Chapter 10
1548 Words
I walked around the small apartment, one bedroom and open floorplan between the kitchen and living room. Colors all over the place along with pictures. Pictures of Maya and her parents, Victoria, some with people I assumed were her friends. I smiled at them, they all looked so happy and it made me think of my friends. The ones I left to move here. But life with them hasn’t been normal since my mother died, only Jennifer knew about my magical secret. Now it felt good that most of the people in my life knew it, it has given me a chance to be myself. More myself than I ever had before. I liked my new life in the States, it felt like home. It was home.
And now it was time to meet the rest of home, my other family as Maya put it. The coven. The coven that she grew up in, that my mother grew up in. This was the next step in understanding her, why she hadn’t told me about it. Any of it. Maya was taking me to them today. I didn’t know how we would get there or where ’there’ actually was. Maya had been antingen weird ever since I got to her place, like something was wrong. Usually she never stops talking but today she’s barely said more than a few words, until now.
”So are you ready to meet the coven?” She asked me.
”Let’s do it.” I said with a smile and she gave me a faint one back.
”Okay, so we need to open a portal to the realm. It’s like a different dimension thing that leads to the magical kingdom or whatever.”
”Or whatever?”
”Yeah, it sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie I know. But that’s how my mom explained it to me my first time so I figured it was a good way to explain it to you too.”
”Oh, so I’m you at what age? Six? Seven?”
”Ten. Noone under ten is allowed from the outside. Only the ones born in the realm are allowed. It’s some weird rule since like forever. Anyway, are you ready?”
”Yes, so how do we open this portal?”
”You repeat after me. ’Bukas lawang kasunyata’. Got it?”
”Bukas lawang kasunyata?”
”Perfect.”
We stood there, hand in hand while chanting the spell. ’Bukas lawang kasunyata’ over and over again and after the sixth or seventh time a vortex started to form. We said it a few more times until the portal was fully opened. I stirred at it, amazed at what we had created.
”That was the easy step.”
”Do I have to be afraid of walking through that thing?”
”No, just messing with you.” And we both laughed, like we had known each other forever. I guess that’s what family is like. I took her hand in mine and then we walked through the portal. It was like walking on clouds, with lights and colors around us. This is how I imagined being high would look like but with a rush in your head. Suddenly it was all gone and we were standing on a field. Grass, flowers and surrounded by beautiful oak trees.
”Wow.” Was pretty much all I could say at that moment.
”I know, it’s beautiful. I remember asking my mother if we could move here after my first time here.”
”Why don’t you? I mean this looks like a dream.”
”The realm is a dream place, but once you start living the dream it becomes the new normal.”
”So do nightmares.” I mumbled, but she didn’t hear me.
We walked through some trees until we reached the wall of a mountain, I turned to look at her confused. But she just smiled and walked through the rocks, like they weren’t there. Nothing should surprise me anymore when it comes to magic but I couldn’t help it. I reached my hand to the wall and it just went through. The rest of me followed my hand and I walked through. On the other side of the wall was a hallway and at the end was an open space and in the center an old chandelier hung and put a warm light around the space. Along the walls were strings of mini light bulbs and flowers.
”This is kind of awesome, a real witchy feeling over it.”
”That was the plan when we relocated here, you know how grandma is.”
”Oh, that I know.” And once again we laughed like it had always been like this. We walked around the room and Maya was telling me stories about their old place. It was a house closer to the center of the realm and the Empire. The Empire is like a parlamentet of the oldest witch/wizard families in the world. They all live in the realm and are seen like royalty or something like that.
”Hey, Maya!” A blonde guy said as he walked up to us with a tall brunette following behind him.
”Hi Nick. How are you doing?” Maya hugged both of the boys and the brunette picked her up and twirled her around, making her giggle.
”I’m awesome as always. Who are you?” He turned to me when he asked the question.
”Oh, sorry. This is my cousin, she just moved back into town.” Maya introduced me.
”I’m Kendra.” I said and reached out my hand for the guy to shake but he didn’t.
”You’re Ophelia’s daughter.” He stated.
”Yeah, you knew my mother?” I was surprised at meeting someone that knew her but wasn’t family.
”Not really, she was best friends with my aunt growing up.”
”Oh, I would love to meet her and maybe get some gossip on my mother’s old mischieves.” I smiled but the guy didn’t.
”She died when they were teenagers.” When he said it I knew who his aunt was, the best friend that my mother named me after.
”I’m sorry. I didn’t..” He didn’t let me finish the sentence before curling me off.
”It’s okay, how could you?” He smiled, a smile that made all my worries go away.
”Thanks. So Nick?” I asked.
”Yeah, sorry. Nick Cooper and this is my best friend Edward.” He formally introduced himself and his friend.
”Nice to meet you Edward.” I said with a smile and handshake.
”You too Kendra. So, Maya has talked a lot about you but she didn’t make you justice. You look hot.” His words took me by surprise, he was bold and I kind of liked it. It was different.
”Uhm.. Thanks?” I said, giving him a questioning look. Asking if he was hitting on me.
”Oh, I’m so not hitting on you. You’re not my type.” He said with a smile, looking over at Maya.
”Okay.. so what is?” I asked, giving him a smirking look. Thinking that he and Maya were a thing or something like that.
”Neither am I, sorry but he shoots for the other team.” Maya gave me a smirk back.
”Really? I could use a guy like you.”
”Oh, please use me babe.” He said and we all just laughed. All through it I could feel Nick looking at me, not in a weird way.
I couldn’t help but think that I know him, that I’ve met him but I just couldn’t place his face in my memories. Maya must have seen the look between us as she told Edward to help with something across the room, leaving me and Nick alone.
”She is nothing but discreet.”
”Oh you have no idea.” He said and scratched his neck as a few seconds of awkward silence surrounded us.
”So why does it feel like I know you from somewhere?” I asked, breaking the silence.
”Maybe it’s because we’ve met before?” He said and looked at me like I should remember.
”When? I think I would remember that?” I searched my mind but I couldn’t find the right piece.
”How much do you remember from before you moved away?” He said and gave me a curious look.
”Not much to be honest.” I confessed and it was something that still made me upset and sad, that I had a part of my life that I didn’t remember.
”Well, we used to play together until you moved away. You stole my favorite teddy bear.” He said the last part with the worst fake frown I’ve ever seen.
”Wait, the little brown one with a white ribbon around one ear?” I had only had one teddy bear growing up.
”Yes! That’s the one.” He smiled with so much joy that it made me smile. I may not have remembered him but I remembered that teddy bear. I slept with it every night after we moved cause it reminded me of ’home’, my home before Sweden.
”I still have it, if you wanted it back I mean.” I offered with a smirk and on some level I knew he wouldn’t.
”No, it’s okay. I was so sad when I realized you took him with you when you moved but after a while I saw it as he would be looking after you. Keeping you safe.” He looked at me and the rest of the world disappeared, like I was floating. But then Marcel’s face flashed before my eyes and I felt guilty for just looking at him.
”Well, thank you for that. I’ve felt very safe.” I snapped out of my haze.
”Good.” He just smiled at me and it filled me with warmth, something that I hadn’t felt in a long time. It made me want to keep him close all of the time.
- Writer
