The Deception of Magic

The Queen

The door swung open quickly and the air that was suddenly quiet from the noise of the door opening was replaced by aroma of old fish. The elf disappeared inside and before she had time to reconsider, Ciara could see her legs moving towards the house. It was as if they had a mind of their own and a better sense of adventure than her head. Once she reached the edge of the door and the opening to the house, her heart began racing and she had no idea what to expect. She peered through the door like a timid child and was immediately confronted by a wild sight. 

It was a mess. Birds screeched from the ceiling beams, defecating onto the wooden floor. A cook, who was wearing a black apron, purple pants, a white singlet, suspenders and an oversized chef’s hat, which slung down over the tops of his ears and stuck to his forehead with moisture that Ciara assumed, was sweat. It was chaos, and when the chef turned towards her he grinned showing a mouth that was empty of teeth. He stared at her mockingly as he stirred a bowl full of something in his arms. He started spilling it over the sides as he continued his fixation on her and large bits of the mixture fell to the floor. 

The elf appeared next to the chef, distracting the staring competition  that was in progress, waving his arm for her to come. She slipped past the staring chef, making sure she didn’t slip on the uncooked goods on the floor and followed the elf. A set of stairs appeared before them- she couldn’t remember the house having a second story from outside. A soft vibrating noise began from beneath Ciaras feet, growing louder and more violent that she had to hold onto the railing to not fall down the stairs. The room above began to change before her eyes. Marble materialised out of specks of dust in the air, coating the floor with a majestic shine. The new floor ran in vertical lines from Ciaras’ feet to a large chair on the far end of the room. The chair was coated in gold and shimmered in the light. Something dark seemed to be sitting low on the chair; Ciara couldn’t work out exactly what it was. Once the room had finished changing, a limb sprouted up from the creature and motioned them to walk across. The elf bent its head down and a sombre expression crept over its face. They walked slowly towards the creature and the temperature in the room dropped so much so that Ciara had to cuddle herself to remain warm. A sudden shrill screech filled the air, piercing through Ciara’s ears, reverberating throughout her body, escaping from her mouth. The elf picked up the pace, sensing danger. Ciara quickly followed, her heart rate rising and goose bumps spreading across her skin. When they reached the creature, it was nothing Ciara had expected, nor been able to make out from across the room. It didn’t resemble any creature she knew of. It had a head, with darkened sockets where eyes should live, which were red and small and beamed out from its skull. Its mouth was a collection of mismatching teeth, all different sizes, shapes and conditions of health. Some were missing, some seemed as if they were dominant and forced others out. It was a mini civilisation in its mouth. There was no room for a nose and gills attached themselves just below the teeth empire. There wasn’t much below the gills; just a stump where the other vital organs existed. The elf suddenly bowed, interrupting Ciara’s examination of the creature.

“My darling Queen, I present to you our newest visitor,” and curled its hand in a wave towards Ciara. 

The Queen’s eyes darted to Ciara and it suddenly moved, growing wings that seemed like they appeared out of thin air. The Queen rose up from the large chair and hovered on her large dark wings. Her head seemed proportionately smaller than the rest of her body now, which had materialised as she flew up. She seemed moth like now and she hovered, buzzing over the top of the elf and Ciara. She seemed to looking her over from all angles, making swift judgement. The elf stood very still and appeared nervous, which in turn made Ciara nervous. If it was a nasty judgement, was the Queen going to stab her in the eye? Send her on her merry way but dispose of her later? What if she liked her? Would she keep her as a slave forevermore? Ciara’s head began to throb with such thoughts and confusion, the whole ordeal seeming to catch up with her at that moment. How she wished she was back in her bed and she, at this very moment, regretted going to the book shop down the dark alley, touching the very book that brought her here. Her sense of curiosity got the better of her and hindsight now scolded her for it. The Queen hovered over them for what seemed like eternity and she felt like her existence hung in the balance. It was then suddenly it was over, with a snap of her fingers.

'That will be all. Go now.' She turned and went back to her chair. Confused,

Ciara blinked and then realised she was still alive.

The elf whispered loudly, "Let's go", and quickly scurried off. She followed

and soon they were outside again.

"What the hell was that?" Ciara asked the elf.

"Well obviously you aren't dead yet, so it’s a good thing for now" the elf said sarcastically.

For now; how comforting, Ciara thought as the elf walked off.