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lazy-goblin · 7 years ago

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Latibær í Vandræðum (LazyTown in Trouble) - Chapter 25/25

The thrilling conclusion!

(Well, this is it. Feel free to message me with any questions or comments you might have, but please don’t be too mean. Let me know if you think I should try translating any more LazyTown books.)

Original story by Magnus Scheving (1997)

Illustrations by Halldór Baldursson

Chapter 25:

Peggy Darts came running up and whispered into Íþróttaálfurinn's ear what she had seen and heard.

"I suspected that," said Íþróttaálfurinn.

"What do you suspect and what did you see?

Who are you anyway?" asked Officer Lolli, confused.

"Peggy Darts is my name," she replied, not even out of breath, "The car has, you see, been stolen and false numbers put over the correct ones. The case is gradually becoming clear."

"What?! A stolen car? A lady elf in running shoes? I don't understand this!" said Lolli and turned himself around.

Nenni was going to open the door to get some fresh air into the gym but he was not successful.

"What is this?" he grunted, tugging the handle.

Siggi came to help him and took his waist. They both pulled with everything they had, but nothing happened.

"We're locked in," Nenni sobbed and sat of the floor.

Siggi gathered the other kids. They all tried to open it, but the door didn't budge. It didn't open even a little crack.

"We're prisoners," shouted Goggi.

"I want to go home," Siggi Sæti whined.

"You can't," said Solla, embracing him.

"What do we do now?" asked Maggi Mjói.

The kids sat down, utterly hopeless, on the floor next to Nenni with tears in their eyes.

Íþróttaálfurinn lead the way to the gym and stopped there. He knocked vigorously on the door. From inside, they heard Nenni say in a small voice:

"What's the password?"

"Open in the name of the law!" shouted Officer Lolli, pushing to the front of the group.

The kids were very glad to hear him.

"We can't open it!" they called, talking over each other.

Lolli puffed himself out, causing a button on his uniform to give out and fly toward Stína Símalína. Íþróttaálfurinn seized the flying button so it didn't cause any harm.

"The doors are well locked," said Íþróttaálfurinn and brought Lolli his button.

"Oh, is it?" said Lolli, sweating.

When the kids heard Íþróttaálfurinn, smiles came over their faces. They knew that he would save them.

"Move away from the door," said the elf, walking a few meters away from the building.

"Are you going to break down the door?" asked Edward in surprise.

"Yes, exactly!" answered the elf and prepared to spring into action.

"Wait a minute!"

Edvard removed the buckle from his belt and stuck in into the keyhole. After a brief moment, the door opened.

Íþróttaálfurinn walked calmly to the building and looked at Edward who couldn't hide his smile.

"What are you doing here?" Nenni Níski asked the elf when he, Edward, Peggy Darts, the Mayor, Officer Lolli, Halli and Halla came into the gym.

The kids were surprised by this unexpected visit, but happy to be free. Íþróttaálfurinn and Edward asked about the machine and the kids explained how it worked as best as they could. They said that one day they would be made honoured citizens because they had done such a good job detoxifying the fruit.

"We're also allowed to eat as many sweets as we want," said Siggi Sæti, stuffing his face with caramels.

"Owowow, I'm sure to get a toothache," he added, ashamed.

Íþróttaálfurinn handed him a toothbrush and told him to go and brush his teeth well.

"Yes, I'd better. My teeth do hurt a bit," he said and hurried to the washroom.

"But who locked us in?" asked Solla.

"I'll tell you when the right time comes," said Íþróttaálfurinn.

"Would you be so kind as to show us this fruit-eater?" asked Edward.

"Do you mean the machine that detoxifies?" asked Goggi.

"Precisely!"

Goggi proudly showed them where the fruit went into the machine and exactly where they were detoxified.

"It's over there," he said and pressed the button.

Íþróttaálfurinn walked around the machine, sat down behind it and watched it for a moment.

"Lend me a screwdriver, a wrench and some pliers," he said, adjusting his hat.

It didn't take Peggy Darts long to gather together the tools and hand them to Íþróttaálfurinn who unscrewed the whole back of the machine. The kids could now look into the machine and see how it actually worked.

(labelled machine parts: “cans”; “fruit press”; “can lids”; “vitamin sucker”)

The kids couldn't believe their eyes as they stared at the machine. Goggi took off his glasses, polished them, and put them back on in order to see even better. The machine really did everything but what they thought it was supposed to do. The vegetables and fruits were not detoxified, but rather all crushed under a press and then slid down a tube into the basement. Íþróttaálfurinn opened a trapdoor in the floor and called for everyone to follow him. He then jumped down the stairs, with Officer Lolli following closely behind him, and the kids in single file. The kids watched, shocked, how the crushed fruit slid down into a big barrel that was directly under the machine.

They heard Stína Símalína shout from upstairs:

"Help me! I'm afraid of heights. You need to help me down the stairs!!"

Íþróttaálfurinn shot up, slung Stína on his back and carried her down the steps.

When everyone had come down, they inspected the barrel of crushed fruit and big sucker that stood beside it and was full of vitamin tablets.

"Rikki Ríki was going to make money and get rich from these," said Íþróttaálfurinn, sniffing one of the tablets.

"Many believe that tablets benefit them greatly, but as I've told you many times, kids, you will get enough vitamins if you eat good, healthy food." he added, looking seriously at the children.

(bubble: “Not everything is as it seems!”)

They climbed back up the stairs and Peggy Darts assisted Stína Simalina with the last steps. When they were up, Edward said that they needed to hurry to capture this Rikki Ríki.

"I will do it," said Officer Lolli, puffing himself out but holding both hands over the buttons on his jacket so they didn't give out.

"Lolli, you hide behind the door and grab Rikki when he comes in," said Íþróttaálfurinn, pointing at the door.

"Peggy, you hide up on the windowsill and let us know when you see him approaching the building," he continued.

"Will do," said Peggy Darts and darted off.

"Edward, you take care of the kids! Get behind the machine and wait there."

With that, he closed the door again and asked kindly asked Edward to lock it back up with his magic buckle.

He proudly walked across the floor, took off his belt, and removed the buckle.

Unfortunately, his pants ended up falling down all the way to the floor. Everyone burst out laughing, even Edward himself, who said that this wouldn't be the first time. He locked the door with the magic buckle and crept back behind the machine and refastened himself.

The kids waited anxiously.

It wasn't long until the screeching of tires was heard from outside and Peggy Darts whispered:

"He's coming, he's coming!!"

A second later a car door slammed and a key was put in the lock.

When Rikki stepped through the door, Officer Lolli jumped at him, grabbed his jacket and shouted:

"YOU ARE ARRESTED IN THE NAME OF THE LAW."

Rikki Ríki took off running with Lolli hanging on the jacket. The jacket ended up slipping off of him and he also lost his hat. With that, the true man was revealed.

This was indeed not Rikki Ríki at all, but the notorious thief and criminal, Glanni Glæpur.

"It's you...? I've heard a lot of ugly things about you. Police have been searching all over the country for you!" said Officer Lolli with the jacket in his arms.

He chased Glanni back and forth through the gym while Íþróttaálfurinn waited to see what happened. When Lolli was about to reach him again, he leaped over a pile of sacks of fruit. Lolli, on the other hand, was not nearly as nimble and ran at full tilt into the middle of the sack pile. Fruit rolled out all over the floor. Glanni Glæpur turned around, roaring with laughter at Lolli, who was lying splayed out flat amidst the fruit. He darted around the corner of the machine, still laughing, but he wasn't laughing for long because the kids were waiting there armed with tomatoes. They pelted him with the tomatoes! He looked like he was covered in ketchup as he stood and tried to shield himself from the barrage. He growled with rage and took off toward the front door. As he reached the door, Íþróttaálfurinn leaped forward, grabbed him and lifted him up so that he spun in the air. After that he turned him around in the air and set him back down. As soon as Glanni's feet touched the floor he dashed off but now in the opposite direction of what he had intended, heading into the gym.

Peggy Darts was quick to catch up to him, but he narrowly escaped her by climbing up the machine. The kids and elves all stood down on the floor and watched Glanni Glæpur, who had climbed high up and was clinging to a pipe on the machine.

"I'm not coming down, I'm never coming back down!" he shouted.

"You'll have to come down sometime!" Íþróttaálfurinn teased.

"Then I'll arrest you," called Officer Lolli, who was sitting in the middle of the fruit pile with a banana peel on his head.

"I knew that I could play all of you! I changed my name and everything was going so well until these silly elves showed up,"

"You come down from there immediately," shouted Peggy Darts, preparing to climb up the machine after him.

Glanni Glæpur cautiously came back down the pipe but he lost his footing and landed on his back on the conveyor belt, which carried him rapidly to the opening of the machine. A second later, he fell off the conveyor belt and into the machine. When he appeared on the computer screen with a terrified look on his face, Goggi pressed the button that was supposed to detoxify the fruit.

"Better detoxify you," he said and everyone laughed.

"Or preserve you in a can!!" said Solla Stirða, giggling.

"Officer Lolli, you see to Glanni Glæpur. I think he's stuck in his own machine," said Íþróttaálfurinn, helping Lolli to his feet.

The kids thanked the elves wholeheartedly for their help and were ashamed of themselves for having been so gullible. At that moment, Siggi Sæti came out of the washroom with his toothbrush and smiled his widest while he said:

"See what nice teeth I have."

He had been brushing his teeth the whole time, so he had no idea what had happened in the gym. He was alarmed when when he saw Glanni Glæpur inside the machine and shouted over him as he jumped up into Íþróttaálfurinn's arms.

"That's the biggest and ugliest tomato i've ever seen."

Everyone laughed loudly and agreed that Glanni Glæpur had got what he deserved. Edward stepped up on a chair and gave a speech about what he looked forward to staying in SunnyTown for his summer holidays. Peggy Darts was in agreement.

"But remember," said Edward finally, "that all that glitters is not gold. At first glance, a thing can seem harmless, but upon closer inspection it can be dangerous or hazardous. Therefore, always go with caution and think carefully about every step you take in life. My wish is that every step of yours will have a good outcome!"

That evening they held a big party there, where the old Mayor was reinstated.

(This illustration was at the end of the book. I’ve already posted it on it’s own with translation notes along with the unedited version. It’s here if you want to see it.)

//Glanni: I would have gotten away with it if it weren’t for you meddling elves!

<<previous chapter//

Well, that’s all she wrote folks. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed my attempt at bringing Latibær í Vandræðum to English-speaking audiences. I think it’s neat to see the differences between this and the play and to see how the characters have evolved over different adaptations. Ask box is open if you have questions or comments. :)

#lazytown #latibær í vandræðum #glanni glæpur í latabæ #last chapter! hope you liked it #:)

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