It Takes a Witch or Two

It Takes a Witch or Two

By

Lora Lewis

Going up the stairs to my apartment seemed to take forever. I decided to stay in tonight. I didn’t feel like going anywhere or having anyone over.

           I had a bad day dealing with all of the people coming to visit the home that was added to the ghost tours. It was once my family home, and I don’t like people coming in pointing and gawking at my ancestor’s pictures hung on the walls. The rooms were roped off, but there were still traces of what was and objects that to most people they wouldn’t think anything of. But to the eyes through the ones that know, my ancestors were indeed witches.

           There isn’t anything I can do to stop the tours from coming in. The house was left to the Historical Society by a relative when he passed away.

           I just got comfy when I heard someone trying to get in. There was some strange sounding mumbling, the door rattled, and suddenly two women tumbled in looking as if they got caught in a gust of wind. One of them wore a pair of what they called bib overalls. She was the plumper of the two and was holding onto a bonnet for dear life that looked as if it has seen better days. What stood out, was the gaudy rings she wore on every finger. The other woman was tall and thin was dressed from head to toe in what I’ve heard people call the bohemian look. Bracelets took up half of her forearm.

           “Hello, sweetheart, how are you?” they both asked at the same time.

           Suddenly realizing who they were, my mouth hung open. If mother were still around, she would probably tell me how unattractive that looked. It is not what a young lady would do.

           Mabel and Zira.  Zira is what she decided to call herself after going on a self-discovery retreat.  Her real name is Eleanor. They were relatives of some sort. I gave up on having them try and explain it to me.

           They were off somewhere doing whatever it is they do when the will was read, and the house ended up in the hands of the Historical Society. There was a rift in the family between Mabel, Zina and their brother causing both to be banished from the house and he left none of his worldly possessions to them.

           As soon as they heard what happened, they came flying back. Literally.

           “What brings you both here?” I asked.

           “We heard what happened,” They both whispered.

           It is a habit of theirs, for some reason or another both answer every question at the same time. Yes, it is annoying.

           “I’m glad to see both of you, but it’s a little late to do anything about it.” I said somewhat whiney. 

“Tell us what happened.” said Zira.  She sat back, kicking her legs up on the seat of the sofa. And then I let it all out. I griped and complained about my day and all the ugly things people said while touring the house.

           “That’s where you are wrong. It’s never too late to fix a problem,” said Mabel.

           I hardly heard what she said. I got distracted. I didn’t have any siblings growing up and these two were the closest reminders I had of family.   I have friends, but only a couple. A few bad experiences taught me lessons I’ll never forget.

“Yes, you’re right, but before we start working on a solution, we need tea,” replied Zira.

Mabel became noticeably quiet. Zira looked at her. “Are you falling asleep on us?”

“Oh, no, sorry. I have a lot  going on in my mind right now.”

“Care to share?” I asked.

           Mabel had an evil looking grin on her face as she looked at both of us.

           “We are going to pay a visit to Darlene Fitz.”

           “Who is Darlene Fitz?” I asked.

           “She’s President of the Historical Society,” answered Zira.

           “I don’t understand what would be accomplished by paying her a visit.”

           “There is a long history between us. We grew up together,” said Zira. 

           “Mabel, we promised.” sighed Zira.

           “We promised we wouldn’t do anything if she stopped smearing our family name.” huffed Mabel.

           “She’s not smearing the family name Mabel; she’s just doing her job.”

           Yes, but she certainly hears everything that is said and she’s not doing anything to make it stop.”

           “Mabel, this is Salem. It’s not like we’re the only witches in town and have ancestors that were too.”

           “Well, I’m going to talk to here whether you want to tag along or not.”

I never understood how much these two cared until now. “You’re not going to do anything bad to her are you?”

Both stood up. “We’re going to go. We’re both tired and need to get some sleep. We will be back tomorrow.”

                                                      ****                                                                                   

It is Sunday afternoon. Thank goodness there aren’t any tours scheduled on Sundays. I was anxious to hear what happened between Mabel, Zira, and Mrs. Fitz.

Suddenly, I heard the front door open. Thinking it was Mabel and Zira I rushed down to the landing at the top of the stairs that led to the foyer. It wasn’t them. I didn’t recognize anyone. I froze in my spot. I wasn’t sure if any of them would be able to see me.

A man spoke. “I don’t know where you came up with this idea Darlene, but it’s worth looking into. The first thing we will need to do is check the zoning and have the house inspected for any updates it may need. A place like this would make a unique bed and breakfast. And it would make more money for the society than the tour does. That would give us the extra funds to do a lot of good in the city preserving the rich heritage.  Any valuable antiques and artifacts can be donated to one of the local museums. 

I don’t know what Mabel and Zira did or said, but I haven’t felt this much joy in a long time.

****

A few months later…………………

Mabel and Zira must have gone off on another adventure. They never did come back. But I did hear someone take a reservation for a room for them. I can’t wait to see them.

I heard a slight creak on the stairs that led up to my apartment. No one is supposed to be up here. I opened my door and peeked out.  A little girl stood there and looked up at me.

“You can see me?” I asked her.

“My mom and dad told me not to tell anyone that I can see shadow people.” She told me.

“You mean ghosts?” I asked her.

“I’m not supposed to use that word in case someone hears me. Would you like to be my friend?”

“Yes, I would like that very much.”  It turns out her name is Sarah, and she was here visiting Salem with her parents.  We had a nice visit. I told her about myself. How I was born in this house in the late 1800s and what it was like growing up then.

“I should probably go back downstairs. My mom is probably wondering where I’m at.”

“Would you like me to walk you down?” I asked her.

“Yes, that would be nice.”

When we got to the bottom of the stairs Sarah’s mother came over and asked where she had been. “I was looking all over for you young lady.”

“I’m sorry. I was talking to my new friend, and we lost track of time.”

Sarah’s mother looked right at me and mouthed “thank you.”

Looking back at her daughter she spoke. “The women in our family all have the gift.”

“Your daughter is a charming little girl.”

I went back up to my apartment with a smile on my face. I had that feeling I would be making more friends as time went by.