As We Go Along, Ch. 10

I ran into camp and whirled around, looking for any trace of them. The men and horses were gone without a trace. I started to panic. My back had only been turned for a second - how could they all have gone so quickly? Why would they have left me? Was there some immediate danger I wasn't seeing?

That last thought didn't help with my panic. I froze and tried to listen to what was happening outside my head. I heard voices. It sounded like Carrington and Vesperzo, but I couldn't see them.

"What the-"

"Not in the presence of a lady!"

"It's not in the presence of a lady, Carrington! She just disappeared!"

"You and I both know that doesn't mean she's gone."

Braydon's voice said in a strangled tone, "Well, if she was here, we would hear her, wouldn't we?"

Their voices were all around me, but I couldn't see a soul. "I'm here!" I said. "I'm right here! Where are you?"

Several masculine yelps rang out. This didn't help with my nerves. I was about ready to run into the Darkwood and hide.

"Madalyn, stay still," Colin's voice said in a more commanding tone than I'd ever heard him use. Footsteps came towards me.

He materialized out of nowhere only a few feet away. I shrieked and jumped back.

He put out his hands in a calming gesture. "It's okay. Don't panic. Deep breaths."

I tried to take deep breaths but interrupted myself. "What's happening? Why can I only see you?"

"You're invisible. We both are. When you're invisible, you can only see others who are invisible. Other people and animals disappear."

I returned to gasping for those elusive "deep breaths."

"You should sit down," he said.

I nodded and walked towards a tree stump.

He caught my arm and guided me away. "Not there. Carrington's sitting there."

"I thought you were hiding your magic from the others," I said.

"They can still hear us," he said sharply. He sat me down on a rock.

"You just turned invisible in front of them. They all know it now," I said. They were also being eerily quiet, which suggested they were listening in. Eavesdropping! Those rogues.

He shrugged. "Yeah. Well. You needed help."

"Very chivalrous of you, but I would have figured it out eventually," I said.

"Before or after you hyperventilated? I could hear you breathing. You sounded like a fish."

Now it was my turn to shrug. "Okay. Maybe it would've taken me longer than I thought." I looked around. Now that I was calmer, I could hear the horses chewing grass and the other men breathing. "How do we turn visible again?"

Colin hesitated. "It's hard to explain. I'll help you this time. Okay?"

"Okay."

He still had hold of my arm. "Relax. Try to think of a time you wanted to be seen."

"I don't have a lot of those," I said in a low voice.

"Me neither," he whispered. "But it's the only way to become visible again."

I did want to be able to see others again, so I closed my eyes and thought back. I had to think back a long time, to when I was about for years old and wanted my dad to pay attention to the special ballerina dance I was doing just for him.

"Why are you humming?" Colin asked.

"That's need-to-know information," I said, "and you don't really need to know."

"Fine. Have you thought of something?"

"Yes."

"So have I. I'm going to try to turn us visible."

"Okay." I focused on my memory of four-year-old me twirling and leaping across the basement where my dad typed away at his laptop. If only he would see me! I hummed slightly louder and ignored Colin's sigh.

Suddenly, my arm tingled where he held it, and he tapped my shoulder. "Open your eyes," he said.

I did. Carrington, Vesperzo, and Braydon were staring at us. Braydon began to slow clap, one eyebrow raised.

I stopped humming. "I think I'm a magic-user," I said.

"So it appears," Vesperzo said. "And Colin as well. Which explains why an Earthling has had so much interest in my books." He narrowed his eyes.

I glanced at Colin, who was staring resolutely at the ground. "Sorry," he said.

Braydon ignored both of them and looked straight at me. "A tip for the future, Madalyn. Don't perform a piece of magic  unless you have some idea of how to undo it." He smiled. I don't think I'd seen him smile before. And I don't think he was laughing at me, either.

A plan started to form in my mind. But until I had more information, in my mind it would stay.