Chapter Two: Disappointment and Hope

Melanie looked around her. The entire space around her was filled with blackness. And the blackness concealed things, Melanie was sure about that. She squinted her eyes to try to see past the gloom. She was sure there was something important and precious there if she could only get to it… But then Melanie found herself being dragged away from whatever this strange place was.

"No!" Melanie said, struggling to remain stationary. It did no good; she was pulled backwards all the faster.

"No, don't leave me!" Melanie heard a voice scream. She had to get to it. Something was wrong and no one else had realized what it was…

"No!" she said again, struggling harder this time. "Let me go!"

Then, she was pulled into a brightness beyond her imagining…

Melanie opened her eyes and tried to erase the sense of panic that had consumed her mind moments before. She took deep breaths in an effort to calm her rapidly beating pulse. After a few minutes of shaking, Melanie climbed out of bed. Everything was okay. She glanced at her alarm clock, and discovered that she had an hour to get to school. The dream had woken her up early.

It had been a month since she had started High School. The maze of hallways had started to make sense and Melanie had nearly reached the point when she could get to all her classes without getting lost or having to ask directions. The map she had picked up at the office had helped a lot too… once she figured out how to read it.

Today, she selected a new pair of jeans that she had picked out over the weekend. They were stiff so Melanie made a point of moving around in them a lot so they would loosen up. Then, she pulled a blue tank top out of her dresser and pulled it on. She went to her closet and pulled out a dark purple hoodie. She tied it around her waist. She was just about to leave the room when she got the idea of taking a book to school today. She went to her shelf and studied its contents. Lord of the Rings, Knight of the World, The Book of Three, none of her old favorites seemed right for today. She decided to ask Karen for a book.

The Nolen family had moved just around the corner from where Melanie lived when she was in the fifth grade. They had lived in Ireland previously but then Uncle Ronan lost his job. Because there wasn't much choice where he had been living, he made the decision to join his wife's family in New York. Ronan hadn't been happy about the move, but he had seen it was necessary. And as a compromise the Nolan family had kept their Ireland home so they could visit it whenever they wanted.

But the result was that Karen's house was just a short walk from Melanie's house. Melanie resolved to stop there before she went to the bus stop. She would make it if she hurried.

When Melanie entered the kitchen, her mother was busy talking to the sink (which was full of water) about a clog in the Speech. Nita and Kit had made sure that their children knew the Speech fluently. As Carmella testified, knowing the Speech was good even if you weren't a wizard.

"Morning Mom," Melanie said. She stood on tip toe to reach the cabinet where the cereal was kept.

"Morning Mel," Nita said. She finished talking to the sink and water started to glug down the drain. Nita noticed the hurry that Melanie was eating in. "What are you rushing for? I thought that you had forty-five minutes to get to school."

"I do," Melanie said. "But I wanted to stop by and ask Karen to let me borrow a book first."

"Oh, okay," Nita said. She picked up a sponge and started to wipe down the counter. "Melanie, I'd like to talk to you for a minute."

Melanie made a concerned face. "What's happened Mom?" she asked.

"It's… Bethany," she said.

Melanie was confused. Bethany was her twelve-year-old sister. What could possibly be wrong?

Nita took a deep breath. "She's been offered the Oath."

Melanie struggled to suppress her emotions. She felt her head spinning. What did she feel? It was almost hard to tell the emotions were so jumbled. Bethany would make a good wizard, that was for sure. But then why did Melanie feel so many other feelings contending in her head. Hurt. Betrayal. Sadness. Anger. Confusion. She struggled to hide them all and put on a mask of indifference.

"It's okay Mom," she lied, putting a hand on her mother's shoulder. "I'm going to go and borrow that book." Melanie grabbed her lunch and her backpack and left the house at a quick pace. Nita stared doubtfully after her.

Melanie stopped quickly at Karen's house to discover that she was out on business and that she wouldn't be coming to school that day. Melanie felt tears began to build in her eyes. Why had the powers not chosen her? Melanie stopped quickly at Karen's house to discover that she was out on business and that she wouldn't be coming to school that day. Melanie felt tears began to build in her eyes. Why had the powers not chosen her? Was she defective in some way? Melanie decided not to wait for the bus this morning. It was only a fifteen minute walk to school anyways. She started walk but quickly broke into a run. She pounded her emotion into the sidewalk. She was unable to contain her emotion now; tears streamed down her face.

When Melanie was just inside the school yard, she tripped and fell. She got up to examine the damage. Her hands were covered blood from where she had tried to stop herself from falling and her jeans had torn on one knee.

"Damn," Melanie said. She let out a sob that was almost a laugh at the hopelessness of her situation.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Melanie looked up to see Drake coming towards her. She hadn't seen him since her first week of school, weeks and weeks ago. She supposed he liked his solitude although she was slightly offended on his distance.

Melanie wiped her nose. "Nothing," she said vehemently. "Everything's perfect."

Drake his eyebrows. "Which is why your crying, bloody, and swearing on top of it all."

Melanie glared at him. "Why do you care anyways?" she asked.

Drake looked at her condescendingly. "I'm supposed to, remember?"

Melanie glared. "Well, if your reason for caring about people is because you were ordered to then you can save your breath."

Drake sighed and knelt down on the ground beside her. "Can you quit she superiority act?" he asked. "Just tell me what happened."

Melanie's mouth twitched. "Act?" she said. "What act? I thought I was really superior." She took a deep breath that came out half as a sob. "I can't tell you what happened."

"Do you mean you 'may not' tell me or that you genuinely can't tell?"

Melanie scowled again. "Does it matter?"

"Just come with me," Drake said. He led her back to the place in the back of the school where they had eaten lunch on the first day. This time, he led to a bit past that to a place where a picnic table was considered in the woods. "Now I'm asking you as a friend, what's wrong?"

Melanie took a shuddering breath. She could tell him part of the truth. Perhaps that would satisfy him. "My family has a particular tradition," she said. "And for some reason, I'm not um adequate enough to continue it. I don't know why."

"I don't suppose you can give me more of an explanation than that?"

"You wouldn't believe me."

"Try me."

Melanie thought about it. He wouldn't believe her anyways… but no it was wrong. She would be dragging her whole family into this.

"Ah," Drake said.

"Ah, what?" asked Melanie.

"So, your family are wizards," Drake said. Melanie's mouth fell open. "Don't be so surprised. Plenty of non-Wizards know about Wizardry."

"But how did you know?"

"It was the way you thought I wouldn't believe you."

"Oh."

"But tell me," Drake said. "Why do you want to be a Wizard anyway? The Powers only offer it to you if it suits your nature."

"I don't know," Melanie realized. "I suppose part of it is just not wanting to disappoint my parents. But other than that, I'd like to see the world. Other universes and planets I mean. And I want to help everything too."

"That seems within the usual description of a Wizard." Drake murmured. "So what is it about you that rejects it?"

"I know what it is," Melanie said. She had just realized what it was. She remembered the tales her family had told her about fighting the Lone Power and Melanie remembered about how she had thought, during those times, that there must be a better way to get things done other than blasting a bunch of raw power around at people.

"What?"

"I don't think that fighting's the answer." Melanie said. "From what my family's told me about the whole wizard thing, it's mainly a lot of blasting raw power randomly at people and name-calling." Melanie giggled.

Drake snorted. "That's one way of putting it," he said. "Though I've never heard it put quite like that before."

Melanie made an apologetic face. "Um, sorry?"

Drake laughed openly for the first time since she'd met him. "Come on," he said. He put an arm over her shoulder. "We're going to be late for class."

Melanie let him walk her up to the building. Her mind was whirling. She had never really discussed her situation honestly before. She had enjoyed it too. "Can I talk to you later sometime?" she asked.

Drake considered her for a moment. "Sure," he said finally. "You know where to find me."