Movie Spells

Edna lit the candle sitting at the edge of her desk. “Sallie Day,” she said. The candle flame glowed blue and then white.

“Hello?” a voice said.

“Hello, Sallie,” Edna said. She leaned back in her chair and started to doodle on the edge of her desk calendar.

“Edna, is that you?” Sallie asked.

“Who else would it be?” Edna asked. She drew a cat.

“This little girl keeps calling and asking random questions. ‘Hey Sallie, how do you make peach pudding?’ or ‘Hey Sallie, if my black cat has a white toe, does that make him a less effective familiar?’ or ‘Is calculus a secret cult?’ I don’t even know who she is! I don’t think I’ve ever met her before,” Sallie said.

“That is so weird. Maybe it’s the little sister of someone we went to Academy with?” Edna said.   She added a big floppy hat to the cat drawing.

“But why would she call me? You were the smart one, always coming up with weird new spells,” Sallie said.

“But you were the nice one,” Edna said. “Oh, speaking of spells, I just come up with some good ones.”

“Nice. What do they do?” Sallie asked. “And if you’re trying to find a spelltester, count me out. I learned my lesson with the freckle remover spell.”

“I told you it was for freckles. You just assumed it would remove them. I like freckles,” Edna said.

“Well, now I am wearing my own personal galaxy of them.   I must be your favorite person ever,” Sallie said.

“Of course you are, that’s why I’m sharing my newest spells with you first,” Edna said. “Do you want to come over and see them? They aren’t meant to be cast on people.” She drew freckles on the cat.

“Okay,” Sallie said. “I’ll come through the mirror in the hall.”

“It’s open, just come through when you’re ready,” Edna said. The flame glowed blue and then orange. Edna blew out the candle and whispered a few words under her breath. The cat drawing walked off the page, crossed the desk and climbed into a blank page of her sketchbook.

A moment later, she heard Sallie step through the mirror and call her name. “I’m in the living room,” Edna said.

Sallie came in, folded her arms, and raised an eyebrow.   “So, show me the spells,” Sallie said.

“Sit on the couch and watch this,” Edna said. She turned on the television. “I’ve figured out how to make spells that affect the characters in a film.”

“But that’s impossible!” Sallie said. “They’re just images, not people. You shouldn’t be able to affect them individually with a spell.”

“And yet, I can,” Edna said.

“So, what did you do? Change the ending so it’s a new movie every time? Get the characters to tell you what they’re thinking?” Sallie asked.

“Hmmm. Those are good ideas, but nope,” Edna said.   “Mostly I’ve just changed the color of everything that was orange. I hate orange.”

“Edna, that’s silly,” Sallie said.

“No it’s not,” Edna said. “And I also figured out how to make those boring romcoms watchable.”

“What did you do?” Sallie asked.

“Just watch,” Edna said. She pushed play.

A man on the screen looked adoringly at a woman playing catch with a puppy. He smiled. “You are so beautiful,” he said. Unfortunately, it was rather muffled by the heart-shaped confetti that was pouring out of his mouth. He coughed.

The woman smiled. “I love you, too,” she said. The confetti shot out of her mouth as she spoke too. She spat out the last few pieces.

Edna paused the film, laughing hysterically. “Isn’t that so much better?” she asked.

“You’re so weird,” Sallie said. She looked at the paused film. The actress had a few pieces of confetti stuck to her nose and left cheek.   Sallie snorted and began to laugh.   “Okay, you’re right. That is pretty funny.”

“Wait until you see what happens when they get angsty,” Edna said.

Sallie murmured and snapped her fingers. A bowl of popcorn floated through the door from the hall. “Look, I brought popcorn. Start it from the beginning, Edna.”

Edna tossed some popcorn into her mouth and pushed some buttons on the remote.   “Great idea. Let me know if you have any suggestions.”

“Of course,” Sallie said.