William and the Witch

 

“She's a witch. You better watch out, or she'll turn you into a frog.”
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“You're lying.”

“I wish I was. It's what happened to our older cousin.”

“We don't have an older cousin.”

Olivia nodded and tapped the tip of her nose. She leaned over and said in a quiet and deliberate manner, “Exactly.”

“Mama, Olivia is making stuff up again.”

“Not now, William. I'm trying to find your aunt's house.”

“It's the truth, I swear.” Olivia made a cross on her chest using her finger. “Mama, isn't Aunt Edith a witch?”

“Yes, sweetie, she's a witch alright.”

“See.” Olivia smirked, her braces reflecting the evening sun.

His mother pulled the Suburban into a driveway. They jumped out. Aunt Edith's yard was menagerie of odd trinkets and statues. It was busy with gnomes, fairies, and colorful glassware of all shapes and sizes. It had a bubbling pond and many odd shaped rocks of different colors.

Olivia was standing by the door pointing at something. Her mother had just rung the doorbell. William leaned over and saw she was pointing at a frog. It sat still by the pond. When he turned to look at her, she pursed her lips, widened her eyes, and nodded slowly.

“That could be you,” she whispered. “Best get on Aunt Edith's good side.”

She had to be lying. William knew that magic existed only in certain places around the world, like the north pole.

When the door opened. Aunt Edith answered, she had on a blue apron that covered a lace top, and a flowing skirt that came to her knees. She didn't look like a witch. She did however look excited.
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“Come in, come in my pretties,” she said in a high squeaky voice.

“Edith, your directions stank, and your yard looks as bad as the last one.”

“Nice to see you too, sis."
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"Oh my Gaea, is this little William?” She knelt down beside him and pulled him in tight. “I haven't seen you since you were two. How old are you now?”

“I'm five.”

“Wow. And Olivia, how's my favorite niece?”

“Great, Aunt Edith, and I'm your only niece. It's always fun visiting you. Can you teach me some spells?”

“Of course I can.”

“William doesn't believe you're a witch—”

“I do. She's lying.”

“Well I am a witch, a good one, I can tell you all about it. Come in, I'm so happy you're here.”

His mother sighed and walked into the house. Olivia followed behind, she pointed to the frog one last time. “Our older cousin,” she whispered.

It was dinner time and Aunt Edith had set the table with a fantastic array of flowers and leaves. It was a feast of deep oranges, browns, and reds. The plates themselves were intricate. Far from the boring white dishes his mother used at home, these were decorated with giant trees in the center and leaf silhouettes lining the rims. Her forks looked like silver metal twigs with branch-like tines on the end.

They sat for dinner. The whole time, all William could think about was the frog outside. It didn't help that he could hear it croaking through the window after the sun set. Could it be like Olivia said, that it was their older cousin, someone he'd never met? William was silent throughout the first half of dinner, even as the other three gabbed prolifically.

The frog noises got louder, and Olivia's words never left his mind. It reached the point of mental torment. He finally worked up the nerve and said something. “What happened to our older cousin?”

The conversation at the table came to a sudden stop. Forks clanked as they dropped to the plates. Williams could see all their faces were focused on him. The silence was deafening. “I want to know the truth,” William said, staring at his aunt.
His aunt's face was sullen, she turned to his mother. “He's five, Evelyn, how does he know? Why would you tell him?”

His mother was shaking her head. “I don't know where this is coming from.”

“Did we have an older cousin?” he asked.

His aunt looked at his mother one last time, then turned to him. “Yes, you did. He's gone now.”

William heart fell to his knees. “You're not going to do the same thing to me are you?”

“What? William, what in God's name are you talking about?” his mother asked.

“Olivia said he got turned into a frog.”

Olivia was laughing so hard she fell out of her chair. Aunt Edith whispered something to his mother.

“Olivia, I need to talk to you…now.” His mother walked around the table and grabbed Olivia by the wrist. She was still laughing.

Aunt Edith stood up and sat in the chair next to William. William sank back, avoiding eye contact.

“Pumpkin, I didn't turn your cousin into a frog. Your sister played a very mean trick on you. I don't even think she knows what really happened.”

William braved a look at his aunt, she had tears running down her cheeks.

“The truth is, I did have a son. He was alive long before you or Olivia were born. But he was born with a sickness. He only lived for a year. It was the happiest year of my life. And when he left, it was the saddest moment of my life.” She wiped the tears from her face. “That's what I thought you were talking about.”

“So, you don't turn boys into frogs?”

She laughed through the tears. “Oh, William, I have much to teach you about Wicca.”

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