Frowning at her umbrella, which was now so stiff that it acted as a trampoline for the cabbage heads, bouncing them off in wild directions to strike innocent people, Jeannie gave up trying to make it behave. Really, it was not the umbrella’s fault. It was doing the best that it could under circumstances that it was not designed for. Truthfully, it was the cabbages’ fault.
A baleful glare was directed at the cabbage that started it all, still sitting on the counter. Jeannie frowned. Why had they not taken it when they had specifically asked for it? That did not make any sense. Her eyes scanned the frantic crowd in the bank, searching for the distinctive yellow and black the butterflies had been wearing. They were not at all interested in being inconspicuous, were they?
There they were, headed for the door carrying large bags. Had they put the leafy vegetable in there? They must be quite heavy. Though she was somewhat irritated by their rudeness, Jeannie had a soft heart and she did feel some sympathy for their current struggles. It could not be easy carrying something that heavy while still having cabbage raining down. Besides, she was tired of the cabbage herself.
Arms crossed, Jeannie blinked and nodded, and the cabbage ceased to fall. Instead there was a soft sucking sound and the remaining leafy projectiles began going up instead of down. A glance upwards showed a small vortex where the ceiling should have been, pulling the cabbage storm back into itself, spiraling smaller and smaller until it disappeared with a small pop and a giant gust of wind.
It was that final, unexpected puff of air that made Jeannie lose her grip on her umbrella. She cried out in dismay as it tumbled through the crowd, bouncing off of already-abused bank patrons. Excuses were murmured as politely as possible as she pushed her way after it, determined to catch the runaway umbrella. Focused on her goal, she never saw that it was headed directly for the giant butterflies.