A Second Generation Whateley Academy Adventure

Glyph 5: Turning the Page

by

Morpheus

Part One

Whateley Academy, Wednesday afternoon, Nov 23rd 2016

Classes were over for the day…and for the week…and the campus was bursting with energy. Students were rushing in all directions, even more so than usual. Of course, this was because many of them were either hurrying to get off campus or getting ready to do so.

It was the day before Thanksgiving, and a lot of students were going home for the holiday weekend. This meant that every school bus to either the airport or the train station was going to be packed like a can of sardines, with long lines of kids who were waiting for their turn to suffer that claustrophobic torment.

“You know,” I mused aloud as I shifted the weight on my backpack. “I’m glad that I don’t have to take the bus.”

“Me too,” Janine responded from beside me.

I looked at my girlfriend, Janine, blushing a little as I did so, even if it never touched my chalk white cheek. I could barely believe that I actually had a girlfriend, much less one who was this cute and sweet. Of course, neither of us was comfortable announcing our relationship to the whole campus, so we both kept it quiet for the most part.

“I’m glad I don’t have to go through all that,” Janine said in a quiet voice, gesturing in the direction of where all the school busses were lined up. “But I kind of wish that I was going home for Thanksgiving anyway…” She looked a little self-conscious as she admitted, “I miss my family.”

Those last few words made me wince slightly, though I tried not to show it. I missed my family too, though there was no chance that I would ever see them again…at least not while I was alive. Of course, my family was gone, but the Family was still there for me, which was why I was heading home for the holiday.

“Plane tickets to Idaho are kind of expensive,” Janine explained, almost as if she felt she needed to give an excuse for why she wasn’t going home for the weekend. “And I’m going home next month, anyway. For Christmas.”

“Honestly,” I admitted, feeling a little jealous of her for having a family that was still alive and wanted her in it. “I’d rather not go back, but…”

“Then why are you?” Janine asked, giving me a curious look.

“Family politics,” I explained with a sigh.

As Marcus and Tessa had told me over the phone, I needed to remind the Family of my existence and continue building more connections among them. That, and I needed to demonstrate that I wasn’t running away from Chicago and hiding…even if that was exactly what I was doing. I needed to make a show of not being afraid of Scorn and his people…though I definitely was.

Janine shuddered. “I’m glad that I don’t have to deal with that either.” Then she paused before adding, “But I kind of wish I could go with you too… To watch your back.” She patted her jacket, right in the spot that covered her custom-made gun.

That gesture made me more aware of the weight at the back of my belt where my own gun was holstered. It was a small pistol that fit comfortably into my hand. I felt a momentary temptation to pat at it, to confirm that it was still there even though I could already feel its presence. That kind of action was not only unnecessary, but would give away the weapon’s existence to anyone watching.

“I wish you could too,” I responded, resisting the urge to kiss her. There were too many people watching for me to do that at the moment, much to my regret. It would be nice to have a friendly face, or at least, one my own age. “But I wouldn’t want to put you in that kind of situation.”

A moment later, Janine and I reached my destination, the school teleportation platform. This was the spot on campus where all teleporters who were either leaving campus or arriving, were supposed to go through. I knew that this was mostly for security, so that they could track the comings and goings, rather than having people just randomly pop up wherever they wanted.

“Here we are,” I announced as I shifted my backpack and adjusted the weight. “I guess I have to say goodbye for now.”

“It’s only a couple days,” Janine said. “Right?”

I nodded at that. “Yeah. I’m supposed to be back Sunday afternoon.”

“Then I’ll see you then,” my girlfriend stated.

Janine and I hugged, the way that any two girls who are close friends might do without anyone thinking anything odd about it. Of course, I wanted to do more, and I suspected that she did to, but we both held back. Still, while we were holding each other like that, one of the older boys in Poe walked past, flashed me a grin and a thumbs up in the process.

After I finished saying my goodbyes to Janine, I continued into the teleportation area myself. I did have to stop at a registration desk and sign out from school, but that was way easier than security would have been at the airport. No metal detectors. No pat downs. No harassment from MCO agents, and of course, I could go through with not only my gun, but also a few other items that would never have made it to an airplane.

Once I was in the teleportation area, I looked around for the person I’d been told to meet. I’d been given a description, and I immediately spotted someone who matched that description. The girl looked to be only a couple years older than me, about sixteen or seventeen, with a slender build and blonde hair that was in a pixie cut. She was also wearing a professional looking black suit.

“Hello,” I greeted the girl politely. “Would you be Sharon?”

“My name is Charon,” the girl responded, emphasizing the different pronunciation while keeping her voice calm and even. “And you would be Miss St. Claire.”

“Yes,” I answered, looking the girl over.

She looked like she should be a Whateley student, but I didn’t remember ever seeing her on campus. Then again, looks could be deceiving, and for all I knew, she could be as old as Mr. Mazarin…or older. She exuded an aura of calm professionalism, reinforced with her suit, which definitely helped me to believe that she could be older than she appeared.

“Strawberry sorbet,” Charon said, providing the password that I’d been looking for.

I quickly provided the expected response which would prove my own identity. “With peanut butter drizzle.”

Charon nodded faintly in acknowledgement. “We can depart whenever you are ready, Miss St. Claire.”

I adjusted my backpack again and stated, “I am ready.”

“Please, remain where you are,” Charon directs me as a large transparent bubble forms around us both. It looks to be about ten feet to twelve feet across. “Do not touch the bubble or exit from it.”

Once the bubble was fully formed around us, everything outside of it faded away and was replaced with an entirely different view. It was now dark outside the bubble, with large ribbons of swirling light which reminded me of the aurora borealis.

“What is that?” I asked, pointing to the strange scenery.

“We are traveling through another dimension,” Charon answered me with the same professional tone that she’d been using. “Distance works differently here, so I can travel large distances in a short period of time.”

I gave Charon a curious look. This wasn’t any kind of teleportation that I’d ever heard of before, but it was no stranger than many of the other powers I’d heard about at Whateley.

I tried to match Charon’s professional tone as I commented, “I wasn’t aware that the Family had someone with your abilities.”

Charon was staring out of the bubble and didn’t even look at me as she responded, “I am not directly associated with the Family. My employer has merely provided them limited access to my services as part of the negotiation.”

“Of course,” I replied, pretending that I knew what she was talking about. I didn’t want to admit that I was currently just a figurehead for the Family, and that I wasn’t actually involved in running it.

I should have known that Charon wasn’t really part of the Family. If she had been, then there would have been no reason for me to head to Whateley by plane, back at the start of the school year. It would have been nice to have been able to avoid that hassle, but then again, that also would have meant that I would have missed out on that ridiculous Squid incident and I probably never would have ended up as part of M3.

Our journey through this strange dimension only lasted for about five minutes before Charon announced that we were nearly at our destination. Almost immediately after saying that, the darkness and ribbons of light outside of the bubble began to fade away while images of the real world began to appear instead. Once the real world had completely replaced that other dimension, the bubble vanished and I found myself standing in front of my grandmother’s mansion in Chicago.

“We have arrived,” Charon announced unnecessarily.

“BIANCA,” a familiar voice calls out.

I look over and see Tessa standing beside Marcus. The two of them had been waiting for us in front of the mansion.

“White Lady,” Marcus greets me, using my official title in the Family, as though this is some kind of formal meeting. Maybe he just wanted to remind Charon of who I was for some reason.

“Hello,” I greet them both, following Marcus’ example and keeping my tone polite and professional.

“Mister Montrell,” Charon greeted Marcus and Tessa. “Ms. Contrare.”

Marcus gave Charon a polite nod before asking, “Will you still be available for the return trip on Sunday?”

“Yes,” Charon agreed. “I will return at the agreed upon time, to take Miss St. Claire back to Whateley Academy.”

“Good,” Marcus responded with a nod. “Thank you.”

Charon merely nodded at that and then stepped back, away from everyone else. Once she seemed satisfied with the distance, a bubble formed over her body. At first, it was transparent, letting me see her inside of it, but then the entire bubble faded away and vanished, taking her with it.

“Welcome back,” Marcus exclaimed, giving me a friendly smile. “I’m glad you made it safely.”

“It was an easy trip,” I assured him with a faint smile of my own. “But the flight attendant never brought me any drinks or peanuts.”

“I’m sure you’ll survive,” Tessa responded with a look of amusement. “Now, let’s get inside where it’s warm.”

Chicago Il, Wednesday evening, Nov 23rd 2016

A comfortable chair, a good book to read, a glass of my favorite rootbeer, and an impressive library where I could enjoy them. At any other time, or in any other library, I would have considered this to be my happy place.

I was sitting down in my grandmother’s library, trying to relax and forget about where I really was. I was in my grandmother’s library. In her house. Technically, this was my house now. I’d inherited it from my grandmother along with her position as the White Lady. However, I didn’t think of it as my house and I doubted that I ever would. Even if my grandmother was gone, in my mind, this house would always be hers. This was the house where she and the rest of my family had been slaughtered just months ago.

I thought about the ballroom downstairs and the horrific condition it had been in the last time I’d been in this house. I shuddered at the memory and tried to think of something else, though it wasn’t easy. And even though I was sure that the room had been cleaned up since, and probably scoured with bleach and every kind of magical cleaning spell possible, I couldn’t bring myself to go see it again.

I didn’t want to be in this house, which stirred up so many memories. I didn’t want to be anywhere near this place. But unfortunately, Marcus and Tessa both insisted that it was necessary. They said that my staying in this house was a statement, a message to both Scorn and the Family.

“Like I need to send another message,” I muttered bitterly, thinking about the last message that I’d sent to Scorn, in the form of the Messenger’s head. “At least this one won’t be so disgusting.”

My presence in this house was a reminder that I was the new White Lady, and a statement that I wasn’t afraid of Scorn or another of his attacks. Marcus and Tessa assured me that this would help improve the Family’s morale and give everyone more confidence in me.

I let out a sigh and tried to turn my attention back to my book, though it didn’t do much good. I’d already read over the same page four times, and I still didn’t remember any of it. I was just too distracted to get into it.

“Maybe if I had something from the other library,” I thought aloud, thinking about grandmother’s secret library full of her magic books. I knew that she had one, but I had yet to find it.

Just then, I suddenly felt a tug on my awareness and I shot up out of my chair, immediately tensing up to fight. I looked around, not seeing or hearing anything suspicious, but I wasn’t about to relax, not when one of my wards had just been tripped.

I wasn’t alone in the house. Members of the Family were providing security, both outside and within. There were even three Loyal currently on the property, along with a couple Hands, so I should have felt safe. I didn’t. We’d had even more than that back during the party that the Messenger had crashed.

Before I’d settled into the library, I’d set out a few extra precautions…just to be safe. I hadn’t done much since I didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes or interfere, but I had placed a couple wards nearby. These runes would activate and notify me if anyone went past, as one of them had just done.

“And Morgana calls me paranoid,” I muttered with a self-justified snort.

Of course, this could have been one of the guards, and if it was, I’d feel a bit silly. However, there weren’t supposed to be any guards moving around on this half of the floor, which was why I’d felt the need to set my own wards. Now, I wasn’t going to feel safe until I knew for sure.

I reached into a pouch on my belt and pulled out two spell cards, each containing a carefully drawn spell. Then I reached out for my inbuilt spells, though I didn’t activate any of them. I focused on the one that let me manipulate air since I thought that would be safer than throwing fire around inside of the house. A moment later, I took a deep breath and stepped out of the library.

The ward that had gone off had been just down the hallway, though when I looked over the area, I didn’t see any sign of why. There was nobody in sight, which meant that whomever had set off that ward, had probably ducked into one of the side rooms.

Another ward suddenly went off, tugging at my attention via the magical link. That one had also been placed in the hallway, just around the corner. I quickly raced to the corner and looked, though I still didn’t see anyone. However, I did see something. There was a small painting on the wall that was coming off, all on its own.

My eyes narrowed and I activated one of my built-in spells, though not the one for air. All of the glyphs on my skin began to glow a golden color, and I held out my hand, releasing a wave of brilliant light. My built-in light spell didn’t just provide light to see with, it also cut through illusions.

A moment later, a previously unseen figure was revealed. A young woman had been in the middle of pulling a painting off the wall, though she paused and turned to look at me in surprise.

The woman wore a red and white costume that covered nearly her entire body, and included a red hood that went over her head. When she turned to look at me, I could see beneath the hood, where she was wearing a white mask over the top half of her face. A pair of small white devil horns seemed to be part of the mask.

“Well, this is embarrassing,” the woman commented, seeming more amused than anything.

“You’re a thief,” I blurt out in relief. A thief was much better than another assassin.

“I’m actually more of an anti-thief,” the woman responded with a smirk. “After all, this is a stolen painting, and I was hired to recover it and return it to the rightful owner, whom it was stolen from.”

“So, you’re not here to kill me?” I asked, not lowering my guard.

“Nope,” the thief responded in an almost cheerful tone. “Killing people isn’t my thing, and especially not a kid. Honestly, I planned to be in and out of here without anyone knowing.” She shrugged. “I guess I got overconfident.”

I stared at the intruder, wondering how I could stop her or if I should even try. Was that painting really stolen? Knowing my grandmother, I wouldn’t have been the least bit surprised. But even if that painting had been stolen, who said that this woman was telling the truth about returning it to the rightful owner anyway?

“So, now what?” I asked, still tensed up and ready to fight. That would mean switching over to my built-in air spell since the light one had already served its purpose and was pretty much used up.

“Now,” the woman responded, “I take off with this…” She held up the painting. “I turn it in and collect enough reward to buy some Christmas presents. You can go back to whatever it was you were doing.”

I gave her a skeptical look. “And you expect me to let a bad guy just walk away after robbing me?”

As soon as those words left my mouth, I realized how stupid they were. After all, I was technically the head of the Family, so most people thought of me as being the ‘bad guy’. In fact, I probably sounded just like one of the Spy Kids at school, and that thought made me a little nauseous.

“I’m not bad,” the thief responded, still looking amused. “I’m just drawn that way.” Then she held up two fingers. “And secondly, I’m not a guy, so that means I can’t be a bad GUY.” A third finger went up and she smirked. “As I already told you, I’m returning stolen property to its rightful owner, which doubles down on me not being bad…” Then she held up a fourth finger and made a show of counting her fingers. “And finally, I’m not here to hurt you or anyone else. At worst, I’m just getting into a little harmless mischief.”

“Those are some good points,” I said carefully, wondering how I could notify Marcus and the guards that we have an intruder…and if I even should. This one seems kind of harmless, and if she really was just recovering stolen property… Still, the fact that someone was able to get through this far without being detected was enough to make me extremely concerned. “But I still don’t know if I should let you go.”

The thief just laughed at that. “Okay, finally,” she said with a cocky grin as she held up five fingers. “You can’t stop me.”

With that, she thew something at the ground and there was a burst of smoke right where she’d been standing. I jumped back in surprise and held up the spell cards that were still clutched between my fingers. When the smoke cleared enough, I could see that the thief was gone, or at least, I could no longer see her there. My revealing light ability was already used up and would take an hour to recharge, so I couldn’t use that again.

I activated my built-in air spell, making all of my tattoos glow silver, right before I sent a blast of air rushing down the hallway. The remains of the smoke were blown away and several paintings and other decorations were knocked off the wall. However, there was no sign of the thief being caught in the wind as well. If she had been, I would have at least heard her tumbling down the hall.

“Damn it,” I exclaimed in frustration.

Even with all of the security, with the Hands placing wards, and the Loyal standing guard, a thief had just walked into grandmother’s old house and stole…or restole something right in front of me. I was already nervous about staying in the house, and this incident had only made that worse.

Chicago Il, Thursday morning, Nov 24th 2016

“This is exceptional work for someone with your level of experience,” Tessa announced.

Tessa and I were sitting in the casual living room in grandmother’s mansion, and she was carefully examining my coat. This was the long white coat that I’d bought in Berlin and then covered with spells so as to make it the magical equivalent of a bulletproof jacket. I’d placed every protective spell I could on that coat, and I was proud of my work.

“Thank you,” I responded, practically beaming from the compliment.

“It seems that Whateley truly does provide a solid magical education,” Tessa commented with a nod of satisfaction. “And I see many of your grandmother’s techniques as well, most of them ones that she taught to her Hands.”

“I have ideas for how to improve it in the future,” I told her, fully aware that there were things I could do better.

Tessa nodded at that as she handed my coat back to me. “The largest improvement you could make, would be to use better materials. Kevra and similar materials would enhance the non-magical protections, but if you want to make a truly powerful version, something like dragon skin would be ideal.”

I winced slightly at that, imagining how my roommate Morgana would react to learning that I was making a coat out of dragon skin. I doubted that she’d be very happy about that, and that was nothing compared to her girlfriend Thulia. I probably shouldn’t even mention the idea of a dragon skin coat to the dragon.

“You can also incorporate spellwork from the beginning,” Tessa continued thoughtfully, “rather than just applying it to an already finished product. The Family does have access to specialized materials, but they are usually quite expensive, even for us. “

I nodded at that, feeling excited at the idea of being able to make my next upgraded version with better materials. Then I deflated a little and admitted, “I’m probably not skilled enough to really make use of the good stuff yet. It would probably be a waste on me, until I get a lot better.”

Tessa didn’t disagree, though she was polite enough to not actually say so aloud. Of course, she’d been my grandmother’s assistant for years, and she wouldn’t have survived in that position unless she knew how to be tactful.

“You know,” Tessa commented, sounding almost as if she was merely musing aloud. “If you wanted a quality item without having to spend all the time and effort to make it yourself, you could always commission something from a specialist like House Cosgrove or the Enchanter.”

“I’ll think about it,” I told Tessa after a moment of consideration.

After this, Tessa and I changed topics a little, though not by much. We discussed my classes at Whateley, especially my magic classes and what I’ve been learning. She seemed impressed, though she gave me a few pointers and suggestions of things I should study on my own. I was getting the feeling that she was putting together a list of additional study materials, or maybe even some ‘homework’ for when I went back to school.

Eventually, Tessa told me, “Thanksgiving dinner will be semi-casual, and there will only be a few of us present.” She gave me a forced smile and admitted, “Unfortunately, you won’t be able to get off so easily for Christmas. For Christmas, you will probably need to make a more formal social appearance for the high ranking Family members.”

I nodded at that, wincing faintly as I considered what Tessa meant by ‘formal’. That meant I would probably have to wear a fancy dress or something of the sort, which would be bad enough. And then, I’d have to deal with people I barely knew, if I knew them at all, and I would have to be extremely careful about every interaction. Every single word, gesture, or expression could have unforeseen consequences. I’d have to keep my metaphorical White Lady mask in place the entire time.

“I think that is a problem for future Bianca,” I announced, which seemed to amuse Tessa a little.

It was around this point when a small group of people came into the room, lead by Marcus. Marcus was my regent and a member of the Loyal, so I trusted him more than just about anyone else in the Family, except perhaps for Tessa. He was also one of the very few people who knew who I really was, or at least, who I used to be before I’d inherited the mantle of the White Lady and the physical transformation that went along with it.

“Marcus,” I greeted him politely, keeping my voice calm and even as I slipped into my White Lady persona. Then I turned my gaze to the three people who’d come with him.

One of them was Olivia, a woman with formerly dark hair that was now more than half grey, and which was tied up into a strict bun. She was one of the senior members of the Hand, one of the Family’s magic users. She bore a sour expression, which seemed to be normal for her. From what I understood, she thought that she should have taken over as the head of the Hands, not Tessa. However, Tessa was the one grandmother had trusted, and even more important to me, the one I trusted.

James was the second member of the Loyal, a stocky man with a thinning hairline and an air of casual ease. He seemed like the kind of guy who’d chat you up at the grocery checkout, talking about lawn care or the weather just as an excuse for a friendly conversation. But I knew, that as a member of the Loyal, he was a dangerous man who’d already proven how capable and trustworthy he was to my grandmother. The fact that he was here to help guard the mansion was proof that Marcus also thought that he could be trusted to protect me.

The last of the people who came into the room was a young guy, about seventeen or eighteen. I didn’t know him and hadn’t seen him before, but he had an earnest look about him, as though he was trying very hard to impress the people around him.

“This is Michael,” Marcus indicated the boy. “He has old Family connections and has recently come to start training.”

“If you work hard and prove yourself,” James told the boy, “you might be able to become a Loyal one day.”

Michael nodded at that, though he didn’t look very enthusiastic. “I’d rather become a Hand.”

That earned Michael several odd looks, though Olivia was the one who announced, “Only women can become Hands.” Her tone was dismissive, as was the look she gave him.

Michael already looked self-conscious and this reaction only made it worse. Still, he said, “Aunt Marissa taught me a little magic… Just some basics, but she said I have a bit of potential…”

I gave Michael a curious look. Marissa was the name of a Hand who’d been killed during the Messenger’s attack on my grandmother. If she was his aunt, then that would definitely be a solid Family connection.

Michael gave me a nervous look but carefully avoided staring. It was clear to see that he was both curious and a bit intimidated. That wasn’t surprising since I was the new White Lady, and my grandmother, the previous White Lady, had been very intimidating even when she wasn’t trying to be. After a moment, he looked away while trying to act as though he wasn’t intentionally trying to avoid looking at me.

Olivia snorts and then bows to me before reporting, “We have finished reinforcing the wards around the property.”

“Good,” Tessa said. She glanced at me and frowned. “Unfortunately, most of the old protections faded after the death of the previous White Lady.”

“We’ve added some motion detectors and extra patrols,” James added. He shook his head. “I can’t believe someone still managed to sneak in last night.”

“It’s inexcusable,” Olivia agreed, looking offended by the very idea.

“If a burglar could get in,” Marcus pointed out grimly, “then an assassin could have just as easily. We can’t allow that to happen again.”

“And we won’t,” James stated firmly. “We’re not going to allow so much as a rat to sneak in.” He nodded to Olivia, acknowledging her part in the added security. “Scorn’s people have been watching the house, so we can’t afford to lower our guard.”

They spent the next couple minutes talking about the additional security features while I needed along occasionally, following most of it and pretending that I understood the rest. Most of this report was for Tessa’s benefit, since she was one of the people who actually ran things in the Family.

Michael spent the entire time standing back and listening. Then as the group was about to leave, he took a step forward and cleared his throat. “Ma’am,” he started nervously. It took me a moment to realize that he was talking to me. “I know I can’t become a Hand…” He glanced to Olivia. “But…is there any way I can get someone to teach me magic anyway?”

I blinked at that, then glanced at Tessa, who was the one in charge of the Hands. I’d never understood why women were the only ones to become Hands in the first place. There were a lot of guys at Whateley who were learning magic, so it just seemed like pure sexism to me.

“I don’t see why not,” I answered carefully, still trying to keep my White Lady persona in place. “As long as you can find someone who is willing to teach you.”

Olivia practically hissed at the suggestion. “Traditions…”

“Our current rules may not allow him to become a Hand,” Tessa said, cutting Olivia off, “but magic users can always be useful.” She hesitated a moment t before adding, “Especially when we have so few Hands left.”

Olivia scowled at that but gave a reluctant nod while Michael tried hard to contain his excitement. He bowed to me and gave a polite yet nervous thank you.

“You have stones, kid,” James told Michael as they turned to leave. “Big ones.” Then he chuckled and added, “Now, come on Stones, because you’re going to help with the patrols.”

Once everyone else was gone, I turned my attention back to Tessa. “I don’t think Olivia is happy with that.”

“Olivia is never happy,” Tessa responded with a faint smile. “Now, I just have to ask all the Hands if any of them is willing to take on an apprentice.”

Chicago Il, Thursday evening, Nov 24th 2016

“I did it,” I told the girl in front of me. “I survived Thanksgiving dinner.”

The girl I was talking to was staring back at me from the mirror. She was rather pretty, even though her skin and hair were chalk white. Honestly, she was both pretty and creepy at the same time. If I put in a pair of plastic fangs, I’d definitely be able to pass as some kind of vampire.

This was my reflection now. This was me. I’d looked like this for only a few months now, but sometimes it felt like a lot longer than that. It had been long enough that I was already starting to forget some of the details of my old reflection. How long would it be before I forgot what I used to look like completely?

After a moment, I turned away from the bathroom mirror and let out a sigh. I was still thinking about dinner, which had been an eerie experience. There had only been a few people at the main dinner. Me, Tessa, Marcus, and my Uncle Andre. Those were the only people in the Family who knew my original identity, from before I became the White Lady. Of course, other people came through and ate with us as well, but those were mostly Family members who were working security and who took turns cycling through so that everyone had a chance to eat.

Dinner had been a nostalgic experience in both a good and bad way. This had been my first major holiday since my family had died, so the emotions hit me particularly hard. Sitting around a table with turkey in front of me… It brought back memories, and not all of them pleasant. It reminded me of the Thanksgiving dinners that I used to have with my family, and how my mom had always been more concerned with everything looking perfect than with everyone being happy and comfortable. I’d never really enjoyed our holiday dinners, but I still missed Mom, Dad, and my sister Paige.

“Christmas is going to be Hell,” I mutter with a deep sigh.

I absently brushed my hair back with my fingers, mostly to keep the strands from falling in front of my face. Maybe this was why grandmother liked those fancier and more intricate hairstyles. They kept her hair under control and out of her face.

A few seconds later, I left the bathroom and began walking down the hall towards the library. Now that dinner was over, I’d be able to relax and do a bit of reading. I had a new spy thriller that I was looking forward to starting, though I also had a few notes I’d taken earlier, and which I really should look over.

Before dinner, I’d looked over some of the magical wards that had been set up around the house, and to my surprise, I was already familiar with most of them. There had only been a couple runes that I didn’t know, and I’d taken good notes on them so that I could add those to my repertoire as well. Now, I just needed to memorize them and put in some practice working with them myself.

I was nearly at the library when James and Michael came down the hallway. The two of them were doing another patrol of the house, though at the moment, James was mostly focused on training Michael. I didn’t know if this would continue after Michael found someone willing to teach him magic.

“Check the windows, Stones,” James told Michael. “We don’t want to leave any unlocked. All of them should have some kind of rune drawn in the corner too, so we check to see that none of those are smudged.”

I was careful to keep from smiling too obviously as they walked past. It seemed that Michael had earned a new nickname, and James was intent to keep using it. I made a mental note to use it and call him ‘Stones’ sometime.

When I reached the library, I paused and looked around, trying to see if I could spot any signs of another intruder. Sure, security had been increased since then, both magical and the mundane varieties, but that didn’t necessarily make me feel more comfortable. After all, last night, it had been my own wards that had warned me about the intruder, not something that someone else had set up.

With that in mind, I reached for a pouch on my belt and pulled out a half dozen spell cards. I carefully activated the first one, pushing a little mana into it so that the rune I’d drawn on the surface began to glow. As soon as it was ready, I placed the card flat on the floor, right in the middle of the hallway. The card blackened and crumbled away while the glowing rune remained on the floor. After a couple seconds, the rune stopped glowing and almost faded away entirely, though the magic remained active. I could feel it in the back of my mind.

“One down, five more to go,” I said as I activated a second spell card and slapped it against the wall.

Once I was finished, I had a small network of wards set up around the library, each one a magical tripwire or motion detector. Now, nobody would be able to get too close without my at least being aware of it. I looked over my work once more and smiled in satisfaction before I finally went into the library.

Chicago Il, Friday early afternoon, Nov 25th 2016

Black Friday was the worst possible day to go to a store. Any store. Sure, there were amazing prices and great deals, but those weren’t worth the pain and effort of dealing with large crowds of pushy people. That was why I never went shopping on Black Fridays, and I avoided any and all stores like the plague.

Today, I was following my usual rule of avoiding stores and shopping of any kind, but unfortunately, I’d forgotten one important detail. People who were going shopping used the roads as well, so traffic was backed up and crowded just as bad as it would have been in one of those stores I avoided.

It had taken over an hour to reach my favorite pizza place, a journey which should have taken only a quarter of that time. I silently cursed myself for the entire trip, remembering that I could have saved myself the hassle by having the pizza delivered. However, I’d been tired of being stuck in grandmother’s house and had been looking for an excuse to leave. Getting pizza had seemed like the perfect reason to do so at the time.

“At least we’re finally here,” I muttered to myself as I climbed out of the car.

“Please wait, ma’am,” James said as he got out of the car and looked around.

Michael…Stones as he was now called, stepped out of the car beside James. He didn’t have a gun that I was aware of, but he was still able to look for possible threats.

My third bodyguard, or second real one since Stones didn’t really count yet, was a serious looking man named Sebastian. Sebastian was doubling as my driver and would keep watch on the car while we ate, just to make sure that nobody tried to cut the break lines or sneak a bomb into it like I’d seen in so many movies.

“We probably should have had someone bring a pizza back to the mansion,” James commented, echoing my own thoughts. “Security is going to be tough out in the open.”

“Do you think anyone would try something here?” Stones asked cautiously. “It’s so public.”

“That won’t bother Scorn,” Sebastian commented.

My eyes went from them to our second car, which had parked nearby. Three more guards stepped out and began looking around the area for any potential threats. One of them made his way into the restaurant to make sure it was safe for me to go inside.

I resisted the urge to wince in guilt at making these people jump through so many hoops, just because I wanted some good pizza and some time outside the house. Unfortunately, I was the White Lady, which meant that I had to keep up appearances, even when I was just going out to lunch. I had to look calm and in control for the Family.

Once James was confident that there were no threats, we went inside and found a table. James arranged a table in the back, where we’d have a bit of privacy and easy access to the back door…just in case. I continued feeling guilty for wasting their time like this, though admittedly, those feelings faded once the pizza arrived at our table.

“Keep an eye on the back door,” James whispered to Stones. “Don’t look like you’re doing so, but let me know if anyone tries to come in or go out.”

Stones nodded and shifted his seat so that he had a better view of the door. “Will do.”

The security precautions relieved me, but they also made me more aware of the danger we were in…because I wanted to get out of the house. Because I wanted to get some decent pizza for the first time in months. I glanced around the restaurant, wondering if I should place a few wards and protections of my own, just in case.

But in spite of all the concern, nothing happened during our lunch. I ate my pizza in peace, without so much as a rude customer commenting about my unusual appearance. Admittedly, I did get a couple odd looks, but nobody actually said anything, so I was able to enjoy my meal.

After we finished eating, we left the restaurant and made our way back to the car. Sebastian was standing beside it, patiently waiting for our return. The sight of him made me thankful that I’d thought to order him a couple slices to go since it would be pretty sad if he missed out entirely.

Before we reached the car, a man abruptly stepped out from behind another car, immediately drawing my attention because of his odd clothes. He had dark hair, pale skin, and he looked like a cross between a circus ringmaster and a mime. He wore a jacket and pants, which resembled some kind of fancy military parade uniform, though they were all black but with white piping and trim. Without warning, the uniformed man threw a canister onto the ground in front of us and it suddenly exploded into a thick cloud of smoke. 

“LOOK OUT,” James shouted.

I could barely see a thing through the thick smoke, but I felt a hand grab hold of my forearm and begin pulling me away. 

“I’VE GOT HER,” James exclaimed. “Everyone get out of here.”

“Hey,” I started to argue, immediately realizing that something was wrong. James said that he had me…but his voice was too far away for that, and I was being pulled in the opposite direction as the car. “Wait…”

The smoke cleared enough for me to see through it, but what I saw was enough to make me gasp in surprise. James was at the door of the car, pushing someone inside. Someone who looked like me. Before I could call out, a hand clamped over my mouth and I could only watch as the car raced off, followed immediately by our second car.

I elbowed the person who was holding onto me, catching them right in the stomach with a move that Sensi Tolman had taught me in BMA. They let go with a grunt, letting me pull back enough to get a look at them. My eyes widened at the sight and I could only gape at a girl who looked just like me…except much taller and thinner. She looked like me…as if someone had stretched her out until she was nearly seven feet tall.

Other figures surrounded me, though I was so distracted by this white stick figure girl that I nearly missed them at first. And when I did look, I was met with the sight of more copies of me, each one with my chalk white skin and hair, though each one was oddly distorted somehow.

One of the twisted clones was bulging with thick muscle, as thick as any male bodybuilder. It was a very strange sight on someone who otherwise looked like a bleached teenage girl. Beside her was another version of me, but one who looked like she constantly gorged herself on junk food. That version of me was so fat that she had to be twice my weight.

“What the…?” I blurted out in surprise and confusion.

None of the clones spoke a word, though a couple more stepped forward and made themselves known. There was an old version of me, one who looked like she was well past retirement age. Then there was a dwarf version, who couldn’t have been four feet tall. And finally, there was one whose proportions were just…wrong. Her right side was larger than her left side, with arms and legs that were too large on the one side, while the opposite limbs were so small that they looked like they had come from a child.

“Now that your guards are out of the way,” the man in the black uniform said, “we can finish this…”

“Who are you?” I demanded, already reaching for the spell cards on my belt.

I was grabbed from behind, knocking my hand aside. With a grimace, I began to activate one of my built-in spells, the one for fire, but I was suddenly punched in the face and distracted from finishing. More hands grabbed me and pulled me back, dragging me into an alleyway.

“I’ve been warned that you are too dangerous to take chances with,” the strange man commented, not looking impressed. “However, I have a hard time believing those words.”

I struggled against the people holding me, all of them twisted versions of myself, but there were too many of them. Suddenly, one of them forced my hands into a pair of shackles, though not like any that I’d ever seen before. These ones had a sort of box for my hands to go into, and as soon as my hands were inside, the inside seemed to fill up with metal, making it so that I couldn’t so much as wiggle my fingers.

“Damn,” I muttered with a surge of fear that nearly had me shaking.

I couldn’t use my hands, which meant that not only were my spell cards out of the question, so was being able to cast any spell. At least, any spell other than my built-in ones. The runes for those ones were tattooed on my skin and didn’t need me to do anything else. But before I could use one, a collar was suddenly clamped around my neck, and as soon as it was locked in place, my spell cut off. I tried activating my air spell. Nothing.

“A magic absorbing collar,” a new voice said. “Scorn said that it would drain your magic. I’m glad to see he was right.”

My eyes widened at that and I tried once more to activate one of my built-in spells. Still nothing. My heart raced as I realized just how helpless I currently was.

The source of the second voice stepped forward, giving me a good look at him. The man was middle-aged, with dark hair that was liberally sprinkled with grey along the sides. He wore a grey suit, the kind that would have fit right into an office environment.

“Who are you?” I gasped. I didn’t bother asking what he wanted. He’d mentioned Scorn, which told me that he was probably there to kill me.

The man casually straightened his tie before answering. “My name is Robert Grace. I believe that you’re familiar with my son…Crysis.”

“Crysis,” I whisper, remembering my classmate from Whateley.

I didn’t know the boy well, though I knew he didn’t like me for some reason and that he somehow knew that I’d killed the Messenger. I’d never considered that it might be because his dad worked for Scorn.

“So, you’re going to kill me now,” I stated, trying to keep my voice from shaking. I might be terrified, but there was no reason I had to let them see it.

“Not quite yet,” Grace answered, much to my surprise. “Mister Scorn is interested in talking with you.” Then he gestured to the other man, the one who resembled a ringmaster mime. “And thanks to our associate, Funhouse, that meeting is now possible.”

The strange man, Funhouse, held his hand out and a figure began forming into the air in front of him. A couple seconds later, there was another twisted copy of me, one who looked like her features were melting like warm wax. I shuddered at the sight.

I knew that I was in deep trouble, and there was nothing I could do to get out of it. Well, nothing I could do myself, but there was still a chance. With that, I took a deep breath and then yelled, “HELP!” as loud as I could. I barely got the word out before a hand clamped over my mouth.

“None of that,” Grace told me. “You have an appointment to keep.”

To Be Continued