Brandy and Pucks, The Fifth

Brandy and Pucks

The skater and the wordmistress

by Kadmus Greningen

It was hardly noticed amid the general uproar following Te Staff's humbling of Te Lughaus last weekend, but certain of our noted spies among the fairer contingent reported to me that Sherman Reinhardt actually picked up an Anvorian rose that had been flung onto the ice at the close of the match.

No surprise to see roses on the ice. The thorny Borschland rose is, of course, one of the symbols of our city, after the legendary, flowering Rod of Honor that last flowered on its own, we think, some 300 years ago, and is still in its case in Te Staffhaus, and we are waiting for it to flower again.

Also no surprise to see a player pick up a rose. Christoph Anselm skates off from every game with a veritable bouquet. If any of the flingers catches his eye, they are entitled to a kiss.

Our Amerikanische had to this point picked up no roses, much to the dismay of the fair maidens of Staff Borsch, and many have left off throwing them, as roses in winter are expensive to import from the glass houses of Anvoria for no chance at a kiss.

This time, however, there was on Messer Reinhardt's part a dip of the knee and a delicate fingering of the flower, and when he skated over to the Players Ingress to the locker room, he identified his gift-giver-- none other than (if one can believe it) the young poetess Rachael Martijnz.

Miss Martijnz is not given to shallow romance, if we can believe the gossip sheets. It appears that as a girl she was disappointed with a seminary student who married the daughter of a steel magnate.

But as one who has always admired the outside world and even studied English, our poetess might with great reason wish to make the acquaintance of Sherman Reinhardt.

Yet my spies also tell me, that it is possible our goal scorer and the wordsmith have had a prior acquaintance, at the Grand Social three weeks ago, where it is sure they danced, or rather, she taught him somewhat to dance, after he trod on her feet.

I know that fans of sport all over Borschland are waiting for the sequel of this story. It is not so irrelevant to the ice. Many athletes who fall in love play better or worse because of the love. On vill zeen: we shall see.