Pulling the dress over
my head and sobbing uncontrollably, my head feels like busting and my chest is
tight. The tears and snot are running freely. Nanny wipes the snot and tears
with a tatty tissue that she takes from her bosom.
“Sweet child you need
to calm yourself” I hear Nanny’s soothing voice and feel her arm envelop my
shoulders she continues “You must not let them know that you are aware of their
plan.”
“Why Nanny” I ask but
more to delay the inevitable than to get a reply.
Nanny replies “They
will really turn on the pressure if they know that you’ve worked out that they’re
trolls”
Sitting on the bed,
Nanny is combing my hair. Nanny takes a length of pretty red ribbon and makes a
picture perfect bow in my hair. It does look lovely and I’m pleased, because I
must make it all seem normal when I
go down to breakfast.
I’m fidgeting with the
embossed paper full of its swirling looping script, the words etched in my
mind, I feel the sting return to my eyes and blink it away feverishly.
I steel myself and once
my socks and shoes are on, I head down the passage to the landing and down the stairwell
towards my doom. My heart is heavy yet I can feel it pounding in my throat. How
am I going to get out of this situation? I am really worried; I think maybe I
should feign illness, no, that won’t work. I simply must think of some way to get out of
this mess. Those trolls have most certainly used a clever ruse. I hope I can outwit
them.
I am closer to the
dining hall the cooking smells reach me and suddenly I’m ravenous.
I take a deep breath,
and confidently open the door and stride into the expansive room.
All heads turn and look
at me, I suddenly feel a lot less confident.
“Thank you Mrs Lawly,
for the beautiful dress” I manage to utter. I hear a slight quaver in my voice
and pray that the guests did not.
Mrs Lawly seems very
pleased with herself; mother and father both thank her for her ever so generous
gift.
The breakfast passes
with a lot more small talk and chatter politics. I was able to eat quietly and try
being inconspicuous.
My mind was on other
things, like when will BB see me again? Do I have anything at my disposal to
help with my situation? My wand!!! Of course…. I’m sure this is a good enough
reason to use it!
“Mother, please may I
be excused from the table, I have forgotten something in my room?”
“Of course my dear, but
do come back quickly”
“Yes mother” I reply
I get up from the table
and walk briskly to the door, and as soon as I’m through it I run as fast as I
can reaching the stairs in record time, racing up the stairs two at a time and
across the landing and down the passage I enter my room.
Before you could count
to three, my wand was firmly in my hand.
My mood lifted me now
skip back to the dining hall, and enter it with even more confidence than
before.
“Oh you’re back dear,
what did you forget?”
“The poem Mrs Lawly
would like for me to read out to you all this morning mother” I reply,
supressing a strong urge to giggle.
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