A Thumb Of A Different Colour

The neighbours always said she had a green thumb. If they only knew just how green it was. She wasn’t quite as green however, as some of her kind. Her colouring had more of a greyish tint to it. Similar to her grandmother on her dad’s side. Which probably was a good thing considering her mother’s family did tend towards more of a truer green. She had that one cousin that almost glowed, poor thing. Yes, grey was just fine with her.

Her great-great-grandmother romanced and then later married a vampire which helped to tone down the somewhat emerald appearance that had been so strong in the early years. Unfortunately some author or playwright from the artistic world of centuries gone by decided to write about it, and then all of a sudden the entire universe knew that all witches were without a doubt, some shade of green. That also without a doubt, had made it hard to hide in the real world ever since.

Now, lucky for Lydia, she lived in a world where beauty could be purchased and perfect skin was available in a bottle. True, it would have cost her a lot more if she tended towards the whole wart thing her mother’s side seemed to favour. And it sure would have cost a lot more if she lived in the south like her cousin Tania; shorts and t-shirts sure left a lot of skin to cover. But for Lydia living in the north meant minimal time covering up during the colder months and a little more work during the summer.

But back to the garden.

Lydia loved her garden. She considered her plants her family. Each morning as she walked through the yard welcoming them to another wonderful day with their own special incantation of growth and vibrancy, they nodded their thanks and shone with their brilliant shades of summer.

“Ah, my pretty little phlox, how about we add a hint of white into those bright pink flowers.” And with a wave of her wand and a murmur of candy floss and popcorn the vibrant pink was joined by a feather of white. “Perfect.” Lydia added as the plant stood taller, looking almost proud.

She glanced at the cedar hedge that separated her lot from her neighbours. For the most part everyone on this street was good, but she still wanted to dissuade unnecessary observation of her morning rituals. When she moved into the property three years ago she had cast a spell over the hedge which permitted it to grow at three times its usual rate, thereby providing an increased air of privacy. She didn’t want to seem unsociable, but she did need to protect what she was and her unique gardening techniques.

The caldron had been harder to hide. She had brought it in at night and now had it installed in the garden shed. While she could purchase commercial fertilizers and plant food, there was something to be said for some of the old ways, her grandfather on her mother’s side had always made his own fertilizer and Lydia followed his methods as accurately as possible. After all, he always had the tallest trees and the greenest grass and even his Venus fly-traps were able to catch far more than just flies.

Ingredients were tougher to come by now than they were in times gone past. Society today wouldn’t approve of their culture of removing eyes from newts, toes from frogs or pulling the tongues from dogs. Of course, the animals themselves weren’t all that keen on it either. So over time they had managed to work together and come up with a solution that still allowed for the bats and lizards and frogs and the rest of them to contribute to the magic and keep all body parts intact.

She could smell the fragrant mixture simmering as she opened the shed door and peered into the large cast iron pot. Inhaling its somewhat sour scent Lydia dropped in the final ounce of the bat spit and watched as the red liquid boiled and fizzled before settling down and becoming clear. Once she could see her reflection without a single ripple interrupting she knew it was ready. She checked the irrigation hoses and set the timer as a loud noise outside the door caught her attention.

“Yoo Hoo, Lydia, where are you?” she heard being bellowed from the yard. “Hello? Hello?”

“Great,” she muttered under her breath. “Just what I need, nosy Nancy Kavanaugh.”

This was the one neighbour that Lydia struggled with. While it was nice having a bit of a watchdog on the street, this one tended to watch just a little too much in Lydia’s direction. As a result it caused Lydia to have to her front yard gardening in the wee hours of the morning, before the sun had even considered coming around to this part of the world.

“I saw you out here working and wanted to have a look around, you always have the best garden on the street, and I have a favour to ask and what on earth is that smell?”

“Just some fertilizer I’ve been adding to the garden. I’ve got a lot to get done today Nancy, what is it you need?”

“Well, our ladies group is having its annual plant sale and I thought seeing as you already have so many and they’re all so nice that perhaps you wouldn’t mind donating one to the cause.”

Lydia considered for a moment and then realized there was one she could share. Of course, she’d have to adjust the spell eventually, but that could be done in due time. No rush for today.

Turning back to the shed, she took a bright pot off the windowsill. “Here Nancy, take this one, I think you’ll enjoy it.”

“Oh Lydia, it’s beautiful, thank you, the ladies will love it. I know you name all your plants, what do you call this pretty little thing?”

“Venus.”