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The sun was quickly dropping out of view. The buildings cast shadows that looked like teeth jutting out of the ground, turning the last few remaining patches of light into gaping maws, waiting to swallow us whole.
“Yeah, let’s get out of here,” I said, trying my best to ignore the nervousness creeping in.
As soon as we left the courtyard, darkness engulfed us. It felt like walking into a closet without windows. Thena must have felt the same because she huddled closer to me.
Not sure I trusted myself to remember the way back to the Institute, I paused at each intersection and studied my options. The houses were so close together, it was hard to be sure which way was right. The more dead ends we came to, the more frustrated we became.
“I hate this part of Arden,” Thena yelled when we came to another one.
Running my hands along the walls, I searched for another way out. I didn’t want to have to turn around again. Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw a gap in the wall behind some trash bins and dilapidated boxes. Creeping forward, I bent down to inspect it.
“What have we here?”
The voice froze me to the spot. Turning my head, I watched a small gang of wild, unkempt boys surround Thena.
Pressed against the wall, Thena stared into their dirty faces. Torn clothes hung off their malnourished bodies while disheveled and dirty hair clung to their scalps. They looked like they had come straight from the wasteland. Jumping like cats at every sound, the boys inched their way closer to Thena. I knew she could see me and for a split second, our eyes locked. She silently pleaded with me to help.
I had to do something. I couldn’t leave her to face the boys alone. She was my friend. But fear began to build in my chest, pushing me farther behind my cover.
“Silly lidda thing,” one of the boys said with a lisp. “Not good ta be out all alone.”
“Maybe we sho’ be heppen ya on ya way,” another said with a laugh.
“Get away from me,” Thena cried with a kick.
“Oh, be a good lidda lady and give us wa’ we want.”
They were making obscene gestures as they crept closer and a glint of light caught my attention. The smallest boy had just slipped a knife from his belt. Anger welled up inside me, pushing the fear away. Going against my survival instincts, which were screaming at me to stay hidden, I leaped into action.
“Stop,” I cried as I jumped up.
My voice squeaked but at least I didn’t appear completely helpless. I was still standing and the boys were all facing me now.
“A hero,” one of the boys said, slapping his friend on the back. “Do ya think ya stand a chance?”
The others laughed but quickly fell silent with a rapid gesture from their leader. With a flick of his wrist, two of the smaller boys broke off from the group and flanked me.
This was the dumbest idea I’d ever had. Backing away, fear bubbled up into my heart again, threatening to paralyze me. I’d been in plenty of fights in the wasteland before but Father had always been there to back me up. Without warning, a wriggling sensation began creeping around my insides. Maybe I was about to throw up? That would be embarrassing.
As the boys stepped closer, they each produced a knife of their own. Things were quickly going from bad to worse. I stumbled back into the wall, hitting my head on a brick.
“Whatcha gonna do now, hero?” the smaller of the boys asked.
“Leave us alone,” I managed to shout.
“Or else what?”
In reply, the sensation in my gut exploded outward. I’d never experienced it before but if felt natural. It felt good.
Like a cornered animal, instinct took over. The other boys had turned their attention to Thena again but I was no longer concerned about myself. My thoughts were only for her safety. But whatever I was going to do, I had to do it now or live with the guilt of doing nothing forever. Closing my eyes, I charged blindly at the boys. All five of them were larger than I was, and either one of the two flanking me could probably toss me over their head, but I didn’t care. This wasn’t about me anymore. It was about honor. Charging in, I waited for a knockout blow to come.
It never did. Slowing to a stop, I cracked one eye open. The three boys who were on the verge of attacking Thena were facing me again. There was no anger, malic, or hate in their eyes. No, now it was pure terror. They scampered back, bodies pressed flat against the wall next to Thena.
“Leave us alone,” the leader said. “We’ll go. No need ta get nasty.”
I spun around, expecting to see the other two boys rushing me, but they weren’t. They were lying on the ground, crumpled against the wall. What happened to them?
I glanced up at Thena, who was now alone. The thugs were long gone. Thena pushed herself away from the wall, taking a hesitant step towards me.
“How did you do that?” she whispered.
Her eyes were wide with both fear and amazement.
“Do what?” I asked, running a hand through my hair. I was just as confused as she was, if not more. I hadn’t seen anything. “What happened?”
She had trouble explaining what she’d witnessed. Sputtering out mumbled words, she finally composed a coherent sentence.
“You lifted them off the ground and pushed them, but not with your hands. You never touched them. It’s hard to explain.”
“What?”
Shaking her head, she took another step forward. “I’ve never seen anything like that before. Ever.” She stared at me then whispered. “It was like magic.”
“How could it have been magic?” I asked. “I don’t even know what that is.”
“Shhhh,” Thena hissed, glancing up and down the alley. “Don’t say that word.”
“Why not? You just did,” I said, now talking in a whisper myself.
“People are scared of magic. Someone could report you just for saying the word. Father says they’re all paranoid.”
Thena grabbed my hand and pulled me from the alley. We raced through street after street until we finally found something familiar. We sprinted towards a small grassy courtyard with a manicured garden in the center. A wooden bench sat isolated in a dark corner. She sat down with a thump and waited for me.
“That was amazing,” she shouted, then covered her mouth. She continued in a whisper. “If you did what I think you did, this could be great. But it could also be very, very dangerous.”
“What’s so dangerous about it?”
“It if was magic, and I’m not saying it was because I’ve never seen it before, it’s dangerous because it’s forbidden. What have they been teaching you? That should be the first thing they cover.”
I shrugged. “I guess they forgot.”
“You need to start asking questions. Especially now but be careful.”
She stood up and paced around the garden.
“Amazing,” she said. “This could be the best day of my life.”
I spread out on the bench and stared at the stars. “I don’t see what’s so amazing about it.”
Thena spun around, a huge grin on her face. “I need to go, but we have to talk about this later. Just think about all the fun we could have.”
I watched as she raced out of the courtyard. Before she was out of sight, she turned around and gave me one last quizzical look.
“Wait,” I shouted. “How do I get back to the Institute?”
Thena pointed into the air. I followed her outstretched finger and saw the steeple of the Institute above the buildings. When I glanced back, she was gone.
I had plenty to think about on my way back to my room. I still had no clue what had happened. Doubt started to creep into my mind. Thena had been frightened. It would have been easy for her to imagine something like that. It was the boys’ reaction that troubled me. I couldn’t explain that. Even as Thena pulled me out of the alley, the two smaller boys remained motionless on the ground. Something had happened to them. I stared at my hands. Could there really be magic in me? If there was, how much danger was I in? The questions spun out of control, dislodging more and more as they collided with each other.
When I reached the Institute, I decided to take a small detour before going to bed and turned down the hall leading to the library. Stopping outside the door, I paused. I’d never been in the Large Room this late at night before and wasn’t sure if it was allowed. Shaking my doubt away, I pushed through the door. It was unlocked, but I almost turned around and left when I saw two professors sitting at a book laden table. I thought that would make me look guilty so I sped up and quickly passed them. The didn’t even give me a glance.
Beginning my search, I browsed through aisle after aisle but didn’t see anything remotely helpful. It didn’t help that I didn’t even know what I was looking for and that I could hardly read. I cursed myself for this horrible idea.
“Ahem.”
The voice startled me. I turned around to see one of the professors staring at me.
“Is there something in particular you are searching for or are you attempting to sleep on your feet in the middle of the library?”
I hadn’t realized that I had been staring at the same book for the last five minutes. Not knowing what to say, I dropped my head and stared at the floor.
“If you can’t articulate an answer, then what right do you have to be in here? If you need something, you might want to try the section marked students. This area is obviously too advanced for you.”
“I need something for class,” I blurted out.
“So, you can speak? Well, move on then. You’re blocking the shelf I need.”
I shuffled away, embarrassed by my behavior. Ashamed, I turned back and faced the professor.
“Where is the student section?” I asked.
Expecting the man to raze me again, I was surprised when he said something helpful.
“First year? This can be an intimidating place when you are young. Go down this aisle then go to your left. You’ll see it straight ahead.”
I nodded my thanks and followed the professor’s instructions and was soon standing in another section of the library that looked just as alien to me. I scanned the spines of the books until I found something I understood. The words on the binding were short and simple. It was also promising. The History of Odrana. I slid the book out of its place, tucked it under my arm, and ran back to my room.
Clothes and blankets littered my floor and I kicked off my boots, adding to the mess. Lying comfortably on my bed, I leafed through the book. I skimmed the pages, understanding almost nothing, so I looked for the words I knew. Magic was one of them. I knew how to spell it and what it looked like, so it was the one I wanted to find. The few times I stumbled across it, I couldn’t read any of the words around it. A few illustrations adorned the pages, but they didn’t help and I was starting to get bored. Steep tugged at my eyes, but I fought it until the words started to bleed together.