Well, no one has reviewed the last chapter yet, but since I've written this one I'm going to assume you want more…
Please do review though. I'll loose my enthusiasm if you don't…
Most of this chapter is a flash back to just after the first movie. Hope you enjoy it!
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Dylan threw his large shopping bag down on his bed and shut the door behind him with a magical flick of his wrist.
He and Ethan had spent the better part of the afternoon in the clothing store and, at the end of the ordeal, Dylan had ended up going home with several new outfits…and the sales girl's phone number.
On the way back to campus, Ethan had kept going on about how he should give her a call and ask her out that weekend, but Dylan had tried to brush it off. The girl (whose name had turned out to be Elizabeth) may have given him her number, but Dylan was sure that she didn't like him like that. Girls never saw him as anything more then a friend…he was dorky awkward Dylan…and years of rejection had taught him that he certainly wasn't a desirable boyfriend.
Elizabeth was very nice- and very cute- and very out of his league…
Sighing loudly, Dylan flopped down on his bed next to the shopping bag and stared up at the old cracked ceiling. All things considered, it really hadn't been a bad day. He really was excited about the new look…but there was, unfortunately, still a part of him that wanted to keep up the mortal façade.
He had spent seven long, and sometimes painful, years in denial.
His first trip to Halloweentown had changed his life forever and, although there was no going back now, the memory of his blissfully ignorant childhood years sometimes filled him with nostalgia.
Even though he had never fit in, it had been nice at least thinking that he was normal.
He wasn't normal though…
He never had been.
And his twelfth Halloween night had made that painfully clear…
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flashback
Piper household, November1st, 1998…
Twelve year old Dylan Piper sat alone in his room, staring numbly at the empty wall.
His body felt weak and shaky, and his mind was spinning with a hundred unanswered questions.
He couldn't believe it.
He wouldn't believe it…
Magic wasn't real- and he most certainly was NOT a warlock.
To say that the previous day had been eventful would have been an understatement. After a surprise visit from their Grandmother, Dylan and his sisters had followed her to a strange looking bus stop and had somehow ended up in some freaky alternate dimension where fairies, goblins, werewolves, witches at all other magical creatures lived in supposed peace and harmony.
He had always found it odd that his grandmother only came to visit on Halloween…but he never could have guessed that that was because she was a witch who lived in another realm.
They had been driven to her house by a talking skeleton and had watched as she brewed potions and said spells. Marie and Sophie had loved every second…but Dylan was far from enthused. He had convinced himself that he was dreaming…
He had grown up believing in logic and science…and he had been absolutely convinced that magic didn't exist.
But, as the day wore on it had become harder and harder to deny. An evil shadow creature had frozen his mother and grandmother…they had gone around town collecting ghost sweat, werewolf hair, and other unbelievable magical ingredients…Sophie and Marnie had activated Merlin's sceptre with a spell…
And they had all defeated the evil warlock responsible for Halloweentown's troubles.
He- boring, normal Dylan Piper- had done magic.
He had helped his family defeat Kalabar.
He wasn't fully human…
Thinking through yesterday's events sent a shiver through his spine. His mother had been lying to them all these years. She was a witch, and he and his sisters had inherited her powers.
He felt betrayed, and angry, and confused.
And, most of all, he felt scared.
He didn't know what to expect next. His Grandmother had now come to stay with them and was currently showing his sisters how to levitate small objects in the living room. He could hear their excited laughter…and it made him feel sick.
He hadn't asked for this. He couldn't deal with it. Not now. Not ever.
All he had ever wanted was to be normal…
Drawing in a deep breath, Dylan looked down at his shaking hands.
He hoped beyond hope that maybe he really had been lucky enough not to take after the rest of his family. Sure, he had thought that he had seen blue sparks coming from his finger tips yesterday, but perhaps he had been imaging things. It had been a rather traumatic day, after all.
Deep down, however, he knew that he was only fooling himself. It hadn't been a dream…and he really could do magic.
The boy continued to look down at his hands. He had to be sure…he had to try one more time…
Trying to push away his doubts and fears, Dylan concentrated on dredging up the feelings that had gone through him yesterday. He thought about Kalabar's evil laugh…he thought about how the warlock had threatened his family…he thought about how angry he had been…how much he had wanted to get him back…
He felt a strange force come over him and, seconds later, his eyes widened in shock as the same blue sparks began to crackle between his fingers.
His mind began to race.
It was true.
He was doing it again…
Now sufficiently convinced (and more then a little nauseous) Dylan shook his hands in an attempt to make the sparks stop. Instead of simply fizzing out as it had last time, however, the blue light shot across the room and blew a nearby glass of water to pieces with a loud bang.
Dylan yelped and jumped up from his bed. He was breathing hard, and starring down at the broken glass in terror. He had blown it up without even touching it.
He had used magic…
Body shaking and blood pumping loudly in his ears, Dylan turned to run out of the room. He had to get away…he had to forget…
Unfortunately, he only managed to take two steps before crashing into his mother.
Gwen had arrived to see what the commotion was, and after a quick survey of the room, she was able to make a fairly educated guess.
"Oh, sweetie…" she began, kneeling down to look her son in the eye. "Did you…did you blow up that glass?"
Dylan hesitated. He wanted to deny it…he wanted to pretend that everything was fine…but he had never been able to lie to his mother…
Reluctantly, he nodded. "I didn't mean to." He said quietly. "But the sparks came back…and when I shook my hands, the glass exploded."
Gwen nodded and drew him in for a much needed hug.
"Why is this happening to me?" the boy asked, comforted slightly by his mothers embrace. "Why can't I make it stop?"
His mother gave a deep sigh and backed up so that she could look him in the eye once again. "I'm so sorry sweetie, but there is nothing you can do." She replied, her eyes portraying her regret and pain. "You're…you're a warlock, Dylan. You're going to have to learn how to cope with that."
Hearing her say what he already knew was true filled him with a sudden surge of anger. He jerked away from his mother's touch and took a step back towards his room.
"I don't want to be a freak!" he shouted, not caring that his mother looked hurt by his words. "This is all your fault! You're the reason I'm like this!"
Gwen closed her eyes for a moment and drew another deep breath. "I know." She whispered, choking back tears. "And I'm so sorry."
""Sorry" doesn't mean anything!" Dylan shot back, unable to keep his anger inside. "I don't want you to be sorry-I want you to fix this! I want to be normal again!"
"Oh Dylan…" Gwen began, reaching out towards him.
He took another step back.
"I wish I could do that." She continued, obviously hurt by his angry words. "But I can't. This is who you are, and you have to accept that. You don't have to use your powers- I'd never make you do that- but you will have to lean how to control them so that they don't prevent you from having a normal life."
Dylan scoffed. "A normal life?" he asked bitterly. "How can I have a normal life now!? I can do magic…I'm not even fully human!"
"Dylan…" Gwen began, reaching out to comfort him. "Please calm down. We need to talk about this."
But he wasn't in the mood for a hug. And he certainly wasn't in the mood for a calm conversation.
She wasn't telling him what he wanted to hear, and he wanted her to leave him alone.
"Don't touch me!" he shouted with more anger then he had expected. He took a few more shaking steps towards his room. "I don't want to talk about it! Just…just stay away from me you…you…witch!"
His mother brought her hand to her chest and a look of undeniable anguish crossed her face. Dylan didn't care. He wanted to hurt her. He wanted her to feel as bad as he felt.
It was her fault.
She should have stayed were she belonged. She shouldn't have brought three innocent children into this world only to subject them to a lifetime of ostracism and insecurity.
And, at the very least, she should have told them the truth.
Dylan took one final step into his room. There were so many emotions swirling inside of him, and he had to get away from the outside world. He hated this…he hated himself…
He was furious, angry, hurt, terrified…
BANG, the door magically slammed itself shut, blocking out his mother…blocking out reality.
Hardly noticing his further display of magic, Dylan threw himself onto his bed and buried his face in his pillow.
He wanted to forget it all…but he knew that he couldn't.
Things would never be the same again…
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November 2nd 2006…
Dylan sighed as he ran though that terrible day in his head.
Things had never been quite so emotional after that- and he had forgiven his mother- but that day had expressed most of what he had continued to feel for the next seven years.
He had been angry for a long time.
And then he had attempted to deny it all.
That had been impossible though. And he had, eventually, began to accept it. This past month had seemed to almost complete his emotional journey. He knew what he was now, and he was even proud to come from such a prestigious magical family.
That angry little twelve year old boy had nearly faded away, and his anger had been replaced by contentment…and a sense of belonging.
The only thing left to do now was to show those closest to him that he really had changed.
He had accepted himself, and he knew that was the first step towards being accepted by others…
Getting up from his bead, Dylan dumped his new clothes out of the shopping bag and pulled his favourite outfit from the pile. It was time to start a new phase in his life…
But first, he had to talk to Marnie…
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A/N There you go. Hope it gave some good emotional insight. Next up- a little hert to heart…then the plot really thickens.
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Cheers!