(A/N I just want to make clear that I'm an Syrah Syara fan, really. I mean, I don't hate her, but I don't like her either. I sort of know too little about her to really be able to like her. However, I don't like Merrin ('cause he's just a bitchy jerk, honestly) or Marcellus (and that guy's just too vain. He reminds me of someone I knew, and I didn't like that guy) either, but it works pretty fine to write about those, anyways, so...)

Chapter 4: Awake

That night, Septimus couldn't sleep. Maybe it was because he was in the same apartment as someone who quite appereantly wanted to kill his sister and probably him, too. But Septimus knew that there were something else. Something that gnawed in the back of his mind. What was it?Septimus had no idéa. He thought and thought about it, and at last he fell asleep.

Yet, he didn't sleep very well. Nightmares were haunting him, something about a monster... But when he awoke, he had no idéa what he had dreamt of. Sadly. Because he really wanted to know what it all was about, it felt important. When he had understood that he never would be able to sleep that night, he went to the libary. To... read something

Marcia was staring at the DreamCatcher-charm that was hanging over her huge bed. She shut her eyes, but opend them immediatly. What if the charm didn't work? Of course it would work! Marcia had prepared it herself, and she was- after all- the ExtraOrdinary Wizard. She had prepared far more difficult charms earlier. But, a little voice in her head said, what if you don't want it to work?
Mentally, she told the voice to shut up. After a while- when she realized that she absolutley couldn't sleep- she rose up from her bed and begun walking around her room. She had that feeling... As if something was going to go wrong. Really wrong.

At first Syrah Syara had no idéa of where she was. But then, she remembered.. Her queste, the syren, the island... Septimus... Septimus? Where was he? She recalled him talking with her. A lot. Almost everyday, she thought. Syrah blinked and heard a strange noise. What was that noise? It reminded her of a thing she had when she was Julius's apprentice... What was it called? Syrah didn't remember, but she did remember that it made a very annoying sound. And she would have to put it in a box to make the noise stop. She tried rise up from... whatever it was she was in. It was like a cocoon made by spider-web. The room she was in was circle-shaped, and it felt like it was spinning. Syrah felt like throwing up, and she didn't like it. Besides, the room smelled like a hospital. Syrah didn't like hospitals. Somebody opend the door that lead into the room she was in. It was a woman in her mid-thirties. The woman looked really shocked.
"Hi." Syrah said, tried to smile and made a brief wave.

Patricia Sands couldn't believe her eyes. No one had really expected the girl to wake up again. She- Patricia- had to admit that it was quite a shock. But she knew that Septimus would be happy. Which made Patricia quite happy. Septimus was a nice boy, and that Marcia Overstrand had gotten a little bit... weird seemed to have made the boy both unhappy and concerned. Patricia looked at the girl, who was really skinny. Her old-fashioned robes were hanging loose on her body and her hair looked greasy, even though the braid. Patricia somehow felt sorry for the girl.
"Are you alright?" she asked. The girl nodded.
"Yes." the girl answered, "I'm Syrah, by the way. Syrah Syara."
Patricia smiled. "Do you need something? Food? Water? Clothes?"
Syrah shook her head. "No." she replied, "But I need help with something else..."
"What?"
"There's this boy, his name is Septimus. Septimus Heap. Do you know where he is?"
"Yes."
"Where is he?"
"I'll tell you." Patricia said, "But only if you eat and drink something, first."

"What?" Marcia asked in an irritated tune. The subwizard who was sent to say that Syrah was awake was almost trembling with fear. Marcia was in a bad temper. She hadn't got much sleep that night, and that always made her quite annoyed.
"It... it's a message for mister Septimus." the poor man stuttered.
"Well, you've said that about five times by now." Marcia replied coldly, "Still, I want to know what it is at first."
"T-that girl, Sarah Syara has awakened." the man said.
"Sarah?" Marcia wondered, "Sarah Syara? Don't you mean Syrah Syara?"
"Yes." the wizard answered, "Yes, I-I did."
Marcia nodded. "Very well, scurry away now."
"B-but I haven't told-" the man begun, but Marcia interupted him.
"I'll tell him." she said and snapped with her fingers in a dismissal way, "Now; get away!"
"Yes, madam Marcia..."
"Wait!"
"Yes?"
"Which floor is she at?"
"The third floor, in the restingroom."
"Good."

When the trembling subwizard had departed, Marica went to the Library, where Septimus was.
"Septimus," she said, "I'll be gone in just five minutes."
"Okay." Septimus just replied, and continude to read. Marcia choked the urge to check what he was reading, and went down to the restingroom at the third floor, where Syrah was suppoused to be. And there, sitting in an armchair, she was. The girl was wearing a new, white tunic that was showing of how skinny the girl really was. Marcia raised her eyebrows at the ordinary wizard, named Patricia Sands, who sat beside Syrah. Marcia clearead her throat and went straight to Syrah.
"I suppouse that you're Syrah..?" she said and looked at the girl.
"Yes." Syrah replied and rose up, "And you must be madam Marcia Overstrand, the ExtraOrdinary Wizard..?"
The old Marcia would have smiled, but the new one didn't."
"I see that mrs. Patricia already had told you about me." she said and gave Patricia a look. "However, I would appreciate to talk to you... Syrah..."
"Madam Overstrand, Syrah is very tired..." Patricia protested, but Marcia rose her hand.
"I will talk to Syrah, Patricia, not beg her to run a maraton." Marcia snapped.
"Of course, madam..."
"And I'd appreciate to talk to her... alone."
"But madam!" Patricia protested, again.
"Would you please leave?"
"Yes, madam." Patricia knew that she had no choice, but to do as Marcia said.

So, Syrah was left with Marcia.
"Have I done something wrong, madam Marcia?" Syrah asked. Marcia shook her head.
"No." she said and smiled. Syrah seemed to begin to relax.
"So, what is it that you want?" she wondered.
"Oh dear, where to begin?" Marcia sighed, "You know my apprentice, Septimus, don't you?"
Syrah nodded. "Yes, I guess I sort of know him..." she replied.
"Good, good." Marcia smiled again, "For, you see, we sort of... has begun some sort of fued, and he doesn't trust me anymore."
"Oh."
"And I'd appreciate some help with getting him to trust me again." Marcia replied. Syrah nodded.
"Yeah, but I don't understand where I-"
"Just get him to trust me again, please?"
"Okay." Syrah tried to smile and Marcia smiled back.
"And of course, I'll give you something in return."
"You really don't have to-"
"What if I'd say that I could help you back into your own time?" Marcia wondered. Syrah opend her mouth, but closed it again.
"You... Could you realy do that?" Syrah asked. Marcia laughed.
"Syrah, I am the ExtraOrdinary Wizard. I can do anything." she answered.
"Wow. Well, thank you..."
"And... Syrah?"
"Yes?"
"Please, don't tell Septimus anything about this."
"Of course I won't."
"Thanks."

"And she believed every word?" DomDaniel asked.
"Yes." Marcia answered, and he laughed.
"That poor, stupid girl!" he said. "You're a genius! But was the false-reward really necessary?"
"Yes, to make her more motivated."
"Hm, well, I guess you're right..."

(A/N Yup, Syrah's awake... Peace, out... (We had a substitute-teacher who said that all the time... It was really f***ing annoying. Just had to get that of my chest...))