by Sophia Stone
‘Not quite. Orignious,’ Elenore casts spell at the bag. It falls back to the table and returns to its original form. ‘We practiced this last week. I thought you got it.’
‘You know what I’m like when I’m nervous,’ I mumble as I fiddle with my wand.
‘You need to stop your emotions getting in the way. Don’t let them seep into your magic or you’ll never be able to be an effective witch,’ Elenore said.
‘I know,’ I sigh.
‘You don’t even have to worry about the paper test this time. It’s only a practical. As long as you focus, you’ll pass. You always do. Think of a specific bird. That helps me- be specific.’
‘Does it matter what bird?’ I ask.
‘No, not at all. Just as long as you can get a clear image in your head. Think of colour of its wings, or a beady eye.’
Closing my eyes helps me focus and think of what I need to do. I choose a magpie as my bird. I used to enjoy watching them out of my window at Amanda’s. I think of the black and white feathers with the small dollop of blue.
‘Transamus,’ I said at the bag.
It once again rises up and this time wings emerge, as well as a head with a small beak and legs also come too until the bag is a fully-fledged bird. Hopping along the table, the bird squawks at Elenore before taking her pencil and flying on the nearest bookshelf.
‘See! Told you!’ Elenore said.
‘I know I need to stop worrying. Old habits, I suppose,’ the bird hops along the bookshelf before flying off to the eves of the building. ‘So how do we get the bag bird thing back?’
‘Easy. Trap it and then turn it back,’ she checks her watch. ‘We still have an hour until we need to be at the exam room. Plenty of time,’ she said confidently.
We spend nearly the full hour trying to corner the bird in order to turn it back. Every time Elenore or I went to cast the spell to turn it back, the bird would fly away.
‘I think I can do it,’ Elenore whispers out of sight of the bird who has landed on the desk of the librarian.
‘Orignious,’ Elenore said at the bird.
Before the spell can hit the magpie, it flies off once more, and the spell hits a bamboo plant instantly turning it into a large spider. Elenore and I look at each other in disbelief.
‘Most people just hit them with a book. Turning it into a plant isn’t a bad idea though,’ Elenore said as the spider crawled under a shelf. ‘But maybe we should just wait until it tires itself out.’
‘I’ve got a better idea.’
I search through my bag to find my hand mirror. ‘Magpies love shiny things. Do you have another pencil?’ Elenore reaches into her pocket and pulls out a pencil and some old tissues and dumps them into my hand.
‘Sorry. Let me just grab those,’ she pulls the tissues from my hand and stuffs them back into her pockets.
I put the pencil onto the table and think of a diamond. One cut with so many faces to reflect lots of light. I cast the spell, and the diamond sits on the table glittering in the light. Using my mirror, I aim the glass at the magpie to catch its attention. It hops down to a bookcase just out of our reach.
‘Back away slowly,’ I tell Elenore who obeys cautiously.
The magpie comes down to investigate the shiny object on our tables. We back away slowly once more, allowing the bird to have the confidence to approach our table. As it lands on our table, it lets out a squawk as if to test us. We stay still. With a few more hops, the bird pecks at the stone transfixed with its glittering surfaces. I reach into my gown and pull my wand out behind my back.
‘Orginous,’ I command my wand. The bird loses its wings which become leathery flaps. In its panic, the bird tries to fly but fails as its head becomes the bottom of the bag. and becomes a bag once more. The final squawk and hop is the last of the bags life as a bird.
‘I feel a little bad now. He was having so much fun,’ I said.
‘You are so sentimental,’ Elenore laughs at me. ‘We won’t have long to practise now,’ she looks at her watch. ‘Ugh, it’s nine fifty. We don’t have time.’
‘Pfft. Stupid bird,’ I said under my breath.
‘Sympathy gone already then?’ Elenore said as we make our way to the classroom.
Outside of the classroom, our classmates are lined up ready to be called in.
‘Class, can I have your attention,’ Professor Tristan enters the hallway from the classroom. ‘Can I have Elenore Rush please?’ he calls out.
‘See you in the room later. Good luck,’ she said.
‘Good luck to you too,’ I said.
‘You both got here just in time then,’ Matt said from behind me.
‘Hi. I didn’t see you there,’ I said.
‘I’ve just been milling about. So how do you feel?’
‘Nervous. Obviously.’
‘I don’t know why you worry so much. You are a good witch. Just need a little more confidence.’
‘You’re not the first person who has said that to me,’ I said.
‘It’s only Tristian, Merlyn and Celia Sprott. Easy panel,’ he said cheerily.
‘Who’s Celia Sprott?’ I ask.
‘From the Assembly. She arrived early for the specialism tests, so they let her sit and watch the shape-shifting exam. She’s not too bad so don’t worry.’
‘Great. Another thing to be nervous about,’ I groan and look at the floor. I feel like bursting into tears with the stress of the exams. Having a complete stranger from an important organisation might just send me over the edge.
‘They know you will be nervous. It’s fine. As long as you look like you are trying, they won’t fail you. I don’t remember anyone being kicked out for at least attempting their exams,’ he uses his finger to lift my chin up and then claps his hands in mine. ‘You’ll be absolutely fine. You’ve killed every other exam when you haven’t had half the time to prepare that the rest of us have had. You need to believe in yourself a little more,’ he gave me a soft smile.
‘Thank you, Matt. I don’t think you’ve ever been this… nice to me.’
‘I can be a real softie sometimes. When the moment calls for it. but you deserve to have people be nice to you. You’re a nice person,’ he gives me a smile once more.
‘Lizzie Castle, please proceed to the examination room,’ Professor Tristian calls out.
I don’t know what to say to Matt as a response, so I resort to politeness.
‘Thank you. I’ll see you at dinner,’ I remove my hands from his and walk into the classroom.
‘Ready for your examination Miss Castle?’ Professor Tristian leads me to the front of the classroom where there is an empty seat, Professor Merlyn and a woman are sitting in a semi-circle. Professor Tristian sits on the floor in front of his seat. It is only on seeing him sit like this that I realise how animalistic he is.
‘Lizzie is it? I’m Celia Sprott from the Assembly and I will observe your examination if that’s okay?’ It was a rhetorical question, but I answer, anyway.
‘That’s fine,’ I pull my wand out from my gown and place on my lap.
‘Wonderful,’ Ms Sprott said.
She pulls a pen from her tightly wound bun on the top of her head and then dips her hand into her pocket to retrieve her glasses. She puts her glasses on and then puts the case back into her pocket.
‘Please. Take a seat,’ she beams.
Professor Tristian rises to his hind legs and walks towards me.
‘We will start slow,’ he whispers to me. ‘The first part of the test is to turn one object into another object,’ he said louder.
He puts his paw into his gown and produces a pair of scissors which he places on the floor in front of me.
‘Lizzie. Could you please turn these into a notebook,’ he then backs away and sits where he was.
Could be worse.
I look over at Professor Merlyn who is once again focused on me. He has a notepad and pen balanced on his chequered trousers but I haven’t yet seen him use it. Sprott
is looking up occasionally but writing notes furiously.
I feel self-conscious closing my eyes but decide to do it, anyway. I think of a blue lined notebook like I have in my room. The one with the velvet cover. I grab my wand from my lap and stand up, pointing the wand at the pair of scissors.
‘Transamus,’ the scissors shake for a moment before they expand into the shape of a notebook.
‘Well done!’ Professor Tristian claps his paws. He reaches forward and passes the book to Celia who examines the notebook briefly before placing it besides her chair leg so she can continue to scribble notes.
‘Next it is an object into a being,’ he pulls out a pencil from his robe and places it in front me. ‘Lizzie, please turn this pencil into a toad,’ once again, the professor backs away.
I think of the fat bull toad I had seen in Amanda’s garden when I was ten. It had hoped right up to me as I was putting washing on the line to dry. I think of its lumpy skin that was speckled with various shades of brown. I point my wand at the pencil and think of that ugly beast.
‘Transamus,’ I said. The pencil makes a croak and then hop around my feet. Four legs protrude out of the pencil before a head and then a body appear. I take a step backwards, so it doesn’t land on my feet. The toad stops hoping and stares at me.
‘Excellent, Lizzie,’ Professor Tristan walks up behind the toad, scopes it up and shuffles towards Ms Spott. She puts her hand up to stop him getting closer.
‘I would rather Miss Castle turn the toad back please,’ she said with a disgusted look on her face.
‘Very well. Lizzie, could you please turn the toad back into its original form?’ Professor Tristian lowers the toad to the floor and with a small push of his hand, the toad moves towards me. I want to wait until it is still before doing the spell, but I think the toad has other ideas as he charges towards me.
‘Orginous,’ I cast my wand at the toad who, mid-hop, is once again a pencil. Professor Tristian claps his paws together and steps forward to retrieve the pencil and he hands it to Miss Sprott who looks at it with suspicion.
‘Ribbit,’ the pencil shakes and Miss Sprott makes a shriek, dropping the pencil. Professor Tristian looks over to me.
‘That is quite normal,’ he picks the pencil up and puts it in his gown while Miss Sprott writes notes in her book. ‘The final test is… Do you remember what you wrote as the thing you would like to transform into in your first lesson?’
‘Yes. A bird.’
‘May I ask why you chose a bird?’ Professor Merlyn asked. He had been so quiet I had almost forgotten he was there.
‘So, I can fly. Get away from things sometimes.’
Professor Merlyn nods but said nothing.
‘When you are ready,’ Professor Tristian said as he walks back to his seat and sits on the floor watching.
I had given little thought to the bird I would transform into. This makes it harder to imagine and transform. On closing my eyes, I feel fire. Then I see wings.
Fiery bird?
A phoenix. Symbol of being reborn.
Might impress them.
I imagine a flame coloured bird; burnt orange with yellow and red highlights in its feathers. A trail of fire dripping off its tail. Wings that look like flames rather than feathers. I touch my head with my wand.
Be the bird on fire.
‘Transamus,’ I command loudly. I feel heat on my feet so look down and I am on fire. The flames creep up my legs and on to my skirt as I feel an intense heat, but it isn’t painful. As the flames reach my head, I can feel my legs and arms change. I spread my arms out as the flame travels down their length. Lines of flame appear under my arms from which feather like strands appear. I have a desire to scream but it comes out as a roar. I look at the three witnesses, unsure whether they will stand there and let me burn. Miss Sportt has a look of horror on her face causing her mouth to gape open. Professor Tristian stands on his hind legs and reaches into his robe to find his wand. Pulling it out, he points it at me, but Professor Merlyn jumps out of his seat and whispers something in his ear, causing him to lower his wand.
I feel another roar emerge as I throw my head back. My nose becomes a large beak and my hands are no longer hands but part of a large wing. Feathers have appeared everywhere from under the pores in my skin. I flap my wings as the desire to fly takes over: In two measured flaps, I am up. It all feels so effortless as I glide. droplets of fire fall upon the floor and fizzle out. I spin and dive trying to stay away from the Professors and Sprott in case I can’t control myself. The fire behind me seems to trail longer each time I do a loop until I am flying into fire to complete the next one. I flap my wings faster to keep the fire at bay.
You need more room.
The urge to fly among trees and in the open-air swamps my thoughts. I frantically look around for a window and spot the ceiling glass. If I fly hard enough at it, it will break, and I will be free. With another circle around the room, I propel myself up towards the light.
‘Orginous,’ Professor Merlyn shouts causing me to look down. I feel my legs are heavy. They are going back. I look at my arms and although I am still trying to fly, my arms are steadily eroding into my original form. It is then I fall.
‘AAAH,’ I scream as I fall through the air.
‘Transamus,’ I land on a soft pile of pillows that cushion my fall. I look over myself and see I am now a human again. Professor Tristian still has his wand pointed in my direction.
‘What- what happened?’ I ask.
‘It is never wise to spend too long as something else, Miss Castle. You would soon become lost,’ Professor Merlyn said with a thin-lipped expression.
‘You are very talented Miss Castle. Incredible,’ Professor Tristian said.
‘Yes. That was... quite the display. I look forward to seeing how your specialism test unfolds,’ Miss Sprott said.
‘You may go Miss Castle. That is all,’ Professor Merlyn takes a seat and talks to the other two. I walk out the door unsure if I have passed or failed.
‘How did your test go?’ I ask Elenore as she walks into the room.
‘I turned the pencil into a frog rather than a toad,’ she grumbled.
‘Is there a huge difference?’ I ask.
‘Apparently so. I turned it into a toad eventually, but you would have thought I had turned it into a dead cat or something,’ she huffed. ‘They all look the same to me. Ugly little things toads are. Yuck!’
‘Well I think I’ve annoyed the head teacher.’
‘Why?’ Elenore asks surprised.
I tell Elenore all about the phoenix and the flying. I even tell her about the thought to escape.
‘If you turn into an animal, or even another person, you soon start to inhabit their thoughts. That’s why they don’t like you changing for too long.’
‘So that’s normal, wanting to escape?’ I said.
‘That part is. You were a bird after all. But turning into a mythological creature? I’ve never heard of a first year doing that. They are hard to turn into.’
‘Why are they hard?’
‘Because they have magic in them. Same as turning into another witch or wizard is hard. The magic sort of protects them and us. Have you been practicing without me?’ she asks jokingly.
‘Of course not. It was just the first thing that came into my head.’
‘Sure,’ she said sarcastically. ‘You must have impressed the examiners, anyway. So, are you going to come down to the common room? I fancy a break from talking about tests.’
‘I’ll catch you up. I think I will have a lie down for a bit’
‘You and your lie downs,’ she shakes her head. ‘I’ll see you at dinner then.’
19
I sat in my room for the rest of the afternoon listening to music. Listening to the sound practically perforating my eardrums soothed me. Refreshed even. When it started to look dimmer outside, I checked my phone to see how long it would be before dinner.
18:50pm. Better make a mov
e.
I chuck my phone into my side cupboard along with my earphones and smooth out the creases on my bed. There is something about a well-made bed that makes me feel like I have actually got my life together.
I can hear the brothers and Elenore long before I turn the corner to the dining hall.
‘But I am starving,’ Matt moans.
‘Kids in Africa are starving,’ Zach said. ‘You’re just greedy.’
‘We need to wait for Lizzie,’ Elenore said.
‘You didn’t need to wait,’ I said as I walk up to the group.
‘Finally! Can we go now?’ Matt asks.
‘Why is everything about your stomach?’ Seb said rather shortly. ‘We haven’t been here long.’
We walk to our usual table and while Elenore and Seb continue talking, Matt, Zach, James and I walk to go get our food.
‘So did the test go okay?’ James asks.
‘It went fine,’ I ask pretending I am deeply engrossed in the choices of food this evening.
‘Did it go fine or fine as in when girls mean it?’ Zach asked. Matt had ignored us and was piling his plate with a helping of a chips, pasta and any other beige food on offer.
‘It went okay,’ I lift a spoonful of chicken pasta on to my plate. ‘This looks nice,’ I said trying to change the subject.
‘If you say so,’ Zach said. He walks off towards Matt who is balancing his plate in one hand and several bread rolls in another. Zach shakes his head at his brother and walks off to the table.
‘You know, you can talk to any of us, about anything, right?’ James said.
‘Yeah, I know,’ I said.
‘It’s just… You seem a bit off lately. Is something bothering you?’ he asks. His head cocks like a dog, waiting for my response.
I don’t want to go into the extra exams, or the business of my family being erased from the magic community. I like James and his brothers, and I don’t want them to think I am a freak.
‘Honestly, it’s these exams. They're killing me,’ I try to smile sincerely. ‘I bet all these meetings are stressful too.’ We walk back to the table and lay our trays down and sit.
