Magic Wings by Faith Raven (the read aloud family TXT) 📖

alarm clock back in its original place on her bedside table making a loud thud.

 

 A midnight snack will help me sleep. Yep! Snack time!

 

 Oriel thought to herself before she jumped out of her bed piling the blanket on the floor. She pulled on her grey bunny slippers that matched her bunny PJ’s and felt her way to the door. When her hands met the door handle she turned it cautiously and stepped out of her room peering over to her parent’s room.  Making certain that they were asleep she tip-toed down the stairs. Only to slip in her bunny slippers and slide the whole way down her face making a painful smack on the last step. 

 

 Instantly, she pushed her body back up and got to her feet looking back to the top of the stairs to see if either of her parents heard the ruckus. But there was nothing. So this is what they would do if I was being dragged down the stairs by a serial killer, seriously!

 

 Rubbing her face where the floor had smacked her she grimaced. Ineptly, making her way to the kitchen she slapped the light switch on. Without hesitation she began to open every cupboard to find nothing. I hate life.  Flustered with herself she paced through the kitchen again hunting down something that would satisfy her roaring stomach.

 

 I GIVE UP!

 

She thought before slamming her hand on the counter forgetting for a millisecond that her parents were still asleep. When this registered in her mind she instantaneously held her breath and watched the staircase, hoping her parents were still asleep. When there was no sound she let out a sigh of relief and pulled out the stool from under the counter.

 

“Well this is hopeless, can’t sleep, can’t eat…” She muttered to herself till something in her head lit up like a blight bulb – ironically the light bulb above her head popped and fizzed into darkness- Oriel stared at the ceiling of the kitchen swallowing down all the swear words she wanted to yell.

 

 “Well this is just great.” Oriel gritted.

 

Pushing the stool back out again she jumped off it and began to rub her hands together.

 

“I’m sure this is an emergence, mother, father wouldn’t you agree?” She asked no one in particular then answered herself trying to mimic her mother’s voice, “I agree darling, I encourage you to use your powers.”

 

 With a small smirk on her lips she snapped her fingers together. Nothing. She tried again this time there was a little spark that suddenly fizzled out.  Damn it this is hard work.

 

Oriel thought, before trying again. This time something happened. Instead of a small spark there was an enormous burst of flames. Oriel’s eyes grew large when she saw gigantic flames at the tips of her fingers. Not thinking things through she waved and flapped her hands in her air, accidently activating the fire alarm and suddenly the cooker began to bleep as well.

 

 “Arg! Mum! Dad!” Oriel began to panic and did nothing to hide it from her voice.

 

 Still wavering, her hands around trying to stop the flames, the microwave started to heat up. The orange light from inside showing that it was working on its own, Oriel’s face turned bright red with frustration and embarrassment.

 

Nice going Oriel!

 

Was the last thing she managed to tell herself; before she saw a silver smoke in front of her. Groaning inwardly, she knew what was to come. When the silver ominous smoke cleared, she saw her angry looking parents.

 

 Oriel’s mother clicked her fingers and everything stopped. Oriel looked down at her hands; the flames had disappeared leaving behind small black marks. There was silence as her parents observed the damage Oriel had caused. Her father was the one to break the silence.

 

 “Oriel Tabitha Collins you are grounded till you die.” He used her full name, that clarified he couldn’t be reasoned with -he only ever used her full name when she had hit his sensitive nerve- if his bright red face didn’t tell her that he was fuming then his voice did.

 

 “How many times have we told you?” Her mother started, “Look, look at all the mess you have made? What do you think the neighbours are going to say? Uh?” She piled the questions upon themself.

 

 Oriel licked her lips and opened her mouth to speak only to shut it again when her father interjected

 

“Do you want us to be exposed to the world? Is that it?” He snapped at her, his eye twitching a little.

 

 “No, of course not, it was an accident, I swear…” She mumbled trailing off and drifting to look at her blackened hands once again.

 

Oriel bit the inside of her mouth trying not to say anything that would cause her parents to mute her for the rest of the night. That was one of the punishment she would get from her parents instead of getting sent to her room or her parents not speaking to her like a normal family, Oriel’s parents would mute her till it was necessary for her to speak again.

 

 “Then what derived you to use magic?” Her mother asked her brown eyes looking exhausted.

Oriel opened her mouth once again to speak but her mother cut her short and looked around for the clock and then back to Oriel.

 

 “What on Earth are you doing down this late on a school night?” Her mother probed.

 

 “Can I answer this one?” Oriel stated, quickly before either of her parents started bursting again.

 

 Her parents looked at each other with a wary look then turned back at Oriel.

 

 “I couldn’t sleep so I came down to get a snack, there was nothing to eat and it’s not my fault the light bulb popped so...” Oriel paused expecting her parents to understand.

 

 “You used magic.” Both her parents replied simultaneously in a dah tone before both of them clicked their fingers and Oriel felt the silver dust around her throat.

 

She huffed out in annoyance. Waving her hands in the air trying to complain but her parents had muted her, feeling defeated she finally gave up. Her mother pointed to the stairs, Oriel slowly dragging herself to her lonely desolate bedroom the only thing welcoming her was the darkness.

 

***

 Oriel wiped the drool that had summated on the side of her mouth.

 

“Oriel, get out of bed!” Bellowed her mother, Oriel could hear her mother’s calls but decided not to move.

 

Her mother called once again Oriel yet again did the same? When suddenly, Oriel felt something penetrate her nostrils, she rubbed her eyes only to get a glance of silver smoke surrounding her.

 

Oh no…

 

 Oriel’s bed was flipped upside down spitting Oriel out. She fell to the floor with a loud thud. The silver dust began to clear and then bed shifted back into place, Oriel sat on the floor rubbing her backside. Well that hurt… She pointed out the obvious to herself before getting to her feet and stretching her arms in the air. Her eyes drifted to the clock that sat on her bedside table, she dismissingly walked to her wardrobe to pull something to wear. Suddenly, she slammed the door shut again and turned to face the clock display that read seven: twenty-eight, when it finally sank in she began to panic.

 

 “Oh shit!” Oriel mouthed kicking her bunny slippers aside and pulling the wardrobe door, she heaved the first pair of clothes she saw. Without a second of thinking she began to strip her PJ’s off and changed into the black skinny jeans and a white tank top. Jacob was her ride to school and he always came to her house on the dot.

 

 Opening her bottom drawer where she kept all her socks she pulled out the top pair –that was variegated- Oriel groaned inwardly staring at the colourful socks in her hands but then looking back at the clock she saw the clock blinking, taunting her. Crouching down she tried to struggle her socks on, in all the confusion she toppled over and fell straight onto her face however she had successfully put her socks on. She looked at her long lengthened mirror that was joined with her wardrobe. She saw her dark black hair poking in every direction and drool the on the side of her face.

 

 “Great. Just great.”  She hissed with no sound.

 

That looks so attractive, doesn’t it... Oriel ranted at herself.

 

 Swinging her door open she ran to the bathroom swivelling the tap. As soon as the water appeared she splashed it on her face letting the droplets fall on her white shirt.  She applied some water on her hair to keep it down then she ran back to her room trying not to slip.

 

 She looked at the clock again to see the time seven: ten, Oriel’s mouth dropped and a grimace took over her features. She did it again. Slowly picking her converse sneakers from the floor she began to make her way downstairs.

 

 Sitting in the same place where she had smacked her face on the floor, she sat and pulled on her sneakers. Tying her laces she smelt the silver dust near her nose and looked around her only for it to clear away. She test coughed first and smiled.

 

 “Mom! Did you tamper with my alarm clock again?” She asked still sitting on the step.

 

 “Who me?” Her mother asked as she appeared around the stairs to come face to face with Oriel. “Nah, why would I?” She teased and battered her eyelashes.

 

 “It’s not cool Mom, look this is your entire fault.” Oriel announced indicating to her out going socks.

 

Her Mother peered at them for a second and smiled. “I think they look pretty cute.”

 

 Oriel gaged as her mother giggled at her overreaction.

 

“Now, get your ass moving, or you’ll be late for school.” Bloom- Oriel’s mother- told her.

 

 Oriel got up and sauntered her way to the kitchen where her father –Merlin- was already seated with a newspaper in his hand. She pulled the stool out from under the counter.

 

 “Good morning, Dad.” She tried but her father seemed to be ignoring her.

 

 She wanted to try again but regretted it; instead she picked up a toast and began to chew on it. Wiping her face of any crumbs she drank her orange juice that was placed neatly next to her plate. Looking down at her –now empty plate- she waited for something to happen between her parents, a conversation or anything. She expected it to be the normal clutter and noisy atmosphere she was used to but, nothing.

 

 “So Mum, are you going to your cooking class today?” Oriel asked trying to make conversation.

 

 “Yes.” Bloom bluntly replied still occupied by cleaning the worktop.

 

Okay this isn’t going to work.

 

Oriel thought to herself. Breathing in she tried again with her father, she put a smile on her face and turned to him.

 

 “Dad, do you finish work early today?” Oriel tried.

 

 Nothing.

 

 She made her smile even larger and leaned closer to her father trying to budge the newspaper away from him to get his attention but it was in vein.

 

 “Why are you ignoring me? For sorceress lucky eye’s sake, I’m your flipping daughter.” Oriel burst out, she even used her father’s favourite catch phrase to be truly honest the sorceress that came up with that must have really been injudicious because everyone knows sorceress’s eyes are not lucky, if anything they were bad luck.  

 

Putting the newspaper down her father raised his brown eyebrow and looked at her intensely.

 

“Oriel, I’m still mad at you.” He started off by saying, “We have only one rule and that’s ‘no magic for Oriel’ and you know clearly why we have that.” He continued to explain; suddenly Oriel regretted ever starting a conversation in the first place.

 

 “We don’t want you getting hurt, and what you did last night just shows us, how careless you can be. Imagine if you burnt down that whole house? God forbid imagine if you exposed magic?” He continued and Oriel knew she was feeling guilty but she felt they were partly to blame, not only her.

 

 “I’ve never