Chapter 15

  Meredith And The Mysterious Cow

  One sunny weekend, Meredith and Cici flew high in the mid-morning sky. The sunshine warmed them, the clouds were scattered and wispy, and Meredith’s black robes billowed in the wind as they leisurely soared. Cici sat on his haunches in front of Meredith and peered back at her.

  “It’s been a while since we last flew together,” he mewed.

  “Yeah,” Meredith replied. “Because you’re a lazy bone who never wants to leave the house.”

  “True.” Cici arched his back and stretched. His tail flicked under Meredith’s chin. “But now I’ve decided to be lazy up here.”

  Meredith smiled and flicked his tail away, enjoying her day off.

  The pair flew aimlessly across the sky. They had nowhere to go and all day to get there. Meredith felt so relaxed and unrestrained. She enjoyed being able to cruise without the need to do anything. She eyed Cici. The wind sifted through his fur. He was looking forward, quiet and unsuspecting. A mischievous feeling bubbled up within the young witch, and she grinned. Meredith yanked her broom handle and veered into a barrel roll.

  “Whoo!” She bellowed as they rolled upwards.

  Cici howled, sank his claws into the broom handle, and hunkered down as he held on for dear life.

  When Meredith righted her broom, Cici relaxed and turned to glare at his witch.

  “Stop with the acrobatics!” Cici cried. “This is why I don’t fly with you!”

  “We’ll see.” Meredith dragged her finger down his spine.

  “You’re the worst,” the feline grumbled. “You know that, right? We can’t even go on a leisurely flight without you doing something crazy.”

  “Don’t blame me!” Meredith said with mock exasperation. “Broom here has a mind of its own!”

  Her broom shuddered beneath her grip.

  “I’m just kidding.” Meredith laughed and patted her broom. She hadn’t realized just how much her broom had changed since she made it years ago. It really did seem to have a mind of its own sometimes.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Cici huffed and returned to his former stance on his haunches. They flew for a while before something caught Cici’s eye.

  “Hey, what’s that?”

  “You’re trying to trick me.” Meredith shook her head. “But it’s not going to work.”

  “No, really!” Cici slunk his head downwards. “Is that a cow?”

  Meredith raised her eyebrow and glanced downwards. There, atop a grassy hilltop amidst the pine forest, stood a brown cow. It appeared to be looking up, directly at them.

  “How weird,” Meredith stated. “What’s a cow doing out here in the middle of nowhere?”

  “Maybe it’s lost,” Cici suggested.

  “Let’s go check it out.” Meredith veered downwards, circling the cow as she descended. The cow remained steadfast but watched the pair as they alighted a few feet away.

  Meredith and Cici dismounted and left the broom hovering in place as they approached the mysterious beast. Meredith cautiously stepped closer with Cici at her heels.

  “Hey there, cow,” Meredith said. “What are you doing all the way out here? Are you lost?”

  It remained silent and staring.

  Meredith drew close enough to touch the cow. Something was different about it, but she wasn’t exactly sure. Apprehension filled her, but the heifer didn’t exude any malicious intent. It was a mystery Meredith wanted to solve. She reached out and stroked its long face.

  “Are you hungry?”

  It huffed.

  Meredith took that as a yes.

  “Let’s see what we have.” Meredith rummaged through her bag and procured an apple. “Here you go!” She offered it to the cow, who promptly ate it from her hand.

  When it finished, a jingly plop emanated from behind the cow.

  ‘That didn’t sound normal,’ Meredith thought.

  “Um, Meredith?” Cici started. “I think the cow just pooped out a bag.”

  Meredith leaned around the cow. Indeed, behind the heifer, atop the grass, lay a purple velvet bag with a yellow cinch cord. Meredith summoned it with her wand, floating it to her outstretched hand. The cow remained impassive.

  “Ew, you’re going to touch it?” Cici asked, repulsed.

  “Cici, you lick your own butt; I don’t want to hear it. Besides, it looks clean enough,” Meredith replied as she took the bag and opened it. Handfuls of gold coins lay within.

  “Whoa!” She exclaimed. “Look at this, Cici!” She leaned down to show him.

  “Wow! Let’s feed him more apples!” He exclaimed.

  Meredith stood up and mulled the idea over.

  “Hm…I don’t know. I don’t want to be too greedy,” she said as she stroked the cow again. “Thank you for the gold, mystery cow.”

  “Moooooooo!” The cow bellowed loudly.

  Meredith’s heart leaped at the unexpected low, but she smiled and continued to pet her.

  “It’s time we’re off,” Meredith eventually told the cow. “Maybe we’ll see you again! I hope you find whatever you’re looking for or succeed at whatever it is you’re doing out here.”

  The cow snorted in reply.

  Meredith slipped the bag of gold into her purse, then she and Cici mounted her broom and took off to the sky again.

  “That was weird,” Cici stated flatly as they cruised high above the forest. “What a strange cow. What are you planning to spend the gold on?”

  “I don’t know yet,” Meredith admitted. “You saw the cow first; I’ll buy you something. What do you want?”

  “A new scratching post with catnip embedded within it,” Cici replied immediately.

  Meredith laughed.