Chapter 8

Carina's POV

"WAKE UP!! YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE!!" Even in the depths of my sleeping mind, I could hear Felicia screaming at me but I chose to ignore her

Sleep was a privilege

Ever since I died many things have become a privilege, many things I never knew I was taking for granted, Sleep for example, I never thought I would ever be able to sleep again until one day I came across Nerva perched on top of a bookshelf lying on her stomach with her head nestled between her paws, her glowing body rising and falling gently with her eyes closed and her head lulled to the side

Fascinated I stared at her for 30 minutes straight thinking she was in some sort of trance before I finally came to terms with the fact that she was sleeping, I envied her, so badly that I asked Felicia for help and she told me that sleep was a possibility only in theory, in actuality what Nerva was doing was turning off her psyche sending her mind into a sleep-like state and for that to happen I needed strong mental control

I wanted it no matter what so I begged her to teach me and she did, it took a month and a half of deep meditation before I was finally able to put myself to sleep and it was blissful, so much so that I slept for 17 hours and nearly sent Felicia into Cardiac arrest thinking I was gone for good this time

When I woke up she gave me an earful saying I took 86 years off her life and made me promise to do it in moderation, I had very little control in the first place so I promised to get better which I did, I've been training myself to take short naps through the day, I haven't had a full hours sleep in a long time till yesterday when I decided to sleep in preparation for the exam, I worked very hard so I deserved a couple more minutes of sleep, at least I thought I did until I felt a cruel jerk of my bed hurling off my covers throwing me onto the ground my body hitting the hard wood with a loud thud

A pained groan passed my lips as I sit up on the floor glaring at my assailant, the bed in question innocently lays itself back, folding my sheets and blankets and then propping up my pillows, the other items in my room get to work putting themselves in order

My shoes go under my bed, my pens and pencils float into my pencil case, books fly off the shelf into a bag and a fresh pair of clothes float out of my closet spreading itself out on the bed, I silently watched in contempt as the room fixed itself still sour over my ruined sleep

When Felicia gave me this room I never would have guessed that this was what awaited me, it looked like a normal room, the walls were a deep shade of pink, the bed was a simple storage bed with drawers on the bottom, and a white frame against the wall on the right, the floor was dark hardwood and had a small pink shag carpet in the center, to the left was the bathroom which also had a basic shower, toilet, and sinks, beside the toilet was a large white wardrobe with golden handles, the greatest thing about the room was the giant circular window in front of the room, which I'm guessing was a bay window because of the couch with drawers attached under it, I loved the room, it felt cute but the first time the wardrobe opened on its own I nearly fainted

I loved how convenient it was that the entire house was alive but at the same time she was a bit of a jerk, I muttered some less-than-friendly words under my breath silently cursing the living pieces of wood as I made my way to the bathroom, the doors fly open welcoming me, I slowly strip out of my nightgown stepping under the shower, a soft stream of warm water pelts my skin lulling me into a state of calm, another thing I took for granted

My body doesn't exist, it's nothing but a projection created by the glamour charm, I don't need to bath because my body never actually gets dirty, I don't feel hunger or thirst, I don't feel fatigued or even discomfort, but I am capable of feeling things like pain or ticklishness when Felicia or Nerva touch me which I find baffling

I find a lot of things baffling, for example, because the Glamore charm was made by Felicia and had her mana Inside it I can touch other things that had Felicia's mana in them, for example, this house, the entire house was enchanted by her which was the reason why it was alive and why it was undetectable by regular people, she says to them it either looks like an empty plot of land or it looks no different than the other houses in the street

I can also wear clothes she enchanted which I was grateful for, she says when I get better at mana control I'll be able to enchant my clothes but until then I entrust her to hide my nudity

I grab the body wash on the wall and then proceed to lather my body, I take advantage of this privilege because outside this house I won't be able to touch anything, I finish up and step out of the shower grabbing my towel off the railings proceeding to the bathroom mirror, I place my hand over the foggy mirror wiping off the condensation to reveal, Me, messy hair, purple eyes, dark skin and all, another privilege I took for granted, being able to see myself

I decide to braid my hair in two since I didn't have any time at all for an intricate hairstyle, tucking the ends at the bottom and securing them with a small pin I take one more look in the mirror turning my head from side to side till finally I was satisfied before stepping out of the bathroom towards the bed where my clothes, shoes, and items had been laid out for me

Black high-waisted jeans, a white button-up shirt, a golden chained belt with 3 steps, and a deep purple blazer to match my eyes, I was still sour about this morning and hated this room for being a jerk but she was a jerk with a great sense of style so I'll forgive her

I stand in front of the outfit clutching the towel around me, I run my hands over the blazer feeling the mixed texture of cotton and denim, beautiful, is that even possible?!, the shoes were simple black slip-on which I loved, and I had a feeling I would do a lot of walking today so it's best to wear comfortable shoes

I quickly pick out a pair of matching underwear before getting dressed, I've never had access to this much luxury in my previous life so yes I tend to indulge now and then, I sling the bag over my shoulder while moving to the bedside where my phone was charging

The phone was a gift from Felicia, she rewarded it to me when I levitated an Apple without setting a small portion of the library on fire, but sadly, it came with a catch, the catch being that she wouldn't enchant the phone, she said I had gotten fairly good at mana manipulation so I should be able to enchant it myself, I was surprised by the faith she had in me but sadly even while using the stored mana in my glamour charm all I could manage was a low-level enchantment which entailed I created a small continuous veil of mana around the phone every time I try to pick it up

I knew I wasn't going to be anywhere near Felicia's level where I was enchanting and bringing structures to life but I at least hoped I would be able to enchant a small rectangle without feeling dizzy after 45 minutes

With hours of practice, I finally had the hang of it, mostly, so it was only a matter of time before I could manage higher-tiered enchantments, hopefully

I walk out of the room the door closing itself behind me into the hallway, the drapes flap, the carpets shimmy, and the ornaments dance as if saying good morning which I reply with a smile patting my hands against the wall, it is no secret that I liked the hallway far more than I liked my room

Down the flight of stairs onto the ground floor, I was welcomed by the smell of freshly cooked eggs and buttery pancakes, I follow the smell into the kitchen where I find Felicia looking flawless as ever in an emerald green off-shoulder floor-length dress with a high slit on the right side of her thigh and a simple black belt around her waist, she was seated cross-legged at the kitchen counter while frying pans flipped eggs and bowls poured the batter into fresh pans

"Good morning," she said which I replied with a good morning of my own "....ooooh you look so cute.." she gushed over my outfit, I wouldn't call it cute but I said

"Thank you, I'd appreciate it if my bed stopped assaulting me" I protested which she replied with a shrug

"Maybe your bed would be nicer If you had a better sleep schedule...." I wanted to argue but deep down I knew she was right so I optioned to roll my eyes instead "....come on, I made pancakes, take a seat" she patted the empty seat beside her beckoning me

"Okay," I said as I sat down, soon after a plate of pancakes and fresh eggs floated toward me landing in front of me

I didn't need to eat but I had to, Felicia stated how it would look odd if I never ate so she taught me how to use mana to disassemble objects, it was like enchantment but a little more destructive, I'd spread a thin veil of mana over the item and then I'd compress it till it disappeared, it sounded easy but it was anything but, worst of all I had to do it inside me so I practiced for months, it was one of the first spells she thought me

I mana-coated the spoon while picking it up and got started on the pancakes in front of me, all I could keep down were two cakes before I began to feel nauseated pushing the plate away

"I'm good," I told Felicia who finished the last cake on her plate wiping her red lips with a napkin

"Alright then, let's head out," she says pushing off her seat, in a flash of gold, ornaments raced through the air towards Felicia, a long golden chain wrapped around her neck, a thinner gold chain wrapped around her exposed thigh twisting and turning till it wrapped down to her ankle, a golden pin went into her braided hair wrapping her hair into a neat ponytail, the last accessory was a large black velvet scarf with gold embroidery which came to rest on her shoulders

What a convenient way to get dressed

With one last look in the kitchen mirror she heads to the door, no wonder there were mirrors all over the house

We walk to the front door and she places one hand on the doorknob and reaches the other one out to me

"Ready?" she asks and I take her hand saying

"Ready as I'll ever be" She wrapped her hand around mine swinging the door open and pulling me out of the house into a blinding flash of white light obscuring my vision, when the light finally dimmed and I could make out figures again I found us in a cute little coffee shop

The smell of freshly brewed coffee mixed with the scent of pastries, creams, and cinnamon, the cafe had a warm feeling to it, the chairs were white and intricately designed, the walls had wood panelings, the floors were light brown tiles and the counter had every cake you could image but that wasn't even the best part

The café had a large window which had a perfect view of the EIFFEL TOWER!

"Are we in Paris?!"