TUNES

EIGHTEEN: A RARE MAGIC

We all stared as though we were watching a thriller series.

"Donald Pathaway?" Eska asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Yeah, an old but powerful magician. He knows all about magic, including dark magic."

"But what type of magic could he have used to resurrect Charles?" Rejoice asked, and Raymond sighed.

"Necromancy, a spell for raising or speaking to the dead. It was used in ancient times, but many abused its power, so it became forbidden. The practice was never taught again. We almost thought it didn’t exist."

"So you're suspecting that he might have had a hand in this?" Pink asked.

"I'm afraid so."

After the long conversation and thrills, we departed the office.

In class, we were having math, and I found it very hard to pay attention. The class was kind of dull; most of my classmates were busy with their phones, some were asleep, others just stared coldly and emptily at the teacher.

Zack was asleep beside me, Sam and Genora were at the front, seriously taking notes. I was feeling a bit dizzy but forced myself to stay awake.

This was impossible, as the battle to stay awake was intense. This went on for several minutes until I found the perfect distraction: drawing.

While I was suddenly engrossed in what I was doing, everything around me suddenly became so quiet. I looked up curiously and saw that everything was moving in slow motion, very slow—except for me.

What in the world?!

I immediately stopped what I was doing, surprised to see everything like this. The atmosphere was still, and I began to hear whispering noises.

What's going on?

I stood up and walked from my seat to the front of the class. Our math teacher was speaking very slowly. Even when blinking, his eyes would close slowly. I wanted to touch him, but before I could, I heard a soft knock on the door.

I looked up slowly, and outside stood the same woman I had seen in the woods. Her face was visible through the small opening in the door.

I gasped. What is she doing here? I glanced at her—she smiled, her golden eyes sparkling. Even though she had dark skin, she looked so pale.

My attention was drawn to her, and I couldn't take my eyes off her. From inside, I caught a glimpse of what she was wearing.

She wore a shredded black gown, which happened to be wet from the water dripping off her hair and face.

I took one step forward with the intention of confronting her for following me all the way from the woods, but as I reached for the door, she turned to leave. Before I could open it, everything returned to normal, and the bell rang for school dismissal.

I quickly grabbed my bag and ran after her, but she was gone. I couldn't find her anywhere.

On my way to the locker room, I saw Charles with a group of people, talking. They must have been curious about his reappearance in school, and I bet he was telling them what he told us.

I shook my head and turned to leave but couldn't help but wonder: Would he know about Annie's whereabouts?

I walked up to him, disrupting their little gathering.

"Hey, Charles, can I have a minute?"

He nodded.

"Sure."

Then he excused himself.

"Hey, Terra, what's up?"

"I'm doing fine," I replied with a smile. "Erm, the reason I called you out is that, well, I just wanted to ask if you knew the whereabouts of Annie."

He looked at me a little confused, as if I were speaking a foreign language.

"Annie? Who’s Annie?"

My eyes widened upon hearing his reply, but I chose not to jump to conclusions.

"Annie Brodway, your girlfriend."

He laughed, which was kind of surprising.

"I'm sorry, but I don’t know anyone named Annie Brodway. Whatever... I don’t even have a girlfriend."

Man, it was as if I were talking to a stranger. He seemed different, sounded different, and acted different. The Charles we all knew was crazy about Annie, but this one...

Is he pretending, or does he want to start over again? Or maybe he’s tired of her and sees this as his ticket out?

Still, something about him seems off, and I’m starting to think Raymond was right. If this is somehow connected to my vision, then magic is involved.

"Erm... Sorry, it must have been a misunderstanding."

"Yeah, sure," he said and went back to the crowd.

I stared at him for a while before moving on. Before entering the locker room, I turned back and saw him staring at me in a strange manner, as if he were suspicious of me.

I quickly went in; his eyes seemed scary and off. I was walking fast to get to my locker when I bumped into Pink.

"Ouch! Girl, why the rush?"

I stared at her as she held her chin, which I'd unintentionally slammed into.

I brushed off any thoughts clouding my jead about Charles and moved toward my locker. 
"I'm so sorry."

Eska stared at me, refusing to take no for an answer. 
"Hey, girl, why the rush?"

Unable yo brush her off me, i replied
"Well, it's Charles. Something about him seems off."

"What is?" Pink asked, then Summer cut in.

"Everything. I just find it hard to believe his story, but who knows? Resa and Alexa might just show up alive and well."

I shook my head. 
"It's not that. I had a little chat with him, asking if he knew where Annie was, but he denied ever knowing her."

"Wow, now that’s strange," Eska said.

"That’s not the worst part. He even denied having a girlfriend. Talking to him felt so strange, and when I left, I noticed him staring at me suspiciously."

"Geez," Pink sighed. "What’s happening?"

"Whatever’s happening, it’s not good," Eska highlighted putting her books in her locker and taking out her bag.

That night, at my hostel, I picked up my laptop and did some research on Donald Pathaway but found no data on him.

Weird.

How come there’s no data on someone who’s believed to be very powerful?

Or is this a cover-up?

No! That wouldn’t make sense. So I searched for the forbidden magic Raymond had mention earlier. There were several articles and news reports on it. I read as many articles i could, but none of them connected to the vision I had.

Finally, after so much research, I put my laptop away. It was no use—there was no connection, and it made no sense at all.

I wanted to believe that Raymond had a hand in this and that he was lying, but I couldn't shake the vision I had at the clinic, and somehow, it might be connected to this mysterious Donald Pathaway he mentioned.

"Donald Pathaway," I said the name repeatedly, then I recalled the vision I had, every detail.

He saw me.

How?

Why?

"Donald Pathaway."

He's real!