Chapter 2: Growing up

The scorching heat this summer had been unyielding for the last few weeks, and it seemed that it would never end. Relief could only be found under the shadow of the thickest leaves, in the deeper parts of the forest, where Marie was currently lying down. This time of the year had apparently been some kind of signal to the many furry, feathery and even scaly inhabitants of the forest, making it bustle with the noises of ruffled leaves, running paws and loud chirps.

At the moment, the young girl was truly glad that the usually quiet woods were so full of life, as it took her mind off the thought that would not leave her alone

'My parents aren't my parents.'

She had been repeating this disturbing thought to herself over and over and it didn't make any more sense now that she had repeated it for the umpteenth time. She tried saying it, just to be sure it wouldn't change anything.

"My parents aren't my parents."

It didn't help at all. In fact, she was pretty sure it was even worse. The whole affair was very confusing to her...On the one hand, her parents were saying that they were, in fact, not her parents. And on the other hand, they reassured her many times by saying the exact opposite: "You're still our daughter, and we will always be your parents. Never forget that."

All in all, it had been a strange week. New thoughts and feelings had sprung up in her heart, and she had no idea how to deal with them as she had never encountered them before.

That's why for the last couple of days, she had been eagerly seeking isolation and shade, which she gained easily as soon as she passed through the hole in the fence, behind the summer-lilac.

Marie tried relaxing, breathing slowly and closing her eyes, but she quickly found herself unable to. The lack of action caused her mind to go back to her worry, again and again, despite her relentless attempts at not thinking of anything. Giving up, she stood up and started walking deeper into the forest, her hands buried in her pockets and her brow furrowing as her mood darkened even more. Easily climbable trees had no appeal to her, as well as murky ponds and sunny clearings.

She groaned at her own lack of enthusiasm, and kicked away a log in anger, wincing at the pain. Then she noticed a weird noise.

It started as a grunt, and was quickly followed by the thundering noise of hooves striking the earth. Marie quickly turned to see whatever it was charging at her, only to freeze when she faced the humongous form of a wild boar closing in on her. All at once, her entire body tensed, instinctively bracing for the impact, the same instinct that brought something out of her. With this monstrosity bearing down on her, she felt something flaring out of her, like a stream pouring from her chest.

With wide eyes, she stared in front of her as the beast flew away from her, hit by a force akin to a powerful wind, scattering the leaves all around her. The boar quickly regained its bearings, only to turn around and flee, its head alert, searching for the predator that had just thrown it around so easily. Marie watched it flee, her fear already gone, quickly replaced by confusion. A confusion she felt the need to voice aloud, to once again see how it fared when the words left her mind to reach her ears on their own.

"That's not how the wind is supposed to work, is it?"

She pondered it for a long time, unmoving from her spot, carefully carving the sight of the leafless ground in front of her in her mind, before finally reaching her conclusion.

"It was magic."

Her posture relaxed, having reached a reasonable explanation for the strange occurrence finally relieving her of her doubts. It took her a few seconds more before her statement reached the rest of her mind.

"I can use MAGIC!"

It felt strange that a single short sentence could make her so happy that all the business with her parents not being her parents anymore suddenly seemed a lot less depressing, a lot less important. After all, now she could do magic.

When she finally got back to her home after running at breakneck speed, she was red in the face with leaves in her hair, and her smile still hadn't left her face. She ran through the house to reach her father's study , barely taking the time to take her dirty trainers off before stepping on the carpet. She didn't even stop to check if her father was working, and immediately began telling him the greatest news in the history of the Universe according to Marie Argante.

"Daddy, I can do MAGIC!"

She was bouncing on her feet, clapping and talking at the same time, endlessly repeating the news to her father. She didn't stop until her father cut her off, dropping a hand on her shoulder and trying to calm his daughter.

"What makes you say that Sweetie?"

The momentary calm disappeared as quickly as it had appeared and she launched into a full report of her encounter with the boar. Her father listened unfazed until the end, only stopping her for a short time when a sliver of fear crept back as she narrated the terror that had paralyzed her when she had first seen the beast.

"Don't worry Sweetie, it's normal what happened to you. See, fear is like a fire in your veins. It helps you when you are in danger; it makes you act quicker, run faster or jump higher. But sometimes, like today, when you're really really afraid, fear turns to panic, and the fire becomes wild. That's why you shouldn't be afraid of your fear. It will help you when you need it. You just need to never let it run wild."

Reassured, she continued on to the interesting part of the story, recounting the sudden force of wind and the strewn leaves, showing her usual joy and enthusiasm that had been dimmed by their discussion a few days before. Her father hesitated to bring up the matter, but he knew that now that his daughter knew that she could do magic, she wouldn't rest until she knew all about it.

"Sweetie..."

"Yes Daddy?" she answered brightly.

"You are a witch."

She looked oddly at her father's face, before laughing at his expense.

"Well, of course I am since I can do magic Daddy!" Marie stated with the unshakable certainty of a child.

"No, Marie, what I'm saying is...We knew you could do magic..." At the expression of pain and betrayal in his daughter's expression, Claude hurriedly added, "But we planned to tell you! We just wanted to let you come to terms with the fact that we are not your biological parents before telling you their story. But I guess there's not much point in waiting now. So...Marie. I need you to listen very carefully."

The pain and feeling of betrayal still hadn't fully disappeared, but they had nonetheless greatly diminished. She sat down next to him, and looked up expectantly.

"A few days after you were born, a friend of your biological parents left you in our care because evil people wanted to hurt you. That's why we were waiting for you to grow up before we told you about you being a witch, like your biological mother. But in a few years, someone will come to accompany you to a school where you will learn magic."

"When? When can I go!?"

He smiled at her, and felt relief at the outcome of the day's events.

"When you turn eleven."

Marie squealed and hugged her father with all of her strength.

From then on, Marie set out to learn and discover everything she could about magics of all shapes and kinds. Her room became filled with books in all shapes and sizes, their subjects varying from voodoo practitioners and traditions to the Chronicles of Narnia. However, Celtic mythology and creatures dominated her bookshelves. She had become interested in the topic when she had learned that the forest that began behind their garden was a magical one. The instant her parents brought her to the heart of the forest to visit Merlin's grave, Celtic magic became her absolute favourite subject. For a time, she even became fearful of her beloved forest, fearful of what could lurk in the shadows of the thick bushes. This fear drove her to learn how she could protect herself from the Little People and their subtle tricks, and she was never again seen outside of her house without salt and iron. After finally working up the courage to walk under the shade of Brocéliande, she quickly forgot her earlier apprehensions, and often escaped from her parents' surveillance to look for elves, korrigans and fairies. Her favorite spot was a small river, not far from her home, where she regularly went to look for a stone pierced in its center by erosion. Such stones were rumored to enable humans to see the Little People even when they desired not to be seen.

She visited the river time and time again as seasons then years passed, until one fateful day, on the 21st of June 2006. She had finally found one, right in front of a part of the river that housed a small island covered in trees. The moment she felt the smooth rock under her grasp, she held it with all her strength. As she got it out of the water, she immediately looked through the hole, not at all expecting to find anything. She found him nonetheless.