A Charming Potion by Tonya Kappes

 
    One
     
    Mmmm. Closing my eyes, I stuck my nose
up to the kitchen window screen, sniffing the fresh air.
    There was nothing better than waking up with the
crisp fall morning breeze floating through an open window, especially one in my
cozy town of Whispering Falls, Kentucky during the Halloween season.
    “Let’s go.” I turned around and gave Mr. Prince
Charming’s lily-white fur a long rub down.
    Meow, meow . He
crisscrossed around my ankles in his signature figure eight he always did when
he was happy.
    “Yes.” There was a magical feeling in the air. “It’s
Halloween eve.”
    Mewl. He jumped off the counter,
stretched out his paws, and began kneading the rug at the base of the kitchen
cabinet.
    “Rise and shine, sunshine .”I tapped the round
glass ball sitting on the counter. Sarcasm was my specialty when it came to my
snarky-future-reading ball, Madame Torres.
    “You’ve got to be kidding me!” Her bright purple eyes
were the only thing that lit up in the globe. “It’s way too early to give out
any advice. Especially in the love department.”
    “Love?” It had to be too early for her. It’s the
time for spooking, not loving. “Whatever! We are leaving now. I’m sure there is
going to be a line of customers today.”
    Hiss, Hiss. Mr. Prince
Charming showed his teeth.
    “What is wrong with you?” My brows furrowed as I
scolded him. He had never hissed at me before. “Is it the love word?”
    I giggled, trying not to make him even madder, but
it was no secret that he was not a fan of the romance that was blossoming
between Oscar and me.
    Hiss, hiss.
    “Now stop that!” I shook my finger at him. “You know
that I love you.”
    Opening the front door, I stepped out and felt a
chill as I looked into town.
    The fog laid over Whispering Falls like a warm
blanket. Only a few of the shop lights could be seen from the overlook where my
cottage sits.
    “Oh, it’s a little chilly.” I pulled the edges of my
furry vest up around my neck.
    Meow, meow . Mr. Prince
Charming darted off into Whispering Falls. With my bag over my shoulder, I shut
and locked the door and headed down the hill, ready for the day ahead of me.
    “Good morning.” A very familiar deep voice chimed
out from across the street. “I got you a coffee.”
    I smiled. Wouldn’t everyone want to start their day
with a hunky guy like Oscar Park and a cup of coffee?
    “Yes, it is going to be a great morning.” Our
fingers touched when I took the coffee. A little spark flew from the touch. I
laughed sheepishly. “I guess we still haven’t gotten used to that.”
    “It’s always a good morning when I see you first
thing.” His deep blue eyes were like magnets. I couldn’t look away. He kissed
the tip of my nose. “I’ve got to go and get caught up on files. And don’t
forget that I have sorcery class tonight.”
    “I won’t.” I turned around and stood in front of my
homeopathic shop, A Charming Cure, and smiled. “It’s already a great day.”
    Yes. Since moving to Whispering Falls a year ago, my
life had changed. Oscar Park had been my childhood best friend. We moved here
together after he took the Police Chief position. We remained best friends until
recently when we realized that our love for each other was beyond friendship.  
    I also discovered that I came from a spiritualist
family and had a crazy intuition for not only making real homeopathic cures,
but also putting a little magic in them. Most of my customers come in seeking a
cure for something that ails them physically, but in reality, my intuition told
me exactly what was going on with their spirit and what was really causing the
physical pain.
    Every shop owner in Whispering Falls had a psychic
power with a magical twist. The entire village was magical.
    To an outsider, Whispering Falls was just a tiny
town with a population of five hundred, set in the foothills of a few mountains
in Kentucky. Most people that visited our little village didn’t know