Ditch the Witch
Pick Your Peril: The Hero of Mudtown
(This is part of a series of choose-your-own-adventure articles. If you want to start from the beginning, click here.)
This woman has been giving you the creeps since you’ve arrived.
You eye the open window and the forest waiting outside. It would be foolish to waste this opportunity. If you move quickly, you could probably squeeze through without the woman in the other room noticing.
You hoist yourself up on the countertop and poke your head through the window, the cool breeze on your face a stark contrast to the stuffy kitchen. You continue outward, wedging your arms and shoulders next, squeezing your stomach and hips after.
Your foot brushes something off the countertop and it clatters to the floor. You freeze in a moment of panic. Shuffling can be heard from inside as the old witch enters the kitchen.
“Is everything alright dear- HEY!”
You attempt to vault the rest of your body out the window, but the hag crosses the kitchen in the blink of an eye and wraps her gnarled hands around your ankles just as they cross the threshold of the window. She is unbelievably strong, and starts pulling you back into her hut.
Your shins and knees scrape over the windowsill as you are dragged into the witch’s kitchen.
“You’re not going to let an old woman starve, are you?” She cackles as you strain to force yourself outside, “Why don’t you stay a little longer? I’d love to have you for dinner!”
The old woman still has you by the ankles, pulling you backwards. You are almost completely inside the hut now, only your head and arms protruding from the window. She nearly has you, but you’re not about to let this horrible hag have her way with you.
You brace your arms against the outside of the window and push. You push until your muscles feel like they’re going to give out, and finally the witch’s grip starts to slip. She regains her hold around your shoes, and as you give one final push, your footwear comes off in the old hag’s hands.
You somersault out the window and into the bushes, leaving the woman with nothing but an empty pair of shoes. She screeches at you through the window as you get up and run for the hills, ignoring the pain as the rough terrain tears your socks to shreds and punctures the soles of your feet.
After a few minutes of sprinting into the forest, you feel like you’ve gained enough distance from the hut and take a moment to rest and consider what to do next.
Trying to advance deeper into the woods is insanity. You are still completely lost, and the setting sun makes it all but certain you won’t rediscover the path before night falls. Spending a night amongst the wildlife seems less than appealing, and you’re not sure how much more punishment your feet can take without protection, either.
The only motivation to go deeper into the woods is the possibility of finding your family.
Something strange can be heard in the distance. After a minute of careful listening, you realize it is the sound of a carriage on a road. Hitching a ride back to civilization sounds incredibly enticing, and the road doesn’t sound like it’s that far away. You could probably even find it before the sun completely sets.
What will you do?