The Special Olympics (2)
Henrietta always suspected them of cheating but as it had never been proved she could say nothing. However rumour has it that Sally Stout and Mickey Mink had given up on sports after competing with those two. Maybe they were rotten cheats but Henrietta felt sure that today she was going to prove to everyone that you don´t have to cheat to come out on top. She was sure that her persistent training would at last be worthwhile.
They lined up for the race after their warm up session and when Philip Fox blew the whistle they dashed off as if Philip himself were chasing them. Big Billy slithered alongside them. He wasn´t in the race but he knew Ozzy and Berty had a bad reputation and he wanted to keep an eye on everyone. Luckily with all the training he had done with Henrietta he was fit enough to keep up.
The running part of the race was difficult and after the first few minutes it was plain to see that Henrietta Hedgehog, Ozzy Otter, Berty Badger, Steven Stoat, Lilly Lizard and Jimmy Jackdaw were leaving the other competitors far behind.
After some time a gap was forming between Ozzy Otter, Berty Badger, Steven Stoat and the leaders of the race Lily Lizard, Jimmy Jackdaw and Henrietta. As they were slagging behind Ozzy and Berty decided to take advantage of their position and eliminate Steven. They both ran to either side of him and then they put a brown paper bag over his head and ran him into the ditch where they carefully tied him to a gate. “Say nothing,” they said, “and you´ll come to no harm.”
Then the wicked pair dragged out from a nearby field a motorbike and side-car. It didn´t take them long to catch up with the leader group. They ditched the motorbike before anyone could see them cheat and they ran again as if the race was very difficult.
Well because Henrietta was a nimble hedgehog she was the first in the running race. Jimmy Jackdaw came second and Lily Lizard third. Ozzy and Berty were next and they were surprisingly fresh looking. The next race was the cycle. They set off in a cloud off dust. Once again Henrietta and Lily Lizard took the lead. Jimmy Jackdaw was itching to fly but as it was in the rules that you couldn´t leave the ground or the water at any time his legs were starting to feel the pain. He was slowing down. Ozzy and Berty were speeding up. Together they cycled to either side of jimmy, put a brown paper bag over his head and cycled him into the nearest ditch where they tied him to a gate and said, “Say nothing and you´ll come to no harm.”
Then they fetched out from a barn a helicopter and took the lead without anyone realising. They landed in a field, not too far from the finishing line, out with their bikes, then off they shot toward the finishing line. Lily and Henrietta were fast and soon they were biting the heels of the two cheats. Henrietta, being a nimble sort of hedgehog shot out past Ozzy and Berty and came first. Lily came fourth.
The next competition was the swimming race. This was a tough one for Henrietta but thanks to Billy she had a good chance of winning. They set off.
Now while all this was going on Billy was doing his best to keep up with the competitors. He passed Steven Stoat and set him free. He passed Jimmy Jackdaw and set him free too. He arrived at the start of the swimming race. Another thing I think you should know about Billy is that he was by far the strongest swimmer in the wood. In fact he was a better swimmer than any of the competitors. So without anyone knowing he took caught up with Henrietta in no time at all.
jorge
you’re fast…