POV Narrator:
Friday, 20 September 2019, Luna Nova
The new year was starting, already signaling new horizons with the third year starting, already complicating things a lot more, especially for Akko who had a cut-off score even higher than the other students, needing to do better than it already was to have a chance of approval, in these first days of classes that are passing things come with even more weight for Kagari, who faces very heavy and tiring classes, In the middle of these days the broom relay arrived, as a way to open the year the big race event would be the test for the girls to show their capacity, this time Kagari trained and trained a lot in these holidays to improve her riding on the broom and also have a chance to win in her last year in Luna Nova.
POV Akko:
Soon the broom relay will start, this could be my big chance, it is the only one I have now, I came close last year if it wasn't for Hellene being faster than me, I would even get it, last year my victory was taken away from my hand, but this year I am confident that I can get it, I am just focused on doing the course at the highest speed, I trained a lot with the broom in the fifth word to have more notion and less fear of controlling at high speed.
""ey girls, I won't race in de third sector, it will be Mari's, I just wish you good luck, I already won last year, I want to see if I can beat my mother's record in de first sector" Hellene said and I even shone my eyes a little.
"Are ye sure about that sis? We've even trained ourselves tae stand up tae ye" said Diana, leave it love, she might give us a chance in the back.
"I am more dan sure, I trust my team, I know they will be fast enough for me to win, even if I don't win I will feel 'appy to 'ave competed 'ere, it is always good to know dat dere are faster people," she said and then flew to her sector.
"Well now it's our turn tae go tae the sector" said my girlfriend.
"Today I will do everything to get this trophy" I say confidently.
"Only if you take out an extremely fast broom for that" Amanda said debauching me.
"You'll see when I show you that it's not the broom, but the witch on top of it" I tell her.
Confident I go with the girls to the last sector, I am confident of my victory, I believe in myself, when I land I see that even Semmer was there, I hope she is not as fast as the others, shy as always I even arrive to greet her.
"Hey Semmer, it's your first broom relay" I say smiling at her.
"Strange that McLaren is not around here, I wanted to compete with them too, they say they are the fastest in broomstick flying, let's see if this rumour is also real, I remember my parents saying that because they consider them as cowards who run away fast from everything" Semmer said and I am already imagining that she must be really quite fast.
I take a deep breath, after shaking my head at the blonde, I stare at the course in front of me, I have seen footage and footage of everything to get a sense of it, what I studied alongside my mother-in-law will definitely give me an extra chance, she was a great coach and teacher, I have the ultimate control of the brooms in this situation.
POV Narrator:
Like every broom relay, every year, the event is full of decorations, balloons everywhere, with commentaries by Wangari, now a graduated witch, but who is specializing in the witch press to become a great reporter around the curiosities of the world of magic. The party was all euphoric, with displays appearing in the crystal balls, but also by some projectors for the students who didn't participate to watch the whole race.
"And here we are in the edition number 1355 of the broom relay of Luna Nova, where things are going to catch fire, we will not have the champion of last edition in the last sector, she switched to the first and it seems that she came to try to crush the record of her mother, who is still unbeatable in the last sector, But at
least she can repeat the feat of being the only witch in history to win in the three years and in the three sectors, will mother and daughter join this unique feat, Hellene McLaren is her name, even with only one hand she is as fast as the others! And we have here in the last sector the same of all the years that has been competing Akko Kagari who is already with 2 second places, being disqualified in the first and in the second managing to win in pure race against the others, with the exception of Hellene, she is determined to win her trophy in a unique chance, it's her moment to say to herself that she came to make history, we haven't seen a world champion for years! The 2017 champion, Diana Cavendish, Hellene's older sister, who could be gunning for her second win and who knows, maybe also have a win that isn't decided by a disqualification! Amanda O'Neill, lost in 2017 by a doughnut, in 2018 had that fantastic race with the front pack and almost got a second place! And finally we have her... newcomer Semmer Williams, a first year girl who during these first few days of school has been surprising by her control on the broom equally, she could be a great competitor, being a unique moment where only first year students have been winning, we haven't seen a winner from other years since 2016! Will Semmer a newcomer be able to keep that chain of fast first year students going? Let's see how this race will unfold! Put your hands up!" Said Wangari cheering the event and everyone there putting their hands up, in the greatest anxiety to start that race.
All the witches were in their posts looking with seriousness for the way and soon it was starting to play a music played by the orchestra of Luna Nova that precedes the event being an opening, where in the crystal ball it was showing each one of the sectors with the pupils in foot facing the track with seriousness and later it was being shown each part of the course of the relay of brooms, beyond the decoration everybody was jumping of emotion the race will be intense and disputed.
"And now that the opening has been given let's wait here for the opening of the big broomstick race! Who will be the champion this time?" said the African witch.
The lights were starting to come on signalling the start, in the midst of this there was even a bit of a heat effect from the sun passing underneath the girls, a sunny day that was even a bit hot, in a contest that will get quite hot in Luna Nova, the red light goes out and Hellene simply shoots ahead.
"The lights come out and away we go! What a spectacular start from Hellene McLaren! She just smashed everyone behind her, this is the McLaren formula, they are in a league of their own, flying like rockets on their brooms! Like mother, like daughter! They are both legendary broomsticks!" comments the Kenyan.
Hellene is simply in her own race against time, trying to avoid the minimum mistake possible, she didn't hear anything but the wind passing by the broom and feeling the way through which she was flying with excellence, so much that the broom was already starting to release some sparks. In the back, Jasminka from the green team was the first to start, she managed to accelerate, but Lotte wasn't left behind either, she followed Antonenko's pace, also wanting to help Akko to have a chance to win.
"Meanwhile in the regular broom relay, it looks like Jasminka Antonenko is leading the pack that is not going in the extreme, what a contest we are going to have here! Lotte Yanson wants to stay behind the Russian for nothing! And then we have Barbara Parker who is being followed by Jeanne Dupont!" Wangari comments.
Hellene is overtaking everyone and calmly following the path she shows that she can do it, she was passing almost scraping the barriers that had at each curve, raising the most dust and sparks, showing a surreal control on the broom, the audience even jumps of emotion to see how she can pass with extreme ease with the broom even if in a very aggressive way.
Back there Lotte took advantage of the vacuum left by Jasminka to gain speed and not be affected by the resistance of the air, so she can gain more ground little by little and thus have more chances of getting close to the Russian, which she soon manages to pass and with that the audience jumps with emotion.
"Lotte Yanson takes second place and what a race! She has taken the vacuole, used it to get more momentum and is now managing to keep a bit of speed ahead of Jasminka Antonenko who is staying in line!" Wangari said.
The second position was not kept for so long, soon in the side by side speed, with the wind, the Russian was getting closer to the Finnish, and the two were getting side by side, little by little Antonenko was passing Yanson who couldn't go faster than her body could handle, Little did they know that behind them came Barbara and Jeanne who were gaining speed in that part and in the opportunity to catch the vacuum they start to grow more and get closer to those who are ahead and in that four brooms stay side by side with Parker being the one who was going faster.
"Woah! Woah! Woah! What an epic slipstream battle! I can't believe we're witnessing this right at the start!" Comments the African.
Hellene soon arrives in the second sector, she takes out a stopwatch from her pocket and as she presses it she gets a little frustrated, staying a little behind her mother's time, but at the same time she is rooting for Annabel to just keep running, as she has simply opened up a 15 second lead over the rest of the peloton.
"And here comes Hellene McLaren who came to dominate, but by only 0.429 seconds she was behind her mother's record, Laura McLaren was really a machine behind the broom, we have to applaud that such a record is kept standing for over 30 years, now we will see how Annabel Crème will do in this part of the track and also see who comes first from the group that comes with everything!" Comments the Kenyan.
And the group was again being led by Jasminka, who had more magical power to withstand the air resistance, but even so the others were still very similar to her, side by side getting closer in the second sector, where they land and are already changing the bracelets, to go out in fire, this time who got more speed was Constanze, Sucy used a bit of her potions and managed to gain an extra impulse that was enough to pass Constanze in a very fast instantaneous acceleration, leaving Hannah behind and also Mirage that got a bit stuck in Constanze's acceleration.
"Woah! What was that! Sucy Manbavaran's potion has given her an extra boost to achieve incredible speed, who knows, maybe then they can get closer to Annabel and cash in on all the time Hellene had managed to open up on them in the first sector!" Wangari comments.
The girls in the last sector were already looking apprehensive, with the exception of Akko that was simply meditating in tranquility and calm, since the race started she was staying in that state of total calm, while the others were very apprehensive, she didn't care about the 15 seconds that Hellene opened in relation to the others.
At the back the difference to Annabel was decreasing second by second with the speed that Sucy gained in the first 30 seconds of race, she could reach 300 km/h on her broomstick, but then she was losing speed and started to use the magic to try to block the wind and keep that constant speed until the first curve, meanwhile Mirage was starting to pass Constanze and showing that she still has a lot of wood to burn, so much that she is aiming at Sucy who is just ahead after opening 3 seconds in relation to the others in the back group.
"And we're off! It looks like Mirage is going to go all out to get the lead in this event! What an incredible race, Annabel will soon be in Sucy's sights, who has made it through the twisty stretch! 10 seconds and still going down! Looks like Annabel doesn't have it all in her!" Comments the Kenyan witch.
Sucy was losing speed, she was not as fast as Mirage who was still managing to keep growing in relation to the others, being even the fastest among all, with a control similar to Hellene, even McLaren was looking at that with an astonishment of such intensity, with a smile on her face, when she saw that Mirage overtook Sucy and thus took the second place while slowly approaching Annabel.
"And that's her! Mirage du Sud! She's in second position and still opening up on Sucy! She only thinks about one thing and that is the target! Annabel Crème who is just ahead! Will she be able to get that close to the Night Fall writer and make up for lost time?" comments the African.
It didn't end up being enough, but in the last sector they were discounted practically to the 3 seconds difference between the two, with Marianne taking the lead and everything being written for the victory of the purple team, since Hellene opened a very big lead, but nobody was waiting for Semmer Williams, she started to start as soon as Mirage passed the bracelet and went on a very intense acceleration.
"Woah! This first-year rookie really came through! Will she be able to cash in her 3 seconds?" Wangari comments.
Three seconds later the other squad arrived, led by Constanze who managed to gain more speed than Sucy, who left in the fourth position, then Hannah followed by Diana, the three were jumping one after the other with Akko showing a serene tranquility, the leaders of team RGB jump at the same time, as expected Kagari was further behind the others who were gaining more ground, but she did not seem to be bothered.
"And now it looks like things are going to get more heated! It seems that Atsuko Kagari is not on the ball, while her friends ahead of her have shot into the lead, she has dropped even slower, is she planning something?" comments the Kenyan, even surprised.
In the first sector...
POV Hellene:
She is conserving magic for de end, she is confident she will have enough to burn, she is not spending it now to gain more speed, I knew it, I can already see dat someone 'as a great chance of becoming de big winner, I will be rooting for you Akko, I know it is important for my team to win, but dis 'ere is a question of friendship too, you are de one who most deserves dis title from all of us.
"I can't believe we gave Akko so much power and she leaves like that!" Lotte said indignantly.
"Let 'er cook Lotte, just let 'er cook, you are seeing something dat will be historical, just watch and be surprised, Akko did it on purpose, she 'as a plan in mind" I say smiling, how clever, she really learnt the techniques from mama Laura.
"Semmer you'll be trouble too, if Akko doesn't win I dink we'll have a Williams carrying a trophy 'ere after so many years, dere 'asn't been a Williams winning de broom relay since Esther Williams when she was on Victoria McLaren's team in 1743, dat was many years ago" I say as I look at the race still on fire.
POV Diana:
Weird Akko nae letting go with everything, has she lost hope, she has been calm and quiet all this time, as if she was feeling something more in relation tae us, I am looking tae the side and she is just passing in the middle between me and Amanda, just before a curve that has tae brake a lot, I slow down, but she does nae seem tae slow down much, what I see afterwards is like a ghost passing by, that was humanly impossible, she made the curve with all the speed anyway and passed us... Did all that training with mum and in Japan make her that fast? I was the fastest on the broom and I am being overtaken.
POV Narrator:
The audience jumped with excitement when they saw Akko pass between the two of them and kept on going around the bends, practically scraping the barriers, to the point that the broom was already giving off sparks as it went quickly with the broom, no one believed that this was Atsuko Kagari, the same that started the first year being the worst student of Luna Nova.
"Woah! That was some wonderful overtaking! What a race! And we see Akko will be in this race, she did not come to play!" Wangari comments, and everyone had jumped out of their chairs by this time.
At the front Semmer was getting close to Marianne, demonstrating the speed she had to spare on her broom, what Hellene was just smiling when she saw the ability of the Williams that arrived in a session of pirouettes and left practically on the side of Leclerc but had a curve in which she was going practically with all the speed and it was dangerous to overtake, but the blonde was not afraid, she kept the outside line and overtook without slowing down, what the French ended up giving a reduction and it was in this that the public jumped of emotion.
"And it's impossible, Semmer Williams won't try... Oh for the nine witches! She really did! That girl is cold and nerves of steel! Broom must be going through hypothermia! Because wow, that girl is cold as ice" comments the Kenyan.
A little behind, was Akko, she was going through the same courses with a millimetric precision, practically kissing the protection barriers, leaving Diana and Amanda behind who were simply still speechless as Kagari piloted the broom, she gained an extreme precision and an even more aggressive style than before, going for everything or nothing.
She was already gaining eye contact with Marianne and was already getting behind the Frenchwoman's broom, gaining speed more and more, on that course that was on the longest straight.
"Looks like Akko has come to cook Marianne! Wow! This girl must have slept with her flight uniform beside her bed just waiting for this moment! She is going to come back with everything, this girl did not come to play!" comments the African witch.
340 km/h was the final speed that Kagari reached and she came out of the vacuum very close to Leclerc overtaking her like a rocket, there was nothing for the Frenchwoman to do about it, except to watch the Japanese girl like a steamroller overtaking her with a speed similar to the one Hellene reached the year before. McLaren herself watched that with a smile on her face as the broom let off sparks.
The next one was Semmer and she was three seconds away, but the speeds were similar mainly on the straight, with the exception of the corners where it was the Japanese who won.
"And now who will win this race? Rookie Semmer Williams or Samurai Kagari? This Akko just changed her name here in this race, now she's not Atsuko Kagari she's I'm/She Kagari, she's taking that flight to show the
world that pronouns are I'mHer, wow! Who could expect that from Akko!" The cameras focused precisely on the two of them and it was visible the serious expression of the Japanese woman, she was not playing games, just concentrating looking at the track, those eyes full of brightness were opaque and with concentration on what she saw ahead.
The section was starting to enter into curves, there was where Akko showed that she came to win, she took all the difference she had in relation to Semmer, the two were already in visual contact, but not as close as now, the Irishwoman had more straight speed, but did not have the precision in the curves that the Japanese was having, what the grandstand jumped in madness watching that event.
"Wow! SheAkko! She's cooking Semmer Williams! This girl is coming to run for her life that day, she has embodied the McQueen lightning bolt inside her! She must be feeling the speed now!" Comments the Kenyan witch.
As they come to more turns, simplyAkko sees the opportunity, she overtakes Semmer, but Broom takes a skid, but still blocks the outside line and doesn't let the Irishwoman through, which the crowd jumped out of their seats and then came the next turn where the Japanesewoman gave a nice advance, but there it was coming down to the home straight, where Semmer has a superiority.
"Yes! How perfect! On the side! What a brilliant move! This is the most beautiful overtaking of all time! The Samurai Kagari! Atsuko Kagari! She Kagari! She showed why she came! She cooked Semmer Williams! Wait a minute there's still a straight" Comments the African witch and at that no one could watch the race sitting down any more.
The attention turned to Akko and Semmer in the final straight, Hellene looked at that with a smile on her face, alreadyAkko's colleagues were apprehensive, the teachers were cheering for Semmer with the exception of Chariot who was rooting for the Japanese girl, it was all going towards a possible victory for Kagari or Wiliams, but the straight was the place of the Irish girl who was slowly passing the one with crimson eyes.
POV Akko:
Semmer passed me but I saved it for the end, I did not leave with that initial boost for this moment I came cooking for this time, I start releasing more magic I gain more speed, I feel the turbulence, I take off everything that protects me to focus on gaining maximum speed, I feel the wind ripping me, but it's all or nothing to get the best here! It is my chance, I am sorry Semmer, but I have been wanting this trophy for years.
POV Narrator:
The flakes in both brooms were flying everywhere behind both, causing a spectacular effect to watch, everyone watching the race was apprehensive, at the same time getting excited as Akko gained more speed in relation to Semmer, managing to have more acceleration, winning even with the wind ripping her, she was reaching a level where she would never reach.
At the finish line the Japanese woman manages to go through half a broom compared to Semmer and even has a picture of what that finish looked like, with the crowd having no idea who came out the winner.
"And wow! What was that! Atsuko Kagari! Samurai Kagari by half a broom! She won the race and showed she deserves that trophy! What a spectacular contest! I can't even speak for myself! A third year student breaks the chain of only first year students winning" Wangari comments, and upon receiving the news of Akko's victory everyone jumps in euphoria.
POV Akko:
Did I win? Did I make it? I passed Semmer by very close at the end, I land the broomstick I feel pains all over my body because of the wind, but I made it at the end, training was very useful to make it, I am finished, I see the girls coming down from the bleachers and they came jumping on me, celebrating, to the point of getting up and shouting my name, I was crying with emotion I can't believe I managed to win.
"Akko! Akko! Akko! Akko! Akko! Akko! Akko!" The intense training I did with the McLaren lady was worth it.
"And the champion of the 2019 broom relay is her! Atsuko Kagari our familiar Akko who today showed herself to be Samurai Kagari! What speed! She deserves all that admiration! We have followed her for all these years and now she has won!" Said Wangari to me and I am crying, I can't believe I made it, I see Diana soon arrives in front of Amanda.
I get off the girls and run towards my girlfriend, I give her the biggest hug and we stare at each other with the biggest romantic expression, but I'm holding myself to... Forget it, Diana ended up acting anyway, she gave me the biggest kiss and everyone still celebrated, yay! I did it.
"And nothing like a kiss to reward this victory that was picked up byAkko!" Wangari said.
Shortly afterwards when it was time to hand out the trophies...
I am happy about this, I finally won something that Chariot also managed to achieve, she must be proud of me now, the headmistress arrives with the trophy and comes to me, Lotte and Sucy, she hands me that wonderful trophy, now I have this achievement in my hands, after giving it my all.
"Are you really going to give her the trophy Holbrook?" Said Professor Finnelan picking on me.
"Rules are rules Anne, Akko won in a fair way, there is no reason to disqualify her, not even for the kiss that happened, it is not in the rules that this gives a disqualification, so she won in a correct way, we have nothing to do, it is to respect the traditions" She said releasing the trophy in my hand.
"You are lucky Miss Kagari, you could have been disqualified" said the teacher and I remained calm.
I arrive to the side of my friends and we go taking the picture, with the trophy in hands I hold it with two hands raising it on high and with a big smile I look at the camera, now I am in the pictures of winners, I jump for joy, after the picture comes all the students that come to lift me now with the trophy in hands even take more pictures of the day, I am so happy, I finally won and got this achievement.
POV Hellene:
She deserved it and very much so, Akko really gave it 'er all, Mama Laura 'as a magic touch for coaching, but I'm no fool, I know de headmistress delivered dis in very poor taste, I could see 'er face pretending and teacher Finnelan's in disgust, so much so dat I look at dem and I'm starting to lip read.
"Why did you do that Miranda? Now we have this mundane in the winners"
"It's not the end of the world Anne, she won, but she's a third year student, it's not like this win of hers is going to have any merit, better her winning now as an established worldling than when she competed in 2017 being a heretical worldling, you have no idea how I wanted to disqualify her"
"Now the whole school will be even more on her side, we have a second Laura McLaren amongst us, don't you see that Holbrook?"
"I understand very well, but let's not talk about it now, the schoolgirls can listen in, you have no idea how scared I am of a Laura McLaren showing up here again"
She even looks at me noticing dat I was staring at dem and den walks away, as if noticing dat I was reading 'er lips, as I knew, dey set up to disqualifyAkko in dat first race, dey tried in dat one, but she won fair and square.
"You saw it too dinnae ye" said my sister putting her hand on my shoulder.
"Dis headmistress does not sit well with me Diana, I 'ave my suspicions about 'er already" I tell her.
"Holbrook? The headmistress may have her faults, but she just wants tae keep the rules, she is nae a bad person, she took Chariot in remember, she has nae expelled Akko until today and let her study here, I dinnae think she is a bad person, she is just a conservative person, it is obvious that it would be controversial fae her tae accept Akko's victory" Explain my sis, but I don't think so.
"Dis woman stinks a lot, I'm sure she's no good, she must 'ide something from us dat we don't know, but anyway, let's celebrate with Akko" I say to Diana and so we do when we see her all excited.
A little later in the halls of Luna Nova, looking at the portraits...
POV Akko:
Now it is my portrait that is here next to the others, Hellene last year, Diana last year when I entered Luna Nova, Chariot in 2006, Mrs McLaren in 1987, 1988 and 1989, now me 30 years after Diana's mother won her last one, I am one of the winners, what I have worked hard to achieve... Now I have definitely achieved.
"Ye've been here fae half an hour now Akko, that was really special fae ye love" said my girlfriend.
"You have no idea how it was... It is like a weight off my back, since I competed in the first broom relay I wanted to win, now there was no one to take this trophy out of my hands, I have to truly thank all of you who supported me in this" I say to Diana with a smile on my face.
"It was yer skill, that's what my mother would say tae ye, ye managed tae show that ye are a power on the broom, I am very proud of yer evolution Akko, congratulations my love" she said turning to me and I even took the opportunity to give her a kiss.
POV Narrator:
Akko manages to win an achievement that she had been chasing for years, but this time in her last chance with a lot of training and practice, she can win one of Luna Nova's broom relays, which was seen as a controversial victory by the administration of the academy of witchcraft because a mundane that in the first year was the student ended up turning history and showing why she is worthy of being considered one of the best students. The Luna Nova press made a point of exalting Kagari's victory as epic and that marked the history of new times. Kimberly, Joanne and Wangari didn't spare any compliments, leaving a picture of the Japanese girl in the middle of the crowd holding her high with the title of "Unbelievable victory for Samurai Kagari".
See you, Broom racers...