Witch and Stick

by Beth Cato

seriously

brooms are thin and hard

not the slightest bit ergonomic

even cushioned by my mighty curves

how could anyone bear to ride a broom

for more than a few minutes?

and the splinters, ugh

I want to look, well, powerful

when I swoop across the night sky

like a witch no one wants to mess with

the only stick I ever want to carry

is made for hockey

so how else can I fly in magical style?

sure, a spell can make a car hover

but that weight tires me out fast

flying bicycles cause people

to make old movie jokes

same with enchanted parasols

then I think about my favorite kind of stick

and laugh

I pull out my old hockey skates

white leather gone battleship grey

I whisper cantrips into each blade

sharpen steel with whetstone

and pixie dust and calico cat breath

I tighten magic into the laces

when I push away from earth

I cleave clouds with my skates

my strides send me like a slapshot

across the ebony sky

my goal:

anywhere

everywhere

the sky is mine