(Deleting and Rewriting) Book 1:Miranda Betch & The Rise Of The Black Witch

2-The Tall Flame

"I can speak English?" Alonzo almost jumped out of his own skin when he said what he said. "I can speak English!" He ran to Miranda and raised her from off the floor with a huge hug. "Miranda, I can speak English!" He was so happy that he could finally speak English. "Tell me something, I wanna see if I can even understand it." He told her.

"Mom!" Miranda gave her mom a weird look.

"Don't 'Mom' me, Miranda. I couldn't understand a word he was saying so I helped us both out. You better be lucky he isn't breath fire. I swear my powers are getting worse and worse." Mom was right, for some reason her magic was getting all messed up lately, but sometimes they find themselves convenient.

"Don't you notice anything different about me, Miranda?" He asked her. She had noticed as soon as she got to the dinner table. He had cut his long hair short and shaved his face, even gave himself an edge up. He looked as handsome as Miranda knew he was with his lively grey-ish green-blue eyes. He looked more American than Mexican if anyone else saw him, yet he still had a Mexican charm to him.

"Yeah, Alonzo, you can speak English." She smiled, a little flattered that among everyone in the room Ira, Blake, her mom, and Marina, Marina was Miranda's little sister, he wanted her to pay more attention to the way he looked and was focusing more of his attention on Miranda.

"Oh I gave the boy a fresher look." Miranda's mom confessed.

"Mom!" Miranda smiled and chuckled that her mom didn't let the moment last.

"She did." Alonzo gave up and calmed down. "So how do I look?" He asked looking into her eyes. It was like he had magic of his own, the way she just wanted to melt under his amazing gaze. "Just a hair cut and a shave." He admitted.

"So, Aunty Melissa, you're gonna let Miranda's new boyfriend stay here and in her room no less?" Blake asked as a teaser to Miranda.

"If he really has to stay here, Miranda, then I want you to conjure him up a room." Miranda's mom told her.

"I will, Mom." She said.

"Ok. Then that's settled and the answer to your question, Blake, is yes. As long as nothing happens. Do you two understand me?" She gave Miranda and Alonzo the "stare." They both nodded awkwardly. "Now, Marina, didn't you want to make an announcement today to everyone?" She put a fork of food into her mouth and began to chew.

"Oh yeah!" Marina exclaimed. "You'll never guess what happened today!" She said excitedly.

"What?" Everyone, except for Melissa and Alonzo, said at the same time.

"I got my powers!" She yelled and everyone, except Melissa, sprayed their freshly chewed food all over the dinning table. Alonzo was a little confused and sprayed his food a little later than everyone else.

"Wait, you got your powers today?" Miranda asked her like she didn't hear what her little sister said. Marina nodded with a crazily happy wide smile. "But you can't. I didn't get my powers until I was fourteen! You can't get them a year earlier." Marina smiled even harder with Miranda's jealousy.

"This generation of magic is maturing at a younger age now, Miranda, haven't you heard. I read it from one of your 'Magical' magazines." Melissa interjected.

Miranda remembered the latest issue she had just recieved maybe two days ago, it just magically appeared on her bed. The magazines started appearing after Miranda had got rid of a monster for the head editor of Magical Magazine. She hated those nasty scorpion-men, what they were doing at Magical Print & Press, she never found out.

"This is amazing Mrs. Betch!" Alonzo exclaimed with his mouth full of chicken tenders and gravy.

"Oh boy, don't be so polite, I didn't even make those." She admitted. "Blake always likes to eat those so I conjure up some every time for lunch and dinner." Alonzo just kept shoving the endless supply of chicken tenders into his mouth. Blake smiled, his mouth also full of chicken and gravy.