The Girl Who Ended Magic

1: The story of Mari

           Kayan tried to get some sleep but his body twinged with energy. He rolled out of bed and headed downstairs for a midnight snack. He tiptoed across the hallway trying not to wake up his mother. Once he reached the first floor he turned to head to the kitchen.
          Kayan grabbed a plate and opened the door of the refrigerator. The little light blinked on, revealing shelves stocked with various foods. Just on the brink of six Kayan he could barely reach the second shelf. He looked up to the shelf with milk, determination filling his eyes.
           He grabbed some books off the nearest bookcase and set them on the ground. He stood on top of them and reached out hand skimming the shelf. He was about to grab more books when a hand reached into the refrigerator and took the bottle.
           Kayan turned around nervously, "mom I just wanted a snack I'll go back to bed soon."
          "There's no need to say that. Don't worry I won't tell your mother," Kayan took in the figure eyes trying to adjust to the light.
           He stepped closer and jumped in glee, "aunt Naomi."
           "Don't be to  loud we don't want to wake your mother," she pulled out some cookies and put it on a plate. She then poured the milk and pulled out a chair.
            "I remember when you didn't need ladders to reach high objects. Before you were born everyone had magic. You could just cast a simple spell and the object you wanted would appear in you hands. Almost all problems could be solved with magic. That feels like a long time ago though," there was a twinge of sadness in her voice.
            Kayan sat on the chair and started eating his cookies. He wondered what magic would look like, how It would have worked. He looked up at his aunt eyes blazing with curiosity, "what happened to magic."
             Naomi took the chair beside Kayan and let out a breath, "to know that you need to hear the story of princess Mari. It all started just before you were born in the palace of Altera."
             Naomi began telling story. She still had her coat on wet with morning rain. Her words telling the story that had been told hundreds of times by now. It was the story of the girl who destroyed magic.
            "Ten years ago there was a ball to celebrate the queen's twentieth birthday. The ball was beautiful in my opinion. It was open to only royals but the queen and I were school friends so she was able to snag me a ticket.
             Everyone was dressed in their finest silks. The room was the perfect temperature and it smelled of your best memories. It was at that party that I meet your uncle but I wasn't the only one who found love that night. The queen meet her husband there.
           He was an amazing person and after a few years they had a child. They named her Mari after her grandmother. The child was beautiful but she had a acute sensitivity to magic. Every spell cast would have a negative affect on her.
          As she began to grow up her reactions became worse. One day they brought in a medic to put a spell on her until they found out what was happening. She was put into an endless sleep. After weeks of tests they finally found the problem.
           The doctors suggested to wait until a cure was found to wake her, but the queen grew restless. Even under the spell the princess grew weary. Her hair and eyes took  on a tint of gray, like storm clouds just before rain. This worried the queen but it was not the reason she banned magic.
          The third year after Mari's birth the queen was to have another child. Worried that this child would have the same reaction to magic she put a ban on it. Some rebelled but most didn't. I tried to talk her out of it but in turn she banned me from ever returning to the castle.
          From what I have heard, Mari lives in the castle with her sister. After magic was banned she became better, her reactions stopped, even her hair turned back to a chestnut brown color. The only sign that she was ever ill is her dark gray eyes. I think that magic never should have been banned though."
         A door opened from the second floor followed by footsteps.
         A woman's voice echoed from the stairwell. It was deep yet calming, "if you are going tell my son why there is not magic you might as well tell him the full story. After the queen banned magic she threatened to destroy anyone who rebelled. Those who did were hunted down and killed.
         The month after the ban her husband died by a curse that was cast upon him by a rebel. The curse could have been removed by magic but she refused. After that, she became unhinged destroying cities and creating weapons. She pushed everyone away including her oldest friend," she gave a look to Naomi, "time for bed Kayan. Your aunt and I have a lot to discuss."
          Kayan went towards the stairs but his aunt blocked his was. His mother gave her a look but all she did was give him a hug. He felt her slip something into his back pocket. When he got upstairs he took out the slip of paper. On it in black ink was written, no matter what happens in the next few days the world needs magic back.