While I am out she has cut the head off the rooster and is sprinkling its blood over a big chalk star and the writing on the floor. But the knife makes me feel more confident even though I begin to worry about how it will look if I have to do anything with it. I am figuring that maybe I can hamstring her if she takes off after me, and meanwhile I should humor her because maybe she will snap out of it.
“Bub,” she says, “hold the sword and palms in front of you pointing up and don’t step inside the chalk lines. Now, will you promise me not to tell anybody about the words I speak? The rest of this stuff don’t matter; it’s down in all the books and people have their minds made up that it don’t work. But about the words, do you promise?”
“Yes, ma’am. Anything you say, ma’am.”
So she starts talking and the promise was not necessary because it’s in some foreign language and I don’t talk foreign languages except sometimes a little Italian to my mama. I am beginning to yawn when I notice that we have company.
He is eight feet tall, he is green, he has teeth like Red Riding Hood’s grandma.
I dive through the window, screaming.
When Mrs. Parry comes out she finds me in a pile of broken glass, on my knees, praying. She clamps two fingers on my ear and hoists me to my feet. “Stop that praying,” she says. “He’s complaining about it. Says it makes him itch. And you said you wouldn’t be skeered! Now come inside where I can keep an eye on you and behave yourself. The idea! The very idea!”
To tell you the truth, I don’t remember what happens after this so good. There is some talk between the green character and Mrs. Parry about her five-times-great-grandmother who, it seems, is doing nicely in a warm climate. There is an argument in which the green character gets shifty and says he doesn’t know who is working for Miz’ Sigafoos these days. Miz’ Parry threatens to let me pray again and the green character gets sulky and says
all right he’ll send for him and rassle with him but he is sure he can lick him.
The next thing I recall is a grunt-and-groan exhibition between the green character and a smaller purple character who must of arrived when I was blacked out or something. This at least I know something about because I am a television fan. It is a very slow match, because when one of the characters, for instance, bends the other character’s arm it just bends and does not break. But a good big character can lick a good little character every time and finally greenface has got his opponent tied into a bow-knot.
“Be gone,” Mrs. Parry says to the purple character, “and never more molest me or mine. Be gone, be gone, be gone.”
He is gone, and I never do find out if he gets unknotted.
“Now fetch me Miz’ Sigafoos.”
Blip! An ugly little old woman is sharing the ring with the winner and new champeen. She spits at Mrs. Parry: “So you it was dot mine Teufel haff ge-schtolen!” Her English is terrible. A greenhorn.
“This ain’t a social call, Miz’ Sigafoos,” Mrs. Parry says coldly. “I just want you to unwitch my farm and kinfolks. And if you’re an honest woman you’ll return his money to that sneakin’, dog-murderin’ shiftless squirt, Dud Wingle.”
“Yah,” the old woman mumbles. She reaches up and feels the biceps of the green character. “Yah, I guess maybe dot I besser do. Who der Yunger iss?” She is looking at me. “For why the teeth on his mouth go clop-clop-clop? Und so white the face on his head iss! You besser should feed him, Ella.”
“Missus Parry to you, Miz’ Sigafoos, if you don’t mind. Now the both of you be gone, be gone, be gone.”
At last we are alone.
“Now,” Mrs. Parry grunts, “maybe we can get back to farmin’. Such foolishness and me a busy woman.” She looks at me closely and says: “I do believe the old fool was right. You’re as white as a sheet.” She feels my fore-