The sweetest gift

"Wake up!" rang through my ears as I was shaken awake. My eyes slowly opened, dreading who I would see through those skinny silver bars. The blurry blob came into focus, that ugly, greasy face with those piercing black and soulless eyes. "It's time to deliver this message! Get up! Get up!" he yelled at me as he unlatched my door. The second I stepped out, he was shoving the letter into my satchel. "Take this to Assassin 5436, he will be waiting on the peak of the mountain." He shoved me out, slamming the door behind me. The air felt crisp and smelled fresh, it was cloudy yet I could still gaze upon the stars as I journeyed towards the mountain peak. The wind always made me feel free, even if it was just for that moment, and the moon peeked through the clouds ever so slightly. Hypnotized by the glow from the moon, I lost focus of what was in my path. I crashed right into a pine tree, spiraling towards the ground, hitting branches as I plummeted, SNAP! In excruciating pain, I passed out before I hit the ground.

A bright white light woke me, accompanied by a soft little voice. Still, very much out of it I couldn't make out what that beautiful soft voice said. Was I dead? The next thing I felt was warmth, I've never felt such comfort. "Daddy! Will it be okay?" I heard the soft little voice once more. A burley-sounding voice came next "I don't know Sweets, I will see what I can do" I drifted back to sleep. I woke up in a panic! The letter was never delivered to the assassin, I became anxious. Looking around I didn't know where I was. This was not the silver bars I was used to being behind, it is much roomier, and the walls looked as if they were breathing. The next thing I heard was a weird buzzing noise, I watched as the noise continued as the door to this place folded down and light crept in. There stood a little girl, with big brown eyes, staring at me. No one has ever stared at me this way. She stood there for a second and walked slowly towards me. I wanted to be scared but for some reason, I wasn't. She sat down in front of me, and then stared at my injury. "My dad said that you will be okay, but you do have a very injured wing" I looked over at my wing, it was bandaged. I said, "Thank you, Sweets". Once again, she looked at me like no one has ever looked at me, her big brown eyes became much bigger and her mouth slightly opened with a huge grin across her little face. She stuttered "you...you can talk?" At that moment I realized that I must have fallen into the hands of Normie. "Yes, I can talk, I assume you must be a normie?" I asked. She responded puzzled, " What is a normie?" followed by a cute little giggle. It's already a shock that I talk, what more could an explanation of what a normie is do I asked myself. "A normie is a non-magic person" I responded. Before Sweets could say anything else I interrupted her, asking "Do you know where my satchel is?" She stopped, held her breath, and sadly shook her head and said, "no, you were laying on the ground when we found you and it was just you, I am sorry."

It was quiet for a moment, and then I asked her “Would you be able to bring me back to the place you found me?” She looked at me, once again a look I haven’t been given in years. She grazed my face so gently and with that soft little voice she said “yes, I can, but first I think you need something to eat, and maybe something to drink”. She cared, how did she know I was hungry and thirsty, a feeling I am use to? I looked at her and agreed. Seeing that my wing was injured, it was hard for me to move. She picked the pillow up that I was laying on and took me outside where there was a huge fire burning in the middle of a sitting area. It was sunset, and the normies were making dinner. “Ahhhhh, so the barn owl has awakened,” said the burley-sounding man. “You must be hungry…it’s been a couple of days barn owl.” He was talking to me as if he knew I could speak back. Should I speak back? I whispered to Sweets, “please don’t tell him I can speak.” She whispered, “okay, I won’t”. She then giggled at her dad and said, “Daddy you are silly, you act as if she can understand you and respond.” It was then, he gave me a look that I am very familiar with, the look of mistrust and uncertainty.

As we sat around the warm fire under the beautiful night sky I had forgotten about my master, I forgot about the undelivered letter to the assassin, I forgot that my wing was injured. Pure bliss, the feeling of being relaxed and cared for as Sweets fed me the fish they had been cooking over the fire. I had never tasted such delicious food, my master would feed me scraps from his dinner which would be barely anything if any was left over at all, and if not, I would have to wait until the very next night. Sweets would put the cold freshwater up to my beak, it was so refreshing. The burley-sounding man stared at me across the fire the entire time. Sweets then asked her dad, “Daddy, can I take a walk with the barn owl?” her dad replied, “it’s too dark now to be wandering around in the forrest.” She agreed and whispered “sorry” to me. We went back inside the breathable room which Sweets informed me that it was called a tent.

A couple of days had gone by, each day Sweets and I would try to venture out as far as we could before getting caught by her father. We searched for my satchel, it was nowhere to be found. Each day that passed by we became closer, and we would talk about her world and mine. My wing was feeling better every day and my heart had never felt so full, for once in my life, I felt happy. It did cross my mind, why my master hadn’t found me yet, for I was put under a spell-bond. I could never be set free unless my master said so, anytime I tried to escape or go somewhere other than my set destination the spell bond wouldn’t allow me to, it felt as if I had an invisible leash that kept me in line. Why was the spell-bond not working? Sweets and I decided, she would distract her dad while I would hop and glide into the forrest myself. There it was, I saw my satchel, hobbling over to it I heard huge footsteps crunching the ground behind me, then a loud deep growl followed. I looked behind me, frozen, I couldn't move. I was so scared, a mountain lion stood 2 feet in front of me, then slowly walked past me as if it didn’t even smell me or see me as if I were invisible and I didn’t exist. How is this possible?

A different set of footsteps approached it was Sweets dad. “I casted a protectant spell to keep us safe.” I was still frozen staring at him as he picked me up. “I know you can talk barn owl, I know you are a messenger, and I know you were coming back for the assassination letter that was in your satchel.” He said firmly, yet I wasn’t afraid. “Yes, you are right, but I thought you were a…” he interrupted me “What? A normie?” he said with a deep chuckle. “No, but Sweets is unaware of the magic realm, well until now of course.” As he stared at me with that knowing look that Sweets and I had been talking. We continued our discussion as he carried me back to the campsite. He went on telling me why he tried to keep Sweets in the dark, it was because her mother was killed, because of magic. “I read your letter barn owl, and I am most grateful it never made it to the assassin.”