The Magic of Cain

A First Lesson

A/N:
Date 8-3-17

Hey everyone! So I'm finally back on Wattpad with the first chapter of TMoC!

I'm not sure what my schedule will be, but I'll figure it out soon :)

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Word Count: 2557

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Chapter 1: A First Lesson

Vanessa stares at her hand, which she holds out in front of her, palm up. She narrows her eyes as if that'll help her concentration, but it doesn't achieve anything.

With a sigh of frustration, she curls her fingers into a fist and closes her eyes. "John, this isn't working." She says with an exasperated exhale.

"Maybe if you opened your eyes..." John teases, sitting back in an armchair and watching Vanessa's continuously failed attempts at using her magic.

She opens her blue eyes to stare into his lighter eyes, ignoring his previous comment. "John, this isn't working." She repeats to get him to be serious.

John twines his fingers together and stares at his hands, his bright blond hair hanging in front of his face so Vanessa can't see his eyes. "You have to be patient. Your magic may not come naturally yet."

"I can see that." She replies a bit glumly.

John looks up at Vanessa with a small crooked smile, leaning forward in his seat to rest his elbows on his knees. "Hey, you can do this. We've only been working on this for a few days."

"And we're getting no results!" She exclaims, pacing through her living room a few feet away from him.

"To be fair, we weren't really working on magic then." John points out, making Vanessa pause in her tracks.

She has to admit that John is right. They've set up a few days after school when they were supposed to work on magic, but they always got off track, talking about school or just their lives. At one point, Vanessa caught John up on what had happened with Selynn and the whole zombie issue.

"I guess you're right." She sighs, tucking a stray piece of her icy blond hair behind her ear.

She waits for the "of course I'm right" response that most people would reply with, but it doesn't come. John shrugs but doesn't say anything to brag or shove his confidence in her face like Adrian seems to do.

He feels Vanessa's gaze on him. He looks up slowly at her to find her staring at him with an unreadable expression and the slightest of smiles.

He decides not to bring that up. Instead, he makes Vanessa a promise. "I'm going to teach you magic right now. By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to do at least one spell."

Vanessa's jaw drops and she quickly closes her mouth as she takes in what he just said. "Are you sure? We just started..." She reminds him, unsure of her abilities.

John leans back in his chair, putting on the appearance of someone at ease when really, he's just as nervous as her. If not more.

"I'm sure that you can do this, Vanessa. By what you've told me, you've already tapped into your powers on some level." John assures her.

Vanessa frowns slightly in confusion, so he elaborates. "I don't know anyone else who can hold their breath underwater for thirty minutes."

"Oh, that." She resumes her pacing. "It's been a while since I've done that." She adds, lowering her self confidence a bit.