Archive of Our Own ^beta

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Summary: (it was too long to fit in the description)

There are two sides to magic, Light Magic and Emotional Magic. Light Magic makes use of the world around the mage who uses it, and Emotional Magic develops depending on the user's personality and emotions. Every mage is either a Light Mage, attending Dawnrise Academy for Light Magic, or and Emotional Mage, studying at Dreamspire Academy for Emotional Magic. But Serena Riverfall is both.

Having founded both cities (Dawnrise with Jake, Cara, Sam, and the others) (Dreamspire with Rein, Kaitlyn, and her Emotional Mage friends), she travels back and forth between them, doing her best to teach Light Mages AND Emotional Mages their respective crafts. Only one person in the worlds knows of this, and that's Rein Arel, her best friend. However, this precarious deception won't last long, with her keeping the secret from her significant other, Wren, and many other important people in her life.

Her childhood friend Jake carries a deep hatred for Emotional Mages, believing their powers artificial and evil. Since he's the leader of Dawnrise, it would be a disaster if he found out. Wren has seen too much destruction and pain at the hands of Light Mages, specifically Jake, for it to be easy for him to accept. 

Serena desperately wants to tell the truth to her friends, but she's been living with the lies for so long, it seems impossible. Combine that with the scheming leader of Dreamspire that she put in charge during a lapse in judgement, a manipulative Light Mage out to get her, and the fact that she's now responsible for fighting both sides of the ongoing war between the schools, will Serena ever figure out how to take her life into her own hands again?

Chapter Text

The Dreamspire Chronicles

The Dreamspire Chronicles is set in a world far into the future, with the real world not being a mess like it is now. There’s a minuscule amount of, if any homophobia, transphobia, racism,  sexism, and all the issues that make our world such a bad place. 

There is one remarkable difference, though. When a child turns ten, strange things begin happening around them. Lightning might crackle in their eyes, or they might heal a broken bone in a day. Rooms get brighter or darker as they walk in. All this builds up for seven days exactly, until 12:00 PM a week after their birthday. A portal to a magical city will open in front of them, and they will choose to either enter it and learn to wield their magic, or turn away in favor of a nonmagical life. 

If they do not enter the portal, their abilities will fade, and they will never be able to use their magic. If they go through, they enter the City of Dawnrise, built around Dawnrise Academy for Light Magic, OR Dreamspire City, featuring Dreamspire Academy of Emotional Magic. 

Most Light Mages refer to Emotional Magic as Dark Magic, as it is pulled directly from the user rather than from the environment around them. Emotional Magic depends solely on the user’s intention and emotions. Light Magic is simply the user making use of the world around them.

Dawnrise

The City of Dawnrise is governed by the Director of the school, and one Heir, usually a student who graduated at the top of their class and spent a year as a teacher. Sometimes, a Director will appoint a School Board to keep things running smoothly when the Director is too busy for some tasks. Light Mages graduate at 16, and usually spend a year as a teacher for their Class of Magic. They can then move out of the school, into the main city, or continue to stay and attend or teach one or two classes. Many first-year students choose to stay with a group of responsible sixth- or seventh-years who care for the younger student as though they were a sibling. Some choose to stay in the dorms. Some older students, fourteen and older, can choose to live in an apartment or house around the school. 

Dawnrise has a system of magic where you are categorized depending on what your ability is. Their philosophy when it comes to magic is like “oh, you can read minds? You’re telepathy class. Your ability is named Mind Reading. Have a nice life and follow the one million rules in this place. You can control fire? You’re Elemental Class, and a Fire Mage. Your ability’s name is Flame. Oh, you don’t fit into any category? Your ability doesn’t deserve to be named, you’re Creative Magic Class.” 

Dreamspire

Dreamspire Academy is far more accepting than Dawnrise. Any magic-user is welcome unless they’re causing trouble such as trying to destroy the city, being a spy for Dawnrise, trying to murder people, etc. Dreamspire’s philosophy when it comes to magic is like “Oh, you can summon swords? Cool. You have two years of school to learn how to control and harness your magic, everything else is optional.” 

It is governed by a Higher and Lower Council. Council members are usually teachers who did a great job and were promoted. As of now, there are eight members of the Lower Council, and eleven members of the Higher Council. The Higher Council is made up of skilled mages with a lot of experience in magic, war, and (sometimes) politics. The Lower Council is made up of students and civilian mages. They’re usually inexperienced. 

Leaders

In Dawnrise, the current Director is Jake Springfield. His School Board consists of Cara Hollow, Caleb Keenward, and Paige Jackson. The Heir (chosen by the current Director to be the next one) is Priya Rosethorn. Most of the other Dawnrise leaders are significantly better than Jake, but unfortunately, they have less power, politically and magically speaking.

The Dreamspire Council does not officially have a leader, but anyone involved in Dreamspire politics will know that Chronos is the true power behind the Council(s). The remainder of the Higher Council consists of Serena Riverfall, Rein Arel, Zephyr Stonekeep, Kaitlyn Grey, Wren Morrigan, Maya Seren, Keiko Suzuki, Quinn Skystone, Lyra Marigold, and Astra Windshire. All of them are accomplished mages, but the most powerful of them are Serena, Wren, and Chronos. Therefore, it’s lucky that none of them are at odds… *ominous silence* *faint evil laughter from author*

The Lower Council is composed of Astrid Shadowbrook, Laraline Adonis, Arden Birch, Rena Lightblade, Theo Amberless, Celeste Everstar, Nova Embermoon, and Callen Spring.

The government of Earth is the same as it is now, besides the fact that the corrupt politicians/leaders are replaced with decidedly better ones. 

Allies

For Dreamspire, Serena, Rein, and Kaitlyn are the unofficial leaders of their little group, the rest consisting of Wren, Maya, Keiko, and Lyra. They pretty much always side with each other. 

Quinn, Nova, Callen, and Rena side with Chronos most of the time, which makes for a very useful little set of powers. Chronos is obviously the leader by default, allowing the other four to fall into step behind him.

For Dawnrise, Cara, Priya, and Caleb do their best to keep the school and city running smoothly, enforcing important rules such as ‘no murder’ and others, and get issues resolved. Cara is rather feared by many teachers, because she’s quite powerful, and gets things done by glaring at people and pointedly hinting at them that she’s one of the most powerful mages in the city and has been practicing with her ability until they comply. Caleb uses kinder and less fearsome methods such as asking nicely and going through the proper channels. Priya is a bit of a vigilante. 

Jake has a thinly veiled campaign to destroy Emotional Magic wherever and whenever he can, actively seeking out more power for himself until he is strong enough to face the Council of Dreamspire himself. Paige is subtle and manipulative, using her illusions and telepathic magic to get what she wants. She is concerned mostly with smaller problems than Jake and Serena, focusing mostly on keeping her hold on power and eventually replacing Priya as the heir.

Chapter Text

“Come on, Jake! I promise I won’t let you cause a school-wide disaster this time!” Serena Riverfall was becoming exasperated.

“Last time I helped you teach a class, I flooded the entire Creative Magic building,” Jake replied flatly. But Serena could see that his excuses were running out. They’d been having this argument for an hour already, and she was tired of it. In this case, ‘tired of it’ meant ‘seriously considering dragging him out of his secluded tower and into the classroom regardless of who was watching’.

“Because you panicked when Cara looked in your direction!” Serena glared at him.

“Because she’s terrifying!” Jake protested. It was no secret that Cara Hollow was the scariest teacher at Dawnrise Academy, but Jake was the co-founder of the School Council. He had the kind of annoying powers that should have made him intimidating and mysterious, but you’d never know that by looking at him. Jake was the kind of sixteen-year-old who behaved like he was five. Serena had grown up with him, and she’d always been his protector. After sixteen years of forcing him to try new things and live his life, she was completely tired of his constant state of paranoia. 

“She’s my best friend, Jake!” Serena fumed. 

“I thought I was your best friend,” Jake whined. 

“Stop complaining!” Serena was done with this. She grabbed his arm, flung open the door to his study, and dragged him down the stairs. “I’m not going to be around forever! You need to get a life, Jake! You are going to go to my classroom and learn how to teach a magic class, or so help me, I will -” 

“Alright!” Jake conceded. “Maybe I do need to get out more.” That was the understatement of the century. He hadn’t left his tower in two weeks, and as far as Serena knew, he had been doing nothing but trying to figure out how to use telepathy, although he didn’t have the ability. 

“See! I was right! Now do I have to drag you the rest of the way to the Creative Magic building or can you walk?” Serena’s anger hadn’t simmered down yet. 

“I can walk,” Jake sulked as he jerked his hand out of her grasp. “You’re on fire, by the way. Just thought you should know.”

“Actual fire or magic fire?” Serena was unconcerned. 

“Magic fire,” Jake answered. The harmless flames sparking along her fingertips flickered and extinguished. “You need to keep better control over your magic.”

“Says the boy who flooded a building last week,” Serena teased. It was her favorite thing about their friendship, how easily they fell back into their normal rhythms after an argument. 

“Says the girl who caused a hurricane in first year,” Jake countered. 

“Says the boy who did just as much for that hurricane as I did.” Serena laughed softly, remembering how Alder had stolen her hair-tie during their weekly field trip to the beach, and how she’d tried to use wind magic to steal it back, but it didn’t go as well as she’d hoped (Note to self: using first-year wind magic at a wildly magical beach is a bad idea). Jake had tried to stop the sandstorm she’d caused by drowning it, but they ended up causing a magic hurricane. It also didn’t help that they’d snuck away from the group to try to build a sandcastle with magic, so no one else was around to help prevent the chaos that had ensued. 

That day, they’d discovered what doesn’t help prevent a hurricane. Throwing rocks at it with telekinesis, attempting to stop it with more first-year wind magic, zapping it with energy, and trying to teleport it elsewhere were among the list. They finally stopped it when Rein froze it in time, though Jake hadn’t known it was Rein. He’d assumed that Serena had manifested a new ability and used it on the hurricane-sandstorm-monstrosity. To this day, there was still a frozen half-hurricane-half-sandstorm monstrosity at Clearwater Beach. 

“Hey, Serena,” Jake said. She turned back towards him. “I was just thinking-” 

“Who are you and what have you done with Jake?”

“Very funny, Sera. My point is, what if we skipped class and went to Clearwater again?”

“Nice try- you’re not getting out of your responsibilities that easily.” Serena was not amused. 

“Worth a try.” Jake grinned. 

“You’ve been procrastinating all afternoon- it’s nearly evening, and we’re the last class. Come on, we need to get there before the chaotic ones.” Serena led the way past the Elemental Magic building, the Telepathy Magic building, and the Telekinetic Magic building before finally reaching the glass doors of the  purple Creative Magic building.

A loud crash echoed from one of the higher windows, and broken glass rained down. Serena yanked Jake out of the way just before the shards crashed to the ground. 

“What the heck was that?” Jake’s eyes were wide with shock. “Are we being attacked? Was that an attempt at murder? Who did that, Sera?” 

“Calm down. It’s probably just some of the students being idiots,” she explained. At least, that was what she hoped. “Let’s go check it out.”

“Why aren’t you concerned?” Jake’s incredulous expression brought a smile to Serena’s face. 

“This happens all the time. You just never see it because you’re holed up in your office all day, ” Serena emphasized as she pushed her way through the double doors. Jake gave an affronted huff.

Jake hovered at the entrance for a second, before seeming to ultimately decide that following Serena was the best course of action. He hurried past her as though she was a magnet for disaster,  and pressed the up  button on the elevator. The silver doors dinged, then slid open, revealing a huge dent in the opposite wall. What kind of idiots did I let into my classes this year?

“Sera?” Jake asked her tentatively, jolting her from her thoughts of rethinking her life choices. “Are you… okay?” 

I’m too tired for this right now, she thought. Seventeen was far too young to be running a whole school, let alone a magic school where none of the students had any common sense or control at all.

“Do you know how hard it is to fix a whole entire building with magic? Really difficult, let me tell you. I also really, really don’t have time to do that right now.,” Serena snapped. She spun around, and stormed over to the staircase. “Are you coming or not?”  Jake sighed and followed her. “You’re not arguing with me?”

“I’ve known you my whole life. I know that it’s a bad idea to argue with you when you have that scary intense look in your eyes,” he answered. “Unless you want me to argue with you?”

“I don’t have time for this,” Serena repeated.

“Alright, sorry,” Jake apologized.

“No, it’s okay… I guess I’m just worried.” 

“About the students?” Jake guessed.

“No, I’m worried about my evil best friend who can stop time and is probably plotting world domination right now. Of course I’m worried about the students, they have less common sense this year than ever before!” Serena buried her face in her hands, and kept walking up the stairs without tripping. After twelve years at Dawnrise, she knew every inch of the building that well.

“So you and Rein are still talking?” Jake demanded incredulously.

“No, I haven’t spoken to her in years. You know that.” Serena looked back and sighed. So much for honesty.

They continued up the stairs until they reached the second floor. Serena leaned through the archway to check if anyone was in the hallway. It was deserted. She hurried back into the stairwell and kept going towards the third and final level. By the time she reached it, she heard a shout echo through the hallway.

“Mari! The teachers are going to be so mad at us!” At this point there was absolutely no doubt in Serena’s mind that her most chaotic students were behind this. 

“Are these the ones you keep complaining about?” Jake inquired.

“Unfortunately so,” Serena replied. “They’ve caused almost as much trouble as we did our seventh year.”

“No way.” Jake was obviously shocked.

“I’m afraid so,” Serena sighed. “I’m getting too old for this.” She loved teaching, and most of the students were like younger siblings to her, but she was so tired of their shenanigans. 

“Sera, you’re seventeen,” 

“And your point is?”

“Sera, you’re seventeen ,” Jake repeated.

“I’m still waiting for you to get to the point.” Serena was completely serious. “But since you’re clearly not going to, we might as well find out what’s going on with them.” She pointed ahead.

The third level of the Creative Magic building was made almost entirely of magically reinforced glass. The floor was dyed a dark, shimmering grey that allowed sunlight to shine through, lending the floor below it the appearance of outer space. The walls were dyed varying shades of blue, from cerulean and teal to midnight blue and sapphire. It was a miracle her students hadn’t found a way to shatter the enchanted glass yet. The third floor contained a library and four classrooms, and it was by far Serena’s favorite place in the school. That’s why it was off-limits to a certain group of chaotic first-years: Mari Winter, David Locke, Minerva Brightshine, Gavin Carter, and some others. They were her favorite and least favorite students at the same time. 

“I can’t believe I haven’t expelled them yet,” Serena said to herself.

“I can’t believe it either,” Jake replied. “Should we go stop the chaos?”

“That’s probably a good idea.” Serena had resigned herself to the fact that she’d have to deal with the chaotic first-years sooner or later, and better to do it now rather than after they caused a schoolwide disaster. She raised her voice. “Marina Eva Winter! Come out of that classroom right this instant or so help me, I will give you detention for the remaining twelve years of your magical education!” 

A small dark-haired girl with glasses tentatively crept out of a classroom at the end of the hall. “Sorry,” she said, sounding very much not sorry at all. “Do I still have to do detention?”

Serena heaved a sigh. I’m too tired for this. 

“Who was your accomplice this time?” she asked.

“Ethan.” Serena made a mental note to give Ethan detention as well. 

At that moment, she realized that Jake was nowhere to be found. “I really am too old for this,” she muttered under her breath. 

“Did you say something, Ms Serena?” Mari seemed puzzled, or maybe she was just confused. Or possibly trying to test Serena’s patience, the limits of which were decidedly not large.

“I told you, it’s Serena. I’m like six years older than you, I don’t need a title. Just call me by my name. All the other students do.” Serena heaved a sigh. “Just… go to the Elemental Studies building and take this to…” Who would be in the Elemental Studies building at this time? Sam had said that they were going to Clearwater with Paige and Haven. Alder, Liam, and Miles always held a single afternoon class, then reverted to informal instruction for the remainder of the day. Serena withheld another sigh. It looked like she’d have to rely on her half-sister. She snapped her fingers, conjuring a small blue spiral notebook and an ink pen, then wrote: 

The bringers of chaos were at it again, Creative Magic building’s been damaged, Jake’s being stupid. Can you round up the troublemakers and oversee detention tonight? Also, we need to talk. Glowering Woods at midnight?                                                                              -S

She closed the notebook and tapped the cover with the pen. The pen melted into the cover and dripped over the pages, sealing the notebook shut. She then held it out to Mari. 

“Take this to Laura Palmer, and don’t try to read it because the magic seal will open for her, and her alone.” Mari took the notebook and made her way to the staircase.

When Mari had faded out of sight, Serena braced herself against the wall and exhaled. I’m too tired for this, she thought again. She forced herself to walk forward, although every muscle in  her body protested against it. She was always this tired after performing simple magic, as it took an enormous amount of energy just to keep her magic under control. It was easier to perform extraordinary feats of magic that no ordinary mage could do easily. That was what her magic was made for, it was just her nature. It just flowed out, and she barely had to think about it. But when using simple magic, she had to hold back for fear of overdoing it and conjuring a flood of notebooks and ink pens, for example. 

Sometimes I wish I was normal. Then I remember that ‘normal’ is the reason everyone else is the way they are. 

She was distracted by a loud crash coming from the window. Serena rushed to the side of the hallway and heaved open the glass pane. She stuck her head out, and craned her neck to see what was going on. Jake was standing in the courtyard, sixty or seventy feet below, with his hands held out towards a window in the Telepathy Magic building. As she watched, he turned to- oh no - the fountain in the middle of campus. 

Serena cursed loudly, disregarding the fact that there might be students in earshot. The water from the fountain rose into the air, and zoomed towards the building again. I have to do something. She clambered out the window, feeling very shaky as she balanced precariously on the ledge, and yelled, “Stop!” at the top of her lungs. Just in case that wasn’t enough, she focused as hard as she could on deactivating Jake’s ability, hoping that her magic would cooperate for once.

Jake froze, and turned towards her. The water splashed (mostly) harmlessly to the ground, drenching a homework-toting teacher about Jake’s age. 

“Serena! I had a perfectly logical reason to do that, why’d you break my concentration?”

“Because I told you, it’s really hard to fix a building with magic! Also, your ‘logical reasons’ are never logical!” she shouted back. A gust of wind swept along the ledge. Serena cursed again under her breath. Don’t fall, don’t fall, don’t- 

Her left foot slipped off and Serena went tumbling over the edge.

Serena screamed several words that she would normally get in trouble for saying, but she’s falling to her death so who’s going to stop her? 

“Serena!” Jake shouted, already standing below her. The ground was rushing up to meet her… at a  very slow speed? What?

“You do realize you’re basically floating gently to the ground-” Jake started, then Serena cut him off with a glare. She lowered to the ground at last, and stormed towards Jake. 

“We will never speak of this again,” she muttered as she passed him. He whirled around to walk beside her. 

“Why did you stop me, anyways?” he sounded genuinely curious, which further reinforced Serena’s opinion that he was an idiot. 

“Because you were breaking the Elemental Magic building, and like I have said many times before, magical repairs are difficult!”

“But it would have been worth it-” Jake started.

“If you had actually seen something worth damaging a building full of students and teachers for.” They’d had this argument many times, and Serena had a sinking feeling that she knew why he’d done it.

“What if it had been a Dreamspire mage?” Jake’s confused but positive demeanor changed in an instant. A sneer twisted his face into something sinister. “I saw whoever it was on top of the building! No one’s allowed up there, and you know it.” 

“Yes, I know that no students or teachers are allowed up there. I also know that no one obeys that rule , because it’s a stupid rule. You probably just interrupted an Air Mage trying to enjoy their lunch.” She spoke with the air of one explaining that one plus one equals two, but the calm, rational logic she displayed hid the uncertainty and fear that came with lying. The second of doubt, of sheer terror when you think you’ve been caught. 

“And if it wasn’t an Air Mage?” Jake snapped. 

“Then I’ll handle it- like I’ve been handling everything in this school since you become the Director.” 

“I know you were friends with Rein, Kaitlyn, and the others. Can I trust you?” the question sounded childish, but the intent behind it was anything but. Serena was no fool; she knew what Jake was doing. The real question was, are you willing to fight your other friends for us? 

“Do you trust me?” She dodged the question and stalled for time.

“That’s not what I’m asking.” Jake obviously thought he was unreadable, but his intentions and thoughts were splashed all over his face. Are you still in contact with your friends from Dreamspire? Would you betray Wren for us? Who are you really fighting for? That’s what he was really asking.

Serena shoved the raging sea of her emotions to the back of her mind, and collected herself. Stay calm. Stay composed. Stay believable. The shield of lies she’d been hiding behind was one thread away from unraveling before her eyes. She prayed Jake didn’t pry further.

“Yes.” Her voice didn’t waver. Anyone would have thought she was sincere. When is this going to end? She ached for the end of the day, when she could travel back to Dreamspire and she could just be. No lies, no checking every five seconds for suspicion in the faces of everyone she spoke to, and best of all, no Jake. Her friends, her magic, and her purpose all lay just out of her reach. So close, but so very far away. 

“Good.” The hostility in Jake’s voice melted away, and she could almost pretend they were friends. There were only a few more hours left in the day, every second ticking away brought her closer to the person she couldn’t- wouldn’t  let herself think about. Not now. Not here, where every lie tore her apart a little bit more every day. Where every wish she made, every stray thought might be the end of her. Where she couldn’t afford the slightest mistake. 

Serena nodded, and raised her voice. “Classes are cancelled! Go back to your dorms!”

“I didn’t know  you had the power to do that,” Jake said as he followed her. 

“Well, since you’re shut up in your office all day, someone has to take command,” Serena observed. She sped up, every step restoring some of her energy the farther away from Jake she got. So close; almost there. She stopped three-quarters of the way through the courtyard and concentrated on her apartment for a second. A door appeared in front of her, as if it were drawn by pencil. She walked through it, then turned to slam the door.

“Get your school together, or I’ll do it for you.” she smiled sweetly. Jake stopped in his tracks, startled, and the door closed.

“Well, that was interesting.” She turned to see a silver-haired teenage girl sitting in her kitchen. 

“Hello, Rein,” Serena greeted her. “What happened this time?”

“You’ll see,” Rein answered. She pulled out her phone and sent a text. A portal opened  between them.

“Let me guess- Astra again?”

“Yes, the whole city’s on fire. I really am all for committing arson, but this is going to be irritating to clean up.”

“Agreed.” Serena stepped through the portal, out of the creativity-strangling world of Dawnrise and into the lighthearted chaos of Dreamspire. Perhaps creativity-strangling was the wrong word, but make no mistake, Dawnrise Academy was certainly far less interesting and captivating than the shining towers of Dreamspire City.

Chapter Text

“Serena. We need you in the Great Hall.” Jake’s usually energetic voice was strangely solemn as his words filled Serena’s head. I guess he figured out Telepathy after all. She closed the door of her classroom after her last class of students. “It’s important.”  

She gave an annoyed sigh. “Alright. I’ll be there in a few minutes,” she replied, reopening the classroom door and stepping out into the student hallway abuzz with chatter, more so than usual. She swept her gaze across the hall, straining to pick up a few words from the conversations. She wanted to know. 

But she didn’t know what a mistake that would be.

“Did you hear-”

“-a dark mage, caught!”

“-thought she could spy on us with her ability-”

No. It couldn’t be. Rein wouldn’t have let anyone try to spy. That was what Serena stayed in Dawnrise Academy for. But… the last time she’d been able to slip away to Dreamspire, Kaitlyn and Lucia had brought up the idea of someone at Dawnrise.

Time sped to a blur around her, the information spinning around her head. Someone else from Dreamspire had come to spy on the school, not knowing that Serena was already there. They’d been caught. 

One of her friends was as good as dead.

Unless she intervened.

She took off, sprinting full tilt along the side of the corridor towards the Great Hall. She only had one chance, and she couldn’t afford to screw it up. Especially if the person who’d been caught was who she thought it was. Don’t let it be Lucia. Stars above, please don’t let it be Lucia. She briefly considered transmitting to Dreamspire to make sure, but discarded the idea because there wasn’t any guarantee her powers would cooperate. She ultimately decided that she didn’t have time.

At last, the intricately carved double doors of the Great Hall were in sight. Serena paused for a moment to consider the abilities inside. The whole faculty appeared to be there. Good. They'll be too busy arguing about what to do.  I’ll be fine… I hope.

That statement turned out to be completely and totally inaccurate.

Serena took a deep breath, then flung open the doors, and stopped to take in the sight in front of her. A raven-haired girl was standing in the center of the room, under the vigilant, and in most cases, hateful, stares of the teachers. 

Serena stopped cold. Lucia! You absolute idiot! Why would you do this? Why would you risk everything for… whatever it is you’re risking everything for? 

“What is the meaning of this?” she spoke calmly, careful to keep every hint of emotion out of her voice. 

“We caught the spy,” Jake replied, bewildered. 

“I can see that.” Serena masked her fear under the guise of annoyance. “And what are you planning to do with her, now that you’ve caught her? If I recall correctly, Asha Skyler is the only one with an ability that could facilitate a suitable method of getting rid of the spy. Correct?” She knew perfectly well that Asha was the only one with one such ability, and what an incredibly powerful ability it was. They could grant three wishes to themself every day, and three to another person.

“Correct,” Jake admitted, seeming reluctant to share such information openly in front of a prisoner. If everything went according to the plan forming in Serena’s mind, Lucia wouldn’t be a prisoner much longer, or ever again.

“Asha is also spending the week on Earth, right?” 

Jake nodded miserably, all semblance of composure thrown out the window. There were a few disapproving mutters among the faculty at his open displeasure. 

“We have no records on her, and no way to find her until she returns.” 

Jake nodded once more, every passing second another nail in the coffin of his intended method. 

“Therefore, I propose a different solution.” Serena turned her focus to the assembled teachers. “We should erase any and all memories of Dawnrise that she has, and leave her in the Glowering Woods to find her way back to Dreamspire.” 

There were some nods, clearly in favor of her idea, but those were buried in the sea of disagreement. Is Paige using her powers on them? She couldn’t tell.

“ I have a better idea,” the pink-haired telepath moved to the front of the group. “I’ll examine every one of her memories, and see everything she knows.” Paige smiled innocently, but Serena knew it was just an act. She opened her mouth to say something, anything to dissuade the faculty of Paige’s idea. It could be Dreamspire’s downfall, leaving her the sole Emotional Mage left in the world. But what could she say? It made logical sense if you had the best interest of Dawnrise at heart. Paige’s power wouldn’t leave a single thought unseen. 

Unless her power mysteriously stopped working.  

Her heart missed a beat with the lifeline that had been thrown to her by this meager plan. Could it work? If she started now… she might be able to do it.

She reached for her power, and with barely a thought, the magic molded itself to her will, snipping the threads of Paige’s concentration in less than a second. The telepath angled herself toward Lucia, eyes faraway and glowing an ominous magenta. Serena pushed herself harder. She couldn’t fail, not now, not when so much was at stake.

The glow faded away, as quickly as a light switch being turned off. She’d done it! Euphoria filled her as she realized she’d single-handedly prevented the fall of Dreamspire. 

I did it. Malfunctioning powers and all. But the joy drained out of her, replaced by dread, as Paige began to speak.

“My ability is being cut off by magical means, but my idea is still an option. Nearly every mage here has a power capable of causing immense pain; we could extract information in that way,” she said flatly. 

“You’re suggesting… torture?” Priya clarified. “No, I really don’t think we should-”

“Do you have a better idea?” Paige snapped. The room fell silent.

“Your ruse won’t last long,” she sneered into Serena’s head. She suppressed the urge to cover her ears and run far, far away from Paige and her razored words slipping into Serena’s mind and threatening to break open every one of her secrets to the world. A shiver ran down her spine. Now I understand how she strikes fear into the hearts of her victims.

Lucia glanced toward the chandelier on the ceiling, then so quickly that Serena almost missed it, back down to the shackles chaining her hands together. The room darkened slightly, and the subtle change was lost on Paige and Jake. Lucia locked eyes with Serena, and seized by a sudden feeling that it was the right thing to do, Serena gave a slight nod. 

The room plunged into darkness, and Serena rushed toward where Lucia had been chained, only to slam into someone. The lights flickered back on, revealing that she’d crashed into a tall girl with violet eyes. 

Cara Hollow had been one of Serena’s long-standing allies and obstacles in her endeavors, and that moment was no exception. She clenched her hands together, and Lucia froze mid-escape. Serena mentally cursed telekinesis magic.

Cara drew her carefully back to the center of the room, and continued holding her there with her magic. Serena did her best to look relieved. The faculty reassembled, Jake and Paige standing behind Lucia, and the Elemental teachers forming a semicircle in front. Cara moved to the left end of the line, and Serena took the right, fear welling inside her, though she hid it well. For the first time, Serena was completely helpless to affect the world around her. 

“Do it!” Paige snapped, and no one stopped to wonder what she meant. Flames gathered in Miles Palmer’s hands, and he stepped forward. The fireball crackled as he released it, and Serena didn’t stop to think when she sprinted faster than she ever thought she could in front of Lucia. 

The silver forcefield appeared just in time to take the hit. Flames spread across the shining surface but couldn’t get past it before they dissipated like smoke from a campfire. Serena let out a sigh of relief, and lowered her outstretched hands to bring the shield down. 

“You’re on their side?” Jake demanded. Serena drew in a breath to reassure him, convince them all that she was just stalling because she had a better idea in mind besides torture, spin another careful falsehood, and control the damage as best she could. But before she could get a word out, she noticed a subtle glow lighting Paige’s eyes. With a growing sense of horror, she realized the pinkette telepath was poking around in her head. No, no, no. I know too much, I can’t let this- this can’t happen! The fear running through her mind must have bled through to her expression, because Paige laughed softly in her head (still showing nothing but concentration and false sorrow on her face).

“This is almost too easy.”  

“Well, Paige?” Jake asked, his voice trembling. She nodded, confirming what must have been his worst fears.

The shock on the faces of the faculty reflected that of Jake. No one seemed quite sure what to do, until Liam spoke up.

“You were helping them all along.” His voice shook with disbelief. Paige stood a few feet away from him, her usual arrogant glare replaced with shock and betrayal that seemed so genuine that Serena could almost believe it. 

“Why would you do it?” Sam whispered, their voice barely audible. “Why would you lie?”

Is this what guilt feels like? Serena thought. I guess this is why most people don’t… she couldn’t even think of a word to describe her less-than-moral method of being allied to both and neither city. 

“You probably enjoyed this, didn’t you?” Paige shouted, anger dripping from every syllable. “Laughing to yourself every minute at how stupid we were, how you fooled every last one of us.” 

This situation is hard enough without you aggravating it further.  

“I trusted you!” Cara screamed, looking for all the world like she was about to let loose her full power and pulverize Serena where she stood. Her only comfort was the fact that they were all too angry, hurt, and scattered to attack her, or at least win while attacking her. 

“You lied to all of us!” Alder’s voice joined the chorus of outraged teachers. 

“Traitor!” 

“Manipulative liar!” 

“You’re an awful person!” 

Insults were flung at her from every direction, every one of them true. I betrayed Dreamspire… Rein, Kaitlyn, Wren, and the others. I lied to everyone, and I paid the price for it. I brought this upon myself.  

“You’re evil .” 

Those two words rang out clearly, the room going quiet. No one seemed to know where they’d come from. If you want a villain so badly, then you’re going to get one. She raised an eyebrow, showing them all a confident front.

“Good and evil, they’re just words, aren’t they? Few people might fit the description of one or the other. At the end of the day, it’s all an illusion. A falsehood. A lie, if you will.” The effect the answer seemed to have on the room was immeasurable. She loved it, reveled in the power it gave her, their attention hooked on one person- her, Serena Riverfall. The disappointment. The liar. The villain in their story. 

Villain or not, she was still the most powerful mage in the worlds. Jake and Chronos had their incredible potential, but in the end, they were both held back by their values, morals, and allegiances. Serena wasn’t bound to one side or another, in terms of magic, allies, and other matters. 

“Who cares about your binary?” She called out to the magic around her and inside her, the fear and hope and determination and every one of the one thousand emotions she was feeling, and all eleven faculty members were blasted backward, some falling onto each other, some hitting the walls behind them. Lucia’s chains shattered into a million pieces, and Serena rushed to her side. Huh. That wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, but it should do the trick.

“That was awesome,” the shorter girl said excitedly. 

“Thanks,” Serena smiled warmly. “Let’s get out of here.” 

“Oh… slight problem,” Lucia fidgeted slightly. “I have a… friend who should be here any second; we have to wait for her.”

“We don’t have time to wait for her!” Frustration replaced Serena’s functional emotional trainwreck. 

“Look, we have to wait!” Lucia argued. “I’m not leaving without her.” 

“We don’t have time! They’ll be up and after us any moment now,” Serena insisted. 

“Arguing?” The doors blew open dramatically, revealing a person standing there. 

“Took you long enough, Ash!” Lucia exclaimed. “Okay, now we can go.” She breezed past Serena and took Asha by the arm, leading them through the door, leaving Serena hurrying to catch up. 

“So, your ability is making wishes?” Serena asked awkwardly. 

“You knew that already.” Asha looked supremely unimpressed. “But yes, it is. I suppose you want to make a wish?”

Serena turned away to hide her embarrassment. “I mean, I just betrayed the entire faculty of Dawnrise in plain view. I’d like to be able to stay at Dawnrise... there are a lot of people here I care about, and the best way to protect them is to watch over them directly.” 

“She’s telling the truth,” Lucia affirmed.  

“Alright,” Asha agreed. “Serena Riverfall, I grant you three wishes. Use them wisely.”

“What, no limits? ‘No bringing back the dead’ and all those?” Lucia inquired. 

“She’s smart enough to know that, Luce.” 

“All right,” Serena interjected as they reached the gates of campus. “I wish for all of Dawnrise Academy to forget the events of today.” 

“Done,” Asha said, snapping their fingers. “Anything else?”

“I wish for them to all wake up tomorrow morning as though they would any other morning, with no evidence of today.”

“Done.”

“I wish for a portal back to Dreamspire.” 

“Done.”

“Excellent.” Lucia cut in. “Hooray for us. We did it, let’s go home. We’re heroes.” 

“I’m also not going to ask what you were doing in Dawnrise,” Asha answered the worry that had been on Serena’s mind since their miraculous escape.

“Don’t worry, love, I have a feeling you’ll find out soon enough.” Lucia gave a knowing smirk. I am seriously getting tired of her.

Serena barely had time to puzzle over what that meant when a swirling portal of shimmering crimson energy, the exact shade of Asha’s hair appeared in front of them. 

“Come along, or you’ll miss the meeting tonight,” Lucia said, more than a suggestion, but not quite an order either. The three mages stepped inside, and as if they were going through a door, they stepped out into the Dreamspire Council Room.

“Asha!” Celeste wrapped the small person in a bear hug. “It’s great that you’re back.” 

Serena took in her surroundings, from the noticeable absence of her allies, to the Council (besides her friends) staring at her. She gave a nervous smile and wave.

“Hi.” 

Time became a blur as she, Asha and Lucia took their seats on opposite sides of the long table. Lucia gave an account of her entrance to Dawnrise (she’d slipped through a crack in the illusion guarding it), what she’d learned (Jake had stolen the magic of a young Emotional Mage on Earth, and was running tests to see what he could do with it), and her capture (Paige sensed her thoughts, and had Liam bring her down with a lightning strike). Asha gave a report on all the things Serena had been planning to tell the Council (of course, she’d say she overheard them, or that she’d met a Light Mage who didn’t know her). A mention of her name drew her out of her thoughts.

“And what about Serena? Why was she with you?”

“Oh, she ran in and freed me, then fought off the teachers while they were shouting about how she’d betrayed them or something,” Lucia said blithely. Serena fought the urge to withdraw from the judgemental stares of the Council, and made a mental note to count Lucia as one of Chronos's supporters from there on out, assuming she escaped this. Well, they'll figure it out eventually. Better tell them now.

“Serena, is this true?” Zephyr demanded. She held her head high, and adopted a bored manner. 

“Of course it’s true. I’ve been staying in Dawnrise as a teacher, narrowly avoiding a School Board position. Jake and I have known each other since we were very, very little. Light Magic is second nature to me.” With each secret she divulged, Asher’s expression grew more and more appalled, until it seemed that he might explode at the slightest touch. “Oh, and I’ve been doing all of this since Dreamspire was founded.” 

Asher sat down heavily. “I think we need time to discuss this.” 

“I have a better idea,” Chronos rumbled impressively. “Serena Riverfall, you are obviously a traitor to the city. Your power will be erased and you'll be banished to Earth.” That was most certainly not how she’d thought this conversation was going to go. 

“What?” she retorted. “The laws of the city don't say anything about that! There's no reason I should be banished! Not to mention that I've been saving you from Jake for years! You would have been crushed years ago if not for me.” She drew herself up to her full height, which, at 5’5”, was admittedly not the most intimidating. 

Chronos wasn’t listening to her anymore. “Theo, lock her in her apartment.” 

“You can’t do this!” Serena raged. “I’ll destroy you; you can’t stand against me! I’m the most powerful mage ever known-”

“Astrid.” Chronos waved a hand dismissively. The blond girl rose from her seat, and fixed Serena with a terrifying stare. Despite the sinking feeling that told her all she needed to know, Serena reached for her magic, hoping to find her power battle-ready. Okay, maybe I'm not.

There was nothing. Theo’s magic reached her, and the next thing she knew, she was standing alone just inside the doorway to her apartment. Serena pulled the door open, and made to run outside, only to crash right into a forcefield that delivered a painful shock. Shaking off the electricity, she hurried to her desk, only to find her computer gone. Even her phone had disappeared from her pocket. She was effectively cut off from the world. That's what I get for exaggerating, I guess.

Serena tried to break the forcefield by slamming a chair against it, but to no avail.

“How could I have been so stupid?” she stormed around the sitting room. 

Unless Rein or Kaitlyn suddenly returned, she’d be stuck there for the foreseeable future, unable to return to Dawnrise or prevent the Council from doing something drastic. She’d be missed when she didn’t turn up for her meeting with Jake, or any of her classes, and they might conclude that she’d been kidnapped by Dreamspire- which wasn’t far from the truth, but it was an inconvenient truth to be sure. The remainder of Dreamspire would be left to the Council’s whims. Meanwhile, Serena would be sitting in her apartment. Trapped. Inconsequential. Useless.

Wren would be the only one left to face Chronos, and while they were powerful, they lacked the subtlety, deceptive skills, and persuasiveness necessary to hold their own against her nemesis. A hollow feeling enveloped her at the thought of Wren. She’d been stupid to leave them out of it, and stupid to try and solve their mystery. And now she’d never know if they were really the traitor in her group. She’d never be able to speak to them without recalling everything that had happened as a result of her not being careful enough. It had, without a shade of doubt, been Wren’s voice in that message. Wren was the one who disappeared so many times, called away for an assignment or a private meeting right before things got crazy. Of course. I never see these things until it’s far too late.

Asha and Lucia, as far as she guessed, were out of the equation. Whether returning to Dawnrise or Earth, staying with the Council, or doing something else, they would be of absolutely no help to her.

Her friends wouldn't know where she was, and the Council wouldn't tell them.

She was on her own.