MidReal Story
Envy's Magic: A Sister's Rift
Scenario: A story where a girl is waiting for her acceptance letter to the magical school, just to find out her sister gets it instead
Create my version of this story
Emily Hart
aspiring student, sister to main character, tall with curly brown hair, determined and envious
Thomas Reed
school administrator, mentor to both sisters, stern with greying temples, wise and just
Lily Hart
accepted student, main character's younger sister, petite with straight blonde hair, kind and naive
Chapter 1
I was going to be a witch.
I just knew it.
My sister Lily and I had been waiting for the letter from the school for weeks, and today was the day it would finally arrive.
I could feel it in my bones.
The moment I got home from school, I ran to the mailbox and flung it open, but there was nothing inside except for a few bills and a postcard from my cousin on vacation in Hawaii.
I sighed and closed the mailbox, then turned around to go back inside.
Lily was sitting at the kitchen table doing her homework when I walked in, and she looked up at me with wide eyes.
"Did what come?"
I asked.
She lowered her voice to a whisper and glanced over her shoulder at the window above the sink, where we’d both been watching for the mailman all day.
"The letter. Did the letter come?"
"Not yet," I said.
"But I’m sure it will today."
Lily’s face lit up with excitement, and she jumped out of her chair and ran over to give me a hug.
"Thank you, Emily. This is going to be so great. We’re going to have so much fun."
I smiled and patted her on the back.
Lily was two years younger than me, but sometimes it felt like she was the older one, always looking out for me and making sure I didn’t get into too much trouble.
We might not have always gotten along, but we both loved magic more than anything in the world, and we both knew that getting into the School of Magic was our ticket to something bigger and better than anything we’d ever known.
When Lily and I were little, our parents died in a car accident, leaving us alone in the world with no one to take care of us.
But then Thomas Reed found us and took us in as his wards, which meant that he became our legal guardian until we turned eighteen.
Thomas was a retired warlock from the School of Magic who had worked as an administrator there until he decided to move out into the country, away from all the hustle and bustle of city life.
He’d never married or had any children of his own, so he was happy to take us in when we needed him most.
He’d introduced us to magic when we were just little girls, and he’d been teaching us everything he knew ever since then.
We’d been studying under his tutelage for years, and he’d even written letters to the school on our behalf, recommending us to be accepted as students.
He said that we were both exceptionally talented in magic, and that he couldn’t think of two more deserving young women who would be a better fit for the school.
He’d also helped us study for the entrance exam, which was notoriously difficult and only given once a year to prospective students.
Lily was brilliant when it came to book smarts, but I was better at practical magic like casting spells and potions.
Together, we made the perfect team, and we worked harder than ever to make sure we got into the school.
The letter was supposed to be an official acknowledgment of all of our hard work over the years, and I couldn’t wait until it finally came.
I turned back to the stove and stirred the pot of spaghetti sauce that was simmering on top before grabbing a box of noodles out of the cupboard and tearing it open.
"I’m sure it will be here any minute," I said.
"I can feel it."
Just then, Lily gasped from her spot at the table, making me jump out of my skin before whirling around to face her.
I had been waiting for my acceptance letter to the School of Magic for what felt like an eternity, and the day it finally arrived was one that I’d anticipated for a long time.
Getting into the school was no easy task, as they only accepted a handful of students every year, and competition was fierce.
But if you were lucky enough to get in, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that could change your entire future forever.
I reached into the mailbox and pulled out a few envelopes, then flipped through them quickly before letting out a heavy sigh.
"Nope," I said with a frown.
"Just more bills and junk mail."
Lily frowned too, her brow furrowing as she glanced over my shoulder to see the stack of mail in my hands.
"Well, maybe it’ll come tomorrow," she said, trying to sound optimistic.
She was always so positive and happy, even when things weren’t going the way that we’d hoped they would.
It was one of the many things I loved about her.
"We still have plenty of time before school starts."
"I know," I said with a sigh.
But I had been waiting so long for this day to finally come that I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed that it hadn’t arrived yet.
Our mentor, Thomas Reed, had submitted our applications to the school on our behalf a few weeks earlier, and we’d been counting down the days until the letter finally came in the mail.
We’d both worked so hard to get into the school, and I knew that we were both more than qualified to be accepted as students.
Thomas was sure that we’d get in, but sometimes it was hard not to doubt ourselves after all this waiting.
But despite my disappointment at not getting the letter today, Lily was right—we still had plenty of time before school started again in the fall, and there was no reason for us to worry just yet.
It would come eventually; it was only a matter of time.
The very next day, I got home from school and found an envelope sitting on the living room table with my name written on it in Thomas’s familiar handwriting.
Lily popped out of her bedroom down the hall, practically vibrating with excitement as she came running toward me to see what I was holding in my hands.
"Is that your letter from the School of Magic?" she asked, grinning from ear to ear as she got closer and snatched the envelope from my grasp.
"It is," I said with a nod, watching as she tore it open without any hesitation or fear that there might actually be bad news inside of it.
As she read the words on the page, her eyes lit up with excitement, and I could tell right away that it was exactly what we'd been waiting for.
"We did it!" she cried, jumping up and down as she hugged the letter to her chest.
"We really did it!"
Tears stung my eyes as I watched her reaction to the news.
She was so happy, so genuinely thrilled to have finally received an acceptance letter from the School of Magic after all this time.
I knew how much it meant to her, how hard she had worked over the years to be able to attend such a prestigious school.
And yet, as I looked at her now—so full of joy and excitement over this incredible opportunity—I couldn’t help but feel a little envious of everything that was about to come her way.
Putting on my best fake smile, I cleared my throat and read aloud from the letter in Lily’s hands:
"'Dear Miss Hart,'" I said, forcing myself to sound happy even though there were tears streaming down my cheeks now that I couldn't hold back any longer.
"'We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into our program at the School of Magic for the upcoming academic year. Please find enclosed . . .'"
I trailed off, unable to finish reading the rest of what was written there.
We.
Not you, or I, but we.
Only one of us had gotten accepted to the school this year, and it wasn't me.
Lily was going to be attending in the fall; I’d have to wait another year until I could apply again and hope that they’d accept me then.
Lily's face fell as she heard those words, her smile disappearing as she looked up at me with worry in her bright blue eyes.
"Emily," she said gently, "I’m so sorry. I know how much you wanted this."
My heart sank as I watched her sympathetic expression and realized that there was nothing that either of us could do to change what was written on that page.
She was going to be able to go to school next year and study magic with other students just like us, while I was stuck here without her for another entire year.
