Archive of Our Own ^beta

Emma’s eyes flitted between Olivia on the couch and the bird in the room, uncertainty clearly written across her features. On one hand, it felt very wrong to use her abilities without needing to. On the other hand, she really wondered if there was a way to tell the difference.

And Olivia had come up with a very fabulous bird. It was as large as a peacock and as colourful as a mandarin duck and Emma had never read about such a bird before, not even in her aunt’s oldest and most valuable books.

So she closed her eyes and thought very hard about it. What it would feel like to be a bird like that. To have these fluffy feathers but meagre legs, and be so light and still not able to lift off the ground with wings that were more pretty than useful. Olivia would appreciate having those, she thought.

But when she opened her eyes again, she was still just a girl next to an illusion of a fantastical bird.

“I don’t think I can do this, Liv,” she said. “I really think I shouldn’t.”

The bird puffed its feathers and honked at her.

Emma narrowed her eyes at it. “I know I can do it. I just don’t think it’s a good idea. Let me try again.”

Once again, she imagined what it would feel like, and this time, she could feel it become reality. Warm and soft down feathers. Long, strong, bare legs. Long, weak, feathered fingers. A sharp orange beak to honk back with.

As soon as Emma felt comfortable in her bird form, she honked back at the bird.

‘I can’t believe that worked!’, she cooed.

Then she turned around and fluffed her feathers to show Olivia, but Olivia wasn’t on the couch anymore.

She turned back towards the bird.

‘I can’t believe that worked, either,” the bird said.

‘Wow, Olivia is really good at imitating bird speak,’ she realised.

‘Well, speaking like a bird was very easy after you turned me into one,’ the bird said.

‘That was not good. How had she turned Olivia into a bird? And how was she supposed to turn her back?’

‘Do you always talk to yourself when you’re a bird?’, Olivia asked.

‘Well, it’s not very easy to think subtly like a human,’ Emma replied.

‘It’s not going to be very easy to think like a human, considering you don’t even know how I became a bird in the first place!’

‘See?,’ Emma said. ‘You’re doing it too.’

‘Let’s focus on the more important things, Em,’ Olivia said and began pacing the room. ‘You turned me into a bird! And you don’t know how to turn me back! And it’s not even a bird that can fly!’

‘Is that the part you’re most upset about? That you won’t be able to fly?’

‘No, Em. Please turn me back.’

‘I’m working on it!’

‘I'm going to ask your aunt for help,’ Olivia said.

‘My aunt won’t be able to turn you back, Liv,’ Emma said, but Olivia was already on her way.

It was only when she burst into the front room and stood face to face with a poorly disguised Asa Pike that she realised that it might not have been a good idea.

Because Asa now had a very good view of two very identical-looking birds, and Emma could only be one of them.

Emma tried to level an apologetic look at her aunt, but Julia was currently distracted by the two most pathetic-looking children Emma had ever seen. She wondered where Asa had found them, because they did not look related and definitely weren't old enough to go to Bloor’s.

Asa walked towards them, and Emma suddenly felt very nervous. What if he guessed that Olivia could make illusions now? But they were both solid birds. At most he might believe that Olivia could also turn into a bird. But even if she told him that Emma had shapeshifted Olivia, he might tell the Bloors about it. And Emma didn’t want to know what they were going to do with that knowledge.

He was eyeing the two birds very intently, and Emma desperately wished for a way out of this situation. At least her aunt was shooing the two kids out of the room and it looked like they hadn’t seen the birds. But she really didn’t know what to do about the boy who was grinning wolfishly down at her. She didn’t even dare look him in the eyes.

Emma kept her gaze on the ground. She wished Olivia were human. Olivia always knew what to say, and was always very good at coming up with explanations.

Suddenly, she heard her voice. “It’s not what it looks like,” Olivia said. Emma looked towards her and saw that she had returned to being a human.

But it wasn’t the time to be relieved by that. Quickly, Emma turned back into a human. “It was me,” she said.

“The bird?”, Asa replied, grin widening. “Really?”

Emma felt her cheeks reddening, but she stood her ground. “Both birds,” she said. “I turned Olivia into a bird.”

Asa actually looked impressed by that.

Suddenly courageous, Emma asked: “Please don’t tell anyone?”

He put a finger to his lips, smiling. He took a step back from them to give a low bow, then turned around and walked through the door. A bell jingled.

“That was close,” Olivia said.

Then, “Since when does Asa have kids?”