Chapter III. The Heroine

SCRIBBLERS

C 2004 By Gracie Prior

Chapter III. The Heroine

On the first day of school Butch looked around the room for his buddies. He knew Terry and Jimmy were in his class. He hoped they'd be here in time to claim the seats in front and back of him. As he sat idly twirling his new yellow no. 2 pencil, he looked at the door to Miss Grace's sixth grade class and in walked a vision in green and blue plaid. Being part Scottish, Butch loved plaids of every type, but that wasn't all. This vision was the very same girl he'd seen on the pogo stick two days ago. Only this time, her hair was all in one place and it moved fluidly as she walked way over to where he was sitting by the window. He tried to mentally think "safe" for the seats he was saving, but the girl bravely moved closer and closer to the choice spots.

He was frantic. The girl was approaching his aisle. She may be pretty, he thought, but she better stay off my turf. At that moment he heard a commotion and turned. Terry and Jimmy were racing to his row, their notebooks and pencil cases out front. It all came toegther in one mad push and shove. The girl sat down in front of Butch just as Terry, always the fastest runner, broke free and landed behind him. Butch saved the day by tapping the seat in the front row next to him and Jimmy sat down and caught his breath.

Butch glared at the girl and welcomed his friends. "About time, you guys. I tried to save seats, but you know." He nodded his chin at the girl, who was turning the back edges of her hair under and arranging her books in the desk.

"Yeah, tough break," Terry said looking at Jimmy who was still settling down. "You'll have to fight your own battles here, I guess." Butch noticed am impish grin on Terry's face as he said this.

Miss Grace arrived in a tailored navy suit, stood in front of the class, and cut the discussion short. "Class, we must get started by taking out our science books. We'll leave your seats as is for now. If there is any trouble, you will be moved. Otherwise, consider yourselves seated for the semester.

Butch glanced at Terry and frowned at Jimmy. He was truly upset that his perfect plan was foiled. It was the first year they were all in the same class. Oh, well, he thought you can't have everything.

The students began reading at the front of their science books, about the concept of polarization in magnets. The teacher was trying to explain by holding up two metal bars. Putting them together they attached and stuck in place. Miss Grace explained about how positive attracts negative. She turned one magnet around and tried to stick them together. When they wouldn't stick, she asked the class what the problem was.

Jimmy, who loved science, raised his hand and exclaimed, "Those poles don't attract each other."

Miss Grace asked him to explain.

"Well, for example," Jimmy said rather timidly, "if you put the same poles together, the bottoms will be slippery." Here the class snickered a bit. Jimmy went on, "I mean, you know, the bottoms will sort of fight each other and slip away sort of. The poles have to be opposite to stick together."

"So what you're saying, Jimmy, is that the two poles need to be opposite to attract and the same to repel."

A loud voice called out, "slippery bottoms, that's a new one."

The girl in front of Butch looked around at the rude person and since he was still grinning, Butch secretly took to heart the piercing glare the boy received. She raised her hand. "Miss Grace, Jimmy's answer helped a lot. I was always wondering about that funny slippery thing magnets do sometimes."

The class all looked at the girl, Mary, and settled down.

Miss Grace went on with another section in the science book. They were about to discover how electricity could affect metal when the bell rang for first recess.

Butch headed Jimmy and Terry off at Jimmy's desk as Mary slipped out the door. "Can you believe that? She's pushy, she doesn't even know us, but she stuck up for you, Jimmy. Imagine that."

(Will Jimmy be grateful for his rescue? Is there any hope for the club? Come back next Friday and we will enjoy a new installment together.)

Chapter II. (Cont.) Terry and the Pirates

SCRIBBLERS

Chapater II cont. Terry and the Pirates

C 2004 By Gracie Prior

(Terry and Butch were heading to Jimmy's house to check on the outline of their play when Terry saw something exciting.)

"Look at that!" Terry exclaimed.

"Someone's moving in across the street. Look at those stilts and that pogo stick. Maybe there's some guy our age moving in," Butch answered.

"Can you beat the luck? We can use another partner in our er 'firm'," Terry said.

The boys turned and hurried over to Jimmy's back door. "Jimmy," Butch called.

After several calls, the door opened and the tousle-haired boy appeared.

"Hey, Scribblers. Hail, and all that," Jimmy greeted his friends. "Cool, I see that Terry has his manuscript. What did you and Butch get down?"

"Wait till you hear it," Butch said. "Let's get comfy."

The boys sat down on the bumpy cement stoop and spread the papers out. "Read what you have, Terry," Jimmy said. "Then I'll let you in on my outline. It will be our biggest moneymaker yet. We can go door to door and sell tickets and offer drinks at the show. With my action scenes, it will be a sell out."

"Awe, Jimmy, you always get so excited" Butch wailed. "We had exactly ten people for our play last time. And the costumes and posterboard cost us more than what we brought in."

"Hold up on the outline, guys. Say Jimmy, do you know who's moving on over across the way? Maybe a new member, you think?" Terry's voice rising higher at the hopeful thought.

"I made a point of investigating that situation, and there is someone about our age, but he's a girl, and doesn't have any brothers," Jimmy said.

"Too bad, we really need one more Scribbler, don't you think?" Terry replied.

"Why does it need to be a brother?" Butch wondered out loud.

Terry looked at him. Did you ever hear of one of The Three Muskateers being a girl, or Tom and Huck or Terry and the Pirates?" he asked.

"No, but I've heard of a group of brothers and a girl named Lorna Doone. Think about that," Butch argued.

Terry, Jimmy, and Butch walked around to the front of the house and looked across the street. "The girl" was out front, jumping on a pogo stick, her long hair flopping up and down to the bounces. The boys laughed. "Naw, no way," Terry said. The others just shook their heads.

(Will the Scribblers ever get a new member? Will the boys get their act together and come up with a script? Stay tuned and see when next Friday rolls around.)

Chapater II. Terry and the Pirates

SCRIBBLERS Chapter II. TERRY AND THE PIRATES C 2004 By Gracie Prior

Several days later, Terry Raymond put down his writing pad and pulled on his jacket. The morning air was cool for early September. "Mom, I'm going over to see Butch. Catch you later." he called. With that, Terry slammed the screen door, let it snap and hurried next door. He stood on the back porch and hollered ,"Butchie." Soon, a red curly head popped around the door and the boy followed.

"Did you write it?" Butch asked, a perfect smile forming on his face.

"I did Butchie boy. Wait till you and Jimmy get a load of this scene I've set up. It's between the gypsy princess and the pirates. She's just about to walk the plank, and my new hero, Ponce
Virle De Polo comes swashbuckling over, grabs her, and they swing over the ship on a rope, a lanyard, I think it's called."

"Ponce Virle? Where did yo get that?"

Terry wrinkled his high forehead and scratched his dark straight hair. He wiped his hands on his jeans. "Names are tough. I like explorers but didn't want to be too obvious. So my uncle Virle hepled me out, sort of unbeknownst to him."

And the other pirates? What do they do?"

"For now, they go back to robbing the Spanish Main."

"That's so cool." Butch agreed. "But we have to be able to act it out, remember? Don't get so acrobatic you can't act it out on stage."

"Sorry, I do get carried away," Terry said.

"Let's go over to Jimmy's and see if he has anything. He was supposed to work on the outline. Maybe he knows what these pirates are up to. Let me get my hat and we'll go bother James Martin a bit." Butch said.

Butch followed as Terry, holding onto their notebook, walked backwards all the way to the end of the street where he turned and almost fell over in his excitement.

"Look at that," he exclaimed."

(What did Terry see? Will Jimmy come through? Tune in next Friday and have a great week.)

(The picture was poster on Wed., but the story on Friday, so this is really a Friday post.)

Chapter I. The Little Prince

SCRIBBLERS

By Gracie Prior C 2004

Chapater 1. The Little Prince

Mary peeked out the window of her new home to see the moving van shudder and shake down the road and into the driveway of her white wooden house. Across the street, she saw a pair of eyes peeping around a curtain and out the window at her. She quickly ran into the empty room and twinkled here and there feeling silly. Perhaps a new friend lingered behind those eyes.

Ths noise of a dolly laden with furniture caused Mary to come to her senses. She scooted out the door to see what else would be coming out of the van.

Mom marched out from the kitchen and directed the movers to put this here and that there. While sitting on the cement stoop, Mary saw a child wearing a brimmed hat with a large plumy feather dash out of the house across from her. He was brandishing a sword.

Mary's heart lurched. She would have a friend. The hat blew off and she saw for certain that it was a boy. A wee bit disappointed, Mary just sat on the stoop and stared. The sun beat down on her auburn hair so she pulled it all to one side.

The boy put the hat back on and began coming her way. He sashayed across the street carrying the sword, swishing it in the air. The hat was on the back of his head, but sort of down over one eye.

Mary laughed. She couldn't help it; the poor fellow looked so pathetic. And that thing he carried. It looked like cardboard and foil.

"Hello," he said. My name is James Martin Falcon and this here is Excalibur. Oh, you can call me Jimmy. Everybody does except Granny who calls me James Martin. What's your name? Do you have any brothers?"

Mary just sat amazed at the person in front of her. His eyebrows were down, then up. He had a quirky little twist to his mouth when he smiled. Blondish brown hair stuck out and clear gray eyes peered at her. He stood waiting. For an answer?

"I'm Mary, if you must know, and I don't have any brothers, or sisters either. I'm an only child. My Mother says I'm special."

Jimmy did a kind of bow and looked at her. "Very pleased to meet you. Sorry about the brother thing. We have a club and we need another member. Too bad about that." He nodded and marched back across the street, and then, as if, Mary thought, he felt safe on his own turf, he waved his sword mercilessly at an invisible enemy.

Who cares if he needs a new member in his old club? Mary thought. She didn't have a brother, she didn't need a brother, and she wasn't sure she cared much for Jimmy. "Brother, brother, brother," she said as she went inside. "Bother!"