Junior Winner – Ollie Gooch

Story Starter:

02:00
A small figure in black crept along the edge of the wall, climbed the oak tree, and inched along a branch to the drainpipe. All was quiet. The moon was safely hidden behind smudged and brooding clouds. The figure shimmied up the drainpipe, clinging with gloved hands and rubber-soled booties until she was level with the window ledge. Nimble fingers deftly untied the rope ladder from around the pipe. She gripped the bottom rung of the ladder tightly, and within seconds the figure was swinging like a pendulum underneath the window and flipping her legs over the bar that extended from the window. She was breathing hard now. The last climb over the ledge was more difficult than expected. She pressed a button on her watch.

02:04
Hmmm. Too slow. Down the wooden hallway. The figure was only a few steps from the small recessed doorway when a floorboard creaked. A sliver of light flashed in the gap at the bottom of the door as a lightswitch was flicked on behind it.
Lucinda froze. The prince had promised the laboratory would be empty.

Ollie Finishes The Story:

Very suddenly a black and white hexagon ball rolled out of the long black door. She dived for cover. Hurting her shoulder on a small sharp object that she hoped wasn’t a knife.
“I did that, perhaps, a bit to dramatically” she thought.
A small, frail, old man came out dressed like a footballer and picked up the ball or so she thought, as very suddenly the old man was next to her.
” Would you like a game?”
“I ah ..Um ..ok” she replied
“Well come on then”
When they got inside the spanking new lab, he handed her a pair of shiny, new, top of the line pink trainers to replace her booties 😦
She swiftly put them on.
“Good, good” he murmured.
“Aren’t you playing?” Lucinda asked.
“No, of course not. I am only testing”
He waved a hand at a control panel with so many buttons and levers it took up half the space.
“Then who am I playing?” She queried.
“Oh just Ronaldo”
“Ronaldo!” she yelled. “You mean the best football player in the world?”
“Yes, of course I do” he said, an eyebrow raised.
“Any way” he clapped his hands “lets get going…..”

A couple of hours later, she staggered out, vowing never to play football again. The score, I won’t tell you, it’s too embarrassing.