FICTION
The Magic Fork
Megan waved her wand at the vase of lilies again.
Nothing happened that time, either.
What was she doing wrong?
Callum had already managed to turn his sunflowers into a bunch of bananas. Becky had transformed her daisies into a tennis ball. Even Sophie had been able to make her dandelions turn red.
Ever since Megan had moved to secondary school and started doing actual magic, she had struggled. It was like something was holding her back. Before that, she was top of the class. She loved to read and learn new things. Ms Willow even said she was the brightest witch they had ever seen at Magibrook Primary School.
‘So, how are you doing?’ Mrs Eldritch asked, stooping over Megan’s table.
‘I cannot seem to make the spell work,’ Megan told her.
Mrs Eldritch pursed her lips. ‘Do you remember how to cast it?’
Megan nodded. ‘First, you picture the thing you want the flowers to turn into. Then, you shut your eyes tight, say the magic words, and wave your wand.’
‘Magnificent, Megan! That was word-for-word the instructions I gave you at the start of class. It shows that you are an excellent listener. Now, let us try casting the spell again.’
Megan began to picture one of the radishes her grandad grew in his garden. She thought about it so hard that she even started to smell it.
Then, she shut her eyes, said the magic words, and flicked her wand.
But nothing happened.
‘Not to worry,’ Mrs Eldritch said. She leaned closer to Megan so that none of the other children could hear. ‘I have another idea.’
She took a fork out of the pocket of her robe. ‘See this fork. This is a magic fork.’
‘Are you sure? Because it looks like the forks from the dining hall,’ Megan said.
‘You can’t get a fork like this from the dining hall. It is very ancient and very powerful. It channels a person’s magical energy and amplifies their spells. All the best witches and wizards have one. Maybe it will help you.’ She handed the fork to her. ‘Take it.’
Megan took it and put it in her pocket. She did not believe it. It seemed silly. If it was a ring or a crystal, she might have believed it, but a fork.
‘Now, give it another try,’ Mrs Eldritch said. The way she looked at Megan, with big, hopeful eyes, made her feel like she would be letting her down if she did not take it seriously, so Megan tried the spell again.
She thought of a radish like last time. Then she shut her eyes, said the magic words, and waved her wand.
And then…
It worked!
When she opened her eyes, there was a big red radish peeking over the top of the vase.
‘Not bad, Megan,’ Callum said.
She blushed. ‘Thanks.’
‘So, how come it worked this time and not all of the times before?’ he asked.
‘I don’t know. I guess I must have got lucky,’ Megan told him. She winked at Mrs Eldritch.
After class, Megan went up to Mrs Eldritch and tried to give her the fork back.
‘No, you keep it,’ she said.
‘Are you sure, Mrs?’ Megan asked.
‘I am. Just do not tell anyone that it was me who gave it to you.’
‘Thank you.’ Megan put the fork back into her pocket.
The rest of the day seemed to whizz by. Megan was making the most of her newly-found magical ability.
In herbalism class, she turned a parsley leaf into a grasshopper.
In divination, she turned a teapot gold.
And in runology, she rearranged the runes in a hundred-year-old spellbook to say ‘megz woz ere’.
At the end of the day, as she was about to step out of the school gates, the headmaster called her over.
Mr Hocus was very strict and proper. The type of headmaster who preferred his pupils to be seen and not heard. He had neatly combed black hair and a pencil moustache.
‘Miss Megan, is that a fork in your pocket?’ he asked.
Megan looked down. The fork was sticking out of her pocket. ‘It is, sir,’ she said.
‘And why is there a fork in your pocket?’
‘It is not just any fork, sir. It is a magic fork.’
‘A magic fork,’ he said, stroking his chin. ‘And who gave you this magic fork?’
‘Sorry, sir. I cannot tell you.’
‘Was it Mrs Eldritch?’
Megan’s face whitened, and her eyes widened.
‘I thought so. For some reason, Mrs Eldritch has taken it upon herself to take ordinary forks from the dining hall and give them to students. She tells them they are magic. She has this silly idea in her head that it makes the student stop doubting themselves and believe in their ability. It is nothing but a load of twizzle! So, can I have my fork back?’
Megan took the fork from her pocket and handed it to Mr Hocus, but not before she had silently cast an animation spell on it.
As soon as the headmaster took the fork, it sprouted two tiny legs.
It leapt from his hands and began running around the courtyard.
‘Come back here this instant!’ Mr Hocus shouted, chasing after it.
Megan ran out of the school gates and then all the way home.
She never struggled to cast a spell again.
