Two years earlier

It was late at night. Her room was pitch black, save for the dim glow of her alarm clock and the flashlight she hid beneath her blankets with, illuminating the pages of her textbooks. She studied every night. Not out of a desire to be a better witch, but simply because it was fascinating. She had grown up her entire life without her knowing or even dreaming that magic could exist and now here it was, laid out before her. A wealth of knowledge at her fingertips. Three years had gone by she didn't think she would ever get used to it all. It was like a dream come true, even though it was never something she thought she wanted.

Opal would be returning to Hogwarts in just a couple more weeks to begin her fourth year, but she had already read her new books at least twice each, and was working on her third time. Trying to recall her education before Hogwarts was almost as difficult as trying to remember a time before she was out of diapers.

Most kids growing up already believed in magic, but the kind of magic they dreamt up never made sense to adults, and so it was cute until a certain age. And then it was time to grow up. But Opal had never been that kind of kid. She had always laughed at the idea of magic. It didn't exist for her... until one day it did.

Opal closed the history book she was reading and was about to start the next when she heard a crackling noise, almost like static. She threw her blankets aside and looked around her room with her flashlight. Everything looked normal enough, but she felt uneasy, almost as though she was being watched. Opal sat up and climbed out of bed to investigate.

She lived in a three bedroom flat with her parents and little brother, but none of them should have been awake. It was nearly three in the morning. The apartment was empty as she had expected, nothing out of place. She checked the locks on the front door and all the windows, and even went so far as to check on her brother, carefully opening his door to make sure he was asleep.

After being assured that everything was in place and everyone was asleep, she was about to head back to her room when she heard a loud pop.

"What the—"

Opal hurried into the kitchen and opened the utility closet. The breaker box was shut, but when she opened it all the switches had been flipped. The power had gone out. She flipped them all back and closed the box, confused but beginning to feel fatigue. It was time for bed.

"Sissy, I'm thirsty."

Opal nearly leaped out of her skin. "Damn it, Ezra, you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Her little brother was standing in front of her, looking tired and grumpy. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at her before reaching up with his hands, clearly wanting to be picked up. Opal sighed and lifted him into her arms and sat him down on the counter as she fixed him something to drink.

"You should be asleep." She said as she tightened the lid on his sippy cup. "It's late."

"I'm thirsty." He repeated with a yawn, taking the cup from her and reaching out again with his other hand. She pulled him off the counter and carried him back to his room, getting him settled back in bed.

"I can't sleep." He complained, staring up at her with big, innocent green eyes. The same color as hers.

"You haven't tried yet." She said softly, tucking him in. "Do you want me to lay with you?"

He nodded. She laughed quietly and laid down beside her brother, smoothing his hair back and humming quietly under her breath. She saw him smile as he closed his eyes. Opal almost always gave her brother whatever he wanted. She liked to baby him, and there had been times when he had accidentally called her mommy. Her parents scolded her for treating him the way she did, but she didn't care.

Once she was sure he was sleeping again, she quietly stood and left his room, gently closing the door behind herself.

"Now I'm thirsty..." she muttered, walking back in the direction of the kitchen. She flicked the switch the turn the light on, but nothing happened. She groaned internally. What the hell was going on with their power? Opal wondered if anyone else in their building was experiencing the same issue.

She walked back over to the breaker and opened the little door, shining her flashlight on the switches to reveal that they had, yet again, all been flipped. She sighed reached forward to flip them again, but as soon as her fingers squeezed the first switch and pulled, the breaker popped again, louder this time. And all of the sudden pain courses through her body, along with a tingling numbness that spread quickly but her hand refused to let go. Opal tried screaming but nothing came out. She could feel her heart pounding, protesting against the current running through her body.

And then blackness.