Nightingale

Chapter 12

When Fable arrived at her cottage, she found her mum and aunt sipping red wine and laughing on the veranda. They were listening to Classical FM on the radio, and didn't seem at all bothered by the cold, or how late it was. Fable approached them as her human self, and waved awkwardly, not knowing how else to greet them.

"Fable!" called her mum, with a slightly concerned tone of voice, "It's four AM! What are you doing? We both thought you were in your bedroom this whole time!"

"Yeaah, sorry. I thought I texted you to say I was sleeping at Christie's again... Bad signal, I guess. And her parents had a fight, and I didn't know what to do - so I came home. Even though its late." lied Fable, unable to think of a better excuse.

"Ah, I see. Hope you didn't walk alone. Want a glass, sweetie?" asked her mum, who was obviously drunk.

"Nah, that's okay. Gotta get some sleep before school tomorrow. Goodnight." yawned Fable, blowing the drunks a kiss before going upstairs.

Phew, she breathed. Sometimes she was grateful for having such unorthodox parents, as anyone else she knew might have been interrogated and grounded for weeks if they strolled in at this hour on a school night. Lucky her. Fable tucked herself into bed, and reluctantly closed her eyes. It was so hard to sleep knowing Mr Hudson had been cradling her in his arms only moments ago... would he be disappointed when he woke up and realised she wasn't there? It was so difficult sleeping alone now...

Fable woke up the next day and stretched her arms out above her head. The aching in her arm had ceased at last, and she was feeling glad it was Friday. She had singing group again tonight, and was pretty curious to see how her powers would help her voice. So far that genius old witch had given her everything she wanted, and this would be no different. Fable wasn't much in the mood for chatting today, despite her good mood, and messaged her friends to say she was running late and not to wait for her. She strolled out of her house, unburdened by her school bag(which was still in a locker), and made her way to school.

The country road was sprinkled in a light layer of frost, and Fable could hear the slow, gentle trickle of a stream nearby. Overhead, the sky was clear and a brilliant blue. The cold revealed her breath on the air like a ghostly mist and she breathed in its freshness with relish. It was going to be a good day...

That morning, Fable went about her routine as normal. Lesson after lesson, she sat quietly and studied hard. She didn't have any literature classes today, so didn't need to worry about anything. At lunchtime, she didn't meet with her friends, and instead went to the English Department to read a book in the library area. She took a bite out of a rosy apple while turning the pages of Ovid's Metamorphoses. Turns out witches have been using transformative powers since the dawn of civilization, she smiled, referencing Circe.

"Onto the real classical stuff, now I see!" came the voice of Mr Hudson from behind her. "I'm impressed, but I wouldn't expect anything less from our model student."

"Flattery gets you nowhere," laughed Fable, suddenly horrified she just said that, and if it would be considered flirting, but continued to play it off as the joke she intended it to be. She was somewhat relieved when he laughed too.

"Are you looking for poetry inspiration by reading this epic?" he asked with genuine intrigue.

"Maybe. Or maybe I'm just pretentious." she said, seeing if Mr Hudson would rise to the bait.

"There's nothing pretentious about being gifted and intelligent, Fable" said Mr Hudson, suddenly becoming serious, "You can tell me if anyone has said anything to you. I noticed how you're here alone today."

"Oh, no. I was just joking, Sir. I just like the solitude sometimes. But thank-you." replied Fable, feeling hot under her jumper.

"Good. I know it can be hard to feel like the odd one out, but don't let the influence of others stop you from achieving. Anything's possible for a girl like you." he advised, and walked off, clasping his paperwork.

'A girl like me' - marvelled Fable, letting those words linger on her mind. She couldn't believe Mr Hudson had just said something which singled her out as special. It was amazing to be recognised! Fable wished he meant what he said about anything being possible... because that would mean a relationship between them too...

It was four o'clock at last, and Fable was making her way down to the music hall to join the others in her singing group. She had been mulling over everything Mr Hudson had said to her today, and was beaming as she entered the hall.

"Welcome, welcome" called Mrs Green, who was sat on a piano seat and watching as the students piled in one by one.

"Take your places, girls and boys! That's right, shuffle in - grab a chair, and create a ring!"

The students scraped their chairs across the floor, and formed their usual practice circle.

"Now, a volunteer to begin the singing, please - ah yes, Jake. You can start it off. We don't have much time left now, and I want to choose one of you to sing a solo song to finish the concert on a high note. There will be other schools present and even the media - so I hope you've all been practising." said Mrs Green with nervous energy.

Jake sang his lines adequately, and Mrs Green nodded approvingly, but didn't seem completely satisfied. The other boys followed suit, and the teacher was scribbling down notes frantically on a small pad, and continuing to nod at each student. It came to the girls, and Rachel was first. Little Miss Perfect. Fable eyed her closely as she stood up and sang. It was as crystal clear as the last time, and it was obvious she had been practising every morning, noon and night for this.

"Oh well done, Rachel, dear. I hear your voice has come on leaps and bounds since you joined us all those years ago. You're definitely a candidate for the solo performance. Such talent, wonderful." praised Mrs Green. The other girls looked at each other with mutual envy; they all wanted the solo part desperately.

"Now, Fable. Your turn, dear." called Mrs Green, as she stared at her through her eccentric wide rimmed spectacles.

Fable began to sing and the whole room stopped still. It was a voice like liquid gold. There was nothing to compare it with; words would fail to describe that pure and unique sound. It was so beautiful and charming that Mrs Green could no longer contain herself, and she rose up from her own seat and began to clap with such sincerity, that a single tear sprang from the corner of her eye and trickled down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly with the back of a hand, and continued to clap in complete adoration. Fable glanced across the room smugly to see the other's faces, and was not disappointed. Each and every one of them was stunned into silence. They didn't know how to react. Finally, Mrs Green broke the silence with a gushing wave of praise for Fable.

"Exquisite! Simply astonishing and bewitching!" she cried. "I don't know how you've managed to achieve this range in such a short amount of time, but I am shaken! I cannot find the words, Fable. Everybody, I think we can all agree that Fable deserves the solo performance after showing this much dedication to her practice! Let us all give her a round of applause - congratulations dear! It is unbelievable!"

Rachel suddenly picked up her bag, swung it over her shoulder, and left the room in a fit of rage. Fable could see she was red faced and her eyes had filled up with tears which were about to come gushing out in hysterical sadness. She almost felt guilty in that moment, but was too busy soaking up the glory. She did deserve this, she told herself. She was talented even without the powers. But the image of Rachel's disappointment was still preying on her mind...