A Story from Sophomore Year

Once upon a time, there was a handsome prince who lived in the kingdom of Shickrillama, where he used his powers for evil. There was also a princess and a witch involved, but they’ll come into the story later. Now I should probably take you back to the beginning of the story, where we are met by a small boy playing with his nanny in a large castle. This boy, as you may have guessed, is the prince. His name is Prince Averlaon. Now, Prince Averlaon was no normal prince, for he had been given amazing magical powers the day he was born. How, you may ask, did he acquire these amazing gifts? Well, that’s where the witch comes in. The day that the queen gave birth to her son, a witch arrived at the castle to bestow a gift upon the royal child. At this point of the story, I know you’re probably thinking: “How cliché, a witch gives a royal child magical powers.” Normally I would agree with you, but as you will see, this is not the case at all.
For you see, that day, the day that Prince Averlaon was born, was a day that had been prophesized as the day that a witch would come and bestow gifts upon a child born unto royalty. Because of this prophecy, a witch did, indeed, come to the castle. But she was not well, for the night before she had received a text message from the hospital notifying her that her grandmother died. In order for you to understand how this affected the witch, you must understand the relationship between the witch and her grandmother.
Her grandmother was not a very wealthy woman, but she had come to America when she was twelve to start a new life. When she realized that she had absolutely no chance of making a fortune, she moved back to London and had a child: the witch’s mother. Unsure of who the child’s father was, the witch’s grandmother decided not to tell anyone about the child. For the next 16 years, the witch’s grandmother lived on the streets of London taking jobs wherever and whenever she could. Meanwhile, the witch’s mother learned how to pickpocket, where to go to get the best garbage, and how to survive on her own on the streets of London. But she swore that she would never let her child live on the streets the way she had.
When the witch’s mother was 16, she gave birth to the witch. Frightened by this sudden turn of events, she turned to her mother for help. Fortunately, her mother had acquired enough money for a small house in the country. The witch, her mother, and her grandmother lived together in that small house for 11 years. There, they taught themselves witchcraft in the hope that one day one of them would become the witch from the prophecy. The witch caught on quickly, but her mother and grandmother struggled mastering the art. When the witch was 11, she was sent to Shickrillama to be an apprentice under the Great Wizard Archibald. Under Archibald’s teaching, her abilities rapidly grew. In little over a year, she had already mastered the art of turning people into rats, making breakfast (magically), and casting spells.
One day, while working in her tiny office in the corner of the Archibald’s living room, the witch overheard the wizard arguing loudly over the phone.
“No, I can’t go to the castle—I don’t care if the queen is giving birth! I can’t be the one to fulfill the prophecy! I’m a guy! The prophecy specifically states that a witch must go to the castle to bestow the young prince with great magical gifts!—I’m sorry, but you’ll have to find someone else!”
The queen is giving birth? thought the witch. This is my chance to fulfill the prophecy and bring riches to my family! So she set off to the castle without telling anyone.
The next morning, the Great Wizard Archibald came down from his bedroom expecting his breakfast to be conjured up. Instead, he found a note where his plate should have been.

Great Wizard Archibald,
I have left for the castle of Shickrillama, where I hear the queen will be giving birth. Please accept my apologies, for I must fulfill the prophecy! I MUST bring riches to my family! My grandmother is very sick. She needs the money for a lifesaving operation! I feel that I am ready to be the witch from the prophecy. Once again, I am very sorry.
-Andrea
P.S.: After you read this note, place it in the microwave.

Puzzled, and a little intrigued, the Great Wizard Archibald placed the note gingerly in the microwave. To his delight, pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausages, hash browns, and a glass of orange juice appeared! After taking the first few bites of his breakfast, the reality of Andrea’s note dawned on him.
I can’t let her go to the castle! She has much to learn before she can bestow gifts on anyone! He thought, throwing down his fork and abandoning his breakfast (most of which had a papery aftertaste) as he ran to the door.
Meanwhile, Andrea’s grandmother lay in a hospital bed with her daughter at her side.
“Mother, how much longer will you last?” Andrea’s mother asked nervously.
“I do not know my daughter, for I fear the connection between Andrea and myself is growing weak. If that connection breaks, I shall perish,” Andrea’s grandmother replied.
You see, one night when Andrea, Andrea’s mother, and Andrea’s mother’s mother were dabbling in witchcraft (as they did most nights), they accidentally connected their souls together. At the time, this had been a fortunate mistake, for it gave Andrea extraordinary powers that far surpassed those of her grandmother and mother. But unfortunately it also meant that they could not be separated for longer than a year. Otherwise, the eldest of the group would die and the rest of the group would lose much of their abilities. Unfortunately, Andrea had been away from her mother and grandmother for a little over a year, and it was taking its toll on all three of the “soul sisters”.
Which brings us to the point of the story where Andrea receives a text message from the hospital notifying her of her grandmother’s death. Not knowing the consequences of this death, Andrea decided to continue on her journey to the castle of Shickrillama. After all, she felt she had to fulfill the prophecy.
The day was celebrated by the entire land of Shickrillama. Today was the day the prince would be born. A prince who had been promised great magical powers. After pushing her way through the crowded courtyard, the witch arrived at the front gate of the castle. She stated her purpose and was led into the queen’s chamber by two stern-looking guards.
“Oh, thank goodness you’re here!” the queen greeted Andrea as she entered. “The baby has just been born.”
The witch nervously looked down at the baby and realized she hadn’t learned how to bestow gifts on people! She looked around the room at the sea of faces looking at her expectantly. Oh no! What will I do? She wondered. Well, I have been prophesized, I must have some sort of power I don’t know about. I’ll wing it.
As you may know, it is never a good idea to “wing it” when working with magic. But the witch tried anyway. Her incantation sounded a little something like this:
“Hey yo, hey yo
I think you should grow
Up to be a prince
With lots of powers.
Just so you know.”
A small popping sound emitted from somewhere inside the boy and a tiny puff of smoke rose from his ears. With a shout of surprise, the witch dropped the young prince into his mother’s arms and ran out of the castle, past another witch arguing with the guards.
“What? A witch is already in the castle? How can this be?” she heard as she darted past.