CBB Advent Calendar: December 3rd
The CBB -> Cookies & Drabbles
#1: CBB Advent Calendar: December 3rd Author: CBB Triumvirate,  PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 8:57 am

“One, two, three, oh hang!” said Mary-Lou Trelawney most reprehensibly. Using such words was strictly verboten as she well knew, but really, middles really were the absolute limit she thought to herself.

Mary-Lou rapidly began counting again and this time managed to reach a total of four since she slowed down and used her fingers.

“And what do you have to say for yourselves if anything?” she demanded in bell-like clarion tones.

“Please Mary-Lou,” began Margot Maynard (“It would be her!” thought Mary-Lou most unfairly as it happened.) “Please, it isn’t exactly our fault.”

“So whose fault is it then?” Mary-Lou asked icily. “I sincerely hope you do not intend wriggling out of your share of the blame young Margot?”

Margot gasped at the unfairness of the accusation and with a glower resolved inwardly to remain silent come what may. No further explanations would be forthcoming from her at any rate!

Mary-Lou, realising that none of the middles had anything more to say for themselves, issued a general tongue lashing of the kind loathed by any girl and after penalising all four of their Saturday night entertainment, bade the girls go off to report themselves to Matron.

Once in her dorm that night, Mary-Lou fell asleep as quickly as usual, never dreaming of the fate that lay in store for her. When she awoke the following morning and prepared to tie back her hair, she discovered she hadn’t any hair ribbons in her possession. At first she was miffed, but this rapidly turned into a full-blown rage as she realised that someone had been tampering with her belongings. It didn’t require much more time for Miss Trelawney to put two and two together and come up with an answer that matched.

Making her way straight to the prefects study, Mary-Lou grabbed the nearest junior and bade her find the four culprits from the night before.

With righteous indignation on their side, the four led by Margot found themselves back in the prefects room and once more being asked to account for their whereabouts at the time of yet another crime.

It came as a shock to Mary-Lou to hear the four naughtiest middles deny responsibility yet again. They were adamant that they had not left their cubicles the night before, and Mary-Lou knew that it had to be during the night as she had knew she had dropped her ribbons on the floor the previous night when she took them out. Or if not the floor, on the chair, or her dresser, but be that as it may, she was now minus any ribbons whatsoever and someone was going to pay for it.

“It couldn’t be me, Matey came into our dormy last night as Pen Grant was sick, everywhere, and even with that smell to deal with she stayed long enough to see that everyone was there, and she forbade any of us to get out of bed,” replied Emerence when asked if it was her.

“Not me either, I sleep next to Odile and she wakes up at the slightest noise, and screams into the bargain. I can’t turn over once I’m in bed, never mind get up and sneak out,” Francie was also adamant that it was not her.

“I wish I’d thought of it,” mused Prudence, “But I didn’t, and it wasn’t me and that’s all I can say whether you believe me or not.”

“Mind your manners, being cheeky to a prefect is like being cheeky to the Head. Margot, what do you have to say for yourself?”

“I was not out of my bed last night and I did not leave our dormy,” was all Margot would say, although she put enough emphasis on the word ‘I’ for Mary-Lou to wonder.

She wondered all through Maths and French, and was still wondering when she went into History what Margot could have been hinting at. She had given them all detention for being the naughtiest four middles ever, but felt that there was someone else behind it all.

‘Of course, how stupid could I be?’ (no, don’t try and answer that, we will be here till New Year) Mary-Lou realised as she was filling cups at Kaffee und Kuchen what it was that Margot had meant that morning, that someone else in her dormy had been out of the room. She reviewed the other occupants of the room, no it couldn’t be them as they were nameless padding for the fifth form and so never did anything interesting, the only other person of any note in ‘Venus Flytrap’ dormy was Margot’s oldest sister, Len Maynard. Mary-Lou gasped in horror, could the evil mastermind really be the innocent goody-goody Len Maynard? She carried on filling cups, her mind in a whirl. Then she became aware of the girl standing in front of her, holding out a cup, and looking Mary-Lou directly in the eyes, something no one else dared to do. It was Len Maynard herself.

Len slowly allowed a smile to creep across her face, though it did not reach her eyes, which continued to stare directly into Mary-Lou’s. It was only when the coffee spilled over the top of the cup and the hot liquid hit her hand that Mary-Lou came to her senses. Len’s smile turned almost feral when she saw what had happened, but she said nothing at all, merely taking the overflowing cup and turning away to take her seat at one of the long tables running down the room. Her expression had changed as soon as she moved, and only Mary-Lou was aware of the silent exchange. She continued to be extremely thoughtful for the rest of the meal, and remaining that way for the rest of the day.

The following morning it was her hair brushes that were missing, and the morning after that, her sponge bag. Everything reappeared during the course of the following day, but Mary-Lou was becoming more than a little annoyed. She was almost certain that Len was behind it all, but had yet to catch her in the act or find any sort of proof that would stand up. Gut feeling was clearly not going to be enough. Unfortunately she was so tired at night that her resolution to remain awake never came to fruition – she was asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow. This continued for some days, with items going missing and reappearing, and Len’s eyes were gleaming in satisfaction whenever they rested on the figure of the Prefect. For her part Mary-Lou was feeling a good deal of frustration, for nothing she tried resulted in any sort of proof. The last thing she wished to do was ask outright, for although she was reasonably sure that Len would tell the truth, she was resolved that she would not give her the satisfaction she would feel if she was asked.

This state of affairs might have continued indefinitely had others events not intervened and brought matters to a head. Mary-Lou’s hair ribbons had again gone missing, much to her fury, though she had kept a spare pair under her pillow since the first time it had happened. She was just finishing tying back her hair when Vi Lucy erupted into the dormy, still damp from her bath.
“I say Mary-Lou! Why on earth are there hair ribbons wound around the light in my bather? I wouldn’t have noticed normally, but I just happened to look up. I wonder how long they have been there.”
“I can guess,” said Mary-Lou grimly. “Just since last night I think. I’m almost certain they are mine.”
Vi stared at her. “Yours? What do you mean Mary-Lou?”
“I mean that mine are missing again, so logic suggests that that is where they are.”
Mary-Lou stalked out of the dormy and along to the bathroom, muttering to herself. At least the ceiling was low enough for the light to be reached by standing on a stool. She moved the nearest stool under the light and climbed cautiously onto it. She had managed to unwind most of the ribbons when disaster struck. She lost her balance and uttering a shriek of horror she fell off the stool, hitting her head on the side of the bath as she fell.
The news soon ran around the school that Mary-Lou was in the San up the road with concussion at the least, if not a fractured skull, caused when falling from a stool in the bathroom. What she was doing on the stool in the first place was not mentioned, though Len had a pretty shrewd idea. The staff were more concerned with the girl’s health, for it was only within the last year that Mary-Lou had had a bad skiing accident, which had also resulted in a bang on the head.
“How is Mary-Lou,” asked Kathie after Prayers. She took a good deal on interest in that young lady after her initially bad opinion of her.
“Joey Maynard has gone to be with her,” said the Head. “She will let us know if there is any change.”
Mary-Lou woke up in the San to find her head covered in a bandage and throbbing badly. She was quite clear in her mind, and knew exactly what had happened, so she was rather unnerved to find Jo Maynard sitting beside her, knitting busily at a fluorescent pink jumper. (She had got tired of lime green.)
“Hello Mary-Lou,” said Jo. “How are you feeling, my dear?”
“A bit headachey Auntie Jo. But I’m sure that will wear off before long. I just hope I don’t lose my curls this time.” Mary-Lou smiled wanly, but the hope was very real. Her curls had completely transformed her, and she certainly did not want to go back to having straight hair. Her wish was realised, for her hair curled almost more riotously than before once the bandage had been removed. However, there was a shock in store for her and for the school. The shock had changed the colour almost overnight, and she took some time to adjust to the possession of jet black hair in place of the golden brown she was used to.

 

#2:  Author: Amanda M, Location: Wakefield PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 9:25 am

Here goes Smile

Mary-Lou Trelawney
Ribbons
"The shock had changed the colour almost overnight"

Star Wars

 

#3:  Author: Nell, Location: London, England PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 9:51 am

Mary-Lou
Ribbons
the naughtiest four middles ever

perhaps....

 

#4:  Author: Ruth B, Location: Oxford, UK PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 9:57 am

Marylou
Ribbons
"Bell-like Clarion tones"

 

#5:  Author: Gem, Location: Saltash, Cornwall (holidays), Aberystwyth (termtime from September) PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 10:06 am

Margot Maynard
Ribbons
“Joey Maynard has gone to be with her,” said the Head. “She will let us know if there is any change.”

 

#6:  Author: Mihiri, Location: surrey england PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 10:17 am

Mary-Lou
ribbons
The shock had changed the colour almost overnight

 

#7:  Author: Nina, Location: Peterborough, UK PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 10:50 am

Margot Maynard
Venus Flytrap
Strictly verboten

 

#8:  Author: Kate, Location: Ireland PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 11:10 am

*makes a wild guess*

Mary Lou Trelawney
Hair brushes
“Joey Maynard has gone to be with her”

 

#9:  Author: Susan, Location: Carlisle PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 11:40 am

Oh goodness this is a hard one there are two or three I could choose.

Mary-Lou Trelawney

Hair Ribbons

'Jo Maynard has gone to the San to be with her.'

 

#10:  Author: Ann, Location: Newcastle upon Tyne, England PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 1:01 pm

Mary-Lou Trelawney

Hair ribbons

'strictly verboten'

 

#11:  Author: Dawn, Location: Leeds, West Yorks PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 1:40 pm

Emmerence
Venus Flytrap
bell-like clarion tones

 

#12:  Author: Guest,  PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 1:43 pm

Prudence Dawbarn

Bather

a spare pair under her pillow



Ellen (I'm guesting at work, as I've forgotten my password)

 

#13:  Author: Helen P, Location: Cheshire PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 2:52 pm

Same as 2 others have already guessed:

Mary Lou
Hair Ribbons
The shock had changed the colour overnight

 

#14:  Author: Kathy_S, Location: midwestern US PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 3:03 pm

Ruth already guessed my first guess, so ...

Mary-Lou Trelawney
sponge bag
oh, hang!

 

#15:  Author: Alex, Location: Manchester PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:21 pm

Mary-Lou
San
Joey Maynard has gone to be with her

 

#16:  Author: Vikki, Location: Sitting on an iceberg, freezing to death!!! PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2004 8:07 pm

Mary Lou Trelawney
Venus flytrap
Changed colour overnight


Thank you triumvirate.......

 

#17:  Author: CBB Triumvirate,  PostPosted: Sat Dec 04, 2004 10:58 am

The answer to today's drabble is:

Len Maynard
Hair Ribbons
"Joey Maynard has gone to be with her"

 

#18:  Author: Ciorstaidh, Location: London PostPosted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 11:31 am

Belated, but...

Margot Maynard
hair ribbons
"the absolute limit"

eta: drat - didn't notice the answer was at the bottom (didn't read any of the other guesses before having a go)...oh well...

good work, Triumvirate!!

 

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