I am a Detective... you might be wondering as to why I am telling you something you already know, but just hold on for a moment and bear with me.

My full name is Charles Reagan Mariner. I am 38 years old and have been a Detective since I was 20, so just about 18 years of experience is what I have to show for all my hard work. Being a Detective for so long, I surely cannot imagine myself being inadequate. In fact, I would imagine I am quite proficient at my job with how successful I am, but regardless of the years that are filled with all my experiences... Regardless of my Gift and Traits that help me find the most careful of killers, murderers, and gangsters... Regardless of how great I think I am at reading someone, at a glance, being able to know their thoughts, emotions... just looking at someone used to be enough to know. 

But not for this one... 

With such an arsenal at my disposal, I find myself unable to find an answer to one of the greatest mysteries of my life. I'll give you a little context in a moment.

This mystery of mine... she is someone who is very close to me. Someone I love more than anything, someone I am even willing to fight the entire world for if it meant having her in my life for just one second more.

My Daughter, Cassie. The greatest gift of my life, but also the greatest mystery at the same time.

My ex-wife and I adopted Cassie when she was three, that would have been about 12 years ago now since she just turned 15 this year alone. 

She was such an adorable child, but now she is a young girl that is growing into a beautiful woman. 

At first, she was very reserved and timid when she first entered our lives. Thankfully, she warmed up after a few weeks. Just like all kids do, of course.

The mysterious part about my daughter started to appear after she had her Gift and Trait inspected. A usual procedure these days, it's important to know if your child has potential, that way you can plan ahead. In fact, it is so important that it can be considered a crime if you do not have your children go through this procedure.

I had an idea of what her ability was when she was around 4 years old. 

She was running ever so quickly across a hall to retrieve something from her room, when suddenly... I guess in a way I could describe it, she... sort of 'melted' into a shadow on the wall. Naturally, I was surprised and a bit shocked, but mostly surprised. She then appeared shortly after opening the door from her room and running back out with a few toys in hand. She had the biggest smile on her face as she exclaimed, "I did it!".

That Gift of hers was classified as 'Umbrakinesis,' naturally, I had a very good idea as to what this was. As a Police Detective, it is important to know and understand Magic based Gifts and Traits.

By the way, her Trait was classified as 'Sleight of Hand,' essentially the grade of her dexterity is quite high. She is good with her hands. I knew this fact as well from the point that I found her coloring in a book with both hands... proficiently coloring... I am sure you get the picture.

Now, her ability, Umbrakinesis, an ability which enables one to manipulate shadows to an extent. It makes her capable of even short-range teleportation. 

Something which she has been abusing now-days as she has demonstrated when we are home. To get to the bathroom, the kitchen, her room... she just morphs into a shadow and she is there. She barely even walks these days. Sometimes I have to make sure she opens the blinds to the windows so that she will actually get some exercise. After all, it is quite unhealthy for a 15-year-old to act so lethargically.

Anyways, back on topic, what honestly baffled me back then was this: We had Cassie's Gift and Trait inspected when she was 5 years old, as per usual with Gift Inspections. The one who was inspecting her Gift claimed that it was partially developed. He had said it was quite mature for her age too.

Now, if one understands what I do, such a statement would imply that she had been using her gift far before I even knew she had activated her Gift in the first place. 
Of course, that is what drove me to ponder on this question: How does a toddler know how to use her gift so proficiently that are actually developing it? 

Maturing a Gift is a strenuous, sometimes even dangerous, task. It is something that often requires the instruction of an expert. There is a reason there are Academies and Guild Schools based around just developing Gifts and Traits!

Well, to put it bluntly, I was in shock after hearing all that. I mean it must mean that my daughter is natural of course... right? 

Long story short, the fellow who was inspecting her Gift and Trait stamped her as "High-Potential". 

Anyone with half a brain cell knows what such a grade means. 

From that point on, my 5-year old's future was paved in gold. After that fellow stamped her 'Gift and Trait Assesment card' He essentially handed us the key to my daughter's future... something that, I will admit, I was a bit reluctant to receive. 

After that day, my life as a father and a husband changed, not for the better mind you. 

My wife took the initiative to contact Guild Recruiters and all sorts of Agents in order to 'raise awareness' for our daughter's future potential. As my ex-wife Mary was a lawyer, she had quite a few connections in those sort of social circles. So getting out daughter's name around was quite easy. 

To me, she essentially turned our young daughter into a bit of a celebrity. Something which I was very much against. I just wanted my daughter to be happy of course, I wanted to spend time with her whenever I could. Be it reading books with her, watching movies, playing games... I just wanted to do everything with her that my parents were unable to do with me. I was hoping to give her a fulfilling childhood. Giving her memories, putting a smile on her face.
Not dressing her up for interviews, forcing her to smile for cameras. Telling her to say lines for a few commercials or whatever the hell it was she was doing...  

Call me selfish, old fashioned even, but life is short and I wished to spend as much time with my daughter as humanly possible!

It was that sort of lifestyle that eventually led me to divorce my wife. It was quite a messy one at that... Fortunately enough for me, she did not take everything. To my pleasant surprise, I ended up receiving permanent custody of our daughter. She was all I fought for in all honesty... and I was grateful for it. 

From that point on, Cassie was always quite tame, cool-headed is what I usually say when describing her. She was 7-years-old, her parents had just split and all she had now was her father. Yet every single day after that, she never complained, she never demanded anything that could be described as unreasonable, and she was always very understanding whenever the answer 'no' was given. She was quite mature for her age honestly... and that is what eventually gave me a clue to something else.

I felt that I was truly just beginning to know a bit more about my daughter. All I had to do was connect the dots, as simple as that. She was a genius. She had an intellect that surpassed anyone in her age and she showed this in the grades she received when she first entered into Red Veil Cadet Academy.

Since the first grade onward, she was the top of her class, in theory, magic control, and even in some sports. 

I was truly proud of her, but as I expected, it all began to further turn her into more of an icon. Even though I was not actively pursuing to bolster her name like how her mother used to, it was just her performance in and of itself that was doing it all. Regardless, I was still proud of her and I let her know that as much as possible. 

I continuously declined all sorts of offers to have Cassie appear on TV talk shows and other types of interviews, and even in doing that, I hated every minute of it. 

In fact, when I had to sign off on the papers to get Cassie into the Red Veil Academy I hesitated dreadfully. 

Obviously, I wanted my daughter to receive a great education and this would, of course, cover that. I also wanted my daughter to be in good, capable, hands... and these were the best from what I knew at the time. 

But for some unknown reason, I just could not bring myself to find the necessary resolve... to find peace with my decisions. I was 27, divorced, a single father... I was afraid.

It had to be something all fathers felt for their children... right? No one wants their children to leave, but we need to let up on our grips in order for them to grow... We need to love them enough, but we eventually just need to let them go in the end... such concepts are honestly lost on me.

I remember, when I had the pen in my hand and I was seated at my desk. I remember it because at the time my hands were very unsteady. Cassie walked up next to me, she was no taller than my desk at that time, 7-years-old and she was still adorably short... She looked at me with those pure green eyes... she said to me, "I won't leave you." 

Somehow, someway, a 7-year-old girl was able to know what I was thinking. She was able to look through all my worries and find the root cause in a heartbeat...

That young girl is my daughter. That young girl is my greatest mystery... one which I sometimes hope I will never be able to solve.

 

 

~~~~

 

 

"Dad... Dad!" A voice seemed to break through a deep thought process that Charles was currently in.

"Huh?" As he stopped at a red light, he turned to see what his daughter wanted.

"You've been quiet for like the past three blocks, you alright there Detective?" Cassie inquired with a cautious look.

Charles just scoffed sarcastically in response, "Of course I am okay... I was just... thinking is all."

He took in a deep breath and looked forward. He slowly pressed the gas pedal as the light turned green at the intersection.

"More like you were reminiscing on the past... You've been doing that a lot lately." Cassie finished off her statement with a confident smile on her face. She turned to look out of the window and take in the scenery of the busy sidewalks.

'How-... should I even be surprised at this point?' Charles thought to himself while he fixed his eyes back onto the road.

"So Cousin Olivia's plane comes in at 7, where would you like to take her to eat?" Charles asked, trying his best to strike up a conversation.

Cassie pondered for a moment, "Hmmm... I am not sure, she likes Italian food if I remember correctly." 

'She likes French food, not Italian... but if that's what Cassie really wants, I doubt Olivia will mind.' Charles Smirked slightly, but then quickly corrected his expression. He then cleared his throat and spoke.
"She does, does she? Very well then, we can go to that nice one Uncle Mario owns." 

Cassie responded very favorably to this suggestion.

"Yeah, that sounds nice actually... I love their garlic bread and that smell of their brick oven pizza~... I'm starving, can we get some food?" Cassie requested with a smile on her face.

Charles just chuckled lightly in response. "Did you skip out on lunch or something? You have that massive cafeteria at the Academy and all. Do they not feed you enough?"

Cassie had a pouting look on her face as she responded, "I ate three hours ago, yes, but I went through a bit of a strenuous tournament and all." Cassie emphasized with an animated expression.
  
"Your daughter is hungry. Now... there is a burger place near home, let's go grab a quick bite to eat!" She rubbed her hands together while she pictured a nice, finely decorated, juicy steakburger triumphantly sitting in-between two bread-buns.

"My apologies, madam, but I believe we have a few things that need sorting out at home before Cousin Olivia arrives. We only have a few short hours to get it all done too." Charles rained on Cassie's little food parade which caused her to groan.

"Aww~..., Dad, please. Come on, Cousin Olivia won't mind that you did not bother to clean every nook and cranny inside the house! Please~..." Cassie put her hands together and protested with a pleading expression.

"Well, one of those 'nooks and crannies' you spoke of, happens to be the living room couch and rug that you aptly cover with chip crumbs," Charles responded in a sarcastic tone, "We have to do some vacuum cleaning in there and you shall be extending a helping hand in the endeavor."

Cassie closed her mouth and sank back into her seat. She sighed and just nodded her head.

"I will do my part, you can count on me..." She responded in a somber tone.

She then sneakily took out her phone and began to order food through a new app she found the other day.

"You order that food and I will throw it out the minute it arrives," Charles spoke without even bothering to take his gaze off the road.

"Keuk!!" Cassie's face distorted slightly at the threat she just received from her father.

'Damn he's good...' Cassie thought to herself as she sighed and accepted defeat with a pouting expression.

 

~~~~

 

 

5 P.M. Wednesday evening. 

Just outside of the city limits of Red Veil, within a small but very expensive looking gated community, three high-class SUVs drove up under the awning of a mansion.

The door of the SUV in the middle shot open and a middle-aged man in an expensive looking black suite briskly jumped out with a sour expression on his face. 

A few gentlemen attempted to greet him at the door of the mansion, but he ignored them as he trudged right through.

"Beretta!! You damned snake, where the hell are you?!" The man's voice thundered as he stormed into the mansion.

He made his way throughout the place, paying no attention to the staff that tried to direct him towards the waiting room where he could wait comfortably, but he did not have the time nor the patience for such a formal visit. He forced his way throughout the mansion until he found himself in front of two double doors. It was Federico Beretta's study.

'Chet!' He clicked his tongue as he tried to open the doors, but they were locked. He quickly poured some Mana into his right foot and kicked the doors open.

The sight that he saw made him think for a few seconds.

Federico Beretta and his daughter Alexa. They appeared to have been having a conversation, which of course he interrupted. It appeared to be rather unpleasant as his daughter had red eyes that she was attempting to cover up at the sudden entrance of this man.

Federico was the first to speak to his new guest.

"Harper, might I inquire as to what you are doing in my home?" His voice was quite subtle, but it seemed to carry a portion of his displeasure at the sudden intrusion.

Harper did not let that throw him off, however. He steeled his nerves and responded in an agitated tone. "I demand to speak with you in private... recent events have lead me to believe that our... partnership is no longer valid."

Harper's eyes kept shifting between Alexa and Federico as he spoke. He was careful as to what he was revealing in front of this man's daughter. He understood what it was like being in this... business and having children.

Federico frowned as he listened. He then shifted his gaze back onto his daughter as he sighed.

"We shall speak of your... future, later. Go to your room. Do not think about leaving this house for anything. Understood?" He spoke with a clearly displeased tone.

"Ye-... Kuhum... Yes, father." Alexa's voice was quite shaky as she responded. 

She stood up from the chair that was in front of Federico's desk and walked back out. Her steps were refined and her movements had grace. 

She held her head high even though she was in such a sorry state currently.

Harper watched as she left, closing the now damaged doors behind her.

Federico then pulled a rune from his drawer and activated it. The room around them was now covered in a dome of silence... no-one could now listen in on their conversation.

 

 

~~~~

 

 

Alexa made her way up into her room, her eyes were red and still had the remnants of tears that have yet to flow. The first thing she did as she got to her room was clean herself up and attempt to get back into a presentable appearance.

'You can't expect to receive my blessing if you cannot even be the top of your class! What sort of shame are you trying to bring upon me?!'

Her shoulders began to quiver once again at the thought of her father's words... 

'You will need to perform better, that is the end of the story. If you do not, I will take action to ensure that you will.'

The warnings... the threats that she had received from her father were still fresh and weighing heavy on her mind. 
She just could not find a way to bring herself out of this fear that seemed to have surrounded her.

 

*Vrrtt*

 

Her phone buzzed, bringing her out of her despairing thoughts for a moment. 
She wiped away the tears once more and picked up her phone.

[Heyo! I sent you my notes directly to your email... please don't just copy them word for word... or else we are both gonna get screwed. Don't forget about your part of the bargain btw. I will bring what I need you to enchant tomorrow.  C.M.]

After she finished reading the brief text, she gave a deep sigh of relief... she held her phone against her chest as she lowly kept repeating two words in a broken voice.

"Thank you." 

 

 

~~~~

 

*Author's Note*

Hello!

So, I feel like I owe an apology to all the people who have been reading my story(s) as of late. Exams have been killing me and ACT's are just around the corner for me, so I have been absolutely drowning in work these days. I am sorry for this wack upload schedule of mine, but please try and bear with me for these next few months as I try and sift through all this work. I will try to at least upload at least once a week... even though that might be stretching it, but we will see where this road goes. Hope you enjoy this chapter and I will try to get the next one up in about 5 to 6 days.

Yours Truly, ABraveLittleToaster.