Episode 24: The Play-Requiem for a Blanket
CHAPTER 1: WOOD CHIPPER-1; LINUS-0
Charlie Brown, Frieda, Linus, and Eudora were leaving Joe's Café and was heading back to Charlie Brown's house to study and, in Linus's case, to start another tutoring session with Sally. Frieda, in particular, had been rehearsing for the upcoming Christmas show. Charlie Brown's cousin, Trevor B. hadn't gave a definitive answer to if he would perform as a special guest yet. Plus, Snoopy continued to try to get into the show thinking it was his big break, but Schroeder wasn't having any of it. With Lucy as his main lieutenant, Snoopy was going to have a hard time getting in, as she had even less patience for the mischievous beagle than her boyfriend. To say that Charlie Brown had his hands full as of late would have been the mother of all understatements.
As the kids walked down the street, Linus asked, "How is Sally coming in her studies, Charlie Brown?"
"With you tutoring her, she has improved a lot," said Charlie Brown. "She doesn't bug me to do her homework for her like she used to. She's been doing her own work, and Michael's been helping her, as well."
"She's come a long way from where she was, for sure," added Frieda.
"That's great," said Linus with a smile.
"I've been helping, as well," said Eudora. "While I'm admittedly not the smartest girl in the world, I have been working with her to the best of my abilities."
"As far as the show goes, that's been a nightmare," Charlie Brown sighed. "Frieda here has been working hard to get her performance right, not to mention me trying to keep Snoopy out of the auditorium, but he keeps sneaking in somehow. I may have to get some of the guards close the doors and guard them during the rehearsals. Trying to keep Schroeder calm is a task in itself. Even Lucy hasn't been as crabby, and I expect her to be the first one to blow, but Schroeder somehow has beaten her to the punch."
"The day someone else is crabbier than Lucy is the day the world starts to turn topsy-turvy!" said Linus.
"I think poor Schroeder has bitten off more than he can chew," said Frieda. "I feel sorry for the poor guy."
The kids kept walking when a burst of wind almost swept them off their feet. Charlie Brown grabbed Frieda to keep her from falling over.
"Thank you, baby," she said, and then kissed him.
"It's really windy out here," said Eudora. "I almost lost my hat."
"We better be careful," added Linus. "If we're not careful, we could lose something like…" Before he could finish his sentence, his blanket flew out of his hand by a gush of wind.
"MY BLANKET! Quick! Everyone try to grab my blanket!" And the kids ran after the blanket. It flew down the street and landed on the edge of a wood chipper.
"Uh oh!" said Charlie Brown. "Let's grab it before…" Before they could reach it, the blanket fell in the chipper and started to shred it to bits. Linus turned pale. One tiny bit of his blanket fell to his feet. It was completely destroyed.
"I'm sorry, babe," said Eudora, comforting her boyfriend.
"We all are, Linus," added Charlie Brown.
Before anyone could react, Linus suddenly rose up and screamed to the heavens.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!"
Charlie Brown, Frieda, and Eudora escorted a distraught Linus to his house. Charlie Brown said, "I'll tell Sally that you got sick all of the sudden and had to cancel the session."
"Thank you, Charlie Brown," Linus said, meekly.
"Look after him, Eudora," said Frieda.
"I will, guys," assured Frieda. "Talk to you later." And Eudora escorted Linus into his house, and Charlie Brown and Frieda left. Once inside, Lucy immediately greeted Linus and Eudora.
"Linus, you better hide that blanket of yours," Lucy said without missing a beat. "Our blanket-hating grandmother is here and she's been waiting to take your blanket ever since she arrived."
"She's too late, Lucy," Linus said, starting to cry. "The wind blew my blanket out of my hand, and it fell into…" Linus started bawling at that moment.
"What's the matter with him, Eudora?" asked a confused Lucy.
"You know how windy it is today?" said Eudora. "Well we were coming back from Joe's when the wind blew Linus's blanket out of his hand. Unfortunately, it fell into a wood chipper, which tore it to pieces."
"Oh no!" said Lucy. "As much as I wanted him to give up the blanket, I never would have destroyed it. At the very least, I probably would have put it in the attic and saved it for when Linus had kids of his own when he grew up."
"Well, my kids won't be getting it now," said Linus. "I might as well tell grandma what happened to it. I know she'll be the only one jumping for joy at the news." And Linus trudged in to talk to his grandmother.
"You better leave for now, Eudora," said Lucy. "With our grandmother here and Linus in his current state, it's going to be a long evening."
"I understand, Lucy," said a sad Eudora. "I'll call him later. Look after him, will you?"
"Of course." Eudora then left to go home. Lucy looked at her brother telling their grandmother that the blanket was destroyed. As much as she hated him dragging around the blanket, she didn't relish in his torture like she used to. Since the death of Python, Lucy had become more compassionate.
NEXT CHAPTER: INSANITY AT REHEARSAL