Edit: Trigger Warnings for this book. There are quite a few.

TW: Blood, death, abuse, violence, suicide, suicidal thoughts, depression, anxiety attacks, mentions of abuse, implied rape, mentions of rape, self-deprecating thoughts,  and traumatic events. Let me know if I missed any. :D

'~-Spencer-~'

The elevator doors opened to the sixth floor of the FBI building. I walked through them, clutching my bag at my side. I had worked here for almost twenty years, so this place felt like a second home. Not to mention my co-workers, who were more like family to me. 

The joy that had bubbled up in my heart and had leaked into my smile was quickly squashed with a feeling of dread as I pressed open the glass doors. There were a lot of people gathered around the televisions in the bullpen, and they were whispering to each other as the president spoke on national news. I spotted one of my team members, Jennifer Jareau, and made my way over to her. As I approached her, I recognized my other friends: David Rossi, Emily Prentiss, and Tara Lewis.

"What's going on?" I asked Jennifer in a low voice.

"President Whitmore is announcing whether or not we're going to war." She responded to me with worried eyes. Jennifer didn't want war, and neither did I, but the Magi were given almost no choice. 

"We, as a nation," Aiden Whitmore spoke from the lectern. "As a planet, cannot allow ourselves to be pushed around by an alien species that has no right being here. I hope that every one of our allies follows in my footsteps as I announce that we are officially at war. We will provide as many households as we can with weapons to defend themselves against these monsters." Shock rippled through the office as everyone processed what this meant. "We also have an advantage. We know what the Prince and Princess look like. Their faces will appear on screen. If you see them, report them to the authorities immediately. The only face we don't have is the King's, so if you have any information at all, please contact us at the number on the screen."

I lowered my head, having already prepared myself for the public's reaction. Whitmore had called us monsters as if we didn't deserve life here on Earth. I was born here, on United States soil. I couldn't control who my parents were. 

"Spence?" Jennifer rested her hand on my shoulder. 

"I'm fine. I just don't like the idea of war. So many living creatures are going to die." I looked at her, trying my best to hold back the tears threatening to spill from my eyes. "Good people. Humans and Magi alike."

Jennifer nodded, pulling me into a hug. Emily Prentiss knocked on the door to the conference room, telling us to meet her there. So, one by one, the rest of my colleagues filed into the familiar space. I closed the door behind me and took a seat next to Tara.

Emily sighed and looked at all of us with a tired expression on her face.

"I know all of you are processing this information differently. I know all of you will have different reactions. But, we have our orders." She paused to glance at all of us. 

"We've been ordered to hunt the Divine family. More specifically, the four royals."

February 3rd, 2001

The key to my apartment slipped into the lock, making a satisfying 'click' noise as I turned it. I opened my door and entered the place, exhausted from my day at the academy. I was only nineteen, but I was on track to joining the FBI in at least two years, eight months, and twenty-five days. I set my worn-out satchel on the black sofa and headed in the direction of my bedroom. I practically threw myself onto the bed, my body heavy with drowsiness. I didn't even bother to change into pajamas as I snuggled under the covers. Soon, I felt the world around me sink into silence, peaceful and alluring. 

Suddenly, I appeared in a meadow, with a forest surrounding me. The night sky watched over me as I recognized that I was dreaming. However, this dream was a lot more vivid than most of my dreams. I could actually feel the grass brushing up against my ankles, and the wind blowing through my messy hair. As my surroundings came into focus, I noticed a couple of things. One, there were two moons- one glowing almost as bright as the sun, and the other was smaller and fainter. Two, they were completely still, as if this world had never seen the light of day, which kind of made sense if I was dreaming. In the distance, I could hear shouts and cheers, which could've meant a competition was going on. I decided to investigate, and I walked forward through the soft grass. On my left, a figure peeking out from behind a tree caught my eye. It was a young woman, who looked to be around my age. However, I would've mistaken her for a child if it weren't for her older face; she was short compared to me.

"Hello?" I called into the tree line, which made her shrink into the brush.

I stepped towards her with my hands up in surrender. "No, no, it's okay. I won't hurt you."

The smaller woman cautiously stalked towards me, her eyes searching for any sign of hostility.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Amelia Divine. What about you?" Her shoulders relaxed.

"Spencer Reid. What were you doing in the forest?" She seemed to recognize my name.

"I usually patrol to make sure that certain Magi who don't belong here, aren't here." My hands lowered to my sides.

"Magi? What's that?"

Amelia laughed at me, shaking her head.

"That's what I'm here to teach you, Sugar." A slight southern accent slipped through on the word "sugar".

I cracked a smile. "Sugar?"

She shrugged, taking my arm and leading me through the trees. After a minute or so, we arrived at a huge clearing, where the voices I heard earlier were clear. Flashes of color played before my eyes as I stared in wonder at the spectacle before me. Two werewolves were fighting, but they were clearly having fun. Except, light flowed around them as if it were....

"Magic." Amelia finished my thought. "They're sparring at the moment. The werewolf twins really haven't had a chance to brush up on their fighting skills."

I shook my head.

"Magic isn't real. I'm dreaming right now." She looked at me with amusement.

"Yes, Magic is real, and yes, you are dreaming right now."

"Wait, how do you know that I'm dreaming?" 

Amelia looked up at me. "I'm the one that brought you here, Dummy."

"How did you bring me here?"

"I told you," She beamed, making eye contact with me. "Magic."

I rolled my eyes. "Why me?"

"Whenever I find a suitable apprentice, I bring them here while they dream and train them to become a warrior. Once they're fully trained, they usually help me if I need backup, and can teleport to the Starry Field whenever they feel like it." Her hands animated her words as she spoke, which was a trait I shared with her.

"Okay, so you want me to be your apprentice." I clarified.

"Mhm."

"But what the hel-"

"Watch your language, please."

"What in the world is a Magi?"

She paused and stared into my eyes for a few moments.

"A Magi is, well, an alien species."

"W h a t ?"

"Yeah, we aren't human. Magi have the ability to manipulate the atoms around them, and can both create and destroy energy and matter."

"But that's not even within the laws of physics!"
"I'm aware, but I'm not a scholar nor a scientist, Sugar, so I'm just telling you what I've been told by my advisors."

I blinked at her in disbelief.

"Wait wait wait wait wait, I'm a human."

Amelia placed her hand on my chest.

"Nope, you're not. Y'see, I'm something called a Reader. I can see all information that you know about yourself. Y'know, surface-level stuff, like your parents' names and who your friends are and your favorite book. However, most Magi can see something called a Trace Number, which basically acts as a fingerprint. Humans don't have Trace Numbers, and Magi do."

I stood there, biting my lip out of habit while trying to absorb so much information at once.

"So I have a Trace Number?"

"Yup. S83jFq07. You should have no trouble memorizing that with your eidetic memory."

I rolled my eyes.

"Can you not read into me before you get to know me? I'd kinda like to tell you some of these things myself."

Amelia nodded, hooking my pinkie finger with hers.

"Promise." She winked at me. This time, she took my hand in hers and sped over to where the twins had finished their sparring session. Whispers broke out and slight gasps of recognition escaped the lips of the crowd that had gathered.

"You didn't tell me you were popular," I muttered to her, walking through the mass of Magi.

"Oh, I guess I forgot to mention my status." She shrugged. "Didn't think it was a big deal."

"Big deal my a-" Amelia shot the male twin a piercing glare, telling him to watch his mouth. I chuckled, immediately recognizing the sibling bond.

The man just rolled his violet eyes, but as his gaze rested on me his mouth opened in mock shock.

"Mimi, I didn't know you were bringing a hottie here, then maybe I would've actually tried with my appearance today!" My face flushed with embarrassment, and a choking sound escaped my throat. I was not used to being complimented, let alone being called hot.

"Matt, you embarrassed my new apprentice!" I cleared my throat, shaking off my flustered look.

"Uh, thanks, I guess?" My voice came out raspy.

"Oh hey, sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I do that to almost every guy I come across." Matt smiled, extending an arm out around his twin's shoulder as she walked up to us.

"Don't worry about what Matt says," She commented, glaring at him playfully. "He's just a hopeless romantic. You could be married to someone close to him, and he'd flirt with you, as long as it was good with your partner."

"Dusk's right and Matt's been single for years."

"Hey!" He appeared next to Amelia, shouldering her lightly.

We all began to laugh, the previous awkward tension disappearing. I couldn't help but notice Amelia staring at me with a strange look on her face.

"So, Amelia," I started. "What makes your status such a big deal, according to your brother?"

"Oh, um-"

"She's literally the Queen of the Magic Web, and she acts like she's not some powerful goddess and the daughter of Irene."

I looked at her quizzically, and she explained.

"The Magic Web is made up of a bunch of worlds that inhabit all kinds of creatures; including Magi. And Irene is- was a powerful healer that many Magi considered to be a goddess."
"Well no sh- crap!" I laughed in my shock. "You basically rule over everybody! Amelia, that is a big deal!"

"I guess." Amelia laughed it off.

Soon, the crowd dispersed, and it was just us four, talking, laughing, and getting to know each other. Eventually, Matt and Dusk had work to do, so that left Amelia and I alone.

"So, your majesty," I bowed in mock formality, a smile playing on my lips. "When do we start training?"

She grinned, her eyes figuratively lighting up with excitement. "When you go back to sleep. I'll pull you here through your dreams again."

"Speaking of training. I have a question."

"Shoot."

"Why do I need to train with you?"

"Why do you train to fight in the FBI academy?"

I glared at her and gave her a light shove. She continued.

"Hey, in my defense, that was one of the first things I learned about you. Now answer my question."

I paused and answered slowly.

"Because we need to know how to defend ourselves and others from bad people."

Amelia nodded. "Exactly. You may already know the basics of fighting, but many Magi have been training since they were little for the wrong reasons. If someone decides that they want to go to war with us, we must be prepared." I nodded back at her in understanding.

"You will wake up soon," Amelia continued. She stood on the tips of her toes, using my right shoulder for support. "I'll see you later, Spencer." She softly kissed my cheek, and I was startled awake by my alarm clock. My hand roamed to my face, touching the spot that Amelia had kissed. It was an odd sensation since very few girls ever tried to kiss me. I thought about this for a while, maybe ten minutes, and then brushed it away in favor of being on time. I was the only student who was off-campus since I had accommodations because I hated change. Though, now that I thought about it, this whole Magi thing was a massive change. But I guess it was a change I could accept. Not that it was likely that any of it was real, but my hand kept finding the spot I had been kissed by her, and I started to doubt that sentiment.

I brushed it off as I got ready to leave. All that was left for me to grab was my trusty satchel, which was unceremoniously sprawled out on the couch. I had an idea, laughing to myself as I willed my purse to appear in my hand.

And it did.

I nearly screamed, dropping the thing in shock. I covered my agape mouth with one hand, the other one trembling as I stooped down to pick it back up.

'Oh my god.' Was all I could think to myself before exiting my apartment, the satchel around my right shoulder. I knew I had to talk to Maeve about this since nobody understood anomalies of the universe more than she did. God, what did I get myself into? And how the hell can I use MAGIC?!