Baking Bad

Chapter 5- The Wicked Witch of the West

 Long live the pioneers
Rebels and mutineers
Go forth and have no fear .

Renegades- X Ambassedors

***

Maddie woke up early the next morning, the evidence of her lack of sleep was shown in the big black bags that hung underneath her eyes and the way she fumbled for the coffee machine blearily. It took a while for the caffeine to kick in and wipe the haziness from her eyes and for her to finish munching her cereal, but when she was finished, she felt a whole lot more like a human than a living mummy. She made sure that her father's book was securely packed in her satchel.

The sound of the the front door unlocking caused Maddie to peek her head around the kitchen door to see Margot push her way into the shop carrying a pile of boxes. Maddie rushed over to help and Margot shot her a grateful smile.

"Thanks love! Getting those out of storage was heavy! It'll be worth it though to see this place all dolled up!"

Maddie smiled vaguely at the woman, not quite sure what she was talking about and bid her a sweet farewell, grabbed her bag and swiftly left the shop. Simply because it was Friday, the day already seemed good and Maddie left the bakery with a smile on her face as she kicked off on her Vespa. She had spent all night thinking about the email she had sent to the Dean and a weight she hadn't known existed was lifted off her shoulders. 

Let's see Evans handle that! She thought to herself. Maybe I'll have a shot at the prize for the best paper. 

At the end of the semester, the student with the best-written paper would be offered a internship with ZooTech, a highly accredited zoology research company with centres built all across the world. They were the top dogs in the scientific community and Maddie was particularly impressed with their station in Madagascar. With so much of the beautiful landscape ravaged by deforestation and pollution, much of their their indigenous wildlife would be long gone if it wasn't for the dedicated efforts of NGOs scattered across the country.

So it was with renewed determination that Maddie sped through the streets, the chilly October wind tugging at her hair hanging out of her helmet and occasionally revving her tinny bike as if she was a manic extra from Need for Speed. Her enthusiasm only increased when she arrived outside the Zoology building and noticed with glee that Nathaniel's motorbike wasn't yet parked in her favourite parking spot just outside the building entrance. She strode into the building making a beeline for her lab entrance when she stopped short upon seeing the inside of the department. Garish orange and black streamers hung from the ceiling, bales of hay with pumpkins and skeletons perched on them decorated the column bases while cutouts of bats and beetle were stuck on the walls. Maddie's mind whizzed as she tried to justify everything she saw before realising with a jolt that it was the morning of October the 30st. The day before Halloween.

She whipped out her phone to check the date then snapped a quick picture of the Halloween decorations and sent it to Sophie then continued on her way, only stopping when a automated skeleton jumped out from behind a hay bale and her scream echoed down the lab passage.

*******

Maddie was busy examining a shed snake skin under a microscope when her phone buzzed in her pocket, the customised Jaws ringtone telling her she had a message from Sophie.

Did you honestly forget it was Halloween tomorrow? We talked about it all of last week! (S)

I have been a bit busy lately...Must've slipped my mind! I was so sure it was the 28th today! What were our plans again? (M)

Well mum's decided to throw her annual do on Guy Fawks this year, not Halloween, so the house is full of decorators and people from various charities the party will support...Looks like we can't do anything here :( Seb's going to a party thrown by one of his band friends if you wanna go to that tomorrow night? It's at the family's huge townhouse so it's gonna be huge...  (S)