Regina Rashida

                                                  Chapter One


                Have you ever met a witch? Oh sure, you’ve met people that call themselves witches, or magicians, or wizards.

         Regina Rashida was almost 15½, 5’1”, a red head, and extremely un-superstitious. The only reason she made wishes at 3:33 was because she never had anything better to do.
         But today was different. Today she was supposed to go to Mr. Ibany’s office to discuss her “new school options.” She was what Mr. Ibany and her genius of a mother liked to call “slow” or “behind.”
         Although Regina had never liked Oakerly High School, she didn’t like the thought of leaving it, if only because instead of going to another normal high school, like Harqua High, she was going to “special” school. For “slow” or “behind” people.
After gathering her books from her locker at the end of a long Monday school day, Regina glanced down the crowded hallway, catching a glimpse of Quinn Lyndall, and his girlfriend, Lydia Albany.
         Lydia Albany was somewhat of a stuck-up prig. Because of her initials “L.A.” she was sure she was meant for something special. Never mind meant, Lydia was sure she was something great, as did most of the cheerleaders at Oakerly High School.
         It was sickening to watch Lydia and Quinn. Lydia was flirting and giggling, while waving her long blonde hair and Quinn was running his hands through his hair, bragging of his accomplishments.
         Yet Regina was jealous of them. Years of no friends, no talents, and no sleepovers can do that to you.
         Although it was only two-thirty, Regina hurried straight over to Mr. Ibany’s office, which was on the other side of the school.
Oakerly High School had a rather interesting past. While was being built, two people were killed falling off the half-finished roof, one person crippled by a falling board, another blinded in one eye by a dropped nail. The first part to be built was the main bathroom. As soon as a hallway was added, the bathroom caught fire and burned until only a toilet was left. After that the building went pretty well, until the school was finished, and then there was an ant/bee infestation.
         A bell rang, signaling that the early bus was about to leave. Students pushed past Regina, talking eagerly to each other. Regina looked longingly at them, and started dreaming about “someday…”
         “Oomph!” Regina grunted as she was roughly pushed forward.
         “Hey, watch it- oh, I- hi!” stuttered Regina as she came up face to face with Quinn, who spared her a glance before shouting over her to his friend. “Yo, Lymen, save me a seat, dude! Oh, hi honey,” he added as Lydia walked up.
         “Hey,” she answered Quinn, giving Regina, who was standing next to Quinn, red faced and biting her lip, a once-over. Regina glared at Lydia, and stalked off, only to trip over a bag. She stood up to laughter, her face glowing an even brighter color, matching her flaming red hair, and contrasting with her green eyes. She looked up and saw Quinn and Lydia laughing, and another cheerleader, Michelle Chaplie, mimicking Regina falling.
         But there was one sympathetic face. One face out of the crowd of laughing teenagers that was kind, even understanding. For Granny Dilwyn had known the embarrassment of being laughed at for being clumsy. For being “slow” and “behind.” Yet Granny Dilwyn had received something that had changed her life when she had turned fifteen. Regina would receive the same gift in a week.
         
Regina did not see Granny Dilwyn. So with almost the whole school’s ringing laughter in her ears, she hurried down the last few hallways to Mr. Ibany’s office. She knocked and was answered by a gruff voice.
         “Yes?”
         “It’s Regina, Mr. Ibany.”
         “Come in, come in. you’re two minutes late, by the way.”
         Regina swung open the door, which creaked loudly. At first she did not see the principal, but after eyeing the swivel chair, which was faced away from her, more closely, she realized that the tip of a grey-haired head was visible over the top of the chair. She waited for him to notice her, but after a few minutes, although she was sure he knew she was there, she hesitantly spoke.
         “Mr. Ibany? You wanted to discuss my, er, ‘new schoo-”
         Mr. Ibany cut her off. “Where is your mother?”
         “Oh, she said she was coming at three-thirty, but that she might be late.”
         The swivel chair swiveled around to face Regina.
         Mr. Ibany was said to have been rather handsome in his youth. This could possibly have been a mere rumor, for Mr. Ibany looked far from handsome. Bushy grey eyebrows made the eyes underneath seem small and watery. He had a large nose, which spread out like an umbrella to cover his mouth. And above his mouth had tried to grow a mustache several times. He has never succeeded, so gave up. But the grossest thing about him was the fact that he had had a crush on Regina’s mom ever since Regina had come to Oakerly High School.
         There was a knock on the door. Mr. Ibany cleared his throat before speaking in a falsely deep voice. “Yes?”
         “It’s Ms. Rashida,” came the reply.
         “Come in!” Mr. Ibany said, still using an artificial voice. Regina’s mother stepped into the room.
         Although over forty, she was as in shape as a girl of twenty. She looked nothing like her red-haired daughter. Carefully dyed hair had kept her original colors of several shades of dark brown.
         Mr. Ibany turned into a gentleman. “May I take your coat, Ms. Rashida? Unless, of course, you are cold?” he added in a deeply concerned voice.
         “Why, thank you, Mr. Ibany,” Regina’s mother replied. Although Regina had pointed out Mr. Ibany’s oily behavior several times to her, Regina’s mother still did not believe that he could like her. “Why, Regina, I’m over forty!” she would say, waving her hands.
         Mr. Ibany delicately hung Ms. Rashida’s coat on the rusting coat rack in the corner, and pulled out a chair for her. “Can I get you anything to drink?” Mr. Ibany hovered over her eagerly.
         “Oh, no, but thanks anyway,” Regina’s mother answered brightly. “So about Regina’s new school. What’s the name again?” she paused to smile at Regina as if to reassure her if something.
         “Well, it’s an excellent school, highly recommended by, well, everyone!” Mr. Ibany laughed as though expecting Regina and her mother to find him hilarious. Ms. Rashida smiled politely, but Regina stared at him, disgusted.
         “Miradohn High’s the name, never better, hmm,” he added as he shuffled through a stack of papers. “They sure do like their colors, Miradohn High!” he chuckled nervously as he pulled out a neon pink sheet of paper, with little neon lime green letters, and handed it to Ms. Rashida, who raised her eyebrows at Regina.
         “Regina!” Mr. Ibany’s voice jumped out at her. “I mean, uh, Regina, dear, please don’t touch those!” he quickly pulled Regina’s hand away from the small, oddly shaped pieces of metal lying on his desk. She drew her wrist out if his hand, and while doing so, missed the changing of the color of the metal, which started gleaming purple. She didn’t miss the fact that her mother looked slightly alarmed, though. But when Mr. Ibany started talking again, which was more like simpering, her gaze once again, began to rove around the room.
         On every wall there were at least three pictures of Mr. Ibany, though by the density and color of his hair, Regina guessed that in his photos he was much younger. Silver-framed diplomas and certificates were almost as large in number, although strangely wrinkled as if ancient. Regina’s eyes moved over the pictures and certificates, and stopped. Regina stifled a gasp.



                                                  Chapter Two


Directly behind Mr. Ibany’s head was a large green cross, dotted with black x’s. In the center of cross was a gruesome looking skull, with red x’s for eyes.
         But the fact that it was the most ugly wall decoration Regina had ever seen was not what made her gasp. It was because she had seen that cross before, recently, and it seemed to jump out at her. Regina was repulsed by it, yet suddenly drawn towards it. Even as she looked at it she felt as though something inside her was forcing its way out. She swallowed quickly, trying to rid herself of the urge to vomit. “Are you alright, dear?” asked Ms. Rashida anxiously.
         “Well, we’ve probably bored her with our grown-up talk!” Mr. Ibany chuckled importantly, apparently unconcerned with anything but his own little joke, but Regina’s mother continued to look at her anxiously.
         “Wha-? Oh, um, yeah, just a little drowsy.” Regina tried to smile. She still felt queasy, but felt better now that she wasn’t looking at the cross.
         On the way home, Regina thought about the cross. When she was this far away from it, it seemed kind of silly of her to feel sick from it. And had the eyes really been red x’s? Regina wasn’t sure anymore.
         “So did you have fun at school today?” Ms. Rashida asked from the driver’s seat next to Regina. Having been rather popular in her youth, Regina’s mother could not understand why Regina wasn’t.
         “Yes, it was fine. The usual.” Regina wasn’t about to tell her mother about her embarrassing fall and stuttering. “How was your day?”
         “Well, I got a haircut at Snip a Bit’s.”
         “With Pat Scalic?” Regina asked slyly. Pat Scalic was another fan of her mother, who had been divorced for several years, leaving plenty of time to get out and meet people.
         “Yes, with Pat Scalic. There is nothing wrong with him! He’s just… really friendly!” Regina’s mother protested.
         As they turned into their driveway, though, Regina wondered if that’s what she really thought. That everyone was just really friendly.

            *                            *                            *

         A week later, Regina awoke one morning, with an urgent feeling, though she didn’t know why. It had something to do with a dream she’d had last night. If only she could remember what the dream was! As she frowned, trying to remember, her eyes swept her room, and fell on her desk. Lying on it was a brightly colored piece of paper. And suddenly, she remembered the dream.

She was back in Mr. Ibany’s office, but somehow it looked different. Then she realized that there was not a single portrait, certificate, or diploma on the walls. In fact, Regina noticed that not even the freaky cross was up there. She sensed somehow that it was not even in the room with her. And suddenly she realized how quiet it was. Cautiously, she went up to the big oak desk sitting in the middle of the room. With a jolt of… fear, was it? Regina saw the odd pieces of metal still sitting on the desk. But now they seemed even more menacing than before. They were no longer one color, but glinting several colors. It seemed as though they had some kind of power in them. Something that drew Regina towards them, her hand outstretched, reaching…
Although Regina did not hear the person that entered the room behind her, though that might have been because it was a dream,  she felt the cross’s power enter the room, and spun around, coming face to face with Mr. Ibany. He grinned an evil-looking grin at her, and reached behind his back. As he shoved the cross into her face, she gasped, as something inside her struggled to get out. She pulled her gaze away from the cross with difficulty. As she fell to her knees, she woke up with a jolt.

But what did the dream mean, if anything? That Mr. Ibany was a bad guy? Regina had always thought so, but in that case, the creepy cross would have magical powers, and so would the pieces of metal.

          *                                *                            *

If Ms. Rashida noticed that her daughter was quieter than usual at breakfast, she said nothing. Instead, she offered to drive Regina to school. Regina accepted, and after grabbing her bag, she walked out to the car, her mother following closely.
Once in the car, though, Regina regretted not taking the bus.
“How do you feel about going to Miradohn High?” her mother asked.
“Well, obviously, I would rather go to a normal high school.”
“I know, sweetie, but you’re a… special person.”
“You mean stupid.”
Ms. Rashida sighed. “Regina-” she started.
“Whatever, mom.”
There was a long silence. Then something caught Regina’s eye. “Mom, did you see that billboard?”
“No, I didn’t, honey. What did it say?”
“I thought it said something like ‘Regina Rashida; wi-’ oh, never mind, mom. That’s too weird.”
“Uh, okay,” said Ms. Rashida uncertainly.

        *                                *                            *
Regina was standing next to her locker when she saw the poster. At her first glance, it looked like a regular softball poster. But then she realized that it had her name on it. She walked closer, but stopped short in surprise when she saw what it said:


                                        Regina Rashida; Witch
 

That was all it said.



                                                   
                                                      Chapter Three

         “Hey,” Regina said to the blonde standing next to her. “What’s that mean?”
         “It means there’s a game tomorrow evening,” she answered, speaking slowly, as if to a young child.
         “But I, but it says-”
         Blondie walked away.
         Regina looked back at the poster. Then she looked for someone else to interrogate.
         “Hey,” she said to the brown-haired girl on the other side of her. “What does that poster say?”
         The girl looked at Regina strangely. “It says there’s softball game tomorrow.”
         “Oh, uh, thanks.”
         “Sure.”
         Regina asked three more people. Two of them said the same thing as the blonde and brunette. The third one just laughed in her face. When the bell rang, Regina gave up, refusing to look any more at the poster. But as she stood up, she couldn’t help glancing at it. She did a double take.
         The poster no longer said ‘Regina Rashida; witch.’ Instead, it was sporting a colorful announcement about a softball game the next evening. Regina stared at it a while longer. Finally she shook her head. “Whatever.” Then she looked at her watch, yelped, and hurried to class.
         From across the hallway, someone was watching her. Granny Dilwyn sighed. How many more hints would it take?

            *                                *                            *
         
         Regina took the early bus home. It had been a long day full of more embarrassing moments, and she didn’t feel like staying there any longer then necessary, and she was looking forward to sleeping on the way home.
         That didn’t happen.
         About halfway to her house, after the bus had emptied of most of the kids, Regina, who had been staring out the window, suddenly sat up straighter.
         Beside the road was a large billboard. Regina felt as though she was having deja-vous. She blinked and stared harder at the letters.

         Regina Rashida; witch.

         Regina glanced around the bus to see if anyone else noticed. It didn’t seem like it, so Regina glanced out the window again. But the billboard was way behind them. This time, Regina didn’t feel so inclined to shake it of, and when she got off the bus, first thanking the driver, it was absentmindedly.
         Her mother was still at work, so Regina had the house to herself. She went up to her room, intending to start her homework. But that was another plan that didn’t quite work out.
Her room was a great place to study, and that’s what she had intended to do.
         But the moment Regina saw her bed, something, some kind of force, billowed inside her, and suddenly she was so tired she could barely stay standing. Almost without really knowing what she was doing, she flopped down on her bed, and was asleep in seconds. And began dreaming.

         An old woman was standing by Regina’s locker. Though she seemed old, she the air around her of once having been very pretty. But Regina was already late for class, and could not find the book required, so she did not pay much attention. She needed desperately to look in her locker, but the old women wouldn’t move. Regina pleaded with her. “I have to get to class!”
         “Not until you’ve listened to what I’ve got to say!” The old woman’s fingers wrapped around Regina’s wrist.
         “What do you have to say?” asked Regina impatiently.
         “You’re a witch, Regina.”
         Regina stopped struggling. “What?”
         But even as the old woman started to answer, Regina started to wake up, though she tried to stay asleep.

         The door to Regina’s room opened, and her mother walked in. “Are you okay, dear? Why are you in bed?”
         “I just got really tired.”
         “Are you sick?”
         “No, I’m fine. I just had a really weird dream, that’s all.”
         Regina’s mom stood up, not entirely convinced, but there was nothing more she could do. But as she headed out the door, Regina stopped her. “Mom, what time is it?”
                Her mother stopped and looked at her watch. “It’s six-thirty.”
                Regina came to life. She jumped out of bed. “Six-thirty! I haven’t done my home work yet!” she dug into her backpack, and pulled out a couple of books, and a pencil.
              Opening her assignment book, she thumbed to the correct page, which had that day’s assignments on it. Or should have. Regina sighed as she read the now familiar message, the message that nobody else seemed to see. Am I just going crazy? She wondered. Or am I really a witch? She was tempted to dismiss the thought. But what about all those shows where whenever someone finds out they’re a witch, they freak out and don’t believe it? It was as if there were two sides of her arguing against each other.  It would be so cool if she was actually a witch! Imagine all the spells she could cast, make people do things….
                Regina came to from her day dreaming with a jolt. Of course she wasn’t a witch! Witches didn’t exist; they were just made up so people could write stories about them. But though her thoughts were reasonable, she wasn’t absolutely sure they were right.
                That night, Regina had trouble sleeping. She was tired, but something in her struggled to stay awake. Finally, she gave up. Wincing as she stepped onto the cold floor, Regina put on her blue robe, and walked over to the window. She stared out at the bright stars, which twinkled and sparkled in the midnight sky.
                Regina jumped and swirled around as a steely hand grasped her shoulder. Biting her lip to keep from yelling, she tried to wrench her arm from the old lady’s surprisingly strong grip, but failed. “What do you want?” she asked harshly. “And who are you?” Normally she was rather timid towards old people, but to see the old woman in a real-like dream, and then have her sneak up was too much.
                “My name is Granny Dilwyn.”
                “Good for you,” Regina said sarcastically. “But what do you want? And who’s Granny are you?”
                “‘Granny’ Dilwyn is just… a name. And I told you. I have to explain things to you.”
                Regina faltered. “But how- but that was a dream!”
                “No it wasn’t,” Granny Dilwyn said impatiently. “Regina, you are a witch! You have magical powers!”
                “Um, right. So how do I use these ‘magical powers’?”
                “Well, what do you want to do?”
                “Well, it’s the middle of the night, I’ve got a big test tomorrow, and I already look dorky enough without having huge bags under my eyes, so hmmm, maybe I want to… SLEEP!!!”
                The old woman sighed. “Fine, I’ll pick something for you.” She closed her eyes and thought for a second. Regina tapped her foot anxiously.
                “Ah ha!” Granny Dilwyn said triumphantly. Regina jumped in surprise.
                “What?”
                “You’re going to fly!”
                “Excuse me?”
                “You are going to fly!” Granny Dilwyn was getting excited. “Come on, try it.”
                “Yes, but how do I try it?” asked Regina. “Oh, my God! I can’t believe I just asked you how to do magic!”
                The old woman waved her hands. “Just think about it! Imagine yourself flying! It’s really quite simple.”
                “Just think about it? No magic wands, or spell books or something?” Regina asked sarcastically.
                “No! Just imagine yourself floating up!” said Granny Dilwyn, agitated.
                “Okay, okay, calm down I’ll try it.” Regina sighed. “Here goes nothing.” She closed her eyes, and doing as Granny Dilwyn told her, she imagined herself floating up off the ground. She tried to imagine how it would feel, but nothing came to her. Finally, frustrated, she opened her eyes, ready to tell the old woman off for tricking imagine her into almost believing she was a witch.
                Regina’s jaw dropped open. She tried to say something about the fact that she was no longer touching the ground and truly floating, but she was speechless.
                “I told you! You’re a witch!” Granny Dilwyn clapped to hands excitedly. “Now can we discuss things?”
                “Okay,” said Regina, and came down with a bump, resigned. It wasn’t that she wasn’t totally thrilled to have magical powers, but it was a shock, and the old lady’s enthusiasm was getting a bit annoying. “So can you do magic? Or am I the only one in the world with magic?”
                “Actually, only one person, always a girl, in every other generation in the world has magic. I have magical power. By the way,” Granny Dilwyn added, “No matter what anyone tells you, you’re good.”
                “You mean as apposed to bad?”
                “Uh, yeah, sure.”
                “Well, duh I’m good! I mean, I’ve never even cheated on a test!”
                “That’s, uh, that’s really great.”
                “Okay, whatever. Are there laws? You know about which spells you can and can’t use, and to punish you?”
                “Nope.”
                “No?! You mean you can do anything?” suddenly this witch thing was looking a lot better. “What’s the catch?” Regina asked suspiciously.
                “No catch! Oh, except for the fact that there is a guy out there trying to steal your magic. He’s the bad guy.”
                “What?”
                “Yes. See there’s this family out there that knows about witches, they also skip a genera-”
                “Hang on. One quick question. Are there any wizards, warlocks, magicians, and whatever else? Or is it just you, and me, and whatever other witches come along in the following generations?”
                “Just you, and me, and whatever other witches come along in the following generations. Oh, and the family that’s basically trying to kill you.”
                “And how do they kill me?”
                “Well, actually, you wouldn’t die. They use a special figure that if in contact long enough with a witch, drains her power.”
                “But why would they want to suck out our power? Do they want it for themselves? And what does the figure look like?”
                “No, they don’t want the power. They just, well,” for minute Granny Dilwyn looked uncomfortable. Then she continued. “They’re trying to take your magic away, so you can never use it again!” she finished dramatically.
                “That’s exactly what you’ve been telling me.”
                The old women shrugged. “Some things bear repeating.”
                “Okay, so what does this figure look like?”
                “It’s a green cross with black x’s and a skull in the middle.”
                Regina’s blood ran cold, and she felt as the though cold hands were in her lungs. “What’s the name of this family?”
                “Ibany."


                                                Chapter Four

                Regina lay awake long after Granny Dilwyn had left. As anyone can probably realize, it came as rather a shock to find out that her principal was trying to kill her.
                When she finally did fall asleep, though, it was a dreamless sleep, which was a relief after the dreams she’d had that had turned out to be real. But in the morning, she awoke feeling very nervous about going to school. She even thought about faking the flu. But she decided against it. Her mother had never fallen for it before, and there was no reason she would now. She would just try to avoid him.
                But that seemed impossible. Almost as if he knew that Regina knew who he really was, Mr. Ibany appeared to almost be following her around the school. He would appear at random times, and seem to jeer at her.
                There was one good thing, however. Now that Regina had learned how to use her powers, nothing was going to stop her. And the first thing to do was to gain a friend. That would be easy. With her powers she could make someone become her friend. The hard part would be choosing who.
                Regina spotted a girl near her that she had always admired. The girl’s name was Heather, but Regina had always been too shy to say hello. Regina was about to use her magic to make Heather her friend, when she heard a familiar peal of laughter, and saw a wave of glistening blonde hair.
                That’s a better idea, she told herself as Lydia strutted by. Make her your best friend. You’ll get really popular if you’re friends with her! Regina focused all of her concentration on Lydia, and imagined them doing their homework together, doing each other’s hair and nails, maybe sharing clothes (which meant Regina borrowing Lydia’s clothes), and doing all the friend things that Regina had seen other people do, or imagined them doing. Then opened her eyes cautiously and looked around for her new best friend.
                “Hi Gina!” Lydia rushed up to Regina, obviously glad to see her. “What’s up? Wanna go to the mall today? Or hang out at my house or something?”
                Regina stuttered, overwhelmed by her former enemy’s enthusiasm. “Uh, sure, Lydia,” she managed to answer.
                “Great!” Lydia grabbed Regina’s arm and pulled her towards the door.
                “But I didn’t say which one,” protested Regina, slightly bewildered, though she knew it was the spell.
                “We’ll do both!”
                “Oh, okay.”
                They met Quinn on the way out the door. He, too, seemed bewildered by Lydia’s newfound fascination on Regina.
                “Hey, Lydia. What’re you doing with her?” he asked.
                “She’s my best friend. Duh.” answered Lydia.
                “Right.”
                “You think I’m lying? She’s my best friend! Don’t insult her!” Lydia suddenly looked kind of crazy. Her eyes bulged out, and her nostrils were flaring.
                “Okay, okay, sorry, don’t get so excited,” said Quinn, alarmed.
                “It’s okay if you’re sorry. I forgive you,” said Lydia sweetly. “Let’s go, Gina.”
                But Regina had just had another idea. Once again, she focused all of her concentration, this time on Quinn. She imagined that he was hugging her, they were going out on dates, watching sunsets…
                “Hey,” came a low voice from behind her. “Can you fit one more person in your exciting little adventure?” asked Quinn, smiling, but dead serious.
                Lydia started to say no, that it was just going to her and her best friend, but Regina interrupted. “Of course you can come,” she said, smiling back at him. Lydia looked disgruntled. Regina smiled again, this time to herself. It was awesome to have two people practically fighting over her! Well, not quite fighting, but still. It was a new experience.
                On the bus ride back to Lydia’s house, though, a fight almost did break out. The seats were two seaters, and both Lydia and Quinn wanted to sit next to Regina. Regina finally settled it herself by choosing Quinn and promising Lydia that she could sit next to her the next three times.
                Regina had a great time first at Lydia’s house, then at the state mall. All she had to do to get money was stare at her purse and think of all the things she could buy. The money would appear in her purse! She could have just gotten the thing itself, but it was fun to shop.
                She used her magic constantly that day. Little did she know that it just made her easier to find…


                So now she knows, thought Mr. Ibany to himself. He was sitting at his desk in his office, staring into space. He had sensed her knowledge when she had walked into school earlier that morning. For one thing, she had been even more timid around him than usual, and he did his best to increase that feeling by jeering at her. There was also no way Lydia would have suddenly become her friend without magic. But it was important that he stop her before she gained too much knowledge. Mr. Ibany looked up at the sinister looking cross, and sighed heavily. He had failed with Granny Dilwyn. He would not fail with Regina Rashida.


                By the end of the day, Regina had about twenty new friends. All of them worshipped her, which was totally new to her. And though in the back of her mind she knew that they only liked her because of the spells, she was very satisfied.
She looked around her room with a happy sigh. She had painted it herself, and thought it was very pretty. It was pale lavender, with white furniture, and purple carpeting. Her bedding complimented the color theme well, with dark purple fading into lavender so pale it was almost white.
                But no one had ever seen it, besides her mom. Not even Regina’s new friends had seen it. She didn’t quite feel ready to show them. She wanted to be an interior designer someday, so other people’s opinions about her room mattered to her.
                Regina wasn’t surprised when Granny Dilwyn popped up in her room. She didn’t exactly pop up, she was just suddenly there.
                “How’d it go today?” was the first thing she said. “Use any of your magic?”
                “Yeah, it was great. I have a ton of new friends, and a ton of new stuff, and – ahhh. ” Regina broke off with another happy sigh.
                The old lady sat down on Regina’s bed. “So, you, ah, used a lot of your magic?”
                “Yeah, something wrong with that?” Regina asked, noticing the slightly wary look on Granny Dilwyn’s face.
                “Yes, possibly. See, Regina, I probably should have mentioned this before, but you know how I was telling you about the Ibany’s, and how they want to, well, suck out our magic?” Regina nodded, and Granny Dilwyn continued. “Doing magic actually makes it easier for them to find us.”
                “You’re right,” said Regina.
                “I’m… right?”
                “Yeah. You’re right. You should have told me earlier.


                                                      Chapter Five

                Regina tried to reason with Granny Dilwyn. “But Mr. Ibany knows where I live, it’s in the school files, he could just… show up and kill me.” They both froze and looked at the door. But after a few seconds of nothing, no scary Mr. Ibany bursting through the door, they looked at each other instead.
                “He wouldn’t kill you, he would just suck out your magic, I told you,” said Granny Dilwyn, exasperated.
                “But still, he doesn’t need to track me by my use of magic, he can just look it up.”
                “Look what up?” asked Granny Dilwyn.
                “My address!” Regina shouted.
                “Your home address?”
                “No, my other address.” Said Regina sarcastically. “Yes, my home address!”
                “Well, you’re not going to be home.”
                “What?”
                “You can’t stay here! You have to keep moving!”
                “You mean like this?” Regina stood up and walked around the room in a circle, even though she knew that was not what the old woman meant.
                Granny Dilwyn sighed. “Fine. Get yourself killed.”
                “But I thought you said he wouldn’t kill me! You said he would just suck out my magic!”
                “Whatever.” Granny Dilwyn stood up.
                “Do you try to confuse me?”
                “No, not really.” The old women headed for the door. “Oh, Regina,” she added, “things are not going to stay the same now that you know you’re a witch. Your feelings will change.”
                “What do you mean?” asked Regina, puzzled.
                “Well, you might start to hate people you once liked, or even loved,” Granny Dilwyn paused, a rather unpleasant look on her face. Then she continued. “And you will start to like people you once hated.”
                “Uh, why?” Regina asked warily.
                But Granny Dilwyn’s reply was short and just as confusing as she left the room. “It’s…a witch thing.”
                Regina frowned. Just half an hour ago, she had been extremely happy, more so than she had been in several years. Now she felt confused, irritated, and distinctly hungry. However, she shook off the latter.
                “Well, that’s great. Any more ‘pleasant’ surprises?” asked Regina sarcastically. She was starting to have a very unpleasant feeling about being a witch.
                “Nope!” replied Granny Dilwyn cheerfully. “Bye!” And once again, before Regina could say anything, the old woman was suddenly not there.
                Hate people she once loved? That didn’t sound particularly attractive. But right then Regina was too tired to care. She flopped back, and stared at the ceiling. What was the point of being a witch if using her powers just made her easier to find and kill? Or rather, make it easier to find her and suck out her powers. But that was her last thought before she fell into a deep and pleasantly dreamless sleep.
                          *                                *                                *

                However, the next morning the questions came flooding back the moment she opened her eyes. But the main question was  why did the Ibanys want to steal the magic if they didn’t want it for themselves? But despite Granny Dilwyn’s warning, Regina could not resist doing a little magic here and there to help her through the day.
                For one thing she had been so busy the day before, she hadn’t had time to do any of her homework. So she thought in a couple pages that was her English homework, and two sheets for Math. And though at first she was hesitant to use her magic to cheat on the homework, that soon passed.
                Regina arrived at school expecting to have to put up with Mr. Ibany showing up everywhere and leering at her again, but to her surprise, and relief, he was nowhere in sight.
                Lydia, however, wouldn’t leave her side, which while at first was rather pleasing, got tiring very fast. But nothing Regina said could convince Lydia to do otherwise.
                Quinn was also around often but him Regina didn’t mind. He was the one she began confiding in, although she never told him about being a witch. That was a secret she told nobody.
                Looking back Regina almost couldn’t believe she had ever been lonely. Now she had a group of people who walked with her to each class, and plenty to hang out with after school.
                But even as Regina was enjoying herself, Granny Dilwyn showed up yet again.
                She surprised Regina when the girl walked into the English classroom which Regina had thought was full.
                “Oh, great,” she said when her heart slowed down again. “What is it?”
                “Just popped in to see how you’re doing,” said the old women cheerfully.
                “Well, I’m doing fine. Bye.” Regina started towards the door, uneager to begin a conversation that might lead to the fact that she had used her powers, regardless of what Granny Dilwyn had said. Or maybe she already knew. Either way, Regina was not anxious to stay in the same room.
                But as it turned out, that wasn’t the reason Granny Dilwyn was there.

                            *                                *                                *

                “So basically, if you just disappear one day, I’m not supposed to worry?” Regina said incredulously. “You’re not even around half the time!”
                “Yes, well, that’s all I came to say.” Granny Dilwyn stood up. “And by the way, it’s your own fault if you want to get tracked down and killed by using your magic.”
                “You mean get my magic sucked out!” Regina yelled, but the old women had already disappeared.
                Regina blamed Granny Dilwyn for ruining the rest of what had been turning out to be an okay day. She wasn’t necessarily worried about the old woman’s safety, she had been more trouble than anything, but might need someone to explain things to her.
                But that evening Regina forgot about Granny Dilwyn’s warning. In her new popular state she was invited to pretty much every party there was, and tonight was no exception. This time it was at Alanna’s house, a girl in Regina’s freshmen class.
                But while Regina was having a blast, Granny Dilwyn was having a much less interesting time of it.
               

                Granny Dilwyn had known that at some point she would get caught, but her capture came sooner than she had expected. She was in the basement of George Ibany’s house, awaiting his return. On either side of her, were two of his spies, holding her arms firmly.
              Then finally he came, clumping down the steps. And right behind him was a man with a face she knew only by reputation among witches. It was Shain Levesque.
              Shain Levesque and George Ibany were partners, as had every member in the two families since almost the beginning of the human race. And they only occasionally failed in their job. A job which had made trouble for Granny’s kind since practically the beginning of human race.