I sat there looking out the window as the drops of water streamed down the glass from the morning shower that passed by. My mind raced with many things weighing on it. I had spent the past few days dwelling on past events. As a child, just turned twelve, my life took a turn down a path I am uncertain about understanding. I cannot say if it was for the better or if it was for the worse. To this day I still cannot make sense of it and part of me has stopped trying to...the other half is constantly searching for answers.

Why did I fail the entrance exams that day? It should have been easy enough for someone from my background to pass. My family is famous for being powerful, so my magical aptitude should have been outstanding. I could perform all the fourth-level spells from my mother's old spell books before I turned seven. My family's history of graduating with honors determined my school.

For thousands of years, Henworth Academy, the school not of my choice, has been renowned for producing top-level wizards and witches. Even if a good portion of those who graduated turned evil, the academy's reputation grew with each year that passed. Because if you wanted to be successful in our line of work, you had to have the best education. I would, of course, have taken over the family business. Assassins pay good money to make their elixirs and poisons for them. Mother once told me some would ask for enchanted weapons. She was teaching me how to enchant items. I hated having to learn such dark magic. Why they even still allowed such practices puzzled me.

After disappointing my family, I remember running off in tears. Why did I take that shortcut that evening after the exams? I don't recall using the path before, but I felt drawn to it. Something kept telling me to keep walking until I found it. I didn't even know what I was searching for. There was a brief second I thought to ignore the voice and go back to the main road, but it only lasted a second. Now that I had time to think back on it, maybe I should have listened to that second of doubt. Then maybe I could be back home with the people I cared for the most.

I turned my head and faced the only person I could call 'friend' since that day. It had been eight years since we first met. Who he was exactly, I don't know, but he was the only person who came to see me and the only person I had left that I could trust at the moment. A man as tall as the young saplings outside my window, he sat there strumming through pages of a book, under his lamp, in the chair he claimed as his own so many years ago. I at first thought him to be some species of elf. With his height, he could pass for a wood elf, but other than that, he shared no other characteristics.

He was kind, but harsh. His mannerism reminded me of someone who was possibly void of emotions. It was defiantly hard to read him. Maybe he was more than harsh, but I could tell he cared for my well-being, even if his manner of speaking to me was cold. Soft silver hair draped his shoulders and fell down his back like a portion of silk being measured out for a dress. His eyes were a clear light blue. They sometimes reminded me of marbles or precious gems. The way the light bounced off of them was mesmerizing. His skin was pale, almost gray and there were times I thought it held a shimmer or glow like diamonds, but I always convinced myself it could have been a bit of make-up, as the smoothness of his skin was just so perfect it would only seem plausible to achieve such perfection with the help of cosmetics. Although, when I thought about that theory further, he didn't seem like the type who would wear any. How else could I explain away such a beautiful complexion?

The aura of an elder brother shrouded him, and maybe that was the reason I felt at ease around him. Though, there were moments when I felt he was distant on purpose with me, even after so much time had passed. We've yet to hold a complete conversation. Our chats were brief and he would keep off topics that would reveal anything about himself. It was as if he held secrets he did not wish to share just yet. Like he had drawn a very distinct line between us and there was no way for me to cross over it.

I still recall the night we met. It was dark, and the clouds had just let out a downpour of rain that soaked me before I had even made it to the thickest part of the forest. Tired from running and hiding, I thought the forest would be the safest place for me. Twelve years old and told to die because of a trinket I found on my way home. Or maybe it would be much better to say the trinket found me? I was oblivious to the reason my having it was cause for death, but my village panicked as they hold their superstitions and prophets close. It was silly of me to think I would have been safe once I ran into the forest, but there was a reason no one ever dared to enter unless they formed parties or joined guilds.

Upon entering, I encountered a pack of carnivorous birds. I found out much later they were called craves. Small, blind, black, and almost featherless creatures with the most horrible sounding chirp I have ever heard a bird sing. They hunt in swarms and, despite their blindness, were vicious with their attacks. My magic held them off at first, but as I grew tired of fighting, I realized I would die and fell to the ground. Covered in mud and minor injuries, I just sat there as they regrouped and charged at me, ready to accept my fate. That's when a flash of light and a heavy gust of wind surrounded the area. The birds split in two as wet leaves blew about and struck them one by one. Their dying shrieks still ring in my ears on stormy nights. At first, I thought it was the people of my village come to apologize and take me home, but then I saw him standing not far away from me. He spoke nothing, just stared at me. His eyes held an ominous chill to them, and I found myself frozen and ready to cry. My memory fades after that as I blanked out and woke up in a bed that was big enough for three people. Had I not been born with some status to my name, the sight of the room and decor of the house would have made me dizzy with excitement.

After spending so much time together, we became accustomed to our new way of life. As if the bonds between us were that of a family and not two strangers who just happened upon each other one rainy night. Yet, I understood very well that we barely really knew each other as much as we thought we did. Neither of us knew the other's background; neither of us tried to pry into it either. It was as if we both just wished to start over. We cared enough to help each other forget what haunted us in our dreams. Although I can't lie that I wasn't curious to know more about him.

I guess it's just the nature of humans to let their curiosity get the best of them.