Plans of an Evil Gigi
The family decided to send Kaden to his great-grandmother after the holidays. At the start of the new year. It gave him time to adjust to his newfound identity. Kaden was in his new bedroom. The room was built of thick tempered glass on the top of the building that they call home. His father said this way he could benefit from the starlight at night and not worry about freezing. Somehow his father was able to keep all the snow off the roof of their home. At this point, Kaden was no longer surprised at his parent's abilities.
He was even more shocked to find out that his neighbors, both the Bakers, Emma, and Mr. Parker were all Highborn and only used a trick to look like old people. One of the perks of being contracted to the grimoire was you stop aging around twenty-five. As long as its bond stayed true. They were all excited that Kaden had awoken his book.
It was weird seeing the already attractive Miss Emma turn young again. Kaden's brain was almost short-circuited as she was just too beautiful of a woman. She giggled and Mr. Parker felt proud at the reveal. Since then they kept up their disguise just to spare the poor boy. The Baker's joy at seeing Kaden awaken was mixed with the bitter feeling when their son failed to do so. They were just glad that their friends were spared their fate. To watch your child grow old and die as you stayed young was a curse that they did not wash on anybody else.
It turns out there was a deadline to when a child could awaken. If a child did not awaken before their fourteenth birthday they were doomed to stay lowborn. One out of ten purebloods would still fail. If the child's parents were a mix of low and highborn then the odds were even worse. A hundred thousand to one. It was far worse for a lowborn couple as the odds of their child awakening was ten million to one. Kaden was glad he did not fail in the end.
The two weeks had passed fast and the difference in Kaden's body from absorbing the starlight had started to show. He was stronger than before. Able to lift over a hundred pounds without breaking a sweat. He could even dunk the ball now. He felt he could easily school pro players now. His father busted his bubble when he told Kaden that he could no longer play sports with the Lowborn. Because he could hurt them by accident.
Chad also poured cold water on Kaden's NBA dreams. By stating that the Elder Counsel forbids Highborns from any job that fell into the public light. He could not be a Pro Basketball player since it was too public. Same if he wanted to be an actor or anything else that might bring the title of celebrity. To gain the title celebrity of the mortal world would grant the holder a one-way ticket to prison. Chad's medical acclaim was a gray area. His research also helped the Elder Council's war efforts.
Chad briefly stated that the Highborn Prison was like the prisons from the middle ages. That description was enough for Kaden to request his dad to give him the legal books of his new society. His father laughed it off and said he would learn all he needed to learn at Edensburg.
Before Kaden knew it the new year came and went. Today he is going to visit his mother's family in China. Though he did not look Chinese as he took after more of his father's side. With dirty brown hair and hazel eyes. At his current height hitting five-nine by the time he was twenty-five was a sure win. Not as tall as his father but taller than his mother. One trait he did take from his mother was her pale white skin. He found it funny that his father was Caucasian and had a darker skin tone than his Asian mother. All in all, he figured he would become a handsome man, if not devastatingly so when he grew up.
For now, Kaden could care less about such things. He was barely starting to react to the opposite sex. Emma was the major trigger in his young life for said reaction. She loved teasing him constantly now. He hopes that his great-grandmother would at least act her age when he was sent to her. The little he remembers of the lady still haunted his dream.
Emma might be strict in her exercise routine but his great grandmother was a demon. Especially when it came to martial arts training. His Gigi as he called her had come to visit the family a half a dozen times on the weekends. She was always like a tornado when she came. Thoroughly leaving everyone exhausted by the time she left. The only thing that Kaden could remember about her besides being more wrinkly than a raisin was her infatuation with wushu.
"You pack several gi, son?" Asked his mother, bringing him out of his daydream. "Yeah, a week's worth. If Gigi is going to train me those pairs should hold out for a year," Kaden answered. He hoped they would anyway. "Hmm," his mother pondered.
"I'll send you more if need be, it's not like it will take me long to go there. We can have dinner like we normally do when your dad and I get out of work." She responded. Kaden looked at her in total shock before shaking it off. He had to get desensitized to having magic in his life. "Not like I'll be on the opposite side of the planet or anything." He mumbled to himself as he walked to his room.
It was around 2:30 pm when his father returned home from work. It was decided that they take him to his Gigi at 5 pm. It would be around 6 am there. As Kaden asked if they were going to drive to O'hare Airport. Emma and the rest of the adults laugh at him. Saying he was too cute. He just shut his mouth in defiance. "We are going to create a gateway, son. It's why we got our friend here to help us." Chad explained it like it was the normal way to travel. "Yeah, We could each can make the jump by ourselves but since it's you that has to go we need to make a gateway. You'll learn about jumping in your third year. That was a fun time huh Chad." Mr. Parker said as he nudged Chad. As it turns out he is Kaden's dad's best friend. By the way, he is a lot younger than Emma. Cougar was all Kaden could think of now when he looked at Emma. He wondered if that lady held it as a title in her grimoire.
Kaden was standing in the yard wearing his snow gear like he was going to go skiing. Four large suitcases were stacked behind him filled with his stuff. His mother, father, and their friends stood in a circle around him. "We see you soon son," His mother said before she and the rest of the group closed their eyes and in each of their hands, a book appeared. Before long they started murmuring and what they said was in sync with one another. To Kaden, it was a bit creepy how in sync they were. Before Kaden could say anything to them a bright light engulfed him. The next instant he found himself on top of a mountain surrounded by snow. The air was so thin that he felt light-headed.
He was at a loss as he could see nothing but white snow and feel the bitterly cold wind nipping at his ears and nose. Not one second since he regained his senses did two more flashes of light appear beside him. "That woman I swear," Chad berated under his breath but stopped himself from finishing his sentence. His wife was kind enough to pinch his arm as a warning. "Grandma Ma, we have come to pay you a visit," Lisa said in Mandarin. Kaden and Chad both understood her as they both were fluent in the language. Clap, Clap. The sound of someone clapping their hands together twice rang out. The magical scene before Kaden left him breathless. The barren snow-filled mount-peck before his very eyes transformed into a wondrous land filled with green grass and colorful flowers of various types. An ancient Chinese mansion came into view. It was complete with ponds filled with fish and lotus plants. "Beautiful," Kaden could not help but say. "Yes I know I am" came a sweet voice behind him. Out of reflexes, Kaden jumped forward away from the perceived threat. Looking back he saw a woman standing beside his mother. She looked like a younger sister to his mother but more beautiful than her. Her outfit was what gave it away. It was the same dark purple dress with a light blue belt that his Gigi seemed to always wear. "Not you too," Kaden yelled as he pointed his finger at the lady who always drilled the basic forms of Shaolin into his head every time she came to visit.