Of Constellations → 𝘥. 𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘧𝘰𝘺

vii. constellation conundrum

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chapter seven

constellation conundrum

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Second Year

On my tenth birthday, my Aunt Gracie nearly killed me.

It wasn't her intention or anything, and it sounds more dramatic than it was in reality. Actually, the part where I almost died is the least important part of the story.

Aunt Gracie was the girlfriend of Mum's younger sister. They were both beekeepers who'd met working on a small organic farm in Norfolk and, after they began dating, started their own honeybee farm near Rye. (They were also both named Grace, so she was Aunt Gracie and my mum's sister was Aunt Grace.)

Whenever my Aunt Graces would come to visit, Aunt Gracie would hide somewhere in the house as soon as she got there and wait to jump out and scare me. I used to love it. I'd scream, but the adrenaline would soon give way to excitement, and then I'd laugh until my stomach got sore.

But, after what happened, she never did it again.

It was my birthday, and their visit was a surprise. Unlike other times, I wasn't listening for the front door to open and the sound of my parents greeting them.

I'd been having a nap, trying to build up some energy for the day, when I heard Mum's voice beckoning me into the kitchen.

Still weary and in a fugue, I made my way to the stairs. Right as I took the first step down, Aunt Gracie jumped out of the guest bedroom and yelled "Boo!"

I screamed and flinched away, and then I started laughing as I normally did. Only this time, I wasn't laughing for long before I felt my knees turn to water. My arms flopped to my sides, my head lulled forward, and I could no longer move. I was terrified and bewildered by what was happening. 

And then I fell backward.

Instead of breaking my neck or splitting my skull apart, I gently glided down and landed at the bottom completely unharmed. And also still completely unable to move any muscle in my body.

It was like fainting, but not quite, because I could hear Aunt Gracie's footsteps down the stairs and her frantic screaming for someone to call an ambulance. But, I couldn't move or speak or open my eyes to let people know that I was okay.

A minute later, I could move again but still felt weak. 

Once the panic had burned out of her, Aunt Gracie started to talk about how weird the fall had been—this was how she found out that I was a witch and Dad, a wizard. Mum told her about the Fossen side of the family, that her father-in-law was the headmaster of a school of witchcraft and wizardry, and made Dad Wingardium Leviosa some pots and pans around the room to prove it (which made Aunt Gracie faint for real).

It was the first time in my life I'd fainted-but-not-really-fainted, but it was not the last. After that initial incident, it would happen perhaps every week while I was at home. More often than not, it wasn't a complete paralysis like the first time. It would happen after laughing too hard for too long, where my head would get droopy and my hands would get weak, though I could keep myself mostly upright. But, it occasionally happened after getting sufficiently angry or scared like the first time where I'd completely collapse.

There were two traumatic experiences: once in front of Dr. Yeom and Dr. Maidlow (the time they thought I was having a seizure), and once in a pool.