Thanks for the prompt, I had fun writing this one.
Henry Frisk inspected the wooden wheel longer than expected. Mud coated his knees, staining the green linen of his pants. His dark jacket, now drenched from a seemingly spontaneous rain shower, clung to his skin with no signs of releasing. It didn’t matter how many times he looked; the wheel was broken. Chips of woods displaced by a hole in the road and now he and his partner found themselves stranded.
“Fix it yet?” A high-pitched voice asked.
Henry lifted his head. He wiped his mud stained hand on his pants and wrestled back his bangs. One step transformed into five before he found himself at the front of the wagon. Wrapped with a thick woolen blanket over her head, Henry spotted the ever so curious Mindy Cogglezap looking up at him. Her large green eyes blinked a few times, and she pushed the blanket up further from her bright pink hair that she fashioned into pigtails. Behind her, fashioned on her back, a large pack almost the size of a gnome.
“Not yet.” Henry said.
“How predictable,” Mindy huffed. Without warning, Mindy tossed the blanket to the driver’s side of the wagon and leapt down into the muddy road. As she landed, a small puddle that formed splashed in her face. Mindy collapsed her eyelids. “I’m not sure why I entrusted you with this task. I figured it’d be easy for you, Henry, come now.”
Mindy set off toward the rear of the wagon. Henry minded his steps, ensuring he didn’t bump into his companion as she marched with more pride than he could muster at the moment. Mindy settled herself a few inches from the wheel bearing. She noted the wheel, abandoned on the ground, and then focused on the wagon again. Her right arm reached behind her and submerged itself into one pocket of the backpack.
Within a second, a large robotic arm sprang up from the main covering at the top of the pack. Buzzing sounds broke the silence as the arm came down toward Mindy’s face and the set of three fingers rotated into the hand, each time causing a different tool to appear. After a wrench came the magnifying glass. Mindy leaned in closer toward the wheel bearing.
“Interesting.” She muttered.
“Don’t you think this is a bit much?” Henry asked.
“Henry,” Mindy turned to him. Her eye still enlarged behind the magnifying glass.“Come, lift the wagon for me.”
Henry felt the strength in his eyes fade as he released a puff of air. Slow steps of defeat led him forward toward his partner. He fastened his fingers onto the bottom of the wagon and lifted. Henry could feel the strength surge through his arms, he could feel his muscles tightened, but the wagon didn’t move an inch.
Behind him, he heard nothing but high-pitched laughter. Within an instant Henry again shut his eyes and felt the change. Hair ripped out of the pores of his skin. He arched forward and felt himself grow a few inches. Everything about him changed as he found the wagon now lighter than before.
“Took you long enough.” Mindy said.
Henry glanced back at her. His now golden eyes narrowed as his lips curled.
“One more word and I’ll eat you.”
Mindy’s eyes widened as a small shriek escaped her lips. She fell backwards into the muddy road and Henry couldn’t hope to contain his laughter. As she stood up, Mindy’s cheeks became coated in red as they puffed out. She marched back toward the wagon. The mechanical arm inside her backpack, without warning, launched itself at Henry’s left leg.
“Idiot,” Mindy whispered.
Mindy unfastened her pack and placed it onto the road near the wagon. She lifted the top flap where the arm stuck through and dug inside. Tools, widgets, coggles and many other sorts of things flew out onto the road beside them.
Then, without warning, Mindy pulled out a series of iron strips. She sat down on the road and placed the strips next to each other. The mechanical arm once again transformed its fingers, and this time a soldering iron became the tool of choice. Minutes passed by and Henry could only spot seconds of bright light. By the time she finished, Mindy smiled at a makeshift wheel she created. She picked up the wheel that appeared to be as tall as her and fastened onto the wagon.
“You didn’t need to make one, we had an extra in the back.” Henry said
“And have a repeat of this?” Mindy asked. She glared up at her companion.
Without warning, another series of bright flashes of light struck Henry. He glanced away from the gnome and her work. A minute passed them by, and then the buzzing sound ceased. Henry looked down at his partner whose mechanical arm disappeared back into her backpack.
“Ok, you can let go now,” Mindy said.
Henry released the wagon. He glanced down at the wheel and noticed Mindy’s work, a soldering job that attached the new wheel fully to the wagon. His eyes closed as he leaned back and allowed a series of raindrops to coat his face. There was zero chance that wheel would rotate with her soldering job. Even with the repair job, they would still be stuck here.
“What?” Mindy asked. “No praise for my completing this simplistic task? I really feel you should try to stride to be more useful, Henry. As the assistant to the great Mindy Cogglezap, inventor of numerous outstanding works, such as-”
“Mindy, the wheel will not work. You soldered it wrong.” Henry said.
“Nonsense!” Mindy shouted.
In an instant, the mechanical arm reappeared out of her backpack. The magnifying glass from before came in front of her eyes as she inspected her work. It didn’t take long for Mindy’s eyes to widen. She glanced up at Henry and felt the judgement reek from his smirk.
“Henry, this is your fault.” She muttered. “I cannot believe you transformed into that thing… and threatened to…” She looked away. “You know what you said, you distracted me. Disrupted my genius and now we’re stuck here.” Mindy glanced up. “We must abandon the wagon.”
“Huh?” Henry cocked his eyebrow up.
“No one must know of this mistake. The reputation of Mindy Cogglezap would be tarnished if they knew of such a mistake. The other inventors would mock me. They wouldn’t be rational. They wouldn’t understand the pressure I was working under.” Tears formed into Mindy’s eyes. “My assistant threatening to eat me. Pick his teeth with my bones.”
“You added that last part,” Henry said.
“Come Henry, we’ll walk to Stormwind.” Mindy said. She took a series of steps passed Henry and then paused. “No!” She shouted. Mindy turned around to face Henry. She pointed at him. “You will carry me to Stormwind, as a punishment for your deeds here today.”
Henry released a sigh as he walked a few steps toward Mindy. He leaned down, still focused on her smile as he picked her up with his right hand. Mindy’s eyes widened. Again her cheeks brightened as they puffed out.
“Stop it,” she punched her arms forward, coming up short of his face. “How dare you treat the great Mindy Cogglezap in such a manner!”
Henry leaned down and raised Mindy toward his shoulder. He felt the pinches as she grabbed onto his mane of hair. Beside him, Henry spotted a pair of legs wrap around his neck and felt Mindy’s hand tap onto his head. After the first tap, a trio of taps followed.
“This feels hollow.” Mindy said.
Henry took a step forward. The small amount of weight on his shoulders shifted back. He noticed Mindy’s legs lift for a few inches before he grabbed onto them and paused.
“I wasn’t ready yet!” Mindy shouted. “Go slower you oaf.” Mindy grabbed onto Henry’s long ears and wrapped her fingers around them. He winced for only a second. “Please,” she whisper.
It didn’t take long for Henry to take another step. A series of steps followed, and Mindy offered no complaints. Rain still trickled down from the sky above. Every so often, Henry turned to glance back at the wagon. Not that there was anything of importance inside, it was just an empty wagon carrying two passengers.
Mindy released Henry’s ears a few minutes into their journey. He glanced up and noticed the Gnome tucking herself into his head as her hands, along with the robotic arm, tried to shield her from the rain. It seemed the magnificent Mindy Cogglezap had forgotten her blanket.