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?"
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Kommentarer til indlægget (Atom)
Oh, how we hate to tattle on those who are doing wrong, it just seems better to beat them at their own game. At some point, though, you have to warn adults if someone is doing something dangerous.
SvarSletMessymimi is right, but fear of tattling is very, very strong.
SvarSletI am looking forward to reading about the punishments. Are the original schemers going to receive the same punishment as those who tried to stop them? Both used magic inappropriately and against the rules.
Your world building is wonderful. I am completely invested in this tale.
Thank you. And thanks for 'tattling' I could not find this very appropriate word.
SvarSletI am posting a new chapter soonish, Meanwhile I have deleted the very last paragraph in this installment. Something went wrong there.
Tattling often has a way of making things worse for the tattler, rather than better. But when a person in authority asks directly, one has to tell the truth, and it is a relief to get the facts out.
SvarSlet