"I try not to play favorites with my characters. I really do, but since first creating Penelope the animated witch's broom, I've always lover her. I broom with no magical powers aside broom the ability to move, a great attitude, and the most perfect sidekick a witch could ask for. (Sorry, Newt.) When brainstorming for this collection, I never had any doubt Penelope would get her moment to shine."
— Author's Notes
Penelope and the Willful Blade is a Comic Fantasy short story written by A. Lee Martinez and published in the 2013 anthology book Robots versus Slime Monsters. The story is set after the events of the novel A Nameless Witch, where the living broom Penelope is separated by the Witch and Newt on their way to slay a mad warlord.
Penelope and the Willful Blade provides examples of:
- Animate Inanimate Object: Both Penelope and the Willful Sword are objects animated by magic (a broom and a sword respectively) and are capable of acting autonomously.
- Artifact Domination: The Amulet was worn by the Warlord for its magical power. When the Warlord died, the Amulet took possession of his corpse and started acting on its own behalf.
- Artifact of Hope: The Willful Sword is implied to be this; a Living Weapon wielded by brave and daring adventurers and smiting evil. Even when it briefly sides with the Amulet, it quickly comes to its senses and destroys the Amulet itself.
- Fantastic Racism: There is a hierarchy to living objects, and those who were intentionally brought to life often look down on the ones who were brought to life by accident.
