The Imposter 4/9

There weren’t very many people to be seen in the village when she finally arrived. Those that were in sight, took no more notice of her than they would of any other stranger.

She realised that she’d become used to being greeted by people eager to help her, knowing she was a witch because she’d flown in on her broom. She went up to a group of women chatting together, round the village pump.

“Excuse me ladies, can you tell me where I can find the blacksmith?”

They all began smiling; “Looking for a new pair of shoes then are we?” said one, staring at Jennifer Jane’s feet and they all burst out laughing.

“Up there dear,” said one of the older ladies.

Jennifer Jane thanked her and walked rather self consciously in the direction that had been pointed out. Behind her she could hear more giggles.

Remarks such as, “Don’t she talk funny,” and “kids her age ought to be out helping in the fields!" followed her along the street.

Still, the directions were correct and she soon spotted the blacksmith outside his smithy, shoeing a horse.

“That’ll be five shilling, then,” said the blacksmith when he’d finished.

The owner of the horse muttered something under his breath about ‘daylight robbery’ and then said, “put it on the slate until pay day,” before leading the animal away.

Jennifer Jane had to follow the smith into his workshop, as he obviously didn’t think she was going to bring him any business.

“Please would you be able to straighten out a bent mudguard for me?”

“Only have mudguards on the gentry’s carriages!” said the blacksmith, “I didn’t see yours outside!” He laughed.

‘Oh dear,’ thought Jennifer Jane, ‘everyone’s a comedian; still I suppose it could be worse.’

“My transport was damaged in the woods just outside the village,” she said grandly, pointing in the right direction, “the mudguard is jammed into the wheel so that it won’t turn. Would you be able to go out there to collect it?”

“Don’t see why not, there’s not much doing today, I’ll just put the horse to the cart and we’ll be off.”

It took half an hour to harness the horse and put him between the shafts of the blacksmith’s cart.

Jennifer Jane fidgeted all the while, she wasn’t used to the pace of village life and the smith was certainly in no hurry.

However at last they were off, the horse plodding slowly back along the road towards her scooter. The smith certainly woke up and took notice when he saw the crashed machine.

“What on earth is that contraption?” Then he had a quick look round, “It looks as if your horse has run off as well.”

He got off the cart and went over to have a closer look. “Flimsy looking thing and its only got two wheels. You can’t possibly have been riding on this, it would fall over!”

Jennifer Jane assured him that she had got here using the ‘flimsy thing’ as a means of transport. She pointed out where the mudguard had been pushed into the tyre.

The blacksmith grunted. “Strangest wheels I ever saw, why they’re all soft and spongy! No wonder the mudguard stopped the wheel from turning; there ain’t no substance to any of it!”

He picked up the scooter quite easily, “lighter than it looks,” and put it in the back of the cart. He didn’t say another word until he’d unloaded the scooter in his workshop, taken the harness from the horse and hung it back on its pegs.

Then he made sure that the cart was safely under cover. Every now and then he’d look at Jennifer Jane with a rather puzzled expression on his face and shake his head in wonder.