Catastrophic

Chapter Thirteen

    I shrug my shoulders. “Is that a bad thing?” Isn’t that what I was destined to do, or is this all a hoax?

“It’s in the middle, in equilibrium. Your magic—it’s good—but all magic comes with a price,” she warns, and I start to chuckle to myself. “What?” she asks. “Did I say something funny?”

“I can see a Oncer when I come across one. What episode of Once Upon a Time are you on?” I inquire. That TV show was the only thing that kept me company during my dad’s election.

“I’m up to date, but that doesn’t matter,” she scolds as she pushes our racecar back on the track. “What matters is that it’s true. You only use magic when you absolutely have to, and even then you want to be careful.”

I nod my head with understanding. “What do you want me to do then? For our lesson?” I say with a drawl. If I shouldn’t use magic a lot, what’s this class all about? Teddy Bears?

“Find your center. You’ll want to cast a spell because of it, but it also takes a lot of strength to resist it. Go,” she commands.

I close my eyes. The world is dark, and my mind goes blank. Thoughts demand to fill my brain, but my inner strength fight it off. With nothing on my mind, I reach out inside me for what I’m looking for. As I spot the center, power streams through my body, and I involuntarily shiver. My hands clench into fists, and the veins in my neck strain so you can actually see the bumps bulge. Time slows, and I resist the urge to light a fire in the fireplace or fly 3 feet from the ground. It’s like battling yourself not to have that last slice of chocolate cake, but 10 times worse. The chocolate cake is delicious, it’s what makes up my dreams, it’s irresistible. My soldiers take several blows, and the magical army takes over. They lift my hand up at an empty cup sitting on the drawer and transfer power to it. The glass is immediately filled with iced water with a lemon on top. The magic leaves me weak, and I collapse in the closest chair.

A snort of disappointed rings out from Bryony, and wearily I look up from my downcast gaze. “Go to bed Kassie. You’re weak.”

A pang of hurt floods through me, and tears threaten to overflow. “That’s it?” I whimper. “You’re just giving up for today?”

Bryony continues to head up the stairs and doesn’t look back as she scoffs. “Yes. I’m giving up. Good night.”

“But,” I call out, “it’s only 3pm!”

“Good. More time for you to get stronger,” she yells as she turns the corner.

Kiss my shoes, Bryony. I’m not some toddler you can boss around. I lift myself up from the couch and steal a pair of sneakers from Bryony. They’re a bit big, but I can manage.

I jog to the kitchen and rummage through her drawers and cabinets until I find an aluminum water bottle. After filling it up with ice and water, I tiptoe to the door. Crossing my fingers, I pray the door won’t creak as I attempt to slip out the front door. Silence. With only skills a ninja could obtain, I silently step out into the afternoon air.

There’s no signs of the bizarre storm from the night before as the sun shines down on my face. There’s a couple of clouds—the white, fluffy kind—and it protects me a bit from the burning sun.

It’s a perfect day for running. Fate may be on my side for once.

I waste no time as I sprint off in a direction that I hope will take me somewhere good. Maybe a park, or a fountain, or a landmark. I know my way around Washington DC, but that’s from the White House. I don’t know where I’m going from the suburbs.    

I let the light breeze fill my lungs as I pump my arms back and forth like a crazy person. I’m not much of a runner, but right now, I’m in the mood for the impossible being possible. For example: Kassie being a runner=impossible. Time to make it real.