Take My Hand
Chapter 1
Candles are magically lit, revealing a single mirror. A bell tolls once and the image of a green inferno appears within the glass. Step, step, step. It was deathly quiet, leaving only the echoes of shoes as a young teenage girl present in the room slowly approached the mirror.
Ah... my dear beloved. A lovely and noble flower of evil.
Step, step, step.
Truly, you are the most beautiful of all.
The girl continued to approach the mirror, slowly but surely getting closer to it.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the...
The last few words fell into a whisper, leaving them unknown to her. With the last few steps, she was finally standing a mere few inches from the glass. A vision appeared of a black horse drawn carriage trotting along a dark forest road within it. In the back of the carriage lay a coffin, decorated with intricate golden carvings and handles. Awaiting at the end of the road was what looked to be a large castle. This image did not remain long as it soon faded away, replaced by the green flames.
Those who are guided by the dark mirror.
The candles in the room blew out, leaving the girl in darkness. The only thing she could see was the soft glow of the mirror.
As long as your heart desires,
The flames parted to reveal a hand. It reached out from the glass, extending itself to the girl.
take the hand that appears within the mirror.
Without any hesitation, the girl reached out and took ahold. The instant she had grasped the hand, it began to withdraw into the mirror, slowly pulling her along with it. The glass was like water, pooling around the girl's body as she sunk into the dark depths. When her head slipped beneath the glass, she gasped, finding that she could no longer breathe. A part of her panicked as she could not see nor hear anything in this abyss, she can only feel the hand still clinging tightly to her own.
For me. For them. For you. We are all running out of time. No matter what never let go of my hand.
Marie groaned as she opened her eyes. What a strange dream she just had. It felt so vivid, yet unreal at the same time. A delicate balance that teetered on the edge of mystical and reality. The sensation of the events were freshly seared into her memory. The cold yet comforting hand, the icy plunge into the mirror, and the beats of her heart thudding painfully in her chest. It wasn't the most wild of her dreams, but certainly was the most puzzling.
"I'm not gonna drink chocolate milk before bed if it's gonna give me dreams like that. Wait... has my room always been this dark?"
Marie went to sit up, but didn't get far as her head collided with something hard. She yelped, rubbing the freshly made bump.
"What the..." her hands reached out, feeling along the wooden surface "am I locked in something?! Oh my god, I did not just get stolen away in the night did I?!" She pressed against the wood, but it didn't budge. "Oh god, oh god, oh god!"
So many questions were running through her head. How did this happen? When and where was she was actually taken? Why was she locked up in a small space? The thought popped into her head to start screaming for help until she heard a voice. Her breath hitched, fearing it might be her kidnapper. Rough growls and grunts could be heard. The wall in front of her slightly shook and squeaked in sync with the noises. Just exactly was this mysterious figure doing?
"Gah, lid won't budge." a high pitch tone said, "Time for my secret move!"
Before Marie could even ponder what this "secret move" was, blue flames filled her vision. She immediately screamed in fear, slamming both of her arms out against the wooden wall with enough force to knock it away. Finally, now she can see where she was. Her heart nearly stopped as she stared wide-eyed at her surroundings. She was in a room filled with floating coffins. In fact, the thing she had been locked in was none other than a coffin itself. The brief thought she had been taken by serial killers crossed her mind.
"Alright, I did it! Now to..." the mystery voice spoke up.
Tilting her head toward the voice, she was the greeted with the sight of a large gray cat standing on its hind legs. The abnormal size, fire in ears, and pitchfork tail all made it impossible to mistake for a normal household cat.
"Gwahhh! Why are you awake?!" the cat exclaimed.
"Okay, I have to be still be dreaming if there's a talking cat!"
"Cat?! I'm no cat!" it snapped, "I'm the Great Grim!" He snarled, floating in front of the frightened girl. "Now hurry and gimme those clothes!"
Clothes? Finally taking note of her attire, Marie saw she was dressed in black and purple robes. Had she'd been calmer, she would have admired the beautiful gold decorations on her sleeves and the bottom of her robe. But that would require an angry monster cat not being in front of her; just her luck.
"And if you don't, I'll roast ya!" Grim threatened, breathing out a small bit of blue fire.
"Of all the dreams to have... I just had to have one about a talking cat threatening to kill me."
Grim narrowed his eyes, the fire in his ears flickering with intensity. "I said I'm not a freaking cat!"
Sensing his intent, Marie quickly jumped out of the coffin, just in time to avoid the deadly inferno. Whelp, with a cat out to end her, there was only one thing to do. She ran from the room as fast as she could. It didn't matter where she was going, just so long as she could get away from that crazy cat.
"Those flames felt too hot to be a dream!"
This was all reality, which led to an even bigger question. Exactly where was she? Sprinting down the stone hallway, she searched desperately for any kind of indication of her location. Through the arched windows, she caught quick glimpses of a large courtyard. And there, in an open door she dashed by, the girl swore she saw a classroom. Okay, at least she can recognize she's at a school, that's good. But unfortunately, that didn't tell her anything about where the school was. Behind her, Marie could hear the enraged yells of Grim gaining up on her. Just exactly how fast was that cat?!
Running was doing no good, she needed to find a place to hide. Up ahead was a nearby door, maybe she could hide in there. Without any hesitation, the teen flung the door open and slammed it closed. Once inside, she noted the shelves and floating books. Was this a weird library of some sort? Ah, who cares! She can't think about that when a fire breathing cat was on her tail. Scampering behind one of the shelves, Marie hunkered down into a ball and pulled the hood on her robe over her head. With hope, Grim would take one look and just leave.
The girl resisted the urge to flinch when she heard the slam of the door. Just stay still and he'll leave, it'll be that simple... hopefully. There was the sound sniffing mixed with his paws lightly tapping across the floor. Marie shoved both hands over her mouth when she heard Grim drawing near. He didn't manage to find her already did he? The sound of sniffing faded into unsettling snickering.
"Stupid human! Did you really think you'd get away from my nose?"
Well that's just perfect. The cat was both fast and had a great sense of smell. It was official, she was toast, quite literally in this case.
"Now, if you don't want to get roasted, better hand over-"
Suddenly there was a loud snap along with Grim's cry. Curiosity getting the best of her, Marie slowly poked her head out from behind the bookshelf. There she saw Grim bound up by a long whip.
"Ow! What's with this cord?" the cat asked with a few tears brimming at the edges of his blue eyes.
A deep yet angry voice answered "This is no mere cord. It is a lash of love!"
Looking up, Marie saw a man in a black suit and top hat with feathers and wearing a bird mask. As if things weren't strange enough already with the cat.
"Ah, found you at last." the man sighed, helping the girl up off the floor, "You mustn't run off like that young man. New students shouldn't leave the gate on their own. In fact, you shouldn't be able to leave the gate at all until necessary. Still, I will let this slide for now but I won't tolerate any rule-breaking in the future."
"New student?! Young man?! But I'm not-"
"Now now, we're wasting time with idle chatter. We must be off to the Hall of Mirrors as the entrance ceremony has already begun. Once you're assigned to your dorm perhaps next you can work on taming your familiar."
Grim sneered, swinging as he dangled in the whip.
"Let me go, I'm not their freaking familiar."
"Uh huh, now quiet down will you?" the man replied, holding Grim against his chest and placing his hand over his mouth.
"But sir, he really isn't my-"
"Ah, we're already as late as is. If we must chat, let it be as we walk."
Marie let out an exhausted sigh. This bird man hasn't let her get in a single word. Had he done so, he would have realized the conclusions he has made about her are completely wrong. She's no new student and she's certainly no male. Heck, she still has no idea where she is. But it seemed the man was dead set on his destination as he walked out of the library at brisk pace with Grim wriggling in his arms. She was still worried about her situation, but it seemed if she wanted answers, she had to place her faith in this stranger.
"Wait!" she called out, chasing after the man, "Who are you and where the heck am I?"
"What's this? Are you dazed? Hmm, well I suppose the teleportation magic has left new arrivals disoriented in the past. Very well, I shall give you an explanation." the man smiled with his yellow eyes squinting. "For I am gracious."
He cleared his throat and extended out his arm to gesture to their surroundings. "This is Night Raven College. It is one of the most prestigious schools in Twisted Wonderland for young male magicians. And I am the headmaster, appointed to take care of this academy by the board chairman, Dire Crowley."
"Night Raven College? Twisted Wonderland? And I'm here why exactly?"
"Well as I said before, you are one of our new students. Magicians from all around the world are selected by the Dark Mirror. You should at least recall the Ebony Carriage with the gate being sent to obtain you."
Marie hesitantly nodded her head. She had seen one, but that was a dream wasn't it? At least she certainly doesn't remember any carriage coming to her home. "Maybe I was right the first time, maybe I'm still dreaming?" Very discreetly, she reached inside her sleeve and gave herself a harsh pinch. Doing so immediately rewarded her with pain. "Nope, still reality."
"Still, normally students aren't able to leave the gate until it is opened with a special key. How exactly did you manage to leave yours?"
Gate? The only thing she could think of was that coffin she woke up in. That had to be what Crowley was referring to. Now she thought about it, her "dream" did have a coffin sitting in the back of the carriage. At least she think it did. The more she tried to recall the "dream" with clarity, the fuzzier it got. The sound of Crowley's cough reached her ears, stirring her from her thoughts. Apparently the bird man is getting impatient for her response.
"Oh right, sorry." Marie muttered before clearing her throat, "Well I wasn't able to get out until Grim used his fire. So maybe he knocked it loose."
"Ah, so this rebellious familiar is the cause. Why am I not surprised?" Crowley sighed, his yellow eyes narrowing.
Grim could only let out muffled growls in response. He frequently wriggled in the headmaster's grip, his tail flickering back and forth.
"Now if you're all caught up, let us proceed to the entrance ceremony."
Marie gave a curt nod, silently walking alongside her guide. Though as they grew nearer to the room she originally woke up in, she could hear voices. She could only assume these were the other new students Crowley had mentioned. Seem there's a discussion taking place as she heard words like "Where did the dean go?" and "Did he get a stomach ache?" Though the discussion seemed cut short the moment Crowley slammed open the doors, proclaiming his arrival. When Marie stepped in the room, she froze when she saw the room was now full of hooded figures staring directly at her.
Ah, now this is embarrassing. The girl bit her lip, trying to pull her hood even further over her head. Maybe she can disappear all together. Unfortunately, it seemed the headmaster wanted to make her even more flustered.
"I can't believe you all. We were missing one new student, so I went to find him." Crowley scolded, placing his free hand on her back.
"Please stop, I can feel their judging gazes practically burning holes into me."
The bird man slightly bent down to her level and said in a hushed tone "From the look of things, you're the only one to be assigned a dormitory. Go approach the Dark Mirror, I shall keep an eye on the cat."
With the last of his words, he gently nudged her forward. Marie took in a deep breath and wrung her hands together. Seems she has no choice in the matter. As she approached the mirror, she could still feel the stares, causing her movement to be slower. In an attempt to try to lessen the awkwardness, she turned her head toward the five closest figures to her and gave them a nervous smile.
One figure seemed to be a boy with red hair, who only returned her smile with a stern glare. Another simply narrowed his green eyes and, wait... are those lion ears she can see peeking out of his hood? Two of the robed figures actually returned her smile, both with white hair. The only difference is the smile from the white-haired boy with red eyes was clearly genuine. The boy with glasses, on the other hand, there seemed to be slyness and cunning behind his. Though behind him she noted there was a floating blue tablet with a skull emblem on it. How odd. The final figure had quite a beautiful face, if only he wasn't staring at her in disinterest.
Finally she was standing in front of the mirror. Within it appeared a mask-like face with dark markings around its eyes.
"State thy name."
"Marie Anderson."
"Wait one second, Marie? Isn't that awfully feminine name for a boy?" Crowley questioned.
Marie let out an annoyed sigh before turning around to face the headmaster. "I was trying to tell you but you kept cutting me off." She pulled off her hood to reveal her sandy blonde hair. "I'm not a guy. I mean sure, this pixie haircut is a bit boyish, but I can assure you I'm female."
In that instant, the room was filled with mutters and whispers, making the girl wish that maybe she shouldn't have made that reveal. Fortunately, the chatter was silenced by the mirror stating her name. Returning her attention to the magical glass, she held her breath as it stared at her.
"The shape of thy soul is..." its brows furrowed with its lips pressed into a firm frown. This silence only served to create tension in the room. Finally, it replied "I do not know."
"Pardon?" Crowley questioned with wide eyes.
The mirror narrowed its gaze on Marie. "I sense not a spark of magic from this one... The color, the shape, they all are nothing. Therefore, she is suited for no dormitory."
The mutters and whispers from before returned with a vengeance, filling up the entire room with them. As if being a girl at an all-boys school was bad enough, the Dark Mirror just had to add magicless on top of that. Maybe it's not too late to make a run for it. Marie tried to dart out in the room, only to bump into a couple of robed figures. Whelp, scratch that plan.
"An Ebony Carriage would absolutely never go to meet someone who can't use magic, let alone a girl!" Crowley exclaimed in shock. "In 100 years, there has not been once been a mistake in student selection. So why in the world..."
But due to his shock, Crowley had unintentionally loosened his grip on Grim. The cat grunted as he wriggled both out of the bird man's arms and the whip.
"Then let me take her place! Unlike that dumb human, I can use magic!" he turned toward the girl with an angry grin, "If you need proof, I'll show you!"
Not even needing a second to realize what was about to happen, the boy with red hair yelled "Everyone, get down!"
Oh no, not again! Marie yelped as she lunged off the venue, managing to dodge blue fire for the second time that day. Though she didn't quite anticipate the landing, and ended up falling on the boy wearing glasses. Ah, of course it had to be the one with the untrustworthy smile. The fireball ended up flying over the students, hitting one of the curtains before exploding into flames. Unfortunately for the boy with white hair and red eyes, the back end of his robe was caught by a few stray embers.
"Waaaah! Hottttttt! My butt's on fire!"
"At this rate, the school will be a sea of fire! Somebody, catch that cat!" Crowley demanded.
"Che! I don't see why I need to worry about some pest. Can't you just do it yourself teach?" the man with lion ears grumbled, not bothering to get off the floor.
"Hmm? Well wouldn't it be ideal for you to hunt it down?" the beautiful man stated as he brushed the dirt off his robe, "Doesn't it look like a plump snack?""
The beastman sneered in response, clearly showing his fangs "Then why don't you do it pretty boy?"
Marie couldn't believe this. There was literally a fire-breathing cat on the loose, and they're spending their time arguing over who should go after the dang thing. Remembering she had landed on someone, she glanced down to see the untrustworthy boy underneath her. Though strangely enough, his slyness and cunning were gone. Instead, he stared at her with wide blue eyes and his face blushing a bright red. Without warning, he shoved her off and scampered to his feet. Clearing his throat and adjusting his robes, his smile finally returned.
"Mr. Crowley, please leave it to me." he smirked, "I'm sure the others couldn't stomach harassing the poor creature, so I will take it upon myself."
The blue tablet in the air chuckled. "That's Azul for you. Always trying to earn himself points."
Ah, so Azul is it? Now the girl had a name for the one who rudely shoved her. But then again, she did fall on him. So it's only fair. Didn't change the fact his words were practically dripping with manipulation.
"It's fine, it fine!" Crowley sighed, "Just someone please capture that cat!"
Grim yelled in frustration, stomping his foot angrily. "How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not a cat! I am the greatest magician, the Great Grim!"
Azul clicked his tongue. "It certainly has moxie." He looked toward the boy with red hair and said with a tone of honey, "Care to help me, Riddle?"
Riddle narrowed his gray eyes, but nonetheless walked up next to Azul.
"I can't overlook those who breaks rules. Let's hurry and get it."
Both pulling out their wands, they fired spells at Grim. Seeing this, the cat yelled out in fear before taking off running. Refusing to let him get away, the two boys pursued him, chasing him out of the Hall of Mirrors.
Marie's lips pressed into a thin line. Well, that was quite the commotion. But on the bright side, everyone isn't staring at her anymore. Maybe she could use this chance to sneak away unnoticed. Slowly, she started crawling away. It seemed to work, at least until the lion guy simply reached out and grabbed her hood.
"And just where do you think you're going herbivore?" he growled, yanking on her robe and causing her to fall on her back.
Whelp, so much for getting out of trouble.
"Ummm, hey, could someone put out my butt fire already!?"