Three Blessings

The hand of misfortune fell upon Mabel Moon on Halloween. As she locked her door that morning, she noticed a late rent notice taped to her door. Quickly ripping it down, she pounded down the steps and knocked on the landlord’s door, reminding him she had already paid the rent in cash. Mr. Ryker’s replying smirk told her all that she needed to know. Mabel feared confrontation, so she hurried to work, hoping her boyfriend Russell would have solutions.

Work did not improve Mabel’s day. When she walked in, the wind blowing the door closed with a resounding thud, Aspen smugly smiled at her. She fired up her computer, calling her customer back at the agreed-upon time to discover that Aspen had taken the sale on her day off yesterday. Her stomach sunk like a stone, realizing that she would be on the line for a job cut. Sure enough, her boss pulled her into his office before lunch. He shook his head and explained that everyone who falls below 60% this month was toast.

She hurried along past storefronts decorated for Halloween to Russell’s office. Without texting or calling, she figured she could surprise him for lunch. Instead, the surprise was on her. As she rounded the corner, the office doors swung open, and out came Russell and a young woman. Her hand froze in a wave, and the words died on her tongue as Russell began kissing the woman. Shock exploded inside of her, and she ran.

Mabel walked down to a bench by the bay and sat for hours, watching the boats glide by, and the seagulls dive for meals. Her eyes misted when couples walked past her, hand in hand. Children carrying pumpkins and wearing masks ran by. After watching the sunset over the bay, she gathered her things to head for home.

She waited at the crosswalk with costumed kids and parents, feeling ultimate loneliness when she noticed a black cat with emerald eyes. They seemed to shimmer in the streetlights, and she found herself mesmerized until the cat leaped into the crosswalk as a truck came barging towards it. Fear propelled her forward, tucking and rolling across the road, and she scooped the cat up just as the truck’s force blew her curly brown hair into her face.

“That was a close one,” said the indistinctively accented voice. “Come here, darling Onyx” The cat leaped into the beautiful woman’s arms. The woman’s braids reached the end of her back, and her eyes were golden.

“Thank you,” Mabel said, out of breath, standing before this mysterious woman.

She smiled, her perfect white teeth gleaming. “Many thanks for saving my beloved Onyx. To whom am I thanking?”

“I’m Mabel Moon.”

“I’m Isadora, and this cat is my familiar.”

“You’re a witch?” Mabel’s eyes widened.

“I am. Join me on this Halloween stroll.” She began walking back towards the bay, and Mabel felt compelled to follow her.

“On Halloween, witches can grant mortals Three Blessings. Would you like yours?”

Pushing her glasses up her nose, Mabel asked her to explain. Isadora looked up at the moon hidden behind a thin veil of clouds before meeting Mabel’s hazel eyes.

“Blessings are a cousin of wishes. When people receive wishes, they wish for unlimited money, true love, or eternal life.” She ran her fingers through Onyx’s silky fur as she purred in pleasure. “Blessings are for improving your life. What troubles you, Mabel?”

She gulped. “I, um, I’m good,” she stammered.

Isadora descended the steps to stand by the Bay, breathing in the salty air with her eyes closed.

“Why are you filled with pain and anger? Something is hurting you, and something is worrying you, and something you are angry over.”

Mabel watches a light flash on a buoy as she contemplates how to answer Isadora’s question. She takes a deep breath and feels a wave of caution turning in her stomach. Realizing that she has no one else to turn to, she decides unloading her problems onto Isadora could be a solution. After all, what is the worst thing that could happen?“I do have three troubles in my life right now. I’m not sure how you can help me, though.” Mabel says before she loses her nerve.

“Unload your troubles, Mabel. I am here to assist you.” Isadora has purple fog swirling around her now. Sensing her reluctance, Isadora lets the haze encircle them both, creating a buffer from the outside world. Two fluffy chairs with cashmere blankets appear, as well as three floating orbs. Mabel’s mouth is hanging open, ready to catch flies.

“A Bayside oasis just for us. Come sit” Onyx curls up in one chair as Isadora explains further how blessings work. She will grant one for each trouble Mabel is having, and they will watch the solution in real-time on the floating orbs. “These have been around for centuries before television.” The witch waves her hand at her human shock.

Settling in the chair opposite Isadora and Onyx, she chews on her fingernail before blurting out, “Russell, my boyfriend, is cheating on me.”

Isadora’s golden eyes glow as she hums in an ancient language. One orb flickers and fills with shapes. To her amazement, a vibrant image of Russell tied to a pole in the bay appears. Crocodile tears run down his face as he promises he will never be unfaithful again. He claims it was his coworker that seduced him, and he never intended to betray Mabel. Mabel’s heart squeezes at the fear present on Russell’s face, but remembering him kissing his co-worker stifles the urge to tell Isadora to stop.

“Will you accept his forgiveness?” Isadora asks as her fog swirls around her. Mabel watches the orb and thinks of her relationship with Russell. She gives a non-committal shrug as the witch watches her. Time to change the subject, she thinks.

“My landlord accepted my rent in cash and now is giving me a notice for late rent. I read the terms of my lease, and he can kick me out without proof that I paid because I’m a fool,” Mabel says, putting her hands over her face.

“You are not a fool, just a kind soul who always believes others’ words even when they ring false.”

Flickers appear on the second orb, followed by a mass of swirling shadows before Mabel understands what she is seeing. It’s a clear floating box with great white sharks swimming around it. Inside the box, Mabel sees her landlord, Mr. Ryker. “Forgive me! I did something wrong. I just needed money for my mom. She has cancer, you see?” the babbling landlord has sweat dripping off him.

“What will you do with Aspen?” The witch smiles, and the third orb fills with waves from the ocean. A crying Aspen sits on a raft is bobbing up and down on the ocean waves. Her face is a red and snotty mess.

“I’m sorry that I lied and stole Mabel’s sale,” Aspen says. “I’m sorry that I told the boss that she handed it off to me.”

“Ugh!” Mabel says, watching Aspen float surrounded by miles of water.

“Popcorn?”

“Yes, please,” Mabel says, watching the three orbs in abject fascination. Mist swirls by her, leaving behind a basket of fresh, buttery popcorn. The witch and human spend the next hour laughing and joking about the orb’s images. Isadora opens up to how she was born during the Great Pyramid building and how lonely the life of a witch can be. Mabel asks questions in between bites of popcorn. Lively chatter continues until Mabel realizes she has forgotten to ask an important question.

She interrupts Isadora, explaining how water is her element with what should have been her first question. “How does their fear take my troubles away?”

She pets Onyx as she explains to Mabel, they will die if they do not undo their sins.

“Die,” Mabel says, a knot forming in the center of her chest. “I don’t want them to die.”

“Then, what is it you desire?”

The popcorn feels like lead in her belly as Mabel explains she wants her landlord to admit he paid, Aspen to admit she stole the sale to their boss, and her boyfriend to go back in time and not cheat. The witch shakes her head.

“Mr. Ryker is a liar whose mother has diabetes, not cancer. For years, he has been taking advantage of his tenants. He will accept that you already paid, from his fear, but he will continue to pull that trick and ones much worse to get his way.”

“Russell will always be a cheater. Monogamy is not in his future, no matter who he loves. Pleasure means more to him than his partner’s happiness.”

“Aspen will always strike out at everyone in her life. She survived an ugly childhood, and her scars have become her weapons. Aspen only cares about what the best results for her will be.

Mabel can’t believe what she is hearing. “I don’t think they deserve to die over this! Please, Isadora, I don’t want the blessings anymore.”

“No? How will you afford to pay rent twice in one month? How will you find a new job? Are you going to confront Russell and break up with him?”

She swallows, knowing the witch is right. Mabel never confronts, always allows things to happen to her, and then deals with the consequences. It hasn’t suited her well, but she lacks the bone of courage.

A shadow passes over the suspended orbs. Horror fills Mabel as she hears the screams.

The tide is coming to Russell’s level now. With each wave, the water reaches higher, and he attempts to spit out the water while promising love and loyalty. Death is coming for him, and he pleads as Isadora continues to toss popcorn in the air and catch it with her mouth.

The box vanishes, leaving Mr. Ryker in the middle of the shark circle. Closer they come as he screams to God for rescue. Mabel shivers as if she’s the one in the cold water with predators swimming nearby. He promises to be a good landlord and never take advantage of anyone for money from this day forward.

Aspen’s orb is the only one that Isadora fast-forwards since Isadora’s death will take days. Dread fills her face as she watches her former coworker in a fetal position with sunburned skin and chapped lips, like paper lying on a raft. Aspen’s last words were, “I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy,” before dehydration claimed her body.

Mabel cried as darkened with death’s kiss. Her screaming began when the sharks ripped into Mr. Ryker. The ocean swallows Russell whole, and that’s her undoing. The consequences of her actions overwhelmed her. Isadora’s calm voice wafted over her, explaining witches cannot undo blessings according to the code. Mabel lifts her tear-stained face and explodes with fiery anger.

“You will undo these blessings, now!”

“Is that so?” Isadora says with her hand on her hip.

“Yes! You said help for troubles, not murder.”

She waves her hand, staring at the bay. “Death goes hand in hand with easing troubles.”

After a spell of Mabel’s tears, a chasm opens inside of Isadora. She is used to dealing with greed and narcissism, not people wanting relief from pain and solutions for anger. A spark of goodness glows in Mabel’s soul. Centuries of living have taught her people can be horrible, but they can be wonderful too. Isadora makes a decision.

“Lovely lady, dry your tears. I can take your blessings away.”

“Thank you,” she says, moving into a sitting position.

The purple fogs dissipate, revealing a ribbon of moonlight on the bay. The pictures on the orb rewind until they are pearlescent. Popcorn vanishes, and the magical mist swallows the chairs.

“Mabel, you have the power to chase away your troubles. Search inside yourself, and build up your courage. Don’t let unkindness win.” Isadora says, holding Onyx.

Mabel blinks, and they vanish, erased as if by-well-if by magic. She watches the moon’s ribbon shimmer on the water before she walks home.

November arrives on a bleak morning, but Mabel feels like a turtle leaving her shell for the first time. She thanked her lucky stars; Russell was not crashing at her place when she got home last night. How silly of her for never questioning why he kept his apartment. Purple sweater on and coffee mug in hand, she leaves to meet up with Russell.

He’s waiting in the coffee shop by his office, staring like a zombie at his smartphone. Without preamble, Mabel stands by the table and says, “I saw you with your leggy coworker on Halloween, kissing outside the office. It’s over; I need my key.” She holds her hand out as he turns red, confusion and guilt warring across his face. She taps her foot. “Russ, I don’t have all day. Things to do and people to see. Hand it over; you can drown your sorrows after I leave.”

With a deep breath, her courage swims to the surface as she pulls open the door to the office. It stunned Aspen to see her, and she leaves her computer to hurry over. “Mabel, honey, hi,” a fake smile planted on her face, and pretend concern filled her eyes. “You know you were” she looks around the quiet office and then lowers her voice, “let go.”

“Of course, I was present for the conversation,” Mabel says, mimicking Aspen’s smile and tone. Aspen’s jaw lowers, and she glances timidly around the room as if hoping to be rescued. “I emailed my customers this morning, you know, the sale you stole from me. Such kind people, anyway, they informed me you lied and said I was on vacation and asked you to take over the account. How odd; I’m just going to zip in and show the boss and get this cleared up.”

For the first time, Mabel sees authenticity on Aspen’s face as she turns white as a sheet. “I could go explain to the boss; there was a mix-up. Perhaps you would like to join?” she asks as Aspen nods in agreement and begins following her.

With her job back, she bangs on the landlord’s door and starts speaking as soon as the creep answers. She pushes the door open with her hand, a move she once saw in college and has always wanted to emulate. “Look, Mr. Ryker, I have a video of you telling apartment 4d that you would waive rent for the month if she-”

“Listen, Mabel, I went through my records and found you made a cash payment,” red-faced Mr. Ryker tells her, gripping the door, ready to escape.

Mabel smiles and returns to her apartment as a long text from Russell comes through. She heads to the kitchen, turns on the kettle when she notices a purple piece of paper propped up on the table.

She picks it up and reads.

Dearest Mabel,

Many thanks for saving my beloved Onyx’s life on Halloween night. An enchanted evening we had. I undid the blessings, but the nightmares are a gift.

Isadora

The kettle whistles as Mabel stares out the window, watching the sun dip in the bay, spreading its rays like ink.