Chapter 21

Around the same time that Nazz had began changing into her Harlequin Honeydew costume, the Kanker sisters were making their way to Peach Creek Mall, excited to start their first night of work at The Green Clover. Under ordinary circumstances, requesting use of the "Ed-Mobile" from Double Dee would have been the preferred method for making such a trip. However, due to the girls desire to keep their jobs a secret from the Eds, that was obviously not an option.

During the holiday season, Peach Creeks parent city provided discounted bus passes to all of it's civil service workers. This of course applied to the Kankers, due to Rod being a city fire fighter. Accordingly, the girls had decided to take advantage of the offer, and were currently riding the bus providing service from the Peach Creek business district to the mall.

The girls had taken their seat on the long bench seat in the very back of the bus. May was sitting at the far right, dressed in a green winter coat, blue jeans, and grey boots. Her blonde hair was once again placed in her favorite style; two ponytails secured by blue bows. She was currently immersed in reading the newest edition of Evil Tim, released the previous day, as she snacked on a bag of chips.

On the far left sat Marie, wearing a blue winter coat with matching earmuffs. She wore a blue head band as an accent to her usual hair style, and was currently using her index finger to doodle various shapes in the frost that had accumulated on the window. These shapes included images of jingle bells, Santa Claus, and even somewhat detailed pictures of Double Dee.

Finally, in between her two sisters, sat Lee. She was wearing her black designer winter coat, skin tight blue jeans, and black high heeled winter boots. Her red curls were draped over her shoulders as her blue eyes stared from behind her glasses toward the front of the bus. Her face displayed it's typical neutral expression, as she sat with her arms folded and her right leg draped over her left.

As the bus entered the highway ramp to begin it's ten minute journey to Peach Creek Mall, Marie decided to begin a conversation.

"Well this sure brings back memories of taking public transit to middle school back in the city." said Marie.

"Yeah, it does," said Lee, "This ain't nothin compared to the "El" though, that was the worst. Those trains were the only place where you could watch some street entertainment, and have some shit-bag try to grab your ass at the same time."

Lee laughed sarcastically as she completed her sentence. The Kanker girls were forced to take the cities elevated train line, locally known as the "El" to school prior to their transfer to Peach Creek Junior High. The line was plagued with degenerates from drugs addicts to street swindlers, and every ride presented it's own dangers.

"Eww I hated the El, said May, "I think the walk on "The Ave" underneath the tressle to get to the station was worse than the train ride itself. I'm so glad we don't have to do that anymore."

"Amen" said the other two Kanker sisters simultaneously.

There was a pause for a few seconds, after which Marie decided to change the subject.

"I wonder if the boys bought the story that we're going Christmas shopping?" asked Marie.

"I think so," said May, "Besides, what luck was it that our men were going shopping today too!"

"Don't get too comfy girls," said Lee, "We may be in the clear today, but we're gonna have to come up with something before our men wise up. Christmas shoppin' ain't gonna work everyday."

"I'm just glad I'm gonna be able to see my Big Ed smile," said May as she hugged herself, "He's gonna be sooooo happy with his present when he opens it on Christmas Day."

"Yeah," said Marie, "Seeing our boys happy is what makes this whole thing worthwhile."

Marie turned towards Lee.

"So Lee," said Marie, "Still keeping Eddy's present a secret?"

Lee glanced towards her little sister, maintaining a stern facial expression.

"Yep that's the plan," said Lee.

"C'mon, you can tell us!" said May, "I'll bet it's sweet!"

"She's stalling," said Marie playfully, "I bet she didn't even think of anything yet."

"Don't test me Marie," said Lee, "I told ya before, I got it taken care of!"

"Well excuse me," said Marie, "I'm just making sure that this stupid winter ball thing isn't getting in the way of your first Christmas with Eddy as a couple."

"Relax Marie, I'm not an idiot," said Lee, "My Eddy will get his gift, and I guarantee you he's gonna love it."

Lee glanced back towards the front of the bus with an angry expression, punching her left fist into her right palm as she spoke.

"But first, I've got a certain blonde haired slut that needs to be put in her place," said Lee, "She ain't gonna know what hit her once Annalee Kanker takes the stage Wednesday night."

Marie and May glanced at each other with concern, after which they returned to their prior activities momentarily. After a few seconds of silence, May interjected on a similar subject.

"How's Eddy coming along with the ballet?" asked May

"To be honest with ya, the little mans catching on faster than I expected," said Lee, "He's definitely getting all of the steps, and now we can do most of the allegretto. I didn't expect him to improve as much as he did in the little time we've been practicing, but he's coming along great. He's even mastered most of the lifts."

"That's great," said Marie, "I guess you'll be ready to practice with the music tomorrow?"

"Yep" said Lee, "Just focusing on the details now."

"So," asked May with a smile, "When can we get a sneak peek at your Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy?"

"Yeah," said Marie, "You haven't practiced that at all. The choreography you put together looks awesome, and I'd like to see it with the music at some point."

"Oh, I've been practicing," said Lee, "I just haven't been sharing it with anyone. Nobody sees my Sugar Plum Fairy until the night of the show. That's the plan."

"Jesus what's with ya and all these secrets?," asked Marie with a playful scowl as she reached up toward the buses stop request cable, "Oh well, I guess I'll have to wait until Wednesday, it's our stop anyway."

Marie tugged the cord, causing the stop alert chime to sound in the front of the bus. The driver pulled over, allowing the three girls to exit via the rear door.

From the bus stop, it was a five minute walk to the main doors leading into Peach Creek Mall. The girls conversed as they walked across the packed parking lot, currently bathed in the cream colored glow of the street lights. The group of three made their way into the mall, and proceeded to the second level, the location of The Green Clover. The mall was quite crowded, with many families dressed in colors of red, white and green walking the halls, window shopping for the perfect holiday deal, as "Frosty the Snowman" played over the malls PA system.

Eventually, the girls entered the Green Clover, and made their way up the escalator to the clothing department. As the sales counter came into view, the girls spotted Edith Jessup standing behind the glass cabinet, organizing the Christmas decorations on display. Edith sensed the presence of the Kankers approaching, and turned her head towards their position with a smile.

"Hey girls," said Edith in a soft, motherly voice, "Long time no see."

Edith giggled as she glanced at each of the girls one-by-one.

"Let's see if I remember correctly," said Edith after which she pointed to each girl individually, stating each of their names "Annalee, Annemarie, and Annamae!"

"Yep," said Lee, "Right on Ms. Jessup!"

"Well, it's settled, I still got my memory!" said Edith rather exuberantly, after which she giggled, "So are you girls ready to get started with your first day of work?"

"Yes ma'am", said all three girls simultaneously.

"Great," said Edith, "Annalee, you will be working with me in the seamstress shop. With all of the holiday parties and winter balls, I can barely keep up with the orders. I'll teach you everything there is to know about dressmaking, and I guarantee your help will be most welcome and appreciated."

"No problem," said Lee, "I'll do my best."

Edith smiled as she turned her attention to the two younger Kanker sisters.

"As for you two," said Edith, "Annalee and I are going to be too busy in the shop to keep track of the sales floor and attend the cash register. I'm going to need you girls to help the customers, wrap gifts, sell chocolates and handle the money. Is that okay?"

"Yep," said Marie, "No problem"

"You can count on us!" said May in her enthusiastic, adenoidal voice.

"Beautiful," said Edith, "Alright, let's get you girls your aprons and we'll get started showing you around."

Edith spent the next few minutes showing Marie and May the ropes, including how to properly perform gift wrapping services, how to package customers chocolate orders, and how to operate the cash register. She also provided the three girls with their own Green Clover aprons, symbolizing that they were part of the team. The aprons were the exact same hue of green as the store logo, and had a single drawing of a golden shamrock on the chest area.

Once the girls had completed their tutorial of sorts, Edith led Lee to the seamstress shop to begin her apprenticeship as a dress maker, effectively leaving Marie and May in charge of the store. While the girls were nervous at first, as they had never dealt with such a high volume of social interaction, it only took a few minutes for them to become accustomed to basic customer service. However, this introduction to sales was only the tip of the iceberg; it was quarter to six, and "prime time" for customer volume at the Green Clover was set to begin in fifteen minutes, providing a true test of the girls ability to handle the crowds.

In contrast to the relative calm before the storm at the Green Clover, the Peach Creek Mall Arcade, located a few stores down from the Green Clover, was completely packed. People from all ages and all walks of life were spending hundreds of dollars in quarters to have their turn at making the high score board of a multitude of arcade classics, including Pac-Man, Space Invaders, and many more.

One of these individuals, a female teenager, had just placed a quarter into the coin slot of one of the Skee-Ball machines. The teenager was wearing a maroon designer winter coat, with white rabbits fur trim. Underneath her coat, she wore a pair of sky blue leggings, and her feet were covered by brown, leather high-heeled boots. On her face were a pair of large "Stunner" designer sunglasses, completely concealing her eyes; in addition her hair was completely wrapped up and concealed underneath a green Sherpa hat, decorated with white silhouettes of reindeer. The young lady's overall appearance conveyed the desire to remain discrete.

The quarter dropped into the machine with an audible "ching", at which point the machine released a series of six balls, each around the size of the average baseball. The female reached down and grasped the first wooden ball, her long, hot-pink fingernails standing out sharply against the dark woodsy brown of the ball, and positioned herself to begin her first roll.

The young lady seemed quite skilled, as she scored three five hundred point shots out of her first four rolls. However, her streak was cut short just as she was about to make her fifth roll, at which point a relatively shrill, yet pompous voice rang through the air from behind her. The female voice contained strong traces of a Polish accent, and seemed quite demanding.

"Lindsay Elizabeth," yelled the voice, "I told you thousands of times to stop wrapping your hair up in that ridiculous hat. How do you expect to win that new contract if you mess up those perfect waves?"

Lindsay ground her teeth as she squeezed the remaining ball in her right hand, seemingly aggravated at the sheer sound of the voice.

"And what are you doing in this ridiculous place anyway?" said Ms. Statorowski, "We've been over this before, and I thought we were finished with these barbaric athletic games. Just because you pulled that little stunt last spring doesn't mean you dont have to listen to me anymore. You should know by now things aren't that easy. Now what's the rule again, you're the prettiest girl in the freshman class..."

"And that's all that matters for a woman in this world." said Lindsay under her breath in a sarcastic tone, completing the womans sentence.

"Come on," said Ms. Statorowski, "Let's get a move on so we can beat the riff raff."

Lindsay remained as still as a statue as Ms. Statorowski began making her way towards the arcade. A few seconds passed, after which she ground her teeth and proceeded to roll the remaining ball as hard as she could towards the score rings, with what seemed like a high amount of frustration. Once the ball was out of her hand, she removed her green Sherpa hat, shaking her blonde waves back to their typical shoulder length position, as well as her sunglasses. She placed both of her accessories in her gray designer hand bag, picked it up, and proceeded to follow Ms Statorowski out into the malls pedestrian walkway.