Spellbound

2 days later at midnight of the full moon.

A sliver of moonlight spilled into Nathaniels room, not enough to ignite the fiery hues of the beautiful rug on the floor near his bed, but enough to navigate between the rough wooden chairs to his bedroom door. Before Nathaniel even opened the door he knew it was a cloudless night and the sky would be freckled with stars as he came back to bed after having to take himself to the toilet.

He climbed back into his bed and felt the warmth he had left return to his body. Sleep did not come easy for him this night because he wanted so badly to read the letter he was told was going to arrive. Down stairs in the family room of his home an old grandfather clock chimed 12 times to announce midnight to the sleeping household and Nathaniel saw something silhouetted on the wall near his bedroom door that frightened 24 difference colours of fear out of him. Then there was a sound being made on his bedroom window over looking the garden and village street.

It was moving...no....more like a creature flapping its wings. Nathaniel pulled the bed covers up over his head and hoped it would go away but then he heard...

TAP TAP TAP TAP...on his window, so nervously he dragged the bed covers back down and looked out the window and there hovering in the air flapping her wings was Nibbles with a letter in her mouth now well and truely punctured with her sharp fangs. She had tapped on the window with her wings....gently so as not to wake the entire Hamblin household up. Nathaniel smiled at her and got up to open the window and let her in. Once the window was open Nibbles came to a rest on the window sill and Nathaniel took the letter, now thoroughly punctured from her mouth and said to his messenger....

“Thank you Nibbles, how are you?” said Nathaniel excitedly.

“Aza has me flying all over the village delivering

letters ...how do you think I feel?” wheezed Nibbles trying to catch her breath back.

“I have some water here if would you like a drink?” enquired Nathaniel.

“Yes please, I’m parched...just need...to get...my...breath back first” puffed Nibbles looking around Nathaniels room for the first time.

“Certainly...drink as much as you like” said Nathaniel holding the glass out and tipping it up so Nibbles could take a drink. She almost drained the entire contents getting her head stuck in the top of the glass when she heard a voice in the street call her name.

“Nibbs come on...we have to go to another home before you can rest... so get cracking ok?” came the stern voice of Azadarin holding his arms out stretched in exasperation to her.

“Sorry Nathaniel I have to go or risk being turned into a frog by Mr Impatient down there, one more house to go then its home for us...some girl called Penelope Kaplan...so goodnight young master and I will see you again soon” as Nibbles turned, burped from the amount of water she drank, then glided down to land on Azadarin’s shoulder as they walked away to deliver the next letter.

The letter. He now had his letter. He wondered if Pen was up as well reading hers at the same time as him?

Nathaniel now looked at the letter in his hand which had the perfect outline and placement in a half circle on both sides of the fangs that were in Nibbles mouth plus as a bonus some bat dribble. Perfect puncture holes. But this did not stop him breaking the wax seal on the back and reading the contents under the light of the moon while sitting up in bed. Before reading the first words he looked out his window in the direction of Penelope Kaplan’s home and wondered if she was awake and just a bit more scared having a talking bat deliver her letter. She was pretty strong willed but as it was for Nathaniel meeting Nibb’s for the first time he was quite taken aback and doubtless Pen was as well. He looked down onto his letter that was handwritten in a very old flowing style of penmanship. It read as follows.....

It was going to be near on impossible for Nathaniel to sleep now that he had read his letter, knew where he had to be and that his friend Penelope Kaplan was going to be there as well.

This was very exciting for Nathaniel but he did eventually fall asleep...thankfully.