Immediately following dinner, Rae, Rune, Apolline, and
Adelaide set off for Professor Wolfe’s office. The smell of sulfur and
gunpowder still wafted heavily through the air. Rae walked carefully, making
sure that Professor Wolfe’s owl and her African Boiled Bullfrog were still
safely comfortable in the pockets of her robe, feeding them a treat from time
to time.

The red wolf still blazed on the ceiling, amid the numerous
scorch marks and smoke residue. Two of the walls, as well, bore the evidence of
a large quantity of fireworks. The girls took in the toppled cauldrons,
overturned tables, broken phials, and debris. It was going to be a long night.

“Well, I personally am very sorry we upset Professor
Wolfe’s office and animals so much,” Apolline sighed, settling down next to one
of the cauldrons. “I will clean this, as I am the one who put the fireworks
inside it.” Apolline put on dragon-hide gloves and started scrubbing.

Adelaide and Rune knelt down on the floor and began
vigorously scrubbing at the soot and residue that coated the floor. Afraid of
harming the small creatures in her pockets, Rae placed each one carefully into
a small box that she had brought with her. Still traumatized, they began to
croak and hoot in alarm.

“Oh, poor things!” Rune exclaimed. She left Adelaide to
finish the floor and went over to cuddle Professor Wolf’s owl, Olive. Olive was
an old owl, very sensitive, and she shook in Rune’s hands. Rune set her
chicken, Toucan, in the box next to Olive to help comfort the poor thing.

Inspired, Rune pulled her froad, Marcel, from her backpack
and set him to take care of the other batracian, to reassure him, then returned
to scrubbing the cauldron.

“I don’t even know where to start,” Rae sighed. “I really
hope we don’t have to do this in every office. I mean, the professors know
loads of spells they can use for cleaning up…”

“Its detention, Rae.” Adelaide pointed out, scrubbing the
floor with even more vigor. “At least we don’t also have to write those essays
for Professor Nivera.”

“True,” Rae agreed. “She got us good, didn’t she?”

“Ha!” Rune laughed, 750 words – exactly – on the functional
use of a rubber chicken, was it Addie? Or did she give that to Apolline?”

“I don’t remember,” Rae said. “I was too busy figuring out
how I was going to write my essay on appropriate behavior for PA’s. Its not
like I have a lot of examples to follow… I mean, look at us: nearly every one
of us a PA…”

“Yes,” Adelaide sighed, “And we should have known better.”

“It was a pretty good prank on her part,” Rae laughed.
“Freaking us out with those essays and then being all like ‘just kidding!’
Professor Nivera is awesome.”

“If only some of the other professors were as forgiving,”
Rune remarked ruefully. “How many detentions are we at, now, Rae?”

Rae paused a moment from sweeping up broken glass. “5, I
think? Well, maybe not. Let’s see, we have this. Plus a detention from Stone –
cleaning that auditorium is going to be such a blast, ugh – and then there’s
the one from Hunt. So that’s 3. Professor Nivera let us off the hook… Oh.
Professor Polgara threatened retaliation, but I don’t think that counts. So, I
guess just 3.”

“But Rae, not all of the professors have gone back to their
offices yet,” Apolline pointed out. “Some of them were on holiday today.”

“Very true,” Rae shuddered. “Well, we will have to cross
that bridge when we come to it. I’m hoping that since Professor Darkstorm seems
to have let us off the hook, as well, that the other professors will follow his
lead.”

Adelaide popped out from under the table she had been
scrubbing beneath. “Off the hook?” she scoffed, “I hardly think threatening
detention, suspension, or expulsion is considered letting us ‘off the hook.’”

“Well,” Rae shrugged, “he did smile…”

“I’m done with this cauldron,” Apolline announced. “I’m
going to start on the walls. The fireworks have left some black marks. They would
probably need repainting, but we can get to that in time.”

“Well, we’ve got plenty of time,” Rae remarked dryly.

“I’m going to start on the ceiling, girls,” Rune told them, climbing up
onto one of the tables. Standing on her tiptoes, she could just barely reach
the ceiling with the toothbrush she was holding.

“Did Professor Wolfe say we had to use a toothbrush?” Rae asked, incredulously.
She certainly didn’t remember hearing that in the instructions, but she
wouldn’t put it past Professor Wolfe.

“No,” explained Rune, “I just want to be careful so that I don’t mess up
the red wolf. She said we could leave it.”

Rae nodded, and moved over to the professor’s desk to check on the
animals. Silence fell over the room as the girls worked on their chosen tasks.
Some time later, Adelaide slowly picked herself up from the floor, groaning at
the soreness in her hands and knees.

“There, the floor is completely done, spotless. Make sure you tell
Professor Wolfe I did the whole thing by myself when you write your report,
Rae>”

“Will do, Addie.”

“I’m done, too,” Rune commented, pointing toward the ceiling. All of the
scorch marks and soot were gone, leaving only the gleaming red wolf emblazoned
on the ceiling tiles.

“Me three,” said Apolline. The walls were now spotless of any evidence
of fireworks. They still needed to be repainted, but it was getting very late.
The girls were all yawning immensely, and the little creatures in the boxes
were making nighttime sounds.

“I’ll finish up in here, then, and write the report,” Rae told the
others.

“Ok, Rae, thanks!” Rune hugged her friend before heading to the door.
“Oh, and make sure to tell Professor Wolfe that I chose not to move the her
desk to the east wall without permission.”

“Of course, Rune,” Rae smiled, exhaustion showing in her face. As the
other girls headed off to their dorms, Rae settled down at one of the tables
and pulled out a roll of parchment. Dipping her quill in ink, she began to
write, even as she felt her eyes grow heavy. Sometime after 1:00 in the
morning, Rae gave up and stumbled back to her dorm room, collapsing into bed.
She would have to finish the report and give it to Professor Wolfe in the
morning

-------------------------------------------

Rae held her breath waiting
for Professor Wolfe to read the report. She hoped its lateness wouldn’t count
against her… or its length.