Friday, October 26, 2012

The Warring Witches

When the air turns crisp
And the trees change their coats
And the spiders seek warmth inside,
You know it’s October
In Fearnot, Pennsylvania
Where the Warring Witches reside.

Halloween on Dare-to-tread Lane is legendary.

Walking past the stately, Victorian homes of the infamous Warring Witches thrills my heart and chills my bones. Though both wear ageless faces, they are direct opposites. Madame Marjorie struts on high heels from her brilliant black abode boasting eggplant shutters, matching her violet-streaked, midnight hair. Tending daffodils, Lady Adelaide’s red, wavy locks kissed by sunny highlights demand notice as does her home, with fiery red shingles, a screaming yellow door, and a creaking porch swing that never seems to rest.

Daytime is dull, but evening brings light flashes, booming explosions, and wafts of sulfur seeping from triangular-silhouetted windows. The odd overtures epitomize as autumn blows in, culminating in the great revelation on Halloween night for all to judge which sister can frighten the children most.

Five years ago, Mme Marjorie’s silky cobweb laced over razor sharp blades of grass earned the victory. I’d swear the animated spiders and creatures caught in it were real.

The following year, Lady Adelaide answered with glorious, glowing jack-o-lanterns sitting atop her hedges whose taunting faces sneered and rose on scarecrow bodies that reached out to grab passing children.

The most astounding year ended in a draw. While Mme Marjorie ladled brew from a bubbling cauldron, causing hallucinations of her guardian, garden gargoyles chasing the children, Lady Adelaide grew ghosts from a ghoulish graveyard, rising from crypts and flying through them.

Each year, more children drag their parents to Dare-to-tread Lane anxious to be scared by the Warring Witches. And when they’re grown, parents like me drag their children. And the sisters never disappoint.


This story is brought to you for the Spooktober blogfest. Thanks Dani & Jackie for hosting! Happy Spooky Writing!

41 comments:

Ellie Garratt said...

"And the trees change their coats
And the spiders seek warmth inside"

Loved those two lines!

T. Powell Coltrin said...

I love this. And "grew ghosts from a ghoulish graveyard". my fav.

Stina said...

Spiders and I have an understanding. I see them in the house, and they see the inside of my vacuum cleaner. ;)

Unknown said...

How interesting! A very different post. Some very beautiful lines contained within.

Jackie said...

I'm with C.M. Beautiful lines laced throughout. Great job!

Thanks for participating in the blogfest. :D

Julie Flanders said...

I love this, the opening paragraph alone totally reeled me in. Love Halloween and spooky stories so this was fun to read. :)

Dana said...

"And the trees change their coats"—wonderful!

Happy weekend, Tara. :)

Dana said...

"And the trees change their coats"—wonderful!

Happy weekend, Tara. :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

That was really creative! One of the best ones I've read today.

Luanne G. Smith said...

Fun Halloween story. Love the warring witches. Well done.

Angela Brown said...

Your lyrical style of writing and descriptive imagery woven through the story simply kept me reading. Great job!

Yolanda Renée said...

Wonderful description! I love it when neighbors try to out do the others. What fun that is for the children on Halloween. Beautiful story!

Tyrean Martinson said...

Beautiful writing. I loved the descriptions of the two witches. "Tending daffodils, Lady Adelaide's red, wavy locks kissed by sunny highlights demand notices as does her home . . ." was one of my favorite parts.
Thanks for the writing treat today!

LD Masterson said...

That was great. I loved every word.

Lynn Proctor said...

you captured the halloweens i remember from my childhood--great fun!!

Emily R. King said...

I love the ending. Thanks for sharing, Tara!

Suzanne Furness said...

Great description and phrase. Well done I enjoyed this.

Morgan said...

You TOTALLY captured the spirit... Tara, love your talent. :D

N. R. Williams said...

Hi Tara
Loved the story. What a fun adventure for the whole family.
Nancy

VonLCid said...

Great story, nice flow.

This should be a thing, like streets that go crazy outdoing each other with Christmas lights. There needs to be streets like this.

Von L Cid

nutschell said...

love that poem! And the post, too!
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

Samantha May said...

Oh I love the line about the trees changing their coats!

Actually I liked the whole thing :D

Have a great weekend Tara!

LisaAnn said...

Lovely. A beautiful and fun Halloween post!

Sherry Ellis said...

What a fun story! I really liked reading it!

Misha Gerrick said...

I really enjoyed your light, airy style to such a usually dark theme.

Very nicely done. :-)

Carrie-Anne said...

Nice take on the challenge! That's the kind of Halloween story I'd like to experience.

M Pax said...

Warring witches would be cool to have in town. Not too close though.

mshatch said...

I'm with Stina on the matter of spiders.

Warring Witches would make an interesting story :)

Livia Peterson said...

Great post, Tara! That would be fun in my town! Very cool! :)

michelle said...

A great story.
You've crafted some really rich and beautiful sentences....
great images.

Dani said...

Wow this was pretty much perfect lines and a perfect picture. I wish something like this actually existed on my street. I'd want to live there.

dolorah said...

That was awesome Tara :)

.......dhole

Tamara said...

This was really neat. You did a great job on it! :)

Clint said...

Great job!!! It would be something ti have Warring witches, I like you creativity.

Jolie du Pre said...

Stopping over from Jeremy's blog hop.

Jolie du Pre
Precious Monsters

Mina Lobo said...

What a fun story! Makes me wish I had some warring witches in my neighborhood! :-)
Mina's Resurrection Blogfest!

Laura Clipson said...

This is great, loved the opening verse :)

Unknown said...

Oh my! I was totally sucked in, believing that you were talking about two ladies in your home town until I got to the word "story" in your ending.
Uh... they aren't real... are they? O.o
Have a Happy Halloween! :-)

Tara Tyler said...

you all are so wonderful with your kind words! tht would be toally fun if they were real!

Gossip_Grl said...

Love the story here! Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Becky Fyfe said...

Love this! Wish there were some Warring Witches here to take my kids to!

Popular Posts