Mimic [ON HOLD]

Chapter Three: Bond

For the next two hours, I remained in my new bedroom undisturbed. My stomach growled and I longingly thought of my half-eaten plate at the dinner table. I smiled to myself as I ate my pudding cup. I knew it would come in handy at some point. Then, I lay on the bed and stared up at the domed ceiling for a while, trying to think. What was wrong with me? How did the pendant appear around my neck? It was almost like magic, I dared myself to think. Although my mind was addled, I still knew that magic had no place in this world. So what to do?

After lying on top of the covers for a long stretch of time, I heard a soft knock. Too tired to even stand up, I feebly tilted my head towards the door. It cracked open and I saw Micha there.

"Are you awake?" he whispered.

"Yes," I replied. Micha came over.

"Who are you, Anya?"

I heaved myself to a sitting position, shaking my tangled hair from my face. Figures he had to ask the one question I had no answer to.

"Who do you think I am?"

"I don't know. A—A witch of some kind. A thief. I saw the pendant. It was exactly like Madame's. Then it changed. And you closed your eyes and whispered," Micha's voice cracked and he broke off. "Who are you?"

"I don't know, Micha," I cried, falling backwards. "If I could tell you, I would. Honest. I woke up in the hospital and now I can apparently make necklaces appear out of nowhere. Do you think I was trying to embarrass myself in front of the only people I know?"

"I..." Micha trailed off, probably realizing my dilemma. "My God, how did I get myself into this? A few hours ago I was worried about my math test, and now I'm living with a... a sorcerer!"

"I'm not a sorcerer," I told him, then reconsidered. "Well, maybe. I don't know what I am."

"Well, what can you do? Something tells me that making necklaces appear isn't a power that comes alone."

I took a breath. Then, I gathered the strength to stand up and walk to the dresser. I looked inside, and pulled out the friendship bracelet from before.

"I made this appear, earlier today."

Micha actually laughed. "I mean besides jewelry."

I unclasped Sonya's locket and dropped it into the drawer. I hesitated for a moment: should I really trust this stranger with all the weird things that had happened to me in the past week? Then, I realized that I had absolutely nobody in this world who I trusted, so Micha might as well be the first.

So I told him: about Sonya, and the tall doctor, and the girl in the elevator. How my eyes had changed to match Sonya's, and how my arm slipped out of that too-tight hospital band. I told him about falling asleep and waking up with somebody's wedding ring on my finger or my hair curled atop my head. Micha listened and shook his head in disbelief.

"No way," was all he had to say when I finished. "So what does that mean?"

"What does what mean?"

"What are you?"

"Micha, I still don't know!" I cried, not sure whether to laugh or be angry.

Micha held up his hands. "Alright. I just can't really believe it. Show me."

I furrowed my brow. "Show you what?"

"Your magical powers!" Micha said, wiggling his fingers sarcastically. "If you want me on your side, I have to know if it's real."