Hocus Pocus: Rising of a Little Witch

Chapter 10: The Meadow

      Winifred climbed down from the sky, inch by inch, until she was hovering right before me. She looked comfortable on her broom. She sat up and set her hands on her knees. For once I actually noticed the elegant turquoise her eyes were. She had been closer to me than this before, and I now only noticed her eyes. They were a beautiful color.

"How dost thou feel, hmmm?" she asked in a grand tone.

I looked down at my hands curled my fingers.
"I feel wonderful," I replied, still in shock.

Mary and Sarah both smiled, then, began to cheer in unison. They looped arms and began to dance happily.
"Thou is a Sanderson! Thou is a Sanderson!" they cheered.
   Winifred decided to come down. She lowered herself as close to the ground as she could, she bent backward, removed the broom from underneath her, and she gracefully touched dirt.
"Hush, you two!" she hissed at her sisters m.
"She may be a witch, but she's not a Sanderson."

They stopped dead and looked at her funny. Of course I wasn't a Sanderson, my last name was Bleak. I shook my head. Winifred pushed the hood of her cloak off her head and stepped up to me. She put her fingers to her chin
"Hmmmmm," she went, beginning to circle me. I began to feel like she was the hunter and I was the prey. She began to pluck at my sweatshirt, which was dirty and smelled of must.
"Well, thou art a witch, but thou dost not dress as one."
She circled me a few times, then faced Sarah.
"Take Kaytrina upstairs and find her something more suitable to wear."
A glowing smile lit up Sarah's face. She liked to play dress up I guess.
Sarah quickly snatched up my wrist, and half-dragged me into the cottage. She took me upstairs where their beds were. I had never been up there before. It was very interesting. Each sister had their own bed, with quits the colors of their gowns. Winifred's was green, Mary's was red, and Sarah's purple. In the corner of the room, next to a mirror, was a huge oak trunk. I could tell that it had some age to it. It looked as if it was about to rot and fall apart. Sarah didn't care, though, she began rummaging through material. She thrashed dresses alike over her shoulders, and they flew all over the room.

"A-ha!" she cheered. She stood up, trailing something bright pink in her hands. "Try this," she said, throwing it to me.

Oh, lord! It was a bright pink. I felt insulted. I may have been a girl, but I was too much a tomboy for a pink dress. I didn't say anything though. Sarah handed me a shift to put under it.

"Now, get dressed. Thou shalt come down when she is finished," she said happily, before disappearing down the stairs.

I held the dress up, and examined it. I truthfully didn't feel comfortable about this. I preferred jeans and a sweater. If only I knew how to use my magic more, I could use it to improve this dress. But anyway, I slid into the thing, only to discover that it fit perfectly. Well, the skirt was much too poofy, but the bodice fit nicely. I had no shoes except for my hiking boots. That was gonna look weird.

Slowly, I made my way downstairs.

When I dismounted the staircase, the cottage fell silent. Winifred's face went straight, Mary's jaw fell agape. Sarah saw her sisters' reactions and smiled sheepishly. Did I really look like that much of a goof?

Winifred smacked her palm to her forehead.
"Sarah, she can't go out in that!" she hissed.

Go out? Where were we going?

"I'm sorry, Winnie, but 'tis all I had," said Sarah.

Mary began to giggle.
    Winifred's face told me that she was fed up with her sister's stupidity. She marched over to me, grabbed the dress, and yanked it over my head. I stood there in just the shift, a cold draft hitting my bare ankles. Winifred tossed the dress in the corner, and stared down at my body. She snapped her fingers, then walked off. I threw my arms around myself. The shift may have covered me up, but it was still awkward.
    Winifred returned with something in her hand. I didn't have time to see what it was, because she quickly whirled me around. She threw something over my head, and wrapped it around my waist. I looked down, and recognized the line of hooks traveling up the front.

It was a corset.

Quickly, like I had seen in movies, as Winifred collected the laces, I inhaled and sucked my stomach in. She pulled them tightly and I could feel every little jerk as she began to tie them. When she was done, she smacked me on my back, and stepped away from me. I exhaled quickly, gasping for air. The corset was restricting my breasts, what little ones I had.

"Thou shalt get used to it," said Winifred, walking toward the door.
"Come, sisters. Come, Kaytrina. Tis time we exploit this odd weather," she said with a grand tone.
Before she walked out the door, she swished a hand, and a picnic basket appeared within her grasp.
A picnic! We were going on a picnic! I was much too surprised and happy to care that I marched outside wearing nothing but old-fashioned underwear. Winifred circled her way to the back of the cottage, where there was an opening in the trees.
Mary, Sarah, and I followed her down a path through the woods. It was beautiful. The autumn leaves fell down, just to be crunched beneath our feet. A cool breeze blew softly, gently blowing the end of my hair off my shoulders. Mary and Sarah stuck to my sides as we followed Winifred, who walked in front of us, her hood up, nose in the air.

I leaned closer to Sarah. "Where is she taking us?" I asked.

"The meadow! The meadow!" Sarah cheered. She began to dance around us as we walked.

"The meadow?" I whispered to Mary.

   Mary nodded, and got closer to me so she could whisper in my ear. Sarah began dancing up toward Winifred. Mary grabbed my shoulder, signaling for me to slow down. I slowed to a mere creep, while Winifred and Sarah got farther from us.

"Did I ever tell thee of Billy Butcherson?" she asked.

I shook my head.

"Well," she said, pulling me close so she wouldn't have to whisper too loud.
"Billy was Winnie's lover at one time."
Mary began.
"They used to meet one another at the meadow for 'quality time'," she said, air quoting "quality time."

"Really?" I asked with wide eyes.

She nodded.
"That was, until Winnie discovered Sarah in Billy's bed. It angered her so much that she vowed to never love another living creature again, good or evil," Mary explained.
She sighed.
"But I know she loves us."

I began to ponder hard. Perhaps that's why Sarah acted like such an idiot. And perhaps why Winifred was always in a stale mood. Mary and I followed behind Winifred and Sarah as the wooded path opened. The air suddenly became a lot warmer. As we exited the woods, rather than being surrounded by beautiful fall colors, we were surrounded in nothing but green. The path had opened up into a lush green field, which a single line of old fashioned worm-fencing ran through the middle. On the other side, the field was coated in small white flowers. I couldn't believe it. It was so lush, so summer-like. I swore I had just walked into a world of magic.
"Wow!" I said loudly. "Look at this place!"

"Isn't it truly magical?" Sarah asked happily. She ran to my side, and took my hand adoringly.
"Come, Kaytrina, let us go to the spring."

I quirked a brow. "The spring?" I asked.

Sarah nodded. "Yes. Over there."

    Although the meadow was so beautiful, I didn't see a spring anywhere. I pulled loose from Sarah, and walked forward a bit. There was a small slope. I climbed it, and finally knew what Sarah was talking about. There, in the center of the meadow was a single willow tree. And sure enough, underneath it, was a small body of water. I wouldn't exactly call it a spring, more like a small pond, but the Sanderson's could call it whatever they wanted. All I knew was that something good would come out of this day.