Into the Realm of Magic | Realm of Magic 3
III. Into the Realm of Magic
She painted, or tried to, but nothing ended up on the canvas but the word witch, over and over again. Art was subjective and all of that, but Halle had a feeling her frenzied writing wasn't destined to be a masterpiece.
In the end, she read Henry Puffer and the Green Diamond Society for the, if she had to guess, eleventh time. She played with Pugsley and she listened to her dad composing on the piano. And she definitely did not think about how her skin still seemed to sizzle at the memory of seeing the portal.
***
A couple of days passed and Halle still couldn't focus. All she thought about was the portal, Spellcasters, and Margaux's guess that Halle herself had magic. She hadn't seen her friend since that day, and Halle wasn't avoiding her, not really, but she couldn't bring herself to face her possible new reality and that included Margaux.
But Margaux, apparently, had decided enough was enough. When Halle came home from school on Friday, her friend was there, on the porch, with her carbon copy in tow.
"Halle," Margaux said, voice as melodic as ever. "I want you to meet -- "
"Raphael, meet Raphael. Hi." her carbon copy said. "I would've loved to meet you sooner but my sister here decided to keep me locked in the basement."
Halle laughed at the expression on Margaux's face, a mix between trying not to crack a smile and pure exasperation. "He's been staying in the realm, learning from the best," she said, rolling her eyes.
"It's good to meet you." Halle extended her hand towards Raphael, just like Margaux did on the night they met.
As soon as Raphael's hand touched hers, his eyes widened. "Oh, yeah," he said. "She's definitely one of us."
Margaux flashed Halle a look that could only be interpreted as 'I told you so' before heading into the house.
Raphael grinned. "This is going to be fun," he gestured towards the open door and his sister, disappearing into the sitting room. "After you, newbie."
Halle was happy to have finally met Raphael, but it was sort of strange having him around. He may have looked just like Margaux, but his energy was completely different. Margaux sat still and radiated calmness; he fidgeted, had to be in constant motion. It wasn't a bad thing, Halle decided, just new.
"I know I haven't texted or stopped by," Margaux said. "I figured you might want some space."
Halle laughed. "That's exactly what I needed. Are you guys mind readers, too?"
The trio talked for a while, with Halle filling Raphael in on what she had been feeling since moving to Glimmerbrook and him only further confirming that she was most likely a Spellcaster. He said that magic always lives inside of Spellcasters, but it takes a special task to unlock it; he and his sister had completed it when they turned thirteen.
After a bit more conversation, Halle decided it was time to really get serious about the possibility of being a witch. That meant, among other things, opening up to her friends about her mom.
"I want to show you guys something."
The twins followed Halle upstairs to her room. Raphael's eyes widened at all of the Henry Puffer decor ("Is that a signed movie poster?") and Halle felt a sudden jolt of pride to see her collection impressing someone other than herself. She took the framed picture of her mother off of her desk and held it up for her friends to see.
"This is my mom," she said. "She died a few years ago. No offense to my dad but there's no way he's got any kind of magic. It would have been her."
Raphael actually snorted. "You do know she's wearing a literal witch hat, right? Of course it was her."
"Play nice, brother," Margaux said, sitting down on Halle's bed.
"I don't know much about magical families," she continued. "But I trust my instincts."
Halle looked at the picture again. She saw it every single day, saw the witch hat her mom was wearing in it. All these years, she had never thought it could actually mean anything. It was just a hat, right? Halle had one, too, in her Henry Puffer house colors.
"We should talk to Grace." Raphael's voice pulled Halle out of her thoughts. "Our cousin," he clarified. "She might know more than we do."
"My darling Raph," Margaux said, standing up and smoothing out her skirt. "For once in our lives, you may be on to something."
***
Grace Anansi was playing chess by herself when Halle, Margaux, and Raphael showed up to Elixirs and Brews. The twins wasted no time in introducing her to Halle and jumping right into the details of their visit.
"I'm fairly new to this whole magic thing myself, but I've been learning some history," Grace said. "What was your mother's name?"
"Colleen Burroughs," Halle said. "She never took my dad's last name."
"Burroughs? That does sound familiar," Grace drifted off into thought for a moment. "I don't think I've heard of your mother, specifically, but there has definitely been a Burroughs family in the realm."
Halle's heart skipped several beats. She still couldn't quite believe it. Her mother was probably a Spellcaster? How could this be real? She never saw her do anything particularly magical but, then again, there were a lot of days when Colleen would spend the majority of her time in her office, doing things Halle was never allowed to see. It was like a bunch of puzzle pieces that Halle didn't even realize were missing showed up in the box all at once, ready to be put together.
"You know there's only one thing to do now, right?" Margaux asked, her hand resting lightly on Halle's shoulder.
Halle didn't even need clarification. She looked up at her friends, her mentors, really, and back to Grace. "Thank you," she said, before standing and heading towards the door.
Without looking back, trusting Margaux and Raphael would follow, she said only two words: "Let's go."
***
The three made their way towards the portal with Halle leading, practically jogging down the path. The tingle that she had grown accustomed to now made its presence known more than ever, with every step sending shocks up her spine. But she wouldn't -- couldn't -- turn back.
Behind her, Raphael and Margaux followed diligently, knowing what was about to happen for Halle. Even if she didn't unlock her magic tonight, she would learn so much.
"You really think this is a good idea? Taking a little witch on your broom and showing her the realm?"
"She lost her mother, Raph," Margaux's voice was soft, almost sad. "Her father obviously isn't telling her anything. We were lucky to have family with us through our Rite of Ascension. We have to be that for her."
***
Before long, the three stood before the portal. Halle's heart raced, a mix of excitement and fear. She could feel the presence of Margaux and Raphael behind her, and it was almost like they radiated some kind of energy that mixed with her own. Maybe they did -- magic, right?
"You guys will be there with me the whole time, right?" Halle tried not to let her voice waver but it betrayed her.
"We won't leave you," Margaux said, as calm as ever. "And you don't have to do anything more than you want to."
Raphael nodded along with his sister's words.
"Okay," Halle said. "Let's go get some answers."
No turning back now. Halle charged towards the portal, determined. Her body was on fire, but the burn was only good. She heard Raphael say something from behind her but her ears rang louder than his words. After one last look at her friends, Halle took the final steps up to the portal. She still wasn't convinced that it would actually do anything. Maybe she would just walk right through and end up on the other side, no changes in sight.
Only one way to find out.
Going through the portal was nothing like Halle had imagined; it was indescribable. It felt kind of like being on a roller coaster, kind of like being jolted awake when you think you're falling. It felt like nothing Halle could put words to. It lasted for an eternity and for no time at all.
When she landed on the other side, somehow right on her feet and not her butt, it took a few moments to realize she had moved locations at all. When her mind caught up to her body, she couldn't believe what she was seeing. A large, old building stood before her, and it instantly reminded her of the school in Henry Puffer.
"Welcome to the Realm of Magic," Margaux said. Halle hadn't even noticed that they were there.
Halle looked around her, taking in her surroundings.
"Are we on an island in space?"
Raphael laughed. "Something like that," he said. "How's your body? Feel like it's all in one piece?"
Halle looked down at her feet, brought her hands in front of her eyes. "Seems okay," she said. "Feels like I've just been spun around forever, though."
Margaux tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "You'll get used to it." She nodded towards the building. "That's our school. The headquarters. That's where the Sages will be. They'll know what to tell you."
"Are you ready?" Raphael asked.
Halle didn't know the answer to his question, but she knew she needed answers about her mother, needed to know the truth about her maternal bloodline.
With Margaux and Raphael behind her, Halle started walking towards the door. No matter what happened inside those walls, she was sure about one thing: nothing would ever be the same.
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