Which Ferry? - story and illustration

Which Ferry?

Going up the steep front steps of the vine covered stoop to the witch’s house, Farrah tripped on her sheer, flowing, pink and blue dress. It was really her mother’s night gown and obviously still too big for her even though her mother had hemmed it into perfect little fairy points for the costume. To catch her fall, Farrah tried to catch herself with her wand as if it was a cane and it bent in half.

Everyone said that old brick house belonged to a real witch.

Jacque told Farrah when they were walking by her ivy encased house on West Avenue, on the way home from school, their feet kicking up the autumn leaves as they went, “She only dresses as a witch on Halloween but she watches us out her windows and tries to put spells on us."

Farrah stared at the windows. Then Jacque challenged, "I dare you to go there alone on Halloween.”

“How will you know that I went to her house if I’m alone?”

After contemplating the dilemma Jacque suggested, “Bring us back something witchy.”

Farrah figured the old witch might enjoy Halloween, too, even if she wasn’t very sociable, living reclusively in her house with her cat.

The witch opened the door before Farrah could even find the doorbell.

“Trick or treat!”

“Trick!” The witch replied without so much as a smile.

“Um, I broke my wand when I fell.” Farrah showed her.

“No trick, no treat!” The witch declared.

“Um…okay. I’ll tell you a joke,” Farrah offered. The witch stood there stone faced. “What do you do when you miss the ferry to your island home?”

“What island home?”

“Pretend you live on an island.”

“I don’t pretend,” the witch said.

“You’re dressed up as a witch,” Farrah pointed out.

“And?”

“And, it’s Halloween; we all get to pretend for a night.”

“That’s your joke?” The witch responded.

“No!” Farrah whined. “You ruined my punch line!”

“What’s the punch line?”

“You put your teeth under a pillow. Get it – the tooth fairy.”

“You didn’t say tooth fairy.”

“That would have ruined the joke!”

The witch laughed in that cackling, haunting witch way and Farrah noticed she was missing her two front teeth, like the jack-o-lantern in her window.

“So you’re the one who stole my teeth!” The witch declared.

“I’m not a tooth fairy!” Farrah stamped her foot. Then she curtsied. “I’m a good fairy.”

“So why couldn’t you miss the good ferry to your island home?”

“Then what would be the punch line?” Farrah asked the witch.

“Catch a witch,” and the witch held up her broom.

“That’s a good one,” Farrah giggled. “Can I borrow your broom?”

“If I can have your wand,” the witch offered.

“Sure.” The wand was simply made of a wooden dowel Farrah’s father had in his garage workshop with a card board star covered in tin foil attached to the end and streaming some blue and pink ribbons. “It’s broken though.” She held it up and hanging by only a few strings of wood, it drooped down.

“I can break my broom and we’ll be even!” The witch told her as she cracked it over her knee.

“No! I’ll bring the broom back,” Farrah exclaimed.

“Ow! It didn’t break,” The witch declared.

“Just write your name on it and I promise I’ll bring it back.”

When the witch went to get a permanent marker, her black cat came out of a dark doorway in the hall and up to the front hall where she rubbed up against Farrah’s legs under her sheer gown. He felt soft. Farrah liked cats.

Returning shortly, the witch said, “Here” handing Farrah several candy bars. “And give some to your friends. Make the boy with the French accent bring the broom back to me. Now, what have you done with Midnight?”

“Midnight?” Farrah questioned. “You mean Jacque?”

“My cat!” The witch declared as she wrote on the broom - Wicked Witch of the West.

“Voila!” Farrah announced as Midnight squirmed between her legs and out from under her gown

“And, I thought you said this wand was broken,” the witch said, picking up the wand and tapping Farrah on the head. She opened the door. “Now, disappear brave Ferry.”

“Farrah's my name,” the little girl informed her.

"You are a Farahy, indeed," the wicked witch of the west declared through her vacant smile.

Happy Halloween