Melody Swan

Chapter 3 - Transformation

Melody had quite clearly been missing out on life. Each step was breathtaking. The best birthday gift she'd ever received. This world was real. The air smelled like cinnamon and fresh dew. She turned around, to see what the mansion looked like from the outside. What she saw made her face go wan and her stomach lurch.

The wood of her house was completely dilapidated, and the house appeared to be boarded up. That's why there were no windows in her house. Dead, burnt-looking trees filled up the courtyard, and the tall, black gates of the house were locked. They were so tall and so thinly spaced that even Jax couldn't pass through the gates or a parkour expert couldn't climb up and jump down, without falling to their death. The only houses were a couple hundred meters away, and probably no-one dared come to the vicinity of her area.

Tears formed at Melody's eyes, but she choked them back. Everything she had—the chocolat chaud, her clothes, Maman, were all unreal. They were part of Echosnow's plan to keep her from leaving. How could something be so winsome and loving on the inside but horrific and poignant on the outside?

"Melody, you okay?" Jax asked in concern, tiny tears forming at his eyes again.

Melody shook her head. "Transform me."

"Melody I'm so sorry—" Jax began.

"Transform me." Melody sternly repeated, interrupting Jax. "It doesn't matter. I've learnt what my life really is and now that I'm aware of what I am, I guess I have to fulfill it now. I want to fulfill it."

"Then bottoms up!" Jax warmly said, trying to brighten up the mood. His voice sounded like a squeak mixed with a holler. He tossed Melody a miniature glass vial filled with a turquoise liquid, which she miraculously caught without crushing it in her palms. The moment it touched Melody's hands, it expanded magically to form a serving size that would fit that of a teenage human girl.

"Oh and I also have a tonic for Ajax, as a lot of the humans we've invited to become Pixies have had pets, so I keep one in my fanny pack just in case." Jax added, flashing his olive fanny pack which she didn't notice. He tossed Melody another miniature glass vial filled with a liquid the color of ginger orange. It expanded in her hand as well, and it had a cute corkscrew shaped like a paw print. Melody smiled.

"The transformation in pretty simple. First of all, we have to find a hidden-from-view place. Maybe behind your dead tree would work. And by the way, the only reason why I have a vial of Trans Tonic is because I am part of the Pixie Welcoming Committee, which gives Humans the opportunity to transform into Pixies." Jax explained.

Melody walked toward a huge dead shrub and Jax flew behind her to continue his instructions.

"Secondly, think of what you want to taste when you drink it, to mask the disgusting taste." Jax went on.

Well, he got that part right. Melody only wanted genuine food, like royalty. No matter how spoilt it seemed.

"How about chocolate slices? Just keep thinking about those two words." Jax said.

So she did. Chocolate slices. Chocolate slices. Even those words made her mouth water. Melody didn't even crave chocolate right now, but the words wrapped themselves around her mind like spun silk and made her crave it.

"What even is this?" Melody queried.

"This is the Trans Tonic, It's a special tonic in which if you drink, you transform into a different species, like a Pixie, perhaps. But watch out. You cannot change back. This will be your permanent species forever." Jax answered.

Melody gulped.

"Are you a different species?" Melody questioned.

Jax guffawed. "No way! I'm pure Pixie, and so are you. Echosnow transformed you into a human with a Selendinian spell, which is alterable. Although I do know someone who used to be a human toddler, and he goes to my school. His name is Kyle Greenleaf, and he is super pompous. Beware, if you meet him."

Wow, Melody thought, nodding her head.

"Here, feed Ajax his tonic first."

"Um, what does it do?"

"All it does is minify him to half your size, which is about fifteen thousand times smaller than he is now."

"Does it hurt?" Melody queried.

"Yes, but it won't harm him." Jax stated.

Melody hesitantly pulled out the pawprint cork lid and lowered the vial to Ajax's muzzle. The dog eagerly opened his mouth and gulped up the whole thing as Melody tossed the vial into the hauntingly tall, sharp hay, as the painstakingly thin glass shattered into smithereens.

Not standing to watch Ajax in pain, Melody pulled out her cork lid and swigged all of the liquid in one gulp, the word 'chocolate' running through her mind. The serum tasted unusual. Sweet and compelling, but also tart and repelling at the same time. It tasted black. As soon as she rid the entire bottle of every last drop, she felt light-headed.

She was shrinking, just as Ajax started yelping in pain and confusion. Her legs were shrinking at an exponential rate, while her hands were lagging behind as she dropped her own vial, not bothering to discover what happened to it. Now, her whole body to be out of proportion. She was mutating and now she had to feel the pain. The world thrashed around her. Hands pulling her into the ground, thriving with more power as she writhed in agony. She was sweltering. She wanted to scream, but her mouth was unable to as it felt as if her nerves were ripped apart and put back together incorrectly, which they probably were. Slits were made in her back, tearing it through and through, much to her agony. Her tongue disappeared and then reappeared. A white-hot orb of light enveloped itself around her, masking the world, blinding her. The fervor from the lasting effects of determination was being pulled against her will. There was no purpose of life, as far as she was concerned, considering that she felt like she was about to die. And then the world grew dark.