Broom Racing -- The Aftermath 1 - WfW

 I know the new Words for Wednesday are already up, but here it is still Tuesday, and I still miss two of last Wednesdays words: Funny  and feisty. I have used only funny. Feisty just does not want to play. 

Next morning they had only one short lesson, then the apprentices were let lose to try the racetrack if they wanted to. Most of them gathered in small groups waiting for their turn to race friends, group-mates and maybe even foes. Sif and Elwin opened the day by racing one another in a race as good as any could have wanted. Sif won, but only because a dove flew up just as Elwin, in the lead reached the farthest part of the course. David, still angry looking challenged Fiona to race him. She accepted, but asked for them to wait until everybody else had had a chance of trying. It was not fair for yesterday's flyers to hog the race, she said. David grudgingly accepted. 

Tage, Lis Anna, Bo, Helge, Veronika and Susan gathered at the starting line and stood at the ready as the flyers had done yesterday. Martine, who liked broom racing too much to stay away, counted to ten, and off they flew. Tage in the lead. But as he reached the first obstacle, and rose sharply his broomstick broke in two, the bristles falling to the ground and Tage and stick continuing head over heels into the obstacle. Susan put her hand to her mouth and looked at her co-conspirators with wide eyes. "We forgot ... " she said. "Tage's broom was one of the ruined ones." Lis called out: " Vero! Let's get David!" and she and Veronika turned sharply around, only to half collide with Susan, whose broom also broke at the impact. Luckily she was not high up, and landed on the grass. She had all the air beaten out of her lungs, but after a dizzying while, she got up and looked at the ensuing chaos. Anna was white as a sheet and only managed to land her broom using all her willpower. Veronika, Lis and Helge flew after David, who had jumped on his broom as he understood what had happened.
Martine was on her broom as well and after helping Tage out of the obstacle and sending him to the sick room to Thora, she inspecting his broom.
"This is not funny stuff, this is vandalism!" Martine said harshly. "Did you know that someone had sabotaged the brooms?"
"Yes, yes we did," Anna said. "But ... I think we forgot."
"You forgot!" Martine roared. "Who did this ... oh, I see." She said, turning around:  "Lis, Helge, Veronika and David, Come down here! Now!"
As none of them complied, she pulled out her wand: "Kústar hættið!" The brooms of Lis, Veronika and David stopped as if they had hit a wall, but Helge's broom just shook a little and continued. He only avoided flying into David by some very fine flying. But Martine was not admiring his skills. She was livid with rage: "Helge," she yelled. "Come down here immediately." 
Helge found that obeying was the better part of wisdom and landed in front of her. "And why could I not hex your broom?"
Torben, Jon, Birgitta and the Finnish twin professors came running. "What's this yelling all about?" Jon asked.
"Grab those three up there." Martine ordered, "and Tähti, please take care of these apprentices. Something is quite fishy here. Just how fishy we have to find out."
Martine took Helge's broom, and the four other also supplied themselves with brooms and got the three and their brooms down to the ground.

Tage was fetched from the sick room, together with Thora, who had bandaged his arms.
Martine faced the apprentices. "Can anyone tell me what has gotten into you? Someone has sawed at least two brooms partway through, just above the bristles, and then Helge's broom here seems immune to hexes. I need an explanation. And I need it now!"
"Stop!" Thora said. "I think we have to interrogate all the apprentices here. And maybe some of their friends too," she said, looking around in the meadow, where all the other apprentices and professors seemed to have gathered. "But we do not need them to listen to one another and have nice ideas about what to say. A short discussion among the professors ensued, and Thora spoke again: "You are all to keep quiet! Split up in language groups as if for lunch, and go sit at the tables in the barn in the same way. And I want the names of anyone not present." 
Susan, Anna, David, Heidi, Lis and Tage went over to Torben, where they met with Fiona, Sarah and Knud.
"We forgot!" Veronika said to Fiona.
"Shh, not a word, Torben said. "Or I'll have to hex you." 
They waited for a long time sitting quietly, and despondently at the tables in the stable. Torben sat at the head of the table, eyes resting on his small flock with unending vigilance. The nisser served tea, soft drinks and open sandwiches, but nobody was able to eat much. The silence and apprehension in the stable was almost palpable.
Susan turned her head away from Torben. She dared not look at Gilvi, who sat in his usual place, just a short way from Susan. Jon sat at the other end of the long table, grimly he watched all the Norwegian apprentices alone, as Martine was with Thora somewhere interrogating the apprentices one by one. She wondered if they were going to use some kind of potion on them, or magic, maybe.

Fiona returned to her place, and Martine called her name. Susan got up. She felt the eyes of all the apprentices follow her as she walked to the small door in the back. Martine led her to the Room where tables and chairs were stored. There Thora and Taavi sat behind a table. "Sit!" Thora said, pointing at a chair in front of the table. Martine stayed behind her. She locked the door. and went to stand behind Susan.
Thora spoke. "Do you know who sabotaged the brooms?"
Susan nodded, she was not sure of her voice.
"Was there more than one involved in the deed?"
Again Susan nodded.
But the next question was not so easily answered: "Why did you not tell me?"
Susan swallowed. "Because, A ... Because I did not want to squeal on somebody. I did not think they were ... evil is such a strong word. I thought we could handle it ourselves. But then we forgot .. I was so happy the race went well, I forgot all about the brooms being sawn into." Susan fell silent again
Martine asked  from behind her: "Do you also know why Helge's broom did not stop when I hexed it?"
Susan nodded again.
"WHY?" Martine said loudly.
"Because we made an anti-hex potion and put on the brooms. Helge's broom, I think it was really Anna's broom, we exchanged some of them for good measure as well. must not have been hexed by ..." Susan stopped, realizing she was about to tell anyway.
"You made an anti-hex potion?" Taavi asked.
Again Susan only nodded.
"And you did it together like with the Sunshine potion. I dare bet that you read once again."
Susan nodded again. She felt totally transparent.
"What did you say about Anna?" Thora asked.
"I did not," Susan answered. "But she's innocent."
"We decide who's innocent and who's not." Thora said sternly. Look at me.
Susan met Thora's eyes, she felt small and transparent and very guilty.
"Do you understand what you have done?" Thora asked in a kind voice.
"We stopped the race from being ruined," Susan said, "we did not ask for help or squealed on that other group. If it is so very wrong, I am awfully sorry. I did not want to get those other in bad standing or expelled or whatever the punishment would be."
"Who were you protecting?" Thora asked. "I  hope I know already, but I want you to tell."
"The Swedes," Susan said, desperately trying to avoid naming them.
"Yes, Susan? All the Swedes or only some of them?"
"No, only those in David's group ... Oh!" Susan gasped. "Now I did it. Anna of course, and Kalle, Lukas and Britta."
"Thank you." Thora said. "To ease your conscience, you have told me nothing new, but I like to be sure, totally sure."
"Martine, would you follow Susan back to the barn, and bring Lis and Tage here, please?"