Peace?
With the tribes all beaten into submission, Kelly and Annabelle were enjoying the relative peace of their relationship. There was still more than enough gambling going on, books opened the very moment both girls disappeared for any length of time. Where were they? How long would the be gone? Snogging or shagging? Who would scream first? Who would look more unkempt on return? Everything was open for a wager. Polly had made a packet by placing spread bets based on Kelly's tips.
There were no more pranks beyond the occasional graffiti (Kel Loves Belle, AnnaKelle 4evr). Not a week passed without someone spotting the two snogging and getting a picture that then circulated the school. Annabelle learned to ignore the catcalls and whistles that always answered Kelly's arrival to fetch her for the evening. The occasional gag waiting in her bed the next morning when she returned was just their way of saying they knew what was going on.
Occasionally Belle returned and found a sweet card on her pillow, congratulating her. Or a photo would circulate of herself and Kelly in happy conversation. Every month (once the grass grew back) the Twins would burn another message into the hockey pitch. Weapons Cupboard privileges be damned, they were going to make sure everyone knew they fully endorsed the Head Girl's choice. Making the gardener insane was a bonus.
The good-natured teasing was really just St. Trinian's celebrating the relationship. Everyone saw how happy the two girls were together and they were all happy for them. Belle just wished that she and Kelly actually had the sort of relationship everyone was assuming. It was hard to know exactly what their relationship was. Best mates, no doubt. Lovers, obviously. But beyond that? It got a bit murky.
She was always most aware of that uncertainty on the nights she slept in her own bed. Four nights a week she was with Kelly in her private room, but the other three the Head Girl was preoccupied with the business of St. Trinian's. There were a lot of after hours extracurricular activities that took her attention 'til dawn. Not to mention the weekly business meeting with Flash.
Annabelle wished she could still be in Kelly's room those nights. Sleeping alone would be worth it if she could still wake up in the beautiful Head Girl's arms. She felt so desperately alone when she slept in her dorm bed. Her whole being ached for Kelly. The smell of her on the pillow, the sound of her breathing. She'd happily sleep in Jones' bed completely alone because she'd still feel Kelly in the sheets, in the contour of the mattress. Her essence could accompany Belle into her dreams.
Belle never said any of that aloud. She just told herself that she was asking too much. Kelly wasn't a soppy romantic, Annabelle reminded herself. She wasn't sentimental and would probably just find it weird that Belle wanted to be in the space they shared even if she wasn't there. That wasn't them. She wasn't going to ruin the most perfect relationship she'd ever been part of by making too much of it. It was what it was. She was happy that Kelly wanted to be with her. Happy every time Kelly sought her out during the day, to snog, to talk, to hang out or just to be quietly in each other's company. She never dared think too deeply about what it meant because she wouldn't risk believing this was love and being hurt.
She never knew that Kelly suffered the same torment. She didn't know that Kelly felt a constant vacuum in her heart when Belle wasn't by her side. The nights they weren't together were the ultimate punishment. Kelly would stagger into her room just before dawn, having spent the whole night controlling the rabble that showed up for the cock fights, or supervising the lounge Posh Totty ran under the shed, or making sure the security team didn't blow themselves up when they checked perimeter explosives. On those mornings Kelly desperately wished she could arrive to her room and see a familiar head of brown curls splayed over her pillow. Just the sight of Annabelle could calm her down, make her feel peaceful and safe. It would erase the frustration and tension of the whole night if she could just climb into bed beside that familiar body and be enveloped in her dreams.
Kelly never said any of this. She argued with herself every time - so close to asking Belle to spend the night even though she'd be away. Each time she stopped herself. Everything was still too new, too unstable. Kelly still felt too frightened, vulnerable for the first time in her life. She didn't know how to say just how attached she was becoming. There was such a wide open future in front of them both. Kelly didn't know where she was going and she didn't know what she could offer Belle. How could they be together forever when Kelly didn't even know where she'd be next year? She couldn't imagine a life without Belle but no Head Girl ever knew how to express fear. And Kelly was afraid. Afraid that these dwindling months together might be all they had.
The more she longed to confess, the more her emotions overwhelmed her. Instead of speaking she pulled Belle against herself; the more she ached with emotion, the harder she kissed the younger girl. Her heart was desperate to make an indelible mark on Belle's mind and skin, to leave her forever remembering their time together, a memory of true love and passion etched into her body and signed Kelly Jones.
Most days both girls could completely sublimate these thoughts so the other never saw. No one did. Except maybe Polly, who could see how Kelly worried her lower lip every time Belle walked away. And Miss Fritton herself, who could see the anxiety in her niece whenever they talked. But no one else would ever know there was anything but perfection, rainbows and orgasms between the two.
This afternoon in mid-December found the two girls on the roof with a number of the other girls. They were watching their favorite sport: the First Years playing Taser Tag. Tania led one team, Tara the other, just to keep things fair. It was mostly an excuse to use electroshock weapons on helpless victims but it was incredibly entertaining for the spectators.
"Watch, once Tania has three cornered her whole team is going to use their tasers at once." Kelly predicted, pointing out one of the twins who was doing her best to split the defense team into fractions. Tara was shouting warnings to the rest of her team, knowing exactly what her sister was thinking. Too late. Three First Years dropped to the ground in violent electro-fits.
"Intruder! Eagle Dropping!" the warning shout came from the watch window, the lookout pointing towards St. Trinian's entrance road. Eagle Dropping only meant one thing. Kelly and Annabelle both looked to the oncoming car, recognizing the vintage roller.
"Bugger." Kelly muttered angrily as she saw Carnaby Fritton's auto.
"We knew he'd come sooner or later." Belle reminded her, squeezing the Head Girl's hand. They'd expected him to come in the days immediately after the heist. They'd assumed he'd unleash his fury on the school for scamming his art gallery. But he'd never come and the girls had gradually, week by week, begun to assume they were safe. As the warning alarm was registered on all parts of the campus every girl stopped still - waiting for orders. The Taser Tag teams froze and turned, ready to fight.
"Right, same plan we practiced but with Christmas wrapping. Got it? Go!" Kelly ordered, watching as the message was relayed from the lookout tower throughout the rest of the grounds.
"He has the worst timing." Belle sighed, her fingers still interlaced with Kelly's as they both watched all the girls scatter. With the winter holidays upon them she had been looking forward to two weeks with her lover without any distractions. No way in hell was she going home. But the arrival of her father might complicate matters.
"A few minutes and we'll have him taken care of for good." Kelly raised their tangled fingers to her face, kissing Belle's hand. Fritton felt a new confidence infuse her veins and she nodded. They marched, hand in hand, off the roof towards the main entry. At the top of the stairs Belle kissed Kelly once and then separated, striding off to face her father.
Carnaby Fritton strode into St. Trinian's main hall free of harm - a feat which never would've happened without Kelly Jones' explicit instruction. Girls flooded around him in every direction, readying for their holiday departure. Supposedly.
"I'm here to see my daughter." he told the girl at the front desk, who snapped her gum at him disdainfully.
"Yeah, she knows." Beverly scowled at him.
"Daddy." Annebelle's voice descended from the stairs, a mild contempt in both her tone and gait.
"Anna, darling. I thought you might enjoy a break from these terrorists! I've scheduled us a lovely cruise in the Black Sea." Carnaby beamed at his only child. Annabelle came within five feet of him and stopped, crossing her arms. She didn't have to look to know that the footsteps following her own were Kelly.
"Why on earth would you want a 'drip' with you?" she demanded, drawing strength from the Head Girl standing just a few feet away. Kelly deliberately positioned herself so that Belle could see her from the corner of her eye.
"Silly girl. Don't let them fill your heads with that same brainwashing drivel they use on everyone else. You're my daughter and I can take you from here anytime I wish!" Carnaby stepped forward menacingly. Kelly took an answering step closer - as did all the other Trinian's girls in the hallway, They didn't like threats.
One of the First Years ran up and handed Belle a Christmas present, neatly wrapped with a festive bow. Belle knelt down to kiss the girl on the cheek and thank her.
"You see? They're already getting to you. You can't possibly care about this lot of anarchists!"
"But I do, Daddy, deeply." Belle returned, clutching the present like a defense shield.
Carnaby evaluated his daughter, a whole new person standing before him. Not just the looks, but her entire carriage had changed. He swept his eyes over her as if seeing her for the first time. That was when he saw the marks. His eyes narrowed, glaring at the love bites. The most prominent was on the left side of her neck but there were hints of color in splashes all the way down her collar.
"Are those hickeys? This is an all girls school! What sort of influences are they allowing here? Camilla! What the hell have you let happen to my daughter?" Carnaby screamed into the hall. Belle flinched but met eyes with Kelly, gaining strength from her gaze.
"Nothing happened to me, Daddy. Well, not anything I didn't want." she smiled mischievously, thinking of her first night with the Head Girl. Last night had been pretty welcome as well; Belle could remember when each and every mark had been made. Carnaby stared at his daughter, his mouth agape as he took in her dreamy expression.
"Right, that's it. Family discount or not, I will not have you at this school. They're turning you into an abomination. You're coming with me this instant!" he shouted, stomping his foot once. He reached out to grab her arm but she took a step back, allying herself more firmly alongside Kelly. She felt - and knew her father couldn't see - Kelly's hand rest on the small of her back, fingers clenching her shirt. The Head Girl did not like words like 'abomination' getting thrown around, least of all at Annabelle.
"But, Daddy, I won't be able to leave with you," Belle opened the present in her hands and removed a blinking remote, "You see, the girls have strapped explosives to your undercarriage and this is the detonator."
Carnaby stared at the control in Belle's hands, glancing back out the entrance towards his car. Only now did he notice the twin blonde girls standing either side of the entrance, each holding packs of explosive and duct tape.
"You wouldn't." he glared at his daughter.
"I would, Daddy. Now leave while you can. If you ever cross our property again without invitation you will die." Belle stated firmly, waggling the remote for emphasis.
Carnaby might've argued further but his eyes had finally taken Kelly into account. He would've ignored her presence completely, except that the ominous girl turned her face to whisper into Belle's ear. It was when she was in profile that he spotted the mark on the side of her neck, as vividly fresh as the hickey on Belle's throat. It was the exact shape of his daughter's mouth. Carnaby swallowed a mixed cocktail of anger and revulsion.
"So be it. This place has turned you into one of them. I expect you'll call to beg forgiveness after your done being a radical whore." He hissed the closing words and spun on his heel. He strode angrily out the entrance, only slightly flinching as the Twins moved closer on either side. The sound of the motor starting and speeding away was the final assurance that the moment was truly over. Belle sagged backwards against Kelly, feeling the comfort of arms wrapping protectively around her waist.
"Tania, Tara, go ahead with the farewell salute." Kelly's menacing smile was mirrored by the twins. Orders were barked into handsets and Belle watched as First Years burst out of the woods on either side of the distant roadway, lobbing projectiles of all shapes and sizes at the retreating vehicle. The silver roller would arrive home in London stained in a psychedelic pattern of rotten tomato, egg, paint and acetone. It might've been less devastating to just blow it up.
"Look at you. Didn't even break a sweat." Kelly murmured proudly as she spun Belle around to face her. Annabelle smiled at the praise. She couldn't think about any of it right now. Not about how much it meant to her to have all the girls protecting her. Or how strong it made her feel to have Kelly at her side. Not about the horrible words her father had thrown at her or the look on his face when he'd put her and Kelly together.
"Course not. Facing him is nothing after being caught swiping Anoushka's private stock." Belle quipped, rewarded by a laugh from Jones. She was clutching at the Head Girls' arms a little tighter than usual but besides that showed no hint of her fading nerves.
"Then what say we slip off and finish that bottle of Imperia that cost you so dearly?" Kelly suggested. The bottle of Russian vodka had cost Belle 20 quid and she had to arm wrestle Anoushka herself. She won but spent the next day with an ice pack on her wounded rotator cuff. She declared the injury worthwhile when she saw Kelly's eyes light up at the taste.
"At eleven in the morning?" Belle feigned shock at the very idea.
"It's well past five in South America." Kelly pointed out with her own infinite, infallible logic.
"Dulce. Me llevan." Belle brushed off the bits of Spanish she'd been picking up from Miss Mauppassant. Kelly looped their arms together to escort her up the stairs. The Head Girl leaned closer to whisper to her as they walked.
"Then perhaps we can explore just what it means to be 'a radical whore.'"