breakinglight11 | 31 Plays in 31 Days, #21

Bleh, not happy with this one, but I'm struggling already and falling behind. But I just got to crank something out. It's a possible early-dramatic-form-draft of a scene for that prose story I've been scribbling, about a little girl in New England learning witchcraft from her aunt.

I've changed Maggie's name to Megan, for reasons.

Day #21 - “The Wand”

GWEN, a tween who lives with her aunt
MEGAN, a mysterious girl around her age

Early 2000’s, Cape Cod
~~~

(GWEN is struggling to use magic to open a small locked box, as her friend MEGAN looks on. Energy fizzles around the lock, and GWEN slumps dejectedly.)

MEGAN: Try again. You were close that time!

GWEN: I just can’t do it!

MEGAN: What’s the problem? What’s going on?

GWEN: I don’t know! I just can’t— get a grip on the magic!

MEGAN: But you feel the threads there, right?

GWEN: Yes, yes.

MEGAN: That’s something! You used to not be so good at that.

GWEN: But they’re too slippery! I try to get a hold of them, but they keep slipping out of my fingers.

MEGAN: Well… maybe if you tried to grab them some other way.

GWEN: What other way?

MEGAN: I don’t know… wasn’t Miss Rachel saying that lots of witches use thing to help them?

GWEN: You mean, like the spell components? But there isn’t a recipe for unlocking a box!

MEGAN: Well, no… but I know you can use that stuff! You told me about the red thyme in the garden.

GWEN: Yeah, but… you know, I like the red thyme. It smells nice.

MEGAN: Maybe something else could work like that.

GWEN: Like what?

MEGAN: Well… what else do you like?

GWEN: You mean, like, other herbs? I guess I like cinnamon…

MEGAN: That’s a spice, not an herb.

GWEN: Oh, right. Does that matter?

MEGAN: I don’t know, but— I meant anything! Something Miss Rachel showed us?

GWEN: Oh. Like the wand.

(Pause.)

MEGAN: The wand!

GWEN: Well, it was so pretty… with the amethyst and all…

MEGAN: Yes! That’s such a good idea!

GWEN: Whoa, whoa, whoa! Rachel didn’t say I could touch that!

MEGAN: You want to ask her?

GWEN: No way, she isn’t going to want me using that! Not when I can barely do any of the basics.

MEGAN: But what if it’s easier? Having a little boost from something?

GWEN: How do you even know it would give me a boost?

MEGAN: Because you did. When I asked— it was the first thing you thought of. Didn’t you feel something? When she brought it out?

(Pause.)

GWEN: Yeah. I did.

MEGAN: And that matters. She says so. When you’re pulling something out of yourself.

(Pause.)

MEGAN: You wanna give it a shot?

31 Plays in 31 Days, #21 - "The Wand"