Half Magic

After Camelot, the children are content at home. They hide the charm in the floorboards and play games the rest of the day. At dinner they ask their mother about her day, invite her to play Parcheesi, and decline her offer to read A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. She is so alarmed by their behavior that after they retire, she checks each child for a fever.

The narrator interjects to reveal that the adventure with Sir Launcelot has taught the kids a moral lesson, which sometimes is not pleasant because, although there is gratitude and hope to do better, it still is difficult to think about your mistakes.

The next morning, the kids contemplate how best to use the charm. Even with the desire to do a good deed, they worry about creating a disaster. Jane suggests more serious wishes like ending war, which Katharine thinks is too extreme. Meanwhile, Martha wants a serious and fun wish. Doubtful, the children wait to use the charm because wishes may be limited.

In the meantime, after getting permission, the children go to lunch and to see a movie. They take the charm with them in case Miss Bick accidentally finds and uses it. Wrapping it up, Jane deposits it in her handbag.

After visiting their favorite soda fountain, they bicker about movies and settle upon one called Sandra. Martha is not excited. Since it is a silent movie and Martha cannot read the intertitles, she quickly gets bored. After Martha proclaims that she wants to leave, Jane pushes her little sister under her seat.

There, Martha tries to sleep, and when Jane drops her handbag during an exciting scene, Martha uses it as a pillow. When Jane realizes she has dropped the purse, she leans down to get it in time to hear Martha murmur that she wishes she were not there.

At first, Jane is annoyed that Martha has wasted a wish, but then she panics. Horrified, she imagines only Martha’s top or bottom half will remain, but when she peeks, Martha is intact, only faded like a ghost.

When Martha sees her body, she sprints away in fear. Jane shrieks, grabs her handbag, and impulsively wishes she never heard of the charm. Immediately, it becomes a hazy idea. As a result, she does not use it to restore Martha. Instead, Jane runs after the girl with her siblings in tow.

Meanwhile, mayhem ensues in the theater with people fainting, screaming, and making insensible proclamations at the sight of Martha. Similar panic explodes when Martha emerges onto the crowded sidewalk, causing folks to run in all directions and others to call in the police and fire crew. Several proclaim that Martians are invading.

Amid the pandemonium, Martha runs away, feeling more frightened with each step. Turning down a quiet street, she slips into a store. Jane, Mark, and Katharine are not far behind, but they lose sight of Martha. Mark urges Jane to use the charm, but she claims that she never believed in it. Jane enters a different store, and, shocked, Mark and Katharine follow.

Crossing the threshold, they freeze in horror, for a couple is stealing expensive jewelry. Katharine sneezes, the duo sees the kids, and the man demands the handbag. Unable to remember why, Jane knows she must hold onto the purse. While the man advances on them, Mark thinks quickly, touches the handbag, and wishes to find Martha.

Down the street, Martha stands in a bookstore before a shop owner with a beard. Instead of being terrified of her appearance, he smiles and says hello, asking if she is a ghost or perhaps a character from one of his books.

Because of the man’s kind demeanor, Martha introduces herself and reveals that she has magically arrived. Even though she knows adults rarely believe in magic, she tells him about the charm and all that has transpired. He seems particularly interested in the part about her mother. When she gets him up to speed, she admits that she is no longer scared but wants to return to her old self. She worries how her mother will react because the woman is not as accepting of magic as he is.

When the man comments that her mother is not good with magic, Martha wonders if he is a wizard. Sadly, he claims no knowledge of magic but suggests that maybe her siblings are following her. Just then, Katharine, Mark, and Jane materialize in the shop.

When the gentleman mentions the charm, Jane rudely claims there is no such thing. Mark, like always, advises them not to argue so they can fix this mess. They pause, listening to the mayhem in the city, which is louder than ever.

Although Martha takes responsibility for the wish, she also blames all the people for running around like crazy. The gentleman chimes in with words of wisdom: “One of the least admirable things about people […] is the way they are afraid of whatever they don’t understand” (114). Mark agrees and is upset that their mother will be afraid for them because she knows they are downtown today. The gentleman encourages them to make a wish.

Martha insists that she must fix everything. She leans against the handbag and recites the appropriate words to return Jane to her senses. Then Martha wishes that four minutes from now, their mother will find them safe and sound, which leaves half that time for the kids to resolve everything else.

Before Martha can say another word, the two robbers stumble in. Uninterested in the books, they catch sight of the children. First, they marvel at the sight of Martha, and then the man demands the handbag again and grabs it from Mark. Reacting quickly, Mark tackles him and, while touching the bag, wishes that he single-handedly captures the thieves.

Thirty seconds later, their mother walks into the bookstore, startled by the sight. Mark stands triumphantly over the thieves, Martha shimmers as a ghost, Jane and Katharine look on, and the man who gave her the ride in the middle of the night stands there. Their mother faints.

While Alison is unconscious, Martha gets to work. With the charm, she returns to her normal state, makes the thieves repent for their crimes, sends the duo away, returns the stolen goods, and ends the pandemonium in the city while wiping everyone’s memories of what happened (except for the children and Mr. Smith, who wants to remember this day).

When everything quiets, the children relax. They wonder if there is any wishing left in the charm and decide to wait before using it again.

At this moment, their mother wakes, wondering where she is but hugging her four children nonetheless. She marvels at the sight of the gentleman and notes that he always seems to be around when odd things happen. When she asks about thieves and diamonds, the children tell her she must have been dreaming. Alison, fearing that she is ill, thinks she should go home and rest.

Mr. Smith suggests that they all go to dinner and a movie. Martha insists that they skip the movie, so they all decide to return to their house after dinner instead.