The Littlest Witch

When a young girl meets devastation by not being able to go trick-or-treating on Halloween, she discovers magic and a talking cat through the power of her own wish.

THE LITTLEST WITCH

by

VOICE CROWE

 

 

 

 

It was Halloween night. The crisp fall air drifted through the open window shutters of a small neighborhood home where sat a young, 10-year old girl, whose heart was filled with disappointment. Sarah shivered as the breeze swept past her, and she wiped away the sticky residue of the tears that stained her freckled, rosy cheeks. She was sitting in the reading chair perched against the windowsill in her bedroom as she stared into the flame of the jack-o-lantern she had carved earlier that day. She was still thinking about her father telling her he was too busy to take her trick-or-treating. She was crushed. He was behind in his work and couldn’t take off the rest of the evening to spend it with her. He had given her a bag of her favorite candy to try to make up for it. It didn’t really help.

Halloween, for Sarah, was never about the candy. For many children it was, but Sarah was different. She loved the magic and mystery of Halloween, and since she could remember, she had always chosen to dress up as a witch. A good witch; she would always make sure she told people she was a good witch.

Sarah gazed out her window as she watched the other kids walk by dressed up in their costumes, seeking out the fulfillment of a plastic pumpkin pale full of assorted candy. She couldn’t help but smile as the kids danced around the sidewalk spooking each other and giggling at their own fear. She noticed a girl her age dressed up as a witch, skipping down the street chanting what seemed like a make-believe spell. It inspired Sarah and she decided she wasn’t going to spend Halloween night being sad.

Sarah ran over to her closet and pulled out her witch costume. The leggings were striped with alternating colors of white, black and green. The dress was made of dark purple silk that was covered with black spider-web lace. Her witch’s hat matched her dress but it also had an orange ribbon tied around the base with a sparkly pumpkin in the center. It was her favorite costume. She quickly got herself dressed and ran over to the mirror in the corner of her room to admire her witchy outfit. Being dressed up caused Sarah’s mood to brighten and she got even more excited as she remembered she had yet to turn on the Halloween lights.

Sarah ran over to the door and plugged in the cord to the decorative lights and turned off the bedroom light. She turned and took a moment to appreciate the atmosphere of her room. She had dark purple curtains and they matched the comforter on her bed. The curtains were draped with a thin black lace that almost matched her dress. She had hung artificial spider web all around her room and filled them with tiny, black, plastic spiders. Across the border of her ceiling, she had hung purple and candy corn colored holiday lights. It was her own little Halloween sanctuary. The jack-o-lantern still glowing on her windowsill filled Sarah with joy, and she went back to the window to watch the trick-or-treaters. It wasn’t her idea of a perfect Halloween night, but the ambiance she created helped to make her feel better.

Sarah alternated her gaze from the glowing pumpkin to the kids passing by. She took a glance across the sky and noticed that the moon was full. She smiled as she marveled at its beauty and remembered her grandmother would always tell her to make a wish when the moon was full. So, Sarah closed her eyes and thought really hard about what she would truly wish for.

What would make tonight better? She thought. What do I always wish for on Halloween? Ideas raced through her young imagination, as she searched her mind for her deepest wish. When she opened her eyes, Sarah looked up at the moon and then down into the flame of the candle and said, “I wish I was a real witch with real magic.”

She closed her eyes, giving the wish a moment to come true, and then opened them.  

Nothing happened.

Silence swept across her room for a moment that felt like eternity.

Still, nothing happened.

Sarah felt her chest growing tighter as she realized she was holding her breath, waiting for something miraculous to happen. She let out her breath and gasped for air as she stared back down into the candle flame.

Suddenly, a gust of wind rolled in through the window. It overwhelmed Sarah as it exhausted the flame of the candle.

“Oh no!” Sarah cried out. She reached out to grab the pumpkin, but jerked back instantly as a black cat jumped up on her windowsill.

“Ahhhh!” Sarah shrieked. The cat flinched, startled by her outburst. “Oh! Poor kitty! I am sorry, you scared me!” She calmed down, realizing it was only a stray cat. “Hmmm,” she wondered out loud, “I bet you’re hungry.” She reached over to see if the cat would let her pet it.

“Actually, I am just fine, thank you.” The cat responded.

Sarah quickly drew her hand back as her golden-hazel eyes opened wide in astonishment and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. An uneasy feeling came over her in the pit of her stomach. “Y-y-you…can…t-t-alk!” She stuttered.

“Yes, I can.” He responded in amusement.

“B-b-but, I thought c-c-cats couldn’t talk.” Sarah said, still stuttering in shock. She was completely frozen in place. She couldn’t look away from the talking cat.

“Most cats can’t talk, but since I am a witch guide, I am able to communicate with witches.” He smiled.

“A witch guide?” Sarah asked in confusion.

The cat sat perched on the windowsill and looked up at the moon and back down to Sarah as he said, “You see, you made a wish upon the full moon on Halloween night to become a real witch with real magic. Well Sarah, your wish was granted, and real magic carries much responsibility and I am here to help guide you every step of the way as you learn your new powers as a young witch.”

Sarah, still frozen in place, took a moment to grasp ahold of what this cat was telling her. “So, you’re a cat…a talking cat, a witch guide, and I’m a… I’m a witch?”

“Yes Sarah, you are now the littlest witch this Halloween night.”

My wish came true, Sarah thought to herself. Complete shock overwhelmed her. She couldn’t believe what was happening, but she jumped and danced around her room with joy.  

“I’m a witch!” She laughed, “It worked!”

“That’s right Sarah, it did!”

“And you are here to help guide me? But what is your name?” she asked him.

“Well, I don’t have a name yet. Since I am your guide, it is up to you to give me a name. It will come to you.” He smiled.

“This is incredible! I have always wanted to be a witch, and to have a cat, and to…” She paused in wonder as she dared to reveal her next thought. “To fly! Oh, do I get to fly?” She asked, with hope filling her eyes.

“I am glad you asked,” he responded, “look over on your bed, there is a gift for you there.”

Sarah looked over at her bed and noticed a broom, crafted from twigs, but strong and sturdy. She walked slowly towards it and noticed that as she got closer, the broom started to glow with a golden light. The closer she got, the more it glowed. She reached over and picked it up and held it in both hands as she marveled at its magnificence. She could feel its energy flowing into her. She looked back over at the cat and raced towards him.

“Magic!” she said, full of excitement.

“Yes, it is magical, isn’t it?”

“No, silly!” She giggled, “that is your name, I am going to call you Magic!”

“Oh my,” he gasped, smiling with his kitty grin, “Why… I absolutely love that name!”

“It’s perfect!” She gleamed. “But Magic, how do we fly this thing?” She asked, holding the broom up to him.

 “We don’t fly the broom, the broom flies itself, we simply trust it.”  He looked at Sarah, who had a newfound joy sparkling in her eyes. “Do you trust it Sarah?”

Sarah looked down at the broom and thought of everything that had just happened to her. She felt like she was living in a fairytale. The broom made her feel joyous; she did not fear its power. She looked back up into Magic’s emerald green eyes. “Yes,” she said firmly, “I do trust this broom and I trust you, Magic.”

 “I shall never betray your trust. This is the beginning of a new friendship, and I will never steer you wrong, Sarah!” He promised. “Now for the real question.” He paused, letting the suspense grow within her, “Are you ready to fly?”

Sarah looked down at the broom, and then gazed off into the starry sky. She couldn’t think of a better way to spend the rest of Halloween night. “Yes!” She exclaimed.

“Well what are you waiting for?” Magic laughed. “Hop on!”

Sarah squealed and giggled and hopped onto her new broom, sitting sideways on its center. Magic hopped up into her lap and she held him close to her with one hand as she braced herself for flight with the other.

“Now,” Magic said, “Say a little jingle and your broom will know what to do! Don’t worry, the words will come natural to you!”

Sarah closed her eyes and searched her heart for the right words. When she knew what to say, she opened her eyes and looked off into the night and said,

“I am the littlest witch this Halloween night, I wished upon the moon in the candle light, now here we are, Magic and I, take us on a journey across the sky!”

The broom glowed even brighter after Sarah cast her first spell. And they sped off across the night sky, silhouetted against the moon, as they do still, every Halloween night.

THE END

Author's Note

This was a short story written for my creative writing class in October, 2017.

Reviews

[SRMarx]

This was really sweet. Sarah was a very engaging protagonist. Thank you for sharing!

[Voice Crowe]

Aw, thank you for reading! I had fun with this one! :)

[Poe Met Emily]

I really enjoyed reading this. I was easily immersed in the story, which was very entertaining. :)

[Voice Crowe]

I am so glad! Thank you for reading. :)