The Enchantress

Pranita Bhagat posted under Flash Fiction QuinTale-07 on 2019-03-17



She was the daughter of a school teacher, the only child, was an apple of her parents’ eyes. Born beautiful just like her mother, everyone who lay eyes on her admired her for her radiant and talkative eyes. Shyna, her mother had fondly named her. She was told time and again by the people, that her daughter’s name is too fancy, albeit, misfit for the lives that they were leading. But Shyna’s mother just smiled. Deep inside, like every mother, she knew her daughter was special. With Shyna though, it was more than just a mother’s instinct. Her mother knew she had a special something to her, an aura unmatched, the mystery in those magnetic eyes unfathomable. Shyna, however, was oblivious to all this. She was happy in her own world. I mean, what does an 8-year-old need to be happy anyway? She went to school, played, studied, all merry. She was living a perfect life in her perfect world with her parents, until that fateful day. It was a dark, stormy night. With mighty winds blowing and rain pouring in heavy, it felt as if a deluge was near that would devour the town altogether. In amidst of this crazy weather, a heavy lightning struck Shyna’s house and her perfect world fell apart in a moment. She lost her parents to the accident. Her childhood vanished in a night’s time. Life suddenly was cruel. The neighbours took her in with care. For all the time that she stayed with her parents, none of the neighbours remembered any relatives or guests visiting them and so they knew that Shyna was now an orphan. One day suddenly, a long-lost man alleging to be a distant relative turned up to take Shyna along. Sceptical at first, the neighbours finally gave in. For he knew all the minute details of Shyna’s parents. Lonely and clueless, Shyna went along with him. She knew she would eventually be a burden on the neighbours anyway. They took a train to the city. He kept chatting to Shyna but her mind was elsewhere. She could sense something amiss. He would excuse himself to take calls, once she heard him say yes, we are on our way. Don’t worry, your parcel is safe with me. She didn’t know what that meant. Suddenly, enroute, as if having some kind of a haze, Shyna felt a big jolt. She closed her eyes and all she could hear was the screams. She woke up at the hospital, and learnt about the train accident. Since she did not have any relative, her neighbours were summoned, from the relative’s contact dairy. Shyna was back and her parents’ vivid memories came back to her. The smoke, the chants, the mandals drawn on the floor, all during the night time. She was special. She learnt that she was the lone survivor of the train accident. Some called her lucky, some Satan’s child, but she knew, she was The Enchantress, born of Occult. _ For more of such content follow us on Social Media: