The further adventures of Gobbolino and the little wooden horse

11 AT THE FOOT OF THE MOUNTAIN

The little wooden horse had waited patiently hour after hour for his friend to reappear.

Like Gobbolino, he had watched the sun moving across the sky and he knew that by midday Sootica was likely to have reached the river, and would therefore be safe from recapture by the witch.

He did not approve of her behaviour in the least, but he could understand the tender heart of a brother for his sister’s distress, if, in fact, the witch’s cat were really as distressed as she made herself out to be.

He saw the sun touch the midday crag, and pass on slowly across the jagged peaks of the mountain. At any moment he expected to see Gobbolino come flying down the mountainside, but Gobbolino did not come.

After an hour or two the little horse began to grow anxious. He did not want to be stranded in the middle of the plain when the sun went down. There was no shelter out there, while in the forest they could pass the night under a tree.

He trotted out of the cave and looked up towards the summit, but there was nothing to be seen of Gobbolino.

He waited while another hour crawled by, and then began very slowly to descend towards the bats, who were restlessly flying about below, and waiting to take possession of the caves at the foot of the mountain. They were in a very testy frame of mind, due to sleeping in rabbit holes and having nothing much to eat.

They took very little notice of the wooden horse, flying around in crazy circles and alighting on the rocks, only to dash around again like a crowd of mad mosquitoes. Not one of them volunteered to go up to the top of the mountain and remind Gobbolino that it was high time he started down the path to begin his journey home across the plain. They were afraid of being caught by the witch, and either having to stay in the cavern under her command, or being banished back to the rabbit holes again. Finally he persuaded a very young and dashing bat to go up the mountain.

"Just tell my friend Gobbolino that we should leave immediately," the little wooden horse said, "that is, if we want to travel safely across the plain before dark. Tell him I am waiting for him down here, and I shall not set out until he comes."

The bat whirred off in the direction of the summit. The wooden horse waited impatiently below.

It was some while before the bat came back, appearing like a small black fly against the sky above, soon to be lost in the darkness of the crags. The little wooden horse lost sight of it in craning for a glimpse of Gobbolino, but the path remained empty, and there was no sign of his friend.

Suddenly the bat flopped down at his feet, panting.

"I waited and waited," it squeaked, "but it was no good — he won’t come!"

"Just tell my friend… that we should leave…"

"He won’t come?" the little wooden horse repeated in dismay. "Is the witch awake, then? Has she put a spell on him?"

"Not that I could notice," said the little bat. "I think the witch is asleep, because she is snoring a little.. and your friend Gobbolino is fast asleep too, on her lap."

"On her lap?" the little wooden horse cried out, in horror. "On her lap?"

"Why, yes!" said the bat. "He is snuggled up on her knees, underneath her heart, and his white paw is folded round her wrist. It is quite a touching picture to see a poor old lady being comforted by her cat!"

"Old lady? Comforted?" repeated the little wooden horse.

"She looked very sad!" said the bat. "There were tears on her cheeks as if she had been crying, and the cat’s fur was quite damp in patches. I felt quite sorry for her!"

"But did you speak to Gobbolino?" pleaded the little wooden horse.

"Oh, I did! I did!" the bat said. "I flew round him a number of times, woke him up, and gave him your message, but he only shook his head. And when he moved the witch clutched him so tightly in her sleep that he could not have got away if he had tried."

Panic seized the heart of the little wooden horse.

He hardly heard the bat's plea to occupy the caves now that its mission was done. He left the busy little creatures surging out of the rabbit holes and taking possession of their new homes, while he galloped up the path to the summit as fast as he could go.