or the adventures of Hansie van
den Broek and friends
The Gnome stoutly
maintains that these stories are all Cobweb's fault, even though he is a willing
and complicit partner in their conception - he wrote the first of Hansie's adventures,
and like Topsy they just growed. But it was Cobweb who found Hansie drinking alone
in the bar in her head where characters come, and who felt sorry for him. Why,
given that this was the case, she should have thought it kind to send him to the
Gnome, Goddess only knows. However, we soon discovered that he was well known
to some other characters of hers, and the lot of them have just taken over in
a quite ridiculous fashion. We are going to have to put a stop to it, we really
are. Only the Gnome has such a weakness for rugby players. . .
Naturally,
Cobweb's recollection of how we got here is slightly different. The Gnome didn't
write the first of these tales, she did (the Gnome claims this is a prequel, and
doesn't count because Hansie wasn't in it). Piet de Vries was the very first of
these people, but he made such a meal of telling her his story that she locked
him in a dark folder for six months to come to his senses. Hansie was introduced
to the bar by Piet, and she sent him to the Gnome in the misplaced hope of keeping
both of them out of trouble while she spent a week in Reality. She doesn't approve
of either of them drinking alone. Hansie isn't supposed to be the hero, and when
she has a moment to sort out both him and the Gnome, There Will Be Some Changes
Made. Anyway, whoever heard of sexy rugby players? Cricketers, yes, but rugby
players? She denies categorically writing any of these specifically to amuse the
Gnome. And she huffs about them creeping into Fran's stories, and having to sort
out the timeline...
Team Games - the Prequel, or
Not, depending on whom you believe
Hard Sell - clap hands (to bottoms), here
comes Hansie
Aftermath - the boys get along
like a house on fire, and everyone gets burned
,
2011