First Premonition. Pablito

Candice was thrilled. She had managed to move from that antique cage to one where she would have more freedom. Her power could now grow without limits, and if everything went well, she might even escape that cursed mirror. For a few days, she observed Emily's life.

Candice watched the family dynamic. The eldest woman never spoke, and the mother did nothing but give orders, practically hiding from her own needs and desires.  hat woman was always out and the elder was always distracted with that srange box. The girl was practically alone, doing nothing while she was in her house.

No matter how hard she looked, she found no trace of Emily's father or any male authority figure.

She remembered her own life as a mortal: forced to be a perfect dancer. Not a single gesture of pain, not a single genuine smile of happiness. It would be easy to become Emily's friend.

When she presented herself to her, she was a different person. Her physical body was no longer that of a dancer. She had mimicked Naomy’s physique and adapted it to her own age. She no longer a dancer; she simply watched Emily’s surprise.

"Who are you?" Emily asked curiously, which caught Candice off guard. The girl looked excited, happy.

"You aren't afraid of me?" Candice asked with surprise. Emily was smiling; her excitement was genuine. It was the first spell that had actually turned out right.

"No. It means ghosts are real," Emily replied, still thrilled. "Wait until my friends find out..."

"Ah, is the other young girl your friend?" Candice asked inquisitively. "The one who dresses very strange."

Emily was left confused, not knowing which friend the woman in the mirror meant. Candice explained that she lived in the oval mirror that had been placed in the room of the girl who wore skimpy clothes. Finally, Emily realized she was talking about: Naomy.

"How did you get into my mirror?" Emily asked with excited. "What is your goal? What is your name? I’m Emily."

Candice was surprised by how expressive the young girl was. She wondered why no one corrected her or even scolded her for being so loud. She remembered that only women lived in that house. What a racket, she thought.

"I am Candice," the woman replied with a graceful bow. "With the ritual your friends performed, you have set me free. My duty now is to show the future."

"The future? REALLY?" Emily asked excitedly while jumping up and down. "Tell me, will I pass the history exam?"

"It doesn't work like that, dear," Candice explained, calmy. "That is a future you can create yourself. What I do is different. When something important is about to happen, I will show it to you through this mirror," Candice explained, pointing to Emily's hand mirror. "But I warn you. The future I show you is something that will happen, but it can be avoided."

Emily paused to think. What kind of future is something that will happen but can be avoided?

"Why can't you show me if I pass the history exam then?" Emily asked. "Besides, I don't understand how you can show me a future that's going to happen but can be changed..."

Candice said nothing; she simply vanished. Looking at the clock, Emily realized she was already late for school. She changed as fast as she could and, without eating breakfast, headed to school, arriving just in time before they closed the gates.

As she entered her classroom, a surprise awaited her: Pablito had returned. He limped a bit, and a few bruises were still visible, but overall, he was fine. He was still the same fearful, chubby boy who trembled just by existing.

The other students were happy about Pablito's arrival, especially one of them: Hector, who approached him without hesitation. Hugging him and smiling, Hector said aloud:

"Pablito! What'a miracle to see you here!" he said with a laugh. Pablito was shaking with fear. He didn't dare say a word. "I was gettin' so bored, and Emily isn't a fun substitute, ya know?"

"Sit down now, Hector," the teacher said as she entered the room, her footsteps heavy so the students would take notice.

"Ms. Domínguez, I'ma just sayin' hello to Pablito," replied a confident Hector, who was still hugging his victim. "Pablo, tell the teacher I'ma just sayin' hello."

The teacher watched; Pablo replied that yes, it was just a greeting and there was nothing to worry about. Hector went to his seat, and the teacher began to give a sermon about bullying—that people should not be humiliated for their physical appearance or their tastes. She warned that any new incident would have consequences for those involved.

The first three classes passed without incident in Emily's grade. When class ended and the teacher left the room, Hector approached Pablito to talk.

"How are you, Pablito?" he asked in a mocking tone. "Fallin' down the stairs must have been terrible."

"I... I had to... stay... for... two... two days..." Pablito whispered while trembling. He tried to look everywhere except at his classmate. Hector smile with the confidence that only his presence inspiered true terror.

"It's nothin'," Héctor laughed, roaring with localized laughter. "All that fat surely cushioned your fall; it's not'a big deal."

Some laughed, others pointed, while people like Emily stayed out of it. The consequences could be bad if they got involved. The history teacher entered the classroom and ordered for order.

At recess, Pablito was the first one out. Emily searched for her lunch in her backpack. She noticed she had her hand mirror with her, her good luck charm.

"I see Pablo is back at school," Karla commented. "Thanks to the Virgin and God, he's okay."

"That poor guy should say something," Lucía whispered while deciding what to eat first. "It would be much easier."

Emily just listened. She had discovered that her grandmother had made her an egg sandwich again. Naomy took the sandwich and started eating it, which caused some complaints. Emily ignored it; she decided to fix a rebellious lock of hair so it would stay the way she liked. She looked at her reflection—or tried to.

It felt as if she were looking at a computer monitor or a television. Her face wasn't reflected; instead, there was something she didn't understand. She could see Pablito running in that funny way of his, and behind him, Héctor and two of his friends.

They caught him and dragged him toward a pedestrian bridge. Once at the top, two of them grabbed him by his legs and one of his arms, reaching the edge of the bridge. The look of terror on Pablito's face was the last thing he saw.

"Do you think she's sick?" Naomy asked, somewhat worried. Emily  snapped back to reality when her friends giggled; she closed her mirror, some goosebunmps felt which came down from her back. 

She had to stop staying up so late, she thought. Now she was having lucid dreams because of that, terrible nightmares that are ocurring during daytime. 

"A spiritual cleansing will fix her right up," Karla replied as she picked up the mirror and handed it back to her friend.

Emily tried to change the subject to something more pleasant. She asked Naomy to tell her about the latest episode of the soap opera she always watched, thinking that because she had skipped breakfast and didn't eat that disgusting egg sandwich, she was already having hallucinations.