Skye's POV

"Okay, speak again, Skye. But this time: slower."

I took a deep breath, sucking in the cool spring air. I'd ran for at least ten minutes at top speed before I'd finally found Lye's Mum, Sam, hiding in a little camp in an obviously man made clearing. I'd tried to sputter out what had happened, but I was too out of breath to speak. Finally, I had enough air in my lungs to make partly comprehensible sentences.

"Guy in a mask found us, and he attacked, I was told to run, and—" I glanced behind me, hoping to see Lye coming, but she wasn't. "Sam, what's going on?"

Without a word, Sam took me gently by the shoulders and led me into the little log cabin that was nestled into the trees. Inside were just three rooms, a small kitchen and an equally small living-room (separated by only a half-wall) with two loveseats and a TV, and a bathroom off the kitchen. I was led to one of the love seats and I sat down. Sam sat beside me and sighed deeply.

"First off, did Lye give you a necklace?" Sam asked to start.

I nodded and opened my hand, where the choker Lye had given me sat. The metal spike had driven into my hand during the run, but I was so confused about everything that I barely registered the pain. Sam took it from my hand and clasped it around my neck gently.

"Don't ever lose this, it's important. Okay?" I nodded in response and she smiled, relieved, "Good. Now what do you want to know first."

Thinking carefully about my questions, I settled on the one that had jumbled my thoughts the most, "Lye's ears…" I pointed to my head, unsure about how to explain it.

"It's her Kitsune (fox demon) form; just one of her many powers."

"One of many…?"

Sam bit her lip, thinking hard. "As you've probably already guessed, Lye's not quite human. She's got many different types of powers because she needs them all for… Oh, how should I explain it," Sam paused for a second, then snapped her fingers, "You know all those legends about scary people in mirrors, and how if you break a mirror, it's bad luck?"

"Like Bloody Mary?"

Sam smiled, "Yeah! Well, those legends are somewhat true. See, when people try to 'summon' someone like Bloody Mary, they're actually reciting an ancient chant that was once used to open portals to whole different worlds."

I must've looked lost, because Sam attempted to explain in more detail.

"So the Bloody Mary chant says you should say her name three times while spinning, right?"

"Yeah," I said, "But it doesn't work. Ali, Lye, and I tried it a few years back and nothing happened."

Sam's eyes narrowed. "Lye didn't suggest a different chant, did she?"

I shook my head, scared of the look in Sam's eyes, but it disappeared quickly.

"Good, because Lye knows the real chant to make Bloody Mary appear. You have to touch the mirror with three "Bloodied" fingers each and chant "Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, where for art thou, Bloody Mary?" That's when the mirror should ripple and a Bloodied woman appears. That's Mary, queen of the vampire world."

"Ewwww," I shuddered, "Glad I never knew the real chant."

Waving her hand, Sam shook her head, "Mary wouldn't have touched you with Lye around."

I was starting to understand a bit more. "So Lye is a part of a different world…?"

"Somewhat. She was born in this world, but she spends a lot of time in a different world."

"That man… he called her 'Princess.' What's that about?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. Our family's blood comes straight from the beginnings of our race, therefore, we are royalty."

So Sam wasn't human, either. "What's your race called?"

The door to the cabin opened suddenly and Lye strode in, unscathed. "We're called Mirror Souls. We can manipulate reflective surfaces that have been enchanted and use them to open portals to different worlds," Lye threw a folded piece of paper at me and I caught it, "And you're part of it."

"Starlight Narita!" Sam scolded, "Why did you do that?"

Lye glared at her mother, her still purple eyes seeming to glow, "She has a right to know." Lye came towards me but Sam stood up and stopped her.

"Don't, Starlight."

Lye pushed her mother away and came to occupy the space her mother was just in. "Skye, you're part of our Race."

No, it couldn't be. I'd lived in Egypt for a while, where my father worked as an archeologist, then moved back to Canada in Grade two, where I'd met Lye. I'd never once gone through a mirror or heard anything about it. I opened my mouth to express my doubt, but Lye- whose eyes had turned blue again and ears gone human- Just shook her head, gesturing to the letter. I started to read it, hoping it would explain things.

"Dear Narita clan,

Thank you so much for taking care of my daughter while I've been gone. I couldn't even imagine leaving her with another family, because I know no one would treat her just like family as I know you are doing. This letter is to update you on the search for my husband and explain the necklace you should also receive with this letter.

First of all, we haven't found André yet. His partners said that he was exploring a recently found tomb when they heard him scream. They went running after him, but after two hours of searching the six-room tomb, they found nothing. There are some decently sized reflective surfaces in the tomb, so I've come to the conclusion that maybe he was dragged through one."

"Second, I know you're probably confused about the necklace in here. I'll get straight to the point: we are a family of Makers. But André and I wanted to live as normal a life as possible, so we were punished for turning our backs on our race and the MCFR took our powers. But, because they believed that our offspring might still want to be part of the Mirror Race, they limited their power ban just to me and André. Therefore, Skye does have powers, but in order to keep her human, we had her powers sealed into the choker you've most likely found by now.

I feel horrible for doing this. I never even gave her a chance to be what she was born to be, so I ask you, Samantha, to give her this choker and explain to her what she is. I'm sure she will feel betrayed, but I know you and Starlight can calm her.

Thank you and good luck ~Theresa Johnson."

Rereading the letter over and over again, I tried to make sense of my mother's words. I started off with the easiest question I could think of.

"What's the MCFR?"

Lye is the one who answered, "The Mirror Council for Rebels. It's a corporation that deals with Mirror Souls who don't want their powers anymore or decide to use their powers for violence, which we are dead-set against,"

Lye took my necklace in her fingers and fiddled with it. I couldn't see what she was doing, but she sat back again and was holding ¾ of the metal spike in her hand- a vial. She reached her free hand out and took my right hand in hers.

"Skye, there are three types of Mirror Souls. The Johnson family are Makers: keepers of our variety of Holy Water. As Princess I can unseal your powers. That is, if you want them."

I stared at Lye. Her expression showed nothing, making it impossible to judge whether she was doing this for my sake or her own. I glanced towards Sam, feeling uneasy.

"We won't force you into anything you're uncomfortable with, Skye," Sam assured me, "If you want to stay human, you can. But you'd probably be a lot safer if you unsealed yourself and let Lye train you."

"I was born magical, right?" I asked

"The MCFR isn't allowed to seal a child's power until the age of one," Lye murmured, "so yes."

Taking a deep breath, I nodded before I could change my mind, "Then make me into what I'm supposed to be."

A happy grin crossed Lye's face and she hugged me tightly. "Yay! Now, I don't have to keep anything from you! Are you ready?"

She held up the vial and I nodded. Then, she brought my hand, which she was still holding tightly, to her lips and kissed it. I felt a warm, tingling sensation run from the spot she kissed, up my arm and fill my whole body. I went nearly numb and couldn't anything but watch as a needle appeared unexpectedly from the metal vial and was stuck into the vein on my hand; I felt nothing.

Lye spoke, her voice commanding. "Skye Lucia Johnson. I, Princess Starlight of the planet Echo, hereby pronounce your powers unsealed from their prison deep within your body."

As if a floodgate had been opened, I sensed something spiralling up from the pit of my stomach. The feeling was euphoric, beautiful, and powerful. I was so caught up in the feeling, that I barely heard Lye continue.

"As the Sacred Water fills your veins and changes your blood, speak the words that come true from your heart."

As if I'd been prepped beforehand, my mouth moved automatically and my voice spoke on its own accord. "I want to learn what I am, what I should be, and what I can be. Princess Starlight, will you teach me the ways of the Mirror Souls?"

Lye leaned forward and pressed her lips to mine lightly. If my body wasn't still numb, I would've pulled away. Maybe that was the whole point of the numbness. I felt, rather than heard, Lye's next word.

"Yes."

And with that, all the ecstatic feelings were gone. Sam and Lye stayed silent as I slowly regained control of my body. Lye screwed the vial back around my neck and smiled at me. I didn't know what to say, but Sam suddenly spoke, saving me from thinking too much.

"What is she?"

Lye studied me with a lopsided grin. "Not quite sure. Elf, maybe?"

"Eh?" I blinked at both of them in confusion. "What do you mean, 'what is she?' I'm a Mirror Soul, right?"

"Well yes," Lye mumbled, "But because Mirror Souls have mated with other magical beings over the centuries, children are sometimes born with other mystic powers."

Lye took her iPhone out of her pocket and turned on the camera. She pressed the button to make turn the inside camera on and rotated the phone to face me. At first, I didn't see anything different with my face, until I noticed my ears. Instead of being curved like normal human ears, they were longer and pointed. Slowly, I reached my shaking hands up and traced along the edge of my ear. They felt the same as always.

"I think we should try to get a hold of Mom." I said quietly.

"We can't," Sam replied, "The return address was to a post office in Egypt. It's impossible to reply without a phone number."

"No a bid deal, though," Lye added, "All we need to do is train you with weapons, rather than your magic, and you'll be fine."

I nodded, still reeling from the unsealing ritual. "Now what? We're still in danger right?"

"Sadly," Lye sighed exasperatingly, "yes. But Mum and I have a plan for this sort of thing. You and I are going to find somewhere to hide out for a while, most likely in another world, and Mum will stay here and attempt to lead life as normally as possible. Also, she'll make excuses as to our whereabouts if anyone asks.

Sam went into the kitchen and came out with a black belt, handing it to Lye, who shook her head in response. "I'm not going to need that. Besides, if fox-face knows as much about me as he says he does, hiding out in Domino City might be a bad idea."

"But you could protect yourself with Yu-chan's deck, which you have a version of if you remember correctly."

Listening to mother and daughter send ideas back and forth, I twiddled my thumbs until it was appropriate for me to jump in with a question. "What's Domino City and who's Yu-chan?"

Lye didn't meet my eyes as she replied. "Remember the anime Yu-gi-oh I watched when we were kids?"

"Yeah?"

"That's Domino City, and Yu-chan is Yugi Mutou." Lye walked away as soon as she finished her sentence and I jumped from the couch, following her to the kitchen sink.

"What did you say?" I asked in disbelief.

"Exactly what you heard."

Pressing my fingers into my temple, I groaned. "Just when I think the weirdness is basically over…"

Eyeing me sympathetically, Lye smiled sheepishly. "I told you I'd explain things when we were safe, and I intend to keep that promise, but we're not safe yet."

The cupboard over the sink was opened and Lye took out a plain black backpack. She started to take phone chargers and clothes from another cabinet when Sam snatched the backpack from her daughter's hands and tossed the rejected black belt in it. Lye glared at her mother, but said nothing as she took the bag back and finished packing. Then, she pulled me into the bathroom with her and I found us standing in front of a full length mirror with a wooden brown trim that was painted with little crescent moons and hearts. I saw Sam in the Mirror's reflection; she was staring at us both sadly. Lye met her eyes and sighed, turning to face her mother.

"We'll be okay, Mum. You know I can take care of myself, and I definitely won't let anything happen to Skye."

Sam dipped her head slightly in acknowledgement, and reached her arm out. Lye stepped in and hugged her mother, who smiled at me and stretched the other arm out. I hugged her as well, feeling a bit of sadness and fear, even though I just got involved in this. After five minutes of a constricting hug, Sam let go and we stepped back towards the mirror.

"Starlight," Sam said before anything else could happen, "Have you thought yet that, maybe, this is what you were born for?"

Lye didn't turn around, instead choosing to lower her head. "Maybe," She sucked in a breath and lifted her head again, "But I really hope not."

Without any more words, Lye lifted her hand and brushed her fingertips against the Mirror's surface. I watched carefully as the glass started to ripple and the view changed. In place of our reflections was now a gigantic bedroom. Lye grasped my hand and stepped forward, her body disappearing into the mirror. I clasped my eyes shut and followed her and was met with a slight resistance, then cool air. I opened my eyes and found myself in the bedroom I saw in the mirror. It was bigger than I initially thought and looked like it was built for a princess…. Which made sense, I suppose, considering Lye was apparently a Princess.

I stepped towards the window and looked out. The sky outside was a light purple, as if the sun was setting, but the moon was already high in the sky. It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen in my life.

"Skye," Lye appeared at my shoulder and beamed proudly, "Welcome to the planet Echo."