Writing Prompt

I was confused.

A school of magic? Those hadn’t existed in years. At least, none had been heard from after the government had forced them all to close down.

And now I get a letter from one? It was all way too easy. If any new schools had come up they would surely send someone in person to invite student.

Besides, I was busy with my college education at a well known nonmagic school that cost me way too much money to miss for even a day.

Ever since magic had been outlawed and frowned upon by the elders, magic using families had been put on the watch list. It was only to deter the large amounts of crime certain magic users were prone to causing, but it still brought a bad name to the others.

My family had been forced to close our shop due to the ‘unlawful product’ we offered.

All the awaiting familiars and magical creature we cared for, some for many generations, were sent off to a government facility where their fates were unknown. I think about them every day, praying for the best.

I’ve decided to ignore the letter. Only bad things could come from going, and I wasn’t about to miss any days of class for a likely government trick.

I let the paper crumple between my fingers before throwing it away and heading to class.

The letter was small no bigger than a fortune slip but as soon as Lerolyne touched it is grew to a parchment with the following words:

We are glad to tell you that you have been enrolled in Natasha’s school for strong willed mages thaw following items are required to complete your 10 year course:

Wand Spell book Cloak of displacement

The term starts on the 32nd of October please come to Orkney and the ness of Brodgar ruins is the entrance.

Lerolyne then noticed a small drop of blood near the bottom with a small message “ you know some more offensive spells come quick. The ruins open up by show of magic”.

snap

Purple robes flew to wrap themselves around her slender frame and she felt her self vibrating as her cloak jumped into action.

• boom*

She was gone reappearing at Dublin’s magical menagerie and snatched a wand of web of the desk and before the attendent could stop her.

Boom

The wind whipped her robes around as she drew out her wand and muttered “ Ocololate “ the stones of the ruins flew out the way to reveal a small entrance.

She jumped through.

Nothing for minutes but falling.

The robes bellowed out creating a parachute landing with a thud into chaos as students littered the floor drenched in blood. Dead.

How is it that life can never be just simple?

Ever since I can remember, I have known that when I reach secondary school age, I would get my letter telling me which magic school I had been selected for. Today is that day and I am so ready for this. With tingling fingertips and a racing heart, I am praying for Oxbridge - the most prestigious academy in the whole world. With my parents both being executives of leading magical product manufacturers, I was guaranteed a good spot at either Oxbridge, or at the very least, the next best, which was Mancaster.

So why is it that a dark forboding cloud has settled round me like a cloak? I am a good kid. My parents are smart, well respected and ambassadors for our community, so what is causing me to feel so reluctant to open the envelope?

I sit down on the bottom step of the stairs, turn the envelope over in over in my hands and come the conclusion that my question cannot be answered unless I open the envelope up. I break the wax seal, lift is the flap of the envelope, place my thumb and forefinger around the parchment and slide it out. I unfold the creamy stiff paper and drop it in horror.

Wastelands Academy? WASTELANDS ACADEMY? Why the hell has my fate set that monstrosity in my path? What did I do to deserve such a falling from grace? That school is for those with weak magic, waster parents and no hope for the future. It must be a mistake. A very grave mistake indeed when my parents find out! There will be hell to pay at the Council for Education. Heads will literally roll.

I wait all day for my parents to finish work and come back through the front door. I am comforted in the knowledge that they are powerful, strong and connected, so this will get sorted and I will be placed back on the right path. They should be home any minute. I replay over in my mind what I think their reaction will be and it is not pretty. It is seven o’clock and they are late. They are never late, yet here I am sitting and waiting in the dark for the sound of the key sliding into the lock and turning.

The sound never comes and they never come. I am alone in the darkness, clutching the letter containing my future and terrified at the prospect of facing it alone.

I walked back into my studio apartment and thought what? I never actually thought “magic” was real. But I’ve always wondered that maybe it was. I went to bed that night thinking about the school and if it was real or just some cruel joke one of my alcoholic neighbors was pulling on me. ‘I really want it to be real but its probably not. Anything I ever want never happens.’ The next morning I woke to a knock on my door. I got up as my doorknob slowly started turning. I stared at the red headed, 6 foot tall man. I knew I looked like a mess, but what did he expect? I just rolled out of bed and it was 6:30 in the morning. “What the f*** are you doing!! Get out!” “You received the letter, right? We were expecting you to show last night.” I stared at him with complete bewilderment. Chuckling I responded “I didn’t think it was real.” “Why not?” “Because who believes in magic anymore?” I could’ve sworn I saw a little sadness in his eyes. “While that’s true, we know that you believe in it and that is why we sent you the invitation, so please, Rose Wyatt, come with me.” Should I do it?

Why would anyone send me an invite to a magic school? How did they know my name and address? Who delivered the letter? Is it a scam like so many of these online teachings that purport to give away vital information for free, then have an up sell at the end? I know, it must be like one of those invites to a timeshare scheme. Will I go? Don’t really know, not that interested in magic. Maybe I will just wait and see if there is a follow up.