Chapter 5 Episode 5: New Dawn, trouble awakening

Chapter 5.

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May 13, 1822. (Stoneville)

"Incendia!" Eight years old Charlotte said but she never seemed to do anything correctly.

"Gosh!" She cried it when she could not make the dried log lit up.

She squeezed her hands against each other and flipped back her long black hair, her extremely black pupils were tired. When she shifted and flipped her hair backward, the black half-moon crescent was visible that her Magic Instructor who was a white witch, Melony, could not help admiring her.

"Okay, calm down, Charlotte. You can do it. All you have to do is breath as Melony always says" she breathed down, closed her eyes, and clenched her fist.

"1, 2, 3! Incendia?" She said and just smoke came out as she landed her butt on the ground and started sniffing.

"Incendia!" She watched as her younger twin, Chloe, with white long hair and powerful white pupils, was able to light up the logs of woods with enormous flames of fire.

"Wow!" She exclaimed and was watching the flames and she wished that she could do magic as much as her sister.

"Charlotte! Did you see that? I was like a dragon!" Chloe screamed excitedly as her hair flipped backward and the white half sun tattoo on her forehead became visible.

"Wow! That was great, Chloe! Give Melony a high five!" Melony said as she did high five with Chloe while Charlotte just sat on the grasses.

"I never get anything right!" She sniffed as Chloe and Melony kept playing.

She stood and wiped her butt and was staring at her own log of wood.

"Okay, Charlotte, you can do this!" She said to herself as she tried to focus and make the fire.

"Incendia!" She exclaimed as a tiny ball of fire that was not enough to burn the logs of dried wood, bounced and hit the truck and went out almost immediately.

"Oh my God! Did you see that?" She exclaimed excitedly and glanced toward Melony and Chloe.

"I did it! There was a flame of fire! It came out like a ball!" She started hopping excitedly as Melony who was carrying Chloe dropped her on the ground.

"You call that flames?" Chloe scoffed and walked in front of her.

"But there was a flame, really. Even if it was not that big" Charlotte shrugged.

"Hmm" Chloe smirked and turned to face the logs.

"Watch this!" She said and started raising her hand.

"I do not have to say the magic word, all I have to do is command!" She yelled as flames of fire came out of her fingers and consumed the logs.

"Whoa!" Charlotte exclaimed and was watching the flames in awe while she wished that she could do that.

"Hmm!" Chloe smirked and turned fo face her twin sister, then she dusted her palms against each other.

"Did you see that? That is called a flame!" She smirked.

"Way to go Chloe!" Melony hailed Chloe while Charlotte faced the ground dejectedly.

"Do not worry kid, I believe soon, very soon, you would become as strong as your twin sister!" Melony patted her hair as she frowned.

"Well, I do not know if I would ever be as good as Chloe! Why does the tattoo on her forehead always glow when she does magic, but mine does not?" Charlotte questioned.

"Well, because you are not as strong as Chloe" Melony said to her as she frowned and sat on the ground.

The bell from the castle started ringing as Chloe screamed in excitement.

"Yay! Breakfast is ready!" She said excitedly and started hopping toward the castle.

"Hey! Charlotte, are you not coming?" Melony asked her.

"You guys should go without me, I have to meditate," she said frowning.

"Okay, but do not stay out here too long else I will come and get you" Melony said as Charlotte back faced them.

"Come on, Melony! Carry me on your shoulders!" Chloe cried raising her hands, trying to reach out to Melony to pick her up and place her on her shoulders.

"Who is the stronger witch now? Who is stronger?!" Melony teased Chloe who laughed and cackled as she took her to the castle.

Charlotte remained where she was as a flicker of tears dropped from her eyes, she was now the only one left in the woods, or so she thought.

"I never do anything right!" She sniffed and stared at her fingers.

"Why do I have to be the weaker twin?" She asked no one in particular.

"Who said that you are the weaker one? Nonsense!" A voice said from the woods as she quickly turned to see who it was.

"Who is there?" She sniffed and stood up.

"Melony? Chloe? Is that you?" She called but no one responded.

"Great! My head now speaks!" She mumbled and sat down again.

"Nonsense!" She heard the voice say as she quickly stood up again.

"Who are you? Show yourself!" She cried out.

"Come on, come out and get burnt by my flames!" She sniffed and wiped her nose as the voice started laughing.

She kept turning around but could not see who it was.

"Come on! Show yourself if you are not afraid of me!" She called.

She immediately started hearing some rustling sound from the woods, she glanced toward the direction, waiting for what would erupt.

A figure came out of the woods, holding a staff, and was covered with a black cloak. Charlotte could not see its face as she frowned at the figure.

"Who are you? Show yourself!" She commanded as the figure removed the cloak and standing before she was a 24-year-old red hair.

"Hello, Charlotte!" The young girl said as Charlotte was just staring at her.

"Who are you? And how do you know my name?"

"Oh why, little Alonzo. Who would not know the princess of Stoneville?" The lady said as she twitched her lips.

"Yeah, except that I am not the only princess".

"But you are the first, are you not?" The lady asked her.

"Just who are you?" Charlotte ignored her question.

"Well, if you must know, your highness. Standing before you is Clara Maximus. The 7th scroll keeper of Stoneville" Clara said and took a bow.

"Wow! I finally get to meet a scroll keeper. I heard that our powers are useless to your kind" Charlotte said.

"Oh, they taught you so fast" she smiled.

"Yeah, I guess so" Charlotte said dejectedly.

"So, if I must ask, what is the princess doing here, alone, in the woods?"

Charlotte sighed and sat on the ground while Clara sat down next to her.

She observed and saw that some parts of the woods were burnt as she nodded.

"Well, interesting" She started.

"It seems like someone has been doing a little training, am I correct?" She asked.

"Well, sort of. But those are not my signatures, they are Chloe's as I never get to do anything right" Charlotte said sadly and looked at her fingers as she started playing with a tiny tree branch.

"What do you mean by that?" Clara questioned.

"Well, I am not as strong as my sister. And Melony never pays attention to me but Chloe. I feel left out most times, especially when I am a total failure. I do envy Chloe a lot and wish I were her or as strong as her. But I never get to do anything right no matter how I try to" she bowed her head as Clara started massaging her hair.

"I am so weak and..."

"Shhhh..." Clara shushed her.

"Whoever said that you were weak?"

Charlotte looked up at her and sighed as she dropped the tiny branch on the ground.

"No one has to tell me. I know by myself. Have you seen Chloe do her magic? She does it perfectly just like Melony" she complained.

"And who is Melony?" Clara questioned.

"Oh, you do not know Melony?" Charlotte asked.

"Does she have long white hair like Chloe?"

"Yes, but she does not have Chloe's and Mom's type of tattoo," she said.

"Oh, the council chief's daughter" Clara mumbled under her breath and sighed.

"Well, listen to me, Charlotte. You are strong, okay? You do not have to think that you are not. You just have to know that and tell that to yourself every day" Clara told her as she sighed.

"Okay, just wait. I will show you" Charlotte stood as she breathed down.

"Watch this!"

"Incendia!" She said as a tiny ball of fire hit the piled-up branches and went out almost immediately.

"Did you see that? Have you seen Chloe's? She does it better than me" she whined and sat on the ground and hugged her knees.

"Okay, Charlotte. I have seen that. Have you tried performing your magic in the night?'

"What?" Charlotte sprang up and covered Clara's mouth and started looking around to see if anyone heard them, when she was satisfied that no one did, she released her grip as Clara watched the little girl in shock.

"Okay, why did you do that?" Clara questioned.

"Mom, Melony, and dad said it is taboo for us to perform our magic on the night else we might lose our powers forever! It is strictly forbidden!" She explained as Clara scoffed.

"Is that so? I see" she said.

"Charlotte!" They heard a voice calling out to her as they both turned back.

"Someone is looking for you" Clara said and stood up.

"Yeah, I guess so" Charlotte said and continued sitting.

"When you get home, little one. Ask your mom why is it forbidden for you both to do magic during the night but can do so in the daytime, okay?" Clara patted her hair as she shrugged

"Okay" Charlotte responded.

"Goodbye, little one"