Pearlies - MWBB

And again, I won 3rd place for this weeks Mid-Week Blues-Buster competition. And I was a little unsure of this piece and whether it worked - although I really enjoyed the song!

The prompt was a song:

  “Rag and Bone” by The White Stripes

They settled their sleeping bags outside the store in the early hours. Unfortunately they weren’t the first. Mitsy didn’t like that at all; she dished out filthy looks left, right and centre. She wasn’t going to make friends with these people, tomorrow she would be fighting with them.

They managed to get a place up against the wall. Silvia had squeezed her way in and spread herself out to make room for Mitsy to join her.

“I’m not ‘appy about this Silv, there’s too many of ‘em.”

“It’ll be good Mits, you’ll see.”

Mitsey pulled a face, unconvinced. Silvia pulled out the flask of coffee, and they took turns taking swigs from the little plastic cup. There was no way they were going to sleep, they wanted to be up and ready for those doors to open.

And they were, along with elbows flying, oblivious of the shrieks of outrage from the other women waiting. They were going to be bloody first and that was the end of it.

Silvia rushed to one of the bigger tables, the high piled jumble of glitter and sequins working it’s magic on her and drawing her in. She grabbed at handfuls of them trying to look at them all before anyone else got their hands on them.

Mitsy was on the other side and had already got into a fight with one of the other battle axes, insisting that she had it first. She didn’t even know if it was her size, but that wasn’t the point.

That was when he jumped up on the table and boomed down the megaphone at her to stop!

Mitsy leapt back in terror, releasing the garment.

He was a long thin man, dressed in a pearly suit that glistened off the overhead strip lights. And the top hat lent a quirky, jaunty look that seemed disturbing to her somehow. He kept his eyes on her; tiny dark brown, deep set things that gave her the shivers.

She rushed round to Silvia and tugged at her arm.

“Let’s leave it shall we?”

“What? You’ve gotta be kidding, ain’t ya? No way, I’m just getting started.”

“He’s giving me the willies he is, I wanna to go.”

“Who is?”

“ ‘im up there!” She jabbed her finger upwards, trying not to be seen, but his eyes hadn’t left her.

Silvia looked round, and frowned at Mitsy. “No clue who you’re talking about; there’s no blokes ‘ere.”

“Don’t be funny Silv! The pearlie on the table, with the megaphone.”

Silvia took a side glance at the table, then at Mitsy.

“You ‘avin one your turns again love? There’s nobody there.”

Mitsy froze. Silvia lowered the garment she was holding up, and gave Mitsy a sympathetic look.

“It’s always pearlies int it love?”

Mitsy’s eyes started to well up and Silvia quickly put her arm round her, pulling her in. Then she whispered, “Has he gone yet?”

Mitsy nodded, and croaked, “Why does he always do it Silv? Send them. Why don’t he just leave me alone?”

“He don’t like it Mits, never did. He hated you hunting for bargains, always thought yous were better than that.”

Mitsy gave a small laugh. “Bit of a joke seeing as he was the rag and bone man!”

Silvia giggled too. “Yeah he was a funny man, your Bill, miss him.”

“Me too.” Mitsy was sniffling into her hanky. Silvia chucked down the clothes she had in her hands.

“Come on love, let’s go down the High Street for a cuppa. There’s not much here anyway.”

Mitsy nodded as they started to push their way out again.