Prologue

 Future Glimpse- A YA Novel by Amy Cody amy.cody@wv.kyschools.us

Prologue 

The Mirror

     Long ago when superstition reigned; when things such as witches and curses still existed, there lived a young woman, Clarice, who owned a very unique and elaborate mirror; albeit she owned it through default.

 This mirror was first handcrafted by a young apprentice carpenter who loved Clarice dearly, yet due to a horrible accident, he was disfigured and thus knew he could never be loved in return.

     Staking all of his hopes on the future, he saved feverishly until he could afford the perfect wood. Then he handcrafted a magnificent mirror for the young woman, in hopes that she would someday cast aside her aversion to his looks and thus love him as he loved her.

     Sadly, Clarice in her vanity, accepted the mirror with no intentions of considering the hideous young man, and the mirror became the focus of her pride as she groomed herself for a man with money and power.

     When the young carpenter learned of her plans, he consulted a local witch, looking for help as he desperately desired this young woman’s love. The witch declared that the mirror had to be destroyed and would thus break the spell of vanity in the heart of Clarice.

“She will see who you really are on the inside; she will see your true love and devotion,” the witch promised. Yet there was more, the witch also explained that it would cure the man of the deep scarring on his face and hands, forever ridding him of his curse.   

     The witch gave the man a powder to blow in the woman’s face, which would lull her into a trance long enough for him to break the mirror.

     When the fated night arrived, the young man climbed through her window, looking for both his love, and the mirror. Sadly, he found the mirror first and as he gazed into it, he saw his future approaching.

Clarice, in her fear and dread, had seen the young apprentice break in, and in the twilight shadows he appeared as a monster. As he stood before the mirror, he saw his future- death. Silently she had snuck up behind him in the shadows, and with a terror-filled scream, she plunged a dagger into his back, piercing his heart, destroying his dreams.  

     As he lay dying, he pledged his love to her at last, and he cursed the mirror for its arresting power. Knowing that he had seen his future, when in the last moments he saw death behind him, he cursed the mirror- that it would forever show the devastating future of others; and only strong hearted, humble individuals such as himself, could use this mirror for any good. He threw the powder the witch had given him, smashing the bottle and its contents across the mirror, then smeared his hand into the pool of crimson blood forming beside and beneath him. He spoke words Clarice did not understand, then flicked his fingers toward the mirror, spattering it with blood.

 Spontaneously, small fires began to burn across the top of the mirror, finally forming into bold, black symbols. As though satisfied, the man smiled and died on the floor of his true love’s bedroom, his only heart’s desire.

     That night two things happened for Clarice, she met her future husband, the wealthy town constable, and together they were rid of the young apprentice’s body. No one ever inquired as to his well-being and he was forgotten like so many others of insignificance.

Frightened and sickened by what had happened to her beautiful mirror, Clarice had servants clean it up and then sell it. It brought a handsome price, which she gave to charity. Well, some of it anyway, and she was satisfied that she had brought the matter to rest.

     A few short months later, she was horrified when a wedding gift arrived at her door. Clarice knew what it was, before they carried it to her porch. The mirror had returned. It stood before her front door, the evening sun glinting ominously red in the glass, and Clarice gasped and stumbled, her shaking hands clapped over her gaping mouth. The men, taking her reaction as one of happiness and amazement, smiled and led her to a seat. They handed her a letter sealed in wax. Slowly, she pried the wax seal from the letter’s back and silently read its contents. She could not believe it!  Somehow, a potential suitor, a peddler who had been passing through town had now fallen into fortune, purchasing the mirror for her as a gift, obviously in hopes of gaining her hand in marriage.

“This can not be,” she practically hissed. Her eyes narrowed and became like steel. The men, taken aback, were even more surprised when Clarice ordered them to re-load the mirror. She ran inside, grabbed her cloak and boarded the wagon with the men. She ordered them to travel all night until they reached a modest dwelling surrounded by dark moist forest on either side and rich, green pastures in front and behind. Flowers of every color adorned the cobblestone walkway and a curl of grey smoke rose from the chimney like a question mark.

     Clarice ordered the men to wait in the wagon and she dashed to the door, knocking frantically until the vine-covered door opened. The men watched as Clarice grasped the woman’s shoulders, obviously crying and begging as the woman stood, staring at the mirror, no expression on her face, save the deep lines of worry that creased her forehead.

The woman nodded silently and Clarice motioned to the men to unload the mirror. They did as instructed, placing the mirror in the clapboard shed beside the house.

“Thank you, Sister,” Clarice sobbed as she rode off into morning dew. “Thank you, Anne.” 

Her sister, Anne, nodded in return, agreeing to keep the mirror to waylay Clarice’s fears. Deep down she wasn’t sure if what Clarice had said was true. However, while she lay on her deathbed, Anne told the story to her own daughter and the mirror and its story were passed on; the mirror miraculously protected through the years, yet somehow remaining a mystery to many who owned it. Maybe it was their lack of imagination. Maybe it was fear, many storing it in attics under blankets- keeping its power at bay. For whatever reason- the mirror was mostly a foreboding  antiquity that each family member felt duty-bound to pass on, until the mirror landed in the hands of Isobella, who knew of its power and used it for good. When Isobella grew old and feeble, she passed the mirror on to her niece, Bethany, who denied the mirror’s powers- even when she saw her own mother’s death.

            When Bethany aged, she knew it was time to pass the mirror on to someone who would do good rather than evil. Someone who sensed that the mirror was a portal between two worlds- the present and the future- and that in the wrong hands, terrible things could happen.