Camp Mirror Lake

Just before 8:30pm, me and my roomies meandered over to the amphitheater and sat in our assigned row near the front. I guess that's what we get for being in cabin 2. The good thing was, I got a really good view of all the councilors ( all twelve of them). The bad news was Ben was right in front of me and he could see me just as easily, and I wasn't able to go hide somewhere in the back.

I could feel that he still wanted me... I just wasn't sure for what. For some reason I could totally see him as a vampire, with his perfect body and beautiful face. If I hadn't felt the heat of his mouth on mine, I would have been convinced he was undead.

Also, I notice Becky, who I was pretty sure was like 15, and never had a boyfriend before, keep glancing over her shoulder at my brother. I could also feel my brother's vibes... something akin to a kitten purring when being pet. And as annoying as it may be to have to feel my brother's infatuation with this cute, innocent ball of giggles, at least maybe he would be distracted enough to stay out of my head!

Jack stood in front of the fire pit, casting him in sinister shadows. He almost looked like a demon emerging from the depths of Hell. Some distant emotion made him feel just as dangerous.

"Welcome to Campfire!" he yelled.

All the campers roared in response.

Okay then.

"We will start off with our chant. The newbies can try to follow along. I'm sure you will get it by the end of the week," he chuckled.

"Ben will be leading us in our chant, tonight. Everyone stand!" he commanded.

Everyone stood and waited for Ben to stand next to Jack.

"Mirror Lake, Mirror Lake," he started the chant and was immediately joint by all the over campers.

A flash from all the councilors pins shone bright as the chanting continued.

"From night to day and wrong to right," he continued louder. "The strength of spirit, from us take."

Okay, so these words were making me just a little bit uncomfortable now. What did they mean by taking the strength of my spirit? I want my spirit to stay right where it is, thank you very much!

"Seize us now, without a fight!" the last line was a roar from the enthusiastic campers.

THAT'S IT! I'm gettin' the Heck outta here! No way am I staying in this creepy place any longer. As soon as the sun comes up I'm gonna escape with my brother and hop the first bus to Indiana or something....( Maybe I'll kidnap Becky and Nate while I'm at it. )

"Thank you, Ben!" shouted Jack over the overexcited children. "Now, it is my great pleasure to tell you a campfire story. It should interest you all, since it is the Legend of Mirror Lake!"

Huh... Okay, so that definitely caught my interest. I'll plan my escape in the morning. That way I can get more info on this creepy camp... And I needed to remember to go and say good-bye to my Todd's.

"Once, long ago, there was magic," he said in a low and seductive voice, as the fire danced behind him. I swear I could hear a low hum of... what was it? Power? Music? The burning fire? No! It was magic! It was prickling on my skin. It was there in his voice... It was all very hypnotic, if not for the fact that I knew what he was doing, I may have been just as enthusiastic as the rest of the campers.

"The Earth was filled with powerful creatures. These creatures had a symbiotic relationship with the Earth and her magic..."

Something in this rang true to my spirit. Something he was saying... Was TRUE!

"There were sprites, fairies, unicorns, witches, elves of all kinds, shifters of all animals, including some that took human shadow form. There were creatures of the deep. The kracken, the kelpies, merfolk. There were dragons, both on land and in the sea. They all worked in harmony with the Earth. For she was their mother..."

Something pulled at my heart, and I realized Ethan could feel the truth of this tale too. I looked back at my brother, and saw his disturbed face. I knew we were both wondering how much of this was true.

"One day, and evil king from under the Mirror Lake decided to steal all the magic from the world and keep it for himself."

While the rest of the campers were listing with rapt attention. Something told me that this was a partial lie.

I gasped. How did I know it was a lie? I have no idea, but I knew deep inside me that this man was only going to be telling me half the truth this night.

"He pulled the magic into the lake and locked it with a magical key, he keeps around his neck at all times. As the magic was being dragged down to the lake, a lonely rainbow tried to escape the magical drain, but all it's colors were pulled back to the lake and all that remained were shades of gray hanging in the sky."

Something in what he said made me angry, but I couldn't tell what...

"The magical creatures sent a warrior to retrieve the magical key from the evil king, he was captured in a bubble and trapped below the lake. To this day, all the magical creatures remain without their magic and their decedents have become human. Now the key has been lost to time, and the magic in the lake has been locked away forever..." Jack finished to a silent audience, just as the fire flared with a boom.

Magic. Somehow that word didn't seem so far fetched. Especially not when Ethan and I seem to have some weird "twin magic" of our own. Some part of me knew that there was something real to this legend, and I had the strangest feeling it had to do with me...

At that moment I caught Nate's eye. I don't know if it was the light from the fire or what, but I swear it twinkled blue... And he sent me slow, sexy smile that made my breath catch in my chest.