Mirror of Destiny

Vicki could be spending her spring break any other way. She could be going to Florida and spending two weeks on the beach. She could be going to Six Flags with her friend Zoey. She could just be relaxing at home, watching TV, and being glad that there was no school to worry about.

But no. Instead, Vicki was going to spend two weeks at her grandpa's house in the middle of nowhere. No cable, no internet, no people.

"You have all of your things packed?" Mom asked.

"For the zillionth time, yes!" Vicki exclaimed. She was watching some TV before she was whisked away.

"Got all your clothes?"

"Yes."

"And your toothbrush and toothpaste?"

"Yes," Vicki said. "Mom, can't I be going anywhere but this place? Zoey's going to Six Flags for an entire week, and it would be great if I were going with her."

"I told you, Vicki, your grandpa has happily volunteered to watch you while your dad and I go on our trip. You'll be just fine. He doesn't bite."

"He lives in the middle of nowhere!"

"He lives in the mountains, where you can take nice, long hikes, and it's peaceful with no distractions."

"Distractions from what? Being bored out of my skull?"

"Vicki, you'll be fine. Quit overreacting!" Mom was in the kitchen, cleaning before she and Dad left for their two-week trip to Florida. Mom had long, wavy brown hair and glasses, and she was short and stout. Vicki looked nothing like her. Vicki had fiery red hair, freckles, and she was tall and skinny.

Vicki was teased at school about countless things. Her height, her skinniness, her hair. Her only friend was Zoey, who was also teased because she had braces. But Zoey was far bolder than Vicki.

After what seemed like ten seconds but was really fifteen or twenty minutes, Mom said, "Alright, Vicki, it's time to go!"

Vicki reluctantly turned off the TV and grabbed her brownish-red duffel bag. Mom and Dad had their stuff too. Dad was tall and skinny like Vicki and had red hair and a red beard. Vicki thought he looked like a very tall leprechaun.

It was a long drive to Vicki's grandpa's house. Nearly five hours. Vicki spent most of the drive drawing, reading, or looking out the window, wishing she was anywhere but here.

Vicki had just started a sketch of fairies flying around in a flower garden when suddenly her pencil went wayward. They had turned on a bumpy road.

"From here, it's only about ten minutes to the house," Dad said, who was driving.

Ten minutes of bumpy road where if I draw, it looks like a preschooler's doodles, Vicki thought. She looked out the window. They were driving up a dirt road littered with bumps, and outside the dirt road, there were plenty of tall, light green grass and pine trees.

Ten long minutes later, they pulled up by a big, old-looking house. It was a big cabin that looked like it was about three stories high and literally made of logs.

"Well, here we are," Dad said. "The house I spent my teen years in, and the house you're going to spend the next two weeks in."

Vicki unbuckled her seatbelt, opened the door, and stepped out, squinting at the sunlight. The last civilization they had gone through was two hours ago. How could Dad have spent so many years two hours from everything?

Vicki turned to see that her mom was getting her duffel bag from the trunk. "Have a nice time, sweetie," she said, giving it to her.

After plenty of hugs and kisses, Mom and Dad started the three-hour drive to the airport, and Vicki was left alone.

I guess I should let Grandpa know I'm here, Vicki thought.

Vicki walked up the path to the front door of the old cabin. Flowers lined the house, looking like they were well kept. The grass was a different story. It looked like it was up to about her ankles, and the only place where the grass didn't grow so high was the path Vicki walked on, which was only a tiny dirt path.

Vicki came up to the doorstep and rang an old-fashioned-looking doorbell. She looked up at the big house.

A few moments later, a tall man with gray hair that was disappearing, a wrinkled face, and round glasses opened the door. He wore a long-sleeved argyle shirt and faded jeans and smiled when he saw Vicki.

"Oh, you're finally here!" the man, who was Vicki's grandfather, said. "Come in, come in!"

Vicki came into the house. Her duffel bag was getting heavy.

The house looked like any old person's house. The furniture looked like it was from the 1930s or 40s, and a staircase decorated with a paisley rug led to the next story. Of course, Vicki didn't see any TV or electronics of any kind.

"Nice house," Vicki mumbled.

"Thank you very much," Grandpa said. "Come upstairs, and I'll show you where you'll be staying."

He walked over to the stairs. For an old guy, he was quick. When he noticed Vicki was struggling to catch up, he offered to take her bag.

"Yes, please," Vicki said.

Grandpa took Vicki's duffel bag and carried it up the stairs with ease. Vicki cautiously climbed up the steep stairs.

Grandpa showed Vicki her room, which furniture was as old as the furniture downstairs. The queen bed had a huge patterned quilt on it, which Vicki didn't think was necessary at the end of March.

Grandpa set down Vicki's duffel bag by her bed. "This is where you will be staying for the next two weeks," he said. "It was your father's room, you know. Now come into the attic. There's something I want to show you."

In the attic? Vicki thought. There was never anything interesting in attics. Just darkness and cobwebs and dust and old storage.

Grandpa led Vicki to the end of the hallway, got out a ladder, climbed up, and pushed open a trapdoor in the ceiling. He climbed through the trapdoor. "Come on!" he called from the darkness.

Vicki carefully climbed up the ladder and crawled into the attic. It was dark and smelled dusty, but she had more room to stand than she thought she would have.

Grandpa closed the trapdoor, which had been the only light shining in the dark attic. Now it was completely pitch black.

Well, it was until Grandpa switched on a light. Now dimly lit, Vicki could see a bunch of old stuff you would usually find at an antique store. Everything was covered in dust like no one had been up here for years.

Vicki followed Grandpa through the stuff, wondering what could be so great up here.

At the end of the long room, there was a shiny, silver thing shaped like a mirror. It was framed in swirly gold like it really was a big deal.

"This," Grandpa said, gesturing to the silver thing, "is the Mirror of Destiny. Stand on the X, and see what awaits your future."

Vicki had never considered her future much. And she wasn't considering it right now. She was considering if Grandpa was a lunatic.

Vicki noticed an orange X of tape about two feet in front of the mirror. Reluctantly, she stepped onto it.

The shiny silver in the mirror shimmered, and Vicki saw her reflection. But it wasn't a reflection of a skinny, redheaded girl with only one friend.

Vicki saw a teen who looked about seventeen, with short red hair and freckles. She was on a stage, speaking at a high school about how she learned to follow her dreams of being an artist. Next to her was a projection of a painting. The painting looked like something out of a fantasy movie, with fairies and unicorns and many other fantastic creatures in a forest.

"Is...is that me?" Vicki asked no one in particular.

"Yes," Grandpa said. "Victoria Halford, prodigal painter, known for her paintings of fantastical scenes."

Vicki gazed at her future self, talking soundlessly to all those people. Was this really her destiny, to be a famous painter?

Vicki considered this as she went back down to the house. She considered it through dinner and considered it until she fell asleep.

Vicki woke up the next morning to sunlight shining in her face from the window. She sat up and immediately remembered looking in the Mirror of Destiny.

Was it really her destiny to be a famous painter?

The mirror had projected an image of the future. Why would it be wrong?

Vicki picked up her notebook and turned to the page with the fairy garden.