The Magic Of Bottle And Bowl

'Life is all about choices and it takes a moment to pick what your heart desires. Never give up!'

Those words rang in a loop in my ears.

"Yes, dad! I will never stop trying." I closed my eyes and sighed out my frantic miseries. My mind brought back the tides of a ravishing past, making my fingers tremble with odd thoughts.

"You aren't worthy enough to handle these!"

"Uncle please, I will never let my dad down. I will perform in the bureau and fulfill his wishes, I promise." I blurted the rawness that clouded my heart.

"New York Bureau of magic is not a game. In the lineage of wizards, girls prove no worth." He spat his anger jerking my palms. The glass bowl broke into million parts, piercing a scornful thorn of nothingness. After all, nothingness is what we feel when life has been pushed to the cliff.

The resurfacing maims thwarted me. I can never forgive his conclusions that day. If it was anyone other than him maybe it would have hurt less. But he shouldn't have said that when he knew dad and his magic was my everything.

"Awanthika Madhav!"

A shrilling loud voice calling out my name made me realise where I was. Spending eleven years of ordeals, to acquire and mend the tricks I have watched my father perform, here I stand on my own. Not to prove my uncle wrong, but for the fire that blazes in my heart. 

Ah, me and my messy thoughts, I mused as the welled up tears trickled down my cheeks.

"Awan-thika Madhav. This is your final call to participate in the bureaucracy of magicians." A woman in her thirties cried in a high pitch as her fingers strolled at the printed papers.

Grabbing the glass bowl and the water bottle from my black leather satchel, the only possessions I have from dad, I went in. I stood up in a quick move, earning some loud muses.

A shudder travelled down my spine when all the audacious rippling eyes skimmed through my five feet self. From the little golden jhumka that whispered the song of winds to the neatly combed hair braided over my purple hemmed kurta, I wasn't the one they expected.

In some minutes, I was surrounded by many masters, dominantly men, the ones with adept life in this realm of chants and charms. Their adroit glares and stares shook my not so confident heart. Beads of sweat made me wiggle. But this shouldn't let me down. At least, not today.

"Hello, Ms Awanthika. Do you have anything to be said?"

"Hello, Sir. I'm here to show you what I have."

"But we see just a bottle of water and an empty bowl." People laughed as a man from the crowd ridiculed me. A smirk toddled on my lips. After all, these weren't new to me.

"Silence! We are much obliged to have you here. Show us what you have got." A deep pitched voice from the panel of judges solicited.

Gulping down the lumps through my gut I commenced my trial.

"People think magic as illusions and deceptions. But they never see what it is beyond what their eyes can glance. I was once such a person. A girl with no big dreams than getting the toys and toffies she loved."

I poured some drops of water on the bowl as they turned into a little toy of a butterfly and a chewable toffee. I could see every pair of eyes being hooked to my moves, making me recoup my real self.

"But my world of choices changed when I knew magic was a double-edged knife." I took out the butterfly and waved my palms. With ounces of my effort, I could see it rise in the air to flutter its blue-black wings when the toffee burnt to ashes as I trickled some drops of water into the bowl.

"Thanks to my father Maneesh Madhav for gifting me all of his courage and conviction. If not for him, I would have stayed an innocent bird all my life." A sigh of repentance paled my cheeks, earning some stares of concern.

"Let me share a tremendous memory. Ah! I can never forget that day. The day when he sowed the seed of spark in me." I placed the bowl and bottle on the black satin clothed table.

"He said, Lookup, Awani. The world is what you see it to be. I was taken aback by his sudden words. I remember how my lips quivered as my brain picked words out of the clamouring questions. Perhaps it was a seven-year-old girl's panic I guess." I chuckled.

"I said, I'm afraid dad, what if I see no good? What if it's all so dark? Life can get treacherous in remarkable ways. But all of my panics stuck words made him laugh making me doubt did I crack any joke." The crowd sneered as the aura of judgements dominated.

"He flinched his palms wading away even the eerie glint of light from the room. I felt a deep void of anxiety kick through my mind making me cry, Dad! Don't scare me. Please bring the lights back. Back then I never knew that's when I was becoming his heir." I waved my arms, shushing every source of light around except for the spotlight above me.

"He said, Fret not Awny! Let the warmth of the dark calm your soul. Concentrating on the transformation bring out what you have. I was too exhausted for his complex words. But I knew this wasn't any prank. I averted my frights to gain my calm. He held me in the shoulders as I felt the warmth fill me. I rose my hand, how can I bring it out? I never knew. Thats when he said me to picture something that meant strength to me." I said as my eyes closed.

"He then gave me the bowl and the bottle. Pour out the dribbles of water to quench your fear. I still remember how erratically I poured all of the water into the bowl." I took the bottle and poured enough to fill it to the brim.

"When I opened my eyes that day, I saw some whisks of smoke and faded light. I couldn't give birth to what I imprinted." I could hear some 'Ops!' and 'Ah, the usual' sighs.

"But today, I must show him what I wanted to come out of me that day. To all my friends here, may this day bring the shine of inner strength in you." Stating that I folded my fingers, fisting the palm. I drew the silhouette that I had imprinted on my mind with my thumb.

Okay, play your calm. Miss, not anything. It will show up. I reassured my throbbing qualms.

I could feel my nerves boiling with the warmth that is escaping out of my fingertips. I looked at the three minutes of art I have been making amidst the curtains of shadow.

"That is a lady on a lion!" I heard the crowd yelp out its fluster.

When I touched the filled bowl, everyone could see the water level dropping down too fast. The moment it emptied there was a palpable silence of anticipation. I closed the bowl with my palm and sat over at the edge of the table.

"My honourable ladies and gentlemen! Now is the time."

Like the fervour of shine masked amidst the clouds, a thick roar echoed on the grey-washed walls of the auditorium. The lights were switched on as someone cried they could see something moving below me.

When every source of light glared at my eyes, I slanted my head to nuzzle the golden brown fur of the life beneath me. The bronze mane covered face and the brawny shoulders standing in four limbs was my win. I looked at the audience caught in the mayhem.

"Worry not, he will not move until I command."

"That is a wild animal! Get it out of here." Someone howled.

"Haha! Fury voids are the masks of the pretending heart. Isn't it?" I whispered coyly. Before they could surmise, I embraced the lion and curled it in my arms. When I stood up turning to them, they were taken aback.

"He was shrunk? Or is that a cat?"

"What if it is just your illusion?" My questions and arching brows brought a new commotion as I folded the cat again. When I opened my palms, I could see the little butterfly fluttering in the middle.

As I traced its fragile wings, it dissolved into thin air. Then I was left alone with the empty bowl. The little sound of water seeping into the capped bottle surprised everyone. When I opened the bottle, I could see people standing up.

"Oh, relax my peers. This is just me drinking water."

I guzzled the drops to quench my thirst. Clattering thuds of appreciation and amazement filled my craving heart. The craters in me were filled as a feeling of triumph surged in them. I looked above and beyond the sight of the white chandelier ceilings.

Now my princess has become the queen. An infectious proud smile lit up my soul.

Liked this story? Read another one 'Is Talking Enough'.