The Connection

                Ugh, my brother is hogging the connection again. I pull myself off my bed and march down the hall to his room. I shove open the door without knocking.

                “Hey! What are you doing in my room?” my brother shouts with pinched-together eyebrows.

                “Get off the connection. You’re slowing it down and I’m trying to do my homework.”

                “Well, I’m trying to talk to Sasha,” he says with a wiggle of his eyebrows and a grin only a teenage boy can muster.

                “Sorry Sasha, Sean has to go now.” I turn to the image of Sasha’s room that hovers on the back wall and use my wand to cast the spell that closes the viewing portal.

                “Why are you always such a bummer?” Sean mumbles as he shoves me out the door. I hear the lock click behind me.

                “You know what mom and dad say about locking our doors,” I reply out of spite. The lock clicks again, open this time.

                “Just let me know when you’re done with your homework, so I can call Sasha back,” my brother calls through the door.

                I roll my eyes and head back to my room. A viewing portal is powerful enough to use up all our magic allotment, and my brother knows this. While he’s talking to girls, no one else in our house can connect to their magic. It’s times like this that I wish our family was considered important enough to receive more than our mediocre allotment.

                I suppose I should be thankful, and I am most days, because there are others out there with less. Some can’t even use magic at all, those with jobs that don’t require it and no children in school. I couldn’t imagine a life without magic.

                I stand in the middle of my room and flick my wand, ready to practice. I get lost in the rhythm of the new spell we are learning, continuing until I can perform it perfectly ten times in a row. Satisfied, I tuck my wand into the loop on my belt and lay on my bed. I’ll practice again before bed, and in class tomorrow I’ll perform it flawlessly, as usual.

I arrive to class ten minutes early and carefully arrange my books and notes on my desk. My teacher is there setting up for the end of week review. My brother saunters in, one arm draped over Sasha, just as the bell rings. If he doesn’t get his act together, I will graduate before him, even though he’s a year older than me.

                My teacher gives one last demonstration of the latest spell before we all will take our turns. Just as she finishes, a tall man in a government uniform walks into the room. He informs our teacher that he will be observing today’s review. She wrings her hands as her eyes dart around the room. I sit up straighter in my seat. This is it; this is my chance to show off my abilities and prove that my family deserves a larger allotment.

                My father works for the government, nothing high up, but enough that he’s considered a contributing member to society. That boosts our allotment to just above a trickle. If only the connection was strong enough that everyone could access it at once, without it crashing.  

                I sit at my desk and tap my foot, waiting for my name to be called. When it finally is, I grasp my wand and jump out of my chair. I roll my shoulders back and stand in perfect spell-casting posture. I flick my wand to tap into the connection and execute the arm movements perfectly. I turn to the official, seated in the front row, with a proud grin on my face.

Feeling my stare, he looks up from his notes. He wasn’t even watching. The corners of my mouth fall and I am filled with a sudden rage. I worked so hard, and he couldn’t even be bothered to give me a moment of his attention. He glances at my teacher, to see the pleased smile on her face.

“Uh, very nice Miss Watkins,” he mutters before returning to his notes.

I take my seat, seething. I know he paid no attention to me because I don’t have an important name. I glare at the man’s back and contemplate the unfairness of it all.

My brother is called next, and I nearly groan. I know he hardly had time to practice, with all the time spent talking to Sasha. He takes his stance at the front of the classroom and clears his throat. The official lifts his head but stares down at Sean through the glasses perched on his nose. I suddenly feel protective of my brother, and I clench my fists.

He doesn’t seem bothered by the official’s disregard, though. He just flicks his wand with a smirk on his face. As soon as he begins, I notice that he’s not casting the spell right. It’s not even close. What is he doing? I know my brother doesn’t try hard, but he’s not a fool either. Then, I recognize the movements.

He gives me a sideways glance, and I duck my head just in time. Dozens of snakes burst from a small portal at the tip of his wand and fly across the classroom. They land on students and slither across the floor. Girls squeal and cower atop their desks. Some students run, and others try to defend themselves with textbooks. I don’t know whether to laugh or yell.

The spell is one of many we cast on each other as pranks. Although it’s not the right spell, it’s actually rather advanced for our grade. A viewing portal is one thing, but summoning living things through the portal is difficult. A part of me is proud.

Our teacher stands with her mouth open and a hand to her chest. The official pushes back from his seat and raises his arm. With a flick of his wand and a couple of hand motions, he deftly casts the counter-spell. The snakes vanish. Everyone quiets as he turns to my brother.

The official stares Sean down for a moment, and without looking away he calls for Abigail. “Miss Pearson, maybe you can show Watkins here how to perform the correct spell.”

“Of course, Mr. Calloway,” she replies in a voice dripping with honey. I’m not surprised that Abigail Pearson knows the official by name. She prances forward and smiles smugly at all of us. She casts the spell fairly well. Not a perfect performance, like mine, but good enough to reach the desired outcome.

Mr. Calloway claps his hands. “Wonderful, Miss Pearson. I hope you all can learn from her demonstration.”

I wait for Sean after class, so we can walk home together. We walk in silence until we’re off the main road. I look around to make sure no one can overhear us.

“Why would you do that? I work so hard to make sure to leave a good impression, and you ruin it in one moment,” the words tumble out.

“Exactly, you work so hard and the man couldn’t be bothered to pay you any attention! I made sure that he will notice the Watkins next time.”

“Oh he noticed us, but not in a good way.”

“Why do you care anyway? We have enough allotment. We have everything we need.”

“What about having everything we could want,” I turn on my heels to face him, “enough magic to do any spell we could dream of?”

“Will that make you happy, Charlotte? Will it be worth it?” he snaps.

I stare at him, jaw dropped. I don’t know where this is coming from.

He continues, “All you do is practice and study. You never have any fun. You worry all the time. Maybe you should just stop trying so hard and enjoy being young.”

I don’t know what to say. All I’ve ever thought about was proving myself, proving our family’s worth. I dream of being able to do the most extraordinary things with unlimited access to the connection. 

“Well, you have enough fun for the both of us. Somebody has to actually try to better this family,” I spit out from my wounded heart. Sean flinches.

“Look,” he says as he runs a hand through his hair, “I was just trying to defend you. I can’t say I won’t do it again.” He flashes me a grin. “But I will try a little harder in school if you will try to have some fun every once in a while.”

“I guess,” I reply.

“That’s the spirit!” He pulls me into a hug and musses my hair. “Let’s start with the fun. Your flawless performance earlier deserves a reward.” He tips an imaginary hat toward me. I just laugh and shake my head.

Sean flicks his wand and casts a spell similar to the one he used in class, only this time fireflies pour forth from his wand. He smiles at me knowingly. Fireflies are my favorite. I reach out and gently catch one in my hand. My brother does the same, and we stand for a moment looking through our glowing fingers.

It’s then I come to realize that, even though we have our differences, we’ll always have each other’s backs.

“Thanks for trying to stick up for me,” I finally say. He just smiles at me in that way big brothers do.

The following week, I stand in the backyard and practice the new spell we are learning. I flick my wand and swirl my hands in opposite directions. A small cyclone appears on the ground in front of me. I widen the circles I’m making and the cyclone grows in size. I want to see how big I can make it.

The cyclone grows until it is nearly as tall as me. Then, it flickers and my magic starts to feel sluggish. I reach for more, but I’ve hit the max of our allotment. I fling my hands down and plop to the grass. I just wish that we at least had enough allotment to test my abilities full out. 

Frustrated, I stomp through the house and grab my book bag. Sean spots me and raises his eyebrows, but he follows me out the door without a word.

When we show up for our review, Mr. Calloway is waiting with arms crossed. As my brother and I walk in, his eyes bore into us. We take our seats and the teacher begins her demonstration. When she is finished, the official announces that he would like to see my brother perform the spell first. I gulp.

Sean rises with his head held high and poses at the front of the room. He flicks his wand and twirls his hands in opposite directions. A small cyclone forms in front of him and I smile. It sucks up a couple of nearby papers, but overall it’s a good demonstration. He drops his hands and the cyclone disappears.

“Lacking a bit of control, but at least Watkins has proven he can complete the proper spell,” Mr. Calloway says with a smug grin.

My brother nods to me as he walks past, but I know it was hard for him to cater to that condescending man. I seethe at the official’s attitude towards us. I watch the other students as I wait for my turn, knowing I can best them all.

When it’s finally time to begin, I stand tall at the front of the classroom. After a few moments, when I don’t do anything, the official glances up.

“You may begin,” he says with a sniff before looking back down.

Sean gives me a small smile, and so I begin. I flick my wand, but I don’t use the swirling hand motions. Sean’s smile grows and mine is an answering smirk. I concentrate on the complex motions for my spell. A portal opens up beneath Mr. Calloway’s chair and he drops into it, only to pop up outside the classroom door. My brother stands up and claps loudly. Mr. Calloway marches off down the hall in a huff.

Sean runs up to me and lifts me in the air. “My brilliant sister,” he yells.

I flush, full of pride. Some of the other students laugh and cheer. Abigail sits at her desk and picks at her nails. I ignore her and pump a fist into the air.

We are called to the principal’s office a moment later, and my smile drops. Sean places an arm around me and walks me down the hall. Our footsteps echo on the vinyl tile floors. We reach the office and the secretary shows us in.

Mr. Duncan, our principal, sits behind his desk and Mr. Calloway leans back against the wall opposite him. He motions for us to take the seats in front of his desk.

“In light of both of your recent performances in class, Mr. Calloway has requested that we contact the Chancellor,” Mr. Duncan says without giving away any emotion.

My stomach lurches, and my face goes pale. Sean reaches over to squeeze my hand.  I hunch over as Mr. Calloway opens a viewing portal on the wall to our right. The face of the Chancellor, who I’ve only seen before on TV, appears on the other side of the wall. The Chancellor greets us all and asks Mr. Calloway to explain what is going on.

The Chancellor’s eyes dart to my brother when the official mentions the snakes. He examines my brother and purses his lips before nodding. As Mr. Calloway recounts my review, his face turns red and the words rush out. He finishes with the fact that he exited the portal in the hallway, and the Chancellor’s eyebrows shoot up.

“How old are they?” the Chancellor asks.

“Miss Watkins is 15, and Mr. Watkins is 16,” the official replies.

“Hmmm, I can see why you brought this to my attention.”

“Very good, sir,” Mr. Calloway says with a smirk.

“These children demonstrate a remarkable ability for their age. Clearly, their family has been underestimated.”

I pull in a sharp intake of breath and enjoy seeing the smirk drop from Mr. Calloway’s face. The official’s mouth opens and closes. My brother stifles a laugh.

“I believe tripling their allotment should help them to continue developing their skills properly,” the Chancellor continues.

I nearly jump out of my chair. Sean and I exchange beaming smiles.

“Thank you, Mr. Chancellor,” we both reply.

“See it done, Mr. Calloway. Good day.” With that, the viewing portal fades.

Sean and I rush home and burst through the door.

“Mom! Mom, come quick!” I call out.

Our mother rushes down the stairs. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, Mom,” Sean says with a laugh.

She looks between us.

“Watch,” I tell her.

I open up a viewing portal into our dad’s office. He looks up from his desk and cocks his head at us.

“Oh, hello. Is everything alright?” he asks.

Sean and I laugh brightly.

“Watch, Dad,” Sean tells him.

This time Sean opens up a viewing portal on the other wall, into his bedroom. My mother puts a hand to her mouth and my father puts on his glasses.

“Your turn, Mom,” I exclaim.

“We can’t possibly–,” she starts.

“Just try, please,” Sean says, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

She looks at my father and shrugs her shoulders. She flicks her wand and opens a third portal into our aunt’s living room. Aunt Sophie looks on as we all cheer and hug each other. When the excitement dies down, we explain everything. Our parents declare that we will have a celebratory dinner, once our father gets home. In the meantime, I decide to go outside.

I flick my wand and move my hands in ever-widening circles. A cyclone forms and increases steadily in size. It surpasses my height and soon it’s taller than my father. When the cyclone appears as tall as our house, I stop and marvel at it. The wind whips my hair as I stand and think I did this. I tilt my head back and my laugh is pure joy.

***

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