Carlotta Brown (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fiery_ring) wrote2009-08-15 09:06 pm
fiery_ring) wrote2009-08-15 09:06 pm
(no subject)
This term is turning into a real slog.
Carlotta was going to try and use the bar to keep up with her extra subject, but she couldn't find a door every day.
On Monday she didn't have time to finish her French Prep and had to do it under the bed covers with a torch. On Tuesday she got her French Prep returned with 'ABOMINABLE!' written on it with blue pencil, and in doing it again, didn't have time to finish her history essay. By Friday she had so much backlog that she wasn't even sure what was in when.
On Friday night, her classmates performed an intervention, grabbing her by her arms and legs, carrying her down to the pool and throwing her in, fully dressed. After her first look of indignation, Carlotta sees the funny side, giggles, and gets out.
"I'm sorry Carlotta, but we can't allow you to be so studious any longer." Gladys says, offering her a hand out of the pool.
"It just isn't you." Doris says. "And it's clearly not doing you any good."
"I'm in such a mess girls, what do I do?" Carlotta asks, wringing out her hair as they go to sit on the grass. It's a warm night, so she isn't too cold.
"Look." Hilary, head girl of the form, says. "There's no point in you taking all these subjects if you can't keep up with them; you're just going to end up ruining all of them. There's no shame in not being able to do an extra one, nearly all of us are doing the normal number."
Carlotta explains how it happened.
"There's only one person your father really listens to." Hilary says. "And that's Miss Theobald. If Miss Theobald recommended that you drop history, he'd take it just fine, you know!"
"But wouldn't she want me to drop one of the non-academic ones?" Carlotta asks doubtfully.
"Not if Miss Lewis herself recommends you drop her subject." Claudine says, with a twinkle in her eye.
"How on Earth are you going to wangle that?" Hilary asks, eying Claudine suspiciously.
"Do not look at me so!" the little French girl replies, with a look of innocence. "All I ask of you is that for your next history essays, you all do a superb job. Except Carlotta, you just do your best. I have a funny feeling that by the end of the week, without you doing anything wrong, the school will have you on the right path again."
The girls watch suspiciously as Claudine heads away, as innocent as ever. She makes her way to her aunt, Mamzelle, to ask her an irrelevant question to get invited in for tea and cake.
"And how are you, ma petite?" Mam'zelle asks, pouring tea for her niece.
"Alas, I am a little dull." Claudine says, with an expression of woe. "I was going to spend the weekend with Carlotta, but she struggles so to keep up with all the subjects. She tries so, so hard."
Mam'zelle nods sympathetically, forgetting her own irritation at Carlotta this week. She won't discuss the girl's French with Claudine, of course, but it puts a seed of doubt into her mind. It had not occurred to her that her bad prep was due to over-straining, rather than her usual ineptitude at French.
"Ah, well it is good that you keep an eye on her." she says instead. "Make sure she does not do too much."
But the thought niggles away at Mam'zelle, who has a kind heart under her fierceness. She remarks casually on the subject to Miss Ellis, who remarks casually to Miss Lewis. So when Miss Lewis gets a set of essays where nearly all are fantastic apart from Carlotta's, she finds herself casually remarking to Miss Theobald.
Miss Theobald sends for Carlotta, who is with Matron, having a migraine. So instead, she calls for a staff meeting.
"Miss Lewis doesn't feel that Carlotta is up to standard in history." she says, a copy of Carlotta's terrible timetable in front of her. "She's doing her best, there's no doubt of that, but it seems silly to overstrain her for the sake of doing an extra subject. She can pass her exams far better doing the normal number."
"And her other subjects are suffering." Mam'zelle says. "If I did not know better, I would think she was doing her French in bed!"
"I shall telephone her father tonight and run the suggestion by him." Miss Theobald says. "In the meantime, try and ease off on her a little unless her prep is truly terrible."
The staff agree to it, and dismiss.
Carlotta was going to try and use the bar to keep up with her extra subject, but she couldn't find a door every day.
On Monday she didn't have time to finish her French Prep and had to do it under the bed covers with a torch. On Tuesday she got her French Prep returned with 'ABOMINABLE!' written on it with blue pencil, and in doing it again, didn't have time to finish her history essay. By Friday she had so much backlog that she wasn't even sure what was in when.
On Friday night, her classmates performed an intervention, grabbing her by her arms and legs, carrying her down to the pool and throwing her in, fully dressed. After her first look of indignation, Carlotta sees the funny side, giggles, and gets out.
"I'm sorry Carlotta, but we can't allow you to be so studious any longer." Gladys says, offering her a hand out of the pool.
"It just isn't you." Doris says. "And it's clearly not doing you any good."
"I'm in such a mess girls, what do I do?" Carlotta asks, wringing out her hair as they go to sit on the grass. It's a warm night, so she isn't too cold.
"Look." Hilary, head girl of the form, says. "There's no point in you taking all these subjects if you can't keep up with them; you're just going to end up ruining all of them. There's no shame in not being able to do an extra one, nearly all of us are doing the normal number."
Carlotta explains how it happened.
"There's only one person your father really listens to." Hilary says. "And that's Miss Theobald. If Miss Theobald recommended that you drop history, he'd take it just fine, you know!"
"But wouldn't she want me to drop one of the non-academic ones?" Carlotta asks doubtfully.
"Not if Miss Lewis herself recommends you drop her subject." Claudine says, with a twinkle in her eye.
"How on Earth are you going to wangle that?" Hilary asks, eying Claudine suspiciously.
"Do not look at me so!" the little French girl replies, with a look of innocence. "All I ask of you is that for your next history essays, you all do a superb job. Except Carlotta, you just do your best. I have a funny feeling that by the end of the week, without you doing anything wrong, the school will have you on the right path again."
The girls watch suspiciously as Claudine heads away, as innocent as ever. She makes her way to her aunt, Mamzelle, to ask her an irrelevant question to get invited in for tea and cake.
"And how are you, ma petite?" Mam'zelle asks, pouring tea for her niece.
"Alas, I am a little dull." Claudine says, with an expression of woe. "I was going to spend the weekend with Carlotta, but she struggles so to keep up with all the subjects. She tries so, so hard."
Mam'zelle nods sympathetically, forgetting her own irritation at Carlotta this week. She won't discuss the girl's French with Claudine, of course, but it puts a seed of doubt into her mind. It had not occurred to her that her bad prep was due to over-straining, rather than her usual ineptitude at French.
"Ah, well it is good that you keep an eye on her." she says instead. "Make sure she does not do too much."
But the thought niggles away at Mam'zelle, who has a kind heart under her fierceness. She remarks casually on the subject to Miss Ellis, who remarks casually to Miss Lewis. So when Miss Lewis gets a set of essays where nearly all are fantastic apart from Carlotta's, she finds herself casually remarking to Miss Theobald.
Miss Theobald sends for Carlotta, who is with Matron, having a migraine. So instead, she calls for a staff meeting.
"Miss Lewis doesn't feel that Carlotta is up to standard in history." she says, a copy of Carlotta's terrible timetable in front of her. "She's doing her best, there's no doubt of that, but it seems silly to overstrain her for the sake of doing an extra subject. She can pass her exams far better doing the normal number."
"And her other subjects are suffering." Mam'zelle says. "If I did not know better, I would think she was doing her French in bed!"
"I shall telephone her father tonight and run the suggestion by him." Miss Theobald says. "In the meantime, try and ease off on her a little unless her prep is truly terrible."
The staff agree to it, and dismiss.