Bagsy Beetlehorn and the Vampire Affairs (The Bagsy Chronicles 4)

The Practise

Emmeline made a rude gesture back at Greenda, not saying anything in response. Bagsy didn't bother intervening – she was beyond done with their feud.

The mental weight of Greenda and Emmeline's fighting, the fact the Hufflepuff team was missing a player, and the physical toll of exercise meant that, as Bagsy tried her best to recite lines, she found it difficult to reach her arms fully out, or arch her back as much, or bend her knees; it all ached too much.

'I really do need to learn how to stretch,' she mumbled to herself. She and Mezrielda were in the foldable forge on Friday evening, the day before the first episode of Vampire Affairs was to air. They'd had an early dinner, so at least Bagsy's stomach was feeling comfortably full.

'I'm sure they'll have a book on it somewhere in the library,' said Mezrielda, eyes focussed on the final stage of her paperclip-button project. Frankly, it looked rather weird, but if it made Mezrielda happy, then it made Bagsy happy, too. Pausing her work, Mezrielda glanced at her sundial watch. The shadow was pointing to twenty to six. 'You better get going,' she said. 'The rehearsal begins soon.'

'Right,' said Bagsy, moving to the ladder and climbing out of the foldable forge. 'Come on,' she called down to Mezrielda. 'I know you love hiding away from the world in there, but you've got to leave it some time.'

With grumbled acknowledgement, Mezrielda climbed out, too. 'I don't hide,' she added bitterly. 'I chose to avoid.'

'Sure, sure.' Bagsy wafted her hand dismissively as she folded up the forge and pocketed the bronze cube.

'Onto more important things,' Mezrielda said as they walked out of the library and to the castle exit; practise was in the acting troupe's tent. 'The plan.'

'Yes.' Bagsy nodded conspiratorially. 'The plan.'

'You still aren't sure if your spider gloves will work in the tent?'

'The walls and roof are made of soft material – I'm not sure if the gloves will stick to them like they do solid structures.'

'That is unfortunate.'

'You're telling me.'

'Yes, I am. That's why I said it.'

'N-no, Mez, it's an expression. Anyway, the plan. I practise with them, pretend everything is normal, then when the time is right, I slip away and have a poke around their stuff.'

'By?'

'By either asking to use their loo, faking feeling ill or, as a last resort, dropping this–' Bagsy fumbled with the item she was taking out of her pocket, the ball that jabbered and sipped about that she'd bought from Hooshair.

Mezrielda's hand shot out and grabbed hers, steadying it so she didn't accidentally release the ball. Mezrielda let out a relieved and harsh breath. 'You don't want to risk releasing that in the library. The librarians would never forgive us.'

Bagsy nodded, going pale. She placed it back in her pocket as Mezrielda let go of her hand. 'I can use it as a last resort if I need to distract them.'

'Correct.'

With nerves building inside her, Bagsy hurried out of the castle and to the acting troupe's tent. Mezrielda wished her luck.

Bagsy took in long breaths that she tried to keep slow and calm, pulling her cloak around herself tightly in the cold wind.

Steeling herself, she pushed one of the crimson tent flaps aside and stepped in. The material was frigid against Bagsy's palm, and once she was inside the chill she'd been feeling was replaced with a cosy envelopment of heat. It was like stepping into a warm bath and she let out a happy shudder as she shrugged off her cloak and, noticing a coat stand in the entrance way of the tent, hung it up.