Disclaimer: I do not own Malory Towers books by Enid Blyton or St Clares. The only character I own is Peggy and she has not yet come into the story.
This is my first ever fanfiction. I would like you to review please. With lots of helpful comments I can make this the best story ever. If you have only read either Malory Towers or St Clares please comment to tell me if I should explain the personalities of the characters so you know who everyone is. Thank you to phasmidfan, my beautiful sister, who edited this by proof-reading and helping me post (fanfiction's hard if you don't know how to use it). I was very much inspired by phasmidfan's 'The Fifth Form Again At Malory Towers'. If you like this story, I highly reccomend that story. Please enjoy!
"What's that letter, Daddy?" Isabel O'Sullivan asked. Her dark head bobbed over her father's shoulder as she tried to read the printed note in his hand. "It's from Saint Clare's! Whatever happened?"
"There's been a fire at Saint Clare's," Mr O'Sullivan said grimly. Patricia, or Pat, who was Isabel's identical twin, gasped in horror.
"Is it entirely burned down?" she demanded. "Is it? Is it?"
"It's fine, Pat," Isabel said, scanning the letter quickly. "It says that it will only be being repaired this term and the next. Then we can go back. And there's a list of schools down the bottom. These are the schools that are open for Saint Clare's girls to go to temporarily."
Pat sat back in her chair, looking down at her breakfast. "And where are we going?" she asked. "Sky Hill? Malory Towers?"
"I once knew a girl who went to Malory Towers, and she turned out to be a perfectly wonderful girl. You'll go there." Mr O'Sullivan began to draft out a letter. "Oh- here's another letter from your little friend Janet's mother! Some girls- Janet, Kathleen, Doris and Hilary are going to Malory Towers as well. Are they friends of yours?"
"Janet isn't little!" Isabel cried. "When do the hols end, Daddy?"
"In four days. You'll be at Malory Towers," Mr O'Sullivan said. "That is, if Malory Towers will accept you. If they do, I'll give you the details. Now go off and do something useful- study, that's what I used to do- Pat, finish your breakfast, and your coat needs a new button sewn on."
The twins finished their breakfast and chores (Pat making a mess of her coat before finally managing to complete her simple task) and ran out into the yard. They found their lacrosse sticks and began throwing balls to each other. They had become very good at lacrosse in their time at Saint Clare's, and now they were in the third form.
While she threw and caught the ball, Pat sulked.
"I don't want to go to Malory Towers," she whined. "Why couldn't it have been Sky Hill that burnt down? Anyhow, I won't try a bit at Malory Towers. The O'Sullivan twins are going to be SOMEBODIES! All the mistresses..."
"Pat, don't behave like we did at first at Saint Clare's," Isabel interrupted. "You know how we were called the stuck-up twins, and I hated that! We should try to go and like the school while we're there. It'll make the time much more pleasant for both of us!"
"Why should I? I shall do as I please," Pat retorted.
"But Pat!" Isabel urged. "If you behave badly, then they'll think that I'm not well behaved either. And what about Hilary and Janet and Kathleen? They think so much of us, and we don't want to disgrace Saint Clare's. I mean, what will they think of us when we get back? I might have agreed with you, when I didn't know what a mistake it was to decide to dislike a school before you even see it. Evidently, from what happened before, you didn't learn anything. I don't want to have to..."
"I SHALL DO AS I PLEASE!" Pat repeated loudly. "Do what you like, Isabel! I won't listen! It will be nice to have some freedom, instead of having you tagging along after me all the time."
"Don't be nasty, Pat!" Isabel whined.
"I'm sorry, Isabel," she said, her anger smouldering down, as though her fire had been put out, and a puff of smoke had erupted from her ears, clearing her mind. It was not the first time she had yelled at her sister, taking her anger out on her when she hadn't done anything.
"I see your point. I was a real idiot. Maybe I should follow your example..." she began her long apology, when:
"Pat! Isabel! You're going to Malory Towers, for sure, we've decided. Come in!"
The twins took their shoes off and ran indoors.
"We just rang Miss Grayling, the principal of Malory Towers. You'll be in the second form," Mrs O'Sullivan smiled. "Won't you like it?"
"The second form, mother?" Isabel asked. "But we're in the third! Surely, there's been some mistake?"
"No," Mr O'Sullivan said. "You're a little behind, I must say. Your grammar is atrocious! And have you seen your maths?! I was mighty ashamed of you two when I had to explain your marks to the Grayling!"
"I say!" Pat cried indignantly. "We'll show them! We should be in the fourth! We're much cleverer than any of those silly Malory Towers girls! The O'Sullivan twins are going to be SOMEBODIES! All the mistresses..."
"Oh Pat, don't be silly- look at the way Mother and Daddy are staring at you!" Isabel said.
"Oh, shut up, let me finish," Pat said rudely, her old anger flaming up inside her again. "All the mistresses are going to sit up and..."
"Patricia O'Sullivan! You will go to Malory Towers and try your best!" And from the way he said it, the twins knew that the decision was final.
***
It wasn't long before Pat and Isabel were pulling on their coats and hats over their orange and brown tunic that was the uniform of Malory Towers. They grabbed their night cases and clambered into the car.
"Is everyone in?" Mr O'Sullivan asked, and they were off.
It was not long before Miss Potts, the head of the first form, ordered everyone into their carriages. As there were no places left in the carriages with their teachers, Pat and Isabel clambered into the nearest North Tower carriage.
Malory Towers sorted their girls into four groups, North, East, West and South Towers. In each tower there was a dormitory for each form, and in the buildings joining the towers together were the classrooms and common rooms. Pat and Isabel would be in North Tower with Doris and Janet. Kathleen and Hilary would be in South Tower.
Pat spent the train journey staring out of the window. Darrell Rivers and her best friend Sally Hope sat chattering together. Janet and a girl named Alicia exchanged stories of tricks they had played on mistresses. Doris and Irene, who always lost her health certificate, giggled about the strange, forgetful things they had done in the past. Kathleen paired up with timid Mary-Lou, and Hilary talked to everyone. Isabel disliked the behaviour of her twin.
"Don't be an idiot, Pat," she said.
Pat ignored her twin and went on staring out the window.
"Alright, then, sulk if you like," Isabel said, and turned to a girl named Gwendoline Mary, or Gwen.
Gwen was stuck-up, and silly to the Malory Towers girls. Isabel, of course did not notice, and listened to Gwen's endless tales of her boring home and family. Gwen, in exchange, thought that as Isabel never spoke a word about her own home, simply because she could not get a word in, that she lived in a beautiful mansion, and was too modest to boast about it.
And so the train journey went on, the pairs chatting to one another and getting to know one another. Then, Pat gave a cry. Looking up, Isabel realised that she was about to see her first glimpse of Malory Towers...
Please review! I will continue soon.
By the way, helpful comments are much appreciated (and much needed).