The Skylark Bell

This week we get to listen to a bonus chapter of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell which was written after the completion of books 2 and 3 (Wingspan and SkyeDive, respectively).

In this chapter, Magpie and Lucas head to the county fair where Magpie meets some of Lucas' friends, including the somewhat mystical Sydney Finch.

Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: A bonus episode of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

In today’s episode we read a bonus Chapter called Sydney Finch - where Magpie meets some of Lucas’ friends, including the somewhat mystical Sydney Finch.

 So get settle in… grab a blanket, and a warm drink… and let’s get started.

Magpie can feel her heart beat a little faster as she and Lucas approach the fairgrounds. They’ve made plans to meet up with some of Lucas’ friends at the county fair, which is held in the large field behind the school. 

“Everyone looks forward to the fair each year,” says Lucas, happily chatting away, completely oblivious to Magpie’s mounting anxiety. “People come from the surrounding towns and compete in all kinds of things; best pie, best cow, best seed art… you name it!” he laughs.

“I’ve never even heard of seed art, and my mom is an artist!” says Magpie, Lucas’ enthusiasm helping her feel a bit more at ease.

They’ve now arrived at the fair. Magpie sees a few basic rides; a ferris wheel, bumper cars, a tilt-a-whirl, and some carnival games. Most of the fairgrounds are reserved for animal shows, she sees horseback riders lined up waiting for their turn in the ring, in another area she sees kids walking their goats, and in the distance she can hear the cacophonous cluck of a collection of prize chickens. Magpie chuckles to herself, all this is so foreign to her, such a contrast to her life in the city! She feels her apprehension wash away with every step. 

Lucas points to a large barn-like building. “That’s where they do the food and art competitions, but first let’s head over to the stage, I think The Bunting Brothers are playing!” he says, pulling her across the fairgrounds. They walk around the barn and come to a grassy area where a stage has been set up. On the stage are two broad-shouldered young men, each with a guitar. Behind them is an older man, presumably their father if their similar appearance is any clue, who is playing on a rather sparse drum set. One of the boys is singing, his voice carrying across the entire expanse of the fair. The crowd claps and whoops loudly as they finish their song. Magpie can’t help but join in, the joyfulness of the crowd is contagious. 

“For our last song, we’d like to invite Sydney Finch up on the stage!” says one of the boys, waving his arm at a girl standing off to the side of the stage.

“That’s Bo Bunting in the red shirt, and his brother Billy has the green shirt,” explains Lucas. Magpie nods as she watches a beautiful young woman make her way up the steps and to the front of the stage. She has long, straight dark hair decorated with braids and beads in the front, and her large dark eyes sparkling as she looks out at the crowd. Bo and Billy start playing a soft, sad tune on their guitars, and Sydney Finch begins to sing. Magpie feels a lump form in her throat and tears well up in her eyes, Sydney’s voice has a beautiful, plaintive quality to it that makes Magpie feel like her heart is being shattered into a thousand pieces. A hush washes over the crowd, making Magpie think she’s not the only one feeling this way. Finally the last note of the song rings over the silent field, and after a moment the crowd hops to its feet and erupts in loud cheers as Sydney takes a small bow before stepping off the stage.

“Come on!” says Lucas, pulling Magpie toward the side of the stage. 

“Lucas Starling! It’s been a while!” says Bo, waving at them.

“Hey Bo! This is my friend, Magpie. She just moved in next door to me,” says Lucas. Magpie nods and waves shyly.

“Welcome to Pocket!” says Billy, sidling up to his brother. 

“Hi Sydney,” says Lucas, looking over Billy’s shoulder. Magpie can’t be sure but she detects a hint of nervousness in Lucas’ voice and she feels an ever so slight twinge of envy in the pit of her stomach.

“Hi Lucas,” says Sydney, pushing past the Bunting brothers. “Hi, I’m Sydney,” she says, extending a hand out to Magpie. Her kind, gentle tone instantly makes Magpie feel comfortable.

“I’m Magpie. It’s nice to meet you, you have such an incredible voice,” replies Magpie.

“Oh thank you! I have my Tota, my grandmother, to thank for that. She taught me all the songs of our people from the day I was born, and I guess it just stuck!” she says, brushing a hand through her magnificent hair. 

Magpie notices the beaded bracelets on her wrist, they look handmade. “Did you make those?” she asks, admiration in her voice.

Sydney giggles, “I did! I have my Tota to thank for that too!” she says. “Here, my gift to you,” she adds, taking a turquoise bracelet from her wrist and handing it to Magpie. “It will look perfect with your blue eyes,” she adds, leaving no room for Magpie to refuse.

“Thank you so much,” says Magpie, genuinely touched.

“We were going to check out the seed art, and maybe see if we can sneak a slice of the winning pie,” says Lucas, “would you like to join us?” Everyone nods and the group makes its way toward the old barn.

Magpie is blown away by creativity and artistrty of the seed art, she had no idea this even existed! She walks along the row of framed canvases, peering at each one. Many feature intricate floral patterns, some represent seed versions of famous people, a few depict farm animals. One in particular catches Magpie’s eye. It is slightly smaller than the others, and the subject matter completely different. The artist has used a collection of green seeds to create a mermaid, then bright orange seeds for her hair. She is sitting on a beach, her face turned toward the sky, dandelion seeds used to make puffy white clouds. Magpie leans in to get a closer look and notices the siren’s mouth is open as if she is shouting or singing. “How peculiar,” she whispers to herself.

“Enough of this art stuff, let’s eat!” Bo’s booming voice startles Magpie. He leads the group toward a different area of the building and through a doorway that has a large sign above it reading “Baking Contest This Way!”

The baking contest has already ended by the time they arrive, but there are plenty of goodies left to go around. Lucas opts for a slice of chocolate pudding pie, while Magpie enjoys a couple of cherry tarts. The Bunting brothers each put away 3 chocolate cupcakes, and Sydney picks out a delicate, flakey square of baklava for herself. They eat and laugh and tell jokes, Lucas asks about Bo and Billy’s younger brother Sebastian, who is in his and Magpie’s grade, they tell him he’s doing great at their Grandparent’s farm but misses his friends. 

They start talking about the old mill and a few other abandoned places around Pocket.  Magpie, sensing an opening asks “Have any of you ever been to Meadow Lane?” She instantly regrets her question as the laughter and chatter immediately stop. 

Lucas steps in, trying to smooth things over, “I told Magpie the story about Meadow Lane the other day. I was hoping to keep her away from there, but I think I only made her more curious about it. She’s an adventurous spirit too!” he quips.

“Yeah, no one in town goes there, or even talks about it, really,” says Bo quietly, looking around to see if anybody outside their group is within earshot.

“I think something threw off the balance of natural things in that place,” says Sydney.

“What do you mean?” asks Magpie.

“There is day, and night. There is fire, and water,” she begins, holding her hands out with her palms up. “Every thing has an equal and opposite thing. When that balance shifts, it can create unnatural results. I believe something, or someone, shifted the balance at Meadow Lane, and that is when the silence came,” she ends, in a very matter-of-fact way.

“Well, it’s getting late, we should probably head out, they’ll be shutting the fair down soon,” says Lucas, clearly looking for a way to move on from the topic.

The group starts walking back toward Pocket’s main street, their bellies full of sweets. They part ways outside Bunting’s General Store, where Billy offers to give Sydney a ride to her house on the outskirts of the next town, and Magpie and Lucas start making their way home. 

“Thanks for pushing me out of my comfort zone,” says Magpie, “I had a great time, and your friends are very nice,” she adds, feeling the bracelet Sydney gave her slide around her wrist.

“You’re going to fit in just fine,” says Lucas, smiling at her. 

Magpie is about to apologize for making things awkward by asking about Meadow Lane when she hears a sound drifting on the breeze, like someone is softly singing. Somehow, the sound is even more beautiful than Sydney Finch’s voice. Almost, hypnotic… “Do you hear that?” asks Magpie, turning around to try and figure out where the sound is coming from.

“Hear what?” asks Lucas, stopping to listen.

“I’m not sure, it’s like singing, but… but not… not… human?” she says the word like a question, unsure of what she thinks.

Lucas leans in and closes his eyes, focused on finding the sound. “I do hear it!” he says, “it’s very faint, it almost seems like it’s coming from - ”

“- Meadow Lane!” Magpie finishes his sentence for him.

“But that’s impossible, there’s no sound at Meadow Lane,” he says.

They stand and stare at the farm in the fading light. The silhouette of the massive oak tree in the front field framed against the indigo sky. As quickly as it started, the singing disappears.

“Well, it sounds like Sydney Finch has some competition out there,” kids Lucas, trying to dispel the eerie feeling surrounding them.

Magpie nods and forces a smile as they make their way to Lucas’ driveway. They wish each other goodnight and Mapie keeps walking toward her house. As she is going up the front steps she realizes she completely forgot to tell Lucas about the secret attic! She makes a mental note to call him in the morning and heads inside.

Thank you so much for listening.

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast. 

If you are enjoying this story, please consider leaving a rating or a review. Either one, or both, are greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Magpie accidentally discovers a previously hidden part of the old farmhouse she and her mother recently moved into, and experiences yet another vision related to Meadow Lane.

Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of whimsical productions and collected sounds presents: Episode 6 of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

In our last episode, Lucas finally told Magpie the impossible truth about Meadow Lane, that it is cursed with a complete silence that spreads to anyone who sets foot on the property, and Magpie had just come home after a strange vision that inexplicably caused her to lose track of time.

In today’s episode we pick up where we left off with Chapter 6 – An accidental discovery, where Magpie accidentally discovers a previously hidden part of her new house, and experiences yet another vision related to Meadow Lane.

You know the drill, Get settled… grab a blanket, and a warm drink… here we go

Magpie stands staring at the phone for a moment, still perplexed about losing track of time during her vision of the couple in the horse cart. She walks back through the house to the living room where she finds Scarlet curled up on the sofa.

“Come on, Scarlet, let’s head upstairs,” Magpie says to the cat.  They have bonded over the past week and it follows her everywhere around the house, but refuses to set foot outside.  It hops up the staircase with amazing agility and races in front of her to her bedroom door.  “I’m going to hang in the hideout and write in my notebook, want to tag along?” she asks as she opens the bedroom door, Lucas’ flashlight still in her hand. Magpie has nicknamed her long awkward bedroom closet The Hideout.  She hasn’t yet used it for some quiet time, but tonight feels like a good night.  She grabs a blanket and Lucas’ flashlight before creeping in, crawling to the back of the long closet and sitting down with her notebook.   Scarlet follows her with soft, velvety footsteps and curls up in her lap.  The back of the closet is peaceful and dark, and Magpie relishes the lack of distractions as she starts sketching and writing notes about her vision, describing everything in as much detail as possible:  the couple, their cart, their belongings... something at the back of her mind tingles, like she’s missing something, so she pauses for a moment, but it just won’t come to her.

Time seems to be at a standstill, and she has no idea how long she’s been sitting in the darkness, but her back feels a little stiff from being bent over her notebook.  Leaning back against the wall of the closet, she closes her eyes to take a break.  Suddenly, she feels the wall behind her shift slightly, like the weight of her body is pushing it in. Intrigued, she scoots Scarlet off her lap and turns around to shine her flashlight at the wall.  To her amazement, she sees a crack in the plaster and what looks like empty space behind it.  It’s a secret door!  It has been plastered over and was completely hidden until she accidentally pushed it and broke the seal.  She nudges it gently to see if it continues to move, and sure enough it swings inwards.She grabs her flashlight and shines it into the opening.  The trap door leads to a short corridor at the end of which she sees a dusty, narrow stairway going up.  Filled with both nervousness and excitement, Magpie crawls through and carefully walks toward the stairs.  She puts a tentative foot on the first step.  It creaks a little but feels solid.  She slowly makes her way to the top of the stairway, keeping a tight grip on the banister. From the top of the stairs her gaze sweeps across a massive attic; it looks like it has been untouched for decades! 

Through the small circle of light provided by her flashlight, Magpie can see piles of old trunks, a rocking horse, a dress form and various pieces of furniture covered in dusty sheets.  Cobwebs criss-cross one another atop the rafters and among piles of old furniture.  She feels around for a light switch, hoping there is electrical lighting up here, but no luck.  Is it possible no one has been in this attic since the house was fitted with electricity?  To her left she can see moonlight shining faintly through a small round window.  She carefully makes her way through the tangle of old belongings and wipes some of the dust and grime off the glass so she can see out.  The window faces the front of her house; she can make out her front lawn, the old quarry across the street, the line of trees between her property and Lucas’ driveway, and, in the distance, the bottom of Meadow Lane where it meets the road.  She squints in the darkness, trying to see the house, but it is too dark.  

She’s about to turn and head back downstairs to tell her mother what she’s discovered when something catches her eye. For a moment, she sees a brief flicker in the distance, almost like someone walked by a window while holding a candle.  She squeezes her eyes shut, trying to ‘reset’ her vision, and lets out a gasp when she opens them again.  Outside the small attic window, in the dark field across the road, she sees Meadow Lane, every window filled with light, silhouettes dancing in front of a large, roaring fireplace in the living room.  She can faintly hear the sound of music, like an old record playing on a victrola. Outside, on the side of the house, she sees lanterns hanging from carriages and horse carts, the horses patiently waiting for their drivers to return from the celebration.  Another quick gleam of light makes her glance toward the back of the house.  Squinting, she can make out two lanterns bouncing back and forth, getting further from the house, like they are being held by two people who are walking toward the forest.  Shocked, she stands perfectly still, staring out the small window at the impossible scene before her eyes.  Suddenly, Meadow Lane is washed in darkness once again, and Magpie realises she has just experienced another vision.  Behind her, a faint meow brings her back to reality.  

“Come on, Scarlet, I think I’m ready for bed now,” she says quietly as she heads back down to her room. She curls up in a ball on her bed, Scarlet snuggled at her feet, and pulls the blanket up to her chin.  Even though it is summer, Magpie feels a chill right through to her bones.

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we continue our adventure by reading Chapter 7 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where some nice quiet time by Mirror Pond ends with yet more mystery!  – Don’t forget to subscribe, you don’t want to miss a thing! 

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

In today's episode, Lucas finally tells Magpie the impossible truth about Meadow Lane, that there is NO SOUND there at all. Magpie struggles to understand the connection between her mysterious visions and the abandoned farm.

Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions presents: Episode 5 of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

Welcome back! In our previous regular episode, Magpie let us in on her most closely guarded secret, that she has visions of things that have happened in the past, and she met a surprise guest, an unusual cat who appeared suddenly at her back door, then hinted at a connection to the old farmhouse before disappearing just as suddenly.

In today’s episode we’ll be pursue our adventure with Chapter 5 – Sunset on the Bridge, where Lucas finally tells Magpie the impossible truth about Meadow Lane, which seems to trigger the mysterious visions that Magpie struggles to understand.

By now, you know what to do! Get comfy… grab a blanket, a warm drink… and let’s get started.

“I hope we’re in Mrs. Piper’s class next fall, she’s big on field trips and local history,” says Lucas. 

“Ugh, I can’t think about school yet, summer just started three weeks ago!” Magpie exclaims, dramatically putting her arm against her forehead and feigning exasperation.  They both start giggling as the mud oozes under their rainboots.  

“I’m glad you decided to come out,” Lucas says, still smiling.  “Hopefully that’s the last of the rain!”  Magpie and Lucas have made plans to watch the sunset from the bridge over Pine River, but the rain was threatening to ruin their plans.  Now, the thick mass of gray clouds is blowing farther away with each gust of wind, and the evening sun is shining brighter and brighter every minute.

“Well, you know us fancy girls,” kids Magpie. “We don’t like it when the rain messes up our hair!”  Lucas lets out a loud laugh.  Magpie is a bit of a tomboy, with wild reddish hair waving in all different directions.  There’s no way she’d let her hair get in the way of going out and exploring!  

They banter back and forth as they amble down the road, but their chatter quiets swiftly when they realise they’re nearing the dirt path that leads to Meadow Lane.

“That place gives me the creeps,” mutters Lucas, staring at the dull grey structure in the distance.  It’s the first time he’s broached the subject, mostly dodging it over the last few days.

“Why?  Because it’s abandoned?” she asks, hopeful that he won’t change the subject again.

“No, that doesn’t scare me.  It’s… the history… “  he begins, hesitant to go on, “you’re going to think I’m crazy.  That we’re all  crazy!”

 “Try me,” she says, thinking nothing could seem any crazier than her visions.

 He takes a deep breath before continuing, “Apparently, there is no sound on Meadow Lane,” he says, stopping to wait for her reaction.

 Magpie looks puzzled.  “What do you mean ‘no sound’, like no people making noise?  I don’t get it,” she says.

“No, no, not like that,” he says, “I mean NO sound.  Not a footstep as you walk up the lane, nothing if you speak, or cough, or clap.  Not a creak on the wooden steps, not a noise if you stomp your feet on the porch, not a bird chirping or an animal calling.  Not…  One…  Sound… Ever!” he ends, emphatically.

“Is it true?” asks Magpie, thoroughly intrigued, confused and a little scared.

“Well, nobody dares to find out because the older folks in town say people who stay on the property more than a few minutes never utter another word!  On windy days, the grass around the house doesn’t even move, and there are never any birds or animals there… it’s really creepy,” he answers, running a hand through his wavy, jet-black hair with a visible shudder.

“How can that be?  What happened there?” asks Magpie, a small tremor running through her body too.

“No one can explain it, it’s the strangest thing.  Some say it was cursed by a young woman who lived there, after her fiance died… but those are just rumours, I dunno,” he says, his voice trailing off.

They’ve come to a complete stop in front of Meadow Lane.  There is something frightening about it, but Magpie also feels strangely drawn to it, almost like she belongs there.  She subconsciously starts taking a step onto the dirt path, and an image immediately begins to form in her mind. She can see a silhouette.  No, two silhouettes!  It’s all very hazy.  She can see a series of trees lined up behind the house, and a large animal, maybe a horse, running in the field, a flock of birds overhead… Her vision is just beginning to take shape when suddenly she feels Lucas grab her arm, startling her back to reality.

“Let’s get going, we don’t want to miss sunset at the river,” he says, pulling her back toward the road.  She steps back reluctantly, still dazed from the vision.  Who were those silhouettes in the distance?  Why does she feel such an urge to visit the old farm?  Magpie and Lucas continue walking toward the bridge in silence. Magpie secretly makes up her mind to explore the house on Meadow Lane before summer is over!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Magpie can hear water rushing nearby as she and Lucas trample through a large field. The grass surrounding them almost reaches the top of their heads as they make their way toward the river.  They come to a clearing and Magpie sees Pine River winding toward town.  An old crumbling mill sits on the riverbank, its water wheel dipping into the cool, rushing water .  A small wooden bridge, it’s worn boards faded from years of sun, connects the flour mill to the wheat fields she and Lucas have just walked through.  The bridge is a great vantage point from which to watch the sun cast fiery orange and yellow rays against the back of escaping rainclouds. Magpie and Lucas stand next to each other, leaning on the bridge’s wood rail.  

“Phew, just made it!” says Lucas, his face glowing in the light.

“It’s perfect, I’m so glad you brought me here.  Thanks Lucas.”  Magpie glances sideways at him, admiring the way his hair falls into perfect waves around his face.  Catching herself staring, she self-consciously turns away, her blushing cheeks camouflaged by the glow of the sun.  “It looks just like someone took a paintbrush to the sky,” she says, drinking in the colours as they shift into hazy pink and purple hues.  “I wonder how many people before us have stood in this exact spot watching the sunset,” she adds, dreamily.  Magpie heaves a deep sigh.  The intense beauty lasts only a few minutes, and she wishes she could bottle up the feeling she gets while watching it:  Absolute peace.  The colours are now fading and the first stars begin to twinkle faintly overhead as the moon prepares for its shift.  “I guess we should be going,” she says, regretfully.

“You’re right,” he agrees, grabbing a flashlight out of his backpack.  They make their way back to the road, surrounded by the sound of their footsteps on the gravel and the ever-increasing chorus of crickets. They reach the bottom of Lucas’ driveway first.  “It’s pretty dark, I should walk you home,” he says, taking a few steps further.

“You’re such a gentelman,” she teases, “you’d think I was a damsel in distress or something!”  Lucas looks like he might be blushing but she can’t really tell in the dark.  “I’m fine,” she continues, “I love walking in the dark, and it’s only a little further.  I’ll flash the porch light to let you know I’m home, ok?”

“Alright,” he answers hesitantly.  “Here, take my flashlight,”  he adds, shoving it toward her.  She grabs it, thanks him, and continues down the road.

Magpie has only taken a few steps up her driveway when, out of nowhere, a thick fog rises rapidly around her.  The fog is so dense she can barely see the lights of her house up ahead.  She gets an inexplicable urge to turn and face the road when she is hit with a vision. She hears the echo of trotting hooves and sees two sorrel mares pulling an old cart down the road with a young couple seated at the front. The back of the cart is filled with chairs, a large table, buckets, tools and old wooden trunks.  The man, holding the reigns tightly in his gloved hands, sits next to a very pregnant woman wearing a bonnet.  The pair are wearing period clothing and are smiling happily.  The man lifts his arm to point toward something behind Magpie, and the woman instantly turns to look.  Magpie turns to see what it is he is pointing at, but the vision fades away.

Magpie is left with only a shard of moon to light the vast fields around her house.  She shakes off the eerie feeling brought on by the vision and hurries up the driveway. Walking into the house, she is so distracted it takes her a moment to realise the phone is ringing. “Hello?” she answers.

“Magpie!  I was getting worried!  You forgot to flash the porch light.”  She can  hear the concern in Lucas’ voice, but what is he so worried about?  She just  walked in the door!  Magpie glances at the clock and her heart skips a beat when she sees it has been nearly twenty minutes since she left Lucas at the bottom of his driveway.

“I’m so sorry, Lucas!  I… got distracted by the... um… fireflies!” she spits out, wincing at her terrible excuse.

“Fireflies?” he questions.  She can tell he is smiling at the end of the line and her face turns red.  “Goodnight Magpie, sleep well,” he says softly.

“Goodnight Lucas,” she replies before gently placing the phone back in its cradle.

Hopefully sleep will come, but after what just happened Magpie has her doubts…

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we continue our adventure by reading Chapter 6 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where Magpie makes an accidental discovery inside her own house, and has another vision related to Meadow Lane, will she finally be able to put the pieces together? Don’t forget to subscribe, if you want to find out!

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

On the last Friday of each month, we pause our reading of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, and instead cover a real-life supernatural, or at the very least, unusual and unexplained, experience.

In today’s episode we recount the story of Jack’s Room in which our narrator has a haunting experience with a long-departed relative.

Be sure to stay tuned at the end of the episode to hear an original song by Cannelle about this experience.

Music: Nightbridge and Jack's Room by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: The Skylark Bell, Fantome Friday.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

On the last Friday of each month, we will pause our reading of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, and instead cover a real-life supernatural, or at the very least, unusal and unexplained, experience.

In today’s episode we will recount the story of Jack’s Room – and be sure to stay tuned at the end of the episode to hear an original song by Cannelle about this experience.

So get settled in, grab a blanket, a warm drink, and let’s get started…

I was only a child, maybe 9 or 10 yeas old.  It was Christmas time and my father, step-mother and I were visiting relatives in Quebec City, Canada, which was about 4 hours away from where we lived. Rather than get a hotel, we were going to stay at my Great-Aunt Marselle’s house since she was on a trip overseas for the holidays. Great-Aunt Marselle was my father’s aunt, her sister being my Grandma Rachel.

The house was a curious old house with a strange layout and big heavy antique furniture.  It had belonged to my Grandmother’s Father, my Great-Grandfather, originally, where he had raised his son and four daughters first with my great-grandmother, then with his second wife after my great-grandmother passed awaya.  He was a successful business man, and the house sat in an upscale neighbourhood. I had been in the house countless times for gatherings that often included up to two dozen family members, whether we were celebrating Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas, the house welcomed us year after year – but this was the first time I would venture upstairs, and actually stay in the house overnight.

We parked in the driveway and took the front walkway to the door.  It was that time of night when the sun had just gone down and the sky was a dark blue, making black silhouettes of the trees and surrounding homes.  We stumbled through the entryway with our suitcases and I made my way to the front parlour.  Suddenly, a flash of white streaked across the room in front of me and I let out a shriek! My father quickly flipped the lightswitch, and in the glow of the antique light fixture I was able to see my Great-Aunt’s white cat, who was aptly named Fanfan (which was short for Fantome, the French word for ghost).  The cat was quite old and deaf, and meowed very loudly, unable to hear itself anymore.

We made our way into the house, turning lights on as we went, and hauled our suitcases up to the second floor. I was put in a small room at the end of the hallway while my father and step-mother were in a larger room just down the hall.  Exhausted from the trip, we decided to go to bed early. 

I don’t remember anything specific happening in the hours that followed, I just remember feeling absolutely terrified.  The walls of the room were covered in wallpaper that had a vine pattern to it, and I felt like the vines were going to twist around me, trapping me in this room full of frightening, negative energy.  I was the type of child who was afraid to bother her parents. Normally, I would not have been fussy about which room I was put in. Normally, I would not have been pushy about wanting to change rooms.  But nothing about that room felt normal. I WOULD NOT stay in that room, so much so that my parents ended up letting me sleep in their room, which was pretty unheard-of in our household. Something about what I said or how I was acting lead them to believe I couldn’t stay in the little room at the end of the hall.

About ten years later, while on yet another drive to Quebec City with my father, I asked if he rememberd that strange night at Great-Aunt Marselle’s house when I was afraid to sleep in the little bedroom with the vine wallpaper.  My dad replied “Oh, you mean Jack’s room?”  I paused and looked at him, perplexed. I didn’t recall a relative named Jack.  “Who’s Jack?” I asked, and my father explained that Jack was the brother of my Great-Grandfather’s second wife.  He was originally from Montreal but, for one reason or another, was living with his sister and her new husband at the house in Quebec City. 

We arrived at our destination and visited with my Grandma Rachel and aunts and uncles. The whole time I was just itching to visit Aunt Marselle, who had since sold the house and moved to an apartment, so I could ask her if she remembered anything more about Jack.  When we finally pulled up to her apartment bulding, I couldn’t get through the main door and up the creaky old stairway fast enough, but then we had to sit and wait politely (and patiently, being in her late 80’s she didn’t have the fastest pace) as she brought us drinks and a tin of Danish cookies. 

Finally, she settled into her chair and we were able to ask her if she had any stories about the mysterious Jack. Lucky for us, she had quite the tale to tell! According to Aunt Marselle, Jack did not much like children.  He would sit on the front stoop shouting at them, and throwing rocks if they came too close to the house.  

One morning Marselle was on the main floor of the house when she heard a loud thud upstairs.  She rushed up and found Jack on the floor of his bedroom.  He had been bending down to tie his shoe and collapsed in an apparent heart attack. Marselle was sent to fetch for the priest, but by the time the priest arrived at the house Jack had already died, in the little room at the end of the hall. 

Again, I don’t remember precisely why I wouldn’t stay in that room, I don’t recall seeing an apparition, I didn’t see or hear things moving by themselves, or catch strange shadows hovering in the corner of my eye – I just felt like I was not supposed to be there, like something wanted me out. Knowing what we now know about Jack, I can easily imagine that if part of him was still in that room, the last thing he would have wanted spending any time in there with him, is a child…

Thank you so much for listening. Next week we will resume our adventure in Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell.  Last week, in Chapter 4, Magpie let us in on her secret, that she keeps a sketchbook in which she records the psychic visions that come to her, and we met her surprise guest, an unusual cat who suddenly appeared at her back door, then hinted at a connection to the old farmhouse before disappearing just as suddently. Next week we read Chapter 5, Sunset on the Bridge, where Lucas finally tells Magpie the impossible truth about Meadow Lane, and Magpie experiences yet another mysterious vision.  Be sure to subscribe, you don’t want to miss a thing! Now, keep listening for an original song by Cannelle Elanion inspired by today’s episode, here is Jack’s Room.

In this episode Magpie lets us in on her most closely guarded secret, and meets a new, unusual, and unexpected guest!

Music: Nightbridge and Visions by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: Episode 4 of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

In our last episode,  Magpie had uncomfortable encounter with one of the locals and started doubting she would ever gain the trust of the residents of Pocket. But she did finally learn the name of the abandoned farm across the street, the mysterious Meadow Lane.

In today’s episode we’ll be reading Chapter 4 – A Surprise Guest, where Magpie let’s us in on her most closely guarded secret, and meets a new, unusual, and unexpected guest!

So get comfortable… grab a blanket, a warm drink… and let’s get started.

“Magpie, have you seen my umbrella?!” Mrs. Phaeton yells from downstairs.

It is mid-morning and rain is gently tapping the outside of the windows. Magpie is sprawled on her bed, concentrating on her notebook.  Without looking up from her sketch she yells, “I think it’s in the back corner of the hall closet!”

Magpie and her mom have been working hard over the past week, unpacking all their belongings and making the big airy farmhouse feel like home.  

In her spare time, Magpie has been hanging out with Lucas, who’s been showing her around town and filling her in on some of its history.  They’ve been exploring the land surrounding Pocket every day, taking long walks through the fields, sitting by the gurgling creek that flows into Pine River, checking out old foundations from buildings that fell apart long ago, and ambling down the dusty road to town, but she still hasn’t managed to get him to open up about Meadow Lane… Yet!

“Found it, thanks!  I’m heading into town for a few groceries, be back soon!” shouts her mom.  Magpie hears the thud of the heavy front door closing and her mom’s footsteps going down the front steps.  She finishes her sketch and jots down a few notes in the margin before closing her notebook and tucking it away safely under her mattress.

Magpie keeps a secret from everyone, even her mother.  From the time she was very young, Magpie has been able to see images from the past come up in her mind, like mini movies, or moving photographs.  These ‘visions’ come to her randomly and she can never tell when they’re going to happen, or why.

Last year, she was at her Grandmother Lillian’s house sitting in an antique rocking chair when she was overcome by an image of an old woman, her snow-white hair up in a bun, sitting in that same rocking chair knitting a green shawl.  A few months later, as Magpie was helping her mom pack some moving boxes, she found a dusty old photo album on the top shelf of a closet.  She flipped through it haphazardly and landed on a faded photograph of the woman from her vision. 

“Who is this?!” she asked her mother, surprised.

“That’s you’re Great-Grandmother, Elizabeth!  I haven’t seen that photograph in years!  Oh, she loved to knit.  When I was a young girl I saw a television show with a girl wearing this nifty red scarf.  I wanted one in the worst way so she knit me one!”  Magpie’s mother kept rambling off memories of Great-Grandma Elizabeth, but Magpie was no longer listening, she had never seen a photograph of someone from one of her visions, and she found it unnerving.  

There have been many other instances where Magpie has had visions of people and places she’s never seen before, so she secretly records everything in her notebook, hoping someday she’ll be able to put all the pieces together; who they are, where they’re from and, most importantly, why they are appearing in her mind!

Magpie gets off her bed, throws on a light sweater and her favourite jeans, and heads down to the kitchen to make herself some toast with jam. Despite the gentle rain still falling, the kitchen is warm and welcoming. Magpie pulls a loaf of French bread from the pantry, cuts two thick slices, and places them in the toaster, then goes to the fridge and grabs a jar of blackberry jam that her mother bought at the farmer’s market over the weekend. The toast pop out of the toaster and she gingerly grabs them and puts them on her plate before spreading each slice evenly with jam from edge to edge.  Holding her plate in one hand, Magpie wanders into the sunroom, watching the rain fade slowly, daydreaming about the people who sat in this very room, looking out these very windows, and what they might have been thinking about, or feeling.  She sits in one of the wicker rocking chairs, quietly savouring the sweetness of the blackberry jam while watching fat rain drops glide along the edges of the leaves on the maple tree outside the window.  

Magpie finishes her toast and takes a deep breath before standing up to walk her empty plate to the sink. She’s halfway across the kitchen when she hears a faint, but distinct scratch at the back door. Looking out, she sees a small cream coloured cat with brown fur on its face, ears and tail.  The cat is looking up at her with large, pleading blue eyes.  Magpie immediately opens the door and scoops up the cat. “You poor thing, you’re all wet!” she exclaims “And you look like you haven’t eaten in a while, either,”  she says, quickly grabbing a bowl from the cupboard.She gets the milk from the fridge and pours some into the bowl. The cat laps it up voraciously, only taking a brief moment to look up at her with gratitude before meowing for more.

The cat’s worn blue collar has a small bell attached, but no identifying tags.  “Where did you come from?”  Wonders Magpie out loud, stroking the top of the cat’s head.  She runs her hand down its side and feels its ribs sticking out.  “Hmmm, it sure doesn’t look like you have a home,” she says, gently scratching between its ears. “I bet mom will be ok with you staying here, we’ve been talking about getting a pet now that we have enough space.” 

“What’s your name?” she asks the cat, as if expecting it to speak up and tell her.  The cat finishes its second serving of milk and saunters toward the sunroom, stretching slowly before hopping onto the window sill and staring at the fields behind the house.  “Hmmm, this is my favourite room, too,” says Magpie, sitting on the wicker loveseat next to the cat and running her hand through the soft fur along its back. Together, they stare out at the fields, watching the dark gray clouds blow across the sky. 

Suddenly, the cat hops from the window sill and reaches delicately under Magpie’s chair with its paw, pulling out a long, bright red thread and playing with it joyfully.  “Where did that come from?!” wonders Magpie out loud,  “Are you trying to tell me something?  Is your name Red?  …Or maybe Ruby?  …Oh, I know, Scarlet!  I’m going to name you Scarlet,”  she says with satisfaction.  

Magpie is concentrating so hard on the cat that she is startled when the phone rings. “Hi Magpie, it’s Lucas,” says the voice at the other end of the line, “I think the rain has stopped, are you ready to go?”

Magpie looks across the room at her boots, “You bet!” she says before hanging up the phone.  

A moment later, she is placing another bowl of milk on the kitchen floor. “I’m sorry but I’ve got to run, Lucas is going to show me Pine River today!” she says to the cat, who sits and stares at her like it knows what she’s saying “but I promise I’ll come back with some cat food, okay?” she adds before cheerfully rushing off to meet Lucas, letting the big wooden door slam shut behind her.

Left alone, the cat saunters out of the sunroom and expertly navigates the empty house, almost like it already knows its way around. It makes its way up the stairs silently on padded feet, and stops just outside the door to Magpie’s room, as if pondering whether to go in. The cat sits down and lets out a quiet meow, then swiftly vanishes into thin air.

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we pursue our adventure and read Chapter 5 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where Magpie finally gets Lucas to tell her about the terrible secret that is housed on Meadow Lane.  – So don’t forget to subscribe, you don’t want miss a thing! 

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

Magpie has an uncomfortable encounter with one of the locals, and gets the sinking feeling that earning the trust of the residents of Pocket may not be as easy as she hoped. On the bright side, she manages to learn just a little bit more about the mysterious abandoned farm across the street!

Music: Nightbridge and The Early Bird by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRASCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: Episode 3 of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

If you recall our last episode, Magpie met her next door neighbour, Lucas Starling, who took her on a tour of the town, but remained guarded when it came to sharing information about the spooky abandoned house across from them, and the mysterious Farfalla. When we left them, the pair had just arrived at the restaurant.

In today’s episode we’ll continue our adventure with Chapter 3 – The Early Bird – where Magpie has an uncomfortable encounter with one of the locals, and gets the sinking feeling that earning the trust of the residents of Pocket may not be as easy as she hoped. On the bright side, she manages to learn just a little bit more about the mysterious abandoned farm across the street!

So get comfortable… grab a blanket, a warm drink… and let’s get started.

Magpie and Lucas have stopped in front of a short walkway.  At the end of it lies a quaint building with turquoise siding and a bright, hand-painted board that reads ‘The Early Bird’ in large, bold letters.  Magpie notices the Open sign in the glass door and heaves a sigh of relief, she was getting nervous that they were going to be too late.  They walk through the door and up to the lunch counter where they each sit on a bright red swiveling stool. Magpie looks around; The Early Bird has a great retro feel, with rows of booths lining each side of the restaurant, black and white tiled floor spreading across the expanse of the dining room and brass light fixtures glowing along the turquoise walls. Being in there almost feels like travelling back in time…

 “What’ll ya have?” asks a dry, scratchy voice.  Magpie turns to see a petite, older woman in a white vintage-style waitress uniform, cap and all, staring at her from across the counter.

“Oh!  Ummm… I guess I haven’t seen a menu yet,” she says politely.

 The woman looks at Lucas, and with a nod in Magpie’s direction says, “She ain’t from here, is she?” in a disapproving tone.

 “Magpie just moved here, she’s living in the house next door to mine,” says Lucas, meeting the waitress’ gaze with steely eyes.  The waitress mutters something under her breath and pushes a paper menu across the counter.

“We close in twenty minutes so yer prolly gonna wanna hurry up and choose.  And we’re outta the meatloaf, just so ya know,” she adds drily.

 “I… we… I guess just a medium cheese pizza… to go, please.”  Magpie can barely speak, she’s completely thrown off by distrust emanating from the woman.  The waitress grabs the menu and scribbles on a ticket, slips it across the shelf between the lunch counter and the kitchen and rings a bell to alert the cook of her order.  

“Have I done something wrong?” whispers Magpie, turning to Lucas.

“Nah.  You know, the people of Pocket have lived here for generations, there hasn’t been a new family in town since… well, I guess mine, when my great-great-grandparents moved here… and they’re just barely starting to trust us!” he says, laughing.  “I’m just kidding about that last part, it’ll be fine, just give it some time,” he adds in a reassuring tone.

Magpie smiles at Lucas’ joke, but she’s only half listening.  Through the opening in the wall between the kitchen and the lunch counter she can hear hushed whispers between the waitress and the cook, who both keep glancing suspiciously back her way. Finally, the waitress comes through the double-hinged door to the right of the lunch counter, a pizza box in tow. 

“That’ll be ten dollars,” says the waitress, holding out her hand.  Magpie pays for her order, grabs the pizza box and she and Lucas leave the diner.  The waitress stands behind the glass door, her eyes fixed on Magpie, and flips the sign to ‘Closed’ as the diner’s brass light fixtures go dark behind her. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

It is now sunset and the sky is quickly getting dark.  Magpie and Lucas walk swiftly down the main street toward their homes. As they near the old abandoned house, Magpie opens her mouth to ask Lucas if he knows anything about its history, but before she can say a word a flock of blackbirds lifts out of the grass, startling them.

“Whoa, that was weird!” says Lucas, his brow furrowed, “You don’t usually see birds near Meadow Lane…”.  

“Meadow Lane?” inquires Magpie, excited to get a little information about the mysterious house.

“Yeah, that’s what that farm is called.  I wasn’t kidding though, you really don’t want to go there,” he says in a very serious tone before continuing down the road at such a fast pace that Magpie can’t keep up without jogging.

He stops briefly at the bottom of his driveway and turns toward her, “Well, enjoy your pizza!  Maybe I’ll see you tomorrow…” he says, his voice trailing off.

“That would be great!” she says, “I’d love for you to show me around some more!”  And around Meadow Lane! she thinks.  She waves at him and jogs a little further to her driveway.

“I was starting to think you got lost!” says Mrs. Phaeton as Magpie comes in the front door.

“I ran into the boy who lives next door, Lucas, he showed me around town a little bit,” Magpie explains, without mentioning Meadow Lane, or the rude waitress at the diner.  “I got us a cheese pizza!” she adds, triumphantly holding up the pizza box.

“Great!  I managed to dig out some napkins,”  says her mom, smiling.  They sit at the kitchen counter together, surrounded by moving boxes, eating pizza and talking about how they’re going to decorate the house and turn it into their home. But at the back of her mind, Magpie can’t stop thinking about the mysterious house on Meadow Lane…

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we pursue our adventure and read Chapter 4 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where Magpie lets us in on her most closely guarded secret, and meets a new, unusual, and unexpected guest – Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe, you don’t want miss a thing! 

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

In this episode we meet Lucas, the boy next door, who takes Magpie on a whirlwind tour of Pocket. Lucas is very knowledgable about the history of the small town, but for some reason he holds back when Magpie expresses interest in a spooky abandoned house nearby.

Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical productions and Collected Sounds presents: Episode 2 of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

If you recall, in our previous episode we were introduced to our main character, Magpie, who just moved into an old farmhouse on the outskirts of a small town called Pocket.

In today’s episode we’ll read Chapter  2, Lucas, where Magpie meets the boy next door who takes her on a tour of Pocket, but seems reluctant to talk about both the spooky abandoned house nearby and a mysterious old woman named Farfalla!

So get comfortable… grab a blanket, a warm drink… and let’s get started.

The cool spring air hits Magpie’s face as she walks down her long driveway.  The cloudy sky makes the early evening seem darker than it should be.  It casts a grey haze over the countryside. Magpie takes a deep breath and fills her lungs with the earthy smell of wet dirt and wildflowers, not at all fazed by the muddy puddles along the side of the road.  In fact, she’s surprised by how comfortable she feels in the country after living in the city all her life.  She passes by the driveway that leads to the house next door; next to it a large mailbox with a bright red flag perches atop a thick wooden post.  Next to the flag, worn letters spell out the surname ‘Starling’.

Across the road, a little farther down, she sees a long lane leading to a delapitated two-storey house.  The house is completely dark, it looks like no one has lived there for decades, and Magpie is instantly intrigued.  She is so focused on the mysterious house she doesn’t hear footsteps coming up behind her.

“I wouldn’t go there if I were you,” says a voice in her ear.  Magpie startles and turns around quickly.  A boy about her age is standing by the side of the road next to her, wearing worn jeans, dark rubber boots and a chunky knit sweater.  Tousled black hair falls around his face and his grey eyes look completely serious.

“Excuse m-m-me?”  she stammers, her heart still beating rapidly. 

“You must be the new girl,”  he says, “I’m Lucas Starling, I live…”

“…oh, next door to me,”  she says.  

Lucas looks at her, puzzled. “How did you…?  Are you psychic or something?!”  he asks suspiciously, narrowing his eyes.

“Psychic?” Magpie pauses, narrowing her eyes at him – how could he know? “Um… no, I saw your mailbox,”  she says, pointing to it in the distance.  

“Ahh…” he says with a single nod, which sends his black curls waving back and forth

They stand, staring at one another for a moment, awkward silence between them, until Magpie realises he’s waiting for her to introduce herself.  “Oh!  I’m Magpie!”  she says, reaching out to shake his hand.  “My mom and I just moved in today.  I’m heading into town to grab some food, which restaurant would you recommend?”  she asks.

A smile teases the corner of Lucas’ mouth.  “You’re from the city, aren’t you.”  It is more of a statement than a question.  “There’s only one restaurant in town, it’s called The Early Bird.  You might want to hurry though, they close in about an hour,”  he adds, glancing at his watch.

“Oh!  I guess… I didn’t realise…”  Magpie feels completely foolish.

“Why don’t I walk with you, so you don’t get lost,”  Lucas says with a wink.  Magpie looks back at the abandoned house.  She wants to ask Lucas to tell her more about it, but she is afraid he’ll think she’s weird, so she smiles at him, nodding, and they start walking toward Pocket.

Lucas leads Magpie down the main street of town.  It is mostly lined with tidy, two-story homes with ornate trim around the windows, large front porches with swings and rocking chairs, and well-manicured flower beds.  As they near the center of the small town he begins to tell her about the handful of businesses that line its main street.

First, they come across a gas station with old-style pumps from the 1940’s.  “The gas station used to be a hitching post back in the day, before people had cars.  The main building housed a tavern, I think it was called The Redwing Inn, for people passing through town on their way to the larger cities on either side.  The outside was painted bright red, I saw it in a painting once,” says Lucas.  Magpie can hear the passion in his voice, he’s very knowledgable and very interested in the history of the town.

“That’s the Pocket General Store,” he says, pointing to a quaint building with grey wooden siding and a sloping roof, “They carry everything from groceries to farm equipment.  One of the kids, Sebastian, is in our grade so you’ll meet him next fall. You are going to Pocket High, right?” he asks.

 “Yes, of course,” she replies.  Magpie has pushed all thoughts of school to the back of her mind.  At her old school the kids weren’t particularly nice to her, and she is nervous about what might happen now that she’s the ‘new girl’.  

“Pocket High is just down the street at the end over there,” says Lucas, pointing to the only crosstreet in the small town, “It shares a huge lawn with the library next door and we usually eat lunch out there under one of the trees.  The principal, Mr. Swift, is pretty cool; he lets us plant a community garden at the back of the lot where we grow all kinds of vegetables for families whose farms have had a bad season.  That way they have enough food to get through the winter.”

“Wow, that’s amazing!”  says Magpie.  It sounds like the people of Pocket are kind and giving.  Maybe she has nothing to worry about!  “Where does that street go, across from the school?” she asks, pointing to the right.

“The house on the corner is actually a bakery, Tuffetto’s!  Mr. Tuffetto makes the best bread you’ve ever had, and his wife makes cakes and pastries, all different shapes and colours.  We always get our birthday cakes there.  Then at the back of the street, where all the blackberry bushes are, that’s the house where Farfalla lives.”  he says, without offering any further explanation.  “Ah, here we are!”  he adds, not giving Magpie a chance to ask about the mysterious Farfalla and her blackberries. 

Magpie can’t help but wonder why someone who is so happy to talk about the history of the town would be so mysterious about the abandoned house, and the woman named Farfalla…?

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we pursue our adventure and read Chapter 3 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where Magpie has an uncomfortable encounter with one of the locals, and learns that the people of Pocket may have reason not to trust strangers.  – Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe, you don’t want miss a thing! 

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

In this episode we are introduced to our main character, Magpie, who is just moving into an old farmhouse on the outskirts of a curious little town called Pocket.

Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPTION:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: Episode 1 of The Skylark Bell.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

In today’s episode we’ll begin our adventure with Chapter 1, The Old Farmhouse, where we are introduced to our main character, Magpie, who is just moving into an old farmhouse on the outskirts of a small town called Pocket.

So get comfortable… grab a blanket, a warm drink… and let’s get started.

“Phew, I think this is the last one!” says Mrs. Phaeton, setting a large box on the dining room table.

“We did it!”  says Magpie, her bright blue eyes twinkling and a proud, excited grin on her face.

Magpie’s real name is Margaret Phaeton; as far as she can remember no one has ever called her by her actual name.  As a baby she was attracted to shiny things, just like the Magpie, and it was her father who gave her the nickname.  Magpie doesn’t remember her father, he left when she was just a baby, so it has always just been her and her mom.  Until today, Magpie and her mom lived in a small apartment in the city, but her mother finally managed to save up enough money for a down payment on a large Victorian farmhouse on the outskirts of Pocket.  

The house is like an old-fashioned dollhouse, with a wraparound porch, peaked roof, reddish-brown siding, and white shutters on the windows.  It sits far back from the road at the end of a long driveway lined with trees.  Large, blooming lilac bushes reach up to the second-storey windows, which are all adorned with window boxes just waiting to be filled.  Tulips and daffodils grow along the bottom of the porch and lush, green fields radiate all around.  Behind the house, a small storage shed is covered in ivy and wild rose bushes whose sweet fragrance drifts through the entire backyard.

Magpie loves the farmhouse.  It feels like it is filled with history, and the energy of the families that lived there before hers.  The massive front door opens to a wide stairway leading to the second storey.  Wide planks of dark wood make up the floors of the house.  The sheen of varnish can still be seen along the edges of the walls in some places, but mostly, an uneven patina has formed in the areas where countless footsteps have tread.

To the right of the entryway, a large opening with pocket doors leads to a dining room which features a large built-in hutch with ornate etchings in its rich, dark wood.  Behind the dining room is the kitchen where bright light filters through ruffled lace café curtains in the windows and a large porcelain sink divides the heavy wooden countertops that line the back wall.  Along the side wall, an old-fashioned turquoise enamel stove gives the kitchen a feel of days gone by, it faces the long kitchen island in the middle of the room.  A row of hand-made wooden stools lined up along the back of the island provides a more casual place to grab a quick bite.  

To the left of the entryway is a spacious living room with a brick fireplace and a thick wood mantle on which someone has left an old clock.  But Magpie’s favourite room is the sunroom; it sits in the back corner of the house, connecting the living room and the kitchen, and is painted bright yellow with white trim around its many windows and along the ceiling and floor.  Through the sheer curtains billowing in the breeze she can see rolling fields of tall grass.  

Upstairs, three mid-sized rooms with creaky wood floors make up the bedrooms.  Two of them face the front of the house while the master bedroom faces the back and connects to a small bathroom with a claw-foot bathtub.  Magpie’s room has a big, bright window looking out toward the front of the house where she can see the quarry and pond across the road.  The uneven floorboards are faded and scratched from years of furniture being moved across them, but Magpie is absolutely charmed by the sense of history.  Her favourite thing about the room is the closet.  Though it is awkward, with its door tucked in the corner of the room, the inside stretching along the entire wall like a tunnel, and its ceiling angled by the roofline of the house, Magpie doesn’t mind that it’s weird.  She plans to use it as a secret hiding place where she can bring a lamp and do some quiet reading or draw sketches.

There are a few remnants of the previous owners strewn throughout the house.  The back shed is filled with gardening tools, a wheelbarrow, shovels and plant pots.  Inside the house, a thick rug sits in front of the stone fireplace and fills up most of the living room, a coat rack stands guard by the front door, and a red antique coffee pot sits on the stove.  The massive oak table in the dining room also came with the house, it shows wear and scratches from decades of family meals and Magpie can’t help but imagine the sounds and smells of holiday dinners with children racing around from room to room.

 “I’m bushed, what do you say we order a pizza and call it a day?” says Mrs. Phaeton, flopping onto one of the kitchen stools. She kicks off her sneakers and brushes a strand of copper coloured hair off her forehead

Magpie giggles, “Mom!  We live in the middle of nowhere, they don’t deliver pizza here!”  they both get caught up in a laughing fit before Magpie offers to walk into town to grab some food to go.

 “Here’s some money, see what you can find and make sure you’re back before it gets dark, ok?”  says her mom.

“Will do!  See you in a bit!” shouts Magpie over her shoulder as she walks out the front door. She steps out into the early evening sun, a gust of wind ruffling her hair. It’ll be her first time venturing into the town of Pocket, and for some reason the thought sends a shiver down her spine…

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we pursue our adventure and read Chapter 2 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where Magpie meets the boy next door who takes her on a tour of the town, and mentions a mysterious old woman named Farfalla.  – So don’t forget to subscribe, you don’t want miss a thing! 

Before I go, I’d like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for composing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

In this episode, we will be introduced to the story of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell. Our main character, Magpie, must figure out what has caused the mysterious silence at Meadow Lane before it spreads to the entire town!

Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: An Introduction to The Skylark Bell. I'm your host, Melissa Oliveri.

Each episode of this podcast will feature one chapter of my book, Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell. On the last Friday of each month, we'll take a break from the story, and cover a real-life supernatural, or at the very least unusual and unexplained experience.

In today's episode, we'll be introduced to the town of Pocket, it's newest resident, Magpie, and the mysterious house at the end of Meadow Lane.

So get settled in, grab a blanket, a warm drink, and let's get started...

Meadow Lane sits on the outskirts of a small town called Pocket. There is no sound on Meadow Lane. No crunching gravel under people's feet, and not a sound if they yell or clap their hands. It stays surrounded in a thick veil of silence at all times. The wind doesn't blow there, there's not a bird in the sky overhead, and not a critter running through the tall, dry grass.

Since Magpie and her mother moved to Pocket, Magpie has felt drawn to the mysterious, disheveled house. She hears stories about the young brokenhearted woman who cursed the property, and whisperings about the mysterious Skylark Bell.

What really happened at Meadow Lane, nearly a century ago, that could erase all sound from the land? And who is the strange old lady who wanders through town without ever speaking a word?

Magpie has a secret that not even her mother knows about. She has visions from the past, like slow-moving pictures, and suddenly they all seem linked to the inexplicable silence that hangs over Meadow Lane.

Will she put the puzzle pieces together before the silence spreads to the entire town?

Thank you so much for listening! Join me next week as we officially embark on our adventure and read Chapter 1 of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, where we'll be introduced to our main character, and the town of Pocket's newest resident, Magpie.

Be sure to subscribe, you don't want to miss a thing!

Before I go, I'd like to thank Phaeton Starling Publishing for this fantastically eerie story, and Cannelle Elanion for writing equally fantastic and eerie music for this podcast.

Teaser Trailer for The Skylark Bell Podcast - launching January 2021!

Intro Music: Nightbridge by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri