( WP ) Blatant Magic vs . Subtle Magic

At one end of the room, a redhead whispered into another girl ’ s ear. Her expression transformed from worry to fury, green eyes narrowing. Those were the eyes that held more power than anyone else in the room, evident with iridescent streaks of gold. 
 
 At the other end of the room, a man strolled past. Black suit wrinkled as he moved loosely, carelessly. As one could tell, he was a very bold and blatant man. Dark hair rippled against pale skin. He had the look of a guilty man, one who had done wrong but took pride in it. 
 
 Eyes connected across the room with a spark. One set was seething, the other sneering. Time inside the room seemed to dilate. Bodies passed, but the look was not broken. She held on as long as possible, struggling through the urge to look away and give up. But after a while, her strength was drained and she spun around, ignoring the words of the girl beside her and ran up the granite staircase behind her. Back in the room, the man looked to the ceiling, smiling. 
 
 She moved abruptly, entering her room and slamming the door before sinking to the floor. She sat there for a while, legs twisted Indian-style, and fought to contain the fury that tried to escape through tears. 
 
 Once a month for about a year, an innocent person died at the height of the new moon. That seemed to be the only pattern to their deaths, except they were all stabbed in the heart, bodies left mangled at the center of a pentagram drawn in their blood. 
 
 Last night ’ s victim was a girl named Sinna. She was her best friend, though that ’ s a bit of an understatement. They had been together for years. 
 
 Yesterday Sinna went out with that man. She warned her not to. She had never liked him, not even when he tried to profess his love to her. She once found him doodling pentagrams in his notebook, making her suspect he was responsible for those killings. Yes, she was finding any reason to blame him. So Sinna laughed and told her not to worry, that they were just going to study for a class they had together. Nervous, she stayed up and waited for her to come home. Hours flew away and Sinna did not return. She grabbed her coat and went out to look for her, fearing he had taken advantage of her. Sadly she didn ’ t know where his dorm was, and returned back to theirs dejectedly. 
 
 To hear she was dead caused her world to shatter around her. She sat on the floor for a while, just trying to control herself. Unlike many, she knew these were not just rituals of a madman, obsessed with the occult. Killing a person who has the ability to manipulate the universe in such a way will give the killer the ability to manipulate it as well, but not as subtly as a natural born user could. They were gifted with a prerequisite for magic- with careful studies, however, anyone could develop the control required to bend the universe to their will with a spell. This killer was impatient, and by killing did not obtain the delicate knowledge required to cast a spell, just the brute force behind it. By performing this ritual one could cast fireballs and such. It only lasts for a small while, as more of the person ’ s magic ability is required for this crude magic. 
 
 After seething for a bit longer on the floor, she left the room, locking it behind her. Rubbing her eyes, she accidentally collided with another student. 
 
 “ Whoa, are you okay? ” a voice laughed. Strong hands at her side helped her up. 
 
 She opened her raw eyes, seeing a man in front of her. He was looking at her, worried. 
 
 “ I ’ m fine, ” she mumbled, shaking off his arms. She started to walk away, then turned around. 
 
 “ Hey, you wouldn ’ t happen to know where Ayden ’ s dorm is, would you? ” 
 
 “ Oh yeah, it ’ s in the second building, fourth floor, ” he responded kindly. She thanked him and walked away. 
 
 Nonchalantly, he pointed one finger at her back, which shot out a spark. It deflected off her back, singeing a few fibers. She turned about abruptly, and he smiled at her. With a confused look, she kept walking. He set off in another direction, smirking triumphantly. 
 
 She reached Ayden ’ s dorm and came into the room without warning. Strangely enough, he was sitting on his bed, hugging his pillow. He wasn ’ t in his suit anymore, but in a pair of pjs. 
 L 
 ooking at her, he put down the pillow and slid off his bed. “ Hey Maeve. Listen, I just heard about Sinna, and I- “ 
 
 “ You what? She was with *you* last night, and now she ’ s been found dead. ” He tried to speak, but she interrupted again. “ Don ’ t try to defend yourself. This time you can ’ t weasel your way out of suspicion as you did with the other murders. ” 
 
 “ The hell did I ever see in you, ” he mumbles under his breath. “ I haven ’ t killed anybody. Last night Sinna left early, I even escorted her out of the building. ” 
 
 “ Oh, that ’ s not all you did. Anna saw you two together last night, walking at about twelve. ” 
 
 “ I was just taking her to your dorm! ” 
 
 “ Bullshit. I will find a way for you to pay, you ’ ll see. ” She stormed out. 
 
 Ayden collapsed onto his bed, regretting ever insinuating their little rivalry. 
 
 -- -- - 
 Maeve slammed her door closed. She fell to the floor again, mind spinning. 
 
 “ Use your magic only to save lives, Maeve. ” She felt memories of her mother ’ s hands enveloping her own. 
 
 “ Your magic is a gift, Maeve. Use it wisely, embrace it. ” 
 
 “ You have to focus your mind. Settle into the ability to feel the universe oscillating around you, the intricate pathways linking planes and everything they contain, layered upon each other. ” 
 
 She did so, guided by this nurturing memory. The storm of her thoughts died down. For a while, she saw only darkness. Then she began to see the pale shapes: a desk, chair, two beds… all with her eyes closed. 
 
 She saw beings running in their planes. She saw dead spirits walking the astral plane, laid over her mortal plane. She saw energy flowing through pathways, linking the worlds together, as they beat as one. She liked to stay in this state, sensing everything. She was lucky to have been born with this ability and a mother who showed her how to use it. Many were not this fortunate. 
 
 “ Focus on your objective, Maeve. You will see the possibilities for it to pass. ” 
 
 She scanned the campus and found Ayden, passing right by a being different from the others, who glowed with red power. She focused on Ayden. Doing so allowed her to know almost everything about him: what he would do in the future, what he was thinking, and every element about him. 
 
 “ Tricky little bastard, he must know about this ability. He ’ s disguised himself well, ” she mumbles. She selects his weakness and sends a burst of energy to his weakness. She fueled a probability, one to take place in the future. The energy brooded and manifested itself inside him. When people are viewed in this state, they are everything in their past, present, and future, able to be viewed. It ’ s a dangerous ability. 
 
 “ Never use your ability on other people, Maeve! ” an inner voice urged. 
 
 “ Never use your ability to cast your judgment on others! ” 
 
 She broke out of that state, annoyed. She knew what she was doing was right. 
 
 The next day, Ayden dies of an allergy attack. 
 
 The next month, Maeve dies of a fatal stabbing. She was found at the center of a pentagram drawn with her own blood. 
 

