Daylight is Mine to Protect

Not Quite Ordinary Part Two

Riiiiiing!

The mid-day bell rings, startling me awake from my nap in Biology class. "Alright, class is over," remarks Lawerence, turning off the video we had been watching. "Everybody out." I groggily put my things in my backpack and head out the door. Last night, I had stayed up trying to figure out how to get Jim's amulet from him without him noticing. I had also constantly biked to his and Toby's house to make sure Angor Rot hadn't decided to ambush them when they were sleeping. Overall, I had gotten almost no sleep and only one good idea on how to get the amulet.

I walk towards Jim, who is talking with Toby. "Hey," I say to them.

They look my way and Toby asks, "What do you want."

I raise an eyebrow. "Sorry, did I do something wrong?"

"Claire told us you were the one who messed up the projector. And we all saw what you did to Steve. He's being nice now. It's weird." Toby shivers.

"...So?"

"I'm just saying, no funny business ok?" He points at his eyes with two fingers and then at me and then at his eyes again. Great. Now I have to be even more careful. I've got people critiquing me everywhere I go.

"Come on Tobes, give her a break," Jim speaks up and rolls his eyes. "Were you going to say something?"

"Oh, uh right!" I turn to Jim. "Today, Spanish, I advise you take credit for the subtitles."

"Subtitles? What subtitles?"

I sigh, massaging my sleep deprived temples. "You'll see."

*    *    *

I come into Spanish feeling dead on my feet. My mind spins with a head ache as I sit down in my chair behind Jim. If all goes well, I'll have Jim's amulet by the end of class. Señor Uhl starts the class out with a slideshow, just like he told us he would do. I tap into the computer's code and rewrite it to correspond with my phone's microphone. Then, I record the words coming out of Señor Uhl's mouth and have my phone automatically convert them into Spanish words, which then appear on the top of the screen. The Spanish teacher doesn't notice until Eli raises his hand and points it out.

Apon turning around, Señor Uhl demands, "Who did this?" After a short moment of hesitation, Jim raises his hand even with the glares Toby gives him. A smile spreads across Senõr Uhl's face. "Extra Credit." The whole class stares, flabbergasted, at the teacher. I even drop my pencil. By the time I have righted myself and the class has resumed, the Trollhunter's amulet is safely tucked inside my bag.

*    *    *

After school, I stagger to my locker to retrieve the last items I need before heading home. The bike ride takes longer than I remember, and I find myself to be out of breath by its end. I set my bike and backpack inside and travel to the woods near my house on foot, only taking with me the amulet. The soft grass bounces beneath my feet as I breathe in the fresh air. My mind wanders as I wonder what is to come. Merlin had hardly told me, except to say that I would know what to do when the time was right, and it would be similar to how the amulet chooses a Trollhunter. So far, as I look apon the amulet, I see no sign of it calling to me or anything else out of the ordinary.

I am deep into the forest when I finally stop. My heart is hammering in my chest in anticipation and worry. Trying to calm down, I study the amulet.

Light. As pure as daylight itself. In the confinement of the dark forest, it shines out of the amulet with a faint blue glow. I don't remember it glowing before now, but I suppose that is because it was too bright before. Strange ruins are etched on to the rim of the circular object, older than any language I know of. Two metal progs in the middle make it seem like a clock, ticking away forever more.

A picture pops into my head; day turning to night, sunlight turning into.. moonlight. I close my eyes in attempt to hold on to the picture... But then I see purple light beyond my eyelids. I gasp in surprise as the blue of the amulet slowly changes into a faint purple color. The color of moonlight... The runes on the rim are changing as well, and I find I can now easily decipher them. "For the glory of the Trollhunter," I read off. "Daylight is..." I pause, remembering the advice Merlin had given me. "Daylight will always be mine to protect." Instantly, the amulet begins to hover above my hand in a purple radiance. I watch it with awe as it fastens to my right lower shoulder and, as it does, deep purple, almost black, clothes seem to materialize on me, feeling soft and light, but stronger than any normal clothing. 

As I watch, sticks from the forest float off the ground and fuse together, winding around one another like snakes. A purple smoke like substance transfers from the amulet to the top of the branches and, in a sudden flash of light, they become a staff. As it floats down, I grasp ahold of it, marveling how lightweight and perfectly balanced it feels in my hand. So this is why Merlin had me train with branches. I realize, remembering the constant training I had received the last year to prepare me for this moment. I twirl the staff around, trying to get a feel of how well I could use it. As I twirl it around, I feel an urge in my stomach and suddenly point the staff straight up, perpendicular to the ground. A string weaves its way between the top and bottom of the staff forming what looks to be a bow. I look around for any sort of arrow, but cannot see anything. Shrugging, I attempt to pull back the string... and nearly release it again when a translucent, purple arrow appears in the bow.

"Cool," I whisper, experimenting pulling the string and watching the arrow disappear and reform over and over. Eventually, I release the arrow and watch as it makes a perfect ark towards its target. I whistle appreciatively at it as I change the bow back into a staff.

Curious to how I look in my new clothes, I head over to a nearby pond and look in. I find I have an Assassin Creed look about me. A brown and dark purple short-sleeved cloak lined around the black T-shirt and long brown pants underneath. A hood on the back allows me to cover my bright red hair, and the ninja type mask attached to my shirt allows only my eyes to be seen. Black leather boots allow for easy purchase on the ground and black fingerless gloves give me better purchase when climbing. Around my wrist are silver cuffs that, I realize as I fiddle around with them, turn into a small, silver shield as I bring them together.

"Cool," I repeat, smiling. I swing my staff around me.. and watch as my arm disappears. Stealth mode. I realize. I try to hit something with my staff, but then become visible again. So, it only works when I'm not attacking. That's ok. I finally pull off the amulet and watch as the runes change back to normal. "Daylight protected," I state. Instantly, my new look disappears, as well as the staff in my hand. The amulet turns from purple to blue and I feel a huge sense of relief enter me. Now to give Jim back his amulet...