The Apprentice's Apprentice

Part 14

True to his word, Warren showed up at her locker just as Cora was snapping her lock shut. He was all smiles again, as if the hardened mask he'd worn only hours before had never been there. She eyed him for a moment before she nodded. "You were pretty quick."

He shrugged, making the backpack that he wore on one shoulder sway. "My locker's just around the corner from here and I didn't get any homework tonight."

"Lucky. Mme. Pardy gave us a full chapter to read tonight," she replied, heaving her own backpack on. After a moment of silence, she looked back up at him. "So, where to?"

"Just follow me," he said. He led the way down the nearest staircase, joining the tail end of the herd that always swelled into existence once the final bell rang. They broke free once they got outside, the fresh air a welcome relief after having been stuck too close to a guy who smelled like he'd bathed in cologne that day. And it wasn't good cologne.

Warren headed straight across the street. They passed the gas station, seeing a couple of other students swarming the place, laughing and talking. They continued up the slight incline that took them past the little fish and chip place that lay just before the area claimed by houses. They saw several people out, mowing lawns, weeding gardens, and enjoying the last of the summer like days before fall enveloped them.

At the top of the hill Warren paused for a moment, looking around. He frowned and glanced in every direction a second time before he rubbed the back of his neck and kept going. Cora mouth opened slightly, torn between wanting to ask what that had been about and wanting to delay her indoctrination into all the magic nonsense as long as possible.

In the end, she didn't have a chance to even choose since Warren stopped them both in front of a house just a few dozen feet from where they'd been standing. Cora looked up at the three story Victorian home. It was white, with columns to each side of the front door, the backyard hidden behind a high, thick hedge. Only the tiny front yard and the garden lined path that led up to the house's front door were visible.

Warren headed up to the door and Cora fell into step behind him. He held the door open for her with a smile. She hesitated but at his encouraging nod, walked inside. It was much dimmer out of the sunlight and it took her a moment for her eyes adjust. The first thing she noticed was the wide wooden staircase that lay just in front of her. To each side of the hall she stood in were bright doorways, their light evidence of the large windows she'd seen from outside. Just to her left a huge grandfather clock ticked away the seconds.

The click of the door behind her made her turn to stare at Warren. He smiled at her and kicked off his shoes. She followed suit a moment later, letting her flipflops drop down neatly beside each other. "C'mon," Warren said, nodding towards the far end of the hall.

Yet again Cora found herself following Warren's back as he moved them deeper into the house. He pushed a swinging door open and led them through the cheery yellow kitchen, one that appeared to be stuck in the 60s. He headed through the doorway to the right and Cora found herself in a room filled to the brim with sunshine. Which made sense since the walls and ceiling were all made up of narrow panes of glass.

It took her eyes a moment to adjust, and when they did, she noticed the tiny old woman who sat in one of the cushioned rattan chairs, a tall glass of what looked like iced tea held in one hand. Warren cleared his throat and nodded at the woman. "Cora, may I introduce you to my master, Mage Selena Van Der Walt?"

Cora blinked. She could have sworn Warren had just said she was his... Her eyes widened. "She's your master? I thought your master was a dude!" As soon as the words left her mouth she flushed. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me."