the dial on the machine. It was no
longer pointing to COLD/DELICATES.
Someone had turned it to BOIL WASH.
Belle groaned as she turned the shrivelled garment
over in her hands. Well, the orange stains had certainly
gone – but so had any chance of her wearing her lucky
poncho tonight, or ever again!
She knew it was childish to be upset over something
so silly, but she felt tears sting her eyes as she climbed
slowly back up the laundry-room steps.
By the time Belle met up with Holly and Cat in the
common room a few hours later she'd totally recovered
from the disappointment of the Shrunken Poncho.
She'd borrowed the accompaniment to Eternal Flame on CD from the music library and had spent the rest of
the afternoon practising her big song for the wedding
gig. She was really pleased with how it was sounding.
And when her singing was going well it always made
her happy.
'And, anyway, I've picked out a gorgeous black
rollneck sweater to wear instead,' she told Cat and
Holly as they walked back upstairs after an early supper
to get ready for the bonfire party.
'Well, I'm still baffled as to how a washing machine
can switch itself to boil wash!' Cat commented.
'Don't!' Holly groaned. 'I feel terrible. I bet that
poncho cost a fortune as well – it was Armani!'
'Don't worry,' Belle said. 'Someone gave it to my
mom as a gift but she already had one the same. That's
how I get half my wardrobe.'
Bianca, Mayu and Lettie were chatting on the
landing at the top of the stairs.
Bianca turned to Belle, Holly and Cat with a big
smile. 'So what are you guys all wearing to the party?'
she asked casually.
Belle was surprised – to say the least – that Bianca
was making polite conversation. In fact, she couldn't
have been more astonished if she'd surfed down the
banister singing I'm a Little Teapot!
Perhaps she's feeling guilty about the suit-of-armour trick, Belle thought. 'Well, I was planning to wear my cream
poncho,' she replied as they all walked along the corridor
towards their rooms, 'but it had, er, a bit of an accident.'
'Yeah, I was that accident!' Holly said, rolling her
eyes at her own clumsiness. 'And it would have to be
orange juice!'
Cat laughed. 'It looked as if someone had
graffiti-tagged Belle's boob-zone!'
'Well, perhaps you could still squeeze into it if you
went on a crash diet,' Bianca suggested.
'How did you know it shrank, Bianca?' Cat asked,
stopping so abruptly that Holly bumped into her.
'No one said anything about shrinking.'
'Oh, I just assumed . . .' Bianca blustered.
'You know – cashmere, it's so prone to shrinking,'
Mayu piped up.
'Nobody mentioned cashmere either,' Belle added, no
longer in any doubt as to the identity of the Phantom
Poncho-boilers. One look at Cat and Holly told her
they'd figured it out too.
Bianca treated them all to an extra-frosty glare
before darting into her room, followed by a bemused-looking
Lettie.
'How dare they!' Cat fumed.
'It doesn't matter!' It was almost time for the party
and not even Bianca and Mayu and their Washing-powder
Plot could spoil Belle's excitement.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Holly: Sparklers and Treacle Toffee
Pulling on her boots ready for the party, Holly was still
feeling terrible about the Poncho Affair.
Why did she always have to be so clumsy?
And why did Bianca always have to be so mean?
Two of life's great unsolved mysteries! she thought as she
wrapped her long pink and grey stripy scarf around
her neck.
Suddenly she had a brainwave. She ran to Belle's
room and asked her to give her the shrunken poncho.
Then she hurried to Serena's room for help. Luckily
Serena hadn't left for the party yet – she was still
doing her make-up and chatting with Gemma. She
immediately grasped the idea Holly spilled out to her
and quickly cut out a Barbie-sized poncho from the
matted fabric. Then she hemmed it with tiny blanket
stitches to stop it fraying, and Holly secured a safety pin
to the back.
'Look, we made you a brooch!' Holly cried
breathlessly as
longer pointing to COLD/DELICATES.
Someone had turned it to BOIL WASH.
Belle groaned as she turned the shrivelled garment
over in her hands. Well, the orange stains had certainly
gone – but so had any chance of her wearing her lucky
poncho tonight, or ever again!
She knew it was childish to be upset over something
so silly, but she felt tears sting her eyes as she climbed
slowly back up the laundry-room steps.
By the time Belle met up with Holly and Cat in the
common room a few hours later she'd totally recovered
from the disappointment of the Shrunken Poncho.
She'd borrowed the accompaniment to Eternal Flame on CD from the music library and had spent the rest of
the afternoon practising her big song for the wedding
gig. She was really pleased with how it was sounding.
And when her singing was going well it always made
her happy.
'And, anyway, I've picked out a gorgeous black
rollneck sweater to wear instead,' she told Cat and
Holly as they walked back upstairs after an early supper
to get ready for the bonfire party.
'Well, I'm still baffled as to how a washing machine
can switch itself to boil wash!' Cat commented.
'Don't!' Holly groaned. 'I feel terrible. I bet that
poncho cost a fortune as well – it was Armani!'
'Don't worry,' Belle said. 'Someone gave it to my
mom as a gift but she already had one the same. That's
how I get half my wardrobe.'
Bianca, Mayu and Lettie were chatting on the
landing at the top of the stairs.
Bianca turned to Belle, Holly and Cat with a big
smile. 'So what are you guys all wearing to the party?'
she asked casually.
Belle was surprised – to say the least – that Bianca
was making polite conversation. In fact, she couldn't
have been more astonished if she'd surfed down the
banister singing I'm a Little Teapot!
Perhaps she's feeling guilty about the suit-of-armour trick, Belle thought. 'Well, I was planning to wear my cream
poncho,' she replied as they all walked along the corridor
towards their rooms, 'but it had, er, a bit of an accident.'
'Yeah, I was that accident!' Holly said, rolling her
eyes at her own clumsiness. 'And it would have to be
orange juice!'
Cat laughed. 'It looked as if someone had
graffiti-tagged Belle's boob-zone!'
'Well, perhaps you could still squeeze into it if you
went on a crash diet,' Bianca suggested.
'How did you know it shrank, Bianca?' Cat asked,
stopping so abruptly that Holly bumped into her.
'No one said anything about shrinking.'
'Oh, I just assumed . . .' Bianca blustered.
'You know – cashmere, it's so prone to shrinking,'
Mayu piped up.
'Nobody mentioned cashmere either,' Belle added, no
longer in any doubt as to the identity of the Phantom
Poncho-boilers. One look at Cat and Holly told her
they'd figured it out too.
Bianca treated them all to an extra-frosty glare
before darting into her room, followed by a bemused-looking
Lettie.
'How dare they!' Cat fumed.
'It doesn't matter!' It was almost time for the party
and not even Bianca and Mayu and their Washing-powder
Plot could spoil Belle's excitement.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Holly: Sparklers and Treacle Toffee
Pulling on her boots ready for the party, Holly was still
feeling terrible about the Poncho Affair.
Why did she always have to be so clumsy?
And why did Bianca always have to be so mean?
Two of life's great unsolved mysteries! she thought as she
wrapped her long pink and grey stripy scarf around
her neck.
Suddenly she had a brainwave. She ran to Belle's
room and asked her to give her the shrunken poncho.
Then she hurried to Serena's room for help. Luckily
Serena hadn't left for the party yet – she was still
doing her make-up and chatting with Gemma. She
immediately grasped the idea Holly spilled out to her
and quickly cut out a Barbie-sized poncho from the
matted fabric. Then she hemmed it with tiny blanket
stitches to stop it fraying, and Holly secured a safety pin
to the back.
'Look, we made you a brooch!' Holly cried
breathlessly as
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