Childish. Suppose she was. Her little stunt in town was enough to prove just how childish she really was. Adulthood was still a few years away, though she wasn’t quite a kid anymore. Right now Shilo was stuck in the awkward in between years, and she knew it. Even as she made her way up the stairs and into her room, the words lingered in her mind constantly.

Too childish.

Her father had caught up with her in the house and tried to speak to her, reminding her that growing up wasn’t such a bad thing. In fact, it was inevitable. She had no plans for her future other than the fantasy of joining The Council, and it was a long shot of a goal. One she wasn’t working towards in the slightest. She played around and goofed off, her studies slipped to the wayside at all times… How could they possibly look at her and think of her as a viable option?

The conversation grew long and tiresome, as usual, and Shilo finally just retreated into her bedroom.

Flopping back on her bed she let out a frustrated sigh, closing her eyes as he feet dangled just above the hardwood floors of her bedroom. Shutting her eyes didn’t do much for her wounded ego, and lying down wasn’t helping her anxious mind. Sitting up on her bed she looked around her room, focusing on the large mirror hanging above her desk. There was only one thing that could ease her worried mind, and that was just beyond her mirror. She only hoped that her call would be answered…

She hopped off her bed and walked over to the mirror, staring at her reflection. No, she was staring beyond her reflection, into the eyes given to her by her mother. Her reflection slowly began to warp, eventually disappearing like a ripple in a lake. Dark clouds gathered, concealing any reflection with a thick, grey smoke.

“Speak to me now, fellow witch from afar,

See the gleam of my mirror as bright as a star.

Gaze upon your face and you will see

The witch staring back is not you

It’s me.”

As she uttered her spell, the mirror began to glow with a faint, purple haze, the color almost pulsating, beckoning for an answer. A few seconds went by and nothing but utter silence remained in the room. Still, Shilo held onto the hope there would be an answer.

“...Come on, Mother…”

She knew she recited the spell correctly. It was a spell she and her mother wrote together when she was a little girl, making it impossible to forget. Remembering her father saying that things were busy for her mother, she guessed that maybe there wouldn’t be an answer tonight.

Her suspicions were proven correct as the clouds began to dissipate and the pulsing lights slowly began to fade into nothing, eventually leaving her with the reflection of her disappointed face. What a waste of time…

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Shilo turned, hearing light taps at her window. To her surprise the sky had already darkened, night having fallen faster than usual. She tried to focus, knowing very well the night sky didn’t just tap on her window, but she had a feeling she knew who it was. Or rather, what it was.

The little creature stared back at her with deep black eyes, using his short legs to tap on her window again...