She's Mary, not Alex, she's Mary, not Alex… Justin chanted to himself. He wanted to believe this was his sister, but he had to admit it could be anyone. He was just helping a friend in need. Mary greeted him. He took a moment to consider her more carefully. She resembled Theresa heavily; dark eyelashes that blinked over beautiful brown eyes, smooth brown skin, and dark curly hair. She was pretty, but in a sisterly way.

Justin had spent more than a decade imagining this moment... the hugs, the kisses... seeing her again. He always saw him as the hero, destroying dozens of monsters, saving her from certain doom. She would be there, as arrogant as ever... but thankful. She would thank him, and they would flash home to a big party. Crumbs would reward him with Wizard of the Year, and his parents would tell him how proud they were. The family would introduce her to Max, and the two would hug. Once they called for his speech, he would admit, that, deep down, he blamed himself.

Everyone would feel sorry. Then, Alex would speak, "Justin... it's not your fault, I always felt you with me, in my heart." And he would hug her, and be forgiven by everyone for his enormous mistake. But, vital to this dream, was the fact that she would know him. Alex would instinctively burst into tears when he found her.

"I'm Justin."

She introduced herself as Mary. Britt and Bree, her step-sisters watched eagerly, waiting for something to embarrass her by. Mary turned to them awkwardly, "So…. We're going to go study now! Thanks, by now!"

"Oh Mary!" interrupted Britt, "You forgot to clean the chandelier. Mary glared stubbornly, then stalked off to get her supplies. Britt rested her head agreeably against Justin's shoulder, "We have to stay on top of her, you know, or else she'll get lazy…"

Justin smiled amicably, then extricated himself. Once the girls ran after Mary to toture her further, he pulled out his wand and recited a spell to clean the light piece. When they returned, the girls stared up in shock.

"But… I… no, it was dirty!" Insisted Bree.

Alex recovered quickly, "Just because you think something is dirty, doesn't mean it is." She looked pointedly at Justin, "And now can we get to our homework?"
He nodded smiling, and they walked away.

Next Chapter

Mary had trouble concentrating. Was her teacher coming onto her, or was it just her imagination? He was not saying he wanted to date her, but he did pay close attention to her, and compliment her. She tried to put it off as just him paying her attention, but it was much more intimate.

Justin was smart, like, really, really, trivia smart. So it took him awhile before he was capable of dumbing down his knowledge into something she could understand. But he was patient. After an hour in math (bleh) and half an hour into science (more bleh) Justin finally announced they were going to take a break. Mary groaned in relief.

She stood up and stretched. (Was he just regarding her, or checking out her body?) There was no way that her "step-monster" would ever help her by providing snacks for her study group, but maybe Justin could stay for dinner? She turned to him nervously, only to find him staring out the window intently.

"Justin?" She waved her hand in front of his face. She got no response. Mary leaned closer, peering into his eyes. Maybe she could read minds…! Leaning closely, she tried her very best to get inside his head, when- Justin jerked back when her hair tickled his neck. (He could have sworn he heard her thoughts; "What's he thinking, and why is he focused on me...?)

"Sorry about that. I was just thinking."
She regarded him slowly, "What about?"

His head drifted from side to side ambiguously, "My sister, I guess."

Mary's head tilted to the side, "What's her name?" And why did she feel jealous of this girl? Why did she crave Justin's attention?

A smile lit his face. He leaned forward, and looked deep into her eyes. For a moment, she thought he was going to kiss her. Then he quietly whispered, "Alex…"

Mary drew away frightened, "I think you should go."

That was the name! In her dreams, she never heard it clearly (hello, it's a dream, and Alex is a boy's name!) Her guardian, her source of comfort that had just left her... it was like a decade of depressing thoughts had boiled to the surface. An old man taking her, giving her to Dominique... and that presence she felt... It scared her. She didn't even know what she was!

Justin, hanging his head dejectedly, left.

Britt and Bree had been listening in. Once it was obvious Mary did not want Justin around, they swooped in on him and insisted he stay. Justin was happy to comply. IT did not take him very long to regret his decision. The two girls used him to bully Mary. Dominique was about as close to a troll as any human he had ever seen.

So he did his best in trying to decline their offer for dinner. If Mary did not want him there, he really ought to go home. They insisted (as in they locked the doors) so he sat down to eat with them. The two flirted with him overtly. He did his very best not to insult them, but he was dating a girl already.

They demanded a name, so he supplied it, "Stevie!"

The two gasped in shock. Stevie was a trouble-maker.

"I guess you have something for the trouble-some ones, don't you, Male-bait!" Dominique slapped his thigh, hard.

Justin noticed there was no seat for Alex. She did appear, however, to serve food. Her eyes burned the floor with shame as her family forced her to serve them. It was humiliating. The closest thing she had to a friend was watching too. Blushing, she asked to be excused to eat. Her request was denied. Hot tears started to fall, so she retreated to the kitchen to make desert.

Alex was embarrassed. Anyone could see that. The tears in her eyes crushed Justin. Even if she was not his sister… it was still his duty to help this girl. Mary was told to go bring more food from the kitchen. Justin excused himself to help her. Dominque quipped to her daughter, "I better go make sure she doesn't make the same mistake her mother made." She then made a motion indicating a pregnant stomach. The girls giggled.

In the kitchen, Mary had a quick sob. She was just so upset! Maybe, just maybe, this Justin guy could be her friend, but that had been ruined. Why did he seem so familiar? The tears flowed quickly, and then she was done. When she was growing up, Mary learned how to cry quickly, then get back to work. Here, she was almost done with dinner. To her surprise, two warm hands stroked her shoulders.

"It's okay," He lied. Mary wanted nothing more than to flee into those arms. Something was wrong with her, she had no real friends, and this guy barely knew her. Still… he was willing to comfort her.

"Hey! Romeo! If you're going to bang the help, make sure she takes out the dinner first! I don't want her juices in my dessert!"

A flash of anger crossed Mary's face. She stormed over and grabbed the desert, taking it into the next room. Her step-sisters were there.

"Wow, I guess he didn't have that much stamina, or maybe he just didn't want you that much!"

Alex felt that power rise. Her hands glowed as she lashed out, "You pig!"

A flash of light later, and Bree was literally a pig.