"This is fan fiction for the Whateley Academy series. It may or may not match the timeline, characters, and continuity, but since it's fan fiction, who cares? To see the canon Whateley Stories, check out Whateley Academy at ( http://www.crystalhall.org )"

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Chapter 2: Alyssa in Wonderland
 
 
I woke up feeling brighter and more energetic than ever before. Mrs. Savage was right, the vines never left the window. The soil was full of creepers, and several vines spilled over the side and crawled over to bask in Sunny's light, but the window was closed. A few vines had however pulled the curtains open, and I decided sleeping nude was not likely to be a good idea. Not that I ever did, but definitely not time to start.

Sunny was a little startled at first, waking up to find vines looming over her, in fact her little screech is what woke me up. But they immediately pulled away from her and back into me, sliding under the leaves all over my body, and she settled down.

"Sorry, Sunny, I didn't mean to scare you. They have a mind of their own, and I guess they liked the light."

"Yeah, it's okay, I just wasn't expecting it. Like an old B-movie, you know? But you're totally *not* a movie monster, so no big. But I gotta get ready, I have English first thing. See you later!" With that she was off to the showers, while I carefully dusted all the loose potting soil back into my bed. It wasn't perfect, but it was a big improvement.

I reached the showers just as Sunny was leaving, and today several of the other girls waved and talked while we cleaned up for class. One of them, Melanie (who's power had something to do with tones and sounds) asked if I was sleeping outside in the dirt, but I just laughed and told her, "Something like that." and she laughed too, so apparently it wasn't mean-spirited.

The morning classes were boring, and even seemed a little easier than usual. At lunch time I sat with Sunny and a bunch of other girls, but only to talk with them. It was actually pretty fun, being included in things, though the girls got pretty graphic, talking about boys. I mean, I've talked with girls at school about guys that were hot before, but this was a whole different level, and they just got raunchier and raunchier after a while. Everybody at the table was blushing, I felt like I definitely was, but it didn't stop them. Thankfully they were pretty quiet about it, and in the noise of the cafeteria, I didn't think anyone else could hear.

When the bell rang, I was pretty sure everyone was a little weirded out about it. All of us were almost panting, even me, and I hadn't been contributing to the discussion! Still, it was naughty and exciting stuff, and I guess it got everybody worked up. At least everybody seemed to cool off when we left the Crystal Hall.

My next class was Powers Theory. It was really interesting, the first day we discussed the broad classifications of powers and abilities. I mean, I already knew I was a mage, but there are so many other classifications, and you can be several at once. I figured I was an exemplar, because my body was conforming to a shape I wasn't born with, and that made me wonder if I could regenerate, or had super strength. Those traits tend to go hand in hand with exemplars. I wasn't ready to go hurting myself to see if I heal up fast or anything, but I did break that sink in the hospital right after I changed...

There were also warpers, who can well, warp things, like energy, matter or space. Psychics, whose powers were based on altering physical force by willpower alone or sensing the thoughts and emotions of others. Energizers, who produce energy of some sort from their bodies. Sunny was a pretty good example of that. We didn't have time to go into detail that first day; there were way too many possibilities and unique cases to talk about. Most of the class seemed really excited to try and classify their own powers, and the teacher had to call order several times.

Then came Principles of Magic. Mrs. Ophelia Tenant, also known as Caduceus, taught the class with a bright cheeriness that seemed to grab everyone's attention and hold it. All the boys nearby seemed especially interested in her, the desks did little to hide the fact that several were shifting around in their seats and setting textbooks in their laps as she talked facing the class, her long blonde hair writing notes on the blackboard in chalk. It was funny, watching them squirm, I couldn't blame them, either; she was a very beautiful woman. I tried to pay attention because this was the subject I wanted to learn most, but the hair kept drawing my attention. It seemed almost to have a life completely its own!

Still, Principles was a really good class for magic, we started out with basic ideas, things Dad taught me years before. Magic is simply forcing your will onto the fabric of reality. Really, anyone can learn some magic, we use it every day, simply by believing in things. But to do it intentionally, noticeably and control it, takes a lot of concentration, practice, and usually a certain amount of talent. Some types of magic are actually part of your being, like faerie magic, only those born with it can use those types. According to Dad, I had something like that, and if my body was any example, it was likely something to do with nature, or faerie.

After Principles of Magic came Martial Arts. Not something I'd ever tried, but it was either that or some survival class that Sunny had told me was the same as declaring yourself a victim. The teacher had us call him Sensei Ito, and he was actually nice, in a pinch-faced kind of way. He had us all show him what we know, and I was one of a small few that didn't know anything. I'd never been in a fight at all, but some of the things some of the other kids could do... There were kids dressed up as ninjas, and others who looked like extras on one of those martial arts movies. Most of them moved really fast, and did things I couldn't even see clearly. There was a bouncy black girl who almost nobody could even touch, and this tiny little girl who had to be twelve at the most, who did moves I know would have thrown me around like nothing. It was kind of depressing, because I was way behind most of the class.

Sensei Ito paired up the more experienced kids and told them to spar, and had another teacher start showing us some basic stances and breathing exercises. I did my best to follow along, and the breathing stuff really was pretty relaxing. The class was almost boring, and it seemed to last forever, by the time it was over the other newbies were mostly sweating and breathing hard, but I didn't feel winded or tired at all. Obviously my plant body had different needs, and I started to wonder, what exactly might help me grow. I mean, I knew the science of how to make plants grow, even if they always seemed to die at my hands. Would I need special plant foods, or soil nutrients? I didn't think I'd need pesticides, unlike most plants I could just brush bugs off of me if they bothered me. But still, it was something to think about, as I stood, feet shoulder-width apart, making punching movements, breathing evenly. Of course, by the time the sensei stopped us, I had several creepers crawling across the floor, thankfully none of them had taken root in the wood of the floor, they might have expected me to fix the damage.

After classes, I started walking back to Whitman cottage. Powers Theory and Principles of Magic had already given me a lot to think about, and I really wanted to get the vines under better control. Sometimes they did what I wanted, so there had to be some trick to controlling them. I was so engrossed in thought, I didn't see the big guy in heavy metal armor, like some kind of medieval knight. It didn't exactly hurt when I bounced off him, but it definitely surprised me.

"What manner of creature art thou?" He said it sort of curiously, not with a mean tone, and offered a gauntlet to me, so I let him help me back up.

"Umm, I'm Alyssa." I wasn't about to try and clarify what I was, on the one hand that should be obvious, but on the other hand I wasn't sure of the details myself. Either way, it seemed rude of him to ask.

"Ah, I see." He said it in a voice which plainly told me he did *not* see, but continued. "I am called Ironstar. I apologize for my rudeness just now, I did not mean to be so insensitive. You simply caught me by surprise."

"Don't worry about it. I have to... um, go. Bye!" Okay, so I wasn't exactly a social butterfly. But he was tall, and strong, and had those chiseled features, and I kind of felt like I should be bowing or kissing his ring or something. It was embarrassing and I guess I bolted.

I wasn't really paying much attention where I was going though, just trying to get away before I embarrassed myself any more, and I almost ran into someone else. I think I mumbled something like, "Excuse me" to the tall elf-looking girl, and kept moving. I was almost starting to get used to the fact that a large number of kids around here looked like supermodels, but that girl with the elf ears made even them look plain and boring.

That's when I realized I'd gone completely the wrong way, and was near Poe Cottage. I didn't know much about the other dorms, but I was pretty sure Poe was coed, and I didn't really want to run into any more Adonis types right then. Or supermodel elf-girls, really. So I ducked off the path and into the bushes, then just started walking. My homework would wait, I needed to get away from people for a while, and I could see the trees, looming in front of me just like the ones back home.

The trees seemed almost to part, like they were letting me in, and close up behind me, but the forest back home felt a lot like that too, so I barely noticed. It was wonderful, the smells of the forest, so similar, yet colder, crisper. I could feel it all around me, welcoming me, urging me to explore. I felt none of the confusion other people stirred in me. At least the forest was simple, yet so very alive.

There were flowers, vines, ferns and all sorts of plant life around the bases of the monstrous ancient trees, almost like a carpet, a path laid out to welcome a celebrity. It felt intoxicating, and I think I kind of lost myself for a while. Suddenly I was standing in in front of an especially ancient tree, so huge I felt like an ant in its presence.

I felt a sense of welcome, like finding home again, much more intense than anything before. Almost as if the tree, or the forest itself (it seemed wrong somehow to think of the ideas as separate) were inviting me to stay.

"Are you... talking to me?" It seemed a silly thing to say, but no one was around, so I didn't care. Several branches swayed in the wind, almost as if nodding.

"Did you lead me here? What is this place?" Suddenly I felt overwhelmed by a staggering sense of age, a feeling like watching the first generations of humankind swing in my branches only recently. Then I felt a really nice sensation of welcome, like I was already part of the forest, or the tree, or both.

"You want me to stay here? Well, I'll be going to Whateley nearby, I'd love to come out here every day... I love the feel o..." I trailed off because the feeling slowly changed as I spoke. It was getting more intense, almost suffocating now. I felt like I was drowning in the forest's mind, it was crushing me under the weight of its age. It wanted to keep me forever!

I tried to run, stumbling back the direction I'd come in, but the soft wide path was gone, choked by underbrush so thick I couldn't even see between the leaves. It was like a brick wall!

"I... can't! You can't... keep me here!" It was a struggle to think, to speak with that huge consciousness crushing me. I felt like I was going to black out, but I knew if I did, I'd never wake up, I'd just be another part of the forest, a new vine growing amongst its collective life. I *had* to fight!

Then I felt a weird sort of slithering like my skin was crawling but a hundred times more creepy, and suddenly I could see that huge tree, looming, from every side, like I was all around it. It pushed at me and I squeezed around it. I can't describe the feeling, but thorns grew from me, and they felt like tiny bits of rage, writhing and twisting, digging into the bark of the tree, peeling it back to expose the wood flesh underneath.

The forest crushed down harder, tinged with anger and confusion, and I just squeezed harder, squeezing like I was holding onto the last tuft of grass on the edge of a cliff. My thorns dug further in, twisting and burrowing like tiny drills. It seemed nonsensical, but I was sure those tiny little thorns were actually doing damage!

That crushing weight lifted suddenly, replaced by wariness edged with respect, and as it lifted I stopped squeezing. The thorns seemed to pull back though I could feel them, still wriggling, almost grasping. But now I was pissed off. It was bad enough my entire life being fucked up by turning into a plant, but no way was I going to let some forest try to suck me in forever. It was a violation, and I wanted to make damn sure it wasn't gonna happen again.

"You can't have me! You think you're tough, but I'm fucking kudzu and I'll choke this whole damn forest to death if you try that shit!" The big tree seemed to loom over me, and the path back was still blocked, but the crushing feeling did not return and that sense of respect didn't go away. I noticed at that point I was actually in the air, held up by an explosion of my vines, still wrapped around trees and brush, ready to squeeze again.

The forest was resolute; it wanted something from me, but was asking instead of trying to take this time, though that sense of confusion still lingered. I wasn't sure, but I could kind of guess it didn't understand why I wouldn't want to be part of it forever. But I was way too mad to care about the feelings of the tree-slash-forest. I was just about to ask what the hell it wanted from me, when the image seemed to grow in my mind, a clearing full of my vines, and me walking out of the forest easily.

"I don't know how to give you my vines, and even if I did, you haven't earned *my* respect yet. What do *I* get in return?" Indignation grew all around me, but I just tightened my grip, not squeezing but reminding that I could, and I was pretty sure it was ready to compromise, but I had no idea what it could give me in return. I mean, it was a forest!

Then the welcoming feeling came back, not crushing, but comfortable, like home. A pleasant feeling like thinking about Dad, or maybe a friend, but bigger, filled me. It was offering me a place to call home, and its companionship. First it tried to eat me, now it wanted me to be its friend? Then a thought occurred to me.

"Magic. Can you help me learn to control my vines and unblock my magic? No tricks, no trying to force me into anything, just you help me, and I'll try to give you what you want. Deal?" For several moments nothing happened. Just when I was about to talk again, just to break the stillness, I felt a sort of grudging acceptance. Somehow I was sure it would hold to this deal, that it would help me learn. I cautiously let my vines relax their grip some. I still didn't know why they'd do what I wanted one minute and the opposite a moment later, but for now I was glad they were working with me.

"Now... How do I give you what you want?"

The forest showed me an image, much clearer at this point than a few minutes before, of me walking along a path, once again clear and welcoming, a short distance to a clearing, then, a vine snaking out from under my skin (it's funny, that was the first time I saw that from a perspective other than my own, and it was *creepy*) and taking root in the ground. Then the me in the image reached out and broke off where the vine met my foot. It looked like it would probably hurt a lot.

"Is it going to hurt?" This time there was no image, just the feeling of an old branch, strong with live wood, bending against its natural growth, straightening agonizingly, then breaking off. The feeling hurt, and it *hurt*. Like the pain of losing something truly treasured, like giving up a piece of what makes you, you. The forest was being very clear about what it wanted from me, and apparently it was a lot. And it obviously had no intention of letting me leave without giving it, even if it meant a fight. I may have acted tough before, but I was pretty sure then that the forest was holding back, and I could be crushed in a moment if it really wanted.

The vines gripping the trees and digging into everything around me began to retreat, and I lowered to the ground slowly, as a path grew through the previously impassable forest. My clothes looked like they'd been through a wood chipper, but I tried to pull things together into something resembling modesty, grabbed my backpack off the ground where I'd dropped it, and started along the path.

Shortly I reached the clearing, exactly as the mental image had shown it. I kind of felt invincible at that point, after all, I'd passed the test of an ancient enchanted forest and survived. I was pretty sure I was some kind of serious badass. So, it was kind of disappointing when I tried to will the vine to grow out of me and root in the ground of the open space, and absolutely nothing happened. I felt a little push from the forest around me, guiding my concentration, and then I felt myself pushing, making that small piece of myself extend, feel, feed. Slowly, a vine crept from my right ankle, quested around, and rooted in several places in the clearing, still growing.

Was I sure of this? No. But it was this, or die in this place, and take as much as I could with me. Gritting my teeth, I carefully gripped the vine where it grew from my leafy skin, and broke it off.

It *hurt*.

I felt old, tired, the kind of feeling I imagined it might be like to watch my own children's funerals, the soul-crushing emptiness of total aloneness. There was a hole in my heart, my soul, and I was simply going to leak out of it. Then the forest around me poured in, filling my soul with warm sunshine, life-giving water, and the richness of the earth. A branch dropped a single, way-too-large acorn into my hand, and suddenly it was over.

I picked myself up off the ground where I'd fallen in the agony of that moment with sticky, sappy tears dripping from the leafy skin of my cheeks, and knelt resting against a nearby tree. I don't know how long I knelt there and cried, but by the time I really became aware of things again, the sky filtering through the sparse covering of the clearing was black, with tiny pinpricks of stars here and there between the leaves. I was angry, but it was a hollow sort of anger.

"You... Why didn't you tell me... What did you make me do?" I raged at the trees, and very nearly tried to choke the vegetation into submission, but I just couldn't. It felt like a part of me now. An alien, unfamiliar part, but a part that filled a hole, without which I might just die. I pulled myself up against the tree, and turned away from where a small garden of me was now growing.

The trees parted for me once again, for which I was grateful; I had no idea how to get back to Whateley and if it was already dark, I was probably in trouble that would get worse the longer I stayed out. It seemed like only minutes before I reached the edge of the trees, only a few hundred feet away from Melville Cottage. As I left the trees, I felt a sort of wistfulness coupled with that welcoming feeling, apparently I was welcome to return and visit any time now. I could almost swear I hear the wind whispering in the trees, "Come back soon, daughter..."

Fat chance of that.

Though, judging by the looks of the faces of the thee men with Whateley Security badges and the Native American man who stood waiting at the edge of the forest, I might be a bit less welcome back at Whateley. I was ashamed, I had been warned to stay away from the forest. I was in trouble, and it looked like bad trouble.

"Miss VanBuren, please come with us."
 

*          *          *
 
"So, tell me again why you went into the forest, even after you were warned at orientation that the woods were off limits." The security man seemed to want me to repeat my story several times. I read about this, the more he made me repeat it, the more likely I would slip up if I was lying. So I told the truth. Most of it anyway. I got the feeling Doctor Lodgeman, the Native American teacher, knew more than I was saying, but he didn't say anything.

"Well, okay, I sort of freaked out because I was embarrassed, because I ran into that Ironstar guy, and then I almost ran into some elf girl and she looked surprised and kinda mad, and I just kinda ran for it. I wasn't really thinking, and I used to walk in the forests at home all the time. So I kinda ended up in the trees, and there was this path, so I followed it. Then this huge ancient tree tried to crush my mind like a psychic or something, but I fought back, and it was like it respected that, and it stopped. Turns out all it wanted was a leaf cutting. Please don't kick me out, I know I screwed up, but I'm really sorry..."

"Young lady, I just want you to understand the danger you put yourself into. You would not be the first student to enter those trees and never come out. There are nastier things than trees in there, and if that's all you ran into consider yourself lucky."

"Don't worry. I'm never going back into that place again." Chief Delarose glowered in a way that told me he was sure I was lying, and he didn't like it.

"Well, you're on probation as of now, and you will be watched carefully." I felt my heart jump at the pronouncement, the last thing I wanted was to get in trouble an maybe even get kicked out! Mister Lodgeman stared at me for a moment, then nodded.

"There will be no need for that, Chief Delarose. She entered The Grove and spoke to it, and came back." His stony face never changed through the speech, but I thought maybe he sounded like he respected me; or maybe it was The Grove he respected, the way he said it sounded like it deserved capital letters.

"Alright, Doctor Lodgeman, but I want a full examination of Miss VanBuren, to make sure she is unharmed, and to classify her abilities and establish a baseline so we can watch her for changes."

"Of course. But I think it is safe enough that we can let the girl get some sleep, and attend classes tomorrow."

I almost jumped up and kissed the man, I was so tired I felt like I could die. I barely remember the walk back to Whitman, and I was asleep before I could even settle into the soft soil.
 

*          *          *
 
I woke up the next morning with the sun shining down on my face, warming me and filling me with energy again. Its twin on the opposite side of the room, was busily gently untangling herself from creeper vines, but they withdrew the moment I thought of it.

"I'm sorry... I really will get them under control." I noticed with a glance at Sunny's mirror, I *could* in fact blush, I just turned a somewhat darker shade of green.

"It's okay, it wasn't such a surprise today. I guess they like the light I give off. Besides, they really do smell great, it's nice to wake up to that." I figured she was right about the light thing, even sleeping she glowed pleasantly. I brushed the worst of the dirt off me again, trying to remember to clean it up after class, and headed for the showers again. Today there weren't very many girls in the showers, so I ignored the odd look here and there and cleaned up.

Classes passed by quickly, I guess because the teachers were keeping things interesting, and keeping me busy. It was surprisingly easier to concentrate, after the night before I'd imagined it would be hard to focus at all. That helped a lot, especially when it came time for Martial Arts.

Sensei Ito noticed right away that I was getting motions and stances right easily, and moved me into the next section of class, with kids who'd been practicing for a year or more. By the time class was over, my arms burned like fire, but maybe even scarier than how hard he was pushing me was how fast I was picking it up. I mean, martial arts can take people years, even whole lifetimes to really learn. But I was in a groove, and I barely had to think about what I wanted to do, only to find myself doing it.

Before I'd even reached the showers my body stopped hurting again, and I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the kids who didn't recover so fast. I was starting to think maybe I was a regenerator. It would make sense, vines grow really fast, so maybe I would heal really fast too. Not that I had any interest in hurting myself to find out. But according to our powers theory class, another sign of regeneration was fast recovery after exercise. The day before I hadn't even gotten winded, and today I'd shrugged off some really heavy work like it was nothing!

After classes, a big guy with a security badge met me outside the gym.

"Alyssa VanBuren, right? I'm supposed to show you to the medical wing for some testing." I'd completely forgotten they wanted to poke and prod at me... Oh well, obviously they weren't going to forget, so it'd be better to just get it over with.

"Oh, yeah, sure thing." He led me to the big medical building, stopping to explain at the front desk, and then led me to a room that looked more like a weightlifting gym than any hospital room. He told me to wait for the doctor, then left me alone in the room. I sat on a bench and waited. It's so annoying the way doctors always make you wait before they show up.

"Ah, Miss VanBuren. I'm Doctor Bellows, I'll be doing the physical portion of your testing today. Professors Caduceus and Lodgeman will be joining us shortly to conduct your magic testing. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to begin." The testing was strange. Some of it was obvious enough, they had me run on a treadmill like forever, and lift a bunch of different weights and stuff, when the weights got really heavy, some vines creeped out and dug into the floor tiles to steady me. The weird part is, every time I thought I couldn't lift any more weight, they added more and I lifted it!

Then Professor Caduceus and Doctor Lodgeman showed up. They'd clearly been talking about me, because the moment they showed up, they stopped talking in spite of the fact that they'd obviously been in the middle of some discussion.

"Okay, what's going on? I mean, I know that I messed up last night, but I'm okay, and I promise I didn't hurt anything out there..." Doctor Lodgeman shook his head, still giving that same stony look.

"Why don't you tell us what really happened in the forest last night? Had you even noticed your new bit of jewelry?" I glanced at my left wrist where he gestured, and there was a simple wooden bracelet! I'd gone through an entire day without noticing it at all! On close inspection, I found it had roots in my arm, it wasn't going anywhere, and I didn't want to pull on it anyway. It felt like it belonged there.

"It's faerie magic, that much I know for sure. The bracelet is a living part of a tree, sapwood, from a very old tree for sure. I think it may be living ironwood. May I see your wrist, dear? I want to examine it." I knew I could trust Professor Tenant, she seemed very natural and kind of motherly, so I didn't resist when her hair reached out and gently pulled my arm closer for her to inspect. Doctor Lodgeman was a little harder to trust, with that expressionless face.

"Yes, definitely ironwood. There is no solid enchantment on it, just a binding connection with you, Alyssa. I can feel it pulsing in time with your heartbeat. The Grove must have given you this, but why? Normally it doesn't just gift people with things, even those it does allow entrance. I'm a little surprised it allowed you, even if you are a creature of nature."

"I don't know why really. I just ran into the woods, and I was there... I really didn't mean to. It's just, I always felt most at home in he forests around my house growing up. And the forest welcomed me, it was even more like going home than going home, you know?" I felt like I was trying to explain that water is wet.

"Yes, The Grove most assuredly welcomed you into its sacred home. Then what happened?" I didn't really want to tell anyone, but for some reason I couldn't resist answering, and it all came pouring out of me like a broken dam.

"The forest... It tried to take me, to turn me into part of itself, but I fought back. My vines were choking the life out of some of the trees around me, thorns digging through bark, roots sucking out life and sap... I could have done some damage to the forest, I think, but it would have swallowed me too. Then I made a deal with it. It wanted part of me so I asked it to help me in return. It was the only way to get away! And it hurt so much, I never thought it would hurt so much..." I'm not sure at what point in that whole rant I fell off the bench, but it seemed like hours later I came back to my senses to find I was crying all over Professor Tenant, getting nasty green sap all over her dress. She didn't seem to mind though, and I was too drained to care.

"It's okay, Alyssa. You did the best you could. Do you want to hear what I think happened?" I didn't trust myself to answer coherently, so I just nodded.

"You must have been drawn to The Grove, probably from the moment you left Whateley campus grounds. Maybe even before. Once there, it tested you in its own way, and asked you to give up... a part of your essence, your soul. It's a terrible thing to go through, losing part of one's soul, and I think if not for that bracelet you would have died. It's not something you just get over, it will take years for you to really understand, but you have survived, and you will recover in time. That bracelet seems to have a portion of the essence of The Grove. I don't pretend to understand all of it, but I think you must not damage that bracelet, it may be that for a time you cannot survive without it. I don't think The Grove would have killed you, you don't seem the type that would try to force your way in or damage the land, but it apparently wanted a strong connection to you."

I'd kind of figured something like that, but hearing it actually put into words somehow made it seem more final, more permanent. Thankfully, Doctor Lodgeman changed the subject.

"So, you managed to fight The Grove to a stalemate. That's quite a feat. You mentioned vines and thorns. Can you show me them?"

I nodded, and concentrated, but nothing happened. Then I remembered how it felt the night before: the questing, probing, feeding feeling, and held on to it, directing it. A creeper slipped out of my ankle beneath the long crinkled tie-dye skirt I had on and across the floor, then lifted up to poke at Doctor Lodgeman's foot. He didn't seem at all concerned, until it twined around his ankle. I could feel it wanting to put out roots, but I didn't think Doctor Lodgeman would like that, so I made it keep to itself, and it slowly pulled away. It was almost like a conversation, the way I had with the tree, but not really the same, the vine was part of me after all. It just seemed to have its own instincts, that I had to control and direct.

"That was... interesting. And the thorns?"

"I... I don't know. They only came out when I was sure I was going to die. They felt weird too, like they wanted to dig in, they felt hungry and angry, but that's not really the right words. I'm not sure, but I think that impressed the forest as much as my vines choking it out."

I trailed off, because Doctor Lodgeman had turned a little pale. It was almost unnoticeable, except he never seemed to change expression, so even a little color change was a pretty big deal. But he didn't say anything, and just nodded. I started to think I'd just imagined the whole thing.

"Very well, but be very careful, that sounds like a dangerous weapon. I don't have to tell you what kind of trouble you could get in for hurting other students, right? Now, moving along, if you'll please follow me, I'll show you to the testing area for magic. We can test for a variety of magic styles, but the nature of magic is such that it can be hard to truly define." Caduceus directed me across the hall and a few doors down, to a room with a circle on the floor, inscribed with a series of runic markings around the inside edge. It looked almost exactly like I imagined a demon summoning circle might, the kind you see in creepy occult movies when some idiot calls up evil things and invariably gets screwed in the deal.

"If you'll kindly step into the protective circle, we can begin the test. Don't worry, it's perfectly safe, it exists only to protect the rest of the building from any magical forces you might bring about. Of course, it's almost never necessary, but better safe than sorry. Now, the various runes inscribed are detection runes of different sorts. They will glow when magic is used inside the circle, which also serves to keep them from reacting to ambient magic from nearby sources."

As Caduceus explained, I cautiously stepped into the circle. It tingled in a sort of creepy way as I stepped over the lines, but nothing else seemed to happen, so I just tried to trust her.

"Alright, now stand in the center please, and we'll try some basic methods used to touch your inner magic."

She ran me through several of the exercises she'd covered in class already, as well as a few I'd read ahead on in my textbook, but none of them seemed to do anything. Most of them didn't make much sense anyway, but I guess that's kind of the point. It *is* magic after all. The closest I came was when I was told to imagine myself a flower, opening up to the rays of the sun, drawing energy from light above and earth below, feeling that energy flowing through me... That made my flowers brighten and bloom, and my vines creep out near my feet and try to put roots into the floor. At the same time, a rune that Caduceus later told me signified natural magics flickered a bit.

"I don't understand. You are a creature of magic, it only makes sense that you'd be able to *use* that magic. Have you noticed any odd happenings around you, that might have been manifestations of your magical ability? Maybe it's something we don't know how to test for."

"Not really. I always kind of felt like I was blocked, you know? I don't know how or why, it's just one of those things about me, like how plants always die when I try to make them grow. I dunno, though, maybe I just don't have any magical ability."

"It's hard to be sure, but I'd be very surprised to find out that was true. You obviously have some natural magic involved with your body, at the very least, and I'm fairly certain you can learn to control your ability and utilize that inherent magical energy. We'll just have to find out what's blocking you and help you overcome it."

"I guess so. It's just, everybody seems to think I have all this magical power, but I can't seem to do anything with it. Which amounts to the same thing as not having any anyway."

"Okay, we have a few more tests to run, also, I believe I can identify the species of faerie plant that you seem to be made up of. I want to look it up first to be sure, and in the meantime, Doctor Bellows will accompany you to the next testing area." Doctor Bellows appeared as if on cue, and led the way back towards the first room, but instead to a room mostly taken up by a large machine with a door in it.

"Alright, Miss VanBuren, this next test will be quick and easy, just step inside and this machine will scan your physical makeup. Don't worry about privacy, these are part of your medical records and will never be publicly available."

I guess most students might be worried about intimate measurements and the like being traded around campus, but I wasn't too concerned. The test was fairly quick, I just stood there while the machine scanned me like on some science fiction movie. When it was over, Caduceus had returned with a book.

"Alyssa, I've found it. Now, I want you to look at this and tell me if it looks familiar." She showed me a page in a book that she'd obviously just pulled from a shelf and tried to dust off, the pages were crackly and yellowish and had old dust clinging to the top of them.

"Hey, it's the creeper vine that turned me into this! Seal-air an Croy? What kind of name is that?"

"It's Sealaire an Chroá­, it translates something like heart-hunter. Your leaves and blooms match the description perfectly, as does what you've said about the thorns you described. It was a very dangerous plant, and very rare, even in the realm of the fae. It has been mostly destroyed, because of the danger it presents. The plant lures unsuspecting creatures to it with pheromones tailored to each creature, then its thorns burrow into the flesh to reach the heart, killing its victims. You were very lucky to have survived meeting such a plant in the wild. In any case, you should be careful, the thorns of this plant are dangerous even to high level regenerators. If you inherited that particular trait with the plant, you could easily end up on the Ultraviolent list." She said all of this with a very matter-of-fact air, but I felt my heart pounding. I could kill someone without even meaning to? By all rights, that plant should have killed me when I first found it? It was terrifying!

"I believe she has already manifested that trait, it is part of what served her in The Grove. Thankfully, there's been no sign of the thorns since. I am going to recommend that security keep an eye out just in case, I understand it can be difficult to learn to control your abilities when they first manifest, and it's best to be safe rather than sorry." Doctor Lodgeman nodded thoughtfully as he sealed my fate.

"Also, I believe you inherited the pheromone trait. Have you noticed other students being drawn to you, or commenting on the... bouquet of your hair?"

"Well, yeah, I guess I have been a little more popular than I expected. I mean, people kind of stare at me, but I thought that was just because I'm green, you know? And Sunny told me I smell really good. So, people will like me more, that's definitely a good thing."

"I'd consider it a mixed blessing, but hopefully it won't cause too many problems. Doctor Bellows, have you found anything of note in the physical examination that should be included in her powers report?"

"Let's see... Her strength maxed out the machines, but with the qualifier that beyond three hundred pounds she began growing vines to help lift. She ran twenty three point two miles in an hour with no sign of exhaustion or stress, and her fastest speed was twenty eight miles per hour. My classification is a tentative Exemplar four, maybe even five with qualifiers, and Regen three I think. I'm not sure how to classify her vine growth, so I'm going to assign her Shifter one because of it." I was surprised, Exemplar four meant I was a lot stronger than I realized.

"Based on my testing of her magical abilities, I would set her at a Wizard one, but I think once she breaks past her block she'll be stronger. Alyssa, you'll want to work on that, it will take time and effort, I'll see if I can't find you a tutor as well." I remembered what I asked of the forest, and thought I should let her know.

"I kind of asked The Grove to help teach me to use my magic and control my abilities. It seemed like it agreed to that."

"Very well then, Alyssa, but you need to let security and myself know beforehand any time you venture into The Grove. It can be a dangerous place, just as any natural force."

"Alright, well, I think we're finished here." Doctor Bellows had already turned and walked halfway to the door as he said this, apparently he had other students to poke and prod today.

"Alyssa, would you mind following me again? Next I'd like to examine your bracelet more thoroughly." Caduceus led me to yet another room, with a few desks and various obscure and arcane-looking things scattered across them. Doctor Lodgeman followed as well, and moved several sticks that could be magic wands and a few books aside with apparent caution. Once the desk was cleared, he had me lay my arm on the table. I sat next to Caduceus as she inspected the bracelet.

"First off, I'm sure it is made of the sapwood of an ancient ironwood tree. It clearly has a very strong bond with you, that much we already know. Now, according to what you told us, my best guess is that the tree that gave this to you, bound it to you as a way to stem the damage when you left a portion of your essence, your soul if you will, to provide life to the vine cutting you severed. Without the bracelet you would likely have died before you could recover. As it stands, you will likely need it for several years before it could even be safely separated from you, if it ever can at all. Life essence is both a fragile and resilient. Up to a certain point, you can recover from nearly anything. Past that point, which is different for each individual, and at any given point in that person's life, the damage can result in a horrible spiral into emptiness and death. One example of this being someone who has lost a loved one and simply stops caring about living, the broken heart syndrome." As she explained, Caduceus ran her hands over the bracelet, and I could kind of feel it. Not physically, but somehow I was sure if I turned my back, I would still know exactly what spot on the bracelet she was probing.

"So, my understanding is that the tree gave of its own essence, a small portion of its own life, but sufficient to make up for the damage caused to your own. It clearly has a life of its own, yet intertwined with yours. You should take care of it for sure. Also, I think it should act like a focus. If you have read ahead in your book, you'll find that a focus works similarly to a lens, instead of focusing light it focuses magical energy, and may help you to concentrate in general. With a strong focus, a practitioner can do much stronger magic than she could otherwise, without becoming as exhausted. I would normally suggest you learn on your own before relying on a focus, but in this case I don't believe that's an option. Are you following all of this? I know it's a lot to take in."

I nodded, "Yeah, my dad told me a lot about this stuff growing up. He makes all sorts of magical things, and I think he made a focus once, but it took him a long time. We had a lot of little magical things around the house, but they never seemed to last long. Magical contamination or something."

"That could be. Very well, I can find nothing malicious about this bracelet, it actually seems to be surprisingly simple, if very strong. Doctor Lodgeman, do you have any other concerns?"

"No, Caduceus, if you say it's safe, then it most likely is. But, Alyssa, be careful nonetheless. Things of The Grove surprise us more often than not."

"I will, Doctor Lodgeman."
 

*          *          *
 
As class passed by the next day, I paid more attention to the people around me. The ones near me all seemed to be fidgeting and blushing, and I was pretty sure that had something to do with those pheromones they told me about during testing. I hoped I wasn't causing too much of a distraction, it hardly seemed fair since I was finding it a lot easier to concentrate than usual myself.

I tried not to worry about it, but now that I was paying attention, it was hard to miss the way people around me kept looking at me, when they thought I wasn't watching. I could feel myself blushing a bit at the attention, so I tried to ignore it and work.

Speaking of working, when martial arts class came around, the instructors once again pushed my group hard enough to make me ache, but it was amazing! I wasn't on a level with the best, but I was already starting to catch up to some of the better fighters.

On the way out of class, the girl I nearly ran into outside of Poe confronted me. She had an angry look, like someone stuck something nasty in her tea, but somehow it just made her look even more beautiful, like a wrathful goddess or something.

"It was you, wasn't it? I saw you take off toward the Grove Wednesday. Were you the one that caused that damage? I felt its pain all the way in my room." With that burning glare on me, I could barely make myself talk.

"Well, y... yeah, but I-" She cut me off with a wave of her slender hand.

"You took something from the Grove. Give it to me. No one will attack that place or steal from it while I live." I tried not to move, but the moment she mentioned taking it, I couldn't help trying to hide the bracelet behind my back. It was terrifying in a way I never expected, if she took it away from me somehow, I would *die*.

"That's it, isn't it? Give me-" suddenly a shadow stretched over my shoulder, cutting her off in midsentence. Another shadow appeared over my other shoulder before I could even look, it was sort of creepy. Not that I wasn't thankful for the save.

"Is this girl bullying you?" I glanced over at the guy who asked, he looked like the kind of supermodel you see in underwear ads, except with clothes on. I turned and on the other side of me was a short, skinny girl, she was pretty but she looked like a stiff breeze might break her.

"You must be Fey. I heard you and your friends were picking on the Alphas last year. We're not gonna stand for that this year, and if you're picking on this girl now, then we're gonna stop it right now." For such a small girl, she sure sounded serious.

"I'm not picking on anybody, and you freshmen aren't going to scare me off. If you Alphas would have left us alone last year would have been a lot easier on everybody. And you, Sealaire an Chroi, I'm watching you." She turned and walked away, every inch the nature goddess. She really thought I attacked the Grove, that I stole from it!

"Don't worry, we're serious about stopping people trashing the Alphas this year. Last year those Kimba girls attacked them at every opportunity. If you want, we can keep an eye out in case she bothers you again. Bullies like her won't pick a fight when there's a group of people." I nodded, the terror settling down a bit now that the threat of death was gone.

"So... Are you two Alphas? I haven't really met a lot of people yet, classes and settling in have kept me pretty busy." I felt at the bracelet behind my back, almost like I needed to reassure myself it was still there, even though obviously it was.

"We're not technically Alphas yet, but it's just a matter of initiation really."

"That's pretty cool, my dad was one of the Alphas about 15 years ago, I think. He said they really helped him become the man he is now. Seems like a pretty nice crowd."

"Wait, who is your father? I bet they'd welcome you, as the daughter of an alumnus." The petite girl had a forceful air, the kind of thing you'd expect from a princess or president or something. Not exactly stuck up, but just sort of like she really did deserve only the best.

"Reginald VanBuren. He does restoration work on broken things, especially heirlooms, antiques and magic things."

"How about we let some of our friends know about you, maybe you can get in too. You could be an Alpha, just like your father." The buff guy offered. Then I realized I didn't have the slightest idea who they were.

"I'm sorry, I didn't even ask your names. I'm Alyssa VanBuren, thank you for your help just now."

"It's alright. I'm Eric and this is Sarah Masterson. We're twins. It's very nice to meet you."

"Yes, I'm glad we saw what was going on and came to help."

As the twins walked off, I thought about it. Did I want to join the Alphas? I figured it would make Dad proud, but the Alphas were supposed to be the elite of the elite. Would I even qualify? I couldn't control my vines, my magic seemed to be blocked or nonexistent or something, and I wasn't really even human anymore!

Still, it couldn't hurt to try and find out. Maybe being as good as they had to be, someone could help me learn to control things, and break past my block. That thought led my mind back to the Grove. It was supposed to be helping me learn too, but all it had really helped me do was control my vines long enough to break off a chunk of my soul or something. How far could I trust some trees that wanted part of my soul? Still, it gave me a part of itself in return, that seemed to mean something, though I wasn't entirely sure what.

And that Fey, she was so mad at me, she didn't want to listen at all. And she called me Sealaire an Chroi, the old name for the vine that turned me into plant-girl. She obviously knew about the faerie realm, and probably didn't like me because of the plant I was. Hardly fair of her, I thought.

I was still mulling it over when I realized instead of walking back to my dorm room, I'd managed to get turned around completely and was standing in front of the trees at the edge of the Grove. The path in was soft and inviting with ferns and flowering plants, but I stood there for several moments, unmoving. Did I want to go back? Was it going to test me again, or require something else from me?

I realized I wasn't going to find out standing where I was. If it was going to get me, I'd put up a fight, but it had promised to help me, and I had to take the chance. I managed to take a whole step before a voice called out.

"Miss VanBuren! Before you go traipsing off into restricted areas again, you should return to your room and call Security."

Doctor Lodgeman had appeared out of nowhere and had a firm grip on my arm. It was startling, and with that distraction I decided maybe I shouldn't visit the grove just yet. It was only just the day before it traded bits with me, but the ancient forest drew at me like a magnet. Doctor Lodgeman was right, I should call security any time I wanted to go into the Grove, not just to let them know where I would be, but also to give myself time to be sure I really wanted to go.

"Yes, Doctor Lodgeman. Thank you."

The older man smiled at me, and left again without saying another word. I walked back to my dorm, my mind thick with concern. Would it always draw me like that, insidious and seductive? It struck me that much like all of nature, it was both wonderful and dangerous, brimming with life and conflict.

---

 
To Be Continued...