I stare at the beautiful man cloaked in the silver moonlight smiling while waiting for me to speak.

"Are you the man that answers wishes?" I ask hesitantly, fidgeting with my fingers.

The man smiles and responds in a smooth, luring voice, "I do something quite like that. What do you wish for, Aurelia?"

I take a deep breath and repeat the words I've practiced many times over. "I wish to be strong and useful; to live a life of fullness and not dullness. I am a plain girl; I wish not to be."

The man nodded his head as if he understood my wish. "Magic," he began, "comes with a price, are you willing to pay?"

Without question or even time to ponder, I answer with complete confidence, "Yes."

The man moves his hands in a dance, glimmering magic swirls from his fingertips.

"Aurelia Dertha," He speaks with sternness and power, "I grant that you will no longer be a plain girl, but a girl of extravagance and purpose!"

With one full flush of his power, the glimmering glow of magic settles within me, but I do not feel any different.

I look in the mirror to see any physical changes, but I still look the same.

"I am not changed," I utter with disappointment.

The man walks towards me with a small frown. "You are already extravagant, and you already have purpose, Aurelia. You do not need magic."

"Then what did you do?"

The man smiles. "Look in the mirror once more. What do you see?"

I do as he says.

My eyes connect with my image in the mirror. I recognize my brunette hair, brown eyes, and freckled skin. But looking closer, I see something else.

I see a young woman who has a whole life before her. She has a purpose; one that she is willing to live out.

"I have purpose," I exclaim, smiling at my image.

"Magic," the man says, "is not always sparkles and color; sometimes it is just words of encouragement."