𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐒𝐘 𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃

11. 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆𝗱𝗲𝘄!

     "NEXT TIME WE HANG OUT, I'M PICKING THE PLACE."

     Wesley glanced at Eszter with a sly grin. "Oh? Are you asking me out on a date, Eszter?"

     Eszter rolled her eyes in amusement. "In your dreams," scoffed the girl with a smack of her lips, knocking her fist gently into Wesley's shoulder. "I mean, we can still practice and hang out, too, you know." Eszter shrugs her shoulders, pushing her lips to the side. "Look, I may be this big and mighty witch that you say--"

"--you are--"

"--but I'm still a seventeen-year-old girl. I'm finally here--with my sister--and nothing's holding me back."

     Taking her words into consideration, Wesley seemed to ease into it because he nodded. "Okay, fine, but you do realize that everything changes now, ever since . . ." Wesley paused, unable to word what he wanted to say because he knows it'll be pushed back at him. "Ever since you became the Dark Witch. We can do it your way, but there'll be people after you, or there will be a moment when you need to be at your full potential."

     Eszter's thoughts trailed back to Agnes, wondering when she'd be training with her and what exactly they'd be learning compared to Wesely. Although Eszter was given a few spells to master, she couldn't help but think she already knew how to do them; they felt familiar with something she'd done, and Eszter managed to fly through them quickly without any difficulties. It was like Wesley was testing the waters, or he didn't think Eszter could handle the plight of the spellbook.

     However, Eszter was yearning to know more about magic and better understand herself and protect everyone when she couldn't. She felt pathetic when she didn't push herself to save everyone she loved, but there wasn't any use of crying over them; it was in the past, and Eszter couldn't cry over the loss that would no longer be an issue. They were gone and never coming back. So, Eszter hoped Agnes had something better in store than what Wesley brought to the table; she wanted to do something beyond her capabilities, expand the horizon and further her studies.

     A little after their studying, Wesley and Eszter made their way back to Wanda's house as soon as their day was over. According to Wesley, the witch was done for the day, but she also didn't mind because Wanda is currently pregnant, and Eszter wanted to check up on her sister. Eszter had been a little distracted all afternoon practicing her magic skills, and she hadn't bothered to check in with Wanda. Eszter felt something thick in the atmosphere on her way home, an energy was growing increasingly, alerting the teenager. It didn't click before, but this feeling was strange. Although it felt like Wanda, it had a hint of something different; two intense energies are beaming from Wanda's house like a beacon, almost vibrating aggressively as Wanda's energy was going berserk.

     Wesley caught Eszter's silence with a confused smile, looking at her from beside her. "Everything alright?"

     Eszter's brows barely eased from the frown that etched across her forward, and with her eyes trained in the direction of Wanda's house, she distantly answered. "Huh?"

     "You're spacing out on me," chuckled Wesley.

     "Sorry," Eszter blinked back into reality, finally meeting Wesley's gaze as she jerked her head slightly. "Oh, uh . . . yeah." Something was happening, and it was concerning Eszter the longer she was away. "I gotta go . . ."

     "Well, yeah--"

     "I'll see you next time, okay?" Eszter began stepping further away from Wesley, hinting that she was ending their walk here. "Thanks for the small lesson. We can talk about giving me a better spell, alright?" The edge of Eszter's lips curved into a teasing grin. "Although I liked the little drawings--"