Willow Springs

Chapter 6

            The rest of the summer holidays was strange, it was nothing like any others I remember before that year. Nearly every year before the year I was going to Willow Springs my parents were working nearly all the time. They would be away at least four days a week and when they were away I spent them at Aurora's, but that year was different. They had three weeks of the six completely off work, and the other three only working three days a week. But that didn't stop me from spending time with Aurora. Nearly every day when my parents were at home she was at mine, sleeping over at least ten days. She insisted on showing me some of the magic she could do, and I have to admit it was amazing. Even though she had been practising since she was a child she was quick to explain that like me her true abilities were just coming to her and it would take time and plenty of practise. But over the summer I saw her abilities grow more and more. We would sit at night with the lights off and the curtains closed. She would sit opposite me with only a candle for light. She would close her eyes and mumble a few words, nothing would happen at first and she would screw her face up and clench and unclench her hands over and over again. Then suddenly the candle would burst into a bright flame, much brighter than normal and Aurora would open her eyes and the flame would change from the bright white colour to the colour of a normal fire. When she first showed me this ability it would take her minutes before the candle would catch fire, but at the end of the summer holidays, she could do it in only a few questions. Not only that she could make the candle float in mid-air. But like when she would light the candle it took her a lot of effort to make the candle float at first. The first couple of times she could only lift the candle no more than an inch off the candlestick holder and only for no more than ten seconds, and if she opened her eyes the candle would plummet to the ground immediately. After weeks of practising she could not only keep the candle hovering in mid-air for well over a minute, she was capable of dictating its movement with her eyes open. I watched one night as she walked around the whole room with the candle almost touching the ceiling before she brought it to eye level and with a blink of an eye she put the flame out and dropped it straight down back into the candlestick holder. I think she was impressed with her progress as much as she did myself. As for my progress, it was a lot slower. I spent every chance I had when I was alone to try and 'change' into werewolf me but it just wasn't happening. My father and mother told me I should have been able to, so I knew it was possible. It took me nearly all the last couple of days before going to Willow Springs before I was finally able to transform. I remember the joy I felt when I was able to look in the mirror and see I had changed and not on a full moon. But it was nothing like the times I had changed on the full moon, the first time you already know about but the second you don't, maybe I will tell you about it some other time but not now. But changing not on the full moon felt different like I wasn't as strong as on a full moon. It was hard also to turn back, the first time I changed was in my bedroom and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't turn back. It was only when Aurora came round and read in her book how to change back I was able to. After that I was able to change whenever I liked, though I soon found out it was a massive drain of energy longer I stayed transformed. I wish I had more chances to practise before going to Willow Springs because I would have loved to had time to train transformed but I couldn't. It said in Aurora's book that the more you train and practise less drain it is on your body, I know now that to be true. Now I can spend a full day in form and feel as fresh as I did when I woke up, but not then. Then I could stay in my werewolf form for a couple of hours and transform back and eat like I hadn't had anything for a month, it was crazy.

What I enjoyed the most was starting to learn to fence. My father and Aurora's father was very strict on the training. They did a couple of training together, Aurora practising with her father and me with mine. But most of the time it was one of the other and not both at once. They said we could only practise when one of them was present, which was annoying at first, but I could see their point. But even though it was hard going we both enjoyed it, and by the time the summer holidays was over, we were both capable to train without our parents been present. This was a relief for Aurora and me because it meant we could carry on practising while at Willow Springs. We spent hours practising how to stand, how to move, how to strike and how to sucker the opponent to make a mistake and how to take advantage of it. If I am honest I was better than Aurora, been able to move quickly and strike faster than her. But she soon learned how to use it to her advantage, letting me close in on her before she would strike. I knew it was going to be a sport I would enjoy doing at Willow Springs, shame I would have to wait until the second year to do it.