Will’s eyes followed the shadow while his fingers untwisted the last ribbon. He took off after it, swiftly but stealthily, slipping behind tree trunks and bushes, not once looking behind him to check if everything was as it should be. The shadow was moving away from the green, towards the other end of the village, where the willow tree stood opposite Willa’s cottage. It was moving at a fair rate, but Will managed to close the distance between them.
‘It’s a cat!’ he exclaimed to himself. But it was no ordinary moggie. It was transparent. Will spotted blades of grass, twigs and stones through it, even the houses as it passed by. No wonder it got past Willa’s protection spell.
Will clicked his fingers and found himself back in the cottage, where Willa was sprinkling ingredients into the cauldron.
‘Everything back to normal?’ she asked.
‘I’m not sure. I had to help the spell along by untangling the maypole ribbons but, just as I unknotted the last little bit, I noticed a ghost cat, and it’s heading this way!’
‘A ghost cat? Do you think it knows you saw it?’
‘I don’t think so,’ replied Will. ‘I followed it for a while, just to make sure, and then decided to check that you were safe.’
At that moment, a harsh cry sounded from the direction of the willow.
‘My friend is back!’ cried Will and he ran out of the back door, Willa on his heels, and across the silent road to the willow tree. Struggling in the overhanging branches was the magpie, with the ghost cat wriggling and squirming, its tail gripped firmly in his beak.
‘Who’s that you’ve nabbed there?’ asked Willa.
‘Our old friend the weather witch,’ the magpie mumbled through ghost tail and beak. ‘She’s back to cause more trouble.’
‘Not if I can help it!’ Willa raised her wand, hummed a jumble of words, and the ghost cat turned into a worm, which the magpie devoured in a quick swallow.
‘And Will,’ said the magpie with a gleam in its eye, ‘you’ve got tall.’
He had. When he clicked his fingers again, just to make sure, the Maypole celebrations had resumed with a swing.
Kim M. Russell, 26th July 2020
The final episode of The Willow Tree Goblin for Poets and Storytellers United Writers’ Pantry.
writing in north norfolk 
Delightful read!!!
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Thank you, Rajani!
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Charming fable Kim – always with a hint of depth about it too…. Very fluent read
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Thank you, Scott!
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How easy it is in your writing to be part of the scene as I visualised every word. Another delightful piece of prose from you/
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Thank you, Robin!
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Most enjoyable! (But surely it is written for Writers Pantry #30? Weekly Scribblings #30 will not be posted until Wednesday, and I don’t find those words in your piece here.)
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Thank you so much for pointing that out Rosemary. I had to go out this morning and, although I had already set up the post, I hadn’t added the link to P&SU. I’d previously copied the section about Wednesday’s prompt to a word file so I could work on it tomorrow and/or Tuesday, and must have pasted it instead of the link. That’s what I get for dong things in a hurry! I’m in a bit of a state, as I’ve just heard that an old friend from Germany recently died.
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Oh, so sorry to hear that, Kim!
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“heading this way!’
‘A ghost cat? Do you think it knows you saw it?’
‘I don’t think so,’”
My favourite lines. Happy Sunday Kim
Much💖love
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Yea! Magpie versus ghost cat was a vivid contest–every line clear & printing itself on my mind’s eye.
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Thank you, Wyndolynne.
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I marvel at the colorful imagination that produces such delightful fantasy. Vunderbar!
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Thank you, Bev!
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Another well-spun storytelling feat! Good job!
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Cheers!
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I love how Will and Willa have protected each other through the series. How regardless of what one might be doing, they always keep the other’s well-being in mind. Also, can I please the Magpie’s email? I want to ask her if it would be willing to eat our troublemaker in chief, one of the biggest worms around.
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🙂
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A satisfying ending. (K)
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Now back to writing for adults!
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I enjoyed this!!
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Thanks Viv!
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🙂
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I’ve loved the story. I look forward to more adventures of the two.
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Thank you, Susie. I’m afraid that was the last episode. I’m concentrating on writing some longer short stories and, come autumn, I want to finish my Young Adult novel, which I’ve been re-thinking and mulling over during the lockdown..
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