

"Samantha." The pair of voices had finally caught up with me. "Please, just listen for once. Let us explain."

My eyes refused to open. Let them go away…I needed peace. Just now…

I heard someone step behind me, and a large hand rested on my shoulder. "I know it's hard to accept. But it's important you know now, about the magical community. And the academy you will be attending."

Academy. I opened my eyes immediately. "Academy?"

I could almost hear him nodding behind me. "Yes…the Harlington Academy…for Girls." I could hear his pause before "girls." Maybe he meant for sorceresses.

"But…I thought I was going to a regular public school. With my friends," I said. I could hear the edgy tone to my voice. They couldn't just send me off to some magic school. I'd never let them. And besides, what would Hannah and Jared say? Wait…could I even tell them I was a you-know-what? Was it allowed? No. Sorceresses weren't real. They were myth. I didn't want to give in to this madness.

"I'm sorry, Sam, but there isn't any other way," my mother answered.

They had the right to say I couldn't choose for myself? I am what I choose to be! I refused to agree…whether it was real or not. I shook my head. "No."

My dad's hand dropped. I could tell he was bordering on angry. "You have no choice."

I began to tremble, despite my attempt at self-control. "What do you MEAN, I have NO choice? I can do what I want!" I didn't notice that the wind had begun to pick up.

"As much as we know you want to go to school with…normal people," my father muttered, "it's not our choice, either. You have to go to Harlington Academy. It's not just a matter of whether you are willing or not."

My fists clenched. The wind was whistling through my ears now. "I HAVE to go?! What about me?! What if I WON'T go?!"

My mom stepped forward, speaking urgently. "Samantha, honey, you don't understand! Control your temper!"

I ignored her warnings. "No! I understand PERFECTLY!" I wheeled around, facing them with a snarl. "YOU JUST DON'T WANT ME TO BE NORMAL!" I stomped my foot in frustration. "It's not your say, whether I go or not! It's also not your say whether I AM normal or not!"

"Samantha…" my mother trailed off, staring in pure shock at something behind me.

I didn't notice any of this. My anger had crossed the line by now. Fury was bubbling inside me, and my gut was starting to tighten. I wasn't sure if this was how someone usually acted when they were angry, but by now I knew this was different. Not normal. Something was roaring in my ears, uncontrollable, and for a moment I thought was just me. That didn't last long, though, as a wall of pool water had risen above my head, and the exact moment I saw it, the water splashed everywhere, soaking everything—except me.

I tried uselessly to read the clock upside down as I laid spread eagle across my bed, my head hanging off the side. Outside I could just hear the sounds of arguing and wet shoes squeaking across the floor. I had a pretty good feeling that the arguing was about me…or at least something related. The fact that I didn't have anything to do but sulk over my ruined birthday didn't help much as I waited for my parent's "verdict." Sighing, I flipped myself around, so that I was sitting upright on the mattress. So far, this was going just terrific.

By now, I was really starting to warm up to the idea that I was a sorceress. It's not like I could argue, anyways, because the fact that the pool had "coincidentally" risen out of the pool and drenched everything but me was no help on my part. So now, I was temporarily grounded for, um…transferring…all the pool water to our (now) flooded backyard. I'd given up at denying it. I'd just get into more trouble. Now, though, I was trying to remember a few of the "coincidences" in my life that I had just ignored.

1. When I was six, I'd once yelled "cookie!" and a whole dang cookie jar flew at my head. 2. Later, during fifth grade, after my teacher had really ticked me off, I was starting to wonder how funny it'd be if the flagpole above her head "accidentally" fell, and…you can probably guess what happened. 3. Seventh grade: a bully from my school had decided to steal my lunch, so I'd shouted back, "You're such a PIG!" (figuratively speaking, of course)…and the doctors are still trying to remove the pink snout that had erupted from his face. 4. Eighth grade: there was this one cheerleader I had really hated, and one day she took it too far, so I just glared at her pom-poms, and they magically came to life, whacking her on her pretty little head as she ran around screaming. Let's just say she never cheered for our team again…at least, not with her pom-poms.

At this point, I was really starting to wonder how I had ever denied the fact that I was a little…or a lot…beyond normal. I mean really, how was I ever able to ignore everything that had happened, all the magic that I'd done but never really thought twice about? The more I thought about it, the more obvious it seemed. I came to the conclusion that I must have been a really stupid kid.

After I'd had this settled, I began to think about the idea of being a…sorceress. How much magic could I do? Was it like the way they described it in the stories? How many others were there? What would a school of sorceresses be like? My patience was wearing down as I waited…and waited…and waited. I had way too many questions to ask to keep myself still. How long could it take for them to decide?

Instead, I tried not to think about it at all. I tried staring at the opposite wall. Didn't help. What about reading a book? Most of them were fantasy, dealing with magic. Music? Outside, in the living room. Computer? Not working. So, I just settled with falling asleep, which actually came to me easier than I thought it would. All I had to do was close my eyes, and…

"Samantha, honey, wake up," my mother said, prodding me awake.

I opened my eyes drowsily. "Er…huh?"

She smiled. "It's morning."

I yawned as I rubbed my eyes. "Already?"

My mother nodded.

I blinked in the early morning sunlight, trying to recall the events of the night before. All I could remember was dream… "Hey, Mom, I had the strangest dream last night…"

Her eyes narrowed slightly. "What kind of dream?"

After thinking it over, I laughed lightly. "It was really weird. I had a dream that I found out I was a sorceress, and—"

"Samantha, that wasn't a dream."

All I could do was groan. "You couldn't let a girl pretend, could you?" I grabbed my pillow from under me and covered my face. "This…sucks."

My mom smiled half-heartedly. "I'm sorry. I really am, but…we have things to do today."

I removed the pillow and sat up. "Things? What things? They aren't to do with…"

She nodded slowly. "It's for school. You need your supplies. We do have some here, but the rest…you'll need to come with us."

I groaned again. "School supply shopping? For a magic school?"

Her lips pursed as I mentioned the "M" word. "Yes."

Something clicked in my head as I remembered a couple of fiction books I had read not long before. "Where are we going, exactly?"

I was not enjoying the look on my mother's face at all. She grinned, as though she had just been reminded of a fond memory. "Well…where we're going, we'll have to go to Los Angeles first."

I raised an eyebrow. "Los Angeles, California?"

She nodded, grinning. "It's the…easiest way of traveling we have. First, we'll have to drive to L.A., and then…"

I waited…

"We're going realm traveling."