24 TSoT/HMV: The Invisible Lady

"You haunt my dreams/There's nothing to do but believe/Just believe…/Just breathe/Lying in my bed/Another day, staring at the ceiling…" -Télépopmusik, song "Breathe"

6:45 am, Saturday, One Weekend Later, Bedroom, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico No. 23

The spiral of flames reared its way upward in a heightened vortex, as a man plus four beings—male or were they female? jumped out and faced her in what she knew to be Vera Manor's living room. Their faces obscured, they attempted to hurl flame-shaped swords in her direction as she screamed and ducked, trying in vain to use her telekinesis to deflect the onslaught of flickering arsenal. Why weren't her powers working? Perhaps telekinesis was possible for molecularly solid objects, but not for mutable substances, she surmised to herself as she quickly ducked behind the plush velveteen couch, which became reduced to smithereens with the next beam of coursing light. The man turned around, his face a shellacked lapis lazuli blue and she gasped aloud. Parker. "We meet again, Charmed One," he snarled, his mouth widening to form a nefarious grin that sent shivers throughout her body—

Macy sprang up in bed, flushed and sweating profusely. Breathing hard, she tried to calm herself, visualizing happy thoughts—her children, the safe haven of Vera Manor, her sisters. It was only a dream. And yet, it felt so real. She looked over at the empty space next to her. Where was Harry?

"Love—" Macy gave a sudden start, "if we don't hurry up, we'll be late—" Harry stopped and peered into her eyes. "You've seen something. What is it?"

Macy shook her head. "It's probably just menopause—I looked up the symptoms earlier—sweating and hot flashes—the dream I had…it was probably nothing…" she trailed off uncertainly.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Remember what I said eons ago about learning to trust your own voice?" Macy knew what he was implying.

"Ok, so, I had this dream there were four fiery people-beings that came through a fire hurricane and descended on Vera Manor, led by Parker. Except," Macy thought for a moment. "It wasn't him. He transformed, or…reinvented himself, or…something."

Harry's expression darkened. "Macy, we need to tell your sisters—"

"It's probably just menopause! Or…or the vegan cookie dough ice cream I had last night, or…" Macy looked up at her husband. "Maybe evil Parker's paying a visit," she whispered.

"And the flames—who do we know has an unremitting affinity for fire?" asked Harry.

"Matilda."

7 am, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

"Love," asked Harry again once Morgana was out of earshot, "are you absolutely sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine!" snapped Macy, sipping her cup of coffee, provided by Morgana before the start of the Zoom interview sessions. Together, the three had narrowed down the magical obstetrical candidates to three people.

"Here's a snapshot of the folks," Morgana returned to the kitchen with a set of notebooks, pens, and interview material, as she read off the first sheet, copies of which she distributed simultaneously. "The first candidate is Medusa—"

"Wait, the Medusa?" Macy was jolted out of her sleep-deprived haze. "As in, see her and you turn into stone?"

Morgana nodded. "Well, a grand-niece or something, so I've heard."

"How would the birthing process work if you can't see your own doctor?" Harry posited quizzically. "Isn't one of the key tenets doctor-patient interactions?"

"True," the elderly witch remarked, continuing to thumb through a set of documents before pulling out the corresponding copies of the woman's resume. "But, as I informed her earlier, the medical community and the magical community at large strives for diversity and has made itself amenable to reasonable accommodations."

"I don't think this is what's meant by 'diversity,'" muttered Macy as she read through Medusa's credentials. "She could accidentally kill someone with one look. And what would 'reasonable accommodations' involve?"

"Oh, looking at her surgical handiwork through a series of mirrors," replied Morgana. "She's famous in her own community for delivering a set of quintuplets all by herself."

7:10 am, Medusa's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

"Hello Medusa, can you hear us?" Harry, Macy, and Morgana dialed onto the Zoom call, disabling the video function.

"Yup!" a voice on the other end chirped.

"So, um, Medusa," Macy began. "Tell us more about yourself."

7:20 am, Medusa's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

So far, so good, thought Harry to himself as he listened to Medusa's account of how she had decided on her professional calling. "It's been wonderful discussing the position; if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call—" pressing what he thought was the "hang up" button.

"NO!" cried Morgana and Macy, slamming the laptop shut.

"W-what?" Harry surveyed their horrified expressions.

"You clicked the video icon by accident."

Harry winced. "Ladies, my sincerest apologies."

8 am, Heracles' Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

After nearly being turned to stone, Harry felt it appropriate they indulge in what he termed "benevolent day-drinking" of his newest concoction, a sweet banana rum punch he assembled and mixed on the nearby kitchen counter, incorporating banana rum, orange juice, pineapple juice, ginger ale, cherry syrup, garnished with slices of lemon.

Drinks in hand, they examined the next dossier. Heracles, paragon of masculinity. Here goes nothing, Harry thought, as he clicked the button to commence the next interview.

"Hello, dear sir!" a booming voice could be heard on the other end. Morgana and Macy exchanged glances, what are we, chopped liver?

"Why do you feel you're most qualified for this magical obstetrical position?" Macy asked, as Heracles took a moment to formulate his thoughts.

"Well," he said, solely addressing Harry, much to the women's consternation, "I witnessed the birth of all fifty of my children, born safely into the realm. That ought to count for something." Harry thought he heard a cluster of voices in the background, coupled with the sound of shattering dinner plates.

"Heracles," Harry finally said, realizing he was unable to hear the interviewee over the racket, "can you do something about the noise?"

"One minute," responded Heracles, who, without bothering to mute, bellowed "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" resulting in dead silence. He turned around to face the stunned trio. "That better?"

"Uh," Macy said, too shocked to fully respond. So much for compassionate bedside manner, she thought to herself, rolling her eyes. Morgana apparently was of the same mind, as she shuffled around her remaining papers and briskly thanked Heracles for his time before ending the call.

9 am, Nedra's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

Macy could feel the numbing effects of banana rum course through her system as she and Morgana glanced at the final candidate's portfolio. Oddly enough, there was a single chair in the place of where a LinkedIn picture should have been. Was that in error? she couldn't help but wonder.

"That's the correct photo," Morgana mentioned. "She's invisible," she clarified, as she clicked on the button to initiate the Zoom call, camera-enabled this time. Wait, what? Macy and Harry stared at each other, then at the Zoom screen, where they saw an impeccably-dressed figure donned head-to-toe in a sublime Jackie Kennedy-style outfit.

"Hi," the voice emanated softly. "I'm Nedra."

9:45 am, Nedra's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

So far, Nedra's accomplishments had impressed the trio; she had overseen the births of five hundred magical beings in the past year, all born safely no matter the situation. When asked about why she wished to leave her current position, she diplomatically stated "career growth and a chance to spread my wings." On Macy's inquiry, Nedra for all her accolades, professed she was tired of being sidelined due to her soft-spoken personality. The interview was almost at a close, but Harry had one last question to ask.

"Nedra," he began. "Can you tell us anything about yourself that's not on your resume?"

Nedra paused for several seconds to collect her thoughts. "I guess…" her turquoise woolen pillbox hat angled downward as the trio imagined her staring into her lap. She then straightened her posture. "I invented a fire-proof full-body uniform to assist with pyro-related births. No fatalities yet," she remarked as Macy and Harry suddenly stared at each other. "D-did I say something wrong?" she asked hesitantly.

"N-no, that was an awesome response," breathed Macy, as Morgana and Harry nodded in the affirmative. "Can you give us a couple minutes?" They watched as the woolen hat bobbed up and down in assent.

9:55 am, Nedra's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

The trio muted the Zoom call, with Nedra patiently waiting on the opposite line. "I like Nedra," stated Macy to Morgana, who continued scribbling on her own notepad as they spoke.

"What about Heracles?" Harry spoke as the others made a face of utter disgust. "I'm kidding!" he said, as he continued sipping his lemon-garnished beverage.

"Medusa?" Morgana asked. "NO! I mean," Macy recovered herself, "no. Risking being turned to stone is a major liability."

"Roger that," said Harry. "Plus, Nedra makes fire-proof uniforms—"

"Or so she claims," Macy interjected. "We need evidence."

10 am, Nedra's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

Nedra waiting expectantly, the trio unmuted the call. "So, Nedra," Macy began. "Can you demonstrate the use of your fire-proof full-body uniform over this call? Right now?" fulling expecting the woman to say no, I need more time. To the trio's surprise, Nedra's woolen hat bobbed up and down as they noticed her laptop changing scenery until it, and Nedra, were in what appeared to be her basement.

"Can I turn off the camera for privacy?" Nedra asked, "I gotta change into the uniform first," and they nodded.

10:10 am, Nedra's Zoom Interview, Morgana's Kitchen, Madalena Village, Azores, Epicenter Pico Neighborhood

The screen image resurfaced as Nedra now wore a lavender-colored full-body suit that reminded Harry vaguely of the quirky "Blue Man Group," except…purple. And female. Suddenly, a torrent of flame shot toward Nedra's torso and head, startling the trio and causing Morgana to splash her drink onto the kitchen table.

"Nedra!" Macy shrieked, not knowing whether her interviewee was alive. "ARE YOU OK?" They watched as the flame dissipated nearly as fast as it started.

"Eh, I'm still here," laughed Nedra, her suited self cheerfully waving at the dumbfounded trio through the interview call.

Morgana, Macy, and Harry stared at each other and back at Nedra. "You're hired."