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The first light of dawn drifting through my window roused me from my dream, the same dream I always had. Annabelle and I were playing outside when our mother ran up and grabbed us. I never saw my dad again, and my mom took us to where we live today. Shaking my head, I sat up. I wanted to roll over and go back to sleep, but I kept looking around my room instead. We lived in an old house, and the wooden floorboards creaked. I’d covered much of the wall with maps of mythical lands. Reminders of the life I’d once known.

It was a school morning, and I had special plans for the day. I’d turned fourteen the day before and, as a present to myself, I decided to put a stop to Troy’s bullying. Troy and his gang loved to use me as their punching bag, and there was nothing I could do about it. They were smart. They never hit me in the face. I never figured out how, but they had learned to cause pain without leaving many marks. The first day of school, after my first beating, I’d complained to one of my teachers. The next day, the entire gang followed Annabelle and me as we walked home from school. That day I got my second beating, and Troy made sure I understood that if I tattled again, Annabelle would be their next target.

Troy and his gang had been picking on me for several years now, and it had become annoying. I swung my legs over the side of the bed as I thought about my plan to make friends with Troy. One minute my idea seemed good and then I thought about what my mother would do to me if she found out and it scared the bejesus out of me. I kept reminding myself that I would always be a wimp if I worried about what my mother thought.

“Elwood!” Annabelle’s voice floated through my door as she knocked. “Breakfast is ready.”

Knowing there was no point in delaying my plans, I pushed myself off the bed, walked across the room, and opened the door. My younger sister, Annabelle, stood in the hallway. Her auburn hair shimmered in the morning sunlight that now poured through the window behind her. Her emerald eyes sparkled, and she grinned at me. Despite being a year apart in age, Annabelle is my best friend, and I felt I needed to tell her my plans. Our half-human, half-elf heritage cemented our unique connection. After all, we were the only two elves in this world. She had to understand that I had to do what I’d planned.

“Did you sleep well?” Annabelle asked, genuine concern lacing her words.

“Better than usual,” I replied, which was an outright lie. I’d been up most of the night trying to convince myself that my plan would work. Last night, I’d decided the only way I was going to make friends with Troy would be to teach him magic. Under normal circumstances, I would have told Annabelle what I planned, but I felt that was a burden I should carry alone. Besides, if I told her I planned to teach Troy how to do magic, she’d tell our mom.

We were both born in the Elven world of Elwrith, and magic runs through our veins. My magic is much stronger than my sisters, but that didn’t matter because mom forbade us from using magic outside of the house. Mom is from earth, and she never explained what happened to our father. Mom told us that a war broke out in our birth world of Elwrith when I was five and Annabelle was four. That’s when she brought us to Slocum, Minnesota. The only memories I have of my old world are my dreams of a castle and a war. Those dreams haunt me, and I’m not sure if they are real or spurts of my imagination.

Annabelle startled me out of my thoughts. “Come on, Elwood, Mom will wonder where we are. She’ll have breakfast ready by now.” She turned and skipped down the hallway, her laughter echoing behind her.

“Wait up,” I called out as I slipped on my shoes and followed her down the stairs. Mom must have gotten up early. The scent of warm bread made me smile as we entered the kitchen. I tried not to admit it, but I figured Mom would not approve of what I planned to do. If she found out, she would ground me forever. I was glad she wasn’t here this morning.

“Where’s Mom?” I asked.

“Mom left a note that she has some errands to run before work,” Annabelle said as we sat down at the table.

“Is she going to pick us up after school?” I asked.

“Why? Is it supposed to rain?”

“I don’t think so,” I said as I put my head down and started eating.

“Are you up to something, Elwood?”

“No, I’m not, Annabelle. You’ve just got a wild imagination.”

“You’re the one with a wild imagination, Elwood. What are you up to?”

I looked up and crossed my heart. “Nothing, nothing at all, Annabelle.”

We got dressed, and once we were ready for school, we stepped outside, where our small town stretched before us. Mom insisted that the quaint charm of the town made it beautiful, but I told her it looked a little old and run-down. I couldn’t admit it, but I didn’t think there was anything wrong with the town other than that it didn’t feel like home. The townspeople, at least the adults, must have agreed with my mom, because they always greeted one another with friendly waves and warm smiles. Me? I had nothing to smile about.

We had told no one in town we were elves. We always tucked our pointed ears under our hair, which was easier for Annabelle than for me. I was taller than Annabelle, and slender, and as much as we tried, the local kids seemed to know we were different. Most of the adults treated us okay, but I think it was because mom wasn’t different. But Troy seemed to know, and he didn’t hesitate to tell all the other kids in school.

“Elwood, are you ready for school?” Annabelle asked, her voice pulling me from my thoughts.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I replied with a forced smile as I tried not to dwell on what awaited me there. The thought of facing Troy filled me with nervousness. I could live with his cruel taunts and the relentless bullying, but I refused to keep being his punching bag.

As Annabelle and I walked along the road towards the schoolhouse, I tried to focus on my surroundings. I concentrated on the things I liked about Slocum. There weren’t many. I enjoyed walking on the dew-speckled grass and gazing at the wildflowers in the spring and summer but didn’t much care for winter. In the cold months, I preferred to cuddle in my bed and read a book.

“Hey, Elwood,” Annabelle said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “What’s bothering you?”

“Nothing.” I increased my pace, hoping Annabelle would take the hint that I didn’t want to talk about it.

I guess she got it because she matched my pace and didn’t say another word the rest of the way to the school.

“Thanks, Annabelle,” I whispered as we headed to our classroom. I did not know why my mother put us into the same grade when we first arrived in Slocum. Now I love my sister, but having to be in the same grade and classes as her was just one embarrassment too many that I had to live with.

The warning bell rang as we headed into the room, signaling the start of another horrendous school day. I took a deep breath as I entered my history class, which was filled with chatter and laughter. A sea of students surged toward their seats, but amid the crowd, there was one face I dreaded seeing: Troy.

“Hey, weirdo!” The sneer came from behind me, and the room went quiet. I turned to find Troy towering over me, surrounded by his three cronies, who were in the same room as us. I wasn’t sure who I hated more, Troy or his gangsters. Right then, I wasn’t sure why I wanted to be friends with Troy. Then I thought, oh yeah, I don’t want to be beat up anymore.

“Leave me alone, Troy,” I muttered, trying to sound brave even though my voice trembled.

“Aw, what’s the matter? Waiting for your sister to save you? You know she’s the number two weirdo in town, right?”

“Shut up, Troy,” I snapped, as my cheeks burned with anger.

“Or what? You want to fight with me?” Troy grabbed my wrist and twisted it so hard I had to bite my lip to keep from crying out.

“Let go of me,” I warned, struggling to break free. As he tightened his grip, something inside me snapped. A surge of power coursed through my veins, filling me with a sudden strength I’d never encountered before.

“Fine,” he said, releasing my wrist just after a short blast of energy shot from my fingertips, sending him stumbling backward. His friends stared at me in shock, their mouths hanging open as the entire gang hurried to their own seats.

“Elwood, what did you do?” whispered a voice beside me. It was Annabelle, her eyes wide with disbelief.

“Magic,” I breathed, staring at my trembling hands. “I didn’t mean to. It just happened.”

“Elwood, we’re not supposed to ….”

“I know, Annabelle.”

“You’re lucky no one understands what happened there. From where I sat, it looked like Troy went to move away, then he stumbled. But Troy’s bound to wonder how you tripped him.”

A mixture of guilt and exhilaration overcame me. “I couldn’t help it, Annabelle. It’s like my power is growing stronger, and sometimes I swear it wants to release itself.”

“You need to be careful, Elwood,” she said. “There’s a reason Mom told us never to use our magic like this. We don’t know what might happen.”

As I looked back at Troy, I realized he was watching me. I was sure I saw a glint of fear in his eyes. I had to admit, Annabelle was right. But at that moment, I didn’t care. For the first time since we’d moved to Slocum, I’d stood up to my tormentor. It was an incredible rush.

My mother’s words echoed in my thoughts as I headed to my next class. Annabelle had stopped to talk with Amy, the one friend she had at school. And I walked toward our next class, my thoughts lost in what had happened in history class.

I was aware of the potential consequences of what I’d done, yet a part of me couldn’t help but relish the burst of strength and control I’d experienced. “What if I don’t want to stop?” I asked myself. Before I had time to come up with an answer, someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I spun around.

“Hey, Elwood!” Troy said. He smiled an uneven smile, and I tensed, expecting more taunts or even another attack. Instead, he looked at me with an odd expression on his face. “That thing you did earlier ... how did you do it?”

For a moment, I considered brushing him off, knowing that revealing mine and Annabelle’s secret might lead to disaster. But then, it occurred to me. Now might be the right time to confront Troy. Maybe teaching him magic would be the bridge that connected us.

“Magic,” I said, testing the waters. “It’s something I can do.”

“You mean like sleight of hand, or jujitsu or something?”

“No, I mean real magic.”

“How did you learn magic?”

I shrugged. “I’ve been able to do magic for as long as I can remember.”

“Can you teach me?” Troy asked. His friendly tone took me by surprise, and I wondered if this might work.

I shrugged. “I’ve never tried to teach someone, but I’m pretty sure I can.” After I told him that, I considered the risks. “If I do, Troy, you must promise not to use it to hurt anyone.”

“Deal,” Troy agreed, extending his hand. As we shook, I saw something in his eyes that made me wonder if I was being had. But, despite my mother’s warnings, and my own doubts, the chance to find friendship and acceptance was too tempting to pass up.

“Alright,” I said, as I took a leap of faith. “After school, meet me at the football field. There’s nothing going on there today. We should be able to work without being interrupted.”

“Sweet,” Troy grinned and clapped me on the back. His slap was harder than I expected, but for once, I didn’t take it as a threat.

As we parted ways, my heart began to pound. I knew my plan was risky, but I figured it was too late for me to change my mind.

Lunchtime arrived, and I was eager to share my plan with Annabelle. I found her sitting under a tree, reading a book as usual.

“Hey, Sis,” I said, plopping down beside her. “I need to talk to you about something.”

“Sure, what’s up?” she asked. Closing her book, she gave me her full attention.

I hesitated before diving in. “You know how Troy has been bullying us for years? Well, today he approached me after that incident in history class. We started talking, and I might have figured out how to make friends with him.”

“That would be great, Elwood. I know how badly you want some friends,” Annabelle responded. “How did you manage that?”

“By offering to teach him magic,” I waited for her reaction.

Annabelle’s face turned a shade paler. “Elwood, you can’t be serious. Don’t you remember? Mom said she’d ground us for life if we used magic on humans. It’s dangerous.”

“But I’m not using it on Troy,” I said. “I’m just teaching him how to use it. Besides, I need to make friends with Troy.”

“Elwood, I understand your desire for friendship. But there are other ways to make friends without risking everything,” she said, her voice trembling. “If Mom finds out, she’ll kill you, even though we are the only elves in the world. Our heritage is a secret we have to protect.”

“Annabelle, I appreciate your concern, but I’ve decided,” I said, though doubt gnawed at me as I listened to her. “I promised Troy I would help him learn magic, and I intend to keep that promise.”

“Please, don’t, Elwood.” Annabelle’s eyes filled with a mixture of fear and disappointment.

“Fine, Annabelle,” my jaw clenched in frustration as I took a deep breath. “You win. But you don’t understand how hard it is for me to fit in.”

“Elwood, I understand,” she said. “But there are other ways to find friends. We just can’t risk exposing our secret.”

“Alright.” I said. My shoulders slumped. “I won’t teach Troy magic, but I need to make some friends.”

“Let’s both give it some thought,” she said, placing a hand on my shoulder. We spent the rest of our lunch break brainstorming ideas, but none seemed as doable as sharing my magical abilities.

I should have told Troy I couldn’t make it, but I figured either way I was in for a beating the next day. It gnawed at me that not only might I not make a friend, but giving in to Annabelle made me feel like a coward.

As we walked home, I got the sense that Annabelle sensed my lingering doubts, and I soon found out I was right. Just before we reached the house, she stopped and faced me. “Elwood, you need to understand. I’m not kidding when I say that if you go back on your word, I’ll have no choice but to tell Mom.”

“Fine,” I snapped, irritated by her constant reminders. “You win.”

That night, as I lay in bed, the weight of my decision pressed down on me. My desire for acceptance warred with my loyalty to my family. In the darkness, I wrestled with my conscience, searching for a solution that would satisfy everyone.

In the silence, a plan formed, one that would allow me to follow through with teaching Troy magic while keeping Annabelle out of the way. As much as I loved my sister, I decided I had to take matters into my own hands if I wanted to gain control over my life.

With trembling fingers, I whispered an incantation, sending a ripple of magic through the air. I directed it towards Annabelle’s room, willing it to make her just sick enough to keep her in bed and away from school for a day.

As sleep claimed me, my thoughts raced with anticipation and guilt. Maybe what I was doing was wrong, but I didn’t care. Tomorrow, I was going to teach Troy magic. Consequences be damned.