Mirrortime - What makes out real Friendship?

Chapter two: Doubts

Carnelian Hower watched Phoebe thoughtfully. Her granddaughter stirred in her soup and stared at the huge pot from where ist steamed, apparently completely lost in thoughts."All right, darling?" She asked Phoebe. Phoebe cringed scared, because she had thought about something else for the moment. „No, it's all good!" answered Phoebe absent-mindedly and went on stirring in her soup. Her grandma nodded, but looked not a bit convinced. The two of them finished their lunch in silence.

After lunch, Phoebe went to her room to think by herself. The black-haired girl hadn't got much friends and she worried when she would go to boarding school, that would lost touch with them completely. „How do I say to them, that I have magical powers? They would laugh at me surely... I should think this carefully through and do not make decisions I could regret later!" She reminded herself. She sighed and decided to go down again and see, if her grandma could need some help. But her grandma was already finished and solved a jig-saw puzzle as Phoebe entered the kitchen. „Grandma, isn't it funny, that mother said I should go to boarding school, although she didn't care for me the last thirteen years? Should not you make the decision about that? You're my actual guardian and not mother." The lady looked up. „Phoebe, your mother wants the best for you. And it isn't forbidden to write you a letter and ask you to go to Mirrortime." She said gently. „But it sounds, if I hadn't got a choice.", insisted Phoebe. „And anyway, I don't follow the orders from a women who hates me since thirteen years and let me prescribe to which school I have to go to!" She added defiantly. „Darling, don't be so rashly now! Maybe you will feeling welcome there", tried the her grandmother to appease her. Phoebe glanced doubtfully of the letter, who laid still at the table. „What is the reason, why you're so scared?" Phoebe said nothing and for a whole time there was silence in the room, until Phoebe cleared her throat and through that she got her grandmother's attention. „It's simply...", stammered Phoebe. „That since yesterday I had no idea, that I'm a Mirrorgirl and I don't know a bit about them, what they exactly are and what they can do with her magical powers. Additionally I'm scared of loosing my friends and don't make new friends there and I don't know how I should explain to the three of them, that I will be leaving school soon and go to a new one and that I have special powers. Grandma, what I'm worrying the most about is, that I will lost touch to them completely, once I'm in Mirrortime!" The grandmother put an arm round Phoebe's shoulders. „I understand your feelings. If I were in the same situation, I would be scared too. But to answer your questions in order: Sadly I can't explain what are exactly the powers of a Mirrorgirl, because I'm no proper Mirrorgirl. I do know that there are four powers, but I only can manage one of them and that's Mirrorspeaking." „And who should explain all the things to me then? I don't want to go unprepared!" Her grandmother hesitated. „When you think, I'll ask mother, forget it!", snorted Phoebe. „I can relinquish to ask a women who do not love me!" She shook her grandmother's arm away. „She wrote, she loves me but I think that's a lie! If she really would like me, she would have kept me and secondly she would have written much earlier instead only one time in thirteen years!" Now her grandmother slowly became a little bit angry too. „How many times I have to say that Cosima couldn't bear you, because you would have the same powers like my second daughter?" She said. She saw into the sparkling eyes of her granddaughter and recognised hate and contempt in them. „Where are the proofes that mother is telling me the truth? It can be that she made up that story of being me a Mirrorgirl and you are colluding with her, because you want to make me come out ridicolous!", dashed Phoebe in direction of her grandmother. Then she turned and ran outside. Before the pond she stopped. Because of the warm weather she distended herself from her shoes and stockings and dangled with her foot in the water. The whole time she thought about the things she had said to her grandma. „It wasn't fair!" She thought guilty. „I have to apologize later!"

While Phoebe sat by the pond, Carnelian made a decision. „I will ring Consuela, ask her advice and say, that she should explain everything to Phoebe"". She concluded. She grabbed the phone and chose the long number from her daughter. Luckily for her, it didn't take long to reach Consuela. „Consuela Hower here, whom I'm speaking to?" answered Phoebes aunt. „It's your mother", gave back Carnelian with a little smile in her face. „Oh mother, that's a great surprise, you're ringing me!" Consuela was pleased. „But why you're ringing me?" „It's about my graddaughter Phoebe. She is your niece as you know and I had hoped, you could explain to her, what a Mirrorgirl is and what they can do, you surely understand." „Yes, I do..." said her daughter, slowly. „So my niece inherited the special powers as well?" „Yes, she does!", confirmed Consuela's Mother. „Ok, please give that Phoebe to me, will you?" The grandmother just wanted to call for Phoebe, when her granddaughter came running into the house. „Couldn't I speak to my mother's sister?", gasped Phoebe breathlessly. Her granny began to laugh. „I've just asked her to explain you everything. Here she is". Sie gave the phone to Phoebe, who ran upstairs into her room, that she could speak without being disturbed. „Hello?" the tall, dark-haired girl said a little excited. „Hello Phoebe, here is your aunt Consuela speaking with you", sounded back a voice. „Nice to meet you! How you've learned by now surely, you are a Mirrorgirl. The girls have special powers. They can go through mirrors, speak through mirrors to somebody, spy through mirrors and see through mirrors." „But what's the acttrativeness at the whole thing? I mean I can talk to somebody normally, therefore I don't need a mirror!" interrupted Phoebe her aunt. „The question is entitled!", responded her aunt. „The acttrativeness is, that all you do is going through this little handmirrors, you will get there in boarding school. In your dormy and the classrooms your only communication possibility is through these little handmirrors" „Why? And why do you know that I should go to boarding school soon?" „I don't know, but it was the custom to go to boarding school when I was a student. I am a Mirrorgirl too, remember? And I was in boarding school too when I was your age. In boarding school Mirrortime." „That's the boarding school I should go to next", cried Phoebe."What's Mirrortime like?" She asked after a short pause. „It's pretty nice. There are 16 new girls and four different houses. That mean, you will be four first formers in one dormy. Are you looking forward to it?" „Don't know!", confessed Phoebe in a low voice. „Wait, you will have a splendid time there.", promised Consuela. I don't know yet, if I want to go!", burst out Phoebe, which made Consuela remain quiet for a while. „Why you think that? There is a place reserved for you, isn't it?" „Yes! But..." Phoebe broke off and had to swallow. „But what?", asked her aunt. „But I am scared of loosing my friends completely I have at home and don't get in touch with other boarders there. If that would happen, I would have no one I could call my friend!" „I understand your worries very well! But certainly you're not the only one who feels lonely in Mirrortime at first, so there might be other girls, who are eager to make friends and get in touch with you! So don't worry about that too much. How you should solve the issue with your friends at home, I don't know either. If you get good marks in school, you could tell them, you're going to boarding school to.. what's your education way?" „Junior high school (Realschule)" answered Phoebe „...to make grammar school (Abitur/A-Levels)", suggested her aunt. Phoebe thought for a moment. „I really could explain it that way! Thank you!" She said. „I've got another question: Have I something to bring with me to Mirrortime? There was nothing said in the letter, but..." „No, if there isn't anything listed, you haven't. You'll get the handmirror, I was speaking about earlier, there." „Ok. And how is it with the lessons? Because there I will have lessons, I have to learn something from." „Yes, of course, you will have subjects there. But how it will be you'll learn there. You have to be in boarding school until 15 o'clock. You know how to get there, don't you?" „Yes", answered Phoebe. „Oh, Granny is calling for me. I think I should slowly finish... thanks for all the information you gave to me today, Consuela." „No problem. I hope, you'll enjoy yourself in Mirrortime! If you have any question in the future, don't hesistate to contact me!" Phoebe thanked again and was be able to hang up, as another question came into her mind: „To which house you had belonged too?" „Mirrorgreen", said her aunt with a smile.

Later that day, while Phoebe laid in bed, she thought one's more about the conversation with the sister of her mother. „Now I only have to get a solution for the thing with my friends!"