Katie and the Forgettfulness Spell.上

It was New Year’s Eve, and Great Aunt Chloe had come to stay with Katie and her mum. And Shumash was also there. We haven’t heard about him for a while, but he was still Katie’s mum’s best friend.
They enjoyed a traditional witch’s dinner: nettle soup, roast trout garnished with sorrel leaves, fried wedges with lots of garlic, and yoghurt with sweet dates and honey. Shumash cooked too - he made Indian dal and spicy aubergines to add a little warmth to the meal.
When they had finished eating, there were still three hours until the chimes of midnight and the New Year.
And so they started to talk about their New Year’s Wishes.
Shumash wished that Katie and her Mum would have everything they wanted in the coming year.
Katie’s mum was hoping for a ring, but she just said that she would like a nice surprise in the summer.
Solomon the cat wished that business would pick up at the Magic Shop so that Katie’s mum could afford to buy premium quality cat food.
Aunt Chloe said that at her advanced age, she would be happy just to enjoy good health and to keep her balance on her broomstick.
Finally it was Katie’s turn to make a wish.
Katie knew exactly what she wanted, but she was afraid to say. It was something she had been thinking about all year when things happened that made her like she was weird:
Like the time when her teacher, Miss vile, accused her of using magic to pass her maths exam
And when she accidentally put a spell on the semolina pudding at school and made some people come out in purple spots.
And when a bunch of kids from the primary school followed her around chanting “Katie is a witch, Katie is a witch, witch, witch!”
And practically all the time when certain kids at school didn’t want to hang out with her.
When Katie thought of all these things that had happened over the past year she thought: “I just wish that I could be ordinary.”
She wasn’t sure if she should say this out aloud in front of her mum and aunt Chloe but it was the only wish she could think of - because she had been thinking about it so much:
“I just wish I could be ordinary.”
“But darling you are extraordinary already!” Exclaimed great aunt Chloe.
“No, aunt Chloe, you misheard me, I don’t want to be extraordinary. I want to be ordinary.”
“Ordinary - why on earth would you want to be that?”
“Because…” said Katie - and she did her best to explain just how difficult it was to be the only witch at school.
When Great Aunt Chloe had heard Katie out, she said: “Well in that case I have a suggestion. For the first week of January you must promise not to do any magic, and see how you like it.”
“But don’t you see?” Said Katie, “everyone knows that I am a witch already. It doesn’t matter if I don’t do any magic for a week - they still think I’m weird.”
“Well that’s no problem,” said Aunt Chloe, “We shall make them all forget that you’re a witch - and then you can really see what it feels like to be a normal boring person.”
“I’m up for that!” said Katie. “I want to be boring.”
“And boring you shall be,” declared her Great Aunt - “and in the second week of January we shall see how much you are enjoying it.”
“I will be enjoying it a lot,” declared Katie.
The New Year chimed in with fireworks, cheers, Champagne corks, hugs, and kisses, and everyone went to bed.