• Magic Academy, Chapter 1


    Lucy stared at herself in the mirror. Why, she asked herself again, was she going to this dance again? Dances were not her thing. “So? Do you like it?” Hannah Stevens asks. I look at Hannah enviously. She really did look nice. She wore a black slip dress with stilettos (she was really going to have a hard time dancing). Her makeup, which was flawless, made her eyes stand out even more than they usually did. Her blond hair curled just right, forming a halo around her face. Of course she looked nice. How could she even ask? “Do I like it? Of course I do! You look great! Seriously.” She glowed. I wish I was as happy as she was, I thought bitterly, but an aching feeling of anxiety filled me whenever I thought of the dance.

    Hannah and I had been friends since kindergarten. She was the bubbly, school spirit, cheerleader, while I…well; I was the hard a**, moody, decent grade, girl. I didn’t try to be mean or anything, it’s just that people really pissed me off, you know? Pretty much, we complimented each other like two matching gloves. “Oh NO! Please don’t tell me you’re wearing that trash bag you call an outfit to the dance?” Hannah practically faints as she clutches my arms. “Is this a trick question?” I ask nervously. I look down at my dress. Okay, so it wasn’t the nicest thing in the world… and maybe, just maybe, I’d had that dress for centuries, but it was…uh, cute.

    “It’s not that bad!” I banter. “It’s just a wee bit old.” Hannah stares at me pitifully. “Honey. That dress is so old it’s probably made out of old animal skins.” She squeezes her eyes shut. “Okay, don’t worry. I always bring a back up dress.” She rummages through her bag and pulls out a powder blue strapless number. Whoa.

    “You want me to wear that?” I gaze at the dress in awe. I’m not ugly. I totally could’ve pulled off that dress with my dark brown hair, almond shaped eyes, and tanned skin; it’s just that I’m not used to wearing really girly clothes. “Of course! Now you get changed while I prepare the makeup. This,” she cackles, “is going to be fun.” I grimace. “Should-d I be scared?” I joke, but deep down, I know both of us are serious.

    “Very,” she laughs.

    *******************

    “Hey, you wanna dance?” a senior says, sidling up next to me. I sigh and turn my head to stare at him. The guy was VERY good looking. He didn’t look familiar though, so he must’ve gone to MSH (Memorial High). “That’s nice, really, but I’m actually going to sit this whole dance out. I’m not a very good dancer.” I look around the room for Hannah. When I finally spot her, I’m sickened. How could she let that guy on her like that? Disgusting. “No problem, babe. It’s all about the leading.”

    And get this! He grabs me by my hands and pushes me onto the floor. He lifts my arms over his neck and we start to sway. Let me tell you this though. That swaying? Yeah, it felt good. Especially, since that guy I was dancing with was extremely attractive. Now, I regret scolding Hannah. “So what’s your name anyway?” He asks twirling me around. “Lucy,” I answer breathlessly. He is a great dancer. “You?”

    He winks and smiles. “Rob, and can I tell you that you have two of the most beautiful eyes ever?” He spins me again and clutches me to his chest. I blush. Why was I acting all shy and flirtatious? I never acted like this in front of guys. Maybe it was because I had never had a boyfriend? I know, pretty embarrassing, it’s just that I’ve never really been interested in anyone.

    Anyway… So, Rob leans in for the kill (or should I say kiss) when suddenly the dance is called to a halt. Seriously. An explosion goes off on the side of the school building as dust, soot, and crumbling bits of the wall falls to the ground. Screams echo off the walls as the music screeches to a stop. A lot of “What the hell’s” fill the room too. Rob runs, screaming with sawdust and a whole bunch of other crap, out the door with all the other kids, leaving me stranded. Thanks a lot, jerk, I think bitterly, but then my mind wraps itself around what was really happening.

    I knew something bad was going to happen today! Instead of being scared out of my mind like everyone else, a feeling of triumph courses through my veins. I was right.

    Students fly in every direction as the dust settles down. Remember how I was kind of being cradled in Rob’s arms? Yeah well, after the explosion he dropped me. I get up painfully, not even afraid, and head for the door, calmly, when a voice stops me. “Stay…stay…” the voice, as beautiful as a lullaby, soothes me and I walk toward the destroyed side of the wall. Crazy, I know, but I felt so…peaceful and a little bit spacey I didn’t know what I was doing.

    Then, just as I reach the opening in the wall, a shadow appears. It walks forward, and I stumble backwards as I step away. The shadow disappears and in its place…a woman. She walks right through the opening peering down at me. She’s so beautiful, I think as I try to back away from her. Her silky, black hair flows around her as she steps closer toward me. Her emerald green dress wraps around her like a second skin. I’m near the door, when she finally speaks.

    “So this,” she cackles, “is the “one”?” She walks (or should I say glides) around as she observes me. “And to think I was scared.” The snotty way she stares, like she’s better than me, makes me angry. She pokes me with a very long green polished nail. “She’s pretty, Jesse, I’ll give you that, but nothing more.” Jesse? Um, I don’t know if this lady was blind or what, but I was a GIRL.

    Just pretty? The words she had said run through my head like a race track. Who did she think she was, anyway? “I’m sorry I don’t reach your standards, your highness.” I spat, my teethed clenched. Our eyes lock, and for the first time, I really see her eyes. The fear that I hadn’t felt at the beginning comes creeping up, stronger than ever. Her eyes as dark and empty as a black hole. She was what I imagined would be hiding under my bed if I was little, or even hiding in my closet.

    I stagger back again as she laughs. “Not so cocky now, huh, wench?” She stares at me triumphantly. I’m getting ready to run when in walks… a Greek god. No, seriously, I’m telling the truth, because no human guy could be that gorgeous. Yeah, that’s right. I’m scared out of my wits, and then in walks some hunk screaming his head off.

    Okay, so he wasn’t screaming his head off, but he sure as hell was shouting. “Lucy! Run!” I just stand there staring at him. You would too if you saw him. He had golden brown hair with blond highlights, perfect tan skin, and abs galore. Yum. I watch as he crawls in through the opening. “You!” the woman shrieks, lifting her arms. Wait. He knew this…this…woman? What if he was just like her? What if he was here to kill me too? I’m starting to think I should run now, but my feet feel paralyzed. Oh crap.

    That’s when I see the most incredible thing in my life. As the woman lifts her arms, a light or power of some sort, shoots out of her hands. SHOOTS OUT OF HER HANDS, PEOPLE! I could feel the power vibrate off of me. I knew right then, that if she wanted to, she could rip me to shreds. I scream, my hands flying to my face. Oh. My. God. The GG (Greek god) retaliates. I feel my arms tingle as power races right past me toward the woman. The woman jumps, moving out his way. But they aren’t finished. The woman laughs as the two go at each other. Whatever happened to plain old fist fights? I think trembling. I can feel my legs start to turn to jelly. Wait! I should help him. But what if he’s just like her? My brain argues. There is no way, HE could be like THAT. I argue right back. I’m not going to stand back here doing nothing.

    I charge at the woman. She, focusing mainly on GG, gets caught off guard. I aim straight for her hair even though I feel kind of bad. I mean her hair was so nice, but then I remembered what she said about me. “LET GO OF ME, YOU b***h!” She thunders as I rip her hair in different directions. “Thanks for the compliment! But I already knew that I was a b***h!” I laugh as I tackle her to the ground. I pull her hands back so she can’t do any of that freaky voodoo. “Bet you feel stupid for talking crap, don’t you?”

    She tries to spit at me, but it lands back on her. I laugh amused. “This is just too good. Really, you should know not to mess with a girl like me!” She scowls. “You will pay for this.” She turns her head to stare at GG, who I had forgotten about. “Get her off of me, you insolent little boy!” she growls. GG, who had been standing there paralyzed, watching me, closes his gaping mouth. “Damn!” He mutters walking over. “Wish I would’ve thought of that.” He lifts me off of her, but keeps a firm hand on her. Too bad he forgot to keep an eye out for her voodoo hands. She laughs wickedly, and throws him across the room. He hits the wall and crumbles to the floor. He lifts his head. “Lucy! GO! RUN!” He didn’t have to tell me twice.

    I’m running toward the doors when a jolt of electricity spreads from my back throughout my whole body. I fall to the floor, writhing in pain. I scream out, pleading for the pain to stop. “Oh no! You are NOT getting away after what you did to my hair!” She screams, staring down at me. My eyes glaze over and the room goes black. Please make it go away! I’m crying by then, when a burst of light flashes over my head. “You can’t defeat me, Jesse!” the woman shrieks sounding farther and farther away. Lights brighten the room like fireworks. The woman laughs one more time before everything is silent. And suddenly the pain starts to go away, as an arm wraps around me. I look up, wincing, as my eyes fade in and out. “Who-o are you-u?” I whisper as he carries me across the room. “I’m Jesse,” he whispers comfortingly, “Now go to sleep, Lucy.” My eye lids fall over my eyes resignedly. “Wait. How do…do…you…” I don’t even finish before everything goes black.