Phoenix

No Such Thing as Magic

     She lay on her back, vaguely aware of her limbs.  Above her, she perceived obscure shapes and colours.  The soft melody of a woman's voice surrounded her; it was warm, sweet, it was a comfort.

     Then, the voice disappeared, leaving her to feel alone.  The room was empty, but outside there was a commotion, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw a dark figure replace the woman.  

     The whole room seemed darker and colder as the mysterious cloaked figure drew nearer to where she lay - she tried to flee, but she couldn't move.  She tried to call out, but she couldn't produce a sound any more than a babble.  The dark figure loomed over her, looking down upon the helpless girl.  There was a flash of green.

     She woke with a start.  Her eyes flew open, adjusting to the soft lamplight that replaced the bright blaze of green.  As her groggy mind regained its bearings, she looked over to the woman who stood on the other side of the room, tying her apron.

     "Oh, good, you're up.  I was just about to wake you," she said, noticing the girl looking up at her.  "Good morning, Elaine."

     "Good morning, Maria," she responded, still half asleep.

     Elaine pulled the covers off her, slipping from her stiff cot.  Maria quietly left their bedroom to begin preparing breakfast while Elaine made her bed.  She dressed herself in her uniform, tying her own apron in the dip in her back and lacing up the black shoes she'd polished the night before - only the best foot forward, the LaChances had always told her.  Even for maids who had not yet reached eleven years.

     She looked at her reflection in the one small mirror on the one small vanity and twisted her red hair into two braids that fell over her shoulders.  With her long hair out of her way, she was ready.  She looked out the window where the first five a.m. light of the morning was just visible in the deep blue sky before heading in the direction of the kitchen, where she knew Maria would greet her with a cup of tea.

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     The day dawned quickly in the summer, and the hot July sun bore down incessantly on Elaine as she knelt in the soil.  She methodically dug her hoe into the ground, unearthing stubborn weeds.  She tossed them into a pile behind her.

     She sat back on her ankles, and ran her hand over her forehead, aware that she was smudging the dirt across it.  She felt the damp wisps of hair that escaped her kerchief curling from the sweat.  Elaine sighed - Mrs LaChance's prize-winning roses were difficult work, yet the most rewarding part of the garden.

     Suddenly, Elaine startled as a large bird landed above her, on the front deck railing.  She found herself staring at a Great Horned owl; it was large, brown and speckled, with two proud tufts on it's head.  They stared at each other, and it held her gaze as if staring straight into her.  But, something peculiar caught her eye - it held in its beak what appeared to be a letter.

     It dropped it in the rose bush, and Elaine scurried forward on her knees, picking it up and turning it over in her hands.  It was addressed to Miss Elaine LaChance.  She looked back up to the owl, which seemed almost to smile at her.  It flew away.

     "Wait, I'm not a LaChance - I'm just the maid!" she shouted after it as it disappeared into the summer sky.

     She looked back to the letter; it appeared to be handwritten in vibrant green ink and curly lettering.  It had come from a Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.