Jerry Russo lined his kids up. Justin had just turned 18, which meant that all his kids were adults. Lucky Justin's biggest birthday present: This meant it was time for the Wizard Competition.

"As you know, only one child from each family is allowed to keep their power and be a wizard. The rest can have Wizard children, but are not wizards themselves. Now that one of you is considered an adult, it's time for you to have this competition. You're lucky, you know. In medieval times a wizard came of age at 13. There would be a competition even before some of their kids would be old enough to participate, or possibly before they were born. If a family had children after the competition, they would be born powerless. Unlucky for them." He paused.

"But like I said, you're lucky," he said at length, hint of irony in his voice. He sighed and looked at his kids.

"You do know that the competition didn't start yet? I know some people get the idea that they were already in competition, their whole lives, but it's only based on the competition you'll have now... not that wizards in the past haven't killed their siblings beforehand to win by default."

The kids edged away from each other, looking at one another with paranoia. Why hadn't they tried to kill each other yet? They spent all this time helping one another - what idiocy! Certainly, it had at least crossed Alex's mind to sabotage her older brother. He was the one about whom she'd worry in this contest. Max was no bother, to either of them. She also doubted Justin would have tried to sabotage her. He was either too honor-bound or too nice to try. Not that he would have any success. Alex smirked at this thought. She could outsmart him in a battle of subterfuge. Justin, meanwhile, was wondering what Alex was plotting. He was determined to win the competition and wouldn't let her win this time! Of course, the one consideration that didn't cross either of their minds was Max. Apparently, neither of them thought him to be any danger to their win. But what they didn't know what how crafty Max could be. The thoughts going through his head were ways to get at both of them. He always did feel like the odd one out, and now he would get his chance to prove his superiority to both of them.

"Max, wipe that evil grin off your face and pay attention," Jerry was saying. This brought all three siblings back to the here and now, with odd looks from Justin and Alex toward Max. They hadn't expected this from their younger brother. They both shuddered.

"Listen, the competition starts in a week, as soon as you're out of school for the summer. However, we can't guarantee that you'll be back by the fall – or that you'll be back at all," Jerry added in somber tones. He sighed again, and turned to the table nearby, and picked up three pocket-sized but thick leather-bound books. "These are the competition's rules," he said, handing one to each of them. "You are expected to know them and be bound by them. Let me tell you one rule first: You are allowed to forfeit. If any of you want to back out now, knowing the dangers that lie ahead, you can." He paused, during which the three kids looked at the ground and shuffled their feet, avoiding eye contact with each other or their father.

"No? Well then... next week you will be given a spell to cast. You will each be transported to a random location, and then you must find each other and engage in combat, physical, magical, or otherwise. You'll find out more from the rulebook."

He looked at his kids, pleadingly. "You don't have to kill each other, you know," he explained, speaking softly, begging them not to. "Unless, upon defeat, the defeated refuses to forfeit. That is to say, the only options are death or forfeiture."

This didn't lead to the three sharp gasps he had expected. Perhaps the kids saw this coming. Perhaps they felt too nervous and sick to say anything.

"Are you all certain you don't want to forfeit now? It's the safest option, you know."

"What if we all forfeit?" Justin asked, academically curious about the situation despite what it was.

"Then you all lose your powers," he answered. "That's not the worst outcome! Please, if you all forfeit you will all be safe. Isn't your love for your siblings greater than your desire to win?"

Alex stepped forward. "I am not forfeiting," she said confidently. "I love you all, I really do." She looked around at each of them, Justin last, lingering perhaps a bit longer on him. "But my desire to be this family's wizard is stronger."

Justin stepped forth next. "I am not forfeiting either. This competition has been wizarding tradition for a thousand years. I'm only paying respect to it by giving Alex a competitor with whom to contend. Besides which, she stands no chance," he smirked at her.

Max stepped forward last. "Nor will I forfeit," he said. "These two underestimate me. I will be the family wizard, or die trying." (When Theresa heard about Max's statement later, she cried for hours.)

"I was afraid of this," Jerry said solemnly.

After telling the kids to read the rulebook, he dismissed them, and they all left to their respective rooms, wordlessly. They didn't look at one another or their father as they retreated to prepare themselves. Jerry went up to the loft where Theresa was making dinner, as somber as the rest of them. Jerry had told her what would happen, and she was, to be frank, a bit mad at him. He said it was out of his hands, but she couldn't help but be upset.

"Theresa, honey," Jerry said, approaching her. Tears welled in her eyes as she caught his gaze, and she knew that she could no longer be mad at him. She needed his comfort and support in the months to follow if she were to get through the ordeal, although she knew that one or more of her children may die, and that two would at least lose their powers, that gift which they cultivated so carefully. She collapsed into his arms, and he carried her over to the couch – they held each other sobbing for some time until she could cry no longer, whereupon she finished dinner and called the kids down.

Dinner was tense. The kids sat as far away from one another as possible, and the whole table was silent.

"Pass the butter, Max," Alex said simply. He handed her something close by, but upon taking it, she saw that it was salt, instead of butter. "Max, you idiot, this is salt! How can you confuse salt and butter!"

"Maybe he did it on PURPOSE," Justin accused.

"No, it was an honest mistake!" Max cried in his own defense.

"Yeah, why are you picking on Max?" Alex yelled at Justin.

"Thanks Alex," Max began, only to be cut off by her.

"But you DID give me the wrong condiment!"

"Is butter even a condiment?" Justin said, steely-eyed.

"Shut up smartass!" Alex yelled. By now all three of them were standing and preparing to cast spells.

"Stop it!" Theresa yelled, crying. "No magic at the table! Sit down, all of you." Reluctantly, they all sat down. "And I have a request for you... please... don't kill each other." She choked up, and began sobbing again, her head down.

They hardly slept that night. Usually they didn't sleep with their doors locked, but for fear of having their throats slit in their sleep they took extra precautions. Alex and Justin even warded their doors with magical locks, despite their father's wishes against them using magic until the competition. Even Justin, the usually responsible rule-abiding one had a distrust of Alex (and to a lesser extent, Max) which lead him to take these security measures. Unnecessarily so, too, as none of the siblings had any plans to off their competition.

Alex mostly couldn't sleep. So thought long and hard about this competition and how it was affecting her relationship with her brothers. Of course, it had entirely ruined it. She realized though, that they WERE her brothers, and she should try to show mercy. She didn't want to have to kill them. Alex realized that despite being her competitors, she loved them. When she beat them, she decided, she would give them a chance to forfeit.

Hopefully they would do the same, if one of them found themselves in a winning position. She smiled at the thought of this unlikely occurrence, and then sighed, and leafed through the book.

"'Article 89: Otherwise Combat'," she read aloud. "What a weird name for a section. 'Combat need not be physical or magical. Both wizards can agree to another form of combat by signing a contract. The loser is expected to either forfeit or face death at the hands of the winner.' Huh."

She was happier the next morning, which Justin and Max found suspicious. Theresa was glad to see it, however.

"Alex,why are you so cheery this morning?" she asked.

"I found something about the competition," she explained. "Justin, Max, I need to show you something!" she cried. Begrudgingly, they trekked downstairs. Neither of them wanted to go first, and though Max ended up doing so, he still glanced behind him on the way down.

"Look at Article 89," she said, opening her leatherbound rulebook. "We don't have to fight, not violently anyway... we can design anything that can be construed as 'combat' to settle the competition."

Justin brightened up. "So, say, a chess match, instead?" he suggested. Alex looked disgusted, but then laughed.

"Something along those lines, but I'm not letting you play me in chess."

Theresa looked pleased that at the fact that her children were safe. At least as far as she knew.