Mena’s eyes went wide with disbelief. “Become life’s author? What do you mean?”

Fabias gave a toss of his shining locks of blond hair and gave a winsome grin. “It’s simple really. Turn to the unwritten chapter at the back of the book, use some of your powerful imagicnation and write about the perfection you’ve always dreamed of…”

Mena was hesitant, her brown eyes observing the dashing man on the book cover.

“You’re flawless already,” Fabias crooned. “But quite often, girls your age can’t see that. I’ll help you see what I see every day.”

Her mind was racing. What kind of magical book was this? Was it really possible to change life itself? Perhaps a test was in order.

Mena flipped to the blank chapter at the end of the book. In elegant cursive lettering it read, “Chapter 0: The Unwritten Future.”

She picked up her plume and by the light generated from the book itself, she began to write. “Deidre Love had miraculously returned to life.”

The words faded from the book with a sad sizzle.

“I’m sorry, babygirl,” Fabias said with a frown. “I can only affect those who are still in this world.”

Mena wiped her tears away. “Then, I must be the best person I can be…for Deidre,” she remarked.

“Mena’s teeth were perfect,” Mena scrawled while reading aloud. “Straight and sparkling. She no longer lisped, and everyone admired her dazzling smile.”

“Now,” Fabias lectured her, “Grip my book cover as hard as you can and concentrate some of your magic into me. Together, we will tear out the fabric of reality and replace it with…PERFECTION.”

Rainbow magic surged from Mena’s fingertips into the book, causing her to feel a bit lightheaded, but there was also perfection flowing through her veins and it made her feel high and powerful. A taste of metal lingered in her mouth and she spit out chunks of her braces into the sink.

“Whoa,” Mena exclaimed as she looked in the mirror. “I look foxy!”

Her teeth were all white; they were now perfect squares neatly lined and orderly in her mouth. Mena’s eyes went half lidded and she grinned coyly. “Hey pretty lady.”

“It’s so easy to fall in love with perfection,” Fabias chortled. “Especially when that perfection is yourself.”

“Oh yeah,” Mena said, laughing quietly. “Forget May and her stupid advice. I’m confident the world, and Penwell herself, will adore the adventures of Princess Gena and the fabulous, perfect and dreamy author who wrote it.”

***

That night Mena dreamed she was strutting down the corridor full of students, and not surprisingly, they could only focus one thing.

“Are those teeth or diamonds in her mouth?” a Groundborn gasped as her friend dropped her books in response to Mena’s grill.

Mena flicked her finger at the girl. “100 percent pure enamel, sweetheart,” she said, causing the girl to hold her heart and pass out.

As Mena reached the end of the hallway, Ashlan, Laetitia and Marie blocked the passageway with their hands on their hips.

“Where do you think you’re going, filthy peasant?” Laetitia asked with her nose upturned.

“Uh, sis?” Marie said, her eyes wide as she pointed nervously behind Mena. “Per’aps you shouldn’t talk to her like that.”

Mena looked behind her and saw there was an army of fangirls behind her. Each sported colorful shirts emblazoned with Mena’s winking head, which flashed her flawless, sparkling teeth. The girl who fainted stood at the forefront and drove her fist into her hand. “Shall we take care of this, your greatness?”

Mena looked towards Laetitia, Marie and Ashlan, who all flinched and took a step back. Mena narrowed her eyes. “I’ll take care of these clowns myself!”

She gave a dazzling grin as bright as a sunbeam and blasted Marie and Laetita right in the eyes with white light. “Aieeee!” they cried. “We ‘ave been robbed of sight!”

They ran further down the hallway, leaving Ashlan who cautiously put a hand forward. Mena smiled as Ashlan opened her mouth, “Snoooooorrrreeee.”

Mena’s eyes shot open. It was pitch black in her room, but by looking at the glowing sundial on her nightstand, she knew it was two in the morning. She glared across the room to the source of the din. Loud snores emitted from May’s bed. “I’ll teach you to ruin a glorious dream,” Mena grumbled passive aggressively, but instead turned over and pulled her pillow over her head, trying to get back into the world of dreams.

***

The next day, Mena grumbled in the bathroom again. She pulled down the skin beneath her eye to reveal cracked, bloodshot lines. “Oh, that May!” Mena howled, “Who does she think she is, not clearing her nose before sleeping?”

“Don’t mind the ways the ugly,” Fabias said in his decadent voice. “She only wishes to rob you of her beauty. But fortunately, you have a powerful elixir.”

Mena walked over to her bag and held out her magic novel in her hand. “What will I do?” she whined.

“Nothing a small rewrite can’t fix.”

Right!” Mena said her eyes bright in spite of the veins. She turned to the next unwritten page in her novel. “Mena had the whitest scalera in all the land.” Her voice bounced happily as she wrote it. She pressed her fingers to the tips of the page and let the magic flow into the book. For a split second, she saw a white flash, and when she looked into the mirror once more, her eyes were clear and white. Shockingly, they were pupil-less, but then her brown pupils returned, framed perfectly by the all-white-scalera.

Mena’s shining grin matched them. “Take that, May” she laughed.

***

As everyone ate their breakfast, May and Mena tried their best to ignore each other. Gemini made his announcement for their first day. “Sorceresses,” he said standing high on his cloud. “Welcome to your fall semester of wonderment. There will be one important change to the curriculum. Physical Education is a top priority as per the forceful suggestion of Professor Nebula. I’ll now send out the new schedules so you can see which period you have her. The rest of your classes will remain at the time they usually are.”

Gemini clapped his hands, and once again, thousands of paper suns, crescent moons, globes and a singular rainbow flew out from behind the teachers and zoomed to their respective student.

A moon, globe and rainbow hovered over Mena, May and Janus.

“Hmm,” Mena said. “First period is my Phys. Ed.”

May shook her head. “So do I, but my handicap prevents it. At least I don’t have to go to class with the friend betrayer,”

Mena’s eyes shot open and if they weren’t rewritten, they would have cracked with red veins.

“I’m the friend betrayer?!” You stole my book.”

May ignored her, shaking her head. “I didn’t steal your book. But you stole my happiness and joy when you framed me.”

“Great,” Janus remarked, rolling her eyes. “I’m like a dead person buried between a recently divorced couple in the graveyard.”

Following Janus’ voice, the bell rang. Breakfast had ended and the first period began.

Mena was thankful May wouldn’t be in Phys. Ed. to fight with her, but soon, she realized that Ashlan and the snooty sisters would be. The three of them walked into the locker room together, loudly gabbing and gossiping about the lower class. Not to mention, Mena wasn’t sure how her stick-like frame would endure such a beating from such an intensive work-out, but Fabias assured her, “That’s why you got me, babygirl.”

In the locker room, Mena changed into her grey baggy t-shirt and black gym shorts. “Drat rats,” Mena said, realizing she had no pockets on her gym shorts left to store Fabias. “Not sure how I’m going to write in you when I’m jogging five thousand miles.”

She looked down at her t-shirt and wrapped Fabias in it. It was long enough to hold a book as long as she tucked it in. Even Fabias was impressed. “And they claim beauty and wit don’t go hand in hand, but you, M-M-Mena are the exception.

Taller shadows draped over her. Ashlan, Laetitia and Marie all stood over her in their gym clothes, smirks stretched on their faces.

“Peasant,” Laetitia said, her silver hair tied back as she tossed it. “I want you to, uh…’ow do you put it, ‘break a leg’ out there.”

Her dark haired sister Marie chortled. “In zis gym class, it’ll be more like, break a body.”

“Good luck,” Ashlan said with a nervous smile.

Both Laetitia and Marie’s eyes widened. “Good luck?” Laetitia snapped. “Ow is zat an insult?”

Ashlan’s eyes darted back and forth between sisters before she said, “Oh it means the same thing. ‘Break a leg’ is good luck without the metaphor.”

The sisters narrowed their eyes at Ashlan. Laetitia put her hand behind Ashlan’s back and they walked away. “Come Ash,” the bourgelf said. “ Zere are many bullying techniques you missed out on when you were having an adventure with that peasant.”

Mena breathed out a sigh of relief but wondered why Ashlan wasn’t as harsh on her. She swallowed hard, regardless. This class was either make it or break it, especially when she heard a loud scream from the gym along with Nebula’s deep voice. “That’s gotta sting,” she said, half laughing, half concerned about the whimpering girl. “I think we’re going to need a full body cast out here.”