Chapter Text
" Sometimes, the greatest sacrifice is not to give up something, but to give up something you love for something you love even more. " — Thalassa Churchwell
MAGIC IS NOT about finding something extraordinary outside yourself; it’s about uncovering the extraordinary power within you. At least, that is what Franchesca’s mother used to whisper to her when tucking her into her bed late at night. Growing up in a town that held history of black magic and lynching those that considered to have it, it made her nervous when her mother spoke so freely about how that same magic ran through their veins.
Marina Churchwell was an enigma that liked to tell folktales about magic. Folktales about trees that danced in the woods, satyrs who lived in nice burrows, and centaurs that played in grassy fields. They were special because they were blessed with the rarest magic; faith . Magic that stemmed from having faith in a being that was greater than them all, the protector of their land . It came from being courageous, kind, loyal, and true to oneself. That was how they continued to be blessed and live in harmony, unity.
Franny blames her for her active imagination that made her strange to the kids in her school. She believed in her mother’s stories so much that she thought during her few hours outside after school, that she was a part of them. That she was one of those beings her mother used to hush whisper in the doctor's office when Franny was nervous about getting a shot.
“The sweet scent of summer always tickles your nose,” Her mother whispered with a wistful tone before leaning over to blow a raspberry into Franny’s cheek, ”Let’s not forget, eating the chubby cheeks of the towns children!”
She wanted to be as joyful as the satyrs and as playful as the centaurs. Franny wanted to dance with the trees, let their leaves tickle against her skin. She wanted to feel the magic under her feet and see if summer really did smell sweet enough to tickle your nose. Most of all, Franny wanted to explore those lands with her mother by her side. They could learn together and figure out the power that was supposed to be within Franny while traveling magical lands.
They were supposed to do it together.
Franny was forced to realize it was just a fairytale and —
magic
— well magic wasn’t real.