Cassie's Journal - Jan. 30, 2012

Plan, meet reality!

When I have a spare hour or two, I should read a book or three on time management. I know that there is a lot of work for me to do, and all of that is very important, but it was way too nice a day to give up after school play time for; so I didn’t. Rowen and I spent our after school until dinner time riding our bikes; playing at the park; and enjoying the unbelievably warm, end-of-January weather.

We had a lot of fun, so I don’t regret the play time at all as I’m sitting here, writing this, at one-thirty in the morning; but I am very tired. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne did the after-dinner Healing lesson/niece and nephew play time with us, and while they spent some time with Mom and Dad after Ethan and Ehlana went to bed, I’ve been here in my room, working on my computer.

I’ll need to work on mastering multiple languages at the same time as I go along, but I will do that in stages; and only be studying the basics of one language at a time. Since I’d picked to start with Japanese, learning the basics will probably take three to four weeks; depending on how much time I spend on it. My study plan after that is to keep building on those basics while also adding new languages. Thanks to the internet; a practice chat buddy in just about any language in the world is only a few clicks away.

Anyway, I’ve done my usual nightly computing; studied in the archives for an hour; and then spent the last hour or so listening to Japanese tutorials while also practicing writing the alphabet. Japanese written language has three scripts that I’ll need to learn. Kanji will be easiest for me, since it’s based on Chinese. Hiragana is a phonetic alphabet, while Katakana is the best choice for transcribing other languages into Japanese. My photographic memory helps a lot with learning to read and write the symbols; be even I need to practice a fair bit before being able to write competently.

I need to get some sleep. The last day of January has already started, and if the forecast holds; it’s going to feel more like another spring day than mid-winder. We’ll see if Rowen and I can resist the temptation to skip our after-school work to go play again. I don’t have anything else to add for tonight, though, so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 29, 2012

***Restricted Access Journal***

Ethan, Ehlana, and I spent some time using our combined Sight this afternoon; and had a long talk about what we all needed to get done over the next eight or nine months. We’ll be letting Mom, Dad, Aunt Leanne, and Uncle Adam in on some of that fairly soon, but today we mostly made some decisions on what the three of us would be personally doing with our education and Magi training.

Since I’ve already been working on that, the only real adjustment I’ve made is to how much more I need to start concentrating on learning new languages. My new goal is to master five languages a year. I know, that seems like a lot even for a Magi Master, especially with everything else I have on the go; but that is something that I seem to have a special talent for that’s more than just because of my photographic memory. I actually started that tonight by spending an hour studying Japanese.

Most of Ethan and Ehlana’s education will be the same, but they also have specific things that they each want to learn too that they’ll either need to start doing on their own, or we’ll talk with Mom about doing things with them a bit differently than what we did with my early training. Ethan’s going to need to know a lot about History; including Magi History. Ehlana is going to study the sciences – particularly Biology and Medical Sciences. We’re all quite sure that there is a connection between what we’re being allowed to see of our future and the fact that we each have special talents for, and a love of, the fields that we’ll need to become experts in.

We also will be putting a few things together over the next month or so to get ready for our upcoming chat with the parents, aunt, and uncle; but that really won’t take us long – especially when we put our little Magi Master heads together! I’ll save that news for then, and though this won’t seem like particularly interesting news in the future; I am keeping this entry protected until having the information open to other Magi won’t offer hints to our collective future that shouldn’t be revealed yet.

So, while you can only be reading this from sometime in the future, this is coming to you live from Witch Falls; and I am Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 28, 2012

It’s probably official now – I’ve become small-town!

That realization came thanks to a quartet of glances from a quartet of girls at the Mall. They were about the same age as Rowen and I; and apparently our enthusiasm at the start of our shopping adventure was ridiculous to cool city kids. I’m only mentioning this in my journal because Rowen and I actually paid attention to those glances and overheard the quiet snide comments and snickers; and talked about it later. Rowen really didn’t like that we were being made fun of by those girls, but I advised her that there’s probably no way for me to ever turn down the enthusiasm when I’m getting to spend a whole day with my family and best friend; doing one of our very favorite activities. Since this may be an early warning sign of impending crossing-over, though, I do hope that Rowen won’t have to temporarily pretend that she doesn’t know me if she moves up to the next level without me.

If those girls had seen us when we met up with Violet, I probably would have been laughed at some more. Okay, so I’m almost eleven, and probably should cut back a bit on the bouncing; but everyone would be happier if there were more and better hugs in the world (I know you’re thinking it Aunt Leanne; but don’t go there again, or I’ll start locking all of my archive journals for ten or twenty years).

Getting to the news of the day; the shopping was a blast. Rowen and I got to spend a lot of time with Violet – especially when the six adults wanted us out of the way while they did some gift buying that they didn’t want us to know about for some reason. That worked for us; since we all had some Valentine’s Day shopping to do too, along with the gifts that Rowen and I wanted to pick up for some of our friends’ upcoming birthdays. Helping Violet with picking up Dillon’s Valentine’s gift was the most fun, and we had all of that done by the time we met for lunch in the food court with the parents, aunts, uncle, uncle-to-be, and the twins.

After getting our fast food fix, it was time for a little clothes shopping that the guys in our group set their favorite girls free to do while they found something else to do for a couple of hours. Violet was able to shop with us until three o’clock; and then Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie finally made it to the city after working the lunch shift at the Inn. We all met with them near the Mall entrance where we’d all parked our vehicles, and after saying goodbye to Violet; Mom, Aunt Leanne, and Aunt Deborah decided that it was time to head over to Wal-Mart for our supplies run before we stopped for dinner.

We ended up hitting a Home Depot too, and Rowen and I mostly entertained Ethan and Ehlana at both stores while six of our favorite adults took care of the boring part of our shopping trip. Aunt Leanne might have preferred another fast food meal, but the guys all wanted to sit down and have real food instead; so it ended up being nearly eight-thirty by the time we were on the road for home. That was a fairly quiet trip; mostly because Ethan and Ehlana slept most of the way, so Mom, Dad, Rowen, and I tried not to wake them up by talking back and forth between the front and back seats.

Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, Aunt Deborah, and Nick had taken Dad’s truck to the city so we’d have enough storage space; so everyone came back to our place first. Rowen and I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana while Dad had lots of help to unload our things and get them into the house. Patricia helped out with that a bit when she walked over to get Rowen; and then they both stayed for a little visit with Mom after the twins were fed and tucked in for the night, and Dad had gone to help with the deliveries to Aunt Deborah’s and Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s houses.

When Rowen left, I was sent up to bed too; but I’ve been playing in my Jacuzzi, and on my computer, since then. That’s included a late night chat with Violet after she got home from her date with Dillon; and an archive study session while I waited to wind down enough to sleep. My reading was temporarily interrupted when I needed to get out of the Jacuzzi and eventually snuggled in bed with Many; and then I worked through a very detailed Healing study that had taken the Magi at the time several decades to complete.

I don’t really have any plans for Sunday. Mom and Dad both plan on working in the office, and Rowen will be busy with a family day; so I’ll probably just help out by watching Ethan and Ehlana while Mom and Dad are busy. Now that I think about that, I should really get some sleep to be ready to keep up with my little brother and sister, so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 27, 2012

We had the usual gang over for dinner and a movie night, and Rowen stayed for a sleepover; since we’re going shopping in the morning anyway. She worked at the computer store after school for a couple of hours instead of her usual Saturday shift, and then came over to our house in time for dinner.

There really isn’t anything else to report for today. Nothing particularly exciting happened at school; the dinner conversation was mostly about Aunt Deborah and Nick’s wedding plans; and the movie was a no-think action flick that was only moderately entertaining, or worse, according to a poll of the girls after it was finally over. With a big shopping day ahead of us, Rowen and I went to bed shortly after the movie ended, and though we’ve spent a bit of time surfing the net on our computers since climbing into bed with Mandy, once I finish this journal entry; we’re calling it a night.

Until tomorrow – live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor (and Rowen Emerson), signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 26, 2012

Today’s highlight, for Rowen and me, was the news that we’re going shopping in Crystal Springs on Saturday. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne are going on the trip too; and we’re going to meet Violet for shopping and lunch while she waits for Dillon, Jake, and Stephanie to get to the city after working their usual lunch shift at the Inn. Mom and Aunt Leanne want to stock up on supplies while we’re there, and I’m sure that at least a few new outfits will come home with us; but the main reason for this trip is to get Valentine and birthday gifts.

Compared to that news flash, work wasn’t anything to write about; so I won’t. :^)

Game night at the Inn was fun, and I’m sure it was the shopping trip news that kept me fired up and smiling all evening. I should have been getting some extra sleep to be ready for the weekend entertainment, but I’ve been on my computer again for nearly two and a half hours since going to bed after helping Mom with getting Ethan and Ehlana into their cribs. Since I’m thinking about them now, I should note that there’s a good chance that my extra archive studying since the holidays may be – indirectly – their fault.

When it was just Mom and me, we both did a lot of studying in our spare time. For me, that meant both my regular education and Magi training. I never really thought about it at the time, but learning to read in just a few weeks, then moving on through the elementary grades, high school, and into college-level studies by the time I was five was fairly incredible. Since moving to Witch Falls, though Mom is making sure that my Magi training is moving right along, and I’ve been busy with the family business for nearly a year now; I haven’t really done any other studying at all.

Watching the progress that Ethan and Ehlana have been making has definitely reminded me that I still have a lot to learn; and should get back to working on my education more seriously – especially considering what the three of us know about our future. It’s going to be strange enough to have my baby brother and sister working on Grade Six material with Rowen and I within the next month or two; I don’t want to end up behind them on the learning curve before I’m done high school.

Anyway, for now, that’s translated into more archive studying time for me; and since I am thinking about it, I’m going to wrap this up, and spend a little time working out what I will need to do to be ready for my personal future (I know you’re thinking it, Aunt Leanne; but don’t go there!). I seriously do not want to think about that part of my future either, or plan for it; so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 25, 2012

I’ve been lost in the archives too long; so this journal entry is going to be short and sweet.

School was good; Rowen and I had fun playing at the park once we were set free after our snack and daily recap with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana. Mom went with a quick and easy dinner; and then she did a long Magi lesson with the twins and I before we – and Dad – all went to bed only slightly later than Ethan and Ehlana’s normal bedtime.

There wasn’t anything worth reporting tonight from my usual email and entertainment check, and I honestly have no idea what possessed me to spend nearly three hours in the archives; let alone manage to do that without falling asleep. Whatever the reason, it’s now past twelve-thirty, and I should have been in dreamland hours ago, so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 24, 2012

Today is Lisa’s eleventh birthday. Rowen and I weren’t invited to her party; mostly because she and her best friend are official members of the already-crossed-over group despite being one of the youngest girls in our grade – like I am. She wasn’t quite ready for a girls and boys party, but I’m also sure that boys would be front and center in their girl talk; just as they are pretty much all day, every day at school. A couple of the girls were upset about not getting invitations, but Rowen and I will only be worried when we do start getting party invitations from the ‘cross-over’ girls; since that might mean that we’ve moved up to the next level too. Now that’s a seriously scary thought!

While Lisa and her boy-crazy friends were having their kind of fun at her party; Rowen and I were working after school. For me, that was homework and family business in the office until dinnertime. This week, I’m starting to take a look at the bigger picture for all of ‘my’ companies; from both an environmental and economic perspective. I won’t bore you with the details of things like carbon footprints or shared distribution channels, but I am going to find ways to make my part of the family business more eco-friendly and efficient.

One thing I will mention is something that’s been in the news more and more lately – labor and environment exploitation in poor and developing countries. Dark Magi aren’t the only bad people in the world, but Hathorne Industries is a good example of the worst that a company can be when it comes to making a buck at any cost. It’s a huge problem that’s going to take a long time to fix, but if you’re reading this far enough in the future; then you know that we – the Magi of the Light – are going to help fix those problems much sooner than anyone now might think possible.

Moving along, Alicia stayed for dinner, and then after she went home; Mom and Dad both did a Magi lesson with Ethan, Ehlana, and me for over an hour. We had a bit of play time after that, and then while Dad went to get a bit of work done in the office; I helped Mom with twin baths and the usual bedtime routine. When Ethan and Ehlana were finally sleeping, I came upstairs and got ready for bed too while Mom went to join Dad in the office. I started studying in the archives shortly after climbing into bed with Mandy; mostly to distract myself from thinking about what my parents have been doing. Mom put her wards up shortly after getting to the office, but I could sense enough before she did that to know that she was not getting ready to start a little Magi-powered computing. Okay, that’s already way too much information!

As I wrote that, those wards are suddenly moving mysteriously from the first to second floor, and I definitely don’t want to think about just how long I was studying in the archives before starting this journal entry. I do think that it’s time to move from computing distraction to unconscious and uninformed kid; so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 23, 2012

There isn’t much to write about today. School was uneventful; Rowen and I had our after school snack with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana before going to play at the park until dinnertime; and Mom did a Healing lesson with Uncle Adam and I after dinner.

I helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana’s baths and bedtime routine after Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne went home while Dad worked in the office. Since then, I’ve mostly been studying in the archives while snuggling in bed with Mandy. More than two hours of that is enough to put nearly anyone to sleep, and I’m definitely there now.

Live, but half-asleep, from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 22, 2012

I thought that Mom and Dad might have something planned for our play day, but they didn’t; and we all had a blast while pretty much just goofing off all afternoon and evening.

We mostly had even nicer weather than forecasted, except for a bit of rain that didn’t pass through town until after dinner. Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne spent most of the day with us too, and our adventures started with a barbeque lunch that Dad and Uncle Adam did most of the cooking for. After that, we all went over to the park, where we met up with Rowen and her parents and brother; walked the entire path; and then spent an hour at the playground. Dad and, Owen, and Uncle Adam were probably breaking some man-laws, but they didn’t watch any of the two NFL playoff matches; though they did occasionally check on the scores after we got home again from the park.

Our in-house afternoon fun included a snack break; more play time that revolved around entertaining Ethan and Ehlana; and some video gaming action that was mostly for Patrick’s benefit. Mom, Patricia, and Aunt Leanne decided that they didn’t want to cook dinner, and advised the rest of us that we were going to the early buffet at the Inn with just enough time for us to get ready to go out and do that. Miranda was happy to have the extra customers on a rare day when the dining room wasn’t completely full; and we loved doing our part to reduce the surplus food supply!

The last unplanned fun of the day was a movie night back at our house that Uncle Adam, Aunt Leanne, and the Emersons all came home with us for. Though the guys were slightly outnumbered, they picked a typical, no-think action flick that managed to keep most of us entertained for a couple of hours. Once the movie was over, it was time to say goodnight to our guests, and then I was sent up to my room while Mom and Dad took care of the bedtime routine with Ethan and Ehlana.

I’ve been soaking in my Jacuzzi since then while doing a little telekinetic computing, but I’m getting tired; and it’s time to wrap up both my bath and this journal entry. There may not be anything particularly exciting to write about today, but having a fun play day with my family and our friends makes all of the responsibilities I have worthwhile. Since I’m not only tired, but seriously wrinkly too; it’s time to wrap this up for another day.

Live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 21, 2012

I really love having Dad back at home again after his work weeks in Crystal Springs. Morning Tai Chi just feels that much more special, and the full country breakfast he made for us this morning was great too.

The housework and laundry I helped with for the rest of the morning wasn’t nearly as wonderful, but I did have the afternoon off to play with Rowen, Ethan, and Ehlana while Mom and Dad mostly worked in the office. It stayed below freezing outside, so our play afternoon was in the lounge and my room. We watched a movie; Rowen and I mostly held and helped Ethan and Ehlana while they put a fairly advanced puzzle together; and we all played with Mandy and some toys until Rowen needed to head home. After seeing her out, I helped Mom with making dinner while Ethan and Ehlana supervised and helped with a bit of quality control taste-testing.

Mom took the night off to hang out with us, but Dad decided to push on with his work and get it done so he could spend the whole day with us on Sunday instead. Our evening entertainment included another movie; bath time for the twins; a bedtime story and snack that Dad stopped working to join us for; and then Ethan and Ehlana were tucked into their cribs by shortly before nine-thirty. I was ready for a long Jacuzzi break by then, so while Mom and Dad both went to work in the office again; I went up to my room to do that before climbing into bed with Mandy.

I don’t know what the play plans with Mom and Dad will be for tomorrow, but I’m sure that whatever they come up with will be fun, so I should get rested up so I’ll be ready to keep up with them. There really isn’t anything else to add for today; other than...

...live from Witch Falls, this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 20, 2012

It’s been a while since the last time we had a quiet, uneventful Friday around our house.

Our usual dinner and a movie night guests were all busy with other plans tonight; so Mom and I were on our own taking care of Ethan and Ehlana from the time Rowen left for home until Dad got back from Crystal Springs. We took the night off from work and lessons, so after cleaning up from a quick and easy dinner; we mostly played with Ethan and Ehlana in the living room for a couple of hours.

None of us were in any hurry to go to bed after Dad joined us, and it was nearly two hours later before the twins were tucked into their cribs; I sent Mom and Dad to bed; and I came upstairs to my room for a little Jacuzzi action. Maybe having quiet evenings at home isn’t good for me. I was still wide-awake after my bath, and ended up reading in the archives for an hour and a half while snuggling with Mandy.

My studies tonight included some fairly technical explanations about using Magi power for repairing things, and it’s interesting to see how these discoveries often coincided with acute necessities that so many Magi throughout history have faced. When looked at in the context of our entire history, there haven’t really been all that many Magi who have been able to live their lives without needing to struggle just to survive daily life. That has me wondering about how much of what we – the Magi – know would have never been learned without those struggles and crises. I guess the flip side to that is what might have been able to accomplish if we hadn’t needed to work so hard just to survive. Maybe we’ll get to find out the answer to that question here in Witch Falls. Depending on when you’re reading this; you may even know the answer! That’s a bit of a thought-twister.

Anyway, I’m going to leave this journal entry with that; and get some rest, so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

(I liked the closing line last night, so I’m going to keep it; at least for a while)

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 19, 2012

We’ve had a fairly quiet day in Witch Falls. The temperature has been falling all day, and while we aren’t getting any snow, it’s cold enough that Rowen and I were glad to be working after school.

My family business work was mostly reading through a small digital pile of corporate reports. One thing that we’re really able to do differently now that Mom has her three little helpers is that we now have more time to dig deeper into each of our businesses than she could ever hope to do before. That’s been really exciting, though I wouldn’t use exciting to describe my work today.

Fortunately, game night at the Inn made up for those earlier hours of business tedium. Miranda was happy to have Mom as her partner, and though there wasn’t a very big turnout this week; they weren’t able to win the senior championship. She did at least get the consolation bonus of having Jake and Stephanie win the junior championship for the first time in quite a while, and she did have fun playing with Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana.

Since getting home, I’ve helped Mom with Ethan and Ehlana’s bedtime routine; had a bath; done my email and entertainment checks; and spent more than two hours studying in the archives (including while in the Jacuzzi). We’re now on the far side of one-thirty, and I am ready to call it a night, so...

...live from Witch Falls; this is Cassie Proctor, signing off!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 18, 2012

Congratulations, Angela and Terry!

I know they’ll never read this, but since they’re Dad’s best friends from college; the news that Angela is pregnant with their first baby is definitely worth a headline in my journal.

That news moved this to second place: Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

The headlines have gotten ahead of the daily recap, so let’s back up a bit. The morning highlight at home was our birthday phone call to Grandpa and Grandma. They had a busy play day planned that was a lot more fun than my day at school. The weather in Florida was better too, but we did get back above freezing again this afternoon. That worked out for Rowen and I, and we went over to the park to play for an hour or so after school. We took care of our homework before dinner, and Rowen stayed to help out with Ethan and Ehlana until nearly seven-thirty.

Mom threw in a Magi lesson for all of us after dinner, and when Rowen went home, she and I took Ethan and Ehlana upstairs for their baths. They weren’t going to bed early, but Mom wanted to get that done before Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam came over after the clinic closed so that we could all do a link with Grandma, Grandpa, and Dad. That was when we found out about Angela being pregnant, and Dad had just found out a bit earlier when he’d gone out to dinner with Angela and Terry. The baby is due at the end of September, and it sounds like the expecting parents are very, very happy – even if Terry is teasing Dad about it being his fault. I’m not quite sure if that’s because Dad introduced them or because of the new babies in our family. There’s always the possibility that Terry has just been looking for a joke replacement ever since he couldn’t use his ‘for God’s sake, Cameron, get a girlfriend!’ line anymore (well, technically, he could again now, but I seriously doubt that Mom would be amused).

Our little telepathic birthday chat lasted for about an hour, and then it was time to say goodnight to Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne. I helped Mom with the bedtime feeding; we skipped story time; and after a pair of diaper changes, Ethan and Ehlana were both soon out for the night. Mom headed for her Jacuzzi after that, but I decided to just get changed and into bed with my fluffy, cuddly, and warm cat. The computer check was quick and uneventful, and once I finish this, I’m heading off to sleep too. I love doing those long-distance links; but they do take a fair bit of power to hold for that long. I should study in the archives for an hour or so, but that would probably just put me to sleep faster anyway. I’ll just have to fit that into my schedule tomorrow night instead. I’m getting sleepy just thinking about that. The good news is that with endless archives to read, I’ll never have to worry about needing sleeping pills!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 17, 2012

The miniscule bit of snow that we woke up with this morning didn’t exactly shout ‘winter’; but the drop in temperature certainly was a shock compared to the last few days. It certainly has me wondering why I’ve been missing all of the snow fun we’d enjoyed last January.

With Dad in the city, Mom had extra help drop by while I was at school, and then Alicia was working today while I was busy with my part-time job and homework. She stayed until nearly seven o’clock, and then Aunt Leanne and Uncle Adam were our evening support team.

Mom did a Magi Healing lesson with Uncle Adam and me while Aunt Leanne entertained Ethan and Ehlana for an hour. I was set free after that, and have been wrapping up my day with a Jacuzzi and telekinetic computing session. The multi-tasking is mostly because I feel the need for another decent night of sleep. There actually isn’t much more to say about what’s been going on around Witch Falls today, so I guess that’s it for now, and time for me to get on with that long winter’s nap.

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 16, 2012

It’s time for another short edition and an earlier than usual end to the day for me.

We had yet more gorgeous, warm weather to enjoy our extra day off with. Rowen and I took advantage of that, and spent most of the day playing and biking outside. We had lunch at the falls; took Ethan and Ehlana to the park for an hour or so after that; and then we went for a long bike ride until it was time to get back to our respective homes for dinner.

My evening included a short Magi lesson with Mom; a Jacuzzi bath; and now I’m in bed, cuddled with Mandy, and doing a quick run-through of my usual nightly computer check. There isn’t any news to report from around the family, unless you consider Violet and Dillon not getting together at all this weekend newsworthy. I’m skipping the archive study, and only needed to send off one family business-related email; though that really could have waited until after school tomorrow.

I want to be up early to see Dad off to Crystal Springs, so that’s all for today. Back to school in the morning, and the start of a long nine weeks until the March Break holiday. That seems like a long way off right now, but hopefully we’ll manage to keep entertained and have a little fun between now and then!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 15, 2012

The top news story around the church and town today was Grandpa Grant and Eleanor’s trip to South America. Only a handful of people knew the real reason they were going to be spending nearly seven weeks there, and in a couple of Central American countries; but it was the fact that they were going on yet another long trip together that was making them the most talked about couple. I’m sure they find all of that very entertaining and amusing – especially the jokes about Grandpa Grant running off with a girl less than half his age.

While they are going on a working trip, I’d love to go along. Mom has never risked taking me to see one of the archives for obvious reasons. We even lived fairly close to one of them once, though that archive was relatively new compared to some of the archives in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Going on trips to play in the archives won’t be in my future, but some day, I am going to get out there and see the world too.

For today, Rowen and I had to settle for a play afternoon around town and at the park. That was partly because we had another beautiful, warm day, while also having the bonus of not many boys around while they watched yet more playoff football. Dad was keeping an eye on the football at home too, but he was working in the office too. Mom, Ethan, and Ehlana spent a fair bit of time in the office too; though they walked to the park for a visit too; and Rowen and I played with them for a half hour or so until Mom was ready to take them home for their afternoon feeding.

Rowen had to go home early enough to get ready to go out to dinner at her grandparent’s house, so I was home in time to help Mom with making dinner. Ethan and Ehlana supervised and told me about what they’d been doing all afternoon – including the play time with Rowen and I at the park from their point of view. We were going with an easy dinner night; so it didn’t take long to make or eat our meal. Dad was taking the night off to spend with us, and after cleaning up, we had a little Magi play time; watched some television; and then did the full bath and bedtime routine with Ethan and Ehlana.

Since putting them to bed, I’ve enjoyed a bit of quality time with my Jacuzzi, and have been in bed with Mandy; playing on my computer for about an hour now. Mom and Dad went to bed early too, though they’ve had their shields and wards up the entire time; so they’re definitely not sleeping, and I’ll take a guess that their Jacuzzi play time was wetter and wilder than getting the twins through their bath was. To avoid continuing along that thought path, I was just thinking that I’ve talked about knowing when Mom and Dad have their wards and shields up; but that’s not normally something that a Magi can detect unless they actually come in contact with the shield or trigger the ward.

I’ve always been able to sense Mom’s use of the power because of our bond; just as she knew when I put my wards up before helping Rowen when she fell down the stairs at the falls last year. Like she told Rowen and her grandmother back then, I can’t sense what she’s using the power for, but in the case of wards and shields, it’s actually not being able to sense anything else that allows me to know that she’s putting up her protections. I’ll just happily go on pretending not to know why they need to do that for a few more years, but some day; Mom and I will probably need to have a talk about that. I’d ask Aunt Leanne, but I quite possibly will never be old enough to hear her stories about this particular topic.

Okay, that was two-days late, Friday the 13th scary! Time to not just change the subject, but call it a night. I really should rest up for our bonus play day tomorrow. Do not, I repeat, do not think – or dream – about boys and girls together at all. I am going to dream about bunnies – nice, cute, cuddly, fluffy bunnies! (Google ‘The Good Witch’ movie series for reference :^) – I love those shows!)

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 14, 2012

Happy first birthday, Naomi!

Ethan and Ehlana were fired up today – especially when they got to spend a couple of hours hanging out with Naomi this morning while her father was busy with getting everything set up for the party they were having after Liz was finished work at the Salon. That was going to be a family-only event, but the twins had wanted to see Naomi so they could give her the birthday presents that Mom had helped them to pick out. (She’d vetoed the iPad suggestion, but had approved a new dress that Ehlana only half-joked about being able to borrow once Naomi outgrew it; and a cute little gold necklace)

There was a birthday surprise for me too, though it was the timing, and not the gift, that was the newsflash. I’m sure that Ethan and Ehlana did want to surprise me too, and it was fun getting to be there when they got to tell Naomi that they – we – were all Magi too. Mom assured me later, when we could talk about it, that it had been a lot of fun watching Ethan and Ehlana convince the senior members of the council that they needed to let Naomi know about them, and start training with them too. If she thinks that was high on the fun scale; she’s going to need to re-calibrate it for everything else that will be happening over the next few years.

Our little photographic memory Kodak moment with Naomi happened in the lounge, while Dad and Alicia were out running an errand that I’m sure wasn’t just random coincidence. We had time for a telepathic chat; Mom did a short first lesson with Ethan, Ehlana, and Naomi that I was only observing for; and then we were back to playing normal babies and toddler again by the time Dad and Alicia got back from their trip to the store.

That time with Naomi was definitely the highlight of my day, but Rowen and I have been having fun since getting together after lunch. It wasn’t all that warm out today, but it did get above freezing, and the park was play central for a lot of kids – at least until the NFL football playoff games started later in the afternoon. We decided not to do another sleepover tonight, but I had dinner at Rowen’s house, and then stayed to play with her until nearly ten o’clock.

Since getting home, I’ve done the bedtime story part of the nightly routine with Ethan and Ehlana; had a long soak in my Jacuzzi; and done everything on my computer from family business work to archive studies and my usual email and entertainment checks. I added a few notes to our Magi project archive relating to today’s events with Naomi, but that was mostly for future reference. It’s been a long time since a Magi of the Light has received training from a Master starting at such a young age; and it will be interesting to compare where Naomi is now to how powerful a Magi she’ll be as an adult.

I should start doing all of this using a time-phase – it’s after one o’clock again, and I’m going to need to stop playing for the night. Using up so much power on a time-phase might not be worth the effort, but the great thing about the future is that there’s always more of it just around the corner.

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 13, 2012

Be afraid, be very afraid!

Okay, not really, but that seemed like a good way to start a Friday the 13^th journal entry. Some of the kids at school tried their best to make the day scary by pulling pranks and practical jokes. That wasn’t a problem for Rowen and me – the guys have learned that I am not afraid to defend myself with reputation-damaging hugs and kisses. Yes, I know that won’t work much longer, but I’ll have a plan B ready when hugs and kisses aren’t an effective deterrent anymore.

Nothing really scary happened around the school or town today. Rowen and I played with Ethan and Ehlana after school, and she stayed for our dinner and a movie night. Aunt Deborah and Nick had other plans this week, but Aunt Leanne left work early and came over to help Mom with the cooking. Dad had a late appointment, but he and Uncle Adam both managed to get home in time to have a drink and get the daily update from Rowen and I before we sat down to eat. Aunt Leanne handled most of the dinner entertainment by telling us some Witch Falls Friday the 13^th stories, and though we didn’t go with a scary movie to commemorate the day, we did introduce Ethan and Ehlana to Casper the friendly ghost.

Rowen and I were set free after the movie while Ethan and Ehlana had Mom and Aunt bedtime support, and Dad and Uncle Adam took care of the post-movie cleanup. We’d been given last-minute approval for a sleepover, but needed to run over to Rowen’s house to get an overnight bag packed for her. We’ve been in bed with Mandy for about an hour now; surfing the net and having a nice, long bedtime chat.

That’s about it for today, and Rowen and I are both ready to call it a night. We both have some work to do in the morning, but then we’ll have the rest of the weekend to hang out together and play. I guess we’ll be making up our fun as we go along, but sometimes, no-plan weekends are what remember forever moments are made from!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 12, 2012

It finally snowed today!

Okay, so it was more like a few handfuls of snowflakes, but it was pretty while it lasted.

There wasn’t much news to report from around school today. I worked in the office after getting home from school, and had my homework and everything I wanted to get done on the family business today finished by dinnertime. Game night at the Inn is usually the highlight of my Thursdays, but tonight, it was the Magi lesson that Mom and I worked on after getting home from the Inn and getting Ethan and Ehlana fed and off to bed.

Dad had was already working in the office by the time we joined him there, and we probably should have gone somewhere else to do the lesson; since he ended up watching us instead of working on the contracts he needed to have ready for the morning. My lesson was especially cool because Mom was teaching me how to use my Magi talents to repair different things. Mom had occasionally done lessons like this with me – like when she taught me how to repair the containers I damaged when I was learning how to control the elements; but this time, she was showing me how to do much more complex repairs.

For example, fixing a shattered teacup that is covered with a very detailed pattern requires a lot of very precise use of power; and a lot of concentration. What I loved best about this lesson was the way that Mom showed me how to pull a lot of different talents and other lessons together to do the work. I earned bonus points for repairing the matching saucer to the teacup that Mom had me fix using a phase-shift transmutation within an air shield mold. It wasn’t really any faster to fix the saucer, but I basically memorized everything about it from the undamaged set that I had to use as a comparison, and then stripped everything away until I was left with the raw materials like the clay, glaze, and paints. I took the whole room into a time-phase; and then recreated the saucer, with the time-phase allowing me to speed up the entire process. Just for fun, I held the time-phase while Dad finished his work in what was just a few minutes in real time.

That only seemed fair after he lost nearly an hour of work time by watching my lesson, but using that much power does have me ready to sleep now, so I’m skipping most of the usual bedtime computer routine, and don’t expect to be awake for very long once I’m done this journal entry. Since I’m sensing that Mom and Dad have other plans for the time he doesn’t need to spend on his work; being this tired is really good for me in more ways than one!

Cassie's Journal - Jan. 11, 2012

While I was at school today, it occurred to me that I’ve spent as much time thinking about the Magi project, and the social aspects of our studies, at every birthday party that Rowen and I have gone to since starting that project with Uncle Adam. I decided to make sure that I didn’t do that today as much as possible; and just enjoy spending the time with my friends.

Gretchen is one of the girls in our class who, like Rowen and I, are in the slowly diminishing group of girls that still have our sanity when it comes to boys. Like Sally, her family has a farm, and though Rowen and I don’t get to play with her away from school all that often, we do hang out with Sally and some of the other girls regularly at recess and lunch. Her friends all made sure that she had a great day at school, and her mother picked her up after school so that she didn’t have to ride the bus. Rowen and I were getting a ride to the party with Patricia; but we went home to get cleaned up and changed first before she picked us up and drove out to Gretchen’s farm.

We had another sunny, unseasonably warm day; and the party started outdoors with Gretchen showing the ‘town kids’ around the farm. I really love my new home, and wouldn’t change anything; but if we couldn’t live there, a farm like Gretchen or Sally have for their homes would be very cool too. Speaking of cool, even though we’ve had great weather so far this winter, it does cool down fast by late afternoon, and it wasn’t all that long before we were all ready to go inside and continue the party there.

One thing that Rowen and I loved about this party was that there was basically no boy-talk at all except for a few comments about how annoying a couple of the guys in our class had been to Gretchen today. Unless a kid was having their birthday celebration out of town, or maybe at Quarry Lake in the summer; there seemed to be a fairly standard party format in Witch Falls – at least for the girls, and at the handful of parties I’ve been to since moving here. We played games, listened to music, and talked about nearly everything except boys, sports, and politics.

There were mixed results for dinner, but I give Gretchen bonus points for asking her Mother to make her favorite ‘real food’ meal; and though the awesome chicken dish wasn’t a hit with all of her friends, I really loved it. Everyone did love the Olde Bakery cake and ice cream dessert; Gretchen multi-tasked and opened her presents while we finished eating; and then we moved into the living room to watch a movie until our respective parents started dropping by to take us home.

Dad was elected to come and get Rowen and I; and he must have called ahead to get a time unless he and Mom just had Ethan and Ehlana look into the future to see when the movie would be over. We dropped Rowen off first, and then went home. I definitely didn’t need any bedtime snacks today, but my birthday party recap doubled as the bedtime story for Ethan and Ehlana. I had homework to get done after that, but I worked on that after getting changed and in bed with Mandy. After getting that out of the way, I’ve been doing the usual email and entertainment checks; took care of a business issue that couldn’t wait for tomorrow after school; and spent a little time working on the Magi project. That last bit of action was mostly in response to the latest entries that Uncle Adam had made, but adding in my two cents didn’t take long; and once I get this journal entry done, I’m done for the day.

It’s another work day tomorrow, but game night at the Inn is starting up again too. The best news is that we’ve got a long weekend to look forward to after that, and though Dad will need to get some work done for his trip to Crystal Springs; we’re going to take it easy this weekend too. Of course we have all said that before, so maybe I should just wait and see what happens! If you’re reading this sometime in the future, you can just continue on to the next few entries to find out what happened – I’ll just have to wait and live it!