-Laelyn-

Seemingly as soon as I closed my eyes, I was ripped out of the clutches of sleep by the blaring sound of my alarm clock. Alright, alright, I'm awake! I rolled over and slapped the alarm button, shutting it off and automatically resetting it for the next day. I sat straight up, rubbing my eyes. Tomorrow was Saturday, and I didn't need to reset my alarm. I picked up the blue clock, trying to figure out how to undo the reset. After a minute, I simply turned it off. Setting it back on the dresser, I stood up to get dressed. I already had my uniform on, but it was wrinkled and still a bit damp from the storm in the alley. I shrugged off the leather jacket Beckham had given me, and laid it on my- the- bed. I pulled back the purple curtain in front of my closet, kicking off my sneakers then taking off my clothes from home.

The clothes were in the wrong drawers. My shirts, usually in the second drawer to the right, were in the bottom left drawer. I don't quite know why that bothered me so much, but it did. This wasn't my closet. It was Soryx-Laelyn's closet. But that didn't matter right now. Focus, Laelyn.

I grabbed a royal blue shirt from the wrong drawer and pulled it on. This wasn't a uniform. It was a tight, lower cut shirt that accentuated my figure and made me look much skinnier than I was. After looking to see if there were an uniform shirts in the closet- they must not have uniforms in Soryx- I looked for jeans. They were also in the incorrect place. I took a pair of cream colored skinny jeans, identical to the ones I had just taken off, determined to look as normal as possible. Who knew what Soryx-Laelyn usually wore to school? After I was changed, I looked at myself in the mirror by my door. I took a double take. I was... beautiful. Though none of my facial features had changed, I looked more fit and shorter, and I had dark blue hair to the middle of my back. I stared my reflection in the eyes, noticing for the first time that they were royal purple in color. I let out a breath I didn't know I had been holding. I barely recognized myself, and I liked my appearance, for the first time in my life.

I confidently turned away from the mirror, picking my bag up off the floor. I glanced at my bed, and wondered whether I should bring Beckham's leather jacket back to him. I didn't really want to give it back, but I didn't want him to think I was stealing it, so I pulled it on. I flashed back to when he gave it to me. I was so confused, so scared, so cold; but he had made it all better by simply giving me his jacket. It made me feel protected, kind of like when a child hid under a blanket at night. It didn't actually help, but it made you feel like someone was with you, helping you through things.

I opened my door and rushed down the stairs. I wonder what Link looks like in this dimension? I turned into the kitchen and grabbed a granola bar from the bar. Sitting down at the table, I pulled out my book to read. Do they have the same books here? Or did the authors not become authors? That's a sad thought.

After about ten minutes, I realized how eerily quiet the house was. My mother had, of course, left for work at four in the morning. But Link was supposed to be awake by now. Maybe he forgot to set his alarm? I'll go check. I walked through the living room and into the hallway. After passing the bathroom and Mother's room, I reached Link's and hesitated. It didn't have the bright sign and posters that he had on his door on Earth. I'm sure my real brother would be going insane at the idea of an unpersonalized door- he added to it or changed it every month, and he said it was very important. He had even made me a sign, and kept telling me to add more things to it. I miss him, I realized. Even though he gets really annoying, I wish he were actually here. It would make this so much easier. At least I can see him, even though it's not really him.

I opened the door. "Link?" I called. The lights were off, and I got worried. He shouldn't be this late. I leaned over and flicked the light switch. My eyes widened in a mixture of horror and surprise. This was not a bedroom, it was an office. The only pieces of furniture in the room were a desk, chair, computer and a small rug. Where was Link's room? He had to be there. I ran out of the room and opened every other door I could find; every room was exactly the same as Earth. Every room, that is, except Link's. Tears rolled down my cheeks. He had to be there! I fell against a wall and slid down to the ground, running my hands through my hair and pulling at it. Everything was changing, and I just couldn't take it. My mind raced and my head pounded. I couldn't stop thinking about Daeva, and the fact that she was out to kill me. I could be dead soon. Trickle turned to pour, and my shirt had wet spots all over it by the time my eyes dried. How could my entire life have changed in a day? I was stuck in a new world, and the only person I knew was Beckham. I didn't even know my own mother! My brother was nowhere to be found, and I had to be to school sooner than I could mentally prepare myself for. I took a few shaky breaths, trying to calm myself down. You have to meet Beck at seven thirty. Get up, Laelyn. Somehow, I pulled myself up off the floor, dizzy. I collected my bag and book from the dining room table and headed out the back door, jogging slower than usual. I hadn't had an anxiety attack in two years until then, and it was just as terrifying as the first one. I remembered that day like yesterday...

***

I walked into the gym after lunch. I had a small group of friends, but since it was the first day of middle school, they were all trying to talk to older kids and be 'cool.' I didn't understand it- the older kids just got annoyed by us anyways. I sat down on the bleachers to watch the basketball game unfolding in front of me. Chanson and Link were on opposite teams, and Link was playing defense, guarding Chanson. God, I thought Chanson was cute. Not that I would have told anyone, but I've always had a crush on him- since preschool. His brown hair constantly falling in his face, his glasses perfectly framing his blue eyes... It seemed like the more I noticed about him, the more everything he did was perfect to me.

"Who are you staring at?" I heard someone say in an accusing tone. I turned around quickly and spotted a popular eighth grade boy sneering in my direction.

"Um... n-n-no one," I stuttered. I was always scared of 'popular' kids. They tended to be bullies, and this particular one had bullied me before.

"Let me guess..." He said, tapping his index finger on his chin in fake concentration. "The nerdy one with the glasses." I looked over to the court. Chanson was the only one wearing glasses.

"You're wrong. I was just watching the game," I replied as evenly as possible, though my voice was still audibly shaky.

"No, I think you're the one that's wrong. He's a nerd, and he's ugly. And what's more, you're worse. I'd stop staring if I were you."

"Why? Who cares who I'm staring at?" I said, raising my voice. My brain told me not to yell, not to get on his bad side, but I ignored it.

"I think you're about to, because if you keep staring, I'll make you stop." He threatened.

"Why do you even care?" I tested, voice now even. This was stupid, it didn't affect him at all!

"Does it matter? Either way, this is your last warning. Stop staring at the ugly nerd, or I take him out of the game." I blinked hard, considering the consequences. What did that even mean? Surely he wouldn't hurt him, he wasn't involved. Perhaps he knew it would affect me more if he targeted him? Bullies are stupid.

"Interesting. You gonna bench him for a foul?" I joked. Bad idea. The boy stood up, glaring at me.

"That's it. He's getting it." He said decidedly.

"Getting what?" I asked, scared again. He never responded, but charged into the middle of the basketball game, straight for Chanson. I stood up and walked to the side of the court. He couldn't. No one was that evil.

The boy grabbed the back of Chanson's shirt in his fist, taking him by surprise. No! This couldn't be happening. I looked around for a teacher, but they were all either in the cafeteria or the teacher's lounge. I watched in horror as Chanson was shoved against a wall and into a chokehold.

"You're such a wimp!" The boy laughed, as Chanson struggled to break free. I rushed over, trying to find a way to fix things. "If I don't have girls chasing me, then a stupid geek like you shouldn't deserve any either!"

"Leave him alone!" I shouted, knocking him over hard. I was much stronger than I looked. He looked up from the ground to see who had pushed him. His eyes landed on me, and his face contorted into a look of pure rage. I glanced over at Chanson, who had fallen to the floor, gasping for breath. He looked as terrified as I felt, and also a bit confused. I looked back at the bully, who had, by now, gotten up. He slowly advanced toward me, backing me into the corner of the gym, farthest from the door. Great, no way to escape. I raised my arms over my face, bracing myself for the attack. A quick punch to the ribs brought me to the ground, and I raised my head just in time to see the bully land a punch on Chanson's chin, knocking his glasses to the ground. Not a second later, they were crushed under the boy's foot. As he walked away laughing, I only had one thought on my mind; this was my fault... All my fault. My mind turned into a whirlwind of self insults, confusion, and fear. Tears sprang from my eyes, and I felt like I was falling down a dark, never-ending tunnel. Link and Chanson were trying to comfort me, but their voices were distant, and the more I heard Chanson's voice, the more I couldn't escape the fact that I had been the reason that the bully hurt him.

***

Thinking back on that memory made me feel even worse. It was all my fault. Daeva was here because of me. She wanted to kill me. What if my friends got hurt just because I was born with this strange resistance to a curse? If only I weren't immune...

I sped up to a run, barely looking where I was going. This would be my new life for at least a week; I might as well get used to it. I decided to stop thinking so much about my situation and to simply accept it. At my new pace, I made it to school in a few minutes. I checked my phone- I still have service?- and saw that I had five minutes to meet Beckham. I walked over to the garish sign and sat down, whipping out my book. If I can't be home, at least I can read a book from Earth. I smiled victoriously, as if that were some sort of accomplishment. But that time, when I opened that book, all the whispers of magic haunted me. I no longer wanted to be magical. I didn't want to be any different than anyone else... I wanted to be normal. I wanted to be on Earth, to be a happy high school girl with no fear of demons or alternate dimensions. But I would never be that person again. Could I, even if I tried? Even if I got out of this alive, could I really go back home and pretend nothing changed?

"Laelyn!" I jumped violently at Beckham's voice, having been lost in thought.

"What? Oh, hey Beck. You scared me half to death." I said, trying to joke. He laughed.

"I walked right up to you," He said, smirking. "Must be a good book."

"Um, yeah." I answered, getting up. At least I had some sort of excuse for being so startled.

"You okay?" Beck asked, voice heavy with concern. He looked in my eyes, and I immediately smiled, trying to look as fine as possible.

"Yeah! I'm great!" I nodded, over-enthusiastically.

"Alright..." He said slowly. "Well then, let's talk out some sort of plan." How about a plan to find my brother?

"Right. A plan," I agreed. "What about finding out our schedules?"

"Oh right... We don't know any of our classes." He said, just realizing.

"Precisely. So I say, we just walk in there and ask the secretary. Say we lost our locker numbers?"

"Oh, good idea. But don't you think it's going to be a bit suspicious, two kids needing their schedules for locker numbers in the same day?"

"Yeah, like they're going to just guess that we're from a different dimension."

"Right. Nevermind. Let's do that, then." He said confidently. We walked up to the front of the school. I hoped that the inside was the same, as well. The outside was an exact replica of our version of Simon J. Bernard High. I looked over to Beckham, took a deep breath, and followed him through the front doors.

   Architecturally, you couldn't tell the difference between the two schools, but everything else... The color scheme was different, first of all. Instead of orange and brown, bright blues and whites covered the entire school. There were animals everywhere, some simply running around, some following the students- the students! Everyone looked over-the-top. Their outfits looked somewhat like costumes- beautiful dresses, tight body suits, neon colored shirts. Somehow, though, they all looked completely normal, as if there were nothing extravagant about them. I suddenly felt like I stood out. Sure, I had a colorful shirt, but no one else was wearing jeans or khakis. It seemed that people dressed up for school, or at least had a different dress code there. That's when I noticed what was off about everyone. I knew these people. They just looked very different.

    I saw a cheerleader with bright blonde hair and light blue eyes, flying- no, that wasn't right. Was it? Yes, flying- down the hallway, toward a boy with dark blonde and orange hair. The girl's white angel-like wings flapped lazily behind her, and her pink and white tennis shoes never hit the ground. I looked closer at her face.

"Daniella?" I said aloud. She looked my way, confused. Once she saw who I was, she smiled and waved.

"Hi, Laelyn!" She piped, turning back to meet the boy at his locker. The boy Daniella was flying toward seemed to be in a fight with another guy with caramel brown hair. The blonde boy raised his voice.

"Cowyn, for the last time. I. Do. Not. Want. To. Join. Your. Freak. Club." He yelled, pronouncing every syllable slowly. Cowyn? Then that must mean...

"Tayvis, please! We need one more person in our robotics club to go to regionals! We've been working super hard all year-"

"Ah yes. Robotics." Tayvis said sarcastically. "How much nerdiness can you put into one sentence?"

"I would have thought you might understand. We are technically brothers, Tay." Cowyn pleaded.

"I don't care! You're a geek! I told you not to talk to me during school!" Tayvis clenched his hands into fists, and the orange tips of his hair began to glow a bright red. He began to rise into the air, turning towards Cowyn and shaking with anger.

"Tayvis don't! Please!" Cowyn said, his voice raising an octave. Tayvis's hair suddenly erupted into flames, and he turned to face Cowyn full on, growling animalistically. His brown eyes turned red, and he raised a fist, now engulfed in flames as well. Cowyn cowered and covered his head with his binder.

"Tay, stop that." Daniella said gently, placing her hand on Tayvis's shoulder. Does she not realize that he's a living torch? She's going to get hurt! Tayvis froze, then shook his head, blinking hard. His hair and hands went back to normal, and when he opened his eyes, they were brown again.

"Did it happen again?" Tayvis asked, dismayed. He looked over to see Cowyn still hiding behind his binder. "I didn't hurt you, did I?" He suddenly seemed very kind and concerned, nothing like the monster Laelyn had just witnessed. Cowyn lowered the binder and shook his head.

"You almost did. You need to be more careful," Daniella warned. "I had to stop you."

"I'm so sorry... Thank you." He looked down at her- she was still shorter than him, flying six inches above the ground- and gave her a kiss. "I'm trying to control it."

"I know. Just try not to lose your temper so easily next time, Babe." Babe? Wait a minute- Daniella and Tayvis? If only they could see themselves from the first dimension. I felt a tug on my sleeve.

"Laelyn, the office is over here," Beckham said, snapping me out of their conversation. "And try not to stare, that kind of thing is normal here."

"That was... Normal?" I asked, incredulous.

"Yeah. My dad said-" He stopped. "I've just heard about it, that's all."

"Your dad? He knows about this place?" Now I was confused.

"Um... No."

"But you said-"

"I know what I said, okay? Let's just go get our schedules." He said quickly.

"...Alright." I said, finally. I decided to let it go until there weren't so many people around. Beckham obviously didn't want to talk about it, whatever it was. I followed him through the glass doors and into the office, turning to face the woman at the desk. Beck signaled to me, telling me not to talk.

"Good morning," He said cheerily. The woman looked at us over her thin glasses.

"What do you want?" She asked, annoyed. Geez, wasn't this her job?

"My friend and I went on a canoe trip, and our boat tipped over. We don't have any of our school supplies and we need new schedules, please." Beckham lied. Wow, he was pretty good at this.

"Yes, kids do seem to lose their schedules at the beginning of a semester, now don't they?" The woman rolled her eyes. "Names."

"Beckham Carter and Laelyn Campbell." How did he know my last name?

"Just a second." She clicked away at her keyboard, then stood and went to a copy machine in the corner of the main office. She was back shortly with two freshly printed schedules.

"Thank you," Beck said, handing mine over to me and walking back out of the office. "Good thing it's the beginning of a semester, so she didn't ask too many questions." I nodded slowly, looking over my schedule. I had all the same classes, except I had an added class- history of magic. Interesting.

"It's exactly the same, but now we have a seventh hour." I said.

"Yeah. Weird."

"Hey Beck?"

"Yeah?"

"How did you know my last name?"

"Oh, um... Well I do have a few classes with you. Attendance exists, you know."

"Right." I said, mentally facepalming. Why had I thought that was so weird? It's like I'm trying to find off things about him. "Well then, off to first hour!" I began walking down the hall.

"Laelyn?"

"Mmm?"

"We have different first hours." He said, matter-of-factly.

"Right. How is that going to work?"

"I guess this is where we split up."

"I can't navigate through this school alone!"

"It's the exact same school, Laelyn. You'll find your way around. At least you know all the curriculum you need to know."

"Yeah, I hope."

"It'll be fine. Just blend in, okay?" I laughed, out loud. Beck turned and gave me a look.

"Blend in?" I exclaimed loudly. "How am I supposed to blend in?"

"Shh, people are going to stare." He looked around, then added, "Just walk to first hour like normal. I'll see you in fourth hour." Fourth hour? I had to do this alone until fourth hour? "See ya." He waved and turned down the hallway. I couldn't do this!

"Beck, wait!" I said, but I was too late. He was swallowed by the crowd, and I was left alone in this parallel universe. I took a deep breath and turned down the hallway as well, bracing myself for the people I would meet.

Author's Note! 

This was kinda a long-ish chapter XD Sorry not sorry. How are we feeling about all the info and all the MAGIC?! Personally, I loooove Tayvis's powers, how about you? Even though they're kinda dangerous... Okay, really dangerous. :P Anyways, you know the drill! Like, comment, and follow me so you know when I update all my stories! Love you guys!

Savy Pearson