Haven

A Lesson in Invisibility

The following day, I went to school early to see Mr. Fisher. He was sitting calmly at his desk.

"I was told you could be trusted, Mr. Fisher, and to come to you if I had any questions." He pointed at the desk before him, and I let the cloak fall around me from where I hid it in the hoodie. "The old man said it was connected to me, so does that mean I can change what it looks like?" I asked. Mr. Fisher jumped up and closed the door.

"He didn't tell you how to use magic."

"He said a lot of things but nothing really specific."

"Magic, first you imagine what you want; you must have real concentration. Then you say a command word; you can say it quietly. Finally, you have to believe it will happen; there can be no doubt." I closed my eyes and repeated, 'Not a cloak.' The weight on my shoulders changed, and I was wearing a leather jacket when I opened my eyes.

"I did it." I looked at my jacket, satisfied with my work.

"Barely, it didn't even work the first time and wasn't nearly specific enough. Flipping into different objects before it settled on the leather jacket. I told him you're a mistake and can't do it, but he didn't listen to me."

"fine, I won't bother you again."

"No, you will be here tomorrow at the same time to go over how to use magic, and don't waste time finding the kids. do you understand?" I was mad at him for talking to me like I was a small child that he was reprimanding. I stood and, with as much attitude as possible, "Haven, the old guy believes in you. I think you are the worst mistake for the future, but I do hope you prove me wrong." he opened the door for me to leave "don't forget to put on the medicine every two hours." he closed the door behind me. I was tempted to kick it or scream. How could he say that he doesn't know what I am capable of? He just assumes that I will fail. I groaned and walked to my locker. Lucia came up to me when she saw me.

"Why didn't you get a ride today, and where were you yesterday? Based on your outfit today, I am assuming you were sick."

"Yes, I'm not feeling good, so I'm going to find a place to sit down." I walked away, and all day long, I sat in silence. At the back of classes and on the edge of lunch tables, It felt like I was in a bubble with everything I couldn't tell them.

At the end of the day, I snuck off from my friends to apply the paste. I found myself finally alone in the stairwell to the school's basement. I took a deep breath and leaned against the cold tile wall before I put on the paste. I heard the noise of jiggling a door handle and panicked, thinking about my scar. Peeking out the glass window in the door, I momentarily saw a guy press his hand on the lock from my vantage point. Then the door opened quickly, but it should have been locked. I followed him as he entered the room. Peeking through the crack where the door was left ajar. I saw the kid sit at the desk and open the computer with no problem. He was one of the smart kids in the school, with sweaters and clean shoes, the guy I had never noticed before. He was flying through the password page, touching the computer. I strained my eyes but still couldn't see. I hadn't known about magic long, but I knew this was magic. He opened different files on the computer, looking for something I was unsure about, and printed it out. With one tap on the computer, he was logged out and shut down. I should have run then but didn't.

With the paper in his bag, he turned and saw me through the crack. I panicked again and ran, not as successfully this time because of my wound. This guy was right behind me. There was an empty classroom coming up, so I turned it in. Pulling my hood over my head to cover my light-colored hair as I hid behind the teacher's desk. He followed right after glancing around and cutting on the lights. I was caught; it was just a matter of time. he walked around the class momentarily as I slid under the teacher's desk and held my breath. He came closer, ready to find me. Have I already failed? I was told that they couldn't know I was here; maybe Mr. Fisher was right. The boy stood in front of where I sat. I could feel my pulse quicken and my heart pound. The chair that obscured my position was thrown free; now, I had a clear view of the boy. I had seen him around, and he was in many of my classes. Ned, that was his name, but he looked through me.

"Haven, I saw you run in here. I can explain; why were you watching me?". He waited in vain, then grunted in frustration, "You can't just disappear." he threw the chair back under the desk. I bit my lip to keep myself from crying out. Ned left in a hurry, trying to find where I went. I took a deep breath, wondering how he could not see me until I looked down. I was gone; invisible Panic set in fast. I couldn't even think how to try to get out of this. I just started to go to Mr. Fisher's room. The halls of the school were empty as I went, avoiding hitting people in my path. I walked into the edge of the sunlight, and my leg became visible as if a black cloud was around it. When I removed my leg from the light, I was invisible again. Without proper time to investigate, I avoided the light during my travels. A student was taking a test when I arrived at Mr. Fisher's room. I sat down in the darkest corner and waited. Mr. Fisher cleaned his room while the kid was there; he wiped down all the desks and swept the floor. After he was done with that, he went to reorganize his bookshelf. Students take the books daily and don't always return them the same way. He put them on the shelf by size and level of usability. The kid would ask Mr. Fisher questions about his test, just asking what the answers were. By the sixth time, I accidentally giggled at the ridiculousness of his repetition. Mr. Fisher dropped a book he held at my sound and searched for its source.

"Look, I didn't know what I was doing, so this isn't good."

"Are you sure you are ready to turn it in?" Mr. Fisher asked as he grabbed the test.

"Yeah, it's fine. I need to get to soccer practice. The end of the season is coming up." The boy left, and Mr. Fisher watched him leave with that disappointed look that teachers and parents do well. I followed him to the desk, uncertain how to let him know I was there. His pace slowed to a stop, and then, quick as lightning, he spun around, hand on my throat, as my back and head slammed into a desk.