Halfwizard

THREE

"And exactly what are you doing in my house?" I asked as I faced Roy squarely.

"For you to undo what you have done," he replied, pointing to his sneakers.

I couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled through me, what the hell is this dork talking about?

"I'm very sure I didn't get you into your outfit, Roy," I told him.

"You know what I'm talking about", he returned, taking what would have been a threatening step towards me if not that Mom stepped between us just in time.

"Do you mind if I borrow Troy for a second?" she said and dragged me off before Roy could even reply.

After she was sure we were out of earshot, she shouted, "What the hell were you thinking practising magic on people? You know very well it's against the rules!".

It was obvious that she was really mad at what I'd done, but then.

"Roy is not 'people', Mom", I replied, telling her exactly what I was thinking, "Besides, there's no way he could have known magic was involved".

She gave me a long disapproving glare before telling me sternly, "Fix it". And with that, she left.

Thing is, the spell should have worn off by now, which means that something must really gone wrong with it for the sneakers to still remain tight by now. Well, luckily, I have a good disarming spell as a countermeasure, but who says I can't enjoy it while I'm at it, right?

"How about I offer you a cup of juice?" I asked Roy when I got back to the living room. He didn't seem to want it but accepted all the same, guess he's worried about poison too- Quit the paranoia Roy, I'm not you.

"So, how about you fix my sneakers issue now?" he said after we finished our drinks.

"I didn't do anything to you", I reaffirmed, "But let me check it anyway".

Roy leaned in as I bent down to touch his sneakers, now there's no way I can perform magic with him staring intently at me like that. I began to think hard and fast.

"Wait, I think I saw something move behind the couch," I suddenly said, pointing to the couch farthest to us.

Immediately he looked away, I quickly casted the spell and tugged gently at his lace.

"Guess all you needed to do is relax", I said to him as the shoe came easily off.

"I don't believe for one sec that you weren't behind my sneakers incident, Sanders", he said, his sneakers now in hand as he prepared to take his leave, "But thanks anyway".

Wow! I guess miracles do happen. I mean, who could have guessed that Roy I-am-higher-than-the-world Henderson would one day tell me thank you, even if it's not all from his mind.

"You have to be careful, Troy", Mom said after Roy had left, "Hell might break loose if people find proof of magic. We humans tend to fear what we don't understand".

I didn't know how to respond to that so I settled for "I'm going to bed, Mom. Good night".

What I haven't told her, or anyone for that matter, is that hell had already broken loose, right inside of me.

"Troy, you have to stop before it consumes you," said Abigail.

"You killed my friends," I replied, the rage forming a wave of black light around me, "Why should I listen to anything you say?"

"You are not yet ready to unlock this aspect of your power, believe me", she said, pleading, "It's going to destroy you and those you care about".

"You don't get to tell me that anymore!", I shouted and released a black smoke at her.

However, the smoke split and formed others, beginning to attack everyone around me without discrimination. I shouted at them to run but they stood there still, allowing the smokes to devour them. I lost everyone I ever knew and cared about; Jake, Elaine, Vic, Blake, even Mom, all of them dying right before my very eyes with their fingers pointed accusingly at me in the throes of death.

Their screams shook the entire earth until there was nothing left; Only silence and destruction, my destruction.

"No!" I shouted and heard my voice echo back to me, it was like I was the only thing in existence.

"I only wanted to save everyone," I said to myself, "Only to save everyone."

Suddenly, I heard a voice say, "Welcome to your other half" and a black smoke rushed at me.

I didn't know I was screaming until I realized that Mom was cradling me in her arms like a crying baby, which I was at the moment. It was the same crazy nightmare I have been having since the day I turned herowizard- Cost of saving the school, huh?

"What happened?" she asked, giving me a scrutinizing look as if I might have brought my nightmare injuries to reality.

"I had a nightmare, " I replied, choosing to state the obvious.

"What was it about?"

"Just a scene I saw in an horror movie", I lied.

Thing is, I haven't told her about my experience in Firewalt last summer, nor could I. she would only worry herself to death— That wouldn't be the trait of a good son, now would it?

"You say that every time," she returned, I should have known that she would eventually catch on.

Fortunately, for me at least, she didn't get the chance to press as I suddenly saw a strange movement outside the window. With a swiftness I didn't even know I possessed, I jumped off the bed and was at the window in a flash.

"What is it?" Mom asked from her side but I quickly shushed her. I couldn't see anything from my room upstairs so I jumped out of the window and used a kinda reverse form of levitation spell to descend gently down.

"Light!" I commanded and two green light orbs appeared.

I know I should be careful with my magic usage but that's the least of my worries right now. I scanned the ground around the house even though Mom kept distracting me with her incessant calling. I was about to give in to my head and tell her to zip when I saw suddenly it; a shoeprint.

"What is it?" asked Mom again for the gazillionth time.

"A shoeprint," I replied, it stopped right underneath my window. There was no way the person could have been right outside my window except... levitation.

Everything began to click into place, and it wasn't nice; there's a wizard in town, and he's interested in me for some reason.