Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
Chapter 25 - All the Right Moves
Author's Note: I'm really excited about this chapter, and I don't know why. I've just been dying to write this chapter forever. Easily excited and amused I guess :) Enjoy and review!
Third Person POV
Ink hesitated for a minute, then knocked on the girls' door. Adele answered seconds later, with a scowl expression as usual.
"Whataya want, Crayola butt?" She sneered.
"I need to talk to Leah," he informed her, ignoring the title she gave him.
Adele snorted, "What makes you think she's in my room, Pen brain?"
"Because it's her room too."
"What do you want with her, Refrigerator art?"
"None of your beesguts. Now let me talk to her."
"Listen here, you walking pre-school wallpaper-"
"No, you listen here, you walking Halloween costume!" Ink interupted her angerly, "Why don't you let me speak to my friend, and you go back to under a three-year-old's bed where you belong. How does that sound?"
Adele was surprised at his retort, not used to the younger kids talking back to her. She bent down to his level and whispered in his ear. "Touch any of my stuff, and you'll be diging your art supplies out of at dragon's cave. Got it?"
Ink rolled his eyes, obviously not effected by her remark. Adele scoffed and left the room. Ink's eyes rested on Leah, who was curled up in a ball, sadly gazing out the window.
"Hey, Leah?" He asked. She turned her head to face him, looking sadder than ever. She didn't reply. "Leah, just because they said-"
"Yes it is, Ink!" she interupted, pain in her voice. "You heard them, The law is still broken; the law is the law. They're going to break my parents up and probably make them go to different jails. And I'll be stuck in a foster home." A small tear escaped her eye. "It's over, Ink. It's over."
Ink crossed his arms over his chest. "Listen, Leah." He told her, "Who was it that said I need to embrace my fletch?"
"Me," she sighed.
"Who said I shouldn't hide myself?"
"Me."
"Who said to 'be the change you want to see'?"
Leah gave him a quizzical glance. "Ghandi?"
Ink gave himself a facepalm. "Okay, who told me to be the change I want to see?"
Leah looked down, "Me."
He sat down beside his friend. "Well then, practice what you preach! Be the change you want to see. If you don't want all that to happen, then do something about it!"
She gave him a small smile. "I guess you're right, but what could I do? I'm just a kid."
"A kid that can do amazing things. You're no ordinary kindergatener, Lee. You're extrordinary." He smiled back at her. "We just need to come up with a plan..."
"But how? We need to go somewhere and actually do something that someone would take note of, so my astral projection is kinda useless."
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," he said as he paced. He snapped his fingers. "Oh! I remembered why I came in here! And I think it will help us."
"Well great! What is it?"
"First, who do you think we need to talk to about this? Who do you know that could help us?" He ripped out a blank piece of paper from Adele's notebook on the desk, hoping to tick her off a little in the process. He pulled a box of Crayola markers out of his back pocket.
"I would say my parents, but they don't want me to get involved with this." She shrugged.
"That, and you're not supposed to be in contact with them unless it's visiting day, and all three of you could be severly punnished if you did contact with them.." he reminded her.
She shot him a look. "Can you think on the simpler side for once?"
He sneered playfully. "Well look back at what you were just saying ten minutes ago, then tell me who has room to talk."
Leah scoffed jokingly and flipped her hair, giving her best Angele and Adele imitation. She froze for a minute, then snapped her fingers. "I've got it!"
"Got what?" Ink asked curiously.
"Uncle Justin! He'll help us!"
"Wait, who's Uncle Dustin?"
"Justin." She corrected. "He's my mom's brother, and he's the family wizard. He's really smart when it comes to laws and legal stuff. He'll know what to do!"
"Great!" he smiled.
"But how is this gonna help us? We can't leave the property."
He grinned. "If there's a will, there's a way."
"But what way is that?"
"I learned something new about my fletch." He explained. "If I draw a certain location, the drawing can take us there!"
"How does it work?" She asked excitely.
"Well, I draw an overhead drawing of a place, I touch it, and it will take us to that place!"
"That's really neat!" She told him. "How did you figure that out?"
He shrugged. "I was doodling last night in my room, and I started drawing the candy shop across the street from my house. I touched the paper, wishing I could go there again, and then I was there! I stayed there and ate free samples for an hour."
"Wow!" She exclaimed, "Do you think that could get us to Justin?"
"Definately." He answered. He rested the paper on a book and propped it in his lap. "You're just gonna have to explain it as best as you can. Do you remember what it looks like?"
"Mostly, but I should probably check if he's there or not."
"Good thinking. See? Your gifts aren't looking so useless now."
She silenced him with her index finger and squeezed her eyes shut. Ink watched in fascination as a look of concentration grew deeper and deeper on her face as she remained motionless. Seconds later, her eyes snapped open. "He's there." she told him.
"Awesome. Now start describing!"
"Kay. Well it's mostly a big rectangle, with part of the wall made of brick. It has red sofas with patternized silver trim and frame-" she continued a perfect description, talking a mile a minute as if she was standing in the room right then. Ink was amazed by her wicked smart memory; she was even describing the tiny, barely noticable details, like a crack in the wall and all of the knick knack items on the shelves. He drew as fast as she spoke, sketching a perfect diagram, down to each miniscule detail and shade of color. He set the marker down to admire his work.
"Ready?" He asked, offering her his hand.
"Yep," she replied. She took it. Ink closed his eyes and rested his finger on the drawing. Leah watched the picture slowly take form, looking like the overview of the actual lair. She gasped in amazement.
Ink set the paper on the ground, not removing his finger from the sketch. He squatted into a pre-jump position. "Three..." he began.
"Wait, how are we-" Leah panicked.
"Two.."
"Ink how are-"
"One!" He jumped into the picture, dragging her with him.
"Ahhh!" she wailed. She closed her eyes as they crashed into a familiar carpet. She stood up and dusted herself off. Ink tapped her shoulder and pointed to the ceiling, where a small vortex was slowly circling. She took that as an explanation of how to get back. She turned around to see the back of someone's head, which was facing a wizard computer.
"Uncle Justin!" Leah cried.
"LEAH!" Justin exclaimed. He dove out of his seat and scooped her into an off the ground hug. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?" He noticed Ink in the floor. "And uh, who's your boyfriend?"
Ink and Leah exchanged disgusted glances. "EW!" they cried in unison. Justin chuckled.
"He is not my boyfriend!" Leah confirmed. "He's my friend Ink. I met him at the WOC."
He gave him a quizzical look. "Your name is 'Ink'?"
Leah rolled her eyes. "It's his initials- but that's not the point. The point is, we need your help."
xXxXxXxXxXx
"So let me get this straight," Justin stated. "You snuck around the Wizard Observation Center's rules by escaping via Astral Projection to the Wizard Council, where you eavesdropped on top secret information. After overhearing something you weren't supposed to hear, you come to me to fix it?"
"Um, yes?" Leah said cautiously.
Justin smirked. "You most definately are Alex's daughter."
Leah smiled. "So, you'll help us?"
"Well, considering the fact that every time your mother messed something up, I was the one who had to fix it from the day she was born until she ran off, I'll help you guys; for old time's sake." His smile turned into a shrug. "I just don't know what I can do."
Ink and Leah exchanged glances.
"But Uncle Justin, you're the family wizard! You're like the smartest wizard there is! You know all about this law stuff!"
"Listen Leah-" he started.
"Please, Uncle Justin? Mom and Dad don't have that much longer together. They're probably going to be split up and put into different jails. They'll be banished from ever seeing each other again. And I'll most likely end up in a foster home, and never see them, or you guys, again." She looked at her uncle with pleading eyes. "Please, Uncle Justin. Don't just do it for me. Do it for your sister. You just got her back; do you really want to lose her again?"
Justin stared back at the little girl. Tiny tears welled up in her brown eyes. She looked exactly like Alex when she was upset. He hated seeing her that way too. He thought to himself for a minute. Then snapped his fingers. "I have an idea."
Ooh, Justin's got a plan...what could it be? Chapter 26, coming ASAP! :)
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