Chapter 7

~~Aila~~

Adreanna and I put our discomfort with our mothers’ decision to withhold information from us to the side in favor of spending a few more minutes enjoying their presence. No doubt we’ll be missing them since we won’t be able to see them for six months. I’ve never been away from my mother for more than a week, so I’ve no doubt that six months without her will be trying. And there’s no telling if we’ll actually be permitted to call, text, email, write… anything.
So instead of hounding them about what they think is going on, we cuddle up on the couch together and chat about what majors we might be interested in.
“I’m just saying, Adreanna, Business might be helpful for The Shoppe….”
“True, but I want to learn all the secrets they try to keep from plebs like us… a special academy for the elite of society is bound to have loads of information we don’t normally have access to…”
“True, but be careful chasing secrets… What about you, Aila, any ideas for your major?”
“Not really, Emery… Probably something about the magic… maybe Magizoology… I’ve always wanted to groom unicorns.”
“Well, if we’re focusing on magic, then maybe I’ll go for magical enforcement…” muses Adreanna.
My mom snorts, shaking her head.
“What!? You don’t think I can enforce the rules?!”
“More like break them, Na,” says Emery, laughing.
Adreanna pouts for a moment before cracking a grin and joining in the laughter.
“I guess you do have a point…”
The time we have left with our mothers passes in a flash of laughing and joking, and before I realize it, a knock on the door interrupts our joy.
“Miss Cosima, Miss Merridan, your escort has arrived. Please say your final goodbyes.”
The guard silently closes the door, allowing us one last moment of privacy. Our mothers gather us into one giant hug, squeezing us affectionately while tears drip down their faces.
“I’m gonna miss you girls,” says my mother with a sniffle, Emery nodding in agreement.
“We’ll miss you too… If they let us, we’ll write and call as much as we can.”
“OK…. You do that, baby…” my mom whispers as she tucks my hair behind my ear and inspects me.
Whatever she finds must meet with her approval, because after a moment, she nods and steps back, folding her arms across her chest. The door opens once more as Emery pulls back from Adreanna, patting her face. We turn as one to see our escort, who slowly steps into the room, a serious look on his face.
He inspects us both, a frown tugging at his face.
“They didn’t even let you clean up?”
“Should they have?” I ask curiously.
“It is customary to allow the new students to shower before sending them off… I guess they couldn’t be bothered since you’re on scholarship… typical.”
“Don’t sound so excited to be assisting us…” mutters Adreanna sarcastically.
“My apologies, I don’t mean it as insult… I’m also a scholarship student. I just mean that it’s typical that they did not offer you the same comforts as those who already knew what to prepare for.”
“And you’re surprised by this?” I ask, quirking an eyebrow.
He looks startled for a moment before bursting out laughing.
“Of course, you’re right that I shouldn’t be shocked. Anyhow, shall we? Your parents can accompany us to the portal, but from there, we’re on our own.”
“Portal? I thought we were driving?”
“First years are portaled in after they’re awakened.”
“Ah, the VIP treatment, eh?”
His lips quirk as he leads us from the room.
“Something like that. If you’ve never traveled by portal, it can be a little disconcerting.”
“Naturally. Have you ever traveled by portal, mom?”
“A few times… I’m sure you’ll both be fine…”
“We can hope,” mutters Adreanna, taking my hand.
He hands us each a pair of cuff-shaped bangles, which he shows us how to operate. Each has a button to release the latch, but those will be inactive until we pass our control exam in three weeks, we learn. Once the cuffs are secured, we follow our guide through winding hallways, stopping before a door that has more guards stationed outside of it.
“They’re pretty serious about security here,” mutters Emery.
“It’s for the protection of everyone… the last thing anyone wants is a disoriented class V running around.”
Emery grimaces at his words, nodding in agreement.
“What do you mean, class 5?”
“Powers are placed into ten classes, anyone displaying the type of power you two showed earlier is defaulted to Class V and shipped off to the academy, where we’re taught to harness our abilities and separated into different power categories. You’ll be assessed there and sorted into Class V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, or X. And the classes are written as Roman Numerals, in case you didn’t know… I didn’t and made an ass of myself the first week…”
“Well, thanks for warning us,” I tell him with a chuckle.
“Not a problem. I’m afraid this is where your journey ends, My Ladies. Have no fear, I’ll make sure your daughters are settled in and taken care of properly… they won’t be left to flounder like I was.”
“That’s very kind of you….”
“Ah, right, sorry. It’s Amadeus. Amadeus Merlin.”
“Merlin, eh? I remember your becoming… it was almost as frightening as our girls’.”
“Which is probably why they asked me if I’d be interested in guiding them… scholarship students are pretty rare.”
“Yes, they are… well, I’ll trust you to take care of our girls,” my mom says, tugging me into one last hug before turning and walking away, arm in arm with Emery.
Once our mothers are out of sight, we turn and enter the room, the whirring and whistling sound of the portal filling the air. The small hairs along my body stand up, goosebumps racing up and down my arms and back as Adreanna whistles.
“So… we’re going to step into that swirling well of power?” she asks hesitantly.
“Yes, ma’am. It’s definitely disorienting at first, but if you breathe in deeply before stepping in, and release the breath when your feet hit the solid ground on the other side, then you’ll come out better than I did my first time…”
“Noted… Can we cross at the same time, or is it a single file thing?”
“It actually is a little easier to cross together… I’d recommend holding hands, if you’re not averse to it…” he holds out his hand.
I look at it for a moment before clasping his hand in my own and Adreanna’s in my other.
“Ready, ladies?”
“As I’ll ever be,” grunts Adreanna.
Amadeus nods and steps forward, each of us mirroring his motion. I breathe in deeply as we plunge into the swirling mass, everything stretching and pulling as it sucks us in.