Karyn sprang up with a big smile on her face. “Just a sec, Cady,” she said. She turned to me and said, “Can
you clean this up, please, Joey?”
“Sure,” I agreed. “I wish that all damage just done to the house and its contents were repaired.” The holes
in the dining room wall disappeared, the china plate was repaired and back in its resting place, and the table
was in its normal position. “Also I wish that the staircase was accessible and that the outside doors could
be opened.” I made sure that both of these wishes worked as well.
“Let’s all go back to the living room,” Karyn said. Cady and Erin followed without argument. Karyn sat down
on the couch and I sat next to her. Cady and Erin sat in the two armchairs that were in the room. “Here’s
the explanation. Everything that just happened was because of this ring that Joey has,” Karyn explained.
“Right here,” I said as I held up my hand so that they saw the ring.
“It can do pretty much anything,” Karyn explained. “Now before you ask, the reason why we just did all of
that was to teach the two of you a lesson.”
“By almost killing us as some monster?” Cady asked indignantly.
“Sorry to burst the bubble,” I interjected, “but you were never in any real danger.”
“What?” Cady asked.
“In addition to everything else you’ve seen already, I also made a wish that you would feel minimal impact
from anything Karyn did to you,” I explained. “I’m sure it still hurt, but it should have been worse. You
should probably be dead, or maybe just crippled from being thrown into a wall with such force.”
“Well it did hurt,” Cady sneered.
“It was supposed to,” said Karyn. “Just to rough you up a little.”
Neither Cady nor Erin looked happy at our explanation. Erin finally asked, “So what’s the lesson?”
Karyn sighed. “Look, you two, here’s the deal. I’m really tired of all the fighting between us. I spend so
much time with Joey because being here isn’t much fun. I know you two are going through a lot of changes,
I’ve been there. I know you’re both impatient to be mature. But you need to act mature as well as look
mature. People won’t embrace you if you act so childish,” she explained.
“But you treat us like children,” Cady snapped.
“Maybe I do,” Karyn said, “but when do you give me reason not to? Any time I come home with Joey, the two of
you are always making your little comments and, Cady, you practically beg Joey to…well, to pick you over me.
How do you think that makes me feel?”
“Cady,” I interrupted. “Why do you flirt with me?”
“I don’t know,” she mumbled as she looked at her feet.
“Are you attracted to me?” I asked.
“A little,” she answered.
I glanced at Karyn and saw her expression get angry. “I’m very flattered, Cady, but you have to understand
that Karyn and I love each other,” I said. “I couldn’t ever return your feelings.”
“Why not?” Cady asked. “I know people who have more than one sexfriend.”
“Well…I don’t,” I said. I honestly did not know if that was true or not. I also wasn’t exactly sure what she
meant by “sexfriend.” I continued, “Even if I did, it couldn’t be two people from the same family. It would
be odd, don’t you think?”
“I guess so,” Cady mumbled again.
“Erin, why do you give Joey a hard time?” Karyn asked her youngest sister.
Erin still appeared to be visibly shaken from everything that happened. “Because Cady does,” she said. Cady
shot her a withering glance. “I just join in,” she said.
“I know why you do that,” Karyn said. “It’s because you’re the youngest and you don’t look the way the rest
of us do yet. You just have to wait for it to happen.” Erin just nodded. “So look, all I want you to do…all
I want us to do is get along with each other and not give each other a hard time. It’s going to be hard, but
we have to do this. I know Mom and Mom will appreciate it, too. Maybe they’ll stop going on these ‘overnight
trips’ so often.”
“Why did you threaten to tell on us?” asked Erin.
Karyn took a deep breath. “I lied,” she said. “I don’t know what you two might be doing, and I really don’t
care either. But if you’re worried I was going to tell Mom and Mom something, then you must be doing
something you shouldn’t. So if you are, just stop it. Don’t tell me about it, just keep it between
yourselves. OK?” Both of them nodded.
“Great,” she said. “Now for our next trick.”