That song, what was it again? He wondered if it meant anything. The sweet humming he heard every night as he rested with in his sorry excuse of a bed. The humming that came from the forest that swept through his little window at the side of the cabin. The humming that never ceased even within the chasms of his dreams. No one else heard it. He had told Sarah about it when he was just seven years old but she always said that it was just his imagination. If that were true, then his imagination was far beyond wild. Because the humming got louder. Louder and clearer. Clearer and closer. Who was there? Who was it that came closer to the edge of the forest?

Steven glanced across the room on the other side, where Arthur laid fast asleep, snoring loudly as ever. He could go. He could follow the song. But no one could know, especially Sarah. Tonight he would break her most important rule – You must never go into the forest at night. But he had to know, he had to find that song that no one else heard. Steven hopped over the window, which was easy since it wasn’t more than an evenly cut hole in the wall. He then quietly crept away and trotted down the hill that overlooked the town on the east and the forest on the west. As he neared closer, the song grew even louder. It was so sweet and pleasant and oh so mystical. Truth be told, it didn’t bother him at all. On most nights, it was what kept him asleep when the nightmares reigned in his mind.

But still, he had to find out where it came from. Or rather, who it came from. Slowly, cautiously, he entered the forest, the picket sign marked the entrance and bore the warning – “Danger lurks ahead.” What danger? Steven never knew. Four long years living here and Steven never saw a single beast or heard even the faintest growl from the forest. He only ever heard of the humming or the windily whispers of the night. The sweet poison that called to him every night when the moon was at its peak and white light illuminated the night sky.

It came closer and he moved closer. It was near, the melody grew louder. Steven grew even more anxious, but yet calm. Anxious to find the source, but calmed by the song itself. And before he knew it, he was there staring face to face with a stranger, blocked only by the branch of a tree. It was girl, a pretty one too. Her face grew frightful as she backed away, her expression one of confusion. In her light blue eyes, Steven saw that she was both intrigued and bothered by him. "Hold on,” Steven began as he pushed the branch aside and moved closer, “I won’t hurt you. I just want to know who you are.”

No reply. Not a single word was said as she dashed away, faster than any beast could ever move. All Steven saw was a flicker of her long white hair flowing as she vanished into the darkness of the forest. Steven didn’t hear the song anymore, at least not for that night. And he dared not venture too deep into the darkness, for fear of getting lost. So he returned back to cabin and laid down into his old bed, which was but half a matrass cut on to the floor. That night, Steven’s dreams were haunted by monsters whose eyes burnt like fire. Their faces corrupt and ugly; teeth jagged, long and pointy. Tonight, sleep would be a challenge.

~

What? Who’s there? Is anyone there? The darkness was suffocating, empty and alone. Steven didn’t know where he was, or even who he was. His hands were not his, they were dark and monstrous. His fingers were long, with pointed iron nails that stretched as far as his wrist when he bent them inwards. He felt his face, his teeth too were metal and pointed. And his eyes, they reflected into a single puddle on the ground. They were shattered, broken like glass. He had no pupil, just blood red eyes that were broken apart in segments. And within each shard within his eye, a different picture was painted. And a different world was there. The girl was there in one of those worlds. She didn’t sing. She was saddened and sat upon the branch of a tree, frozen. Did Steven somehow cause this? No, this was just a dream. Another nightmare. Wake up. You have to wake up before they come. They’re coming. The man was already here, he’s bowing towards you. What is he saying? An army of monsters, of vile darkness, and red glowing eyes blaring with flames kneeled behind him. Why are they looking at you? Not matter, just..Wake up!

Steven shot up like lightning, panting heavily. “It-t-t was just a dream.” He said to himself as he rubbed his sweaty forehead with his hand. Steven recalled what happened, and separated facts from fiction. Today, he woke up, bathed, ate and then went to school. He came home just like always, got ready for bed and then he went to sleep. Everything else was just a dream. “Just a dream.” He told himself despite knowing that it wasn’t.

Steven laid down back into bed, lying on his side and cuddling his pillow. Just a dream.

~

Steven awoke, his eyes still heavy and written with dark bags beneath them. Still, he didn’t return to sleep. He got up and flossed his teeth with a twig from a plant, gargled some water and then went down to the well, located at the bottom of the hill on the side facing the town. He grabbed a bucket of water and washed himself thoroughly. Then he attired himself with the extra clothing that he had brought with him - an old, ragged shirt and a pair of cut trousers made from some old bed sheets. Still, it didn’t look too bad, the shirt was stitched where they were once holes, so it didn’t show much and you couldn’t actually tell that the trousers were made of bed sheets unless you saw the insides. And with that, Steven made his way uphill, whilst struggling to carry two buckets of water. When he returned to the cabin, Sarah was already in the kitchen. Steven left the pales of water outside and then went in. “I brought some water for the laundry.” He said to his adopted mother who smiled and thanked him.

Sarah wore her night gown, which thankfully wasn’t very revealing. It stopped just over her knees, which made it shorter than her long, dark hair that fell to her ankles. Steven never knew why she didn’t cut it, he figured it must be quite a bother to braid it every day. But then again, it did suite her, giving her that sweet motherly look that made it seem as though she were some benevolent angel. And to some degree, she was. After all, she did bring three homeless children into her house even though she could barely support herself. Most others would just scorn at the siblings as they went about their day.

The second to wake up and emerge from her room, which was also Sarah’s room, was Maria – Steven’s older sister by a year, making her twelve. Maria was but a bit taller than Steven, though he figured he would grow past her eventually but since they weren’t actually related, only time would tell.

The young girl walked into the kitchen with her towel and stared at Steven dead in the eye. She glared at him with those fierce purple eyes and said “I’m going to go bathe now, and don’t you dare follow me. When Arthur wakes up, make sure to tell him the same.” She then exited the cabin and began trotting down the hill. “What’s her deal?” Steven thought to himself.

“Give your sister some space.” Said Sarah, almost as if she had read the boy’s mind “She’s going through some changes, and right now, she’s having a big one. By next week, she should be fine.”

“What does that mean?” Steven asked, still not understanding why Maria seemed so on edge today.

Sarah gave a little smirk as she glanced at him for a second before returning to chopping vegetables and placing them into a pot. She then said “Girl problems.” and left it at that. Steven still not understanding, but realizing that he wouldn’t get a clear answer, made for his room. Arthur, of course, was still snoring, his ginger hair in a mess on top of his head. Steven leaned against the window and looked towards the steeper end of the hill, glaring at the forest and recalling what happened last night. Was it real? He didn’t know. He wondered if he should tell anyone. Sarah wouldn’t believe him, Maria wouldn’t even listen to him and Arthur…Steven didn’t even want to know what he would think of it.

Steven took a sigh and slouched against the window’s sill, his wavy dark hair dragged across his face as he brushed it away. “Oh well.” He thought to himself and the stood upright. He then jumped into bed and closed his eyes.

~

Maria washed herself slowly behind the bushes located near the well. Desperately, she washed away the blood from her groins, breaking a few nice spelling herbs and rubbing it around that region. She lashed out at Steven a little, this whole ordeal made her completely on edge. Who would have thought maturing into a woman would be this much of a pain? But that alone wasn’t the problem, she always knew she’d have to deal with the blood at some point in her life. What caused her uneasiness was the way it made her feel - on edge. Ready to lash out at anyone that frustrated or bothered her. She couldn’t let her emotions run rampant and her glowing eyes were the visual proof of that. She tensed herself as her surroundings grew dread with death, the plants around slowly losing their life. “Calm down.” That was what she had to do. “Forget about the blood and the pain, take a deep breath and control yourself.” The death stopped and her eyes lost its glow, returning to its original darker purple.

She couldn’t let her brothers find out about this power of hers. They’d probably think she was some sort of witch. Though she knew that she was exactly that – a witch. The only person that knew about it was Sarah. In fact, Sarah was the one who thought her how to control her power. Of how emotions triggered it and that she should remain calm at all times because if she slipped up even once, she could take the lives of those around her. And Maria didn’t want that. Her powers took enough from her already. She wouldn’t let it take more.

Maria finished her washing up, tied her short hair into a bundle and dressed herself. Once more in control of herself, she made her way uphill towards the cabin.

~

“Boys!” Sarah called out from the kitchen. Immediately, Steven got up again and made his way towards her. Shocked by the sudden loud noise, Arthur rolled off from his mattress and hit the floor. Though, for the most part, he remained asleep and seemingly, he was mumbling something to himself.

“Arthur!” Sarah called again. Arthur opened his eyes sharply and sprung up. “Stop!” he yelled, realizing that whatever happened was just a dream. He quickly put on a shirt and then went to the kitchen, “You guys have no idea what I just dreamt, there was a monster and it was made out vegetables. It was awful!” Arthur exclaimed frantically while the others nonchalantly sat down at the table, readying themselves for breakfast. Arthur having been ignored, sat down as well but still he continued “You guys really have no sense of adventure, you know.”

“And you have no sense of personal hygiene.” Maria attacked, hinting at the fact that Arthur neither brushed his teeth nor took a bath.

“Oh comm’on, I smell okay.” He replied as he took a sniff under his armpit and quickly pulled away. “Besides, I’ll bathe after breakfast.” He quickly added.

Sarah sighed, her expression filled with utter disappointment as she served the soup she made from the little groceries they had remaining. “Ah!” Arthur yelled, flinging back his hands in an aggressive position “Vegetables! I knew you’d come for me.” He added as he slipped under the table, leaving only his eyes to stare at the bowl of soup. The others didn’t even bother with him, they just ate their soup quietly without giving him any attention whatsoever.

“Arthur!” Sarah yelled again, “Get up from under there and eat your soup. Your fifteen years old for King Hammon’s sake, start acting like it!” Arthur immediately lost his enthusiasm, and sat back down on to the chair. He braced his right cheek with his right hand and ate reluctantly with the other. “You guys are no fun.” He said and continued to eat in silence for the rest of the meal.

~

Maria kept her distance from her brothers as they trotted along the trail that lead towards the town. It was a Friday, which meant that they had to go school. How she wished not to go? Not because she hated it but because she was scared of losing control. She watched as Arthur and Steven walked jollily ahead, Arthur giving Steven a knuckle while grabbing him around his shoulder. Steven, desperately tried to break free. Maria knew that he would not. Arthur was a dimwit but he was strong dimwit. It made her smile, seeing them happy together. Moments like these made her want to live. She shifted her attention away from the boys and continued to bask at the scenery unfolding, the flowers dancing to the wind as they descended the hill. A witch may have been her nature, but even she could enjoy life sometimes.

~

After a good fifteen minutes of walking: entering through the town, taking two right turns and then finally walking straight through the crowd of bystanders, who yakked at the children as they passed, the group had finally arrived at the stone prison they called school. Or at least, that was the way Arthur saw it. He hated the town, and it hated him as well. The stone walls surrounding the town felt encapsulating, it constrained him and the school was the same, be it smaller. Arthur glared at the folks who stood eyeing him from the side as he and his siblings walked by. These people were horrible. Horrible, horrible people. People who didn’t care about them at all. His siblings didn’t seem to mind. After all, he was the only one old enough at the time to grasp a hold of people’s eyes when they were little and alone in this cruel place. That was before Sarah had taken them in. And for that, Arthur would be eternally grateful. She saved him from these people that judged him on what he wore, of how clean his face was and how posh his manners were. It didn’t matter now. Because he had the choice to explore, to find adventure and to live. Although, right now, he would have to go to school. Or Sarah would gave him an earful. But luckily, it wasn’t all bad.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Arthur ran ahead of his siblings and called out as he left “Meet you guys back here after school.” Away he then went to find his favorite teacher - Mr. Welkins.

~

They were early. Only a few other children were here, and Maria had also chosen to leave Steven. So what was he to do now? He supposed he just go to class and sit down in an empty classroom. Nothing new. The school was mostly stone, it was somewhat of a small castle. Steven navigated through the empty hallway until he arrived at his class. He got in and sat down. Since he was alone, he thought it worthwhile to consider the events of last night. Not the girl, but the dreams that he had. Though he did wonder why the girl’s voice calmed him. And how she moved at that incredible pace. Perhaps the girl and his dreams were somehow connected.

The dreams were common since he was a child. They were not always the same, but always in the same place. And the people around him, the armies of darkness were usually there. Sometimes, they stood still and waiting, other times they just wandered around doing whatever it was that they did. And then, there was the man. The long haired, red horned demon that seemed to notice when Steven was there or not. The man that spoke to him with iron teeth and whose voice was shrewd and manipulative, yet strangely submissive to Steven. Who was he? Were these really just dreams? Steven doubted that, this was definitely something strange. And now that Steven knew that the girl was connected, he would do whatever he could to find her. But for now, he’d have to make it through another day of school.

~

Arthur hurried to the school library. When he entered, he quietly crept past the old librarian and made his way to the far right corner of the room where, as usual, Mr. Welkins sat there reading another strange book.

“Morning Sir.” Arthur said enthusiastically.

The man sharply looked up, straightened his crooked glasses and replied with a smile “Why, good morning Arthur. You’re quite early today, aren’t you?”

Arthur pulled a chair out from under the table, opposite to Mr. Welkins and said while sitting down “Yeah, I guess. What are you reading?”

Mr. Welkins looked down at the book, Arthur saw the strange drawings he studied “I actually don’t know. I bought it from the family of the late Robert Bullock. Apparently, they wanted nothing to do with his ‘work’.”

“Who’s Robert Bullock?” Arthur asked.

“The town’s madman, or that’s what they say. He always preached conspiracies about ancient groups of magical beings living amongst us. A few days ago, he disappeared and never came back. Everyone assumes that he’s dead.” Mr. Welkins explained, only fueling Arthur’s curiosity.

“Well, what does it say?” Arthur inquired, his eyes burning to know.

“It’s written in some form of code, the letters are encrypted and written in anagrams. From what I’ve deciphered so far is that Mr. Bullock seems to think that there are magical beings living in the forest and to add, there are people who know about it living in the town.” Mr. Welkins paused and then flipped a page, then traced his fingers on the strange drawings there. “And then there’s these drawings, even I can’t seem to figure out what they mean.”

“So cool!” Arthur exclaimed, but kept his voice lowered.

“I suppose it is.” Mr. Welkins replied as he continued reading. Arthur watched flipped through pages for another fifteen minutes or so until Mr. Welkins got up and checked his pocket watch. “It seems that it’s time for both you and me to go to class.” the man said. Mr. Welkins then closed the book and squeezed it between his arm and body, “Well, shall we go?”

Arthur got up and followed the tall, dark haired man out of the library. Together they walked to class, Arthur still asking questions and Mr. Welkins smiling with a reply.

~

School ended and just like before, the three children made their way back home. Maria seemed to be in distress, Steven figured that her ‘girl problems’ were causing trouble again. And Arthur, Steven noticed that he clutched a thick, leather covered book in his hands. He had probably burrowed it from Mr. Welkins after asking one too many times. But none of that mattered much to Steven, there was only one thing on his mind. And that was the meaning of his nightmares and the connection it had with that girl.

The children made their way home and soon enough, they were already in bed after eating dinner. But Steven didn’t sleep. He waited patiently until he was sure that everyone would be asleep and then made his way to the kitchen. He grabbed a lamp, lit it and then took a knife from the kitchen drawer. After that, he slowly opened the front door and then made his way downhill towards the forest.

It was actually quite bright tonight. A half-moon illuminated the sky and even with the cluster of trees, it was fairly easy to navigate through. More so with the help of the lamp. Steven ventured deeper and deeper into the forest, marking every five trees or so with the knife he had bought with him. The forest grew eerier with each step he took. The cool gust of wind, the croaking of frogs and the occasional hooting of the night owl only contributed to this feeling. But it was also quite mystical which made Steven want to venture even more inwards. But what would he find?

Light. A bright light, not from the moon but somewhere from the forest illuminated the night. Steven followed it and eventually he began to hear sounds, people talking with each other. He crouched beneath a bush and watched as two children, each seeming about five to six years old, tossed a glowing orb of blue light at each other. They used it like a ball, and the children, they looked exactly like the girl – silver hair, light blue eyes and pale white skin, decorated with strange and pretty symbols. Their clothes were but pretty robes that fell to their ankles, both in a shade of blue to match their eyes. Steven watched in amazement and before he knew it, more people had appeared in the clearing before him. Each bringing a flash of white light and all bearing a great resemblance to the children. Soon houses appeared in the trees, an entire town of people followed. Amazing. Magical. Spectacular. Steven couldn’t find the words to describe it.

And there, guided by a group of tall, fair men, was the girl. She was being escorted to a largest tree, right in the center of the clearing, and made her way up the magical staircase of blue light. Round and round the tree she went until she made it to the top. Steven watched as she paused before entering the building, the two men stopping and waiting with her. She took a deep breath and seemed to put on a brave front for whatever waited her. Then, with one step forward, she had vanished from Steven’s sight.

~

The meeting had already began. A very stern looking man sat at the end of the table signifying that he was the head of the meeting. That man was her father. His hair as usual was long and tied in in bun, and his eyes, they were fierce and filled with hatred.

“You’re late.” He said.

“It’s only been two minutes past twelve. I’m not late, you all are just absurdly early.” She retorted.

“Sit down.” He replied with a sigh. She complied though her verbal cues expressed rebellion.

“Reiler, have they been any sightings of the Guardians.” Her father asked the man sitting right beside him.

“As usual, their monitoring the surrounding forest. But none dare to come this close to our village. For good reason too.” The other man replied.

“Could we just get on with this meeting already?” The girl rudely proclaimed, “There’s no need to drag this on.”

“Very well,” her father began. “We need you to be the fourth breaker.” He said and glared at the girl, waiting for her answer.

“What?” she exclaimed, hands pressed against the table. “I already told you that I want nothing to do with your vendetta.

“Teya, I know how you feel about this. But we desperately need your help.” Her father begged.

“My help?” Teya snapped. “You expect me to help you slaughter hundreds of innocent people so that you can satisfy your petty feelings of revenge?”

“Well what do you expect me to feel?!” Her father snapped back and stood up, his large form towering. “They’ve trapped us here for thousands of years. And our people are only allowed to move a single hour every night. Even our houses are hidden by their magic, our mere existence is fading away.”

“The only reason the humans trapped us is because our kind killed their people.” Teya countered. “So we should just get out and leave. We hurt their kind and we got our punishment. Now, we should just escape while we can.”

“Our kind?” Her father paused “Those who attacked them were not of our kind. They were rouge warriors. Men corrupted by hatred, vengeance and greed. We are not like them. But the humans could not see that and judged us all the same.”

“Are you sure you’re not like those vengeful warriors?” Teya asked, looking her father straight in the eye.

Her father gritted his teeth and sat down again. He took a calming breath and spoke again, ignoring Teya’s question “Teya, I know that you are against my plans. But I do so, not only for revenge, but for the future of our people. If we simply run, the humans will hunt us down for as long as we live.”

Teya considered what her father said for a good minute or two. “What happened? Why do you need me all of a sudden?” she asked, still not giving an answer.

“Jarven was attacked by a Guardian. We managed to kill the man and apprehended his partner but it was too late. The attacker possessed a magic of teleportation, a perfect skill for assassinations.” Her father explained.

Teya was silent for another minute. Once more, she took a deep breath. “Fine, I’ll do it.”

“Thank yo-” her father said, a smile forming on his face before he was cut off.

“But after that, I am gone! I don’t want to be affiliated with your schemes.” Teya then got up and left. Her two escorts tried to follow her but a sharp glare stopped them in their tracks. And with that, she left and made her way from the village to be alone.

She walked until she was sure that she was far enough away. And then, she began to hum through the trees. A beautiful melody that made birds sound like death. Caught in her usual trance as she walked through the woods, she didn’t notice the boy that followed behind until he tapped her shoulder. Teya turned around and saw the same boy from yesterday. Reflexively, she conjured a blade, tripped him on to the floor and swung the sword’s tip to his neck. The lamp he held in his hand fell to the ground, the flame raging within the glass outline that kept it contained.

“You again?” Teya asked. “What do you want?”

Surprisingly, the boy hardly showed any fear whatsoever “Same thing I told you last night, I want to know who you are. And while you’re at it, mind explaining the entire civilization that just appeared out of thin air?”

“Hmph.” Teya expressed conceitedly “As if you don’t know who we are, Guardian. I suppose you’re here to kill me. Though it amazes me how quickly you knew that I was appointed a breaker.” Teya edged her face closer. “What kind of odd magical ability do you have? Your friend had teleportation. Is yours illusions? Super sight? Perhaps flight? Go on, tell me. Your life depends on it.”

“I don’t know what you’re going on about.” The boy replied, grabbing the sword’s blade with his palms. As if that’d stop it if she really wanted to kill him. “What ‘magical abilities’ are you going on about? All I wanted to know is what kind of connection you had to my dreams.”

The boy tried to force the blade aside but Teya sharply pushed it back. He wasn’t very strong. And she wondered why he hadn’t used his magic as yet. Could it really be that he knew nothing?

“On your feet.” She pulled the blade back and circled behind him as he placed himself upright. “Walk.” She ordered him with the blade now pointed at his back.

“Really?” the boy asked. “I already-”

“Walk!” Teya commanded.

“Fine. Fine.” The boy complied, reluctantly and with an attitude. He bent down and picked up the lamp beside him and then walked forward.

However, luckily for him, Teya did not lead him to the village. She led him away. If he really were a random person, then it would cause unnecessary bloodshed for her to kill him. And even if he weren’t, she hadn’t told him anything. And she was certain that he wasn’t present in the meeting. So there really wasn’t much harm to letting him go. Unless of course he possessed some mind reading ability, or a form of hearing that allowed him to eavesdrop on the meeting. Was she really willing to let this boy go?

“At least tell me your name?” he asked, genuinely.

“It’s Teya MoonShadow.” She replied, what harm would that do? “What is yours?” she asked, out of curiosity.

“It’s Steven. Just Steven.” He replied. An orphan? That made her feel a shred of sympathy for him. She knew what it was like to lose a parent. She couldn’t fathom how it would feel to have neither.

“I really don’t know anything.” He said again.

“So you really just expect me to believe that? So you just wandered into a forest at the middle of the night just to find me? Yeah, right.” She replied sarcastically.

He turned around, his brown eyes filled with sincerity. If he was lying, then he was damn good at it. “Okay, I’ll enlighten you. If you really aren’t a Guardian spy, then why did you come into the forest?” she asked.

“Because I heard you singing.” He replied.

Impossible. She never sang loud enough for anyone to hear. Perhaps he really did have super hearing? “And what was it in my singing that made you want to find me?”

“Well for one, it’s beautiful.” She froze a little from that. “And it calms me, it helps me to sleep through my nightmares. I also wanted to know why I was the only one who could hear it. Or if it were even real. ”

Teya stopped, she had come far enough. From here, he could walk straight and leave the forest. She also noted the knife stuffed in the back of his pants and matched it to a mark on a tree beside her. He would definitely find his way back. “I’ll tell you one thing, since you don’t seem to realize it. Given that you can see me and it’s not a full moon, then that means you have magic. And if your nightmares are really bad enough for you to seek me out, then they’re probably more than that. But that said, if you come back into this forest, you’re probably going to die.” And with that, Teya left. She vanished at supersonic speeds into the night leaving the boy alone to his thoughts.

~

Magic? People? What did all of this had to do with his nightmares? Why did he see Teya in his dream? So many questions and no answers. Steven made his way out of the forest, following the marks that he had left. Disappointed at how little progress he had made, he snuck back into the cabin and went to bed. Too tired to even think of the nightmares, he fell asleep.

~

Slowly, Maria dragged the living essence of the flower out of it and into her body. It was an insignificant amount. Absorbing a living flower would hardly be noticeable to her, so a half dead one was barely anything.

“Now, give it back.” Sarah demanded, “Focus and return the life you stole from the flower.”

“I’ve told you a million times by now. I can’t do that.” Maria complained.

“If you can draw energy from something, then you should be able to return it.” Sarah stated as her crimson eyes met Maria. Sarah sighed, “At least try.”

Maria nodded in agreement, she focused her energy in her palm again. This time, instead of taking, she tried to give. She closed her eyes and released the energy she brought to her palm. She aimed it at the flower. It worked, the flower became lively again. Even more so than before. But then it stopped and the flower crimpled away, turning into a withered sack of decayed remains. Just like the fifty times or more that she had tried before.

“See. It doesn’t work.” Maria jumped into her matrass, face first. “I’m only good at destroying things.”

“Now that just isn’t true.” Sarah claimed. Maria felt the woman sit beside her. “You’re giving too much energy. You have to only return what you took.” Maria didn’t reply. She had heard this many times now. But she still couldn’t get it right. “For now, rest up. I’ll get rid of all these flowers.” Sarah paused. “Well, at least what’s left of them.”

Maria peeked to her side and watched Sarah as she picked up the remains of the flowers that were piled in to the corner of the room. She tossed them out of the window that faced the town and then blew out the candle that lit the room. By now, it must have been around five in the morning. They had started today at three. Luckily, Maria didn’t have school tomorrow. But still, she didn’t waste any time thinking about magic. She had enough of that for today. Maria closed her eyes and soon dozed off in a sweet slumber.