I’ve never believed in charms or magical items; just because I’m the daughter of a sorceress doesn’t mean I automatically believe she does will work. Even magic has its limits. But Mimi’s really works. Since she gave me the bracelet, I’ve had no more encounters with the “shadow man.” I’ve been able to sleep peacefully again and go to the bazaar with Mimi without fear of the dark cloud coming back. I feel free and alive again, like nothing can stop me. All is well. I suppose mothers do really know best; they really can solve anything.

I smile and gaze up at the bright blue sky. Today is a perfect day to read at my favorite spot: The pond in our backyard. The Kirah sits by my side as a swirl my feet in the cool water. A look at my reflection, but this time I gaze upon myself fondly instead of with disgust. I’ve now decided that I’ll think of my hair is a treasure as opposed to a disgrace. It’s something very few have, something only special people can see when they look in the mirror. The Queen of Light would want me to embrace the gift she gave me (according to Mimi, she helped create all human souls).

I stay outside until noon when Mimi calls me in for lunch. Peanut butter and jelly, one of my absolute favorites. Normally, she and I have lunch together and we chat; recently I’ve been wanting her to tell me all about the Ora and their beliefs.  But the bell above our door rings twice as she sets my plate down. She gives me a “I’m-sorry-I-have-to-leave” look, whispering “sorry” as she leaves to tend to her customers.

I don’t mind though. Mimi has to do what she has to do to support us. Sorceresses can’t get much work nowadays. Rumors that depict them as “evil” and “manipulative” have severely hurt their business. Others even stoop so low as to call them “witches.” Many people won’t hire them anymore or go near a magic shop.  Most do as Mimi does and sell medicines and read futures from their homes or in small towns. It’s sad to think that people would think of my mother in a negative light simply because she was born with the gift of magic. I bet all those people who spread such lies are jealous that they’re ordinary humans with no inborn talent whatsoever. Mimi is the sweetest and kindest person I’ve ever met; it shouldn’t matter if she’s a sorceress or not.

When I’m finished eating, I pop my head into the livng room to see what Mimi’s up to. She’s been gone quite awhile. Most of the time, she’s able to catch some break around this time to eat. I hope she’s not having trouble with a customer.

“I told you, we don’t carry that,” Mimi tells a customer from behind the counter.

The man across from her is tall and muscular with long black hair all parted down the left side of his head while the other side is shaved. A long black traveling cloak drapes his enormous body. “Are you sure?” He asks, grinning. “I heard witches like you got all sorts of things.”

“One,” Mimi raises her voice. “Please do not use such vulgar language in my home. And two,” she crosses her arms. “We don’t sell anything pertaining to dark magic of any kind here.”

I shiver. This guy looks like a real creep. I’ve never seen someone so...dark before. It doesn’t even look like he’s human. Though, there is something familiar about him that I can’t put my finger on. Surely I would have remembered if I met the human version of a boar. Wait a second…

My heart stops beating for a second as fear takes over my mind. That robe...I’ve seen it before...it’s the same one the man in the market wore.

I turn and run back out the kitchen door to the backyard before either of them notice me. This is insane. How is it possible that man has the same cloak the man who was in my nightmares did?

He could just have a generic black cloak with no relation to anything.

He could, but something about him seemed...off to me. Like I could feel negative energy coming off of him. His looks were strange. They were unlike any I’d seen before. Nobody in the market is that large or that toned. And they certainly don’t have such foreign hairstyles.

Should I warn Mimi? Tell her to make him leave? I’d feel terrible if something bad happened and I didn’t warn her.

Now you’re jumping to conclusions. Mimi can take care of herself. She’s dealt with scumbags before.  

I  pick up the Kirah and turn to the Queen of Light’s picture, my fingers grazing it lightly. What would she do in this situation? Would she think of the scene as nothing to worry about? Or would she go in there and defend one of her children? She would know better than I would. Queens have to make tough decisions all the time; this would be a piece of cake for her.

Maybe I’m overreacting and this’ll all blow over. He’ll leave and Mimi won’t have to deal with his prejudice ever again. We’ll probably never see him; we never see non-locals twice. All will be well. I got myself worked up over nothing.

I sit at the edge of the water in the same spot I was in earlier. I dip my feet in, per usual, eagerly awaiting my toe kisses. I place the Kirah on my lap, carefully turning the pages. They’re so delicate; almost weightless. I’ve only really glanced through the pictures in the first half of the book because it’s so thick. Most of the pictures I’ve seen are of the Queen.

I’m curious to see what else the Kirah describes though. There has to be more to than the Queen and her acts. I hope I get to meet some of her apostles and how they serve the Queen on Earth. As I turn toward the back, the pages gradually turn from a glassy yellow to a dark gray. The symbols are now written in red ink instead of silver. The first image I see is of a man. I can depict nothing more than his outline, a body colored completely black. I can tell his hair is somewhat long, almost going past his armpits. The only two distinguishable features are his eyes. They’re a bright red, and lack any pupils. They’re outlined by many gray circles. It kind of gives them an almost psychotic gaze. Behind him is a white background with red paint dripping down to look like blood. Evil, insane, a killer, those are images that flood my mind when I look at this man. Who is he?  

It’s tempting to touch his portrait, like I do with the Queen’s. I know she’s not really there, but I swear when my fingers touch her picture I can feel some sort of light and warmth radiating off of her. Could something similar happen when I touch his? But this time will I feel darkness and pain? Because from what I can see, there’s nothing warm and fuzzy about this man.

Curiosity ultimates gets the best of me. I cave and and place my palm on his picture. See, nothing happened. I breathe a sigh of relief before studying it again. As I look deeper into his eyes, the rings appear to shake. It’s almost hypnotic. I want to look away, but i just can’t seem to pull myself away.

DARKNESS AND MISFORTUNE WILL REIGN.

The words appear in my mind clear as day. Laugher echoes in the depths of my cranium; a deep hearty chuckle.

“FINALLY, I’VE FOUND YOU!”

I scream as my mind goes black and the laughter intensifies. I push the picture off my lap, standing as fast as I can. Instantly, I can see again. I rub my eyes and survey the area. My heart sinks when I find the Kirah lying at the bottom of the pond like a sunken treasure. I frown. I didn’t mean to throw the whole thing in there.

As I reach for it, I notice black dots on my hand no larger than the point of a pen. I submerge my hand in the water to wash it away, but the more I rub them away the more they make it feel like pins are stabbing my skin. What is this stuff? Is it ink from the book? Though, if it was ink, I don’t imagine it would sting this much. I have to show them to Mimi; she’ll know what to do.

“Roselyn!”  

Unless she finds me first

Mimi throws the screen door open and rushes over to me.

“What’s wrong?” I ask as she kneels to meet my gaze. Her irises are wide and trembling. Sweat drips down her place face and her hands tremble. I wrap my arms around her. “Mimi.” My heart aches to see her like this. Was it that man? Did he do something to her?

She pulls away, standing straight. I look into her eyes, using my deep blue gems to try and calm her.  “Go to the market,” she instructs. Her voice is hoarse and full of anxiety, like she’d just seen a horrible monster. “Wait for me there,” She continues, scanning the area. “A friend of mine will meet you there by our stand. Do you understand me, Roselyn.” Her gaze is intense now.

“Mimi, what’s going on?” I repeat. She looks terrified. I’m scared just looking at her. Something bad must have happened; I’ve never seen her so out of sorts.

“GO!” She grabs my shoulders, her eyes pleading with me. “Run! It’s not safe here!”

My heart races as my stomach twists into a knot. What’s happening? Everything seemed fine earlier. My life was normal again. Now, I have black spots on my hands and Mimi’s clams composure is nowhere to be found.  I can’t help but tremble myself. I’m going to puke. My heart is a rock in my stomach. Why...why do things like this happen?

The screen door flies off its hinges and lands in the yard a few feet from us. Standing in the door frame is the customer from earlier, the one in the black cloak. A twisted grin paints his face. His gray eyes are wide, but not with fear; they’re full of crazed evil intent. The same eyes serial killers must have before they brutally dismember their victims.

“I told you I wouldn’t wait!” He cries, making his way toward us.

Mimi stands in front of me as a guard. “And I told you to leave,” she responds, her tongue colder than ice.

The man laughs. “Nice try.” He peers past her and locks his gaze on me.  “Now hand the girl over. NOW.”

What? This man wants...me? But why? I’m a mixture of fear and anxiety.  My whole body is numb. This is real...this man...this is really happening. I swallow hard. He can’t really want me...can he? There’s nothing special about me; There’s never been anything special about me. I wasn’t born with the gift of magic like Mimi was or light powers like the Queen of Light and her divine servants. I’m just me. Plain, ordinary, me.

Just leave...leave my family alone, you monster.

Mimi glances back at me out of the corner of her eye.  “Go!” she mutters, nudging me with her elbow.

But I’m paralyzed with fear. It eats away at my mind. None of this makes sense. Nothing remotely bad has ever happened  in the time Mimi and I have lived here. Only recently have strange things happened. What happened that made everything take a wrong turn?

Before I either of us can move, the man is standing a few feet in front of Mimi, their faces inches apart.  “I won’t ask again,” he says, his words brutal and his tone gruff. “Hand her over. Or else I’ll be forced to spill blood.” His smile widens at the thought of causing either one of us harm.

Mimi flinches slightly at the thought of any bloodshed. Quickly, she turns and wraps her arms around me like a shield. “I’ll never let you have her!” she cries.

The man pries my mother off of me, tossing her to the side as if she were nothing. He examines me throughly, showing me his jagged teeth. “Yes,” he mutters. “Perfect. The boss will be most pleased.
“Get away from here!” Mimi is already on her feet again. Her hands glow as she fills them with fire, firing it at the stranger.

The fireballs hit his back, but the man doesn’t even wince. “Is that all you got?” He makes his way over to her and knocks her down again. In a swift motion, he sends his boot into her stomach.

“Please!” I scream. “Please leave her alone!”

Mimi rolls across the field, but before she can even sit up, the stranger is towering over her again, his shadow completely engulfing her. “You shouldn’t have messed with me, witch.”

“L-leave her alone!” I plead. Tear swell behind my eyes. “Leave Mimi alone!”

This gets another chuckle out of him. “Don’t worry, sweetie. I’ll get to you later.”

I barely see his hand move. One moment he’s looking at me, and the next, Mimi has several large gashes across her torso. Blood drips down his hand, yet, there’s no weapon to be seen. How...how did he do that? What...just happened.

“Mimi!” I barely have time. I rush over to her; I have to stop the bleeding.

But the man stands in my way. He wipes the excess blood on his cloak, pleased with his work. “All you had to do was give me the girl,” he says. “Not like  I wanted witch blood on my hands.” He turns to face me. “There you are.” He grins.

I flinch, taking a few steps back. What did he do? “W-what do you w-want with me,” I stammer. “W-what did you do to Mimi!”

“Can’t you see,” he says, regarding me as if I’m a complete idiot. “She’s dead.”

What...no...wait...this can’t be right...Mimi can’t be dead. Heavy tears fall down my face. I can barely see what’s in front of me. The world spins so fast I fear I’m going to fall. Air, I need air.

“L-liar,” I whisper between hiccups. I push past him and kneel beside her. Her wounds are deep, creating a puddle of blood under her. “Mimi.” I rest her head in my lap. “Mimi,” I repeat, shaking her gently. “Say something, please…”

No matter what I do, her eyes don’t open. Her body remains as still, only moving if I do it for her. No...she can’t be dead...she can’t be…

“Mimi!” I cry.

There’s a constant stream of tears down my face. I fear they’ll never cease to fall. Needles pinch every nerve in my body; I can’t stop shaking. I repeat her name over and over, until my voice is hoarse.

The man’s maniacal laughter fills the air again. “I hate to break up such a touching moment.” He takes a step toward me. “But time is money. They’ll have my head if I’m late.”

“YOU!” I screech. “YOU DID THIS!” I’m hysterical. Hundreds of thoughts rush into my mind all at once.

It’s all his fault...he did this…

He groans. “Feisty, aren’t ya?” He forcibly rips Mimi out of my hands and wraps his meaty hands around me.

“No!” I scream. “Give her back! You can’t take her from me! You can’t! Let me go!” I kick and punch and scream with all my might. But the man doesn’t budge. He throws me over his shoulder and starts to walk.

“Let me go! Let me go!” Without thinking, I bite his neck.

He lets out a cry of pain. “Hey!” He grunts. “You little brat!” His hand smacks the back of my head and my consciousness is consumed by a black sea. “Goodnight.”