Hilda - The Challenge

guess I'll have to take you with me for now and then we'll see what we can work out." She snipped her fingers, and from somewhere the broom came running. "You got any stuff you want to take with you?"

  William stared at the floating broom that had raced up to them. "Uhm, yes, I got a bag with some clothes with me."

  "Get it out of your thing, then we'll go."

  William went onto the back of his thing, and forced one of the metal crates open. The lid had taken a severe bashing on the trip from the real world to this funny place. He found his weekend-bag. "I hope this is not too big."

  Hilda grinned. "Not a problem. Anything else?"

  William jumped off the back of the picked, his bag in hand. "Nothing I need just now," he said.

  "Right." Hilda took her wand. "Pocket-size," she said. Seconds later, the bag was indeed small enough to fit into a pocket comfortably.

  "Holy Bejeebus.", said William as she pointed at it.

  "Put it in your pocket, or wherever you like it, man. Don't give me that holy crap. I don't do holy crap, I tell you now. And don't forget that." Hilda conjured up a second broom and handed it to William. "Here. A ride you can depend on. Better than that no-good piece of junk you came here with."

  Henry Ford would not have been happy to hear her statement, had he been able to hear it.

  "Right," said William, eyeing the broom. "And how am I supposed to go about this?" He mounted the broom best as he knew.

  Hilda let out a sound that is best described as utter despair. "Planning on flying backwards, are you? Here, let me show you." She mounted the broom, bristles to the front, and lifted off a few feet. "That is how it works."

  William stared, again. "Not the way they told me how it works," he grinned. He turned the broom around.

  "Okay. Hold on and don't wobble about too much. I'm not used to flying two people at the same time. I'll go slow at first."

  William had no idea what to expect, only that there would be a very uncanny and uncomfortable feeling between his legs, that would make proper sitting a chore. To his surprise, there was nothing of that. It felt as if there was a soft cushion under his behind as the broom lifted him into the air. It did not feel unstable at all.

  "Are you okay there?", Hilda asked from several yards higher up.

  "So far, so good," William said. He did not dare to wave at her. Holding on to the broomstick with both hands did feel like the proper thing to do. After all, it was only a broomstick.

  "Cool puppies," Hilda said with a grin. She found some bizarre pleasure in this. "Hang on then, we're going!" She started off the flight slowly, as she had promised. Gone for now were the anxiety and the fear about the challenge, the worries about how to get out of that alive. She had a new thing to entertain herself with, and that give her a thrill she did not have very often.

  William at first only focussed on staying on the broom. The environment went by mostly unnoticed. After a few minutes already, however, he felt more confident. The invisible seat was stable and felt good, so he glanced up to Hilda a few times, who flew higher than he did for some reason. He also now dared to look around a bit, seeing the last bits of mountainous area fleet away beneath them. They were approaching a magnificent lake, blue as only in fairy-tales or photoshopped pictures. The grassy patches around it, interspersed with incredibly high trees, were greener than green. He saw herds of sheep, and people walking along with them in clothes that belonged in the Middle Ages, as they were not flying that high.

  The shepherds did not notice the witch and her strange companion up in the air, or did not deem them interesting enough to react to. After all, there were more important things to do, like making sure the sheep were not drifting away from the herd. Sheep were important.

  "We're going higher," Hilda warned William. It was necessary to avoid the high treetops. She was however a wicked witch. She got it exactly so that William's shoes hit the tops of the first trees they were coming over, making him squeal and grab hold of the broom again with a frenzy.

  "Relax, nothing can go wrong," Hilda told him, but her laughter did not underline that statement.

  5. Flying business

  As they progressed, Hilda sped up the journey. Otherwise, she knew, it would be past dusk before they'd reach her house. While they were flying faster, talking had become more difficult, which was fine with Hilda. She pained her head about what had happened, and the complications that it would present while she was trying to mosey herself through the challenge bit.

  William was getting more confident about the flying business and looked around freely now. They had passed over several small villages that all looked interesting. He would love to go there and see what kind of bookstores they had, if any.

  He noticed that they were slowing down again as they sailed over a large forest area.

  "This is the forest where most of the gnomes live," Hilda told him. She had dropped some altitude and was flying next to William now.

  "Gnomes. Right." William did not grin or try to make a funny remark. He had seen so many things already that did not make sense, gnomes were easily added to that gallery.

  "When we're past this, we're going to make a circle over the castle of the king and the mean queen," Hilda informed him, "although most of her meanness has left her by now, I guess." She chuckled and did not elaborate for William. That was okay for him though, he was curious to see a castle in a fairy-tale land. He had decided that that was where he had indeed ended up and was reaching acceptance with that.

  The castle took his breath away. No picture in any book, in any artist's mind, could have equalled the appearance of this phenomenal white building, with its high towers, wide moat, large inner courts and giant flowerbeds.

  The swoop they made around the castle did not go unnoticed. Walt, who was walking outside for a while, enjoying the last rays of sunshine, saw Hilda and the unknown guest. He waved at them. As he heard the shrieking, cackling laughter of the wicked witch, he grinned. It still was good to be king, and to rub elbows with that witch at times. He did wonder who the person on the other broom was. Perhaps, he thought, she had a visit from some warlock, as the man seemed very much at ease on the broomstick as well.

  William did not wave at the king, as per explicit instruction of the witch. "We do not wave at people. People wave at us and we're the ones with the stuck up nose that don't wave back," she had told him. "I know you are not a witch, but you are not going to ruin my reputation because of that detail. Be warned." And so he was warned.

  After completing a full round along the castle grounds, Hilda made the brooms set course to her house. She praised herself for having a few more rooms. At least that would not be a problem. A bed would be conjured up quickly enough. And a lock.

  They approached the house. It's red roof was visible from far away, as the rays of the retreating sun appeared to set it on fire.

  "Looks like your house is on fire," said William.

  "Looks are deceiving. This is my house, I know how it can act at times. Here, have another cupcake."

  William did not dare to ask and accepted the cupcake, a nice pink one. As all the others she had handed him. "Somehow you don't strike me as a person who'd go for pink, Hilda."

  Her cheeks turned red, not pink. "Shut up. I have brooms to land," she tried to ward off his interest.

  As there was a second broom, she did not attempt to land her broom on the green dot in front of the door. A gentle touch down, as if someone pushed a really big feather under his feet, was how they came back to the ground.

  "This was the most incredible journey I have ever had," William said. "Thank you ever so much for this."

  "Could hardly leave you there in the mountains, could I?", said the wicked witch. "Hey, any visitors worth mentioning?"

  "Not really," said the house.

  "Holy Bejeebus," muttered William who had not been prepared for a speaking house. It would not be the last thing he was not prepared for.

  "Right," said the witch. "William, you ca
n let go of the broom now..."

  "What? Oh, okay." He let go of the broom that floated away from him and parked itself against the wall of the house. "Nice house you have here. Looks like brandnew too."

  "Hah," said the house. "You wouldn't believe the pain in her ass I had to be before she painted me again."

  "Uhm..." William was a bit lost for words as the house addressed him directly. "I doubt it was that bad."

  The house did not find the man worthy to further talk to him for now, after that remark.

  Hilda walked up to the door, took the two arrows from the doorjamb and walked into the house. William decided not to wait for an invitation, he had already understood that Hilda was not very much the kind for those. As he wanted to close the door, the house beat him to it. Just to make a point.

  Hilda's broom, that had followed her inside, went to its regular place next to the fireplace.

  William grinned as he saw it happen.

  Two goldfish on the cup that was still on the large black table, curiously peeked around the rounding of their home and almost fell off it in surprise, as they saw a strange man in Hilda's house.

  Hilda stood in front of her magical mirror, tapping her lip with an index finger. "Right. I don't get guests very often, so you may have to help me out here at times, okay? I know you will need a room to sleep. Got that. And a bed. Haven't got that yet, but that's minor business. Not sure what kind of stuff you eat in your fairy world, but you'll have to make do