When we left them last season, Magpie and Lucas had just learned of Farfalla’s passing, and had ventured to her tiny house to gather her things. As they were about to leave, an gust of wind slammed the bedroom door closed, and they heard footsteps inside the empty room. When they eventually re-entered the room they found it just as empty as they’d left it, with one startling exception: A sketch left on the seat of the rocking chair. On the back of the sketch were 4 words that made their blood run cold – I am not Farfalla. We were left with more questions than answers after a roller coaster of a first season which saw Magpie finding the mythical Skylark Bell and ending the silence at Meadow Lane.
Now, we rejoin Magpie and Lucas two years after The Great Silence as it has come to be known.
In today’s episode we read chapter 1 – Suitcase to Scotland – where the pair prepare for a journey to Scotland to claim a centuries old house left to Magpie from her great-great-grandfather James Carnifex.
Brought to you by: Phaeton Starling Publishing and Things with Wings Productions.
The Skylark Bell official website - http://www.theskylarkbell.com
The Skylark Bell on Instagram: @theskylarkbell
Author/Producer: Melissa Oliveri - http://www.melissaoliveri.com
Join Melissa's Patreon for early access to podcast episodes, music downloads, and more: http://www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri
Melissa on Instagram: @the.mop.pod
Melissa on Twitter: @melissaoliveri
All music by Cannelle - http://www.cannellemusic.com
Cannelle on Instagram: @cannelle.music
FULL TRANSCRIPT:
Things with Wings Productions presents: Episode 1of The Skylark Bell, Wingspan. I am your host, Melissa Oliveri.
When we left them last season, Magpie and Lucas had just learned of Farfalla’s passing, and had ventured to her tiny house to gather her things. As they were about to leave, an gust of wind slammed the bedroom door closed, and they heard footsteps inside the empty room. When they eventually re-entered the room they found it just as empty as they’d left it, with one startling exception: A sketch left on the seat of the rocking chair. On the back of the sketch were 4 words that made their blood run cold – I am not Farfalla. We were left with more questions than answers after a roller coaster of a first season which saw Magpie finding the mythical Skylark Bell and ending the silence at Meadow Lane.
Now, we rejoin Magpie and Lucas two years after The Great Silence as it has come to be known.
In today’s episode we read chapter 1 – Suitcase to Scotland – where the pair prepare for a journey to Scotland to claim a centuries old house left to Magpie from her great-great-grandfather James Carnifex.
So get comfortable… grab a blanket, and a warm drink… and let’s get started.
“Magpie, you won’t be able to lift this suitcase!” Mrs. Phaeton exclaims, pushing on the top with all her might while Magpie quickly latches to clasps.
“I’m not sure what the weather will be like in Scotland, I hear it can get really cold, so I packed a few sweaters.” Replies Magpie, blushing. She heaves the suitcase off the bed and lets it slam to the floor before rolling it to the doorway.
“How about this,” says Mrs. Phaeton, “let’s take a few of these things out and if you still think you need them, I’ll mail them to you in a care package after I get back. Deal?”
Magpie, still struggling to push the heavy load across the room, nods her head. On cue, the clasps snap open and the contents of the suitcase spill onto the floor. “Is that a can of soup?!” exclaims Mrs. Phaeton.
“Well, I… uh… I’m going to miss that soup, it’s my favourite! They don’t have it in Scotland, I looked it up.” Stammers Magpie, looking sheepishly at the floor. Silence hangs in the room for a moment before the sound of laughter erupts from Mrs. Phaeton’s throat “A year is a long time!” exclaims Magpie joining in her mother’s laughter.
“I will mail you some soup, my darling.” Says Mrs. Phaeton, embracing Magpie and kissing her forehead. “Now, let’s make this suitcase more manageable! …Magpie?”
Magpie sits on the edge of the bed, her unseeing eyes staring out her bedroom window at Meadow Lane. “Magpie!” says Mrs. Phaeton, her tone suddenly containing a small amount of panic. Magpie shakes her head and focuses her gaze on her mother’s worried face. She still occasionally has visions, but they occur less frequently than they did two years ago when the mysterious silence hanging over Meadow Lane started spreading to the entire town. A few months after the incident she finally found the courage to tell her mother and Lucas about her visions, and they both made it very clear that they believed every word. “What did you see this time, honey?” inquires Mrs. Phaeton, her tone softening.
“It was strange, it was a house kind of like meadow lane, but it wasn’t. There was an ocean behind it where the apple orchard is, I could smell the salt water! The house was similar but made of stone instead of wood…” her voice trails off
“Well, maybe this one time it was just your imagination.” Says Mrs. Phaeton, kneeling by the suitcase to rearrange its contents.
“Yeah, I bet you’re right,” says Magpie, sliding off the bed to the floor. She picks up a half dozen sweaters and stares at them thoughtfully. A smile teases the corner of her mouth “I guess I don’t need all these sweaters,” she admits.
“They do sell sweaters in Scotland, Magpie, rather nice ones in fact!” Says Mrs. Phaeton, giggling.
Warm sunlight shines through window, filtering through the dust in the air. “Look at that, it’s like the dust particles are little stars, suspended in time!” says Magpie. She feels a shiver run through her and a familiar tugging at the back of her mind, like there is a message she can’t quite decipher.
“That settles it, you have way too much imagination!” smiles Mrs. Phaeton. “Now let’s get this baby packed up and ready to fly!”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Magpie and her mom have finished packing and their suitcases are neatly lined up by the front door. Magpie can still picture herself coming through that heavy wood door for the first time, nearly 2 years ago, when she and her mom moved into the old farmhouse, it feels like she’s lived an entire lifetime since then. She hears echoes from the past in her mind - dinner dates with her mom where they told stories and laughed into the night, Scarlet’s soft meow as she followed Magpie around the house on velvet feet, Lucas’ footsteps on the old creaky stairs as they went up to explore the secret attic… So much has happened, it’s thrilling and a little scary to think about what the future might hold.
“All set?” asks Mrs. Phaeton, bringing Magpie back to the present by laying a gentle hand on her shoulder.
“Yes, it’s time.” Says Magpie, grabbing her suitcase and walking out the door.
“Hi Lucas!” says Mrs. Phaeton seeing him walk up their driveway GRAVEL with a small duffle bag slung over his shoulder.
“Good morning! Wow, Magpie, that’s quite the suitcase!” he exclaims, laughing.
“You’re going to be very grateful for one of my sweaters or an extra pair of socks one of these days, since you clearly haven’t packed enough of your own!” she says, giggling and giving him a friendly push.
“Grandma Gemma says hi, and wishes everyone safe travels,” says Lucas, “She wishes she could be here to see us off, but she’s volunteering at the convent over in Brighthaven this morning.”
“That’s so sweet of her, what a wonderful lady,” says Mrs. Phaeton, smiling.
“It’s so amazing she can do that, given that only a couple of years ago…” Magpie leaves the thought unfinished as she places the last suitcase into the back of the car. She steps back and closes the trunk with a thud. Mrs. Phaeton and Lucas nod in agreement, it is amazing the transformation that took place in Grandma Starling, at almost exactly the same time Magpie found and rang the Skylark Bell.
The thought makes Magpie glance toward Meadow Lane, now surrounded by lush green grass, young apple trees starting to bloom in the orchard behind the house. Magpie, Lucas and Mrs. Phaeton. have spent a lot of time there over the past two years, slowly repairing the house and cleaning up the Shearwater family’s belongings that still remained there. Mrs. Phaeton plans to use the house as an art studio and gallery, and perhaps even turn it into a B&B or artist’s retreat in the future.
Magpie sees a flicker in one of the upstairs windows and blinks hard before squinting to try and get a clearer look. “Did you see that?!” she asks, surprised.
“See what?” asks her mom, turning to look toward Meadow Lane.
“I thought… Never mind, it was probably just a reflection...” She says, not entirely convinced.
Lucas steps closer to Magpie and leans in. “I saw it too” he whispers so only she can hear. He steps back and they exchange a knowing look.
“Alright everyone, it’s time!” says Mrs. Phaeton cheerfully as they all climb into the car. They head down the long driveway and turn onto the road, heading full steam toward their future.
In the second story window at Meadow Lane, the same window where The Skylark Bell still hangs, gently swaying in the breeze, a woman watches them disappear around the bend, her icy blue eyes twinkling as her perfectly shaped mouth forms into a twisted smile.
Thank you so much for listening. Join me next week for Wingspan chapter 2, Birds of a Feather Fly Together, in which Magpie has an eerie premonition as they fly across the ocean toward their destination.
Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, as well as Cannelle for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.
If you are enjoying this story, please consider leaving a rating or a review, they’re both greatly appreciated. You can also support my work through a donation via my podcast provider or my subscribing to my Patreon where you get early access to episodes as well as MP3 downloads of the music, artwork, writing, recipes, and more!
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