Oracle in the Mist. Linda Maree Malcolm

Daphne. Whenever a client came for Daphne to give an angel card reading, Bobby had to be completely out of ear shot. Bobby understood that the client’s privacy had to be protected too but there was also a feeling of protecting Bobby from knowing all of the things that happened to adults and Bobby could never quite figure out what those things were.

      It was frustrating and she repeatedly told Daphne to stop treating her like a little girl but Daphne only answered her questions to a point which left Bobby to find out the rest by herself. If she could only find some sort of clue as to her grandmother’s life here in the attic, she might come closer to knowing what kind of person her grandmother was and why the fairies had led her here in the first place.

      There was an assortment of floral boxes stacked one on top of the other in the corner of the attic. Bobby looked through each one but found nothing except bits of old fabric, buttons, cottons and dressmaking patterns. Next to the boxes was an antique dresser but the drawers were empty. She was about to leave the attic but something made her walk towards the pillar in the centre of the room. She pulled the red fabric off it and there sitting on the pillar was a large crystal ball. She knew it was a crystal ball because one of her mother’s friends was a clairvoyant who used a crystal ball to tell the future. This one was different though because on it were written the words “Oracle in the Mist” in very fancy gold print.

      It really was the largest and most important looking crystal ball she’d ever seen. Underneath the crystal ball were three newspaper articles that were quite ancient and that had been taped together with sticky tape that was now yellowed and curled and that had almost lost its ability to stick. Bobby gently eased the newspaper out from under the crystal ball. Something told her this was not a ball she would want to break.

      She replaced the ball and unfolded the newspaper. She saw that the largest article was dated 19th November, 1930. There was a picture of eight children all dressed in oldfashioned clothes such as overalls and longwaisted dresses. The girls’ hair was cut into short bobs and the boys had bowl cuts.

      The headline read: “A miracle. Eight children missing for six days return home safely.” The article went on to explain that the parents and police still had no clue as to where the children had been because the children had no memory whatsoever of the incident. Apparently the parents just woke up one day to find their children at home and sleeping in their beds again, much to their utter relief but also shock.

      Bobby noticed the newspaper was called Queensborough Times which confirmed that this had happened right here in this little country town. She looked at the names of the children pictured and recognised her own grandmother’s name, Robina Fairweather.

      She studied the picture. Her grandmother appeared to be staring at the gap next to her as if wondering at the absence of someone. And there were those huge sad eyes, thought Bobby, even in this picture when her grandmother was only a child. The article said that the children all told exactly the same story; they had no idea where they had been but were happy to be home and eager to be getting on with their lives.

      Bobby read the next article: “Locals talk of alien craft sighting on night of 19th November, 1930.” The next article after that read: “Mr and Mrs Game have finally become proud parents after adopting a bonny, blackhaired baby boy.” Bobby folded the newspaper and put it into her jean pocket. Instinct told her she would be referring to it again. She read the words on the ball out loud to herself: “Oracle in the Mist.” What does it mean, she thought to herself? And why has it been left up here with these articles for so long. She picked up the ball and held it in front of her face.

      Right at that moment the most peculiar thing started to happen. Tiny white mists began to swirl around inside the ball. She desperately wanted to put the ball back but she was frozen to the spot. Her heart began to pound almost audibly. What was happening? Time seemed to stand still and all she was able to do was stare into the ball. But then she had real reason to be afraid because the ball started to pulsate and the mists exited the ball and flew around in circles, becoming larger and stronger until they were swirling around the room, whipping up her hair. Bobby heard her name being called, quietly at first and then much louder and with urgency. This can’t be happening, she thought.

      The ball then screamed her name making her jump and she almost dropped the ball. She began to feel incredibly dizzy and wondered if this was how you felt right before you fainted. And then the voice came loud and clear, cutting through the confusion and fear. “Bobby, I’ve been calling you for ages, where are you?”

      It was Daphne calling up the attic stairs. At that moment the mists stopped swirling and reentered the ball. It stopped pulsating and became a normal crystal ball again. Bobby calmed herself enough to replace the ball on the pedestal. At that moment Bobby heard the client’s car driving out of their driveway and realised that the angel card client was leaving. She ran toward the attic stairs and glancing back at the ball wondered if what she had just seen had really happened at all. What was it all about and did it have anything to do with the happenings of the night before?

      “Yes, I heard you, I’m coming,” she answered her mother. That’s right, it was time to go to the homeschool group meeting, she remembered. As she hurried down the attic ladder her fear was replaced with something else. She couldn’t help feeling excited. Something told her she was on the verge of an incredible adventure.

      

      Bobby hopped into the car to go to the homeschoolers’ meeting at the library with Daphne. She hadn’t been looking forward to going, even after Daphne had told her that it would be good to get out and meet other homeschoolers. But at least now she had something to do when she got there. She would look for books relating to the town’s history which would hopefully lead to more information about her grandmother’s life. She was bursting to tell someone about what she had found in the attic and was about to mention it to Daphne but then thought better of it. Her mother was very openminded but somehow Bobby couldn’t imagine Daphne allowing her keep the ball once she knew what it was capable of. No, she would just have to keep it to herself for now. One thing was for sure — these two items were linked somehow. She was determined to find out how the newspaper article related to the crystal ball.

      She headed toward the historical section of the library where there was a book on display called “The history of our beautiful town, Queensborough”. She flicked back to 1930 and sure enough there was a page with the heading: “Enormous oak on the Brewsters’ property that the alien craft sighting took place at”.

      She looked at the picture. It really was the biggest oak tree she had ever seen. There was also a story about how a local man witnessed several lights and what seemed like lightning strikes hovering above the tree late one spring night. Bobby took out the newspaper articles to compare the dates. They matched exactly.

      “Pretty amazing tree,” someone said from behind her. She snapped the book closed, stuffed the article back into her pocket and spun around all at the same time. There before her stood a boy, about her own age, with thick, curly black hair, a perfect face and very sensible clothes. She didn’t answer him. She couldn’t actually and she wasn’t sure why. It was as if her tongue had been bitten by bees and was caught way back in her throat. It was usually Bobby who talked easily to strangers and could think of a clever thing to say on just about every subject and so she wondered at her own speechlessness. The more she noticed it, the more a blush began to creep up her face. Her lily white, freckled skin was turning a deep crimson red and she could feel her red, woolly hair standing up on end. Luckily for her, the boy must have sensed her unease and took the lead by introducing himself.

      “David Game, at your service,” he said and bowed very low, crossing his arms in front of himself and dipping his head, in the most dramatic way. Now Bobby giggled and went to introduce herself. “Oomph” was what came out of her mouth instead of normal words. Being even more embarrassed now than before, she turned to put the book back on to the shelf, hoping he wouldn’t mistake her shyness for extreme rudeness. Luckily for her he wasn’t offended by her tongue tie at all. You see, he had been very well brought up and so proceeded to make conversation with her in