'I wonder what it must feel like to be a bird,' I thought as I watched the bluebirds fly past the windows of my chariot. 'To levitate, to feel weightless and free resting on the clouds always seemed like eternal peace to me. Wonder if I'd be closer to him?'

  The bluebirds flew in quiet flocks, their wings cutting soft lines across the sky. My gaze followed them, my thoughts trailing far behind. I miss him.

  I bid farewell to the bluebirds with a simple wave and au dieu to my fantasy as my destination drew nearer. The sight of the old, dinghy mansion came into view, the same one I'd seen countless times before. Its imposing gate, marked with the coven crest, obscured much of the mansion behind it. It was then that I realized it was time to get down. Although I'd been here plenty of times in the past, I never imagined I'd live here. Rather never entertained the thought of it.

  As soon as my feet touched the ground, the chariot rattled off without hesitation, leaving me alone under the blazing sun. "Guess I'm not the only one eager to be as far from here as possible," I thought, watching it disappear into the warm hues of the setting sun. I'm not sure why, but I felt really hurt and betrayed by the rider of the chariot.

  After minutes of stalling, pacing aimlessly, gathering stones, and drawing patterns in the sand. I braided and unbraided my hair, debated with myself, and watched the sun dip lower, the only company being my luggage in silence, I had finally mustered up the courage to knock on the front gate.

  Before my hand could even graze the surface, the gate rattled violently. A heavy clang echoed as something fell to the ground, presumably the lock. Slowly, the gate creaked open, splitting the crest in two, and revealed a tall figure standing in its frame— a woman of striking beauty. Her stunning black dress clung to her form, her skin pale as snow, and her blood-red lips formed a poised line. Her pitch-black hair cascaded down her back, accentuating the icy brilliance of her green eyes. Two maids flanked her, but there was no mistaking her presence.

  My Mother.

  I ran forward, stopping only to give a formal courtesy, my head bowed low to avoid her chilling gaze. "You're still not talking?" she asked in a cold, detached voice. I remained silent, my gaze fixed on the ground.

  "Good," she replied, then turned and walked back into the mansion without another word.

  Ouch.

  One of the maids led me to my room whilst the other carried my luggage for me as she followed behind us. We finally reached there, ignoring all the strange and questionable materials placed around the house. 'Life of a witch I guess'.

  We stopped in front of a heavy wooden door, my new room. My expectations had already hit rock bottom, and at this point would shed tears of joy at the sight of a warm bed. To my surprise, the room wasn't terrible. It had all the essentials, albeit in an uninspired, dull way. The only thing that caught my attention would be the bed. It had a peculiar shape to it, almost resembling that of a coffin with a mattress in it… Hold on, is my bed a coffin…

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Nope, not giving that a second thought.

  The maids sat me down on my coff_ *erm* bed and stood in front to give an announcement. One of them unfolded a piece of paper and began reading aloud:

  "Welcome, Miss Davina Harroway. On behalf of Madame Harroway and the staff, we cordially welcome you to the mansion. To ensure a peaceful stay, you are required to follow these rules:

  There shall be no noise in the mansion, day or night.

  You are free to leave as long as you inform either Marian or me, Clara, and return before 9 PM, at which time the doors will be locked.

  Attendance at all meetings arranged by Madame Harroway is mandatory, and lateness will be punished.

  Visitors must be approved by Madame a day in advance.

  Lastly, under no circumstances are you to set foot in Madame's chambers. If anything must be delivered to her, it will go through us.

  Dinner will be served in one hour. You are invited to join Madame Harroway at the dining table. Do not be late. That will be all."

  They curtseyed in unison before leaving me alone with my thoughts.

  Honestly I would rather not go but Something tells me it's not a choice to be made and I am hungry. Well it's just dinner, right? How bad can it be? Right?

  …

  I should've starved.

  I once thought knocking on the gates would be torturous, but this, being on the same table with her, well if this goes on any longer, I might just suffocate from the dense atmosphere. Honestly not sure if it would be a bad thing at this point.

  "Have you settled into your room?"she suddenly asked.

  I wanted to say no. The mansion was shabby, the maids were unnerving, and my bed was a literal coffin. Seriously, we're witches, not vampires. Wrong aesthetic. But all I could manage was a meek nod.

  "Don't get too comfortable, you leave in three days", she said nonchalantly in a cold to… wait what, I'm what…

  "I enrolled you in a school in Enortita" she says;

  Enortita, seriously, the kingdom's capital, that's where she's sending me off to.

  "Clothes and other necessities have been prepared at your dormitory. You leave first thi—"

  The sound of my hand slamming against the table cut her off. The room went silent. I looked up, anger burning in my chest, but all I could show her was fear as her piercing green eyes bore into me.

  After a moment, she resumed speaking, her tone as indifferent as before. "You'll be attending with that friend of yours, starting Monday."

  And just like that, she dismissed me, her condescending gaze reminding me that there was no room for protest.

  Once I got to my room, I tossed myself in bed wanting to bury myself and make it my actual coffin.

  I can't believe this, three days, just three days and I'm off. To The Capital nonetheless. If you didn't want me then Why'd you bring me here in the first place? Should've just left me there in peace.

  Maybe I should just run away. But then again, running from the nation's most powerful witch sounds really dumb and honestly, I don't have anywhere else to go to.

  The only thing I have to comfort me now is just the memories shared with him.

  Dad, please come back, I really need you.

  The tears I tried so hard to hold back finally broke out. Still no sound was made. Although, my room began to sparkle and glimmer and suddenly an image began to form laying by my side.

  It was my dad, holding my hand.

  He began to sing my favourite lullaby

  Without realising, I opened my eyes to a new day.