(no subject)

[fiery_ring]

The location is the same as last time; the old shed behind the school.

Only this time, it's much darker. In fact, it's about six in the morning.

Comments

[wheatencrown]

Which is useful for what Demeter is doing, she heads towards the beach, looking for the cottage made out of two train carriages.

[fiery_ring]

Fortunately, there is only one of them.

The nearby beach is deserted too, except for a few small children playing in the sand. A man is out walking his dog along the road, and the milkman is just making his rounds.

[wheatencrown]

So Demeter heads towards it and pulls out the key to her potting shed so that it looks as if she's just going in and belongs there.

[fiery_ring]

Nobody tries to stop her. After all, the cottages get rented out, so there are different people there all the time.

[wheatencrown]

Inside she heads for the small kitchen and starts looking for the bracelet, hopefully it hasn't fallen anywhere.

[fiery_ring]

Fortunately, the cottage hasn't been cleaned yet.

The bracelet is on the side of the sink.

[wheatencrown]

Demeter sighs as she finds it and puts it into her pocket. Then she does a little bit of cleaning up before heading into the town to have some tea.

[fiery_ring]

In the tea shop is a copy of the newspaper bearing Carlotta's article, which outs her as a circus girl but otherwise commends her achievement. Apparently Ringmere hasn't won any other sports trophy's at a county level for thirty years.

[wheatencrown]

She frowns as she reads it, the good is wonderful while the bad is hard. In the end she decides not to take it because Carlotta probably already has a copy of the article.

[fiery_ring]

Back at the school, Carlotta gets ticked off for not concentrating.

Where Demeter is, a man comes into the cafe.

"Bad day today." he says, "I just can't get that signal working without the parts and there'll be no trains back today if I can't."

[wheatencrown]

"Oh dear, what happened? I'm meeting someone this afternoon."

[fiery_ring]

"One of the parts inside the signals broke and we have to order a new one." the man says. "Where were you heading, miss?"

[wheatencrown]

"To meet my niece who's attending Ringmere. We're going to have a late tea after she has class but I'm not sure if I'll make it back in time if the trains not running."

[fiery_ring]

"No miss, I don't think you will. You might be able to get the bus though."

[wheatencrown]

"I'll have to do that then. Where can I catch the bus?"

If she can get far enough, Demeter can get herself back but she doesn't want to do anything to stand out.

[fiery_ring]

"Just out the door, turn left and go down the road." the man says. "And I apologise on behalf of the railway Miss."

[wheatencrown]

"Its alright, thank you so much."

Demeter pays for her tea and heads out the door and turns left. When she's at a point where no one's looking, she steps into the fields and soon is outside of Ringmere and tying a ribbon on the gate post.

[fiery_ring]

"Hey, you! What are you doing?" asks a girl who is most certainly not Carlotta. In fact, Demeter may recognise her as the pretty Angela who was at the tournament.

She's near the gate, retrieving a tennis ball, and now staring at Demeter.

[wheatencrown]

"Just admiring the fine school, I'm thinking of sending my own daughter here."

Demeter is her most regal and powerful with a smile.

[fiery_ring]

"Oh. Then you ought to come around the front. And why are you tying that ribbon on there?"

[wheatencrown]

"I'm going to take a photograph for her of the school and I want to give her a sense of where things are. Also I was thinking of how the roses matched the color of her ribbon. Shouldn't you be in class, dear?"

[fiery_ring]

"I just finished my tennis lesson." Angela says. "I was retrieving a lost ball. Hang on a moment, I'll get the key and let you in, so you can meet the head."

[wheatencrown]

"Oh you don't need to do that. I haven't made an appointment and honestly I was just sneaking a look."

[fiery_ring]

"Well you ought not to." Angela says suspiciously. "I don't mean to be rude, but this is a school and we can't have strangers snooping around."

[wheatencrown]

"Of course not. I should go anyway and I'll make a proper appointment."

Demeter gives her a smile and heads back out the gate, this going to make things trickier.