Magicae

Chapter 37: Remember

Alex was the last to emerge from the closet, and he stumbled into Justin as they entered the hall. "What— ow!"

Justin looked at Alex with a serious expression. "We've been caught," he mouthed.

"So, would any of you care to explain what the six of you were doing an hour after curfew, in a janitor's closet with the word MALUM carved into the door?"

It was Mrs. Justus, and she was furious. "After you three came into my office with magic exposure, I checked in your rooms to make sure you got back safely. They were both empty! And here you are, having vandalized school property! The Malum is no joking matter. I don't know what you were trying to accomplish by carving it, but—"

"We didn't carve that!" Penny's voice wavered slightly, but she held fast. "It was already there when we got here."

"And what, may I ask, were you doing here in the first place?" Mrs. Justus crossed her arms.

"We came to rescue Juliette!" Alex said.

Mrs. Justus groaned. "I thought we had established that you made her up as a result of magic exposure. Juliette Unni doesn't exist."

"Well, as much as I hate to contradict a teacher..." Juliette stepped forward from behind Emma.

A strange expression passed over Mrs. Justin's face, and she blinked several times. "I... I remember," she said slowly. "But... Who erased the memories in the first place?"

Juliette shrugged. "We don't know. But if I had to guess..." She pointed to the carving on the door.

Mrs. Justus frowned. "You're probably right. I think... let's go see Mr. Magister. He needs to hear about this."

They nodded.

★★★

"This is serious. A mind meddler... Mrs. Justus, could you please contact Mrs. Proditor as soon as you can? Her powers are similar... she may be able to help." Mr. Magister surveyed them solemnly.

Mrs. Justus nodded and left the office as Mr. Magister looked the kids over.

"Tell me everything that happened. And don't leave anything out, because I will know."

Alex glanced at the others. Seeing no one else willing to speak, Alex sighed and began the story.

Mr. Magister listened intently, occasionally nodding his head. He interrupted only twice, the first being when Alex spoke of telling the others about being the Fabulosa.

Instead of criticizing Alex, Penny, and Juliette for sharing, Mr. Magister looked each of the other kids in the eye. "You understand that you must not share this information with anyone— not your friends, your family, even any other teachers."

Justin spoken for them all, saying, "You can trust us."

The second time Mr. Magister interrupted was when Alex explained about the Fabulosa taking over their minds. The headmaster sighed.

"I was worried this would happen."

Alex stopped mid sentence. "What?"

"Well, of course we haven't taught the Fabulosa before, but we have had students who could transform into animals. Sometimes, during their first transformation, the animal mind may try to take over."

"Will it happen again?" Juliette asked.

"Probably not..." Mr. Magister began, and Juliette's shoulders slumped with relief. "... but be on your guard during your next transformation."

She nodded. Alex, anxious to finish, blurted out the rest of the story. Mr. Magister nodded slowly once he finished.

"It seems as if you seven have had quite a day. What I want you to now is  to get some sleep. Don't tell anyone about this, and just get back to your regular schedule."

Alex nodded. Weariness was beginning to set in, and his bed was sounding increasingly comfortable.

"Penny, Juliette, Alex? Let's skip out Saturday lesson this week. I think you have been through enough."

They gratefully nodded and began the trek back to the dorms, not speaking.

As soon as he got back to his and Justin's room, Alex flopped weakly onto his bed, not even bothering to hit the lift switch.

Almost immediately, sleep swallowed him.

I am so, so, sorry.

I don't know why I haven't been able to update lately. I don't even have a good excuse. And this is a filler chapter.

I really hope that I can get back on track, because I feel so guilty for not updating.

But thanks for sticking with me through these late updates.