CARMELLA

CHAPTER 5.....misery mission continues

*Later that day, Carmella arrived at Bruno Café*, her steps quick and tense. Mrs. Emma was already seated at a small corner table, watching the door. As soon as Carmella entered, Mrs. Emma raised an eyebrow.

“You’re late,” she said calmly.

“I had to make sure my siblings were settled at home before I came,” Carmella replied.

Mrs. Emma nodded. “Alright. That checks out.”

Carmella’s eyes scanned the café. “So, where exactly are we training?”

Instead of replying, Mrs. Emma stood and gestured for Carmella to follow her. They exited the café and took a winding route to a hidden, old building at the edge of town. It looked abandoned from the outside, but the inside was a different story.

With a flick of her hand, Mrs. Emma turned on the lights, revealing a massive training area filled with brooms, spellbooks, potions, and enchanted tools.

“Welcome,” she said. “This is where my mum and brother used to train.”

Carmella looked around in awe. “Isn’t this place too exposed to the human world?”

Mrs. Emma smirked. “Is it?”

She walked to a side wall, pressed a panel, and instantly, the room transformed into a dusty, empty gym. The magic disguised everything.

“Plus,” she added, “we’re far from the city. No one comes here.”

Mrs. Emma pressed the panel again, and the training center returned to its magical form.

“And you,” she said, eyeing Carmella’s casual clothes, “will need to dress for training.”

Carmella glanced at her outfit, then whispered a spell under her breath. In a blink, her clothes shifted into red joggers and a matching sweater.

Mrs. Emma smiled. “Nice.”

---

*Meanwhile, at Mrs. Elena’s house,* the older woman sat alone in her study, flipping through an ancient spellbook titled *Rare Witches*. Her fingers trembled as she scanned the page.

“Powerful... and deceitful...” she muttered.

She paused, a name at the edge of her thoughts — Carmella.

Closing the book, Mrs. Elena sat back and closed her eyes. She spread her hands and tried to channel a vision. But the images were blurry and unclear. She gasped and opened her eyes, visibly shaken.

“I need new powers,” she growled. “Stronger powers...”

Frustration boiled inside her. With a cry of anger, she threw her chair across the room

“This girl… who is she really?”

Her voice echoed into the silence as her mind raced with obsession and envy.

—

---

*Back at the hidden training center, Carmella stood in the middle of the dimly lit room, her hands glowing faintly with magic.* Around her, tiny crickets jumped wildly, zipping across the space like tiny targets. Each time one leapt, Carmella narrowed her eyes and fired a thin beam of magical light — zapping them mid-air.

From across the room, Mrs. Emma watched with pride.

“Go on! You’re doing great!” she called out, her arms crossed and eyes gleaming.

Carmella zapped another one, but then let her hands fall, clearly unimpressed. “Is this really considered training?” she muttered.

Mrs. Emma chuckled, walking closer. “Yes. You’ve got to start small before you can handle the big ones.”

Carmella raised an eyebrow, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “By lazering crickets?”

“I’m not proud of it,” Mrs. Emma admitted with a shrug, “but if I threw a fire-breathing shadow demon at you on your first day, you’d fry. Literally.”

Carmella rolled her eyes but didn’t argue.

“Now,” Mrs. Emma clapped her hands once. “Let’s test your spelling skills.”

“Spelling?” Carmella blinked.

“As in casting *spells*, sweetheart.”

Carmella groaned. “Unbelievable.”

—*

The room blurred into a flurry of movement — books flying open, brooms floating, glowing orbs swirling. Carmella cast a spell at a flickering light bulb, making it burn brighter. Mrs. Emma clapped. “That was good! Now make it bigger!”

Carmella tried — the light buzzed louder, then fizzled out.

“You’ll get there,” Mrs. Emma said encouragingly.

More scenes flicked by — Carmella levitating a small box, transforming a rock into a glass, accidentally setting a piece of paper on fire (then awkwardly stamping it out). Progress was slow, but it was there.

“You’re learning,” Mrs. Emma said with a grin.

Just then, a buzz echoed from her phone. She checked it quickly and sighed. “We’ll finish here for today. I need to pick up my mum from the airport.”

Carmella nodded, brushing dust off her sweater. “Okay.”

Before walking away, Mrs. Emma paused. “One more thing... a bit of advice.”

Carmella tilted her head.

“Try making friends at school.”

The girl scoffed. “I’m not social. I’m a pessimist

Mrs. Emma smirked. “Obviously. But I don’t mean friends to chat with… I mean friends you can *use*.”

Carmella blinked. “Use?”

“Yes. If you want to succeed in this mission, you’ll need allies — even if they don’t know they’re helping you.”