Chapter 3: An Invitation

A child suddenly got their attention when she cried out loud. Aranea and Elenea rushed to see what had happened and noticed that the little girl's knee was bleeding due to her fall. Elenea carried her then let her sit on her lap, comforting her.

"There, there... you have to be careful when you play," Elenea said as she caressed the little girl's head.

After a while, the little girl's knee started to glow. Elenea hummed as she lightly put her hand on the girl's knee. It was Elenea's unique power. She could heal anyone with her singing voice.

What made their world unique was that every person had their own powers and it would only activate once they are ready by the age of thirteen.

The odd thing, however, is that Aranea had nothing.

After some time, the wound on the little girl's knee disappeared, making her happy and astonished at the same time.

"Wow, Elenea! It's gone! It's not painful anymore!" Elenea smiled at the little girl as she jumped off from her lap. "Thank you so much!" She ran back to her friends, showing that she was okay and the other children were amazed as well.

"That's a handy magic you have there," Ralph said and Elenea just shook her head.

"Your magic is effective, too! In times of drought, your water magic is going to be effective," Elenea said and Ralph scratched his head, feeling embarrassed by her compliment.

"I hope my earth power will be useful, too," Jack said feeling excited and Elenea giggled when she heard him.

"It will be. Especially if you want to protect the people who are important to you," she enthusiastically said and the children gathered around them.

"I can't wait to know what my power is in the future!"

"Me, too!"

"I'm so excited! I can't wait to grow up!"

"I want to be strong in the future!"

Aranea's lips turned into a flat line, listening to their conversation. She did not have any magic and hearing their conversation made her feel weak and ashamed of herself.

Her twin sister noticed Aranea's discomfort that's why Elenea nudged Aranea with her elbow, getting her attention.

"Hey, don't feel bad," she comforted her and Aranea let out a little sigh.

"I sound like a muggle in Harry Potter," Aranea mumbled and Elenea giggled.

"Hey! At least you're so good at archery!"

When she heard Elenea say this, Aranea smiled, full of pride and confidence.

Aranea had been interested in archery since she was five years old. When she turned thirteen, only her sister discovered her powers, and this depressed Aranea.

Since then, she decided that if she couldn't have powers, why not excel in what she loved the most, which is archery?

That's why she trained day and night in order to be good at archery. Her accuracy and speed are off the charts, making others feel intimidated by her physical prowess.

She could even fight without weapons, too! That's why men around their neighborhood avoid Aranea because they are insecure about her.

The only way they could get back at her was to bully her because she has no powers.

Aranea didn't mind it, though. She would just beat them up and would not get offended by what they said because she knew that she could always beat them up.

"Aranea, Elenea!"

Aurelia called the two as she walked towards the twins, with a wide grin plastered on her face.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

Aranea asked and the kids gathered around as well to look at what Aurelia was holding. She was holding an envelope, and below it, was a rectangular box.

"First off, I would like to give this to Aranea," Aurelia said as she handed over the box to her. The old woman then squinted her eyes, "Because of her clumsiness, I bought this for her," she added and Aranea's eyes lit up.

"Is this my new phone~!?"

Elenea laughed as Aurelia rolled her eyes, but smiled afterward when she saw how overjoyed Aranea was.

Aranea broke her smartphone months ago when she used it while doing the laundry. Because of her carelessness, her phone fell into the water and since then, her phone didn't function properly.

It was because of that situation that led Aurelia to buy a new phone for Aranea.

Aranea opened it and she was giddy and bubbly the moment she saw her new phone.

"Oh, thank you, mom!"

She embraced Aurelia tight, making the old woman chuckle.

"Oh, you... just don't break any more phones, you hear? The budget is supposed to be for the children's needs. Good thing I had extra," Aurelia said as she put her hands on her hips, making the twins and the children laugh.

Elenea remembered that there was one more: the envelope. She got the envelope from Aurelia and tilted her head, curious.

"How about this, mom? Can I open it?"

"Ah! I almost forgot," Aurelia said then she nodded to answer Elenea's question. "But look at the sign of the envelope. It looks familiar."

The moment she said this, everyone examined the envelope and their eyes opened wide to see a familiar star sign.

"Hey, isn't that from Mystic Academy?" Jack asked and the twins looked at each other.

Mystic Academy is a well-known school for magic and it has been established for a very long time. Invitations are sent to people aged 18-19 and they make sure that they possess magical powers before entering.

Once invited to enroll in this prestigious school, they are required to stay there until they have graduated.

Aranea felt excited for her twin sister.

"Hey, Elenea! It's time! We almost forgot about this! Is this like a Harry Potter moment, minus the unsupportive family?"

Elenea giggled, feeling ecstatic as she excitedly opened the envelope. She then read the content of the letter aloud for everyone to hear.

"Greetings! Mystic Academy is welcoming Aranea Griffin and Elenea Griffin to enroll this upcoming semester.

The academy encourages the said students to enroll within two to three days and should complete the list of needed school supplies before entering the school campus.

The students will be taken care of as soon as they arrive on the school grounds. Please see the attached instruction paper to further understand the enrollment process. From Mystic Academy."

Everyone looked at Aranea slowly after Elenea read the letter.

"Cool! All you have to do is follow the instructions, sis!"

Aranea hadn't realized this whole time that her name was included in the invitation.

"Aranea," Aurelia said and she looked at her mother.

"I know, I know... I have to help my sister prepare, blablabla..."

"N-no, Aranea... Ms. Aurelia meant for you to look at the letter," Ralph said and Aranea did so with suspicion in her eyes.

Aranea sighed as she got the letter from Elenea who seemed to be in a daze. Even the others, the children, were surprised that Aranea did not hear what Elenea said when she read the letter aloud.

With that, Aranea started reading the letter aloud again, the others silenced as they made sure if they heard Elenea right now that Aranea is reading the letter.

"Greetings... Mystic Academy is welcoming Aranea Griffin and Elenea Griffin..."

Aranea stopped when she heard her say her own name. Her eyes immediately widened to have now understood why they were surprised.

"WHAT!? Why am I invited when I have no magical powers!?"