Sprinkle of Magic

The next few days went by normally. No more signs of the shadow in her room or anywhere else. Constant arguments in Literature. Niall still trying trying his hardest to get Maerin to open up. Talia being a complete bitch. Everything left Maerin more closed off than normal. She wished she could be happy and have friends again, but every time she felt her walls breaking down, even a little bit, Emily's face flashed through her head, and thoughts of the Shadow pushed their way through.

Finally, it was Saturday. Of course, Maerin was grumpy when she woke up. She was used to sleeping in as late as she possibly could on the weekend, but Ireland was so different from the States. She'd dressed herself in worn out, baggy jeans, a tight fitting Paramore top hugging her torso before going downstairs to meet Ailbe for tea. She put on her old pair of ragged Doc Martens while she waited for the kettle to boil. "Chin up, Mae. It's only half day today, and you don't have to work with your Granda. You finally have a chance to explore." The thought did make Maerin smile. She hadn't gone out into the forests behind the house since she was a small child, but it had always been one of her favorite places. She finished her tea quickly, not wanting to be late, and made her way to the school for her few hours of study.

She checked her schedule after she turned off the engine of her Mustang. She had an hour of free study, and hour of vocal lessons, then another hour of free study. She gave a little frown. If she was going to have nothing but free periods, what was the point of even coming in? Then she remembered, usually, the labs for the science classes would be on Saturday, and since she didn't have one, she got another free period. With the thought in mind that she could pretty much do what she pleased, she grabbed her bag and made her way into the school. She kept her jacket and bag with her when she stepped into the classroom. Her supervisor was her Literature professor, so instead of sitting in the room doing nothing -she'd finished all of her homework during school the previous day- she sparked up a conversation about her favorite books.

By the time her free hour was over, she had a handful of books in her arms, which she promptly stuck into her bag. Her professor recommended all of them, and since he had such great taste in novels, she decided to give them a try. She made her way to the choir room, a skip in her step. Her smile seemed to grow the closer she got. Singing had always been her passion. Even if she was too frightened to make a career out of it, it always made her feel better. She pulled the door open and stepped inside, her smile instantly falling, a glare replacing it. Niall sat in the windowsill, one of his legs bent up, the other swinging next to the wall. Maerin quickly composed herself and made her way to the opposite side of the room as a few more students filed in.

The instructor explained that the voice lessons were required once, and then they were forgotten. Since Maerin was new, and this was her last year, it was a graduation requirement, she found it was the same for Niall, and two of the other students in with them. Maerin tried her best to ignore the obnoxious blonde boy who kept scooting closer and closer during warm ups. "Have you thought about what song you're choosing for your solo, dear?" Maerin grinned at her instructor, nodding shyly.

"I was thinking of Misguided Ghosts. It's an old Paramore song, but it's beautiful." She was asked to demonstrate, but her cheeks heated. "I would but I..Erm...I can't play an instrument...And I can't get the timing right without one." She gave a sheepish smile.

"I can play the guitar for you. The songs pretty easy." Her head snapped up when Niall spoke up. After shrugging him off for the millionth time, he'd stayed pretty quiet, so Maerin was a bit surprised at his offer. She nodded, though, and he grabbed a guitar from the corner of the room she hadn't noticed before. While he played the introduction, Maerin tried to forget about the eyes on her, and when it was time for her to start, she closed her eyes.

"I am going away for a while
But I'll be back don't try and follow me.
For I'll return as soon as possible.
See I'm trying to find my place,
But it might not be here where I feel safe,
We all learn to make mistakes,
And run, from them, from them,
With no direction-"

She cut herself off when Niall's voice chimed in with hers. She hadn't been expecting that. His fingers on the strings stopped, confusion in his eyes when he looked at her. Her cheeks were a bright crimson as she mumbled her apology, giving an excuse that she wasn't feeling well before she picked up her bag and ran as fast as she could to the main office. She got a pass to leave for the rest of the day, since she only had a free hour next, anyways, and quickened her pace when she left the building. She slammed the driver door of her car shut, and slammed her hands on the steering wheel out of frustration. What was wrong with her? She'd sang with people before, multiple times, and she'd never choked like that. She'd just been caught off guard. That was it. She shook her head, trying to calm herself down before she pulled out of the parking lot.

Ailbe was surprised to see Maerin home so soon, but she fixed a pot of tea, anyways. Maerin told the housekeeper of her choice for her solo, though she left out what had happened when she tried to sing it for her instructor. She was angry, now, rather than confused. What had Niall been trying to play at? Jumping in like he did, he probably knew it would mess her up. She inwardly groaned as she sipped her tea, hoping the scalding liquid would calm her down. "I'm going to go over and help your Granda in the bakery. We're going out for dinner tonight, so if you decide to go explore, be back by six." Maerin gave a tight nod before Ailbe bent down for a quick hug. A few more minutes later, and Maerin was alone with her thoughts.

After the last drop of tea was drained from her cup, Maerin cleaned up the cup and kettle, and made her way upstairs. She stared at her suitcase for a moment before she made a drastic decision. She wasn't going to leave. She liked it here, liked being wanted and not feared. She quickly began to shove her clothes into the dresser, hanging up the few dresses, skirts, and nice clothes she had. She left her uniforms on the door, though, since she would need those every day. She cleaned up her vanity a bit, organizing everything before she filled the drawers with her accessories. She draped her belts and scarfs over the mirror and smiled when she finally stood back to look. The floor was now free of multiple bags, she'd shoved them under the bed, and she was actually happy with the outcome. Now, she had some exploring to do. She grabbed a belt from its new home on the mirror, and slid it through her belt loops before she buttoned them up. She took another look down at the ragged Doc Martens before she kicked them off. She went back to her wardrobe and pulled out her old pair of work boots. They were thick and sturdy, and were still fairly clean since she'd only worn them a few times while she was working on a farm back in the States. She slid them on and tied them up, figuring they would be best, since she didn't know how much the terrain had changed in the forest. After sliding on a light jacket before replacing her leather coat, she slipped out of the back door.

It was just as she remembered. Light shone down through the branches of tight knit trees, illuminating the path in front of her. Everything about the woods seemed magical. Maerin stopped when the thought went through her head, cursing herself quietly. She'd always hated that word. After everything that had happened in her life, she'd begun to despise the word. She shook her head, letting a loud sigh escape before she trudged on.

She had no idea how long she'd been walking for, though it seemed like hours. As she carried on down the path she pulled out her phone and glanced at it. It was nearly half three, she'd been gone for almost three hours. She sighed before she turned herself around. She would have to start the walk back if she wanted to make it home in time to be able to get ready before dinner. She slipped her phone into her pocket, and cursed the second she looked up. "Bloody hell..." She mumbled the words under her breath as she looked around. The path was no longer in front of her. It must have turned off when she wasn't looking, and she'd continued to go straight while paying attention to her phone. She pulled the phone out once again, cursing a second time when she saw that she had no signal. "Bloody perfect." She shook her head as she tried to look for a familiar land mark to tell her the right direction. She thought the small circle of rocks to her left looked familiar, so she headed that way.

She'd been walking only five minutes before the trees opened up into a bright clearing. The breath left her when she saw the tree in the very center of the clearing. It towered over all the others, and seemed to glow softly. It was a weeping willow, but in no way did it look sad. Each dangling branch seemed to breathe life into the air around it. Maerin almost couldn't believe what she was seeing, it seemed like something she'd seen once in a dream. With a deep breath, she slowly walked forward, hesitantly reaching a hand out to the tree. As soon as her fingertip touched one of the shining branches, agonized screaming filled her ears. She couldn't move, couldn't breathe. The screaming grew louder and louder, until Maerin's vision went black.

"Maerin, you need to wake up, now." A groan escaped the girls lips as she slowly sat up, keeping her eyes closed. Her head was pounding, so her hands flew to her temples. "Here, let me help." Maerin's eyes finally flew open, golden eyes staring into green. She had thought she'd been dreaming when she heard the voice, obviously she was wrong. A young boy with shaggy blonde hair sat inches away from her, worry etched onto his features. He held up a hand, pointing to her head, and she nodded slowly. His hand inched forward until his fingertips finally brushed her temple. When they did, the pounding stopped in an instant, though a slight crackle now filled her ears. She blinked a bit when the sound faded, and the boy pulled his hand away.

Realization and fear filled her as she scooted away from the boy. "Wh..Who are you? How do you know my name?" No matter how much she wanted to run, she couldn't bring her limps to work. She heard the boy chuckle, and she shot her gaze back to his.

"I am known by many names, and I know many things, Maerin Curruthers." It was obvious he could see the fear in her eyes, because his face softened as he approached her, kneeling in front of her. "I am Ward of the Great Tree, the source of all magickal energy." The words had the fear returning to Maerin's eyes. No. It couldn't be possible, she didn't want it to be possible. "I protect the Tree, and it protects me. You, Maerin Curruthers, may call me, Ardan." This was all too much for her to handle. All her life she'd been trying to escape from the odd things that happened everywhere around her, and here this boy was, pushing it right back into her life.

"It screamed.." She whispered softly, mentally cursing herself for saying anything at all. The boys eyes looked sad as he nodded.

"It's in pain." He confirmed. Maerin didn't have time to ask what he meant, because he was standing up and pulling her to her feet. "Come on, you have to get back to the house." Without a word, Maerin nodded, and Ardan led her out of the clearing and back through the overgrown trees. When the house was finally in sight, Ardan stopped, turning to smile at Maerin. "I will see you again, Maering Curruthers. Please, don't be afraid of me, I won't harm you." Much to her surprise, the boy grabbed her phone from her jacket pocket and typed something in. "If you ever need me, don't hesitate to text or call." She raised her eyebrow at him at the thought of some apparent Magickal being texting. "Oh please. I may be thousands of years old, but I know how to adapt." He chuckled, and Maerin found herself smiling. Even with all of the talk of the thing she hated and feared the most, she did feel safe around the boy. "Go, now. Stay safe, Maerin Curruthers."

Maerin nodded as she watched his back begin to retreat into the woods. "Ardan!" She surprised both herself and the boy by speaking up. "Call me Mae." He grinned at her, giving a nod, and she returned it before she turned back around, sprinting into her house. She had a dinner to get ready for.