A cautionary tale with a modern twist?
Written by:
Jolene Rice
Michael Raven
With excitement and a twinge of regret, Judy sat at the table looking at the super expensive bottle. A fleeting thought raced across her mind to pour it down the sink. She stared at the sink, praying it would tell her what to do. Everything Judy owned cost less than what she just paid for this bottle of potion. “Drink it you fool.” In a moment of courage, it was gone.
With a start, she woke on the kitchen floor. The last thing she remembered was drinking the potion. Sun was pouring through her tiny kitchen window. This was going to be a great day. Excitingly, she got dress. Breakfast in the park sounded nice. She walked around the corner to the little bagel shop. A man on the street walked right into her. He wasn’t even going to apologize. “Excuse you.” She called after him. “Oh, your excused.” He fired back. Her experience in the bagel shop was no better. They called around her number for 30 minutes. When she finally complained, the clerk replied, “I thought you’d left.” If it hadn’t been for the hunger pains, she really didn’t want the bagel now. Eat it, she had to.
Even the pigeons were ignoring her. She threw down a scrap of her bagel and they fluttered away. Bending over, so she could throw the scrap a little farther away, someone violently ran into her. It was her boss. He jogged in place just glaring at her before saying, “sorry Jane.” And jogged off. ‘JANE.’ Her name was Judy. They had worked together for 12 years. Judy, her name was Judy.
This was the start of her troubles. Before she felt invisible. Now it seemed she really was. People were bumping into her all the time. Talking through her. Not over or around her, through her. Peggy had told her it might take a month for her to feel the true effects. Not that the potion wouldn’t work. It was just like taking real medicine, the effects had to build up over time.
Two months in and her clothes were baggy. She had some extra money because no one asked her out anymore. Her friends and family treated her like she was dead. One night, she walked past a restaurant and there were her friends laughing and talking without her. Her mom wouldn’t even talk to her. She left message after message, no call back.
Three months in, Judy was buying new clothes. Nothing fit. She was depressed and knew it. The life before this nightmare wasn’t perfect. But it was better than this. With money in her pocket she went back to Margate Butterfields Apothecary and Folk Medicine Atelier. Judy had nothing good to say about this woman right now.
Judy didn’t give Peggy time to think. She started ranting lone before Peggy showed in the reception space of her pole barn shop.
When Peggy finally appeared, she held up her hand to make Judy shut up.
“If I remember correctly,” Peggy spoke through gritted teeth. “Jane, you took my apprentices brew?”
“It’s JUDY!”
“uhm, sorry.” Peggy smirked. “Yes. You do remember me telling you the real thing is expensive.”
Judy let out a long sigh. “Of course.”
“Are you still short the funds.”
Dejected Judy proclaimed, “yes.”
“In that case,” Peggy smiled. A smile that scared Judy. “I want a rat.”
“WHAT?” Judy screamed without realizing it.
Part Seven
