Chapter One

Serenity ran four blocks down the street to reach Hazel. “Did you hear?” She shouted with great excitement in her voice.

     “Hear what?” Hazel, always behind on the news, figured it wasn’t as big of a deal as Serenity was making it out to be.  

     “The rumor that’s going around! You must’ve heard this one, this one is big!”

     “The only rumor I have heard is Angus’s third grade drama about how-”

     Serenity cut Hazel off as soon as she could tell she was going to start in with another one of her little brother’s third grade horror stories. “Magic!” Serenity shouted and quickly covered her mouth. She peered around the quiet, vacant neighborhood to make sure nobody could hear her. “It’s real, Hazel! I heard some business men talking about it down the street. I told you she was a witch! Next time we watch Halloweentown, it’s on.”

     Serenity was slender with platinum blonde hair and blue eyes that resembled the sky on a cloudless day. She was a rambunctious teenager all too well associated with trouble. Hazel often kept her in line. Hazel had deep green eyes and flawless, curly auburn hair. She had desirable curves that weren’t too thick and was a couple inches short of Serenity’s height.

     “If you are so sure that the magic is real, where does it come from?”

    “I don’t know that. The men didn’t say. That’s where you come in, though. You’re the smart one!”

     Hazel looked at her with a sense in pride and knew right away she was already trapped in Serenity’s disastrous plan.

     “Alright I’ll do it, but I am not happy about it. Take me to them again.”

    Serenity started running for the two blocks it took to get to her house, then motioned for Hazel to follow. Hazel wasn’t interested in running at all though. She responded with a death-stare. Serenity knew what that meant and proceeded walking. Hazel followed.

     The girls kept walking down the somewhat tarnished sidewalk and through the humidity. After a couple of minutes passed, they arrived in front of Serenity’s house. “It’s been a while, you sure they’re still up there?” Hazel was still unsure of pursuing Serenity’s plan.

     “I haven’t touched them since last month, when we first found them.”

     “Well, let’s go check it out then.”

 

The inside of the house was quiet. Serenity’s house always had an eerie feeling about it. Most of the rooms were dim, and it was quite outsized for just Serenity and her parents, whom were never there. They were business workers that traveled a lot, and were an odd set. Especially seeing as how they always left Serenity alone, considering how riotous she could be.

     The two wandered up the stairs and into the petty back bedroom at the end of the hall. The hall was a tiresome shade of brown and only let light creep in from the windows of the rooms adjoining it. The back bedroom was pitch black. Its walls were cold and mucky and the floor reeked of undealt-with mold. Serenity crept over to the corner and reached for the flashlight that had been resting there untouched for months. She slid its plastic switch up and watched it flicker as it struggled to produce light. She then signaled for Hazel to come help her open the slit in the wall that revealed the attic stairs. Hazel had long fingernails, so she dug them into the crack of the door and loosened it. Serenity grabbed ahold of it and they both tugged a few times before slinging it open.

     Dust danced through the air and the scent of rotten filth filled their noses. Their faces tensed up as they tried to resist the odor. Hazel began coughing and fanning the dust toward the vacant half of the room. Serenity gleamed the light into the three foot tall and two foot wide entry way. She pulled her shirt collar up over the tip of her nose and slowly crawled over the first step. Hazel lifted her shirt collar and followed after Serenity. After they crawled up a couple of steps that looked as if they could break through at any moment, they finally had enough room to stand up and hunch over. They lingered along the edges of every step because the middle was chipped and was in its early stages of rotting.

 

Once they got to the top, Serenity shone the aged flashlight around the attic. Most of the floor was hidden underneath boxes. The walls were short and angled at the top. “There they are.” Serenity was pointing across the room on the bottom of the book shelf, the same as last time. Hazel signaled for her to go on.

     “Did it get even more disgusting up here?” Hazel’s lungs were lining with dust by the second.

     “Probably. We’re the only ones that have been up here probably in years.” Hazel coughed again and squatted down to gather the filthy books. There were four books, each about a foot tall and two inches thick. Each was as fragile as the next. “I’ll grab these two and you grab those. We can look at them in my room so you don’t die up here.”

     Hazel nodded in agreement. The girls gathered the books and headed for the steps while trying to keep sight of the rickety floor. Hazel carefully yet hastily made her way down the stairs first. Serenity, while waiting for Hazel to make her way, whipped her head behind her.

     “Hazel, did you hear that?” Hazel coughed and shook her head “no” without the slightest thought of turning her head back. Serenity thought maybe she was just being paranoid and kept moving.

     Hazel stumbled out of the attic doorway and rolled onto the floor letting out her remedial coughs. She flapped her hand signaling for Serenity to come down out of the attic. She took one last examination of the attic, then started down the staircase. “Serenity, we aren’t even sure that magic is real.”

     “And you weren’t sure that question we had on our history test, but I was right. Wasn’t I?” Serenity was almost positive that the magic she had been feeling were truly existent at this point. Hazel picked herself up and headed towards the door while Serenity propped the attic door shut.

"They attained to Serenity’s room and arranged the books down on her pink and orange striped bedspread. Hazel began studying the books familiarity while Serenity pressed the door closed.

     “Serenity, I thought your great-grandmother’s name was in the back of these books?”

     “Uh, you are probably just looking at the wrong book.”

     “No. I checked them all. It was on the inside of the back cover. I remember. Are you sure nobody has been in your attic since us?”

     “Uh, positive.”

     Hazel examined Serenity’s eyes and could grasp that she was lying. “Serenity!” Hazel got distressed at the idea that Serenity would play with such a subtle concept. “We agreed to leave them alone, didn’t we?”

     “But-”

     “How did you manage to get her name to disappear? What was it again, Myra, Miris, Mira Estel, Mira Estel Ailing? That doesn’t sound right.”

     “Mira Estelle Aisling, and…” A chill ran down her spine. As soon as Serenity said her name, she heard that same scuffling from the attic. “You heard it that time! Right?”

     “Yes, what was that?”

     Serenity began trying to explain what happened when she visited the attic the second time, but the scuffle grew louder. Serenity dashed out of the door and ran to the attic. Hazel trailed her, for she was justly absorbed as Serenity this time.

 

“Do you see anything?” Serenity and Hazel scanned the disorderly room for something moving. The room was mostly shaded in browns, blacks, and golds, which made it nearly impossible to pinpoint an object.

     “There!” Hazel pointed her wobbly finger at a fifth large book. Serenity grabbed it in astonishment and carried it down to her bedroom with the rest.

    “What do you think is different about this book than the other four?” Serenity could hear Hazel’s voice following her with great pace. It was unusual for Hazel not to be serene on the matter.

     “I don’t know, but maybe this is where we’ll find the magic at.” Serenity sat the book on her bed and flipped to the inside of the back cover. “Look, Mira’s name isn’t just written with black ink, but it’s engraved.”

     “If these books are really linked with magic, then why is Mira’s name on them?”

     Serenity popped out of her dazed phase and became honored. “Remember when I suggested that she could be a witch?” She had a pleasing grin on her face that slightly irritated Hazel.

     “Yes,” Hazel’s voice rang as unpleased and Serenity felt like she finally proved her wit to Hazel. “But, we don’t even know if witches are real.” Hazel once again shone her cunning remark off.

     “What is magic without witches?”

     “Just a point.” Hazel shrugged her shoulders as she began reading the book’s contents. “This one, it doesn’t sound the same. The other books come off as spells or something of that nature, but this one sounds like riddles.”

     “That’s it!” Serenity found relief in her previous doubts. “I’m sure one of these riddles can tell us where to find the magic!”

     Hazel read over the riddles while Serenity skimmed the spells, checking for missed information. After flipping a few pages steadily, Hazel paused on one for a couple of minutes, rereading it.

     “Peragro aetas positus. The stone is key.”

     “Is that where we find the magic, that stone?”

     “I don’t know.” Hazel had still kept her focus on those words, as if they were significant to her. She slid her hand on the top of that page and scanned the rest of the book. “I think this one is it. I don’t see another like it. But I think we have to have a spell from one of those four books to make it work.”

     “Here.” Serenity handed Hazel two books and Serenity kept searching the one she had. “We will find it then.”

 

“Serenity, where are we going?” Hazel’s mind began to dazzle with questions that she hadn’t previously thought about.

     “To the stone…?”

     “I mean, do you know where the stone is? Like are we just going to knock on everyone’s back door and ask, hey, can I examine your stones?”

     Serenity paused. She seemed distraught for a moment as she looked around the neighborhood realizing there wasn’t forest close by, then had a flash of deep thought. “My grandmother used to babysit me when my parents were out of town. Do you remember, the one that dressed funny?”

     “Yeah, I remember. I haven’t seen her in a while.”

     “I haven’t either. She would always take me to some park around here and tell me weird stories. Maybe the stone is in that park.”

     “Do you know which park it is?” Hazel was impressed about how composed Serenity was being. Usually, moments like this got her worked up.

     “There is only three around here. I will remember it when I see it.”

     “Okay. Let’s start with the closest one.”

 

“Is this it?” Hazel peered around park number one. It was close to her brother’s elementary school and had a smell to it of sticky third graders that rolled up the hill.

     Serenity rolled her eyes from side to side without moving her head. “No. You couldn’t see buildings from this one.”

     Hazel clenched her lips to one side and blew a huff of air from her nose. Easing from her tensed eyebrows, she said,” Well, there is one a couple of streets behind Hal’s Hotdogs. We can check there next.” Hazel started walking off while Serenity just stood with the same flash of deep thought.

     Hazel calmly walked over to Serenity and drew her eyebrows back together. “Where is the third park, Serenity?”

     Serenity didn’t flinch. Her eyes danced back and forth and her fingers slowly moved in sync with her wrist. Hazel watched intently while trying to come up with a third park.

     “Serenity, there is no third park around here. Just the two.”

     Serenity slowly raised her head and said,” Yes, there is. Follow me.”

     She marched off with Hazel close behind.

 

“Serenity, are we almost there? Huh?” Hazel was complaining about the blisters forming on her feet from walking across town. Serenity raised her hand, silencing Hazel from interrupting her piercing train of thought. Hazel drew in yet another mass of air and pepped her step unwillingly.

     Serenity took a sharp left turn onto a faded trail up the small embankment next to them. Hazel summoned her thoughts for a second, then followed right after her. “Are you sure it’s up here?”

     Serenity sped a little faster knowing she was close. Hazel was just getting ready to yell when Serenity came to a stop at the top of the hill. Hazel caught up and calmed her scream into a,” Wow.”

     “It was here. I know.” Serenity became content with herself and searched for familiar sights in a timely manner. Hazel sat down in her place and caught up with her breath.

 

“Hazel! This is it!” Hazel popped up from her resting position and swung her arms in the air.

     “I’m coming!” She ran in the direction of Serenity’s eager voice then caught a glimpse of her platinum blonde hair that could easily catch someone’s eye.

     Hazel stared at the stone that was covered in swirls of midnight blue and was camouflaged with a few patches of moss crossing over the top. Hazel leaned over to pick it up, but Serenity caught her arm before she could.

     “Not yet.” Serenity had a serene eager as she looked at the stone a while longer.

     “Do you still have it?”

     Serenity reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out a slightly crumpled piece of paper. She unfolded it revealing the words to a spell they found in Mira’s book that were only slightly legible from her poorly cursive handwriting. Hazel gave her a nod of consent.

    Serenity reached for the stone. She struggled to lift it on her own, and Hazel bent to help her lift. With all four of their hands placed on the stone, Serenity began to recite the scribbles on the paper from her pocket.

     “Peragro Aetas Positus.”

     Nothing happened. They stood there holding the stone waiting for it to do something.

     “Maybe you said it wrong.” Hazel pinched for the paper and began to read its contents when the swirls on the stone began to lift off into the air. The stone grew so cold that it burnt their hands. Midnight blue masses swirled around them and slung them back, knocking everything into cold blackness.

 

The sky seemed the same color, but with less clouds covering it. There were tall, dark green leaves covering the sight of anything upward. Hazel tried to sit up to see where she was, where Serenity was. She felt a stinging pain creep at the back of her head.

     “Seren-”

     “Vous ne devriez pas me lever. Vous frappez votre tête assez mauvais.” A tall, handsome boy probably around Hazel’s age was staring down at her with smears of dirt rubbed on him. He had black moppy hair that just hung below his eyebrows that looked as if he hadn’t brushed it in ages. He also wore a tan tunic on with odd breech-like pants that looked nothing of the twenty-first century.

     “Uh, excuse me?” Hazel peered around with confusion seeping throughout her body.

     “I should have guessed you don’t speak French. I said you should lay back down. You hit your head pretty hard.”

     Hazel laid her head back and blinked a few times. She glanced back at him and found herself in an unfamiliar surrounding. “Um, where am I?”

     “You are in Europe, isn’t that obvious?”

     “Who are you?” Hazel looked around still unrecognizing the place then added,” And where is Serenity?”

     “I’m Adam and I don’t know of a Serenity.” His accent thick, but unfamiliar.

     Hazel lifted herself back up, shaking off the pain at the back of her head. As she went to stand up, Adam held out his hand for her to grab. His fingers long and calloused with dark crescents for fingernails. “You aren’t from here.”

     She glanced at him with a sarcastic look and took his hand knowing she would be too wobbly to stand up on her own. “No, and I barely know where here is. How did you find me?”

     “I was taking a walk to get away from some things and I saw a flash of light. I followed it over to you.”

     “You were taking a walk in the middle of the forest, and in those clothes, and coincidently found me?” She couldn’t hardly make sense of things and her headache was a distracting pain.

     “Yes, I wanted to be away from the people, my fam-” he stopped midsentence like he just saw a ghost, then continued,” Family and commoners both. And what’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” Adam seemed suspicious with his question, almost as if he knew why she would ask.

     “They just don’t look, well, up-to-date.”

     “I’ll have you know these are very up-to-date, latest from Rome.” He waved his hand up and down in front of him indicating to his clothes.

     Hazel mockingly added,” The latest from what century? The-”

     Adam jumped in before she could finish. “The fourteenth.” His grin spread to one ear as he locked in on her astounded focus with his alluring blue eyes.

     Hazel stopped and drew her eyebrows together. “You-” She paused in midsentence as she caught a glimpse of the town. She stumbled closer to it and examined it closely. There were women with floor length, dust-covered dresses covered by filthy aprons and shacks for buildings that appeared unsteady but seemed to be holding up fine. Many leather shoes scurried across stone pathways and most seemed to be dressed in rags. She peered a little farther and saw the castle. Its concentric walls stood tall and the drawbridge seemed almost fairytale-like. Hazel glanced at the town and then back to Adam. “You,” she drew out her words,” Aren’t from here.”

     “I believe you’re tis the stranger.” Adam, still smirking, grabbed at her jeans and pointed to her shoes. His accent kept changing, and almost seemed fake.

     “If you know that I am from, well, the future, then why aren’t you freaking out?” Hazel stared at him intensely, almost losing focus of her interrogation into the blue of his eyes. She shook her head and regained her focus.

     The other side of Adam’s mouth began to grin as he said,” You’re what? From the future!”

     “I can tell you are a bad liar. Why do you seem so fascinated by my being here?”

     “That’s for another time. Let’s get you ragged up so the King doesn’t see you.” He grabbed her by the hand and led her behind the town, avoiding the townspeople. “Wait here.” He pointed to a man in an iron and leather suit riding a black horse. “Don’t let any of them see you.” He trailed off into the mob of townspeople.