A Dose of Magic

Riley stepped out into the backyard, wanting to check on her plants before school, but something sitting on the porch made her take pause. There was a scarecrow sitting there, but she was positive that it hadn’t been there before. Where had it come from? She stepped closer, poking its arm. Despite being made of straw, it seemed quite… lifelike.

She leaned down, looking under its hat. It suddenly moved its head and she squeaked, stepping back.

“Good afternoon,” it spoke cheerfully, tilting its head up.

‘Am I losing my mind?’ “Um, hello?”

“Fear not, sim, I mean you no harm. My name is Patches Pumpkin and I’ve been sent to assist you in following the path of nature!”

“Sent by who?”

“Why, the universe, of course! The Pumpkin family follow the whims of Mother Nature, and we are often sent to help aspiring gardeners! That IS you, yes?” He looked down to the ground. “Oh my, have I arrived at the wrong residence? Patchy will never let me live this down!”

“Um, well, I did recently gain an interest in gardening.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Those are my plants right there.”

“So I HAVE arrived at the right location! Brilliant! May I have your name?”

“Riley. My name’s Riley,”

“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Riley! I would shake your hand, but I’m only able to leave my tree when my magic is full, but sadly, it is only half at the moment!”

“Ah, it’s okay – ”

“Riley, the bus is here!” Zara called from the house.

Riley bit her lip, looking at the sliding glass door and back to Patches. “Can we… talk later?”

“But of course, Miss Riley!”

She smiled before rushing into the house.

After picking up Kori, Zara glanced over at her eldest daughter. “What were you doing out there?”

“Oh, um…” Should she tell her mom the truth? Would she believe her?

“Whatever, you’re going to miss the bus, Riley!”

“Right, I’m going!” She hugged her mom and kissed her baby sister’s cheek before rushing out the door.

Zara shook her head before turning her attention to the toddler in her arms. “Now, you kept me up half the night, so it’s nap time!”

Kori giggled in a silly matter as she changed her daughter’s clothes before setting her into the bed and kissing her forehead.

“Mama needs some sleep,” she commented softly, giving her a smile before turning the light off. It had been a stressful couple days after Karson’s passing and she still hadn’t fully accepted the fact. Having such a wild child didn’t help.

Zara changed into her nightgown and pulled back the covers, jumping when her bedroom door slammed open.

Kori was standing there in her Pajamas, doing mini squats. “Mama, play!”

Zara sighed, knowing her child wouldn’t leave her be unless she complied. In a way, she was thankful for the distraction. “Mama, play!” She repeated, picking Kori up and putting her onto her back. The young girl giggled loudly when Zara acted as if she couldn’t see her. “Oh, where did Kori go? She just disappeared!”

“I’m here, mama!” She giggled, throwing her arms around the woman’s neck.

“There you are!” Zara smiled, pulling her off her back and tossing her into the air. “You’re getting so big!”

“Big and strong?”

“Yup, big and strong!” Her phone started to buzz so she set the child down and picked up the phone. “Hello?”

“Mrs. Petrichor?”

She winced a bit at the ‘Mrs’. “This is her,”

“Hi, this is Sada Zaldyck, Riley’s teacher.”

Her heart skipped a beat. “Is she okay?”

“Oh, she’s fine. Actually, she was playing games on her phone during class when she should have been paying attention to the lesson. For first offenses, we like to consult the parents and let them decide the best course of action to take.”

“Can you let her off with a warning? She just lost her father a couple days ago…”

“Oh my, I see. Yes, we can definitely give her a warning rather than taking her phone. Thank you for letting me know, I’ll inform the other teachers immediately.”

“Ah, no, please don’t! I’m sure the extra attention will just make things worse…”

“A fair point. I’ll keep it to myself, then. Have a good day, Mrs. Petrichor and… I’m very sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you…” she mumbled before ending the call.

“Mama?” Kori tugged on her nightgown with a frown. “Why you crying?”

“I’m not – ” Her hand reached up to feel her face. Sure enough, the salty liquid was slowly trailing down her cheeks. She sunk to her knees and pulled the young child to her chest, arms tight around her as her body shook with sobs.

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