Matilda Matlock

Bandit's Story

Matilda blinked at the man.

"...w-what?"

Odell Ward breathed in deeply, then exhaled before saying, "I know this must come as a bit of a shock to you-"

"You're not dead?" Matilda blurted. "You're...not...dead?"

"Well... no, I'm quite alive, actually," Odell replied quietly.

Matilda stared at him blankly, her eyes wide, her lips parted in disbelief, then turned to Hagrid as if he would know what to say. Hagrid, who flicked his eyes between the uncle and his niece, cleared his throat awkwardly.

"I'll give yeh 'sum time teh chat," he grumbled with a hesitant smile.

With that, the enormous man trudged away, the floorboards groaning and creaking with every step until he had left the room. Odell looked at Matilda again, then motioned to the couch.

"Please... sit," he urged.

Matilda gulped and walked forward slowly, eyeing her uncle who she had believed to be dead for thirteen years of her life, until she reached the couch and slowly slid down onto the cushions. Odell gently sat down as well, on the other end of the sofa, folding his hands in his lap and looking at the girl calmly.

"I'm just... there's... there's a lot going on right now," Matilda finally said after a few moments of tense silence. "I just found out that I'm a... a..."

"A witch?" Odell finished for her. The corners of his lips twitched when he added, "wonderful, isn't it?"

"I... I guess?" Matilda said. "I mean, I just... I don't really know what to think of it yet? I haven't any idea what magic really is, and... and I only just learned about this Hogwarts place, now I'm staring at my uncle who I thought was dead..."

"Yes, well, that's understandable," Odell sighed. "But I wanted to meet with you... because I owe you an explanation. You're old enough now to understand... Dumbledore wanted me to talk with you as well..."

Odell took a small breath before saying the next bit.

"I'm not... exactly supposed to be... here, at the moment."

"But... but you just said that that Dumbledore bloke wanted you to meet with me...?"

"Yes, yes, he does..." Odell said quickly, "...I'm more referring to... ministry law enforcement..."

He mumbled that last bit, but Matilda heard him loud and clear. She sat straight up, eyes wide and unblinking.

"Sorry, you didn't just say law enforcement, did you?" she demanded, staring at him. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"There's quite a bit to get through," Odell replied.

"Well, get through it!" Matilda commanded. "I... I'm tired of not hearing the truth... I'd like to hear an explanation. All of it. The whole story."

Odell breathed in deeply and said in a calm tone of voice, "of course, Matilda."

Matilda sat back against the couch and stared at him, awaiting the beginning of his explanation as he shifted to face him more on the sofa and looked just a tad bit nervous to spill everything out in front of a girl who'd only just discovered she had magical abilities.

"Tilli- Matilda, do you know how you got that scar?" he asked, motioning to her forehead.

"Auntie said I got into some razor blades when I was a baby..." Matilda responded, but quickly cut herself off when she mentioned her aunt and added, "...wait just a moment, you're alive and you haven't even been in contact with your wife?"