The box was ordinary—small, wooden, square; perhaps some interesting intricacies traced in the lid if you looked hard enough. Nothing too special. Nothing too flashy. Nothing too weird. It didn't even have a label to show what it or its contents were. It was entirely ordinary, save for one little tidbit of fact:

It wasn't Quinn's.

Quinn stared at the box, fragments of sleep blurring her mind. Maybe she was still dreaming. Maybe this was just one of those lucid dreams where everything seemed real, until the rainbow elephants jumped from her closet claiming that she was their long lost relative. Maybe, just maybe, the box hadn't magically appeared at the foot of her bed. [i]Blink blink[/i]. Nope. Still there. Quinn pinched her arm. Nuh-uh. Box was there. This was completely real.

With a groan, Quinn fell back onto her pillow. It could've been Isaac. He was always leaving around gifts for her. Except that they'd established that her room was a 'Quinn-only Zone' way before he even married Mom. Couldn't have been him. Not Mom either. As caring as she was, she was never the random gift giving type.

So where had this box come from?

Quinn sat back up, brushing a hand through her messy locks. She stared at the box. The box stared back. The two were caught in a staring contest worthy enough to be in the Olympics. Unfortunately, the box was a gold medal athlete.

[color=#7CF5AA]"You're, uh, not going to blow up in my face, are ya'?"[/color] Quinn laughed nervously.

The box didn't reply. Probably because it didn't have a mouth. Or brain. Or any vital organs in general.

[color=#7CF5AA]"Yeah, didn't think so."[/color] Quinn huffed. Hugging a pillow to her chest as a makeshift shield, she slowly edged towards the box. A hesitant poke with a toe resulted in the box only moving slightly away. No booms. No traps. Nothing...yet. Quinn tossed aside the pillow and scooted closer. Nothing continued to happen, which was a good enough sign that it was [i]probably[/i] safe. 

Sucking in her breath, Quinn flicked open the lid and closed her eyes. When nothing happened, she opened up her eyes and peered down. There, nestled like an egg in a nest, was an ebony, egg-shaped hair clip. Unexpected? Oh yeah. Unwelcome? Oh nah! Quinn picked up the clip, gently tracing the smooth surface. While she wasn't one to wear clips and jewelry, the clip seemed...different. Like when she held one of her aunt's heirloom brooches. There was a certain sense of heaviness to it, as if it seemed too valuable to lose but too important to never wear. Quinn stared, completely enraptured by the mysterious gift. Given the chance, she'd stare at it all day.

Except that'd be really boring to read and even boring-er to write.

A suddenly flashed filled the room, breaking Quinn's trance. She cried out in shock and dropped the clip, falling back in shock. The floor shook as the young girl slammed back-first into the floorboards. For a moment all she could do was lay there, stunned.

[color=#B1FFF7]"G-goodness, a-are you alright?"[/color]

It took Quinn a full five minutes to register the unfamiliar voice.

[color=#7CF5AA]"I'm perfectly fine!"[/color] Quinn shakily called back. Except, with her breathlessness and shock, it came out slurred like, [color=#7CF5AA]"D'yim purr-fuggy fy'n!"[/color]
Still, whatever got the point across.

A squeak of surprise slipped out of Quinn's mouth as a black and white...[i]thing[/i] poked it's head over the edge of the bed. It was a badger—that is, if badgers were three inches tall, had big heads and eyes, and floated. The creature...badger...[i]thing's[/i] eyes widened considerably. [color=#B1FFF7]"O-oh dear,"[/color] she (Was it a she? It sounded like one.) squeaked. Her quiet voice trembled like a leaf on a wind-blown tree. [color=#B1FFF7]"A-are you o-okay?"[/color]

Quinn shut her eyes. Less so from the pain of falling into hard wood, and more from the fact that [i]there was a tiny badger-thing talking to her[/i]. [color=#7CF5AA]"Y-yeah, just...gimme a sec."[/color] She lifted her head towards the closet. Nope. No rainbow elephants. This was real. Her head fell back to the floor with a dull thud. 

The badger-thing winced, a blend of sympathy and apology swimming in her large eyes. [color=#B1FFF7]"I-I understand y-you must be very confused—"[/color]

[color=#7CF5AA]"Confused?"[/color] Quinn groaned and dragged herself up, rubbing her head. "Confused doesn't even begin to describe me right now." She pulled herself onto the bed, eyes still locked on the tiny floating badger. "Okay, first off: who and what are you?"

[color=#B1FFF7]"M-my name is Prytt..."[/color] The badger-thi—er, [i]Prytt[/i]'s voice dropped in volume as she shyly lowered her head. [color=#B1FFF7]"I-I'm a Kwami."[/color]

[color=#7CF5AA]"Kwami?"[/color]

[color=#B1FFF7]"A-a fairy of sorts. I-I sort of g-give you powers a-and transform..."[/color]

Quinn blinked as the little Kwami carried on rambling in an increasingly lower volume. A fairy. Who gave magic powers. Because why else would this morning be perfectly normal. She ran her fingers through her hair. [color=#7CF5AA]"And...you came from that hairclip?"[/color]

Prytt nodded timidly. [color=#B1FFF7]"The Miraculous."[/color]

Quinn reached for the clip, turning it over in her long fingers. This was real. This was real. She kept repeating the three words over and over as if they were some sort of magic spell that kept her sanity, or rather what was left of it, together. [i]This is real[/i]. Smiling crookedly, Quinn tucked the haircip into her hair. 

[color=#7CF5AA]"As realty altering as this whole fairy-magic-powers thing is,"[/color] Quinn dashed into her closet and hurried changed into more suitable clothes before grabbing her bag, [color=#7CF5AA]"I still have school to deal with."[/color]. Quinn gently took Prytt and tucked her into her jacket pocket. [color=#7CF5AA]"You can explain this whole...Miraculous...thing later, okay? Right now, we've got a bigger problem to deal with: school."[/color]