While O’Neill was drawing names from a box, Ms. Li was
looking up information on the competition in Middlebury.
“This looks like an opportunity for La-awndale High!” she
said, as the cost wasn’t too much. She decided she would wait a while to tell
Brittany as she didn’t want to interfere with the Language Arts class in
session.
“Daria Morgendorffer, and Tananda Watts.”
‘I don’t really know her. I would have preferred Jane,’
Daria thought.
“Daria?” Tananda asked.
“That’s what’s been chosen,” O’Neill said.
Tananda grumbled.
“Brittany Taylor, please report to the Principal’s
Office.”
“Cool!” Brittany said.
“Cool?” Kevin asked.
“I asked her about something, Kevy!” Brittany said,
elbowing her boyfriend.
“Ow!” Kevin said as Brittany headed towards the
Principal’s office.
‘That might be good news,’ Quinn thought after hearing
the Principal page Brittany. At least she hoped so.
Brittany entered the Prinicpal’s office. “So?”
“I have approved your request, Ms. Taylor! It’s a great
opportunity for La-awndale High!”
“That’s great! I shall tell the squad.”
“Wait!”
“Wait?” Brittany asked.
“You shall go tomorrow. I still need to write the
permission slips.”
“Of course.”
“You may go now.”
“Why did O’Neill have to do it randomly,” Daria groused
to Jane as they went to their next class.
“One of his usual strange ideas that backfire?” Jane
asked.
“Of course,” Daria said. “But Tananda… I have barely
noticed her existence. It won’t be easy.”
“She’s also ignored you,” Jane said.
“But, do you know her?”
“Not that well. She has her own circle of friends. But I
do know she’s on the lacrosse team.
“That might be a start,” Daria mused.
“And that she can be surprisingly vehement when she
chooses to be.”
“I’ll be sure to test that.”
Tananda too wasn’t sure. She turned to Scarlett Hawkins
Le Faye after leaving the Language Arts Classroom. “Why Daria? All I know about
her is that she is very sarcastic, and that her father has recently passed
away.”
“Maybe look into Quinn?” Scarlett asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Look into what really happened to the Fashion Club?”
“I’m not interested in that!” Tananda responded with her
usual vehemence.
“Good,” Scarlett murmured.
Brittany had found herself with Mack as her partner. That
was quite acceptable as far as she was concerned. She knew that he wouldn’t
press her for too many details.
“Daria!” Tananda called out as she found the other girl
leaving the school at the end of the day.
“I’m going to the Pizza place, we can talk there,” Daria
responded.
“That’s good. But what about Jane?”
“Andrea is meeting her at her place.”
“OK.”
Brittany entered the library and waited for Quinn to
finish her session with Angie. She looked for books on the local area that
would be able to help her on her investigation.
Daria and Tananda arrived at the Pizza place and made
their orders.
“So, what questions are you going to ask?” Daria asked
the other girl.
“I haven’t thought much about it,” Tananda answered. “It
has been less than a day. I guess we’ll have to think about it overnight.”
“Same here,” Daria said. “But we should have some basic
questions. Who we are. What we like. What our families are like.”
“Those are good for a start,” Tananda said as she wrote
some notes.
Daria took out a notepad also. “And our hopes and dreams
for the future, whatever those might be.”
“Your experience with grief?”
“Yes, but don’t pester Quinn about it.”
“I won’t,” Tananda responded.
“Good.”
“That may be good for a start.”
“Yes. We can meet before school tomorrow and talk about
it again,” Daria said.
“…So, that is how the equation works?” Angie asked.
“Yes,” Quinn answered.
“Thanks,” Angie said.
Brittany came to Quinn after Angie left, carrying a book
about the geography of the county.
“Here we are!” Brittany said as she placed the book on
the table. She had it opened to a double page spread and pointed at Lawndale.
Or more specifically the area of town where the school was.
“Yes,” Quinn said as she looked.
“And apparently there are a lot of caves around abouts.”
“Interesting, but I’m not sure that the bus would have
gone into a sink hole. I’m sure that it would have been mentioned if one was
found.”
“That’s true,” Brittany mused as she twirled a pigtail.
“It is worth investigating. But what did Ms. Li say?”
“She said yes!”
“That’s great!” Quinn enthused.
“Then I’ll be able to investigate the competition. See if
there’s anything weird going on there.”
“That would be a good start.”
“I also thought we could have a look at the areas around
the towns, hence the book,” Brittany said.
“Even if the bus was hijacked, I don’t think it would be
easy to hide it in a previously unknown cave.”
“That’s a good point.”
“It is somewhere,” Quinn mused, “but more likely to be in
some old shed or whatever. But the cheerleaders themselves could be anywhere.”
“We’ll find them,” Brittany said with determination.
Quinn thought for a moment as she looked over the map of
the county again. She was sure that the book could be useful. “Anyway, I’m
going to continue preparing for the spelling bee. Could you patrol in the area
of Main Street for the next hour?”
“Sure.” Brittany answered with a smile.
“Thanks, Brittany.”
As Ninja Talon left the school, the Shadow saw her from
across the street. ‘So, the Ninja is a fellow student?’ she asked herself. She
decided to try to follow.
However, Ninja Talon moved rather quickly, such that the
Shadow couldn’t follow. ‘Of course,’ she thought, she’s quite agile. She
decided to do her usual patrol around Dega Street.
SpiderGirl left the school half an hour later, satisfied
that she was adequately preparing for the spelling bee.
When she arrived home, Daria turned on the radio. “The
North Oakwood Cheerleading Team remains missing with authorities still clueless
as to their whereabouts.”
“Those things sometimes take days,” she commented as she
booted her computer.
“Principal of Lawndale High, Angela Li, has announced
that their Cheerleading team will take the missing team’s place in the
competition.”
‘Of course,’ Daria groused to herself.
“…For the honor and the glory of La-awndale High!”
‘Now, let see what they’re saying online.’
After a brief look at various local forums, Daria then
opened a blank document. “What questions to ask Tananda about herself?” she
wondered again.
Later that evening, Trent arrived home from practice with
Mystik Spiral to find Jane sleeping slumped over the kitchen table with a copy
of the same book Brittany had shown Quinn beside her. “Hmm, I guess you’re
looking into that disappearance,” he mused.
Lawndale Sun-Herald
Wednesday January 24, 2001
No Progress in Search for Missing Cheerleaders
SpiderGirl dropped the paper as she arrived at the
school. She hoped that Ninja Talon’s investigation would turn up some leads.
“Quinn?” Stacy asked as her friend rushed into Homeroom a
couple minutes late.
“Sorry, I slept in again,” Quinn said.
“Right.”
The Cheerleading Team met at lunch. “So, we’re taking the
place of the missing team?” Nicki Fisher asked.
“Yes,” Brittany answered.
“But, wouldn’t there be a risk for us too?” Angie asked.
“There will be a police escort between Lawndale and Middlebury,”
Brittany answered.
“Like only one car, I’m sure,” Donna Bolton said.
“Probably,” Brittany said.
“So, we’re going this afternoon?” Nicki aked.
“Yes,” Brittany answered. “Wasn’t that on the permission
slips yesterday?”
“I didn’t actually look at it,” Nicki admitted.
“Oh,” Brittany said.
“I looked at it,” Donna said. “It is today.”
“Right,” Nicki said. “I didn’t get packed!”
“We can stop by your place,” Brittany said.
“OK.”
In between the classes, Brittany caught up with Quinn.
“So, you’re going today?” Quinn asked.
“Yes. I’ll call when we get there,” Brittany said.
“Good. But we need a more secure method of communicating.
Something to talk about later.”
“I agree. Maybe some kind of code?”
“Probably,” Quinn considered.
“I’ll try to come up with something.”
“And hopefully I’ll understand.”
“See ya.”
The Cheerleading team met outside the school’s stadium
after the last class let out. “Is everyone here?” Miss Morris, one of the
School’s Personal Development teachers, asked.
“Yes, Miss Morris,” Brittany answered.
“Good. I want to get to Middlebury quickly, despite
having to pick up Nicki’s stuff,” Morris groused. “Be that a lesson to you to
read the permission slips!”
“Yes, miss!” Nicki said in a contrite tone.
“And now we’ll go.”
Tananda met Daria as both of them left the school
grounds. “Where are we going to start?” she asked.
“I’m going to the Pizza place first,” Daria responded.
“I’ll come along then,” Tananda said with a slight smirk.
Gerald entered the Library to see Anna and Ben, along
with Quinn, already there.
“A little late?” Quinn asked.
“Sorry. I was held up by O’Neill’s latest ‘brainwave.’
I’m paired with Samara Collins.”
“Apology accepted,” Quinn said. “Besides, it’s an
opportunity to make another connection.”
“I knew you would see it that way,” Gerald grumbled.
“Now, we’re going to continue on the public speaking
thing,” Quinn added.
“That’s fine,” Anna said.
“What’s your idea?” Ben asked.
“You’ll take turns reading from the books you have
chosen, and so will I,” Quinn said.
“Really?” Gerald asked.
“Yes,” Quinn responded in an encouraging tone. “You did
well enough with the essay.”
“You’re taking Ms. Li’s original direction and taking it
to it’s ultimate conclusion aren’t you?” Gerald asked.
“Maybe,” Quinn answered.
“Let’s just do this,” Anna said.
“Lets not argue,” Ben added.
“We shouldn’t,” Quinn said.
“So, read something,” Anna murmured as she turned to a
page.
“You want to start?” Quinn asked.
Anna nodded.
Two patrol cars from the Lawndale County Sherrif’s
Department joined the bus as it left Lawndale to the north. They hadn’t wasted
that much time at Nicki’s place, given that her mother had indeed read the
permission slip before she signed it.
Brittany looked at the car behind them and wondered
whether she would find out what had happened to the other team. ‘Or have I just
placed myself and the others in danger?’ That was something she had thought
about earlier, but hadn’t voiced to Quinn. ‘Maybe I could tell her that when I
call?’
“Brit?” Donna asked. “Something up.”
“Did I make the right decision?” Brittany asked.
“I think so.”
“Like, have I placed us in danger?”
“I don’t think so,” Donna responded. “Like, the Deputies
are escorting us because Li is paranoid.”
“Maybe,” Brittany responded.
Daria and Tananda got to the Pizza place. “Don’t you
usually come here with Jane?”
“Yes,” Daria answered. “But she’s doing an art project
based on Lawndale’s streetscape.”
“That sounds interesting.”
“It will be when it’s done.”
“You sound annoyed,” Tananda said as she came up to the
counter.
“Of course I’m annoyed. But at least it’s that and not a
boy.”
“Why?”
“I’m not sure why,” Daria admitted.
Daria wasn’t sure why she said that. She ate another
slice in thought. She still didn’t know what to make of Tananda.
“I have put together some questions I can ask you,”
Tananda said. “As well as Quinn and your Mom.”
Daria looked alarmed. “As long as you don’t press Quinn
too much about our father’s death! She’s very much still in grief.”
“Don’t worry, I will be tactful.”
“I’d still like a look at the questions.”
“Of course,” Tananda said. “And I’ll look at your
questions.”
“Only fair,” Daria responded as she handed over her
sheet.
Jane arrived home after jogging from school. “Trent?”
“I’m here Janie,” Trent responded.
Jane entered the kitchen to see that Jesse was there as
well. It was clear that they had been practicing.
“Hey, could we go over to Middlebury tonight?” Jane
asked.
“Not tonight,” Trent answered. “Spiral has a gig at
McGrundy’s. But tomorrow night is free.”
“What’s there?” Jesse asked.
“You have heard the news, right?” Jane asked.
“Yeah.”
“So, I would like to look into it.”
“Oh,” Jesse responded.
“Still a bit dangerous,” Trent said.
“I know, but I would still like to do it,” Jane said.
“Maybe the whole band?” Jesse said.
“You know Max is cowardly, right?” Jane asked.
“You saw how he acted in Freemont,” Trent added.
“Oh, Yeah.”
Daria finished looking through Tananda’s questions.
“These seem to be fine,” she said. “For the most part.”
“What do you mean?” Tananda asked.
“Meaning that some of these are too personal.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course, I’m sure!” Daria said. “I’m sure that Mom and
Quinn would back me up on that.”
“Let’s see what they’ll say first.”
“Right.”
“And yours are relatively minor,” Tananda complained.
“That’s the point.”
“So, you want mine to be like yours?”
“Not exactly, but yes,” Daria said with annoyance.
“No wonder you have that reputation,” Tananda groused.
