by Jimi Alan
“Oh.” Justin muttered as he helped Alice. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah.” Alice smirked. “I'm fine. Just lost my footing as I was thinking.”
Lucia told her. “I was just thinking about that place you told us about in the library.”
Gloria seemed to be zoned into the book she held in her hands. She flipped a page as her eyes seemed to gaze heavily at the words on the page before her. Gloria took a slight breath in as her friends spoke around her.
“Ok.” Alice sighed as she brought her attention to Justin and Lucia. They stepped into a side of the stairway, where a part of the wall jetted out. Alice curiously asked Lucia. “What about it.”
“Well.” Lucia took a minute to pile her thoughts together. “I might be off about this, but from what you told us. I think our wand might be the key to finding the entrance.”
“Even if it was.” Justin said. “We don't know how to use a wand. Let alone the wand of a wizard that passed.”
“Well then.” Gloria closed the book. “That was useless.”
Alice raised an eyebrow to her friend with a confused look in her eyes. She hopped her expression spoke louder then her eyes did, as Alice was wondering what Gloria was talking about.
“The book.” Gloria explained herself. “Yes, it has basic info on wands and how to use them. But there is just so much, I can't make sense of.”
Lucia muttered. “Can I try?”
“Sure.” Gloria passed the book over to Lucia. “Knock yourself out.”
Holding the book in her hands, Lucia head up the staircase towards her bedroom. She looked a little lost as she opened to the first page. Alice wondered what Gloria was up to, as she gestured for them to walk slowly behind Lucia. Justin stepped behind Gloria and Alice as Lucia walked further and further ahead of them.
Once Lucia was out of reach, Gloria stopped walking. She grabbed a hold of Justin's hand making him stop in his tracks. She held a smile on her face, like she was planning something.
“I lied.” She whispered carefully to Alice and Justin. “That book has everything I needed to know.”
Justin shook his head with confusion. “Um, so why did you tell Lucia the complete opposite.”
“Isn't the obvious.” Gloria looked at her friend, who looked dumbfounded. “I don't trust her. And neither should any of us.”
Alice rolled her eyes. She guessed Gloria had her reasons for not liking Licia. The way her sister treated Justin was probably on the list of reasons she should not be trusted. Alice had a feeling they should not judge Lucia based on what her family was like. After all, even Alice was not like either of her parents, when they were her age.
“So.” Justin asked her. “What did you find?”
Ģloria looked around. “Not here.”
She nervously stepped away from her friends. Heading down the staircase, Alice and Justin followed behind Gloria. They rushed into the hallway, keeping closely to their friend who seemed eager.
Standing outside a stone door, Gloria placed her hand onto the stone door. Her hand stayed still for a while as Justin and Alice reached her. Quietly, Gloria softly whispered to herself a chant for the door.
A tilt of her head and the removal of her hand seemed to unlock the doors seal. Making the door unfold like a scarf. The small pieces in the middle of the door pulled away first, making them fold into the door. The next section of the door folded as well, this time the pieces was slightly larger. Each piece kept on moving, until nothing was left.
Gloria made the first step walking into the door. She seemed to have done it before, lowering her head as a piece folded around the edge of the frame.
Taking a step into the door, Justin held a look of surprise on his face. He was amazed at the sight, which told Alice that she was not alone. Her friend had not seen a door move in such a bizarre way too.
Keeping her friends waiting, Alice watched as the door began to fold back up. She guessed the door only stayed open for a little amount of time. She rushed into the door, with enough time before the door closed behind her. Alice was surprised that the door closed faster then it opened.
Gloria smiled down at Alice, who seemed to have fallen on the floor after the door closed behind her. Alice felt goofy as she lay on the floor. She wondered if she looked as ridiculous as she felt.
Helping her friend up to her, Gloria told them. “Welcome to the Chamber of Sorcerers.”
Alice felt like she was transported to another world far away. Red drapes covered the black stones walls with white marble flooring. The ceiling was high above them, which draped down with glowing crystals from the roof. She could not believe the way the room looked. Her mind was expecting it to collapse on her at any moment.
Gloria told her. “My brother came across it last year. I was a little unsure if I had the location correct.”
“Where are we?” Justin tried to comprehend what Gloria was telling them. “Are we still at the academy?”
“Well, yes and no.” Gloria looked a little puzzled. “It's complicated.”
Alice wandered. “What are we doing here?”
She lifted her hand up to the wall behind her. A shimmer appeared on the wall around her hand. Alice pushed her hand through the stone wall. She felt a sense of tingling on her finger times. Pulling her hand away from the wall, she looked over her shoulder.
“It’s a portal.” Gloria said. “Long time ago, this chamber was used as a meeting place.”
Justin walked over to one of the corners of the room. His hand touched the edge of a dresser in the corner. A single touch of his hand, he saw a flash of light glimmer from the dresser. The light traveled away from her hand and crossed past him. Bursting out of the room, the light engulfed the room. The light shifted and changed, catching Alice and Justin’s attention.
Gloria turned around in time. She saw the light as it formed into a figure. Alice saw the figure before with her mother. A teenager around her age, walked into the room from the portal entrance beside Alice. She took a step into the chamber, looking around like she had lost something.
Her voice echoed around her. “Are you here?”
A voice charmed into the chamber from the dresser. “Right here.”
From beside the dresser a dark figure appeared. The figure was dark with a ghostly feel to it, shining not as bright as the teenager before them. She walked over to the dresser as the figure stepped away from the dresser.
“You’ve been away.” The figure hissed. “For much too long.”
“I would let you out.” The girl smiled at the figure. “But you know what everyone will think.”
“Natas.” The figure leaned towards her. “There is another way.”
A feeling of darkness came from the figure as it leaned towards the girl. Screams came out of the light as the dark figure engulfed the girls figure. A soft sound came from the wall beside Alice as the figure changed to look like the girl who stood before them moments before.
On the other side of the wall, Alice and her friends listened as a girl's voice echoed into the room. Alice knew the voice right away. She could hardly pick out what the voice said, but deep in her gut, she knew the voice.
Out from Alice's mouth the word charmed. “Mom.”
The burst of light faded just as quickly as it came. Alice looked at her friends, who looked just as confused as she felt. Gloria placed her hand nervously towards the back of her neck.
She muttered. “What was that?”
Justin said. “Good you saw it too. I thought it was only me.”
Alice looked down at her shoes. She knew the girl from before, when she entered the creepy room in the library. Alice had a feeling, the two events she saw was connected together. Her mind wandered around for the answer, with her finger touching her chin.
Gloria said. “Should we talk about it?”
An uncomfortable look went across Justin's face. “Do we have to?”
“Nope.” Alice shook her head. “We most definitely do not.”
>
She stepped away from the wall towards the middle of the room. Alice looked around, hoping to find some kind of a clue. Her eyes darted towards the dresser, narrowing into a crap on the side like someone carved into it. She walked carefully towards the dresser, hoping to see what her eyes were drawn to.
Reaching her hand for the dresser, Alice saw the claw marks. She noticed the name carved into the dresser. ‘NATAS’ was the name on the dresser, made out of the carvings. Alice wondered if her friends could see it too, beneath the glammed picture perfect sight of the dresser.
She sighed. “Do you see this?”
Justin stood beside her. “Natas?” He spoke the name like he should know it.
“What are you going on about now.” Gloria sighed as she reminded them. “We are here to learn how to cast with a wand. Not admired creepy furniture with an astral projection.
Justin said. “She does have a point.”
Alice muttered. “Fine.”
She took a step away from the dresser, placing her hand into her pants pocket. Feeling the tip of her figure on her father's wand. Alice took a deep breath in, hoping her friends won't be too hard on her.
“Maybe Alice does have a point.” Gloria changed her mind. “We don’t have wands yet. So even if we wanted to, we can't do any spells.”
“But all of this was your idea.” Justin looked surprised. “And wasn't there something about wands in that book you read.”
“Yeah, so.” Gloria crossed her arms over her chest. “I can't change my mind. And besides, we can't use her father's wand.”
“Wait.” Alice wondered. “Why can't you?”
“Guys. Come on.” Gloria let out a deep sigh. “We have been through this already.”
Justin looked at her with a confused look on his face. “Explain, please for us new to magic folk.”
Gloria remembered them as she stood in the middle of the room. “Each wand is created by a wizard. They make that wand particularly for themself. Making it impossible for anyone else to use that wand.”
Alice wondered. “So why is it reacting to me?”
“It could think that you’re your father.” Justin wondered if such a thing was possible. “Is that even possible?”
Gloria shrugged her shoulders. “No clue.”
Alice moved her hand away from the desk. She looked down at her other hand in her pocket. Lifting her hand up she noticed the wand looked darker than before. The amber color on the wand had spread down the tip of the handle. She wondered if her hand could be making the wand change as well.
Admiring the wand in her hand, Alice toned out her friends. She wanted to know more about the magical item she held in the palm of her hand. With a slight tilt of her hand, the wand grew outward revealing itself in it's full length.
Gloria's jaw dropped as she saw the wand in Alice's hand. Justin took a step away from his friend. He seemed to still be nervous around the magical item, the complete opposite of Gloria.
“I guess we should wait.” Alice thought. “It's not like we're not going to have many years to practice magic.”
“Oh.” Justin sighed. “Yeah.”
“Let's get going.” Gloria reminded them. “We don't want Lucia getting to suspicious of where we ran off to.”
She rushed to the wall of the room. Alice watched as her friends body vanished into the wall. Forgetting for a second, Alice thought Gloria became the wall. She forgot the wall was a disguised entrance to the academy hall.
Alice stuffed her father's wand back into her pocket. The wand shrank itself to fit into her pocket like before. Alice walked away from the dresser towards the wall where Glorka vanished into.
Justin walked I to the wall before her, teleporting himself back into the academy. Alice followed shortly after. She saw a burst of light as she blinked she walked out of the wall and into the academy hall. She saw Gloria and Justin standing before her.
“Well it's getting late.” Justin told them. “I should head to my dorm for the night.”
“Sure.” Alice said. “See you tomorrow.”
Justin nodded as he walked down the hallway. He looked like he was disappointed by how he slouched as he walked. Alice was still getting used to her friends, she wondered if something happened to Justin in the past which made him uneasy around wizards.
A smile sparked across Gloria's face. She looped her arm with Alice's arm as she walked down the hallway of the school. Gloria led the way with Alice walking along beside her as they head to their dorm room.
The two of them got to the dorm room as the sun was setting in the distance. Alice was able to see the sun setting behind the mountains in the distance from their dorm room window. She noticed a note on her bed from Lucia.
Alice picked up the note. Reading g it softly to herself, she hoped Gloria would not read her mind. She wanted a little bit of privacy to herself.
‘Dear Alice,
I know this might be strange. But I have a request to ask you. Can you met me at the lounge? I came across something and thought you might want to see it.
Thanks,
Lucia’
Alice crinkled up the note, sliding it into her pocket without a second guess. She headed out of the dorm room, leaving Gloria to her own thoughts.
Walking down the dorm hallway, Alice got a strange feeling from the letter. She wondered what Alice might have found. Keeping to herself, she reached the lounge down the hallway.
Opening the door, Alice realized she never walked into the lounge before. She blinked as she walked into the old bricked room. She saw brick walls on all sides of the room with large windows with dark navy curtains draped to the sides. A fireplace was lit with a flame on some wood, which never seemed to burn out. She guessed the woods and flame was bewitched to look the same. The whole room had an old feel to it, which the furniture contrasting with the navy and red bricks in a way Alice admired. She felt like the lounge had a lodge like feel to it, in an olden way.
Alice spotted a few students sitting on the chairs in the corner. They both had books in their hands and whispered to each other softly. She looked around the lounge once more.
Nervously standing by the door, she spotted Lucia. She was standing beside the curtain farthest away from the door. Lucia seemed to be admiring the view outside the window. The warm sunset cast its radiance color onto Lucia's skin.
Alice walked across the lounge towards her roommate and friend. She thought of tapping her friend on the shoulder as a greeting. Apart of her thought such a greeting would be to casual. She smiled as Lucia looked over her shoulder at her.
Lucia smirked. “I know the letter was vague.”
“You don't say.” Alice brushed her hair behind her ear. “So what’s going on?”
“I found something I thought would intrigue you.” She told Alice. “I was outside reading the ‘basic of casting’ book and came across something I thought you would want to see.”
Alice shyfully asked. “What was it?”
Lucia sighed. “Can you meet me outside tomorrow. I can show you then, when it's light outside.”
“Fine.” Alice said.
Her gaze looked away from Lucia towards the stone frame of the window. Alice saw the horizon lush with the warm colors of the sunset. The sun was hidden behind the mountain range. She admired the view, only for a while. Her eyes never saw such a stunning sight in person before. She figured such a thing was sad for others to think of.
The streetlights along the pathway towards the town before the mountain range began to flicker on. Making the warm colors begin to fade as the night sky covered the sky above. A slight close from the moon reminded Alice it was getting late. She looked over her shoulder to where he friend was staying, not realizing how late it got.
Alice saw no one around her. Lucia had felt moments before, with her book left on the stone windowsill. Alice reached her hand for the book. She felt a spark, like a burst of energy rushed through her fingertips as they graced the cover. Guessing she was just exhaus
ted from a full day of classes, Alice held the book in her hands.
Her eyes met the horizon again. Amazed by the night sky, which took over where the warm sunset once was. She never saw the moon bright shine with the stars before. Alice had no idea how gorgeous the night sky could appear. She was used to the city with the continuous glow during the night, which never seemed to end.
Taking in the view, she stood by the windowsill. Her shoulders leaning against the stone brick as she looked out from the glass. She left the lounge shortly after as her body reminded her of how much time had past with a yawn.
In her dorm room, Alice curled up in her bed. She tossed and turned as she tried to sleep for the first time. Her body was not used to such a quiet place. She could hear Gloria whispering in her sleep. A soft sound, almost soothing enough for Alice to go into a deep sleep.
She looked out at the window, as her eyes felt tired. Alice could not help herself from thinking about her parents. She wondered if her mother sleeps in the same bed as she did when she was attending the academy. Alice wanted to believe in such coincidences being part of a large picture she could not see. She knew in time, she would understand why she was there at the academy.
Closing her eyes, Alice drifted off into sleep. She dreamt that night of many things, which were lost before the morning. In her mind one dream felt too real to forget. She felt tired as the dream took over her mind, like someone woke her up in the middle of the night for story time.
She saw the ghostly hollowed room with roots trailing down the walls. Alice could see the dark room much clearly in her dream then when she stumbled across it in the library. She saw the stand barren in the middle of the room, like it was calling her forward towards it.
Alice took a step towards the stand. She saw nothing on it as a soft whisper echoed in her ears like a soothing charm. Her body told her to turn around and walk away, for the eery complexion of the room was too much for her to bare alone.
Turning around, Alice saw a brick wall behind her. She walked towards the wall, hoping it would turn into a portal. Her head hit the wall hard enough for her to react like it hurts. The whispering sound took over her mind as it grew louder. She could not make out what the whispers where taunting her to do.
