{This was inspired by a dream I had last night. I may or may not continue it beyond the first few chapters depending on how inspiration strikes me}
Chapter 1:
"Lesson One - Magic has consequences"
"I just don't see what you're so worried about, Nicholas," mom was saying, "he's just your father."
"You don't know what he's capable of, Lauren," dad replied, sounding anxious.
"I met him at the wedding, and he seemed pleasant enough."
"And we haven't seen him since then. For a reason." Dad's tone was firm.
"He deserves to meet his grandchild. Every grandparent does. It's bad enough it's taken us ten years to get this far."
Jonathan started zoning out again. This was the third, maybe fourth time his parents had had this discussion during the drive. Every hour or so it would come up again. In a minute or two, his father would start to talk about his childhood, and trail off before saying anything interesting. Mom would shake her head and insist that it really was past time to make this trip. Dad would agree that that's why they'd already driven this far, tighten his grip on the steering wheel, and determinedly not talk for a few minutes. After a long silence, mom would try again.
Jonathan didn't really understand what the big deal was. His grandfather, at least the one he'd met, was one of the best people he knew. He loved staying over at his grandparents' house. To find out now that he had a second grandfather to spoil him with treats and toys, how could that be anything but good?
Rather than focus on his parents' continued argument, Jonathan lazily stared out the window, his eyes following the electrical wires and fences, imagining a little man running along them and leaping from one to the next. It wasn't terribly entertaining, but he'd already beaten his videogame and listened to the CD in his discman three times through. Runrunrunrun JUMP runrunrun JUMP jump jump jump runrunrunrunrun. A large section of unfenced field approached on the right side, and the electric wires had taken a ninety degree turn a block or so back. Jonathan scanned desperately over the horizon for a place for the man to jump to, and saw nothing. He leaped the man high into the air, doing a long jump, holding it for several seconds until he couldn't reasonably stall any more, and allowed him to crash into the field.
There was a loud "THUMP" to right of the car.
"What was that?" mom asked.
"Oh, my guy fell," Jonathan was quick to offer. "It's no big deal." His father had already pulled over and was looking out. There was a small patch of corn that had been flattened about 50 feet back, just to the side of the road.
"Come on, let's take a quick look," his father said, and he reluctantly unbuckled his seat belt. They all walked over to the spot where the corn had been disturbed. The patch was about 2 feet in diameter, and the corn within the patch had been smashed flat, as if something had fallen into it from above. There was nothing inside the circle, however.
"Nicholas, it's nothing," his mother said, placing her hand on his shoulder and starting to walk back to the car, clearly eager to not allow their trip to be derailed.
"I just wanted to make sure the muffler hadn't fallen off. You know I've had some issues with it."
Jonathan said nothing more. He wasn't sure how, but he knew he was responsible.
"Aaaah, Nicholas, my boy! Come give your father a hug!" They had just pulled up to the end of the driveway and opened their doors, and a man, presumably his grandfather, was waiting there arms open. He was a tall man, spindly, entirely bald, with a long, grey and white beard. He called to them in a voice that belied his scrawny stature in its volume, and with the hint of an accent that Jonathan could not place.
His father reluctantly walked over to the older man, and was enveloped in a trap of long, spindly arms that looked like they were squeezing tight enough to crack a rib. His father kept his arms at his side. "Hello, dad."
"And this must be little Jonathan," the old man said, bending down and placing his hands on Jonathan's shoulders. "Let me get a good look at you."
He peered up at his grandfather, gazing intently down at him. They locked eyes, and for a second, Jonathan thought he saw a flicker of something crazy. He couldn't really explain what, and it passed as suddenly as it had appeared - or as he thought it had appeared.
"Ah, he is truly of my blood," he said, satisfied, with an almost imperceptible wink.
His grandfather released his shoulders, and he ran up to the man, hugging arms around his waist. "Nice to meet you, grandpa!" Jonathan said, excitedly.
Dinner was an awkward affair, though Jonathan didn't notice. Grandpa had evidently been grilling in preparation of their arrival, as there was a brilliant spread of burgers and toppings, hot dogs, chips, grilled corn, soda, and even a small cake. Jonathan stuffed his face, excited to eat food he was usually limited from. This grandpa is already turning out as great as the other! he thought, excitedly.
His father obviously had a different idea, as he scowled into a burger through the whole meal. His mom attempted to make small talk, to learn a bit about grandpa, but was stymied in most of her questions by dismissive answers like, "You know, just enjoying retirement."
Meanwhile, grandpa asked Jonathan question after question, and Jonathan was happy to supply the answers between bites of hot dog and handfuls of chips.
"-And then there's my last period, history, with Ms. Wendell," pause, inhale, bite, chew, chew, chew, "I like history, but somehow she makes it sooooo boring. Why do we have to learn about the civil rights movement and the religions of China and apartheid when there's all this cool stuff about World War II and the Civil War we could be learning?" He shoveled a dozen chips into his mouth, scattering crumbs onto the picnic bench as he did.
His grandfather smiled knowingly at him, and then turned to his mother. "I suppose I have you to thank," he said, clearly gracious.
"You wouldn't believe how hard I had to twist Nicholas's arm to get him out here," mom replied, putting on a tone that reflected both amusement and annoyance.
"Nicholas and I have never quite seen eye to eye, on many things," grandpa agreed, "But that is not what I was thanking you for."
She looked at him, puzzled, and he continued. "You see, I possess a certain set of talents. Talents that were, unfortunately, not inherited by your husband. Or his brother. Despite my efforts, neither of them displayed the slightest hint of it. But clearly, you've managed to take his failure and salvage something of it into Jonathan. He's positively overflowing!"
Dad had gone completely still, a look of deep concern on his face. Mom looked more puzzled than ever. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said.
"Surely, Nicholas has said something?" he asked, aghast. She shook her head. "You see, my dear, I am a wizard. And so is your son. Or at least, he could be, if given the proper guidance."
Mom laughed, nervously. "You're joking. He's joking, right honey?" she asked, nervously looking at dad, who had the same concerned look on his face.
"Out of the question, dad. You aren't doing to my son what you tried to do to me and Dustin. We're leaving. Now." The last word was forceful, and he was already standing. Mom stood with him, and ushered Jonathan up, snapping him from the reverie he had been in since the word "wizard" was uttered.
"No! You must let me train him! At least give me one summer! He has so much potential, with just the smallest amount of molding, he could be so powerful!" Grandpa's voice was desperate now, as dad and mom were already leading Jonathan away. He lept to follow them, grabbing Jonathan by the shoulders again. "Please! Boy, tell me, do you want to be a wizard?"
"What, you mean like Harry Potter?" Jonathan asked, awestruck.
"Yes! Precisely!" His parents had already ripped Jonathan out of his grandfather's grasp, and were putting him into the car. "If you do, all you need to do is wish, as hard as you can, that you can be a wizard!" his grandfather shouted, as the car door slammed.
His parents pulled out of the driveway in a hurry. "You didn't tell me your father was insane, Jonathan," his mother said, concern in her voice.
"That's just it, Lauren. I'm not sure he is. I've seen him do... things. Things I could never reasonably explain," dad said, his voice shaking a little.
"Honey, you're scaring me. Why didn't you tell me any of this before?"
"Would you have believed me if I did? You would have thought I was the insane one." All you need to do is wish, as hard as you can. The voice echoed in Jonathan's head as his father stumbled over his words, trying to explain what had happened I wish I could be a wizard. Jonathan thought.
"I don't know what he did to you, honey, but you can rest assured that we will never have to see him again." I wish I could be a wizard! he though again.
"It might be too late now. Now that he knows, or thinks he knows, that Jonathan has this 'potential', I'm not sure what he'll do." I really, really wish I could be a wizard!
"He's a deranged old man. What could he possibly do?" I wish, as hard as I can, that I could be a wizard!
That's when the front end of the car exploded.
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StaffChapter 1:
"Lesson One - Magic has consequences"
"I just don't see what you're so worried about, Nicholas," mom was saying, "he's just your father."
"You don't know what he's capable of, Lauren," dad replied, sounding anxious.
"I met him at the wedding, and he seemed pleasant enough."
"And we haven't seen him since then. For a reason." Dad's tone was firm.
"He deserves to meet his grandchild. Every grandparent does. It's bad enough it's taken us ten years to get this far."
Jonathan started zoning out again. This was the third, maybe fourth time his parents had had this discussion during the drive. Every hour or so it would come up again. In a minute or two, his father would start to talk about his childhood, and trail off before saying anything interesting. Mom would shake her head and insist that it really was past time to make this trip. Dad would agree that that's why they'd already driven this far, tighten his grip on the steering wheel, and determinedly not talk for a few minutes. After a long silence, mom would try again.
Jonathan didn't really understand what the big deal was. His grandfather, at least the one he'd met, was one of the best people he knew. He loved staying over at his grandparents' house. To find out now that he had a second grandfather to spoil him with treats and toys, how could that be anything but good?
Rather than focus on his parents' continued argument, Jonathan lazily stared out the window, his eyes following the electrical wires and fences, imagining a little man running along them and leaping from one to the next. It wasn't terribly entertaining, but he'd already beaten his videogame and listened to the CD in his discman three times through.
Runrunrunrun JUMP runrunrun JUMP jump jump jump runrunrunrunrun. A large section of unfenced field approached on the right side, and the electric wires had taken a ninety degree turn a block or so back. Jonathan scanned desperately over the horizon for a place for the man to jump to, and saw nothing. He leaped the man high into the air, doing a long jump, holding it for several seconds until he couldn't reasonably stall any more, and allowed him to crash into the field.
There was a loud "THUMP" to right of the car.
"What was that?" mom asked.
"Oh, my guy fell," Jonathan was quick to offer. "It's no big deal." His father had already pulled over and was looking out. There was a small patch of corn that had been flattened about 50 feet back, just to the side of the road.
"Come on, let's take a quick look," his father said, and he reluctantly unbuckled his seat belt. They all walked over to the spot where the corn had been disturbed. The patch was about 2 feet in diameter, and the corn within the patch had been smashed flat, as if something had fallen into it from above. There was nothing inside the circle, however.
"Nicholas, it's nothing," his mother said, placing her hand on his shoulder and starting to walk back to the car, clearly eager to not allow their trip to be derailed.
"I just wanted to make sure the muffler hadn't fallen off. You know I've had some issues with it."
Jonathan said nothing more. He wasn't sure how, but he knew he was responsible.
"Aaaah, Nicholas, my boy! Come give your father a hug!" They had just pulled up to the end of the driveway and opened their doors, and a man, presumably his grandfather, was waiting there arms open. He was a tall man, spindly, entirely bald, with a long, grey and white beard. He called to them in a voice that belied his scrawny stature in its volume, and with the hint of an accent that Jonathan could not place.
His father reluctantly walked over to the older man, and was enveloped in a trap of long, spindly arms that looked like they were squeezing tight enough to crack a rib. His father kept his arms at his side. "Hello, dad."
"And this must be little Jonathan," the old man said, bending down and placing his hands on Jonathan's shoulders. "Let me get a good look at you."
He peered up at his grandfather, gazing intently down at him. They locked eyes, and for a second, Jonathan thought he saw a flicker of something crazy. He couldn't really explain what, and it passed as suddenly as it had appeared - or as he thought it had appeared.
"Ah, he is truly of my blood," he said, satisfied, with an almost imperceptible wink.
His grandfather released his shoulders, and he ran up to the man, hugging arms around his waist. "Nice to meet you, grandpa!" Jonathan said, excitedly.
Dinner was an awkward affair, though Jonathan didn't notice. Grandpa had evidently been grilling in preparation of their arrival, as there was a brilliant spread of burgers and toppings, hot dogs, chips, grilled corn, soda, and even a small cake. Jonathan stuffed his face, excited to eat food he was usually limited from. This grandpa is already turning out as great as the other! he thought, excitedly.
His father obviously had a different idea, as he scowled into a burger through the whole meal. His mom attempted to make small talk, to learn a bit about grandpa, but was stymied in most of her questions by dismissive answers like, "You know, just enjoying retirement."
Meanwhile, grandpa asked Jonathan question after question, and Jonathan was happy to supply the answers between bites of hot dog and handfuls of chips.
"-And then there's my last period, history, with Ms. Wendell," pause, inhale, bite, chew, chew, chew, "I like history, but somehow she makes it sooooo boring. Why do we have to learn about the civil rights movement and the religions of China and apartheid when there's all this cool stuff about World War II and the Civil War we could be learning?" He shoveled a dozen chips into his mouth, scattering crumbs onto the picnic bench as he did.
His grandfather smiled knowingly at him, and then turned to his mother. "I suppose I have you to thank," he said, clearly gracious.
"You wouldn't believe how hard I had to twist Nicholas's arm to get him out here," mom replied, putting on a tone that reflected both amusement and annoyance.
"Nicholas and I have never quite seen eye to eye, on many things," grandpa agreed, "But that is not what I was thanking you for."
She looked at him, puzzled, and he continued. "You see, I possess a certain set of talents. Talents that were, unfortunately, not inherited by your husband. Or his brother. Despite my efforts, neither of them displayed the slightest hint of it. But clearly, you've managed to take his failure and salvage something of it into Jonathan. He's positively overflowing!"
Dad had gone completely still, a look of deep concern on his face. Mom looked more puzzled than ever. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said.
"Surely, Nicholas has said something?" he asked, aghast. She shook her head. "You see, my dear, I am a wizard. And so is your son. Or at least, he could be, if given the proper guidance."
Mom laughed, nervously. "You're joking. He's joking, right honey?" she asked, nervously looking at dad, who had the same concerned look on his face.
"Out of the question, dad. You aren't doing to my son what you tried to do to me and Dustin. We're leaving. Now." The last word was forceful, and he was already standing. Mom stood with him, and ushered Jonathan up, snapping him from the reverie he had been in since the word "wizard" was uttered.
"No! You must let me train him! At least give me one summer! He has so much potential, with just the smallest amount of molding, he could be so powerful!" Grandpa's voice was desperate now, as dad and mom were already leading Jonathan away. He lept to follow them, grabbing Jonathan by the shoulders again. "Please! Boy, tell me, do you want to be a wizard?"
"What, you mean like Harry Potter?" Jonathan asked, awestruck.
"Yes! Precisely!" His parents had already ripped Jonathan out of his grandfather's grasp, and were putting him into the car. "If you do, all you need to do is wish, as hard as you can, that you can be a wizard!" his grandfather shouted, as the car door slammed.
His parents pulled out of the driveway in a hurry. "You didn't tell me your father was insane, Jonathan," his mother said, concern in her voice.
"That's just it, Lauren. I'm not sure he is. I've seen him do... things. Things I could never reasonably explain," dad said, his voice shaking a little.
"Honey, you're scaring me. Why didn't you tell me any of this before?"
"Would you have believed me if I did? You would have thought I was the insane one."
All you need to do is wish, as hard as you can. The voice echoed in Jonathan's head as his father stumbled over his words, trying to explain what had happened
I wish I could be a wizard. Jonathan thought.
"I don't know what he did to you, honey, but you can rest assured that we will never have to see him again."
I wish I could be a wizard! he though again.
"It might be too late now. Now that he knows, or thinks he knows, that Jonathan has this 'potential', I'm not sure what he'll do."
I really, really wish I could be a wizard!
"He's a deranged old man. What could he possibly do?"
I wish, as hard as I can, that I could be a wizard!
That's when the front end of the car exploded.
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