Fires at Unicorn Farm ~ Part 2

On my way home from an errand, I suddenly knew - remembered - how this all ended. Here you are: Part two of the story of the fires at Unicorn Farm.

Gilvi left again and the others sat for long in the barn. The Nisser brought them cakes and hot tea and cocoa, only succeeding in making them all very sleepy. Kalle fell asleep, wrapped in a blanket, and the others dozed fitfully on the benches. They all dreamt vividly. Susan and Heidi woke up and looked at one another.
"The sprites?" Heidi asked.
"Yes," Susan replied, and with this they were off to the adjoining stables.
Kai woke with a start: "Hey Heidi .. and Susan! Stay here, Gilvi said ..." But before he could draw his wand or do anything else to prevent it the two girls had slipped into the stable.
Heidi almost fell up the three steps to the stables, where strange animals and food for all and sundry were being kept. They raced to where they had placed the big glass cage a few days earlier.
The roomy and beautiful glass cage was where they'd left it, but empty, except for a small fire flickering in a dull grey ring in the middle of the cage. The asbestos lattice covering it sat askew.
"They escaped!" Susan exclaimed.
"They sure did," Heidi replied. "Let's go find the twins, quick!"
With this Susan and Heidi ran each in a separate direction, Heidi ran into the Barn, waking up the others, and quickly explained what they had found out before speeding on. Susan took the small staircase leading from the stables to the library. There she met and almost ran into Martine: "It's the flame sprites doing it," she gasped, winded from running up the stairs. "Where's the Kuusisaari's?" "Tähti is in the library," Martine replied, "I think Taavi is downstairs. I'll get him!"
"Please do!" Susan said and ran towards the doors to the library. Smoke was still coming form in there.
"Hello," Tähti gasped through the smoke, "you're not supposed to be here, but please lend me a hand now that you are ... Slökkvid!" she cried as another small fire lit on the carpet.
"It's the fire sprites!" Susan said, "They have escaped." And interrupted by a few extinguishing spells, she quickly told Tähti what they has discovered. "Martine and Heidi are out there looking for Taavi as well."
"I'll find him." Tähti said, "you just stay here and extinguish any and all fires. You're free to use the mundane fire extinguisher on flames not in books - use your head!" And with this she flickered her wand and disappeared.
Sure that now Tähti, Taavi and the other teachers now would take care of the sprites, Susan sat to the task of keeping the books from burning. She soon realized that her magical powers would give out, and grasped the fire extinguisher from the hall. armed with this in her left hand and her wand in her right she kept the flames at bay. She felt more than saw Tue and Heidi coming in to help. Gratefully she concentrated on carpets, curtains and furniture with the extinguisher, leaving the magic to the older two.
Suddenly a keening sound penetrated the building, shaking it and them to their roots. "The Kuusisaari's are calling the Sprites home," Heidi said. "Thank God, I'm exhausted!"
They put out the last of the flames and almost fell into the old sofa. Soon Gilvi's face showed in the doorway: "Good job, all!" he said. "Down to the Barn now, time for a meal and an explanation or two."

... to be continued

Words for Wednesday :: November 20 ~ on a Friday

Yes it's still Friday here. I have finally written something. I'm not happy with it, as it went somewhere unexpected and dark, I do not think this will enter my book. And it is yet another beginning. Will we ever see an ending to this and all the other strange beginnings from the last couple of months? Only time will tell.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people.
The prompts for November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

The Words for Wednesday were:

Pyromaniac
Midnight
Parrot
Frozen
Razor's edge
     and/or
Anguish
Alligator
Taco
Predictable
Staple

Prehistory: Someone had been starting fires at Unicorn Farm, a Pyromaniac is suspected of the deed. One night as Heidi, Lis and Tage and their parents, Sandra and Kai, are following Susan to her aunt's summerhouse, Thora appeared and asked them to please come and stand guard at the Farm.  

Susan had never been out past midnight at the Farm before, but a pyromaniac witch, or maybe wizard, warranted this. All grown ups and teachers were guarding all entryways to the Farm. Tue and Lis were in the adjoining classrooms, sitting in cupboards with small peepholes cut into them. She and Heidi were in the library and had hid themselves behind the parrot's cage, hoping that the blanket thrown over to shut him up would also hide them well enough. She held her wand ready in a nearly frozen hand, and se could feel Heidi shivering from the cold next to her. Then suddenly an orange glow, thin as a razor's edge shone from where Susan was certain the door to the corridor was placed. She carefully poked Heidi, who poked her back. Then everything happened very fast. A scream of anguish pierced the night, the door swung open, letting smoke and flames start to spill into the library nearing the book case next to the door. Susan and Heidi jumped up, pointed at flame after flame with their wands, screaming "Slökkvið" at them, and slowly the inferno died down. They could see Tue, Lis and Knud over the flames, and behind them Thora, Kai, Gilvi, Sandra, Martine and most every teacher from the Farm. A human form lay at the floor, PJs scorched and soaked. Thora helped a wet and bedraggled Kalle from the floor: "What happened?" she asked. "You were supposed to be in your bed in Stockholm."
"I was." Kalle said simply, looking utterly confused.
Thora asked him: "And what then?"
Kalle looked up: "I slept, I dreamt of a big, pearl opal green alligator eating someone, just as we would a taco, then I felt an almighty pull, everything went dark, and I was suddenly here, my PJs on fire."
"This sounds nothing like what we imagined," Martine said. "It is not a predictable way ..."
Sandra looked at them: "Move!" she screamed, Everybody sprang into the library, into abandoned cupboards and door openings. Gilvi grabbed Kalle and half pulled half carried him to the sick room.
A fireball exploded exactly where Kalle had lain.
"This is a staple of the ... " Taavi began.
"Not now!" Tähti interrupted him. "Let's get the fires put out, and bring some order to this chaos. Kai please bring the children down into the Barn."
No listening to their protests, Kai ordered Lis, Tage, Heidi and Susan to proceed him to the barn, and Gilvi brought up the rear, carrying Kalle.

Poetry Monday :: Jumping the Gun

And oops sorry everybody. I goofed up and spent a long time writing a poem or two with next week's prompt: Cry wolf. Luckily I realised this the second before hitting "Publish", but for this reason only a not so elaborate poem this time around.

Jumping the gun,
It sure can be fun
But if you're found out
You're in for some pout,
From people who find you're a lout.

Jumping the gun
should not be done
Play fair and be nice
Don't load your dice
Don't hide the game piece.

Juming the gun
Is not worth the tonne
Of ill will and nay
that's coming your way
if you do foul play.

Hmm, this turned out rather moralistic. I cannot do any better today, but I hope to get more done in the week ahead.

 - - - - - -

Next week, as already announced: Cry Wolf.
Promts for December coming up soon.

Words for Wednesday November 13

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people.
The prompts for November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

The Words for yesterday were:
Snow
Cow
Jade
Candy
Sunglasses
    and/or
Oak
Refreshed
Ornery
Music
Shells

I needed writing, so THANKS! to Alex J. Cavanaugh for the words and to Elephant's Child for posting them.
A small story from Susan's mundane life early winter of the first year on the Farm. These 'telling the time-notes' are as much for my own sake as for you ... I expect maybe even more for my sake. It explains why Susan is not thinking of Snow Magic, and a heap of other things to me.
Remember that Susan's mundane life is roughly autobiographical, so what I here described existed - maybe still do - and I'll have to dig up that story of why. Maybe for next Wednesday?
PS. according to my spell checker Ornery is not a word ;)

Snow was falling, and Susan happily looked into the leaden skies. As soon as the bus arrived, she jumped aboard, happy to get away from the sports hall. She hated sports, running gave her a headache, and all those balls ... Shortly they passed a field with cows, funny that they were still out, maybe the snow had caught the farmer as unaware as herself. All the cows stood close together, with their tails into the wind near the gate. Where did they live, Susan wondered, as every time she went past that field, and why really were there cows here in the suburbs of the town? Houses on either side of the road, going in to town, then to the right suddenly a small clump of trees and a pasture with cows, then a road, and houses again. Mom, or was it Grandma, had told a story some time ago, but Susan did not remember.
She searched inside her school-bag, now where was that bag? That was the only good thing about the sports hall. It had a well assorted kiosk. Today Susan had bought a jade coloured bag of candy. She put a couple in her mouth and savoured the sweet taste. Too soon the ride through winter-wondeland in the heated bus came to an end, and Susan got off. Snow was nice, but cold was not when you were not dressed for it; this very morning her mother had looked for her sunglasses before going off to work, and Susan had decided against the warm coat. She regretted this decision now. She fastened her pace to keep warm, turned left at the big oak tree at the corner and half ran the last long stretch home. She pulled off the thin coat, shook it out and hung it in the back of the wardrobe. Bye, she thought, I won't be needing you before spring. Then she threw shoes, socks, school-bag and hat in a heap, only keeping the candy bag. In the fridge she grabbed a carton of milk, and then a glass and a book. She disappeared into her room, and returned after the milk and candy had all gone and the book had been finished. Thus refreshed she was ready to meet her ornery sister, who as usual played loud music inside her room. Walking on egg shells was sometimes needed when she had one of her moods.

Look, Oh Look! ~ Åh se!

Sunshine!  ~ Solskin!

Yup, this morning we had awesome 46 minutes of sunshine - the first this month.

I morges havde vi 46 vidunderlige minutters solskin - månedens første.

Kilde: DMI