The Trouble with a Witch: Part Two

My curiosity did get the best of me. So later that day, I walked down the dirt road to get a look at the old house. I could see desolate patches where flowers once grew. Overgrown bushes and old fallen tree branches had taken over the yard. The wooden gate had rotted and fallen from its hinges and laid on its side, still showing signs of white paint.

I crept along the old stone path and up the rickety steps onto the porch. Its rotting boards were dirty from old leaves that never blew away. The clapboards were weathered and grey. I could barely see my reflection in glass pane of the front door.  The crud and grime too thick to even see in. The lace curtains on the other side were  tattered. I reached for the brass door knob. It shined bright and clean. It didn't look like the rest of the house.

The knob turned easily and I pushed open the door.  It was dark inside.  I couldn't really see anything, but I crept in and wondered if the floor would give way as it creaked under my weight.

Inside, I noticed a lit candle sitting on a perfectly clean table in the corner. I stepped slowly towards it. The front door slammed shut and I raced back to it.  While struggled with the knob, I heard it.  A lower airy laugh that grew into a cackle.

A dark figure emerged through the door way at the far end of the hallway. I knew at once it had to be the witch. I saw her bony hands, a pointy warted nose, and drawn mouth.  At least that's what I thought I saw at first, but as she approached me, she changed into a blond-haired young woman wearing a red silk dress. No bony hands. No warts. Just a smooth and milky complexion.

"Well well well..." Her voice was warm and lush. She twirled her hand in the air and the room turned from decrepit and barren to clean and furnished.  It reminded me of a sultan's chamber I had seen in a story book about Ali Baba. "What's your name?"

Frozen in place, I managed to stutter out.  "Ttttommy."

She smiled. "I'm Marigold. Marigold Stemm. Do you drink tea, Ttttommy?"  She mocked me.  She fluttered over to a side table and poured two cups of tea.

I shook my head and slowly reached around for the door knob.

"Don't worry.  I'm not going to eat you.  I simply want to talk."  She pointed to a chair near me and said, "sit for a moment. No harm will come to you  And besides, the door is locked."  I heard the lock click behind me.

With the most caution I could muster, I perched on the edge of the chair, at ready to run.  "You're not going to turn me into anything, are you?  You know... like a toad?  Use some spell on me?"

She laughed.  "Heavens no. I'm not a witch at all.  I do know how to use incantations though. They are kind of like spells."

"What do theeey dooo?"  I stuttered.

"They do a lot of things. Like turn rocks into gold. Or zap a person from one place to another.  Perhaps travel through time."  She picked up the cup of tea and held it out to me.

"You're not going to zap me, are you?"  I refused the tea.

"Oh Heaven's, no. Like I said, I just want to chat for a bit."  She gently put the cup and saucer back on the table.

At that point, I remember thinking that she wasn't a witch.  She was just crazy. A crazy lady living alone. She didn't look old at all.  She wasn't really a witch.

I kept staring at her.  It was her eyes that caught my gaze.  Her eyes were an unusual blue. Very bright and a bit sparkly.  As she spoke, I found myself drawn to her.

"Tommy, do you know how to read?"

I nodded, finding that I couldn't stop staring at her.

"Wonderful. Here." She held out a piece of paper which seemed to appear from no where and handed it me. "Read this out loud. I want to hear how well you can read."

I took the piece of paper from her and looked at the words.  I mispronounced my way through them.