“Darkness falling, roaring skies, clouds rising, heavenly cries. Lightning!”

Instantly, I see a bolt of lightning burst out of Emily’s outstretched right hand. The sound of crackling electricity fills the air, and as it approaches me, the hairs on my body begin to stand on end. I’m not panicking though. In fact, I have a grin on my face because I’m almost finished with chanting my own spell in defense.

“Mother to all, upon which we stand, beholden to none, long lives the land. Earth wall!”

As soon as my chant completes, a three foot thick block of dirt and rock shoots out of the ground, shielding me from Emily’s attack. The lightning is completely absorbed by my spell, and while some gravel goes flying from the impact, I’m nevertheless unharmed.

“Alright, time’s up!” a voice calls out. It’s Natalie, the captain of the team. She’s waving her hands through the air, signaling that the skirmish is over.

I dispel my “earth wall” before walking over to Emily. “Guess it’s another tie,” I say, shaking her hand.

She gives me a frown. “Dang it! I really thought I’d get you with that lightning magic.”

“You almost did. I was about this close to being zapped. Like bzzzt!” I pretend to spaz out, letting my body vibrate while my limbs flail wildly. My silly antics draw a laugh from Emily. Then she waves me off, and we go to our respective locker rooms to wash up. We meet back in front of the practice fields afterwards and begin to walk home together. Natalie joins us as well.

“So, where did you learn ‘earth wall’ anyways? We haven’t covered earth magic in class yet,” Emily asks as we stroll through town.

Emily is the athletic type, with a lean build and skin tanned from outdoor activities. At five foot seven, she’s just a tad shorter than me and about ten pounds lighter. She has freckles dotting her nose- which I think is rather cute- and long brown hair tied back into a ponytail that sways as she walks. Since it’s spring, she’s currently dressed in a t-shirt and short-shorts, the latter of which reveals her thick, powerful thighs. I glance down momentarily at them before looking back up at her face. Her brown eyes tell me that she’s still waiting for an answer.

I idly look up, tapping my chin for a moment, wondering how I should respond. Since the true answer is a bit complicated and tedious to explain, I go with a lie instead. “I read about it in a book… uh... or was it that I saw someone using it?”

Emily’s eyes narrow. “What’s with that wishy-washy answer?” She leans into me, her stare full of suspicion, and for a moment, I feel her shoulder against my arm. I can also see down the collar of her shirt. Her bra’s pink. I blush and quickly look away.

“Well, what about you?” I ask, trying to redirect, “We didn’t cover lightning magic in class yet either. Where did you learn that?”

Emily stands back up straight and gives me a smirk. “Captain taught me.”

“Ehh?!” I exclaim. I turn to Natalie, my expression as if demanding an explanation.

“Emily said she wanted to expand her spell pool, so I offered her private lessons,” Natalie replies.

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this, but Natalie is the captain of the magical combat club that I’m part of. The club is kind of similar to sports clubs like wrestling or fencing. This year, Natalie’s a senior, which means she’s a full two years older than me or Emily, who are both sixteen. Like Emily, Natalie has a fairly athletic build, though her eyes are green and her brown hair is cut short. Also- more importantly?- her you-know-whats are more pronounced. 

Breasts. Her breasts. Anyways, back to the conversation at hand...

“Wait, that’s not fair, Captain. You should give me ‘privates’ lessons too,” I say. I air-quote the word, “privates”, with my fingers, giving a wink as I finish, “If you know what I mean.”

The ever-cool Natalie doesn’t miss a beat. With a smirk of her own, she says, “If you’re looking for magic training, Alex, then I’m available anytime for remedial lessons. But if you’re talking about something else…” She lets the words hang in the air for a moment, a twinkle in her eye as she continues, “… then you’re going to have to go play by yourself… if you know what ‘I’ mean.”

“Aww,” I moan in mock disappointment at being so quickly shot down.

Emily comes over and pats me on the shoulder, offering sympathy laced with sarcasm. “Don’t worry, Alex. Captain is just way out of your league.” 

Ouch-!

Then she stops to give me a wink. “And besides, Captain’s already got a smoking hot stud to tutor.”

My mouth drops.

“Emily-!” Natalie begins to say, but I cut her off.

“Wait, when?! Who?!”

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

Emily gestures for me to lean in, and she whispers into my ear. “The captain of the soccer team.”

“Wait… no way! Edwardo?! Isn’t he a bit too… stiff?”

“I’m right here, you know?” Natalie says, drawing a laugh from both me and Emily.

Then I see Emily tapping her chin, as if thinking. “Well, if you’re looking for some ‘remedial lessons’, Alex, I suppose there are other people on the team still available besides Captain.” She turns my way, and we briefly make eye contact.

Is she… is she talking about herself?

“Hm, is that so?” I reply playfully, “And just how long will these ‘other people’ be on the market for?”

Emily shrugs, then turns to me and gives me a smirk. “Dunno, but if you don’t act quickly, someone else is going to ‘snatch’ them all up.”

I hear my cue. “Oh, I see.” Then curling my fingers, I make lecherous groping gestures with both hands. “Like this? Snatch! Snatch! Snatch!” I slowly move my hands towards Emily’s breasts. She responds perfectly. After all, we’ve done this play countless times before. Clutching at her chest, she begins to run away.

“O.M.G! Stop! Help!” she half cries, half laughs as we start to ring-around-the-rosie around Natalie. Natalie lets us do our thing for a few seconds before she finally gets fed up. She bonks both of us on the head, telling us to stop.

“What are you two, little kids?” she asks.

“Yes! Reporting for doodie!” Emily and I reply in unison as we offer up a salute. Then the two of us immediately burst into laughter. Even Natalie cracks a smile. 

Afterwards, the three of us chat idly about a few more things, mostly school, before finally separating and heading our own ways.

I decide to take a shortcut, using some wind magic to lift myself up onto a nearby rooftop. Then I begin to parkour across the cityscape, ducking and weaving between water pipes and air ducts, as I make my way from roof to roof. I’m about two-thirds of the way home, and atop a rooftop patio, when I suddenly hear someone calling out to me. I come to a sudden halt and pivot. That’s when I see that it’s old lady Agnes, gesturing me closer. I oblige and offer a wave as I arrive.

“Hey, Agnes.”

“Alexander, I’m so glad that I caught you. Could you be a dear and help me water my petunias?”

The way the rooftop patio is set up, there are several wooden beams that run across the area. They’re about ten feet high in the air and, from them, dozens of flower pots are hanging. Agnes, being fairly old, with a hunched back, can’t quite reach, and so from time to time, I’ll help her water them when I pass by. I’ve gotten to know her quite well because of this.

I give her a smile. “Sure!” Then I begin the chant to conjure a water spell. “Flow from far, ladle of life, cleanse clear close, spring so rife. Showers!” The completion of my spell brings forth a gentle trickle of water to each flower pot. It also blankets the entire rooftop in a thin veil of mist. I laugh as the tiny droplets land on the wavy, black strands of my hair. Then I point to a part where the setting sunlight has struck the water in the air at just the right angle. “Look, Agnes, it’s a rainbow.”

Old lady Agnes gives me a nod.  “Alexander, your magic is always so beautiful.”

I scratch my head bashfully, and we begin to chat for a bit. Mostly about local politics, city ordinances, and the gossip that is making its way through the senior crowd. She’s rambling, but I continue to listen politely. I can tell she’s happy to have someone to talk with. I think it’s because she’s lonely. From what I understand, her son had become some bigshot adventurer and decided to move out on his own a year ago, leaving her behind by herself.

Somewhere along in the conversation, Agnes mentions something that catches my attention. She says, “I would stay far away from the forests if I were you, Alexander.”

My ears perk up at this because I do in fact frequently go into the forests surrounding Eaglewood. “Why?”

“I haven’t verified it myself, but Mr. Nadler says there have been reports of monster attacks.”

“What kind of monsters?”

“The evil kind. Savage and bloodthirsty beasts that have lost all reason. Stay away, Alexander. I’d hate to see anything happen to a nice boy like you.” She gives me a toothy grin, then checks the watch on her wrist. “Oh dear, look at the time. I’ve kept you for far too long again, Alexander.”

“Oh, no worries, Agnes. I had fun.” 

I offer a smile and see Agnes waving me goodbye. Then I make my way to the edge of the rooftop and, with the help of some wind magic, jump back down to street level, landing softly onto the sidewalk. 

As Agnes mentioned, it is getting late. In fact, it’s already dinnertime. That being the case, I decide to head to a nearby deli to buy a sandwich instead of making food like I usually do. When I enter the shop, I stop to greet the store owner. “Hey, Mr. Jones.” 

Mr. Jones is a middle-aged man with thinning brown hair and a mustache. He is usually quick with a joke, but at the moment, he seems rather haggard. He doesn’t even reply to my initial greeting. I try again. “Hey, Mr. Jones.” When he doesn’t look up, I begin to feel something is amiss. “Is everything okay?” It takes a further second before he finally reacts.

He glances up at me. His eyes seem a bit hollow, as if they are looking right through me. But then suddenly, something seems to snap into place. With a shake of his head, he focuses. “Ah, Alex, good evening. Yes. Yes, everything is fine. Just a tad tired is all. What would you like?”

I place my order and wait patiently as my sandwich is being made. A few times, I catch a glimpse of Mr. Jones’ bare arms. I notice some scarring along his left one. These small circular bumps. There’s also some bruising visible. I’m pretty sure he didn’t have those the last time I saw him, but I don’t say anything. Once my sandwich is done, I pay for it and begin heading for the door. I take one last glance at the shopkeeper and see that the vacant look in his eyes has returned. Then, I exit.

Walking along the sidewalk, I begin the final leg of my journey home. I also unwrap the sandwich I just bought and start munching on it. All the while, I’m thinking about what Agnes said about the monsters in the forest. I turn my gaze skyward as I think.

Maybe I should ask Richard to come check it out with me. It might be interesting.

As I’m thinking this to myself, something suddenly appears in my field of view. A shadow, dropping down from the rooftop above, heading right for me.

A person? Is that a person? Should I try to catch them? 

I’m just about to raise my arms, in an attempt to stop the falling figure from smashing into the ground. But then to my utter surprise, I receive a kick straight in the face as the figure’s foot lands on my head. The person then proceeds to use my face as a springboard, leaping forward into the air. I, on the other hand, get flung backwards, and as I’m falling, the last thing I catch is the sight of a pair of pure white panties.