Passages

Chapter 2

"Sweetheart?"

It was the same woman.

"What's your name?"

"Baylee."

"Baylee. Look at this."

It was a huge circular glass pane at the ceiling.

"It's a telescope. Look, you can move it."

The lady pushed a lever, and the angle changed.

Baylee stared at the top. It was snowing, but the glass was clear.

"It sticks out a bit, so it isn't covered in snow."

"Why was this made?"

"So that we can see where we are and how life is above. Isn't it beautiful?"

Baylee nodded. It really was.

She had never seen anything like that before.

It was probably because she had never been in those conditions before.

"Our Middle Passage is famous for being the only one that has this," the woman announced proudly. "I'm Miss Baker, by the way. You can call me Lilac."

"Thank you."

"No need for that. We're gonna have to become close-we'll only have each other during this journey."

"How long will it be?"

"I can't tell you the precise number, but around three months."

Three months. That's the length of winter.

"Will I be able to practice magic?"

"Probably, if we find a way to."

Baylee lay down and closed her eyes.

She still had no idea where she would end up in the future.

Her life at home was now blurring in her memory; she could already feel it slipping away, out of her grasp.

Everything was gone now. She only had herself left.

And she had to save herself- so that she had a normal future.

A future like every other person had.

She wondered where her friends were now and realized they were traveling down the Lower Passage. That was where all the kids went.

And she was here.

For a moment she felt special, then she felt left out again.

The war began a few hours ago, but it had already ruined her whole life.

Baylee fell asleep. She had no idea how she managed to, but she did.