Chapter 5: Alex

Professor Wu clopped across the courtyard with a spring in her step and at a surprisingly quick pace. Maybe getting out of her class and only having to deal with one, new student was like a vacation day for her.

"Right, dear, we shall begin here, in Ravenwood. I suppose that you have met Bartebly?"

The tree in the center of the schoolyard opened his one eye (the other wooden socket was blank), twitched his nose, and looked down at us curiously.

"Good afternoon, Bartebly!" Professor Wu greeted. "How are you feeling today?"

The tree responded in a voice that shook the cobbles beneath our feet. "Well, Moolinda, I am doing well. Ah, a new student? There are so many nowadays, and too many a few moments ago for me to take any notice. But now I suppose I can greet our new Life magic protege. Greetings, young lady, I am Bartebly."

I lifted one hand and flicked the wrist shyly. A tree that can talk. This world didn't seem to have any boundaries to it.

Suddenly from a small door in Bartleby's trunk appeared a dog. Wearing a suit, a monocle, and a top hat, walking on two legs, and dragging a trunk behind him, he was clearly some kind of dignitary.

"Moolinda, dear!" he called out a greeting as he came to stand at a corner of the courtyard. "A new student? Touring? Ah, a wonderful day for that!"

"Hello, Arthur! Destiny, this is Arthur Wethersfield, the instructor of Balance here at Ravenwood. We do not currently have a school for Balance here, so Mr. Wethersfield provides what he can until we can establish for him an office."

As Mr. Wethersfield set down his trunk and began setting out his instruments for the day, Professor Wu led me towards the tunnel. I had already seen the Commons and Golem Court, so Professor Wu showed me where the Headmaster's Office was located, then the Pet Pavilions, introduced me to Prospector Zeke and his wife Eloise, and then moved across a bridge and towards an archway marked 'Unicorn Way'. We spent quite some time chatting with the Prospector and his wife and the three gentle...things in the Pet Pavilions, so by the time we crossed the bridge school was about to end.

"We've been having much trouble with the dark fairies on this street, but I plan to show you how to fight and teach you a few new spells at the arena. Is that alright with you?"

I reached up to adjust my glasses, a habit that usually signaled to people 'okay'. Then I remembered that I didn't need them anymore and had shattered them with the mirror shards that gave me my new name. That melancholy thought shot my heart to my throat. But I nodded as Professor Wu ducked through the tunnel.

Inside, things were less than quiet. Beyond two double doors on the far right of the courtyard, someone was cheering on Bianca and some other person whose name I couldn't make out among the crazed cheering and stomping. The only things that were missing from the chaos behind the door were the familiar stomp stomp clap rhythm and the chorus of We Will Rock You.

"Those doors lead to the Arena. The students practice dueling in there."

I nodded and followed Professor Wu down the hill and onto the street proper.

"We've sent most of our older students out to fight the fairies. You see, the sprites in the hedge maze are being somehow captured and turned into the dark fairies."

"I see." I ducked a small cage that was hanging from the lampposts. Then I turned back around to examine it. It was made from small bones, and there was a small ball of sickly green light inside. I turned the cage slightly and saw that the lock was rigged to a small piece of twine, so when something slid inside the lock popped closed.

"Professor, could this have anything to do with the dark f—"

"Destiny!"

Suddenly Professor Wu yanked me across the street and behind a large oak tree. I peeked around and saw the problem. Dark fairies, hundreds upon hundreds, were swarming across the housetops and down into the street.

"There's so many of them," Professor Wu whispered sadly with a hint of terror in her voice. She stepped back, "Stay here, I'm going to go get Headmaster Ambrose."

Professor Wu looked twice and then tore across the road, somehow moving extremely fast for a two-legged cow.

I stood there behind the tree for a moment, watching the dark fairies sweep the street and hoping that they wouldn't spot me. Then suddenly there was a flash of light blue among the purple and black. I looked up and squinted, and there, lo and behold, was a boy. He was running across the rooftops of the buildings on the street, wild and carefree. Suddenly he went flying as he leaped from one roof to the next. And then in mid-air, he threw a card in a fairy's face and her wings burst into flames.

"Dear goodness," I whispered, watching the boy flip across the housetops, firing spells left and right as the dark fairies swarmed. He was quick as a whip, throwing spell cards and drawing the runes as if he painting the fairies faces.

Suddenly, from the center of the swarm rose a larger fairy, with darker wings and a small crown set on her head. The boy was so busy that he didn't see her as she drew a small sword. Though small, it was clearly well used. One quick slash and she could hit an artery if he didn't see her in time.

Instinctively, I stepped out from behind the tree where Professor Wu has stashed me, drew my wand, and quickly drew the Fire rune from before. With a slash across the sign, it flew out, towards the fairy queen. She didn't see it till the last moment and promptly exploded into a few thousand pieces.

Still holding my wand in the same position, I quickly turned my attention to the swarm. I drew the rune again, this time bigger, and then slashed it. I was promptly blown backwards as it exploded outwards, setting the fairy's wings on fire, pushing them back, and blowing them to pieces. It didn't hurt the boy as it flew over him and destroyed the rest of the fairies.

I sat there for a moment, staring at the fireballs, cloth pieces, and retreating fairies before I slowly slid my wand back into my boot. The boy looked down at me and tipped his hat, just slightly, before executing an Olympic-ten-worthy flip off of the building and onto the ground.

"Impressive," he said as he stepped up to me. He ran a hand through his close-cropped black hair and held out his other hand. I reached out and took it, and he helped pull me up. He looked me up and down with warm hazel eyes and introduced himself as, "Alex Raventhorn, Ice Journeyman."

"Destiny Starshard, Life…Beginner? I don't know."

"Novice," corrected Alex. "And were you just spying on me, or did you have to hide there?"

"Hiding. Professor Wu left to get the Headmaster."

"Ah, are you new? Was Professor Wu showing you around? Makes sense. She sent all the others to the Arena, right?"

I nodded and Alex smiled. "Okay, then we'll go there and wait for her. I bet she'll be surprised when she hears that you destroyed the fairy swarm."

We walked back to the area with the double doors in silence, taking our sweet time since he'd been running and jumping, all on stone. Alex strode straight up to them and shoved them open.

Inside, Professor Wu's Life students were still cheering on Bianca and the other girl whose name I could now make out; Sarah.

A shiver ran down my back, but I tried to hide it as Alex and I stepped over a rope closing off the dueling circle and joined the stands. A few boys greeted and high-fived Alex. I noticed that they wore white and light blue and correctly assumed that they were Ice wizards like Alex. I then noticed that there weren't just Life students in the Arena stands.

"School ended about an hour and a half ago and a favorite pastime is watching duels," Alex began. "The other schools are Myth, Death, Fire, Balance, and Storm." He pointed to each section in turn. Each was swimming with different colored robes; yellow and dark blue, black and white, orange and red, and purple and gold. Alex didn't point to a specific section when he said 'Balance', and I couldn't see any deviations from the rest of the colors.

"Professor Wu will introduce you to the teachers later. There's the Life students."

Suddenly the Life students, who were just opposite the Ice students, yelled as Bianca drew the flame-shaped rune and slashed it. It flew to the center of the dueling circle, which ignited before rendering forth a red-and-orange armored elephant. It trumpeted before blasting the other girl, Sarah, with hot air.

"Helephant!" The Life students screamed, cheering on Bianca.

"Neat," I commented, turning to look at Alex. His jaw was slack and he was staring at Bianca.

"Hey," I tapped his shoulder and he snapped out of whatever trance he was in. He jumped and turned to look at me. "Thanks for showing me over here."

"Yeah, you're welcome. And hey, keep in touch. See you around."

Alex turned back to the center circle and stared at Bianca as I set off at a brisk pace around the circle to the Life students. Two girls who had seen me in class earlier called me over and made room between them. I thanked them, took the seat, and watched Bianca and Sarah duel it out.

It was a battle that had obviously been going on since I met Alex and helped him destroy the fairies, about twenty minutes since we'd taken time walking back and we had to avoid ghosts and more fairies as we went, but you could see that it was wearing down. Both of the girls' hairstyles had come loose from braids and ponytails. Sarah had a streak of dirty blonde hair (the only streak in her dark brown hair from what I could see) hanging in her bespectacled eyes. Bianca's brown hair was loose from the braid and tangled into knots and her face was a blotchy red. As they both reached for their spell card decks, I could see that they each only had about four cards left. A stack of used cards were lying behind them on small pedestals, glowing as if 'recharging'.

Sarah drew a scale-shaped rune and slashed it, which transformed into some kind of pointy shield that spun around Bianca's head. But Bianca didn't let it faze her. She took a stance, drew the familiar leaf-shaped rune, and summoned the nature's wrath I'd used before. The Life students shouted and stomped their feet as the gnarled tree picked up the rock at his feet and threw it. As if in slow motion, Sarah fell backwards, out of the circle, and the duel promptly ended.

"Bianca Glassheart wins!" A black unicorn stepped into the dueling ring from his position high above the Arena. He wore a conquistador's costume and held a sword at his side. At this announcement, the Life school shot to their feet and cheered and clapped. I couldn't help but compare it to football games when all of Colorado began screaming and We Are the Championsstarted playing. Looks like that a win for a person was also a win for their school.

I smiled slightly. This was so much better than any football game.

Sarah slowly stood and Bianca stepped out of her casting circle. The two girls walked to the center of the ring and shook hands before moving back to their respective schools. The unicorn crossed to a small plaque set on his referee platform and used his sword to scratch a tally for the Life school.

"The Arena is now closed, ladies and gentlemen! Have a wonderful rest of the day."

The unicorn bowed and a final cheer went up before he moved back into the shadows.

Bianca spotted me and took the stairs two at a time after grabbing her cards from the pedestal. "Where have you been?! Did you see that? What did you think? Did I do well?" The others swarmed around and congratulated Bianca on the win before they began filing out the double doors. I waited for praise to be awarded before I answered, "You did awesomely! That was amazing!"

Just then Professor Wu trotted in, a bit off kilter probably from her quick pace, and spotted me. After clopping down the stairs to reach me and Bianca, she touched a hoof to her heart and announced, "Thank Bartebly, you're alive! I saw the dark fairy remnants and I thought that you were part of it."

"Destiny destroyed them all, Professor," Alex announced, walking up, his hands folded behind his back. "The fairy queen was about to attack me and she destroyed her and then the rest of the masses."

Professor Wu turned back to me with a look of utter surprise on her face. "All of them? But you just began today! You don't know any spells, do you dear?"

"No ma'am," I answered.

Professor Wu tapped her hoof. "Well, we'll figure that out later. I went to Ravenwood when Professor Ambrose said he'd look into the problem and discovered that your dorm isn't quite ready yet. Curse that old man; sometimes he forgets that you need places to sleep! I'm trying to find a place for you to stay tonight, don't worry dear."

I was about to speak when Bianca spoke up, "She can stay with me tonight, Professor. I have enough room at my island." I turned to look at my new friend and mouthed, "Thank you."

"Excellent, excellent! Destiny, I will see you tomorrow and we can begin your studies. Good day, dear!"

Professor Wu disappeared with Alex trailing behind, throwing glances back at us. Specifically, at Bianca. I couldn't stop a smile from rising to my face as I realized what was going on with that.

"Right, ready to go?" Bianca asked, turning towards me.

"Already?" I asked. Bianca nodded and pointed at the up. The Arena was open on top (I could see ropes that probably pulled glass windows into place during storms). The sun was out of the sky and beginning to set in the west. At least that little fact about this world was the same. Before I could respond, Bianca whipped out her wand from her left boot and held it aloft. She swished and flicked it and suddenly a door appeared before us. Bianca opened it and on the other side was a green hill with a path leading down. Bianca stepped through and I followed.

"It's not much," Bianca sighed as I craned my head back to stare at the stone Cyclops holding the house on his shoulders. "But its home."

Bianca

I gave Destiny a quick tour of the grounds and then showed her the teleporter. She stepped out of the little booth it sat in and teetered for a moment as if she wasn't used to teleporters. After I steadied her, I showed her around the house and then walked to the kitchen. Destiny followed behind me and set her wand down at the old table while I looked through the cupboards and the ice chest, looking for bread and cheese.

Suddenly Destiny grabbed my wrist just as I was about to close the cabinet. She stretched onto her toes and took down a box of dry pasta, tomato sauce, beef, and a few different spices that she recognized.

"Goulash," she explained when I raised my eyebrow. I raised it higher as she got out a small pewter pot, matches, and a stone dish. Destiny turned around, lit a fire in the hearth, and set the pot over it after filling it with water from the pump I had sitting next to the wastebasket.

"Just sit down and study or do whatever it is you do at this time. I'll make dinner."

I opened my mouth to protest (she was a guest after all!) and she answered, "I don't mind. I like cooking. Sit!"

I sat and silently dug out my History of Myth Magic book, grumbling playfully.

When the water was boiling, Destiny poured the pasta inside and took it out of the hearth and set it on the wooden floor before it.

"You noticed, I hope," Destiny declared, sitting down in front of the hearth and stirring the pasta, "that Alex was staring at you."

I dropped my life magic textbook onto the table. It landed with a clean smack.

"H-he what?"

"You didn't notice? After you cast that helephant spell, he was staring at you. I've only been here for a day and I can tell that you're very powerful."

"No," I replied, blushing at the compliment. "I'm not powerful. It's just a spell that costs a lot of mana."

"How old are you, Bianca?" Destiny asked. She poured the tomato sauce into the dish, added a dash of this, a pinch of that, and then looked at the hourglass that I used as a timer. Her lips tightened, as if she was just learning to read it. Finally, she threw up her hands and started counting out the minute herself.

"Fifteen," I replied. Destiny nodded and held up one finger. "Can you tell me when ten minutes are up?"

I took the sand from the storage container underneath the bulbs and poured it up to the ten minute mark.

"Thank you. But yes, he was staring at you. Girlie, I think that someone's got a crush on you!"

"N-nah..." I whispered. I didn't do well around boys. I knew they crushed on me (I had no idea why) but I wasn't about to let anybody get to me. Nope. I wasn't strong enough for that yet.

We sat in silence for a little while longer until the hourglass ran out and Destiny dished out the 'goulash' into bowls. She handed me a fork after I told her where they were, bowed her head and closed her eyes, and after another moment began eating. I tentatively took a bite and found the 'goulash' moist and salty and spicy. "This is delicious! "I dove in and ate every last morsel.

"Thank you kindly. Most people think it's too spicy."

Destiny picked up our two dishes and washed them in the pump, dried them with an old rag on the counter, and then put the lid on the pot and into the ice chest. Then she sat down at the table again.

"So...why did you come over to me this afternoon?"

"'Cause you looked sad and utterly terrified about the first day of school, and I thought that you could use a friend," I answered, not even looking up from my book. Then, slowly, I did. "You...do consider me a friend, right?" She'd only known me for...what? Two hours? And I already considered her a friend. Was that weird?

"Of course I consider you a friend! I mean, I barely know you, but you took a chance and helped me out. So yes, I do."

"Good," I sighed, lowering my face towards my book again.

"If you don't mind me asking," Destiny began. But then she stopped and said, "No, no, none of my beeswax. Never mind."

"My scars?" I guessed, reaching over and pulling the robe sleeve up a little. They were always long nowadays, because I didn't want anyone to see my scars. I hadn't inflicted them myself, but I still felt guilty about them, and I didn't want the world to know my ugly little secret. "It's okay. I didn't do them myself, so don't worry about that. I just...don't like to talk about it."

"Okay. I won't ask. But if you need to talk, I'm here. I'm not good at advice, but I'll try my best." Destiny smiled reassuringly and I smiled back. "Thank you."

I made some hot chocolate, geeked out for a moment over the fact that Destiny was a hot-chocolate-in-the-summer, ice-cream-in-the-winter girl like me, and we both talked about school and the city and the Spiral. She talked like she'd never been here before, and I was a bit confused. But I figured that that was her business, and when I asked the first time her face dropped and she looked sad, so I just offered my services if she needed to talk and we dropped off the subject again.

Eventually I glanced at the sundial hanging in the window and gasped, "Omigosh, it's nine o' clock! We have to be at school by eight!"

Destiny

Bianca darted up the stairs to the guest bedroom, leaving me to follow her. She opened the door and stepped in. It was small and quaint, scarcely furnished, with only a bed and writing desk, with a fireplace burning in the corner.

"Thanks," I said as Bianca ran in place. Looked like she was terrified of missing school. I smiled and commented, "Sounds like you like school."

"Love it! I started only five years ago and I'm already a Master. No place to go but up, eh? Well, goodnight!"

Bianca darted down the stairs to her room. "Night!" I called after her.

Silently, I unmade the bed. Just as I sat down, I wondered what my parents and my sister were thinking right now. Then I noticed that there was paper and envelopes on the desk. An idea, an insane idea shot to my head. I held up my wand. If it…I was powerful enough to destroy all of those dark fairies in one fell swoop when I didn't know any spells, then maybe it could…

I sat down at the desk, set a fresh piece of paper in front of me, took the quill from the inkwell, and started writing. I told everything that had happened and what I knew about this place. I begged them to write back and that I would try to come back someday soon. I left that part to give them hope. I'd fib a little to ease them into the fact that there was no chance of me coming home. But if this worked, then I'd still have my family.

I looked around the room and slowly picked up my wand. I focused on what I wanted to happen to the paper, focusing extremely hard like I did when I was bored and tried to see if I could move things with my mind, and then etched the leaf rune that represented Life on the bottom of the paper. The paper fluttered and glowed and I suddenly knew that it would work. I wrote that I had charmed the paper and it would come back to me when they finished writing and all signed it. I finally finished it with an 'I love you' and then folded it up, sliding it into the envelope.

I walked to the window, closed my eyes, and prayed for it to work and for my family to keep writing. Then I threw the letter out the window.

The envelope glowed and suddenly spread tiny paper wings. I smiled as it flapped once and soared across Bianca's island and out into the distance. It flapped again and a very small portal appeared right above the door we had come through. The bird-letter flapped one more time and it was through the portal, hopefully to earth.

I sat down on the bed and inched out of my boots. Tomorrow after school, I'd try to find some new clothes for proper pajamas, and new clothes, and someplace to put my wand. I pulled the blanket over me, closed my eyes, prayed silently, trying not to cry through them, and then promptly fell asleep in this new world.

Bum bum bum onto the better written chapters! School also started for me today (I online school so I can usually get out whenever I want and spend the day doing whatever else), so I'll have more time to write. I'm going to try not to drop off into oblivion again, I promise.

Alex Raventhorn is the property of Starlight in the Sky.

Bianca Glassheart is the property of Velvet Masquerade.

Sarah Bluesong (the Pyromancer that Bianca duels) is the property of Bluepatch.

Destiny Starshard and Sibyl are the property of yours truly.

Please, don't suggest characters for main characters. Sorry, but I can't have any more main charries besides the five mentioned, and the top secret character from Timberstar. HOWEVER, if you would like a one-chapter or so cameo, please PM (imagine that's triple underlined) me and we'll talk business. :)

Anyway, tell me what you think about the story. Thanks for reading and review!