10 Blethingwood Hall - Original Story By Stephanie Poppins

When Penny, Adam, and William Darlington are thrown into Blethingwood Hall against their will, they quickly realize there's a lot more to it than meets the eye. For one thing, it's for rich kids, and they're far from that. For another, it's run by the Order, who represent everything they stand against.

This is Volume One - A 36-part story.

In this episode, Penny makes a surprising discovery.

Transcript

BLETHINGWOOD HALL Written and performed by Stephanie Poppins CHAPTER TEN Emily Starling was sitting in the West Wing courtyard,

Basking in the last of the autumn sun and wondering how long it would take before the clouds came and spoiled everything.

She thought back to the last time she saw Tamrind's parents.

It just didn't make sense.

Chamberlain Swift,

Her father,

Usually was the one giving the orders.

He didn't take them,

Did he?

So what could possibly have gone wrong?

Tamrind wasn't going to tell her that was for sure.

She was the last one to speak ill of her father and there was no way Emily could ask her outright,

Was there?

She had to keep on Tamrind's right side,

Even if the gull did get on her nerves with her incessant digging.

Henrietta said something last night that made me wonder about her,

You know.

And here she was again,

Starting something else,

Only this time it was about poor Henrietta.

Life in the West Wing wasn't always as easy as it seemed.

What's that?

Said Emily,

Looking up from her nails.

Well,

Tamrind held a dramatic pause to ensure she got Emily's full attention.

When we were getting changed,

She let slip about a party she went to with her parents in the holidays.

Now I certainly haven't heard of any parties recently and if there was one,

My parents would have been invited.

So it must have been with a defect,

Mustn't it?

Can you believe it?

My parents would never allow that.

Nor would mine,

Emily agreed.

I've heard those families let their kids talk about all sorts of stuff,

Even politics.

Have you ever heard of anything so ridiculous?

Emily thought carefully.

I'll leave that kind of conversation to my parents,

They say we should enjoy being kids while we can.

She was well aware,

Even if she disagreed,

It wasn't an option to say so.

As a starling,

Emily was accountable to the Swifts,

Even though her family were also members of the Order,

That elite group only the top West Wing families belonged to.

We get on well with the Terns,

But my parents have always been kind of suspicious of them,

Tamrind continued.

They share their stuff with everyone,

No matter who they are,

And then they depend on my father to give them the answers to everything,

As if they can't just read the United Voice and work it out for themselves.

Tamrind was waiting for Emily to react to this,

But Emily knew better than to stick up for her best friend Henrietta.

This was Tamrind's way of fishing for information.

This was what she did.

And Emily had learned from bitter experience to keep her mouth shut when a Swift was on the prowl.

Apparently Henrietta went to a day camp once and they went out into the woods,

Tamrind continued.

My father had to go and have a word with them.

I mean,

They might have been wild animals or anything.

It clearly states in the United Voice,

Animals spread disease and threaten our well-being.

So what on earth were the Terns thinking?

That's what I want to know.

Then she pulled a copy of the United Voice from her bag and turned to the page she was referring to.

I'm sure Hen can't have known anything about animals being there,

Emily sighed.

It's not as if we have any experience in these things,

Is it?

And luckily for her,

Tamrind was far too absorbed in the book she opened to pay much attention.

Such comments would usually be considered insolent.

Having pets is disgusting enough,

She continued,

But the vermin you find in the woods,

That's another level.

Then facing Emily,

Tamrind went in for the kill.

Did you know about this,

Emily?

Emily racked her brains to find an answer,

But she neededn't have worried,

For heading in their direction was her ticket out of it.

But unfortunately for her,

Jacob Tackler-Hughes was not in a talkative mood.

It was English next,

And he hadn't done his prep.

Standing at the front of her well-lit classroom,

Constance Williams was considering how best to motivate her class,

As they were now in lowers and needed to step it up a notch.

A portly woman with a silvery bird's nest of hair,

Tamed by a solitary jade pin.

Miss Williams was passionate about English grammar and highly intolerant of anyone who failed to respect its rules.

She watched closely as her pupils settled themselves,

Her smooth purple lipstick catching the morning light.

If she had her way,

The walls would be covered in much the same.

Anything was better than this regulation grey.

But that was if she had her way.

Today we will discuss the subtle art of persuasion.

She began.

Her fine Italian script sat neat and crisp upon the shiny white board behind her.

Her deceptively soft accent concealed the intention behind her pince-nez.

But firstly,

I would like to return the assessment sheets from last lesson.

Top marks to Antonio,

Who successfully fit the whole of his vocabulary into just one sentence,

And to Henrietta,

Who produced the most beautifully presented work,

Albeit with the subtlety of a wasp.

Antonio beamed at what he thought to be a compliment,

Whilst Henrietta looked crestfallen.

And as for the rest of you,

Why say one word when you can say a hundred?

Just about everyone smarted at this.

Well,

Everyone who cared,

That was.

So let us begin at the very beginning,

Class.

Why do we have language at all?

Is it simply to ask for the things we want?

Tell each other what we're annoyed about?

Or complain when a situation doesn't go our way?

The very second we speak,

We are open to someone despising us.

So it is in our interest to be very clear about what we say before we actually say it.

At this,

Miss Williams shot a look at Antonio,

Who,

In turn,

Beamed back,

Clearly oblivious to the slight.

Then,

Sauntering over to her reluctant star pupil,

Miss Williams continued,

Let us consider this sorry state of an article here.

Hunched shoulders,

Tired expression.

Anybody would think he hadn't raced to my classroom at top speed when he realised English was next.

The West Wing girls giggled at this.

And that made Jake cringe.

Carrying the adoration of the entire female cohort on his back clearly wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

Is his body language enough to persuade me I should let him off the hook?

Miss Williams continued.

Or am I to have the pleasure of a finely crafted poem which encourages me to adopt his point of view?

The English teacher held out her hand without looking.

Jacob's shame reflected in each of her highly polished amber stones.

Yeah,

A well-written poem,

Mrs W,

That's what we need,

Laughed Antonio.

But Jake refused to look up.

He hadn't even written his name.

Miss Williams held her nerve.

She knew Jake was testing her.

It appears,

Class,

The Ferrador ate my prep.

And the class,

Disappointed at having to think for a change,

Sat up.

Each and every one of them fearful they would be chosen next.

Right,

In alphabetical order,

Then.

Jennifer Aves,

Prep,

Please.

The class fell silent.

Everybody knew Jennifer didn't talk,

Did she?

But to their great surprise,

She stood up anyway and floated to the front.

Why don't you get her to act it out,

Miss?

I hear she's great upon stage,

Called Tamarin,

As Lisa stifled her laughter with a pencil case.

Ignoring them,

Jennifer flicked her wrist to cover up the fine ink drawings on her arm whilst Miss Williams rifled through her papers.

Then,

Thinking better of it,

She decided to let the girl read it herself as she had obviously gone to so much trouble.

My poem is about the importance of human kindness.

Penny smiled to herself.

Jennifer's soft Canadian accent was a pleasant surprise.

It persuades us to treat each other with respect and embrace our individuality.

But in order to do this,

We must first consider the implications a lack of respect for one's individuality has on their emotional well-being.

Oh my God,

She sounds like she swallowed a dictionary,

Said Tamarin.

Antonio,

Sit still,

Interjected Miss Williams.

Jake,

Meanwhile,

Looked up.

And so Jennifer continued,

Her hands across her heart as she stared wistfully out of the back window.

I am a daisy with a soft golden heart.

You look like the others,

And of them you are a part.

I am a daisy with a stem tall and strong.

You're nothing but a daisy,

And you will sing their song.

I am a daisy with innocence I will bloom.

For individuals here,

There's simply no room.

But I am a daisy,

Much different from the rest.

You're just another daisy,

As time shall attest.

Jennifer brushed the thick white fringe from her face,

Her pale pink eyes now visible to all.

I am a daisy,

Come what may.

You're just like the others and must grow this way.

I will try as I might for something new.

But the other daisies are much better than you.

An impatient cough came from somewhere at the back of the room,

And Miss Williams wriggled in her seat.

This was most certainly not what she had signed up for.

Shall I be like them then?

Perhaps I might.

To be like the others would be just right.

Okay,

I'll be the same and forget what's within.

But you're much too tall and happy and thin.

But I said I'd be like them and I said I'd be the same.

If you were just a little funnier and had a different name.

Then I shan't be a daisy,

I'll be a weed instead.

Oh,

Didn't you know?

Weeds are better off dead.

There came a gasp at the back,

And realising she had the class in the palm of her hand,

The unrepentant Jennifer concluded,

Now isn't that an effective way to treat individuality at Blethynwood Hall?

The west wing girl stared in disgust,

While Miss Williams looked as if she was about to have a heart attack.

Well,

Well,

This day just keeps on giving,

She coughed.

Meanwhile,

Jacob Tatler-Hughes looked as if he'd just been hit by a bus.

We've got Mr Ling next,

Thank God,

Said William,

As he made his way to the hall with Penny afterwards.

Mind you,

Anything would be better than that.

That Jennifer's a bit weird,

Isn't she?

Hmm,

A little intense,

Penny replied as Jennifer floated past,

A giggling Lisa and Jane in hot pursuit.

There's always one,

William smirked,

It keeps us entertained anyway.

Now what's for lunch?

He looked around.

Jay,

What we got,

Do you know?

It's Waffle Wednesday,

Beamed Jason as he pelted down the corridor to get to the front of the queue.

If I don't hurry up,

I won't get back for seconds before the dragon stops play.

Penny smiled.

Oh look,

There's Adam,

She said,

He looks happy,

I wonder what he's been up to?

And making his way over to the madam declared,

Good news,

Peasants,

I've spoken to Matron,

She says we can see Mum tomorrow.

Brilliant,

William declared,

A little too loudly.

Okay,

Okay,

Quieten down for Christ's sakes,

Adam warned,

They can hear you in Bleffing Village.

Matron told me she sought it and she did.

We'll meet Mum tomorrow at the old pavilion.

Are you sure?

Questioned Penny.

But as soon as the words left her mouth,

She regretted them.

She might be a double agent working for the other side,

You never know,

She scoffed.

Well,

I trust her,

Adam shot back,

If it wasn't for her,

I'd have been for it with the dragon last night.

I thought you had an asthma attack,

Persisted Penny,

Why would she be annoyed about that?

This is strange,

She said to herself,

Something's not quite adding up.

Well,

You know the dragon,

Adam replied,

Always on the rampage about one thing or another.

And all at once,

He became fascinated with what was happening outside.

Anything was better than having to tell the truth.

But luckily for him,

William and Penny thought no more of it,

As far as they were concerned,

Adam's news couldn't have come soon enough.

They joined the queue,

Adam,

Pleased at the prospect of what was to come.

Then Penny made her excuses and left.

It was time she had some peace,

And lunchtime was as good a time as any.

Being able to hear everything all of the time,

Meant there was no off switch for her,

She just had to get away.

What was food when she could spend some time on her own?

She slipped off to the passage behind the stage.

It was dark in there,

Dark and quiet.

And breathing a sigh of relief,

She ran her hands along the warm wooden panelling behind her.

Ow!

This was unexpected and unnecessary.

She looked closer.

What had just scratched her?

It was very dark,

But she could just make out a crack.

No,

It was more than a crack.

It was the edge of a door.

A small cupboard door.

She pulled it open slowly,

And there,

To her great surprise,

Was a tiny wooden staircase,

Built from the same wood as the panelling.

She froze.

No,

There was no sound but the busy lunch service.

Good.

She looked inside.

It was very dark,

But she could just make out a dim light at the top.

She must climb up the stairs and see where it led.

She pulled the door to behind her,

And sure enough,

At the top of the small staircase was a narrow passage.

So narrow,

In fact,

It really had no right to call itself such,

For a passage means a passing passage.

It was a very narrow passage,

And no adult would be small enough to pass through here.

She pressed her back to the wall and shuffled along to the other side.

And squeezing through,

There she saw,

Right before her very eyes,

A completely empty,

Forgotten room.

Empty,

That is,

But for an old oil painting and a marble mantelpiece.

Penny rushed over to the window and held her face up to the warm rays that flooded in.

She could see a little stone courtyard below,

With a quaint sundial in its centre and a silvery pebbled path.

The path was covered in dewdrops,

Even though it was the driest day they'd had in a while.

Penny shrank back.

But she needn't have concerned herself.

There were no other windows or doors facing out,

Just the window she was sitting in.

And to her surprise,

There were no Ferridor either.

So how does anyone get in or out of there then?

She thought to herself.

She pressed her fingers against the warm glass and a heady scent of jasmine filled her nostrils,

Even though the window had been painted shut.

She ran her fingers along the cold stone surround and it was then she noticed something carved into it.

They were her mother's initials.

There was no mistaking them.

These were the ones Mrs Darlington always drew,

The ones with a circle around them.

I've got to tell the others,

She said out loud.

Then she sank back and remembered what Adam had told her that morning.

The next time she would see them,

They would be going on another mission.

She was going to be the lookout.

Penny hated being the lookout.

I really don't want to do it,

She'd moaned to her brother William that morning.

But it's our only way of knowing what's going on,

He persisted.

If it gets sorted,

We might even be able to get out of here.

Adam's right,

We've got to do it.

But what about Matron?

Surely she'd have a newspaper,

Said Penny.

Why do we have to go into the Dragon's office?

No,

Adam said she doesn't believe in them.

Apparently,

Matron said,

There's enough misery in the world as it is without it looking up at her every day.

Penny could see where Matron was coming from and she couldn't help but agree.

But she was 100% sure William didn't want to go down that road again either.

Why would he want to get in trouble with the Dragon?

He'd felt the sting of her wrath before.

So instead of getting excited about what she'd just found,

She sat in the window seat for the rest of lunchtime trying to figure out a way to leave her dorm that night without being seen.

For all her faults,

Penny was loyal to the end and there was no way she'd ever let her brothers down.

They had to find out what had happened to their father.

So a midnight trip to the Dragon's office it would have to be.

Whether she liked it or not.

Reviews

Intriguing! Lured me to sleep quite a few times first, but got to the challenge at the end… ready for it! Thanks, Steph!🙏🏼❤️