In today’s episode we read the chapter 19 – The Beach – in which Farfalla has a strange encounter with a young boy reminiscent of a scene in  Book 2 – Wingspan.

This week's podcast partner is Cozyland: http://www.cozylandpod.com

The Skylark Bell official website - http://www.theskylarkbell.com

The Skylark Bell on Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Author/Producer: Melissa Oliveri - http://www.melissaoliveri.com

Join Melissa's Patreon for early access to podcast episodes, music downloads, and more: http://www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

The Skylark Bell on Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/theskylarkbell

All music by Cannelle: http://www.cannellemusic.com

Cannelle on Instagram: @cannelle.music

Official Merch Shops: http://www.melissaoliveri.com/store

The Skylark Bell is brought to you by: Phaeton Starling Publishing and Things with Wings Productions.

FULL TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions presents: Chapter 19 of The Skylark Bell, Skyedive. I am your host, Melissa Oliveri.  

In last week’s episode Farfalla settled into her role both as the Skye Lark Belle and as an extended member of the Carnifex household.

In today’s episode we read the chapter 19 – The Beach – in which Farfalla has a strange encounter with a young boy reminiscent of a scene in  Book 2 – Wingspan.

Today’s podcast partner is Cozyland. Hosted by my dear friend Amy and me, Cozyland takes peek at those movies that make us feel warm inside. The ones that often have predictable plots and character traits that repeat from one film to the next. From Hallmark Holiday movies to films about food, fashion, and travel, to the cozy mysteries we like to dive into both in book and TV format... cozyland has all your comfort needs covered. Check the show notes for a link to the Cozyland podcast.

  Now, it’s time to settle in… grab a blanket, and a warm drink… and let’s get started.

August 12th, 1799

I had the dream again last night. The water dream. I don’t understand, it has already played out in real life, why would it keep coming to me in my sleep? I woke up staring at the wall above my bed, wishing I still had Isadora’s dream catcher. At least this time I didn’t sleepwalk.

The dream was slightly different in that I knew it was the Skylark Bell in my hands. I clutched it, wishing to be someplace else, while humming the song from the Oak Tree. I think somehow it was a combination of the Skylark Bell and that song that brought me here, back in time. Perhaps I could somehow return home to Elisabeth if I could get my hands on the bell. Agnes Sutherland took it from me the day of the Lark Festival and squirreled it away. I’ve half a mind to march back into her house and take it back, but despite their modest means the Sutherlands are well-liked and carry some weight in this town. I must be cautious about how I retrieve the bell, so as not to make waves.

I am bringing Frannie and Felix to the beach today. Nurse Betsey has the day off to tend to her ill mother on the other side of the island, and I offered to care for the children. At first Isabella waved her hand at me dismissively. “You don’t need to do that!” she had said. But the children begged and pleaded, and I insisted, so she relented. I asked the cook to pack us a picnic, and I’ve collected blankets for us to sit on, and some small baskets to collect rocks and seashells. 

I think today is going to be a beautiful day…

~~~~~~

Farfalla and the children skip through the tall grass of the field behind Carnifex house hand in hand. The horses in the pasture to their right are galloping around, tossing their manes in the air, thoroughly enjoying the spring sunshine and cool sea breeze.

“Miss Skye, did you like to go to the beach when you were our age?” asks Felix in his customary formal tone. 

Farfalla smiles a a pang of nostalgia grabs her. “No,” she replies, “where I lived there was no beach. But there was a pond, Mirror Pond it was called, and I liked to spend time there watching the frogs and turtles.”

“I’m not very fond of frogs,” says Frannie, scrunching up her face. 

Farfalla laughs, sticks out her fingers and pretends to chase the girl, “what don’t you like about frogs? They won’t hurt you; they just want to tickle you to pieces!” she shouts, sending Frannie racing toward the beach in a fit of giggles.

They arrive at the beach and Farfalla spreads out the blankets in a sandy area. She hands each of the children an empty bucket and smiles as they race toward the water. Felix immediately starts selecting the best skipping stones, while Frannie digs through the wet sand in search of seashells. Farfalla walks to the shore and lets the waves gently wash over her feet as they sink comfortably into the sand. She closes her eyes and breathes deeply, letting the salty sea air flow through her lungs. Just a few paces away she can hear Felix and Frannie chatting about the treasures they’ve already found; “Look at this stone, Frannie, it’s perfectly round and smooth. I bet I can get it to skip 7 times!” “Felix, look at this shell, it’s the biggest one I’ve ever seen, and so shiny on the inside!” 

Farfalla smiles, if she can’t be with Elisabeth, this is the next best thing. She takes one more deep breath and opens her eyes. “Hullo,” says a small voice. She looks down and sees a young boy, his soft brown curls blowing in the wind. He is looking up at her with unusually large, bright blue eyes.

“Hi there!” she says, unable to hide the surprise in her voice.

“I know you,” he says.

Farfalla furrows her brow. She’s never met this boy in her life. “I think you’re mistaking me for someone else,” she says gently, smiling at him.

“No, it was you. At the edge of the woods. You said hello to me. You knew my name,” he speaks with such confidence Farfalla is at a loss for words. She takes a moment to gather her thoughts.

“Well, you see, it couldn’t have been me, because I don’t know your name,” she says, certain now he will admit his mistake.

“You told me that you heard my father say it, at the cliff,” he insists. 

Now Farfalla is entirely confused. What cliff? “Who is your father?” she asks, trying to sort the pieces of the puzzle.

“My father is the mayor,” he answers in a tone that makes it obvious he thinks she should already know.

“Miss Skye! Miss Skye!” she hears Frannie and Felix shout excitedly.

“That’s not your name,” says the boy. Farfalla’s heart skips a beat. 

“What do you think my name is?” she asks, afraid of what his answer will be.

“Dealan-dè,” he replies.

“Miss Skye, look what we found!” shout Frannie and Felix in unison. Farfalla turns to look at them, only a few paces away. When she turns back to the boy he is gone. She glances over her shoulder and sees him walking up the hill, away from the beach. What a strange child, she thinks.

“What did you find?” she asks as the children finally catch up to her. 

Felix holds up his bucket “Take a peek!” he says, a hint of mischief in his voice. Farfalla cautiously peeks over the rim and sees a sparkling white egg sitting on a bed of sand. 

“Hmmm…” she muses, “and you found this on the beach?” Both children nod.  “And there was no nest nearby?” Both children shake their heads no. “And you definitely did not take it from our picnic basket?” she asks, a smile teasing the corner of her mouth. At this, Felix and Frannie burst into laughter. “Come on,” says Farfalla, laughing along with them, “I think it’s time for lunch.”

They sit on the blankets and eat while watching the tide slowly roll in. By the time they finish the water is tickling the edge of the blanket. “I suppose it’s time to head home,” says Farfalla regretfully.

“Oh Miss Skye, please, can’t we keep playing outside? It’s such a beautiful day, and we’re having such fun!” begs Frannie.

“Frannie, Mama said we shouldn’t take up too much of Miss Skye’s time!” reprimands Felix in a hushed voice.

Farfalla takes them both by the hand. “Now, now, there’ll be no arguing on my watch. You are certainly not taking up too much of my time. Why don’t we bring the basket up to the house, and then we can go say hello to the horses?” The children whoop joyfully and race to the house, their arms loaded with the blankets, buckets, and picnic basket. Farfalla watches them, her heart full for the first time in a long time. It is a beautiful day.

They meet up at the gate to the paddock and the horses plod over to say hello. “I’m surprised you don’t have some kind of stable hand to care for the horses,” says Farfalla. She has seen the maid occasionally groom and saddle a horse when Donald Carnifex travels for business. The children give one another a strange look. “What is it?” asks Farfalla, noticing.

“There used to be Charlie,” begins Frannie.

“Frannie, shush! Mama said we don’t talk about Charlie!” hisses Felix.

“What happened to Charlie?” asks Farfalla, both confused and concerned.

“He went into the woods,” replies Frannie, earning herself an elbow to the ribs courtesy of Felix.

“What’s wrong with the woods?” asks Farfalla.

“We’re not allowed to go into the woods,” answers Felix, with a tone that says the conversation is closed.

“Why not?” asks Farfalla, tiring of the tedious fashion in which the bits of information are being pulled from the children.

“Because of the vanishings,” says Frannie, earning herself a glare this time.

“Vanishings?!” Farfalla exclaims. Why hasn’t she heard about this yet?

“People who go into the woods don’t come out. Papa says it’s druid magic. He says the druid lady who lives in the woods makes people disappear,”

“Well now you’ve done it, Frannie! Mama said we weren’t to worry Miss Skye with these things! Nurse Betsey will be so angr-“ Felix stops himself then.  

“Felix why would Nurse Betsey be angry with you?” asks Farfalla. Felix gives a shrug and looks down at the ground, kicking the dirt with his feet. “Does she get angry with you often?” she tries. The boy nods, and Frannie follows suit. Farfalla crouches down to their eye level and lifts their faces up with her hands. “Next time she gets angry with you, will you please let me know?” she asks. The children nod silently. “Great. Now then, how about you show me all those shells and rocks you collected at the beach?” she says, grabbing the children by the hand and walking back toward the house.

The children chatter on about their discoveries as if they’d never mentioned the vanishings or the woods, but in Farfalla’s mind she can’t help but replay the conversation. Her mind shifts to the boy on the beach. “I know you,” he had said. “I’ve seen you before, at the edge of the woods…”

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week for Chapter 20 – The Music Box – in which a day of celebration turns rather dark.

The Skylark Bell is brought to you by Phaeton Starling Publishing and features original music by Cannelle. Leaving a rating or a review on your preferred podcast platform is incredibly helpful in helping the podcast gain visibility so others can find and enjoy the story of The Skylark Bell, it’s a quick, easy, and free way to support my work. If you’d like to support me further, you can also subscribe to Patreon, where you’ll get early access to ad-free episodes as well as digital downloads of my music, artwork, behind the scenes videos and more! And be sure to follow me on social media for updates, I love to connect with listeners... Just check the show notes for all necessary links. 

Once again, thank you for listening – I’m Melissa Oliveri, writer, host and producer of The Skylark Bell Podcast.  

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/theskylarkbell/exclusive-content

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy