In today’s episode we read Chapter 9 – The Lark Festival - in which Magpie and Lucas explore the Lark festival of Skye, where Magpie is reminded of the mysterious Ouroboros.
Brought to you by: Phaeton Starling Publishing and Things with Wings Productions.
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Author/Producer: Melissa Oliveri - http://www.melissaoliveri.com
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FULL TRANSCRIPT:
Things with Wings Productions presents: Episode 9 of The Skylark Bell, Wingspan. I am your host, Melissa Oliveri.
In our previous episode, Magpie and Lucas met Manon Sarcelle, who, with her husband, is the caretaker of Carnifex House. They are shocked to discover a horse in the pasture who appears identical to Marius Corbeau’s horse, Cormorant, even down to its name.
In today’s episode we read Chapter 9 – The Lark Festival - in which Magpie and Lucas explore the Lark festival of Skye
Now, it’s time to settle in… grab a blanket, and a warm drink… and let’s get started.
Magpie and Lucas have been settling into Carnifex House over the past few weeks, rearranging furniture and giving the kitchen a fresh coat of paint. They’ve learned how to grow vegetables and care for Cormorant thanks to Manon and Alfred’s guidance. They have also made a few trips into Pòcaid for supplies, noting that the villagers seem to grow less suspicious of them with each visit.
Lucas has been working with Cormorant almost daily while Magpie has been focused on learning about the vegetable garden, but today Lucas and Magpie are going on their first horseback ride together. They are in the paddock with Manon, who is reviewing basic riding etiquette and giving them directions to various riding paths nearby. Since Cormorant is the only horse at Carnifex House, Alfred has gone to the neighbouring farm to borrow a horse for Magpie to ride. Magpie is watching and listening to Manon’s instructions, her feet on the bottom rail of the fence and her head and arms draped over the top rail.
Finally, Alfred comes trotting up the path on the back of a dark bay mare. He pulls up to the paddock and hops off. “This is Rose,” he says, his deep brown eyes twinkling, “she is a very gentle lady, I think you will get along very well,” he adds, handing the reins to Magpie.
Magpie looks into the mare’s large brown eyes and runs her hand along the soft fur on its neck. “Hi Rose, I’m Magpie,” she whispers softly. The horse’s ears flicker back and forth, and she snickers softly in reply. “I think we’re going to be fast friends,” she says to Alfred with a wink.
“Okay, I think you are both ready to go!” says Manon excitedly. Alfred gives Magpie a leg up and she lands in the saddle somewhat awkwardly, but Rose doesn’t even flinch. Magpie looks on as Lucas puts one foot in the stirrup and hops gently on the other foot before hoisting himself up and landing gracefully on top of Cormorant’s back. Magpie’s breath catches in her throat as she experiences a flashback of her vision of Marius Corbeau falling off his horse at Mirror Pond back in Pocket… his horse that looked just like this horse… his horse which was also named Cormorant… She recalls how Marius’ black curls blew in the wind, much like Lucas’ black curls are doing now.
“Here goes nothing!” says Lucas, grinning from ear to ear, “Let’s go!”
With that, Alfred opens the paddock gate for Lucas and Cormorant to walk through. “Today is the first day of the Lark Festival, you should go check it out!” says Manon, “it is located in the gardens behind Goldcrest Manor, I think you would enjoy it!”
“That sounds like a great idea, thank you!” says Lucas. He smiles at Magpie as he takes the lead, and she follows him, trying to ignore the uneasy feeling in her stomach brought up by the similarities between Lucas and the Marius from her vision.
They walk down the long lane away from Carnifex House, then turn onto the main road and break into a trot as they head toward Goldcrest Manor. A few minutes later the smell of mini doughnuts wafts through the air, and they can hear the organ music from a carousel.
“We must be getting close!” says Magpie, pulling up next to Lucas.
“I suddenly just got really hungry!” says Lucas, making them both giggle, and causing the horses’ ears to flicker back and forth.
They finally reach Goldcrest Gardens, rendered unrecognizable by a myriad of multicoloured tents featuring carnival games and various food and drink options. The centerpiece of the carnival appears to be a large, antique carousel surrounded by a whirling collection of unicorns, griffins, and other mystical creatures, each permanently frozen in a different position.
Lucas laughs and points to a wooden sign nailed to a post “You don’t see that every day!” he says.
Magpie looks over his shoulder and laughs out loud. The sign reads “Horse Parking Lot, This Way!” with an arrow pointing toward the back of the gardens. “Let’s do it!” she says, as they lead Cormorant and Rose down the path.
The horses safely tucked away, Magpie and Lucas start ambling through the festival. They are immediately surrounded by the sound of carnival barkers shouting “Step right up! Try your luck!”, and the music from the carousel waving in and out as the speaker spins around in circles. The smell from all the different food vendors makes their mouths water.
“What shall we eat first?!” ask Lucas. Though Magpie has learned Lucas isn’t much one for parties, he definitely enjoys party food!
“Cotton candy, candied apples, cranachan” shouts a man at a nearby booth, causing them to turn his direction.
“Pasties! Popcorn! Lemonade!” shouts another across the way, causing Magpie to pivot and bump into Lucas. They laugh and take a step back.
“I’ll get the cotton candy,” says Lucas
“And I’ll get the lemonade,” says Magpie
“Meet you back here in 5,” they say in unison before going different directions.
Magpie walks to the booth and orders two large cups of lemonade. She turns and sees that Lucas is still waiting in line at the other booth, so she decides to take a small detour past the carousel before going back to their meeting spot. Taking a large sip out of her cup, she walks up to the fence surrounding the carousel. The joyful music fades away as the carousel comes to a stop. Magpie takes a closer look at the creatures lining its perimeter. She sees a two-person chair shaped like a swan, a father and son seated next to one another, smiling. Next in line is a pair of unicorns with flowers woven into their manes and tails, a boy and girl on their backs giggling as they pretend to race. Behind them, a griffin rears up on its hind legs, its mouth hanging open to show a pink tongue and pointy teeth. The music picks up again and the carousel slowly starts turning. Magpie watches as new creatures come into view, admiring the artistry of each and every one.
“What happened to ‘meet you back here in 5’?” comes Lucas’ voice from behind her.
Magpie spins around, coming directly face to face with him. She lays an apologetic hand on his shoulder. “Oh my gosh Lucas, I’m so sorry, I saw you were waiting in line, so I thought I’d come check out the carousel and totally lost track of time. Isn’t it beautiful?!” she exclaims.
“Yes, it’s very beautiful” he answers softly, never taking his eyes off her face.
Magpie smiles at him, her cheeks flushed. She holds out one of the lemonade cups “I believe this is yours Mr. Starling!” she says.
“And I believe this is yours, Mrs. Starling!” he says, holding out a large puff of blue cotton candy. “Uh… I mean, Miss Phaeton…” he says, turning a shade of pink she’s never seen on him before.
“Thanks,” she says, hesitating only a moment before coyly adding, “and, for the record, I kind of like the sound of Mrs. Starling.”
Lucas turns toward the carousel, smiling. They stand side by side, silent, watching as the mystical creatures, frozen in time, spin round and round.
“No beginning, and no end…” The thought echoes through Magpie’s mind, pushing all feelings of warmth and comfort from her body, and replacing them with a chill that runs all the way down her spine.
Thank you so much for listening. Join me next week for Wingspan chapter 10, Night Magic, where Magpie, Lucas, Manon and Alfred enjoy dinner on the patio, a perfect evening with the exception of Magpie’s unsettling vision.
Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, as well as Cannelle for composing eerie, mood-setting 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 your podcast provider or by subscribing to my Patreon where you get early access to episodes as well as MP3 downloads of the music, artwork, writing, recipes, and more! Checks the show notes for links.
Thank you.
