"And like a little girl cries in the face of a monster that lives in her dreams.

Is there anyone out there, 'cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe.

Is there anyone out there, 'cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe." -Maroon 5

You have to run faster…

Faster…

Well, father told us to be careful where we tread. He said that there are people out here that will hurt you, regardless of your age-

What was that? It sounded like a bang…

Was it above on the surface? I don't think so, it would have been lower in decibels. Then where would it have come from-?

There it was again. It sounds like it's getting closer. What if it's-

"You there! Freeze!"

Oh no, they've found me! I...I have to get home...I...I have to-

"I said freeze! Don't make me kill you!"

No, please...you're soldiers aren't you? You wouldn't hurt me, right?

"I said freeze!"

No! I...I didn't do anything, why are you going after me? Please...just...leave me be!

...

Screams of agony...this newfound strength. I feel so strong. What was that?

Oh...they've melted. Their skin...their bones...their hair...it's all sizzling away.

Did I do that? Was that all me? Did I kill them? Did I…did I…?

"Help me, my body is on fire!"

"You filthy little...m...ah...t...on...uhh…."

I...I...their teeth….their tongue...their face!

BANG.

She awoke with a start as her heart pounded in her chest, and sweat sheened across her pale body. A trembling hand reached up to relocate some of the hair that had fallen in her eyes, before it went back to cover her heart. Another nightmare.

She sat up in her bed and swung her legs across. Her purple iris' flickered as she tried to adjust to the darkness in her room, and eventually she reached over for a conveniently placed glass of water. She took a sip of the liquid, and the familiar burning sensation took place within her body. She took a deep breath, and after a few moments, her frame had stopped trembling.

"This has to be at least the third time this week," she grumbled, and glanced over at a clock on the wall. Its face read 10:32. She had missed yet another class. She let out an irritated sigh, which caused her dark bangs to flutter in front of her. "Headmistress Aradia isn't going to be pleased about this."

She decided that it would be better to get up and attempt to be productive today, than to just sit in bed. Her body seemed to move robotically, and helped her when needed. When she glanced at herself in the mirror, she was at least clothed and her hair looked at least decent. Now where she was headed off to was another story.

She didn't have any other classes that day, so her best bet was to go enjoy her free time at the library; it would look as though she were making up for all of the class-time she had missed. She grabbed her bookbag and started to walk to the grand library of Cloud Tower.

She loved to walk through the halls when there was no one else but her. It was just so tranquil, and it felt as though Cloud Tower itself was embracing her and leading her to her destination. The way to the library was fairly short, and she hardly encountered anyone else on her route.

"Aerona!"

Or so she thought that she would never encounter anyone else on this route.

Aerona turned her head slowly to find her friend Griffin not too far behind. She was one of the few witches that Aerona had befriended. She was a fairly nice girl, smart too, and she knew how to use her powers extremely well.

"Where were you this morning?" she asked, and readjusted her square glasses.

"In my room," Aerona replied bluntly.

Griffin's golden eyes narrowed slightly as this response. "You had me worried," she scolded, and began to walk side-by-side with her friend.

"I don't see why." Aerona said, as she shifted the weight of her bag.

"Were you hurting yourself again?" Griffin whispered, and grabbed a hold of Aerona's wrist. She carefully picked up the loose sleeve of Aerona's black jacket to check if any new abrasions had been made unto her skin.

Aerona quickly slapped her prodding fingers away from her arm. "No," she hissed back, clearly annoyed.

Griffin frowned and let her arms flop to either side of her body. "Oh, okay." she replied, and her eyes darted awkwardly to the side. "So, where are you heading off to?" she asked, clearly trying to change the subject.

"The library," Aerona said, and glanced over at her friend. "I just need to give my mind something to do."

Griffin nodded. "Okay. I think I might come with you. I'm pretty sure professor Ediltrude gave us some readings to do," she noted, while she adjusted her glasses once again.

Aerona simply nodded in response, and when they had finally made it to the library, she held the door open for Griffin. The two walked into the dimly lit room and were greeted by the eerie silence that the area was known for.

Aerona spotted a nearby empty work table and situated herself there. "I'm going to look for something to read," she stated, and began to roam the long corridors filled with books.

She didn't exactly know what she was looking for, she just needed something titillating enough to get her mind off of that horrible nightmare. The thing seemed to be replaying inside her head over, and over, and over again; it was as if it was on repeat.

Aerona shook her head to try and clear her thoughts, and made to grab a book on demon mythology. A swift hand halted her actions and took a tight grip of her wrist. Aerona flinched and glared at her attacker, which happened to be Griffin.

"What is it now?" she snapped.

"Don't get that boring old thing," she said, and lead Aerona to a much darker section of the library. Aerona had never been this far before, however she knew this is where the much stronger and much sinister pieces rested, awaiting for a naive student to stumble across their pages.

"A-are you sure we should be back here? I've heard that only those with handwritten notes signed by their professor can go here." Aerona said.

Griffin laughed harshly at her statement. "You're acting just like a fairy," she teased, and took a sharp turn. "You don't need such silly implements to be able to read these books. I go back here all the time," she reassured, and suddenly stopped.

Aerona looked at Griffin, and her demeanor seemed much more serious than it had a few seconds ago. Whatever Griffin had been leading her to, apparently, she had come upon it. Aerona was dragged towards a table in the far back, on which stacks of old books were currently occupying.

Griffin finally relinquished her grip to more closely inspect the pieces, and Aerona followed her lead. "What are these texts? I've never seen them before," Aerona said, as she picked one up off the top.

"That's because you really have to look for these ones, which you obviously haven't if you're using some lame excuse like 'you need a note'." Griffin mocked, as she continued to look over the titles.

Aerona glared at her, and leaned against a nearby shelf. "How much longer are we going to be back here?"

"Would you relax? We've only been back here for a couple of-aha!" Griffin exclaimed, and in her hands was a worn leather book.

Aerona made her way over to better examine it, and it appeared as though it didn't have a title. "What kind of book is this? It doesn't even have a title." she said.

Griffin huffed and shoved the book into her arms. "Why is the title so important? If it's a title you want, it's on the opening page."

Aerona gave her a questioning look before propping the tome up on her knee. She slowly peeled back the leather cover and found that Griffin was correct. The book's title was one the very first page, written out in fine ink, in bolded cursive letters: "We Are the Mother of All Witches".

"What the…?" Aerona mumbled, as she began to quickly scan through the content of this book. Mother of all witches? Who were these people? Were they important to Cloud Tower? Were they important to Griffin?

"What is this, some kind of joke?" Aerona said, and immediately knew she had somehow offended Griffin by saying this.

Her golden eyes flashed dangerously in the low light, and Aerona saw her fists clench. "Joke? Why would they be a joke?"

"They…? You mean, these mothers?"

"Yes, of course I mean them. Didn't you even read any of it?" Griffin snarled, as she yanked the book out of Aerona grasp. She slammed it onto the table, which caused a cloud of dust to explode into the air, and began to flip through it. "Look," she said, and pointed to a trio of crudely drawn portraits.

Aerona couldn't understand what was going on. Griffin seemed rather hellbent on proving that this was important, but she just couldn't grasp why it was important. "Are they someone you're learning about in a class?"

Griffin scoffed. "Of course not. No one here has the gall to talk about the Mothers. They're too scared of them," she said, and backed away from the book so Aerona could get a better look. "Read some of it. I'm sure you'll come to understand it when you do."

Aerona decided to play along with Griffin's strange little game, and so she began to read the text. Most of it seemed to be notes, and rough jottings of ideas, and none of it connected in a cohesive way. However, it was as she got into the middle section of of the text that she noticed something rather...strange.

It appeared that any random thoughts, or arbitrary potion recipes or demon incantations, seemed to halt here and instead, it was replaced with a conversation. Aerona counted four speakers, although no names were stated until a question was asked to the reader: "With whom have we been speaking to?"

And the answer was…"Griffin".

Author's Note: if you hand't guessed by now, this story is taking place in the past slightly before Griffin becomes a full member of the whole gang. Not gonna lie, the conversation between the authors and the reader was a shout out to the second Harry Potter book, but it just fit so well. I really hope you enjoyed reading this, and if you really liked it, why don't you leave me a review and give me a follow. That way, I know at least some fans want to see this continue ;P I'll catch you later in chapter two!