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The new crop of freshmen is mostly pretty ordinary. They're fresh out of middle school, playing with new identities, seeing how the batch from this neighborhood react to the batch fed in from the other side of town. They're bonding or forming petty enmities over music and fashion and flash-in-the-pan romances; they're developing opinions about their teachers and the quality of the cafeteria and how early they have to get up in the morning to catch the bus.
Here, sitting by herself writing in a prettily-bound notebook, is a twelve-year-old. Must have skipped a couple grades.
deepest_magic
deepest_magic
"Good."
Home they all go.
Isabella is of course at school again the following day and may be visited at her table at lunch.
Home they all go.
Isabella is of course at school again the following day and may be visited at her table at lunch.
deepest_magic
Isabella is introverted enough and twenty-seven enough that she wasn't particularly looking for friends in high school, but if they turn up of their own accord she won't refuse them. She shows them the archery range where she keeps in practice - "I used to have a magic bow, which helped a lot, but one of its magic traits was that it taught me what I ought to be doing, so I can still shoot pretty straight. Though the modern equipment took some adjusting and lessons." She shows them pictures from her infinity notebook. "Here's me when I was fourteen, the first time. I'm not really looking forward to doing puberty twice. Although I suppose the sanitary napkin situation here is better." And on the less queenly side of things, she has a mom; her mom is pleased she's made friends and bakes them cookies. She knows a few interesting places in Phoenix to be.
Here they are, sitting at a bus stop waiting to be carried away to a place where they can borrow horses and go on a trail ride, and the bus is just pulling up, and there is a peculiar and displeasing pulling sensation that is not normally associated with buses -
Here they are, sitting at a bus stop waiting to be carried away to a place where they can borrow horses and go on a trail ride, and the bus is just pulling up, and there is a peculiar and displeasing pulling sensation that is not normally associated with buses -
deepest_magic
"Or in no specific direction -"
The pulling goes on, the scenery blurs out, the scenery blurs back in, and they are all three closely surrounded by branches and dimly dappled light and the smell of the sea.
The pulling goes on, the scenery blurs out, the scenery blurs back in, and they are all three closely surrounded by branches and dimly dappled light and the smell of the sea.
against_all_trouble
After a moment of disorientation, Arthur grins and says, "I don't think we're in Phoenix anymore."
deepest_magic
"That was... very, very different from the wardrobe," murmurs Isabella. "And this time I didn't have a chance to pack - I've got my notebook and a water bottle and a sandwich and that's about it. Let's get out of this thicket."
deepest_magic
Once they are all out of the thicket (which takes its toll in pricks and scratches first), they are on a beach. The sea is calm, the weather is warm.
"This could be Narnia," says Isabella, "but then it could be somewhere else altogether - I'll be able to get a good guess when the sun sets and I can see the stars, but we might want to have made progress towards a source of water besides what we have on us before then. I don't immediately see civilization and none of these trees look awake to me. Unless one of you heard or saw or smelled a spring back in the direction of the thicket we probably want to walk along the beach until we find a stream emptying into the sea."
"This could be Narnia," says Isabella, "but then it could be somewhere else altogether - I'll be able to get a good guess when the sun sets and I can see the stars, but we might want to have made progress towards a source of water besides what we have on us before then. I don't immediately see civilization and none of these trees look awake to me. Unless one of you heard or saw or smelled a spring back in the direction of the thicket we probably want to walk along the beach until we find a stream emptying into the sea."
against_all_trouble
"Yeah, good plan... Anything special to look for by the shore? Every Boy Scout outing I did was in the mountains or desert."
deepest_magic
"If you see a boat out on the water, or anything by the shore that looks like people made it, etcetera, let me know. Unless one of you has matches or something on you it's not worth the time it would take to build a fire, and therefore not worth hunting up and carrying around any seafood we run across, but if you see berries or something that look appetizing I might be able to identify them."
against_all_trouble
"Basics, then. OK, let's look for civilization."
As he's about to start walking, though, he notices Suzy. "Hey, Earth to Suze?"
As he's about to start walking, though, he notices Suzy. "Hey, Earth to Suze?"
ladysunday
"What? Oh, yeah, sure. Is the ocean this big on Earth?"
She's ready to go, though. There will be plenty of ocean to walk past.
She's ready to go, though. There will be plenty of ocean to walk past.
deepest_magic
There are occasional seagulls. Isabella says, "Excuse me?" to the first couple, but they don't answer her; eventually she stops.
Their path curves right. They cross a bit of rock that runs out into the water until it comes to a point. There's a sharp turn, and more land is visible off in the distance. "Can you two swim?" asks Bella. "I'm beginning to wonder if we're on an island. We might still find a connecting bit of land, though, soon or at lower tide."
Their path curves right. They cross a bit of rock that runs out into the water until it comes to a point. There's a sharp turn, and more land is visible off in the distance. "Can you two swim?" asks Bella. "I'm beginning to wonder if we're on an island. We might still find a connecting bit of land, though, soon or at lower tide."
deepest_magic
Eventually they climb up some rocks - Isabella with exquisite slowness and care - and find that they are indeed on an island.
"Okay," she says, "I see a stream over there, we should go hydrate and then follow it inland and see if there's anything to see there."
"Okay," she says, "I see a stream over there, we should go hydrate and then follow it inland and see if there's anything to see there."
deepest_magic
Walking, walking, walking.
Eventually, they find: perfectly recognizable apple trees in full fruit.
Rows and rows of them.
And crumbling old stone walls.
Eventually, they find: perfectly recognizable apple trees in full fruit.
Rows and rows of them.
And crumbling old stone walls.
against_all_trouble
Arthur reaches for an apple from a lower branch, then stops. "Are apples too symbolic to be trustworthy?"
deepest_magic
"I ate apples in Narnia. This is an orchard, not a tree marked do not eat, the Emperor says so." Isabella picks one and bites it. "They're ripe."