They looked up to see Sollentude on the staircase below. He narrowed his eyes. “Well, this is timely; Master White has decided on a suitable consequence for your antics in the forest. Some of the apprentices have been clearing out the archive rooms to facilitate the harnessing of the hundred and there is all manner of old machinery for oiling, cleaning and testing. It’s now your responsibility.” He smiled meanly. “It’s been sent over to the shed.”

They exchanged looks of despair.

“Well? What are you waiting for?”

*

The machinery was a tangled pile of metal.

Prue felt a tightness in her chest at not being able to go and find her journal straight away, but there was nothing she could do. “Come on. The sooner we get stuck in, the sooner we finish,” she said.

“These things look ancient,” said Agapantha. “My parents would have these in a museum.”

But to Prue there was a certain beauty in the broken. “There’s nothing wrong with them. With a bit of adapting and imagination they can become whatever you’d like them to be,” she said, recognizing some as similar to those they used at home. “This hasn’t been touched for a year, maybe two.” Prue pulled a hunk of metal from the pile. “It’s just like the hoppity wrench we have at the farm!”

It had completely seized and was battered and bent, but she instructed the others on which tools to fetch and they began untangling the pile and laying out the parts on the ground beside the vegetable patch. Prue found some oil in the shed and Agapantha and Edwin started helping her clean and grease the joints of the hoppity wrench, while she reconnected and straightened components. When they had finished, Prue rooted around in the shed and found an ion battery plate.

“It’s had a rough life, but you never know,” she said, slotting it into place.

Nothing happened.

“Well, that was a waste of time.” Edwin huffed.

Then there was a whirr of cogs within and a squeak as the hoppity wrench slowly bobbed down, then straightened.

“Wait, it’s the restrainer!” Prue unhitched it.

Its legs suddenly sprang into action and it dipped up and down a few times, making them laugh, then with unexpected speed, it hopped off towards the orchard.

They ran after it, giggling and shoving each other.

“Whoever catches it gets all of the apple doughnuts Lavender left for us!” Prue called.

“That’s hardly fair to someone who doesn’t eat!” Edwin said.

“All right, we’ll buy you a new hat!” Agapantha laughed.

Before they knew it, ferns were whipping at their ankles and they were jumping through the low-lying forest fog and mulchy leaves.

“Where’s it gone?” Prue called.

“There!” Edwin said, pointing east where the hoppity wrench sprang above the fog line, hopping deeper into the trees.