The Writers' Circle

I know this is long but I would REALLY appreciate any feedback on this story, especially on the character development. Thanks! 
                                                                           ~Gate Keeper

Dear Mother and Father,
	As you may have noticed (or maybe you have not, as you are both very busy members of society) I have packed my things and left. The time has come for me to make something of myself. I know you have worked hard to send me to only the best schools in Mehdow Bleu, but I feel like I have let you down. I am no where near as powerful or important as my brother, Devlin, was at my age. I know you are not proud of me, and I am sorry for that. I hope I will have your support in my decision to continue my education outside the respectable curriculum, for I intend to enroll in Madame Maev's School of Magic. Under her careful guidance, I hope to become a powerful wizard, but, more importantly, a son you can be proud of. I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to all the effort you have put into giving me a good life and education, and to assure you I will be fine on my own and that you need not worry about me embarrassing you or getting into trouble. I wish you the best over these next few months, and I will return home to visit as soon as I can. I pray I have your blessings, and that someday I will be worthy of carrying the Kimura name.
						                                            Your Loving Son,
	 			   Senji Kimura


Chapter One
	Senji watched the rain pitter patter against the window as the train sped down the tracks. The ride from Kingston, home of the royal family and the rich and powerful, South to Highborne City, the city of magic, was not a long one, but the fact that Senji was by himself in a car full of strangers made it seem much longer. So he sat in his best cloths, a rich, purple suit with matching top hat, which sat well on his black hair though it tried to fall down into his gray eyes, and a respectable wooden cane. He clutched his black suitcase as the flower fields sped by. Mehdow Bleu was famous for its flowers, so much so that the king had long ago outlawed plowing them away. Instead the small country got its supplies from trading flowers and fish, and for providing magical services, for it was well known that Loch Bleu, located in the very center of Mehdow Bleu, was full of magic, resulting in the county's witches and wizards being well known as the most powerful in all the world. One such witch was Madame Maev, the king's sister, who owned a school in the very center of Highborne City. Her school was very exclusive, but Senji hoped that he could show enough raw talent to get in. He has always experimented with small spells secretly but he had never been brave enough to tell anyone about it. That is, until a few days ago when his brother had come to visit. Devlin, Senji's older brother, was very wealthy having invested in a large fishing company in Portland, which Senji thought was funny because his brother didn't know the slightest thing about fishing. Devlin was also a close friend of the prince. He, their parents and Senji were all having dinner one night when the subject of Senji's future came up. He had just graduated from the most established school in Mehdow Bleu, the same school that Devlin had come from.
	"So, tell me Senji," Devlin had said between bites of honey glazed trout, "What do you plan to do, now that you have graduated?"
	"What do you mean?" Senji had asked politely. He and his brother had never gotten along.
	"Well you can't stay here with Mother and Father all your life. That would be disgraceful and would surely tarnish their reputation. But, then again, you would also bring disgrace if you tried to do anything too grand, for you are not nearly talented enough to do something great with your life. No, you should just become a teacher at the school or something and marry someone from a decent family. That would be best," Devlin ranted.
	"Oh, that would be lovely," Mrs. Kimura, chimed in.
	"Mother!" Senji protested,
	"Quite right," Mr. Kimura agreed, ignoring Senji, "the school you boys graduated from just opened up a slot for history. A dull subject, I'll admit, but simple enough for Senji."
	"It's settled then! I'll send off a letter first thing in the morning," Mrs. Kimura said, for she adored writing letters.
	"But I don't want to be a teacher," Senji said loudly, for he was not happy with the idea of having his future planned out for him. His family grew quiet and turned to look at him. It was quite improper to go against your parent's wishes.
	"Well, what do you want to do, then?" Devlin sneered.
	This question had stumped Senji immensely, so much so that he never did answer. His family went on making plans for him while he stared silently at his plate. What did he want to do? He had never really put much thought to his future. He had also been too engrossed in books, something else that wasn't very respectable. One was meant to socialize, to make friends with those in power so that one could become powerful. But Senji had always been bad at words, and he stuttered when he was nervous. After being made fun of several times, he had decided books made better companions. They didn't laugh at you if you got nervous, and they had always comforted him when he was upset. But now that he was faced with his future, he found that even a book could not comfort him. He had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. That night as he prepared for bed, he had pulled out his favorite book, Elementary Spells for the Amateur Magician. As he practiced making small things float off his desk before pattering back down, it came to him. He could become a magician! He wasn't very good now, but he was sure that if he worked hard and put his mind to it, he could become as great as the author of the book, Madame Maev. He flipped to the back where the author's page was.

Madame Maev is Mehdow Bleu's leading expert in magic. If you find that the spells in  this
book come easy to you, and you wish to see if you have the talent to make it as a witch or wizard, 
please feel free to send an inquiry for an appointment to: 
Madame Maev's School of Magic, Highborne City, Mehdow Bleu

	Senji was so excited that he had to rewrite his letter twice before his handwriting was legible and then a third time before it was respectable to send to a powerful witch, princess and the king's sister. But of course, since men traditionally ruled, the prince was next in line for the throne. The very next morning, Senji rushed out to the post office before anyone else was up to deliver his letter. He had expected it to be several days or even a week before he got a reply and he dreaded having to listen to his parent's plans for him (for now they were lining up candidates who would be suitable to be his wife!), so he was quite shocked when a letter arrived the very next day. He had rushed up to his room with it, away from the prying eyes of his parents. He had to reread the letter several times before he believed what he read. Madame Maev expressed her extreme honor at the thought of having a Kimura as a pupil and invited him to meet with her in two days time. The next few days Senji was ecstatic, but he dared not tell anyone about his meeting. He just let his parents believe he was happy with the life they had chosen for him, and the night before his meeting he packed his bag and wrote a goodbye letter. He left quite early the next morning, having been unable to sleep, and boarded the first train to Highborne City. And now here he was, getting off the very same train. He exited the train station expecting to get quite wet, but as he walked out on the street he discovered it was quite dry. Looking up he saw that, some fifty feet above him, the rain was hitting against what appeared to be an invisible bubble. Right below the bubble floated dozens of glowing lights in every color imaginable.
	"Simply amazing," Senji murmured. He smiled at the thought of being able to do such powerful magic. Wouldn't his parents be proud of him then.
	"Sure is, isn't it?" someone said, "Safe, too! Not even the Witch of Ways could get through that barrier." Senji looked and saw a small, old man standing beside him. He was quite dirty and was carrying a crate of flowers. He wore a worn cotton shirt and holey overalls that might have been blue at one time, but was now a mixture of brown and gray. The man was obviously a gardener, a member of the 'working' class. Senji smiled politely and was about to hail a carriage when the grubby old man asked, "Where you headed all fancied up?"
	"I'm g-going to meet with Madame Maev," Senji said. He felt nervous talking to a complete stranger. He hoped he didn't stutter during his meeting.
	"I'll take you there, then!" the old man said smiling, revealing broken and rotted teeth, "I'm their groundskeeper. My cart's right over there."
	"Oh no, I c-couldn't possibly," Senji said. The last thing he wanted to do was show up at the school with the help. What would Madame Maev think of him? It wasn't that he thought he was better than this man, but did Madame Maev?
	"Sure you can! No trouble at all, and that way you don't have to pay them rude, overpriced carriage drivers," the old man insisted.
	Senji was struggling with making up an excuse when someone placed a hand on his shoulder.
	"That won't be necessary, George," a tall, pale, black haired man said, "Madame Maev has sent me to pick up our most honored guest. If you will follow me, Mr. Kimura."
	"Holy smokes, you're a Kimura?" George asked as the black haired man led Senji to an elaborate closed carriage pulled by two pure white stallions. Senji had never known how influential his name was until recently. Even Madame Maev seemed to respect him.
	"I apologize, Mr. Kimura," the black haired man said as he opened the carriage door for him, "George has become quite senile in his old age, but he is harmless, and he means well I'm sure. He just forgets his place, sometimes.
	"Q-quite alright," Senji said climbing into the carriage clumsily.
I thought it was quite nice of George, Senji thought as the carriage lurched forward. He pulled the curtains back so he could look outside as they plodded along. The carriage must have been well known because several passerby stopped and pointed, whispering amongst themselves. Senji suddenly found himself very nervous. What could have possibly possessed him to do this? Being a teacher wasn't so bad, and Mehdow Bleu's history was so simple and peaceful that George could probably teach it. The wife his parents would pick out for him would be alright, and they could learn to love each other as Senji's parents had. It wasn't a bad life at all. Senji was about to call out the window for the man to stop the carriage when something caught his eye. Looming ahead was a small, white castle. It wasn't much bigger than Senji's family's mansion, but it was far grander with its towering turrets covered in gold shingles and its elegant decorations and the rainbow of surrounding gardens. There was something else about it, but the only thing Senji could think of that came even close to describing the sensation was that it glowed. Senji's heart lept when they turned down the road that would lead them up to the gates. Was this the school? He could see now that there were people outside, children dressed in elegant robes of every color with matching wizard's hats. They ran amongst the flowers, firing off spells to make them change colors. The bees that buzzed around lazily didn't seem to mind at all. Each time a flower cluster changed colors, it released a beautiful scent. However that scent, Senji noticed, mingled with another one. It was the same scent that was left behind after he did a spell, except this one was much stronger; magic. The place teemed with it, made everything seem brighter. Even the birds seem better here, Senji thought as the golden gates in front of the school glided open of their own accord. The carriage came to a stop in front of the large golden doors, and, as the black haired man helped Senji out of the carriage, all he could do was stare. What had appeared white at a distance actually sparkled with billions of different colors all mixed together. It was enchanting. A tall, thin, beautiful woman was standing on the steps that led up to the door smiling down at him. She had short, straight purple hair that framed her young, attractive face. She smiled, dazzling him.
"Welcome to my school, young Mr. Kimura," she said melodiously, "I'm Madame Maev."
	"T-thank you," Senji stuttered, tripping up the stairs to shake her outstretched hand.
	"Please, follow me," she said warmly, turning to enter the castle. Senji followed her, gripping his suitcase tightly as she led him through long, richly decorated hallways. There were expensive rugs and majestic portraits and marble statues.
	Senji was staring at them in awe when Maev said, "To be honest, I thought it was your brother contacting me. He is good friends with my nephew, as you know."
	Senji was struggling with something to respond to this when she continued, "Quite all right though. It is still an honor to meet with a Kimura."
	"Thank you," Senji said as she led him into an extravagant office. She motioned for him to sit down in front of her desk as she pulled a gold colored rope.
	"Tea?" she asked
	"Um, yes please," Senji said, as he set his suitcase by the chair and sat down, looking around. The walls were painted gold , complemented with red curtains and carpet. A large oak desk was situated in front of a wide picture window that looked out upon the grounds. Madame Maev sat down primly in her chair in front of the window and beamed at him. They were silent as she observed him fidgeting, looking up at her and then quickly diverting his gaze, until finally the tea came, elegant china brought in on a silver cart.
	"One lump or two?" the same black haired man who had brought Senji in the carriage asked as he poured the tea into a small cup with flowers painted on.
	"Um, t-two?" Senji mumbled.The black haired man drop the sugar cubes in and sat the cup gracefully in front of him. He did the same for his mistress, then sat a small platter of cakes and cookies in  the center of the desk where they both could reach.
	"Anything else, Madame?" the gentlemen asked.
	"No, that will be all Alfonzo," Madame Maev said dismissively.
	"Er, um, t-thank you," Senji said as Alfonzo was leaving. Alfonzo looked up and stared at Senji  in awe, as if he had just done the most powerful and amazing spell. Maev cleared her throat and Alfonzo shuffled off, closing the door behind him. With that soft click, the room seemed to dim, even with the light filtering in through the window. Maev sipped her tea neatly while Senji in his hurry slurped a little, and his cup clattered when he sat it down on its matching dish. Tea splashed over onto the dish. Senji didn't really like tea, but he had always been forced to drink it when his parents brought him and his brother out in front of company to show off.  Senji rubbed his sweaty palms on his pants discreetly as Maev took another sip before gingerly placing her cup on its dish without sloshing a single drop.
	"Now" she said, "what experience have you in magic?"
	Senji cleared his voice, "Well, I am pleased to be able to tell you that I can complete almost every spell in your book without much difficulty."
	"And what book is that, dear?" Maev said sweetly, picking up her teacup and sipping again.
	"'Elementary Spells for the Amateur Magician'," Senji said. Maev almost spewed her tea. Instead she swallowed, placed her cup back upon its dish and blotted her mouth, all with deliberate slowness.
	"Mr. Kimura," she said, clearing her throat, "is this the only magical training you have had?"
	"Well, I really wouldn't call it training," Senji said, missing the incredulous tone in Maev's voice, "I taught myself."
	Madame Maev stood and walked behind her chair, looking out the window and rubbing her brow.
	"Mr. Kimura," she said, taking a breath, "Any one of these students," she gestured out the window, outside of which played a few children who looked no older than five or six, "Could complete the spells in that book without a second thought, without even having to use the incantation even. By your age I expect my students to be able to perform a mind switching spell without having to speak out loud and to make a golem without lifting a finger. Can you do either one of those?"
	Senji shook his head, dumbstruck. He hadn't planned on this, on Madame Maev expecting so much of him. When he was thinking about all the wonderful things that would happen when he came here, rejection had not been one of them. Madame Maev sat down, sighing. She planted her elbows on the table and folded her hands, overlapping her fingers.
	"I'm afraid," she said, "that I cannot accept you. You do not have the training required to become one of my students. I'm sorry."
	"B-but you don't understand," Senji said, leaning forward, "I have to get in! If I don't, my parents are going to plan my whole future for me! I won't have any say in the matter, and they will never be proud of me! Please, there has to be something, anything! Something I can do to get in!" By now he was standing, his suitcase knocked over, his tea spilled by his hands planted firmly on the desk. It vanished with a snap of Maev's fingers. She sat in silence for a moment, and then leaned forward. As she did so, it seemed to grow dimmer still.
	"Anything?" she asked, her voice barely over a whisper.
	"Yes!" Senji said confidently, without thinking.
	Maev nodded.
	"You have, I presume, heard of the Witch of Ways?"
	A startled chill ran down Senji's spine. The Witch of Ways was an evil old croon with gray skin and green teeth who could use 'ways', or portals, to go anywhere she wanted, anytime she wanted. Many disappearances in Kingston were blamed on her, and she was so feared that Senji's father had hired a well-known warlock to put a protective charm on their house. There had been a reward out on her capture for years, but no one dared go after her, for it was said she lived in the Wood of Wilds, which was a place scarier than the witch itself, full of soulless beasts and flesh eating creatures, not to mention it was haunted by all the spirits that had never had a proper burial. There were many, many more legends about the place, and about the witch for that matter, but Senji could never remember them all, just the ones Devlin had told him as a small child to scare him.
	"Y-yes," Senji said, a little less confidently.
	"Unfortunately, she was an old student of mine," Maev said. This shocked Senji, for Madame Maev seemed quite young to him.
	"She is the only student I have had that turned out rotten, for, as I discovered only after I had taught her some of the most powerful spells in existence, that she has no heart. I want you to spy on her, infiltrate her lair, do whatever you have to, to find out her secret, her weakness, whether it be that she is allergic to mums or where she keeps her heart. Is that agreeable to you?"
	Senji remained silent, considering his options. Either he could go on this suicide mission and most likely die a horrible, painful death, or he could live until he was old and gray with his parents having never been proud of him. The answer to him was quite obvious.
	"Yes. I will be on my way immediately," Senji said, picking up his suitcase. Now it was Maev's turn to be startled.
	"What?" She asked, following him as he hurried from the room.
	"If I do this, you will teach me? Help me to be a great wizard?" Senji asked as he marched down the halls.
	"Well, yes, but-," Maev said.
	"Then I'll do it."
	"Are you insane? You could be killed!"
	"I know that!" Senji said as he burst through the doors and trotted down the stairs, where Madame Maev stopped, amazed.
	"Where's he going?" Alfonzo, who was grooming the horses, asked.
	"To find out the secret of the Witch of Ways," she said in shock.
	"Crazy fool," Alfonzo muttered, then louder, "He'll be back!"
	Actually, he was back. About ten minutes later he came running back to the stairs, where Maev was still standing. She had gotten past being shocked, and was now busy blaming herself, saying out loud how she had basically signed his death certificate, that she could have just blasted him right then and there and it would have been more merciful.
	"Oh thank heavens your back!" she cried as he reached the stairs and sat down, breathless.
	"Which... way?" he gasped, breathless.
	Maev was confused for a moment before she realized what he meant.
	"You still plan on going? Even though it will be your death?!"
	"Y-yes," he said, clutching at a stitch in his side as he pushed his glasses up on his nose.
	"But, why?! Is your parents pride worth your death?" Maev exclaimed.
	Senji grew silent, his breathing becoming controlled. Maev was beginning to think he had changed his mind when a mail currier ran up.
	"Urgent letter for Mr. Senji Kimura," he said, a little breathless himself.
	"I-I'm Senji."
	"An urgent letter from you mother and father, sir. Would you like me to read it out loud?"
	"N-no, I'll read it myself," Senji said.
	The mail currier nodded and handed the letter to Senji. He broke the seal and unrolled the heavy, expensive paper. He recognized his mother's elegant, slanted writing at once.

	My Dearest Senji,
Please stop this foolishness and return home this instant. Your father and I are worried sick. You left to make us proud, and yet you disgraced us by running off unescorted, not to mention bothering poor Madame Maev with your petty ambitions. Just come back to Kingston like a good young man and live decently. We long ago gave up hope of you making us proud, but we have always worried you would do something horrid like this to dishonor our family. We may not be proud of you, but we have yet to disown you, either. Just stop this folly and return home and live a quiet life, as your father and I wish, so that we may keep an eye on you and make sure another incident like this does not happen again. We expect you home for dinner. Your father and I have very important guests coming over, and it would be distasteful if you were not present.
										With Love,
											Mother

Senji's hand fisted in anger, crumpling the exquisite paper.
"Senji?" Maev asked. Senji tossed the letter to the ground.
"Which way?" he asked once more.