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#1: Stacie at University (complete on p.8) Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:25 pm
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'Eustacia Benson?'

Stacie pressed her lips together and nervously smoothed down her brown tweed skirt.
'Yes, Madame,' she replied.
The tutor grinned at her and dropped her register onto the desk for a moment. 'You may call me Professor Smith, Miss Benson. You studied on the continent, did you not?'
Stacie grimaced inwardly as she felt the eyes of the rest of the class on her hot, red face. 'Yes, Professor. In Austria. Before the War, naturally.'
'Naturally,' came the reply, and the register continued. Stacie used the time to glance furtively around the room and study her new colleagues through her eyelashes. She listened to the names called out - they were a multicultural mix here at Oxford - but then she was used to that from school. Her breath quickened as she tried to decide who looked friendly and who did not. How was she to manage here, all alone. Would anyone like her? They hadn't, when she'd first attended school. But she was older now, wiser now - surely she could win some allies.

The rustle of pages roused her from her thoughts as she realised that everyone was opening their new textbooks. Unknown to her, her whole face brightened. The Professor saw it too, and marked it. All other worries slipped easily from Stacie's mind as her eyes caressed the familiar Latin words, their mutations, declensions, variations. She flicked the page back and saw the words sing together in long strings of sentences, each word changing just a little in accordance with its new meaning, flowing like water over an uneven bed.

The cool and even voice of the Professor interrupted her gaze. 'Why don't you start us off, Miss Benson?' Stacie smiled happily, and gladly complied.

Last edited by Róisín on Tue May 30, 2006 8:35 pm; edited 23 times in total

#2: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:37 pm
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That was lovely, thanks, Róisín. I hope Stacie does make some friends and enjoy her days at university.

#3: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:50 pm
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Thanks Róisín, that was really nice Very Happy

Kathryn

#4: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 6:13 pm
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Thanks, Róisín. I hope that Stacie will be able to make friends at university. It was lovely to see her 1st class.

#5: Author: Kat, Location: Abertawe

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 7:41 pm
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Good on Stacie!

(may we have just a little more Róisín? Pretty please? Very Happy

)

#6: Author: patmac, Location: Yorkshire England

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 7:54 pm
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Lovely, Róisín. I was there with Stacie and felt her emotions.

#7: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 8:07 pm
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That was lovely....

#8: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 10:31 pm
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Thanks Roísín - that was lovely Very Happy

#9: Author: Tara, Location: Malvern, Worcestershire

Posted: Thu May 18, 2006 1:04 am
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How nice to have her love of learning recognised and appreciated. Loved how her face lit up when she opened the book.

Thanks, Roisin.

#10: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Thu May 18, 2006 8:46 am
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Thanks Róisín - lovely.

#11: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Thu May 18, 2006 10:09 am
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Aw that was fabulous, thank you sweetie!

#12: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Thu May 18, 2006 12:27 pm
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Lovely, Roisin. It's a shame the CS couldn't accept her as she was, and cultivate her love of learning.

#13: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 1:06 pm
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That was lovely - thanks Róisín. I feel sure now that she will know she belongs Very Happy

Róisín wrote:

her eyes caressed the familiar Latin words, their mutations, declensions, variations. She flicked the page back and saw the words sing together in long strings of sentences, each word changing just a little in accordance with its new meaning, flowing like water over an uneven bed.

That's so beautiful - it makes me wish I could read Latin!

#14: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 2:23 pm
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Aw thanks guys. Maybe I will write some more Very Happy

#15: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 2:25 pm
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Yes, do! What happened to the pre - School At one that you had in St. Hilds?

#16: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 2:27 pm
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Embarassed

I thought everyone had forgotten about that Eilidh!
It was lost in the hacking. I still have it on my laptop and I meant to repost it maybe when I actually had it finished.

#17: Author: Kat, Location: Abertawe

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 2:58 pm
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More please Róisín! Very Happy

#18: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 3:13 pm
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Would love to read more of the Madge drabble if you get chance Roísín.

I did do Latin at school and it never had that effect on me, but I'm glad Stacie's happy!

#19: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 3:15 pm
—
Stacie folded her arm over her books and left the classroom when the lesson finished. Her lectures were exactly fifty minutes long - the university granted its pupils ten minutes to reach their next destination. There were twelve other students in her Latin grammar tutorial, but she had yet to learn any of their names. And now wasn't the time either, as she had to run to the other side of the campus for a history lecture.

Drops started to fall as she walked out of the building. She had an umbrella and quickly put it up. In one way, she wished that another of the students was there with her, to help her find the lecture hall. Everything was still so new. But then again, Joey's last advice to her had been to stand on her own two feet. If she had to do things alone well then, she just had to. Tilting her chin a little higher, she climbed the steps up to the concourse and made her way, quite by chance, to the right door.

#20: Author: Kate, Location: Ireland

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 3:20 pm
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Oh fabulous Róisín! Thanks for posting! Smile

I hope there's more...

#21: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 3:54 pm
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The huge red swing-doors stood forbiddingly before her. Taking a deep breath, she pushed one and took a step forward. Gasping a little, she found herself standing at the top of a long flight of steps. At either side of the steps were rows and rows of benches, with straight black forms before them. Scattered throughout the theatre were various other students, in the act of getting out their notebooks and pens. The faint rustling noises were swallowed up by the great dim cavern of the hall.

Some of the students were sitting in groups and laughing and joking quietly together. More were sitting alone, buried in their reading matter, or just gazing downward towards the blackboard and the lecturer's podium. Stacie walked forward a little uncertainly, as she tried to decide where to sit. She finally decided to go fairly near the front - this was a direct result of walking indecisively for so long.

She slid into a little four-seater side pew just as the professor let himself in through an almost-hidden door at the bottom of the steps. He smiled expansively at her. "How tall he is!" she thought. "Quite as tanned as Gottfried, and with the same blue eyes. But his hair looks as if he were in the Navy!"

Tapping a little on the tall desk before him, the professor cleared his throat and introduced himself. "And now!" he cried, in tones most unlike the demure tutor that Stacie had had in the last lesson, "Who can tell me what they know of Sophocles?"
Stunned into silence, the class remained silent. The professor grinned, showing even white teeth, and threw out his arms, as if to embrace the theatre.
"Come on! Oedipus Rex! His story was not unlike my own..." he finished laughingly. But he had scored a giggle from his young charges and thereafter they joined in the discussion.

#22: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 4:08 pm
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I think Stacie's in for a good time, despite her worries.

*sending bunny food to encourage more of this!*

Thanks Róisín.

#23: Author: Kat, Location: Abertawe

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 4:24 pm
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Huzzah!

Thank you Róisín Very Happy

#24: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 4:46 pm
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Glad there's more of this!

Thanks.

#25: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 5:26 pm
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Oooh...I wish some of my classics professors had been more like Stacie's!

Thanks Róisín, it's good to see more of this Very Happy

Kathryn

#26: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 6:18 pm
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Stacie was not shy in the classroom or in the lecture theatre, where she bursted with enthusiastic opinions and eager questions. But she did not know how to approach her classmates in a friendly way. She worried constantly, outside of the classroom, that she wouldn't come across well. Perhaps they thought her a know-it-all, as they had done at school when she first came? Maybe they just all had their own friends, and didn't need anymore. Indeed, that was how it seemed to her.

Tuesday morning, ten a.m., saw her sitting quietly in a small classroom awaiting the arrival of Professor Smith for another grammar tutorial. Stacie turned and smiled at the six silent people occupying her end of the table.
"Hello," she began. "I'm Eustacia. I, er, don't know that many people here. What about we all introduce ourselves?" she wound up brightly, though inside she was shaking.
The four boys kept their eyes downward as the two girls exchanged glances with each other. Then one of the boys muttered gruffly, "Stephen. From here, I mean, Oxford."
Stacie looked at him with grateful eyes. One by one they all said their name and suffixed it with the fact that they were from Oxford. Slowly, Stacie came to realise that they did, in fact, all come from the same village not so far away from the college.
"Oh my goodness," she whispered to herself in despair. "How embarrassing! I've made people who already know each other, introduce themselves! Oh, why didn't they tell me. Why did they let me go on?" Her attention to the grammar class that day was partial, to say the least. She found it hard to lose herself in the familiar structures on the page. Once Professor Smith had dismissed them with a smile, Stacie bundled her books together clumsily and left the room as quickly as she could.

#27: Author: La Petite Em, Location: Cheltenham

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 6:25 pm
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How embarrassing!! But they really should have said something!

#28: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 6:36 pm
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Well for goodness sake! How was she supposed to know? Couldn't one of the girls have said something?

Poor Stacie. Thanks Róisín.

#29: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 6:48 pm
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What Stacie didn't realise, and couldn't have been reasonably expected to realise until she was more than a few years older, was that her classmates had acted, not out of spite, but out of a shyness very similar to her own. They were as nervous as she about starting in the university. And the truth was, they were only acquaintances from home, rather than real friends. But then, poor Stacie couldn't know this.

Her timetable on Tuesday had a big gap in the middle. After the ten a.m. class was over, she was free until three that afternoon. She slung her paraphenalia into the leather satchel that Madge and Jem had presented her with on her last evening with them, and walked towards the campus gates. On reaching those, she took a sharp right. She was making for home, or at least, for the room she was currently renting. It was a brisk fifteen minute walk through leafy suburbs, but it was not a walk that she enjoyed. Shame and embarrassment were still circling through her mind. The tears had started to rise as she fumbled with the keys and by the time she had let herself into the bare little bedroom, all she was fit for was throwing herself face down on the bed and crying.

#30: Author: Kat, Location: Abertawe

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 6:53 pm
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Sad

Come on Stacie, you're made of better stuff than that!

(Though I probably would have been howling as I reached the gates *g*)

Please be nice to her Róisín!

#31: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 7:18 pm
—
"Eustacia?" Joan's soft voice came through the door, and Stacie sat up, rubbing her eyes. "Can I come in?"

"Yes, yes, of course," Stacie managed to say without choking. Her fit of crying was mostly over now. "You know," she added a little shakily, "you really must call me Stacie. I can't think of anyone that calls me by my full name anymore. It was rather the done thing to shorten our names at my school, you see."

Joan smiled and knew better to say anymore. She was four years ahead of Stacie in university - she was actually conducting research for her M.A. in poetry. She had rented the room above the one that Stacie was in now, since she had begun university. Now she glanced round the room and seized on its state as a way to change the subject and distract the younger girl.
"These walls are so bare, Stacie," she offered. "And the floorboards are naked too. Haven't you brought anything with you to soften the room?"
This had never even occurred to Eustacia. She shook her head, dumbly, though when she looked around she could appreciate what Joan was saying.
"Haven't I ever shown you my room? No? Why don't you come upstairs now then. Go on, I can give you tea," here Joan glanced at her watch, "it's just past time for elevenses anyhow."

Stacie smoothed her hair down as well as she could with her hands and with a final wipe at her eyes, got up and followed the elder girl up the stairs. Joan's room door was a little open and the soft glow of a lamp was leaking through the crack. They went inside and Stacie immediately felt better. The room was no bigger than her own, but it was so different in character! The walls were a soft muted mauve, and the floorboards had been polished a dark walnut colour. Flung over them in logical places were forest green rugs. Fresh green and white gingham curtains hung from a rail over the window, and a matching little curtain hung from the bedside locker. There was a folding bookshelf affair set up at the foot of the bed, and this was crammed with books on Joan's special research project, as well as some delightful novels of the latest kind. Under the window stood an old writing desk, well-used to judge by the inkstains and scraps of paper that covered it. In the opposite corner of the room, in a place that perfectly caught the light of this early afternoon sun, was a tiny table set with a dainty teaset, and two shabby but comfortable chairs standing to attention on either side of it.

This Joan made for immediately.
"I have this," she said, brandishing a small electric kettle proudly, "that Mama gave me when I first moved here. It's so much more convenient, don't you think?" As she spoke, she was filling it with water and switching it on. Stacie immediately remembered her manners. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Joan smiled privately, but outwardly she appeared innocent as she replied, "Oh yes, the tealeaves are in the first little drawer of that chest there, yes - that's it. Be a dear and shove some in the pot?"
In just less than five minutes, a very pretty little tea awaited the two girls. Joan tried hard to put Stacie in a better mood, and she succeeded, but she could not prise from the girl what had caused her earlier outburst. Stacie flatly refused to speak of it. She turned the conversation instead to possible decorations she could bring to her own room downstairs. When Joan's half-hour break from her research was up, Stacie looked and felt decidedly happier. But her character had been hardened that day against her classmates. And when she met some of them again at the three o'clock lecture, not only did she decline to make conversation with them, but she bent all her energies into not even catching their eyes. Her chin was now up firmly than ever before.

#32: Author: Sarah_G-G, Location: Sheffield (termtime), ? any other time!

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 7:52 pm
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What a shame for her first start at meeting people! Sad

I hope she starts to feel better about the situation soon.

Liking this very much, by the way Very Happy

#33: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 8:23 pm
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Poor Stacie

I'm glad she's met Joan - she seems lovely Very Happy

#34: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 8:27 pm
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Joan's not an ex Chaletian is she?

Hope Stacie comes to realise it was not malice.

Thanks Phil

#35: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 8:35 pm
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Poor Stacie, that was not a very auspicious beginning with the group from Oxford; thank goodness Joan was nice. My first thought was Joan Baker Embarassed

Really silly, I know!

Thanks, Róisín.

#36: Author: Kat, Location: Abertawe

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 9:38 pm
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*giggling at Fatima* She's the only Joan who really makes herself felt in the books though, so it's natural to think of her first Smile

Thank you Róisín, for the update, but please let Stacie have some friends soon!

#37: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 9:48 pm
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Poor Stacie. Those first few days at university are exciting but they can be difficult too.

#38: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 10:03 pm
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Thanks, Róisín. I'm sorry that Stacie feels embarrassed over what happened with the other girls. I'm glad that Joan is so friendly.

#39: Author: Changnoi, Location: New Mexico, USA

Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 12:55 am
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Oh, so nice. You've made this very realistic, I think. I remember how hard it was when I began university/college. Feeling very out of it. I think it's a lot harder for Stacie. Whenever she's tried to be her "real self" in the past, she's been snubbed for it. It must be so hard for her to try again.

Chang

#40: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 12:29 pm
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Thanks Róisín, this is making me feel very glad that my best friend from school and I ended up doing the same course and the same place!

This is fab Róisín!

Kathryn

#41: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 12:36 pm
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Ohhh this is so familiar! Poor poor Stacie.

Thank you Róisín

#42: Author: Alice, Location: London, England

Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 2:11 pm
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Just seen that you decided to continue this Róisín.

It can be so hard making friends. I hope things improve for Stacie.

#43: Author: grover, Location: Dublin

Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 2:30 pm
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Gosh,reading this,felt like I was back in uni myself!

Really like this,Roisin. Very Happy

#44: Author: Michelle, Location: Near London

Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 2:51 pm
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Poor Stacie. At least she gets on well with the lecturers, though, and Joan seems lovely. Thank you, Roisin.

#45: Author: Tara, Location: Malvern, Worcestershire

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 12:10 am
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You've caught so well the horrendous self-consciousness and awkwardness of trying to find your niche when you are in a totally new situation and know no-one. Worse for Stacie, of course, because she's failed at it so spectacularly in the past. I do hope she settles soon, so that her social difficulties don't spoil the joy of learning for her.

Thank you, Roisin.

#46: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 1:50 pm
—
The days passed by in a rather lonely routine for Stacie. She had been used to the family breakfasts at the Russells, served by Marie or Rosa, but now she woke and ate alone. There was no dining room in the little house and she ate silently in the kitchen. Joan was a later riser, given as she was to late-night inspirations, and the other two housemates were always gone by this time. They were third year B.Sc. students in chemistry; and bacteria, as they were often fond of saying, waits for no man! Carol and Kester were great friends and Joan had speculated more than once to Stacie that she could see them someday becoming engaged.

After she had taken some breakfast, Stacie would shoulder her satchel and make for either the college library, where she would catch up on some of the course reading, or else to one of the classrooms or lecture theatres, if she had a class at this time. Lunch was the hardest time of the day for her. She had tried eating alone in the dining hall, but felt conspicious among so many groups of laughing friends. After a couple of days of this, she had tried eating outside at one of the many picnic tables. But October was almost over and the weather was turning resolutely worse. In the end, she bolted home to eat her lunch there. Sometimes Joan was there and then Stacie revelled in the conversation. But it was always a hurried affair to which she could donate twenty minutes at the most, the house being the walk away that it was.

The afternoons were filled either with more classes or else more library work. Stacie missed the school routines which ensured her exercise and relaxation. Oxford did have many clubs and societies, but she had not yet summoned up the courage to petition any of these for membership. At five or six, just before it got really dark, she walked home. Dinner was the highlight of the day in many ways. Carol and Kester were usually present for one thing. This was the first time in her life that Stacie had complete control over her own diet, and she was enjoying experimenting. Joan loved cooking different things and she was teaching Stacie a similar appreciation. On Saturdays the two would go to the markets to find the strangest and most exotic ingredients that they could, and then spend the week working out new recipes to use them.

Kester was the proud owner of a radio and before bed, the four would tune into whatever show or concert was playing. Joan's hobby was knitting for charitable causes. Carol was fascinated with machinery and she usually managed to persuade Kester to help her with whatever project she was tinkering with. When Kester wasn't doing this, he was out training with his team for he was a keen rugby player. Stacie loved to hear them talk and drop in the occasional contribution herself. Bed could come early or late, depending on how long these banters lasted. She usually fell asleep with her thoughts torn in two - happily musing over the evening's debate while also dreading the following morning's promise of more social situations to deal with.

#47: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 2:01 pm
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This is bringing back memories!

#48: Author: Changnoi, Location: New Mexico, USA

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 2:17 pm
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This is very seriously bringing back memories. Crying or Very sad

And I don't even remember how I went from being in the pit of despair to finding my friends, although I recall bonding over my good friend's then-roommate's hobby of practicing guitar in the stairwell...

Chang

#49: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 2:58 pm
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Thank you Róisín, I think you've captured the start of university really well. Poor Stacie, it's so hard to feel comfortable especially when it feels like everyone around you has already made friends and settled in. I'm glad she gets on with her housemates though, it's a start.

Kathryn

#50: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 3:18 pm
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I'm glad she's happy where she's living and hope she soon starts to find her feet with her fellow-students.

Thanks Róisín

#51: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 3:47 pm
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On her second Wednesday, Stacie woke in a grey mood. It was raining outside and she didn't relish walking in and being landed with wet feet all day. Her gaze was absent as she rolled over and decided to take the morning off. "After all," she reasoned sombrely, "I am nineteen now, nearly twenty. Nobody's going to notice anyway."
It was quite lunchtime before she surfaced. She wasn't hungry or thirsty. She had only moved from under the bedclothes because her back was starting to ache a little for want of exercise. She was used to this problem however and knew to perform the little muscle-flexing movements that eased this sort of pain. Her eyelids were heavy and her face slightly flushed from leaning against a pillow all day. Catching sight of this in the mirror, Stacie became suddenly angry. She wasn't sure what at, but it directed itself inwards regardless. Her nostrils flared and her eyes became suddenly wet as she threw down the sponge-bag she had just picked up.
"Why should I bother," she muttered to herself.

In one way, she was right. Nobody had noticed her absence from the day. Or at least, nobody she knew did. But the elderly porter in the library marked it to himself that the thin girl with the eagerly studious eyes was missing. One or two of her more observant classmates noticed the absence of that girl who preferred to keep herself to herself. Her lecturers presumed that she would return the next day - the students could have three days away from the register without seeking permission. Joan hadn't noticed, because Stacie had kept quiet in the room below, and Joan hadn't woken at any rate until nine.

So it was a bitterly lonely and despairing girl that made her way through the leafy lanes that afternoon. Her usually gleaming hair was dull, scraped back as it was into a loose, careless ponytail. Her nose and forehead were shiny, flushed and her skin still crinkled in places from her long lie-in. Her skirt didn't swish, as it normally did, because it was too wrinkled. And her lips were downturned. She was going to be somewhat late for the tutorial at two p.m., but she had already decided that she didn't care.

Last edited by Róisín on Mon May 22, 2006 3:50 pm; edited 1 time in total

#52: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 3:50 pm
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Oh dear Stacie, that's not a good pattern to get into *speaking from bitter experience Wink

*

Thank you for the plentiful updates!

Kathryn

#53: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 3:50 pm
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Poor Stacie. Please can she get a friend soon, Róisín?

#54: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 3:54 pm
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Poor Stacie Sad

#55: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 4:09 pm
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Her devil-may-care attitude withered a little in front of the classroom door. This was a new tutorial, not set up until the second week of term. She had yet to meet the tutor or any of her new classmates. It was a pity that she didn't realise that this could be an opportunity, but the black cloud lay heavily on her shoulders that day. She tapped gently before twisting the doorknob.

A pleasant-looking young man was seated behind the professor's desk. He smiled shyly at her as she entered and took a spare seat.
"Hello, welcome to Late Antiquity in the West," he said softly. "I'm Kenneth - I'm in the final year of my D.Phil. course and I'm assisting Professor Johnson by tutoring this course. I've just been explaining this to the others - oh yes," he added, "the maps you'll be needing are just coming to you now." Stacie glanced around and saw the other students passing a pile of paper around the room, each taking one before passing it on. She took it in her turn, and found herself gazing down into a beautifully copied map of Europe in the fourth century A.D. She forgot her dark humour momentarily as she whistled internally at the vast amount of information depicted in the small piece of paper. Her eye caught something and she exclaimed involuntarily.
"Oh! You've even managed to show the Thuringian's path westward!"

Ten pairs of eyes immediately swivelled in her direction and the tutor gave an amused smile. "Thank you, yes." Then he narrowed his eyes a little. "Benson - your surname?"
Eustacia blushed a little and nodded. She knew where this was going - three or four other professors in the department had introduced themselves to her already for the same reason. She anticipated Kenneth's next question.
"Yes, my father was Professor Benson from the School of Greek Studies." Then she gasped a little, to herself, at her own audacity.
Luckily, Kenneth was too busy thinking to notice her rudeness. He smiled again and his eyes held a faraway look. Then he looked at her again and his expression was very sympathetic.
"I remember Prof. Benson. He was my tutor and lecturer in Greek grammar and Greek literature when I was a first year like yourself. He made a big impact on me."
Stacie nodded, her eyes suddenly filling with tears. Oh what was happening now?! She hadn't felt sorrow for her parents in years. What was this place doing to her - she felt all at ends with herself today and utterly unable to control her emotions.

#56: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 4:11 pm
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I'd forgotten about Stacie's father and how tough that must have been to have his name hanging over her. At least Kenneth seems nice Very Happy

Kathryn

#57: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 7:50 pm
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Poor Stacie. Crying or Very sad

Hope things improve for her soon.

#58: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 8:17 pm
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Oh Róisín, this is just perfect! Thank you.

#59: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 8:44 pm
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Thanks, Róisín. I'm sorry that it has made her feel emotional. I hope she will be able to make more friends soon.

#60: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 8:49 pm
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I hope Stacie can start widening her friendships. I remember just how difficult the transition from school can be.

#61: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 9:02 pm
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Poor Stacie, I hope she relaxes soon and makes some friends.

#62: Author: La Petite Em, Location: Cheltenham

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 9:32 pm
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Please can Stacie get some friends soon, please? Sad

This is great Roisn, but the thought of college now slightly scares me!!! Laughing

#63: Author: Kate, Location: Ireland

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 10:49 pm
—
Thanks so much Róisín, I'm so glad you decided to continue this. (The melancholic mood perfectly fits mine tonight too!)

#64: Author: Tara, Location: Malvern, Worcestershire

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 11:44 pm
—
I almost wept over her lonely lunchtimes. It mustn't separate her from her work - but of course it will.

I have great hopes of Kenneth.

Thanks, Roisin.

#65: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 11:23 am
—
Awwww - poor Stacie.

And how hard it must be for her to have everyone asking her 'are you related to ...' all the time, and probably be seen as her father's daughter, rather than herself Sad

Thanks, Róisín

#66: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 3:52 pm
—
Poor Stacie, she's not having the best beginning, is she. I really hope that she meets some nice friendly people soon. Thanks, Róisín.

#67: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 4:29 pm
—
*demands more* Wink

#68: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 5:09 pm
—
Stacie left that tutorial feeling more than a little down. For one thing, she hadn't thought about her parents' death in that way for a long time. Another thing was the roomful of new students that she hadn't got to know. She took this as a personal failure and berated herself. She didn't bother going to the library that afternoon but just trudged homeward, feeling very sorry for herself. She could not have known then, but she was in the throes of depression. She had always leaned towards a solitary and melancholic nature, but this enforced loneliness had turned it into something more. She was ill-equipped to deal with this herself, and it was only made worse by the fact that she didn't recognise it for what it was, but continually chastised herself for her attitudes and moods.

She arrived at the house at four. Joan was in the kitchen with a man that Stacie had never seen before.
"Hello darling," Joan smiled. "This is Michael - he's halfway through his M.A. in archaeology. Michael, this is Stacie, my housemate. She's just started college."
Michael, a tall, lanky fellow with black curling hair, came forward immediately and took Stacie's hand in his own.
"How awful!" he laughed. "Isn't first year just horrible? I hated it myself."
Stacie gazed at him with big eyes. "Really?" she asked. "Why?"
"Oh, you know," Michael answered. While he went on to explain, Joan was noting with quick eyes how bad Stacie looked.
"It's your first break away from home, isn't it?" Michael elaborated. "I remember I didn't know a soul, not a soul. And I didn't bother myself about getting to know anyone until, gosh, it must have been Christmas. By that time, I'd got myself into a right lonely mess!"

Stacie digested this inwardly while Joan pressed a cup of coffee on her, deliberately restraining herself from mentioning Stacie's appearance. Instead, she turned to Michael.
"Stacie's room is the one downstairs," she began.
"Oh I know it!" Michael answered. "That's Tom's old room."
"Yes, that's right," Joan replied. "Tom finished his studies just before you moved in, Stacie. That's one reason why the room is so bare. He was doing Physical Education and spent so much time outdoors and in gyms and whatnot, that he only came here to sleep." Joan turned to Michael again. "Anyhow, maybe you can help us. Stacie is thinking of doing it up a little - making it more homey, aren't you honey?"
Stacie glanced up and smiled and Joan was relieved to see a little colour return to her cheeks, and her eyes brighten once more. Michael was nodding furiously and offering to help with painting, or moving furniture. Between the three, quite a few little plans were laid over the afternoon coffee. Joan was satisfied that she had given Stacie something new to think about. Stacie was thrilled to hear that someone else had felt awkward and silly in their first year at college. And Michael was pleased to be able to help out the thin, whitefaced girl who had looked so unhappy when she first walked into the room.

#69: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 5:22 pm
—
Stacie blinked sleepily and wondered who could be calling her. Then the thumping on the door started again and she sat up.
"Stacie, are you there?" It was Carol's voice.
"Yes..." Stacie had no sooner called out than the door burst open and her housemate Carol let herself in and plumped down on the bed.
"Oh, Stacie, look what came for you! They had gone to the wrong address, but they're here now. Oh you must be thrilled!"
Stacie looked down at the thick package of letters that Carol held. Tears sprung to her eyes. She had thought that nobody had written yet because they had forgotten her, somehow. Carol saw her emotion and hastily exited, with a promise to come in in a moment with some tea. As the door swung shut, Stacie was out of bed and throwing her dressing gown over her shoulders, one hand already slitting open the first letter, which she recognised as being from her Aunt Margery.

Ten minutes later, Carol slipped back in with a cup of hot tea.
"Sorry to wake you so early," she acknowledged. "I know it's only Kester and I that are normally up before half six. But when I saw this on the doormat, I knew you would want them as soon as you could. Here, take this." And she pushed the cup into Stacie's hand.
"Carol, thank you so much, I," her voice shook a little and Carol interrupted brightly. "No need for that, kid. Now listen, Kester's engineering a great mound of toast in the kitchen, if you'd like to come through. Who knows, we'll make an early riser of you yet!" And with a laugh she left the room again.

#70: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 5:26 pm
—
Awww, that seems much better - perhaps her housemates' friendliness will prod her into meaking other friends too. Glad she's got her letters as well.

Thanks!

#71: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 5:44 pm
—
Feeling much lighter in her mind than she had done the day before, Stacie sauntered along the pathway that led from the library to the concourse. She giggled inside as she remembered one of the lines in Joey's letter, and her lips curved upwards.
"Stacie! Staaaacie!"
Hugely surprised that someone should be calling her name on campus, she whipped around excitedly. It was Michael.
"Hi!" he said chummily. "How's the day going? Time for a coffee? I think Joan is actually leaving her little palace today to greet us earthly mortals, for a while anyhow."
Stacie giggled, "Oh that might be nice, but - oh, dear - it's time I was at my tutorial already, really."
"Don't be despondent, kid! Your ordeal will be over in an hour, less in fact. Joan and I aren't even meeting til then. So we'll see you in the canteen..."
"Eustacia!"
Shocked in her mind at the idea of someone else calling her, Stacie looked around. A blonde girl was coming towards her. She didn't recognise her though.
The blonde girl approached, a shy smile on her lips.
"Eustacia, is it not?" Once Stacie had nodded dumbly, Michael interrupted.
"I say, is that what Stacie is short for? Jolly pretty!"
Blushing now, Stacie turned to the girl again.
"You're in my class, aren't you?"
"Yes," said the other girl. "My name is Anje. You missed yesterday morning and Kenneth asked me to give you these extra notes, should I meet you."
Stacie took them and then felt a thrill inside her at the next thing she said.
"Anje, this is my friend Michael. Michael, Anje is one of my classmates in the Late Antique West tutorial."
The two smiled at each other. Then Anje glanced at a small pretty watch on her wrist.
"We should go, Eustacia, if we are not to be late."
"Off you go then, girls," Michael laid a hand on both their shoulders and winked. "See you in an hour. Mind you bring your friend, Stacie!" And then he walked off himself, grinning.

#72: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 5:48 pm
—
& it was going so well until Michael seemed more interested in Anje!

#73: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 6:00 pm
—
Still, maybe Stacie has made a friend - as soon as she gets Anje to stop calling her Eustacia!

#74: Author: Chelsea, Location: Your Imagination

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 6:23 pm
—
I didn't read it that way at all. I thought that Michael was trying to make sure that Stacie did more than just say 'thanks' - that she used this foothold to make a friend.

#75: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 6:52 pm
—
I'm just glad there are kind people around. It can be horrible to feel that alone.

#76: Author: kimothy, Location: Glasgow

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 7:07 pm
—
loving this..its great.. though i have to admit its making me think twice about going to uni!! Wink

#77: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 7:55 pm
—
Thanks, Róisín. I'm glad that she is meeting some more people. Is Michael Joan's boyfriend?

#78: Author: Lizzie, Location: A little village on the Essex/Suffolk border

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 8:09 pm
—
No, no, no! Don't you go after Anje, Michael! You should ask Stacie out! She's lovely!!!

Ahem.

Great story, thanks Róisín!

#79: Author: La Petite Em, Location: Cheltenham

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 8:16 pm
—
*Wards Michael off Anje with big paper fans!* (don't know why fans they just popped into my head!)
Glad things are looking up for Stacie!
Thanks Roisin

#80: Author: Lizzie, Location: A little village on the Essex/Suffolk border

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 8:20 pm
—

Le Petite Em wrote:

*Wards Michael off Anje with big paper fans!* (don't know why fans they just popped into my head!)

Yup, paper fans work for me...

Or maybe several chopsticks, lashed together...

#81: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 10:41 pm
—
lots of lovely updates - thanks Róisín

And an archeologist - what a fine profession Laughing

#82: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 11:37 pm
—
Thanks Róisín! Really enjoying this. I was hoping that Michael was going to be interested in Stacie but maybe not. I just hope that Stacie doesn't end up getting hurt.

Thank you Very Happy

Kathryn

#83: Author: Tara, Location: Malvern, Worcestershire

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 12:37 am
—
Really relieved things are beginning to get better. And Kenneth was concerned enough to notice she wasn't in the tuorial and make sure she got the notes ...

#84: Author: Cath V-P, Location: Newcastle NSW

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 12:44 am
—
I've just read all of this, and oh my, yes the sheer terror of that first week or two - but it was worth it all.
Thanks Róisín.

#85: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 8:22 am
—
Thanks Róisín. So glad she's made a friend.

*thinks Michael is only allowed to be interested in Anje if he has a nice friend for Stacie*

#86: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 10:12 am
—
Oooh thanks Róisín, this is fabbity

#87: Author: Elisabeth,

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 12:28 pm
—
I don't think we need worry about what happens with Michael and Anje. After all, it was only a couple of posts back that she had no friends at all!

Really enjoying this Roisin.

#88: Author: Lyanne, Location: Ipswich, England

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 3:04 pm
—
I think Kenneth sounds more suitable than Michael

Last edited by Lyanne on Fri May 26, 2006 10:47 pm; edited 1 time in total

#89: Author: Mary, Location: Sussex University

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 8:49 pm
—
Is it sad that more than loving Michael or any of the boys (although that first professor sounded a bit lovely) I was most excited by the mound of toast Kester was making?

#90: Author: Kathy_S, Location: midwestern US

Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 10:29 pm
—
Thank you, Róisín.

I love Stacie's joy in her studies, but am relieved to see her social life looking up as well. *nice Joan & Michael & Kenneth*

#91: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:06 am
—
Stacie felt a little awkward as she and the strange blonde girl moved away from Michael, down the sunny path towards the Arts Building. His exuberance was missing now and there was a little silence as each girl thought frantically about how to break it. In the end, Stacie did.
"Anje is a lovely name," she began. "Is it Scandanavian?"
"Yes," Anje smiled. "Finnish. And you, you are English?"
Stacie nodded, and added "Yes, but I've been living away from England for a long time. At school," she explained.
They reached the door of the classroom and entered. Kenneth hadn't arrived yet and the other nine students were scattered about the desks, some sitting together, some alone. There was a little moment of tension as Stacie wondered whether she and Anje would continue their conversation, if it could be called that. She sat by the window, leaving her satchel by her feet and started rooting in it for the right books. When she looked up, it was to see Anje sitting right next to her. With a joyous smile, Stacie immediately asked a question about what she had missed in the last class, and Anje explained carefully. Stacie had found a friend.

#92: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:08 am
—
*deleted post* OK I won't end it yet. Not sure where to go from here though, cos the plotline is concluded *ponders*

Last edited by Róisín on Thu May 25, 2006 11:12 am; edited 1 time in total

#93: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:09 am
—
It can't be the end!

#94: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:11 am
—
Hurrah! Excellent, thanks Róisín - nooooooooo! I'm typing this up and your words have appeared below.

It's not the end is it?

#95: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:25 am
—
*spreeing* to say that no, sorry, I posted the 'the end' post too soon.
*keeps trying to end this but can't Confused

#96: Author: Elle, Location: Peterborough

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:30 am
—
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!

I have only just found this, and I have sat and read it all the way through and I would like to fins out more about Stacie at university....

PLease? Pretty please?

#97: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:41 am
—
Nice milestone!...

#98: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:48 am
—
Please keep posting!

#99: Author: little_sarah, Location: Liverpool/Manchester

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 11:49 am
—
Please can we have a bit more? I'm really enjoying, it's very true to that feeling of bewilderment at the very beginning of uni life. I'm glad Stacie's found some good friends.

#100: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 12:45 pm
—
Hurrah! So glad Stacie has found a friend Very Happy

*sends bunny treats*

#101: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 2:51 pm
—
Awww, lovely, thank you.

#102: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 2:59 pm
—
Lovely, yes, but we definitely need more! Thanks, Róisín.

#103: Author: Mary, Location: Sussex University

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 3:25 pm
—
HURRAH!! I was beginning to worry that she'd get back into her tight plaits, mean looks, back straining days. But no more!
Please write more soon. I'm loving it.

#104: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 5:34 pm
—
No! Not finished!

I want to know more....

Thanks Róisín

#105: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Thu May 25, 2006 5:39 pm
—
Thanks, Róisín. I'm really glad that Stacie has found a friend.

#106: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 1:06 pm
—
"So, everyone, next class we're going to be looking at different interpretations of what happened when Rome fell. Or if it fell at all..." Kenneth finished with a wink and dismissed his class. Stacie felt a little knot of fear in her stomach as she turned to her neighbour.
"Anje, would you like to come to the canteen with me? I'm meeting my housemate and her friend for afternoon coffee," then she waited with bated breath for the reply.
Anje smiled easily. "Of course, that would be lovely." The knot started to dissipate in Stacie's stomach although she remained nervous. What if she made another huge faux-pas like she had done with the Oxford crowd?

"How long have you been living in England then?" she asked Anje, as the two girls walked out of the building and down the path towards the canteen.
"I have just recently arrived," replied Anje. "My mother is English, you see. I was schooled in Helsinki, according to the wishes of my paternal grandmother, but my mother wished me to attend Oxford as she had."
Stacie nodded. "And how do you like it here? Do we compare well to Finland?" she finished with a grin.
Anje considered carefully before committing herself to an answer.
"I like it, yes. The English are ... different, in lots of ways. But you," she gazed at Stacie with enquiring eyes, "You do not sound English? Are you from somewhere else?"
Stacie blushed and looked startled. "Oh? Gosh, I don't know. I am English, yes, I lived here til... til my parents died. Then I went to school in Austria."
"Ah, I knew there was some difference in your - how do you say it? Intonation? Yes. But tell me about Austria - why there?"
Anje continued the conversation easily enough, but Stacie's heart was in her mouth again. Was there something wrong with her accent? Unknown to her, her accent was of the ex-pat type, sported innocently by many people who had been away from their home at length. But if she wasn't English, what was she? And must she explain every time to every one she met? Her head started to ache a little.

#107: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 1:42 pm
—
Poor Stacie - I want to hug her and tell her she's just fine as she is!

Thanks, Róisín

#108: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 2:00 pm
—
Poor Stacie, she needs some self-confidence. She'll probably beat the others as far as work goes, and then beat herself up about it.

#109: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 2:31 pm
—
Thanks, Róisín. I wonder how she will explain things to Anje.

#110: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 3:13 pm
—
Thanks Róisín, I'm glad you did decide to write more. I'm loving this Very Happy

Kathryn

#111: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 7:28 pm
—
Poor Stacie - her problem is that, having made such a bad start at the Chalet School, she has no confidence in herself.

Thanks Róisín

#112: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 11:30 pm
—
I'm glad you decided to carry on with this...

#113: Author: Tara, Location: Malvern, Worcestershire

Posted: Fri May 26, 2006 11:49 pm
—
Poor Stacie. She'll see every perceived difference as a defect, of course. At least she's gaining some friends who might be able to persuade her out of it - if she doesn't make herself ill first.

Thanks, Roisin.

#114: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 2:12 pm
—
Anje and Stacie managed to keep up an easy, lighthearted chatter as they queued. They stood in a little alcove off the main dining hall, that acted like a hatch window to vast and steamy kitchens. Declining the daily specials, each took only a cup of coffee and a slice of plum cake. Then Joan’s voice floated up towards them, calling them down to where she and Michael had kept some seats at the end of one of the long tables. A genuine smile spread across Stacie’s face. Just last week, this situation would have seemed an impossibility.

#115: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 2:46 pm
—
Joan grinned and pushed a strand of straight auburn hair behind her ear. She normally wore it wrapped in a chic plaited chignon, but the wind was strong outside and her hair told the story of it. Michael was sitting opposite her, and next to him was a new person that Stacie didn’t recognise.
“Stacie, Anje, this is my friend Drew. He’s been away all summer on research, but he’s back now,” Michael explained. Drew said hello in a marked American accent. Neither girl was confident enough to carry the conversation further and except for the odd grunt or smile, Drew remained taciturn for the remainder of the meal.
Joan was fascinated with Anje and plied her with questions about Finland. Anje was very proud of her country and as Stacie watched her, she wondered about her own nationality. She had always been English, but she was only a child when she left for Austria. At school, she had always been on of the English girls. Did she not appear English anymore? She certainly didn’t sound it, if Anje were to be believed. As she listened to Anje, she listened to Joan too. Joan was from near Liverpool and her accent was faintly tinged with the local pronunciations. Inside her mind, Stacie compared this with her own voice and saw differences. She thought this over carefully, so carefully that she didn’t notice when Anje spoke to her again.
“It is just five now, Stacie. I must return these books to the library before it closes. I will see you tomorrow, yes?”
Stacie smiled. “Yes, of course, Anje, see you tomorrow.” She had tried to inject a note of ‘Englishness’ into those few words, but had only succeeded in sounding faintly Liverpoolish. Joan’s eyebrows raised very slightly, but she said nothing. Michael was fully absorbed in something Drew had just said, and Anje didn’t notice at all. Stacie wondered how she had sounded. Different? Better? She decided to work on it.

#116: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:00 pm
—
Thanks, Róisín.

#117: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:01 pm
—
Sky-blue paint sloshed up on the wall and splashed down again onto Michael’s shirt. Stacie looked horrified, “Oh Michael, what have you done? Let me get a damp cloth...”
“No need, m’dear, tis the oldest of shirts I own,” he grinned at her consternation, and continued his mission near the ceiling line. They were all in Stacie’s bedroom. She had pushed her bed to one corner first thing that Saturday morning and covered it with an old sheet. Michael had arrived with Drew at about nine and both men had made themselves busy in the kitchen with the percolator and grill. Kester had returned from an early rugby training session at ten. Joan had been woken most unceremoniously by Carol, far earlier than she was used to getting up at. Anje arrived just after their tea break at eleven, bringing with her a sister who had come to stay for a fortnight. Stacie had been up since seven, too excited to sleep, and had turned to some Aristophanes in an effort to calm herself down. Today was the day her room would be transformed!
Joan interrupted her musings by throwing something at her head. Startled, Stacie looked at what had fallen into her hands. “It’s some old shirts for you and the two girls. Generously donated by Carol and I.”
“Oh thank you,” Stacie started.
“You’re such a fusser, Joanie!” laughed Michael. “So motherly...”
He was interrupted by a paintbrush flung in his direction. “You get back to work!” cried Carol, in defense of her friend. Stacie giggled and saw that Drew was looking at Michael with a soft smile on his face. Frowning a little, and puzzled, she resolved to ask Joan about it later. For now, she continued using her little brush to fill in the corners of the skirting-boards with the snow-white colour she had chosen.

#118: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:01 pm
—
LOL at the thought of Stacie sounding like one of the Beatles! Laughing

Thanks, Róisín.

#119: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:08 pm
—
I have to say that I was never really conscious of having an accent - because everyone around me had the same accent Very Happy

- until I went to uni and there were people there from all over the country who all spoke differently!

Hope Stacie is not after either Michael or Drew as it sounds as if she may well be wasting her time.

#120: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:19 pm
—
So that's how it is? I hope Stacie's not going to get her heart broken...

Thanks Róisín, I'm so glad that Stacie is managing to make friends. They sound like a really nice group of people.

Kathryn

#121: Author: Mary, Location: Sussex University

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:36 pm
—
Wowzers. Wasn't expecting that to happen! Let's hope it isn't too much of a shock for Stacie!

#122: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:39 pm
—
“There! Done!” Carol pushed untidy hair out of her eyes and surveyed her work complacently. She had been cloistered in a corner of Stacie’s bedroom with a fret-saw and some wood for the morning. It was now after three in the afternoon, and she proudly held up the simple curtain rail, her eyes shining.
Kester was the first over to her. Crossing the room in two quick strides, he took the short little pole (Stacie’s window was only about three feet wide) and held it in his hands, running his thumb up and down over the smooth timber, and into the modestly decorative carvings at the end.
“Its... wonderful,” he said. “Carol, I don’t know how you can do all these things. It’s all I can do to play rugby and concentrate on my course. But you...” He had been looking at the pole, but now he looked up and saw that Carol’s face was burning. Stubbornly, he kept on. “You’re amazing,” he finished.
Suddenly, everyone else found something urgent to do in their own parts of the room, and Carol was saved further embarrassment by the unrepentant Kester.
Sympathetic Stacie decided to abscond to the kitchen, and dragged Joan with her. That look she had seen Drew give Michael was still playing on her mind. Joan followed her quite happily on the pretense of helping to find some biscuits. Stacie kept up the show for a few minutes as she filled the kettle and place it on the hob before turning on the heat beneath it.
“Joan, how did you meet Michael?” she asked first.
Joan was still absorbed in a ferocious hunt through the depths of her cupboard. “One sec honey, I can’t hear you quite yet,” then her head withdrew triumphantly. “Chocolate too! Now, how I met Michael?”
Stacie nodded.
“Hmm, let’s see. It was quite a while ago now. We were in the same class group at one point, when one of the tutors fell sick and two groups had to be merged for six weeks. Yes, that’s it.”
“And,” Stacie went hesitantly because she wasn’t comfortable quizzing the other girl about personal matters, “is he your boyfriend?”
Joan fell into giggles. Stacie looked bemused.
“Oh darling, no. Michael is very sweet and friendly and handsome, but he’s not interested in girls in that way. I say, you aren’t pining for him, are you?”
Stacie shook her head but her eyes were still puzzled.
“What do you mean, in that way?”
Joan’s expression became more serious. She knew she could trust the girl before her though, so she continued.
“Listen, pet, this is quite a private matter, so it must stay between us, OK?” When Stacie had nodded, she went on. “Michael isn’t interested in girls. That’s just the way God made him. He and Drew have been close now for two years. When Michael met him, he knew that Drew was the one. Do you understand now, honey?”
Stacie answered quietly. “Yes. Thank you for telling me. Of course I won’t repeat anything you’ve said.”
Joan smiled. She could see that the younger girl was going to think things over for herself. Stacie went to leave the kitchen and carry the cups through to the bedroom.
“Hold on a moment there,” Joan stopped her. “I wanted to talk to you about something too.”

#123: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:43 pm
—
That was very sensitively handled by Joan, Stacie is certainly getting an education in the real world!

Thanks Róisín Very Happy

And a cliff, I wonder what Joan wants to say to her!

Kathryn

#124: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 3:59 pm
—
Shame, Michael sounded so nice! I wonder what Stacie made of that revelation; the real world is a bit different from Chaletland, isn't it?

#125: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 7:34 pm
—
Hope Stacie can accept it - must be a bit of a shock after the Chalet School.

Thanks Róisín.

#126: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 7:41 pm
—
Thanks, Róisín. I wonder what Joan is going to talk to Stacie about.

#127: Author: Nic, Location: Cheshire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 8:02 pm
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Good one Róisín, would never have guessed that to happen, maybe Joan goes on to tell her she likes girls? although i do hope not!! it would really confuse Stacie then about things.

#128: Author: Lizzie, Location: A little village on the Essex/Suffolk border

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 8:46 pm
—
Loving this, Róisín. I love all your characters, they're all so likable. And Stacie is a really interesting character, it's a shame really, that EBD doesn't spend too much time on her after the first book, other than the odd bit here and there.

And Carol, well. Was I the only person to instantly jump to thinking that she should have been in the Chalet School hobbies club? She could have made lovely things for the sale...

#129: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 8:52 pm
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Thanks, Roisin. I think Stacie is demonstrating the disadvantages of being at a school in a remote part of Austria.

#130: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 9:25 pm
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On the other hand, I think Stacie is demonstrating tremendous flexibility at a time when certain things were considered to be both illegal and immoral!

#131: Author: Tara, Location: Malvern, Worcestershire

Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 11:45 pm
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Quite! I'd not have expected her to have any clue as to what Joan meant and, if enlightened, to be shocked to bits. It's much nicer that she's not, of course. Wonder what Joan wants to tell her ...

I'm getting very fond of Stacie.

#132: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 12:09 am
—
Stacie stopped dead in the doorway, then turned around a little reluctantly. She could hear laughter wafting through from the front bedroom.
“They’ll be waiting for the tea,” she tried. But then she walked forward – she felt she deserved to hear Joan out after how much the other girl had trusted her just now.
Joan patted a stool next to her and Stacie sat on it.
“Now, pet. I don’t want to preach to you.”
Stacie nodded uncomfortably. She could guess what was coming next.
“But you are at a very difficult time in your life. You need to accept that you are who you are, and that you don’t need to change who or what you are. Ever. Do you understand me?”
Big, blue eyes looked back at her in full comprehension.
“Joan,” she whispered. “Do you... Do you think I sound... peculiar?”
Joan returned Stacie’s gaze steadfastly. “Of course not,” she said firmly. “You have a beautiful, clear voice and you should never ever be ashamed of that. OK?”
Tears sprung at the back of Stacie’s eyes but she held them back with an effort.
“Thank you,” she gulped. “Thank you for being so good to me. From the start.”
Smiling, Joan answered, “Oh honey, we’ve all been through it. Every single one of us. And you’ll do the same when you get to our stage and you meet new students. Now,” she continued in a much lighter tone, “the pole is done and up, and those curtains aren’t going to hang themselves!” She helped Stacie up and waited while she splashed her face with cold water from the kitchen tap. Then together they walked back into the merry roomful of friends that had gathered there.

#133: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 12:18 am
—
Michael cracked open a bottle of beer and relaxed back against the doorpost, surveying the painting that he and Drew had done that day with a satisfied air. Stacie’s room was sparkling blue with pure white accents on the skirting-boards and door. The floor had been polished with a deep walnut varnish and Carol’s little curtain pole had been painted with the same material. Anje’s sister, Monika, was very shy, but she was an expert needlewoman, and the pair of pretty white curtains besplattered with violets and bluebells that hung at the window, were her contribution. Anje herself had gathered up all the rags she could find in Joan’s extensive store of such things, and had cut, plaited and woven, until there lay three gay little rugs waiting to be put in the right place. Leftovers from this project had been made into two fat cushions and a doorstop to keep out the draughts. In a corner by the window, there stood a tall and grand bookcase that Kester had put together and then painted purple.

Everything was almost dry and Stacie was treating her friends to a little party to say thank-you. She had made a big pot of special Austrian stew with which to treat her helpers, and Joan had improved upon the occasion by providing a plate piled high with dozens of tiny creamcakes. Michael and Kester had run out for half an hour in the evening and returned laden with bottles of beer, to further improve the occasion, as they explained to Stacie. Now they were all relaxing in various poses around the room, tired out but happy.

#134: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 12:32 am
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What a lovely scene, thank you Very Happy

Stacie's room sounds lovely. I wish I'd made more of an effort to unpack when I was at uni!

Kathryn

#135: Author: Caty, Location: New Zealand

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 2:28 am
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Just read this straight through & loved it. Thanks Roisin.

#136: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 6:20 am
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Joan sounds a lovely person - reassuring Stacie like that.

Thanks.

#137: Author: Lizzie, Location: A little village on the Essex/Suffolk border

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 7:53 am
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Thanks Róisín, Austrain stew and cream cakes sound pretty good...

#138: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 9:10 am
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Austrian stew and cream cakes sounds very CS!

#139: Author: Sarah_G-G, Location: Sheffield (termtime), ? any other time!

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 10:00 am
—
That sounds like such a nice scene- all tired and happy having been working togethere all day

#140: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:27 am
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What a lovely little party.

#141: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:48 am
—
To everyone’s surprise, the silence ended when Drew cleared his throat and directed a question to Stacie. “So, you like your new room then?”
Stacie smiled at him, “I love it. It’s my first real room, you know. I always stayed in my Aunt’s house for holidays, or else with friends of the family in Austria. Or else I was at school, of course.”
Drew grinned lazily, “And how is your first year at university going?”
Stacie replied honestly. “It’s going brilliantly, now.”

Monika spoke next. She was a older than Anje. Stacie was just as shocked at her speaking as she had been as silent as Drew all day. She put it down to the beer.
“Ah, but it is always hard to begin with,” Monika said. “Me, I remember when I first left our town to go to university in Helsinki. I am the eldest and our mother was very frightened at what might happen to me there. So, I had to travel back every weekend, and sometimes even during the week. I never grew to know any of the other girls well until much later on.”
Anje squeezed her sister’s hand. “I remember,” she said. “You were so lonely.”

Joan broke in with a confidence of her own. “When I started, it was a little different,” she begun. “I was engaged to a man from home – he was a widower, a lawyer. We planned to marry after my degree, but it grew harder and harder to maintain the engagment from such a distance, and he found it hard to take time off from work. I felt that any friends I made here would take me away from him, so I tried to keep to myself...”
“Until you met me!” Michael broke in, laughing.
Joan, who had been slightly teary at the memory of that old and failed romance, shot him a dry grin, “No, nobody could stay like that with you for long!”

Kester pressed his lips together in an attitude of considering. “I don’t know,” he said. “It doesn’t always have to be so hard. I mean, Carol and I met on the first day of university and we’ve been chums since.” Carol, who had been rather quiet since that afternoon, started to turn red again, and wished that her friend would stop occasionally and think before he said the first thing that came into his head. She moved to lay a hand on his arm in a gesture of warning, but he moved at the same moment, and somehow his hand ended up on hers. She stiffened and looked quickly at him, but he was looking at Stacie, who had taken up the conversation and had started to retell her embarrassing story of introducing her class to each other on her first day. Nobody was looking at them and their hands were mostly hidden behind her sprawled out leg anyhow. And it looked like Kester had no intention of moving his hand either. Then his head turned around and he caught Carol’s eye and gave her a tiny grin. Carol felt like her heart had leapt into her throat and she felt ridiculously, inexplicably happy at that moment. An understanding had passed between them, a deliciously secret one too, because the rest of the room was laughing heartily over Stacie’s anecdote, and were entirely oblivious to the couple in the corner.

Stacie was delighted at the laughter that had followed her story. Her experience in the classroom on that second day had haunted her since, and she had built it up and up in her mind until it had seemed an insurmountable problem. But it dissipated in the room that evening, and she was glad to let it go.

Michael followed up her story with a similar experience that he had had a couple of years ago and soon they were in fits of laughter again. Stacie looked around her and decided that she was so pleased she had opened herself up to these people, to this experience. She really felt part of something bigger, something loose but tight at the same time. She looked at Joan perched on a beanbag with Monika, the two of them discussing some kind of knitting technique. Sitting close together by the door were Drew and Michael, laughing at something that Carol had said. Kester was just striding into the room with his treasured radio in his hand, already switching the knobs and flicking the buttons to try and get it working. A hum of music was already escaping it fitfully. And Anje sat next to her, the two of them squashed into a chair that was only ever made for one, her Scandanavian blue eyes anxiously scanning Stacie’s to see if she was alright.
“You are very quiet, Stacie,” she said carefully. “Is everything OK?”
Stacie smiled happily and tucked her arm through Anje’s as she replied, “Everything is great. It really is.”

#142: Author: Róisín, Location: Galway, Eire

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:50 am
—
THE END.

Thanks so much for the lovely comments and support all the way through the story. Very Happy

#143: Author: Eilidh, Location: Macclesfield

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:52 am
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Is it really the end this time? Sad

Thank you though - that was a lovely way to finish it.

#144: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:52 am
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*sobs at the happy ending*

That was lovely Róisín, I'm glad Stacie has friends! Very Happy

#145: Author: Rosie, Location: Huntingdonshire/Bangor

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:59 am
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Aww, that's really lovely. Thank you!

#146: Author: La Petite Em, Location: Cheltenham

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 12:31 pm
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Awwww Stacie has some lovely friends now!! Thanks Roisin, this has been so realistic and touching! Very Happy

#147: Author: Nell, Location: London, England

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 12:32 pm
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What a lovely ending.

Thank you Róisín.

#148: Author: Lesley, Location: Allhallows, Kent

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 12:54 pm
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Echoing the others really - lovely ending and, for Stacie, just a beginning.

Thanks. Laughing

#149: Author: Rosy-Jess, Location: Gloucestershire-London-Aberystwyth

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 1:44 pm
—
That was fabbity! Thankyou!

#150: Author: Alison H, Location: Manchester

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 1:56 pm
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That was lovely - thank you.

#151: Author: Fatima, Location: Sunny Qatar

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 3:39 pm
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That was lovely, thanks, Róisín. I'm so glad Stacie felt accepted and happy at the end.

#152: Author: grover, Location: Dublin

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 3:41 pm
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Awww! What a lovely,warm ending! Thank you,Roisin Very Happy

#153: Author: KathrynW, Location: London

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 4:04 pm
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That was such a lovely ending, I'm so glad for Stacie. Thanks Róisín Very Happy

Kathryn

#154: Author: patmac, Location: Yorkshire England

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 6:20 pm
—
That was a lovely ending. Thanks Róisín. It was great all the way through.

#155: Author: Tiffany, Location: madthesispanicargh

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 7:09 pm
—
have just found this and read it all the way through; tis LOVELY! Thankyou, Roisin, and please write more about Stacie some time, I was starting to really really like her.

#156: Author: francesn, Location: away with the faeries

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 7:53 pm
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Fabulous Róisin. Thank you so much.

#157: Author: ibarhis, Location: London and Hemel Hempstead

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 8:56 pm
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Thanks. It was nice to see Stacie finding her feet.

#158: Author: JustJen, Location: sitting on the steps

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 9:14 pm
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It was really nice to see Stacie let go of her fears.
I really enjoyedyour story Róisín.

#159: Author: Chair, Location: Rochester, Kent

Posted: Tue May 30, 2006 11:44 pm
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Thanks, Róisín. The whole drabble was really lovely to read. Thank you for writing for us to read. I'm glad that Stacie feels so happy.

#160: Author: Kathy_S, Location: midwestern US

Posted: Wed May 31, 2006 1:14 am
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Thanks, Róisín! Stacie's laughter over her first day faux pas is especially fine. Very Happy

#161: Author: Josie, Location: London

Posted: Thu Jun 01, 2006 10:15 pm
—
Thanks Róisín. Just read this from beginning to end - really enjoyed it and great to see Stacie finally finding her place at the end. Off to read the next bit now...

#162: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Mon Jun 05, 2006 12:51 pm
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Lovely to see Stacie settled in and making friends Very Happy

Thanks Róisín - I've enjoyed this.

The CBB -> Ste Therese's House

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