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"Mary, you've got to tell me exactly what happened!" urged Ms. Featherstone. She had sat Mary down in a chair in her office.

"I...I..." Mary stammered, coming out of her state of shock. "I can't quite explain it. Mr. Davis turned on a video, and...I must have dozed off..." Her eyes welled with tears. "Next thing I knew, people were pointing at me and my hair...was..." She couldn't get the next word out.

"Who did it? How did nobody else not notice?! How did YOU not feel it?"

Mary's sadness began to turn to anger. Was the principal blaming HER? "I don't know!" she yelled back. "It was like there was this fog...in my brain. I think everyone else felt it, too. We all kind of looked around at each other like we had all just woken up. It was so...weird..."

The principal's eyes widened. "Oh God. Did...did you see what it...or who...cut it?" she asked warily.

"No!" Mary put her face in her hands and resumed crying. "Most people would think this is so silly...they'd say it's just hair. But I hadn't cut it in ten years! It was part of me." Her eyes fell on Ms. Featherstone's own lustrous, knee-length black tresses. "I know YOU understand..."

"More than you imagine. I helped you grow it, in fact." retorted Ms. Featherstone.

Mary must have heard wrong. "What?"

"Well, I have many things to tell you. But I want to have all three of you here. We need to act fast."

"All...three?" Mary wasn't sure what was going on. Was the principal going to find out who did this or not? She watched as Ms. Featherstone pushed a button on the wall and spoke into it.

"Will Megan Richards and Dawn Pritchett come to Ms. Featherstone's office immediately?"

The names seemed familiar to Mary. She didn't want to think right then, however. She closed her eyes and tried to hold back more tears. Momentarily, there came a knock on the door. The principal hurriedly opened it.

In walked two girls. Recognition immediately hit Mary. She knew them more by sight than by name. How could she not? Both of them had hair that almost reached the floor. Mary had never spoken to them before, but had shared eye contact in the school hundreds of times.

Megan. The cheerleader. Her gorgeous blond hair was her signature. Usually in a ponytail or twintails, everybody saw Megan's hair as a staple during school athletics as it bounced and danced to her cheers. The looks Megan had always shot towards Mary were somewhat contemptuous. Since Mary's long red hair was longer than she was tall ('was' being the operative word now), Megan had always seemed jealous, like she was in some unspoken hair-growing competition with her. Was that why she was here? Had SHE cut Mary's hair out of simple jealousy? Had Ms. Featherstone found her out so quickly?

No, she realized. The look in Megan's eyes as they met Mary's was pure shock, turning quickly into compassion as they scanned Mary's cropped hair and red eyes.

The girl next to her gasped, putting her hand to her mouth. Dawn. Her long black hair was a cascade of soft curls that threatened to tickle her ankles in any given moment. Mary had shared many a passing smile with her in the hallways between classes. Dawn's eyes always met her with silent praise, as if they shared some sort of sisterhood. No more, thought Mary. I'm just normal now, another girl who fell to the clip of scissors...what was happening? Why had Ms. Featherstone summoned these two? If it was to make Mary feel even more pain at losing her locks, it had certainly worked. Megan and Dawn seemed just as confused as Mary, however. In unison they asked what had happened to Mary. Dawn clutched at a lock of her own hair, as if afraid some scissor-happy psycho was on the loose.

"We have much to talk about." interrupted Ms. Featherstone. "But I think it would be more convincing if we did it in my OTHER office..."

Description
"Mary, you've got to tell me exactly what happened!" urged Ms. Featherstone. She had sat Mary down in a chair in her office.

"I...I..." Mary stammered, coming out of her state of shock. "I can't quite explain it. Mr. Davis turned on a video, and...I must have dozed off..." Her eyes welled with tears. "Next thing I knew, people were pointing at me and my hair...was..." She couldn't get the next word out.

"Who did it? How did nobody else not notice?! How did YOU not feel it?"

Mary's sadness began to turn to anger. Was the principal blaming HER? "I don't know!" she yelled back. "It was like there was this fog...in my brain. I think everyone else felt it, too. We all kind of looked around at each other like we had all just woken up. It was so...weird..."

The principal's eyes widened. "Oh God. Did...did you see what it...or who...cut it?" she asked warily.

"No!" Mary put her face in her hands and resumed crying. "Most people would think this is so silly...they'd say it's just hair. But I hadn't cut it in ten years! It was part of me." Her eyes fell on Ms. Featherstone's own lustrous, knee-length black tresses. "I know YOU understand..."

"More than you imagine. I helped you grow it, in fact." retorted Ms. Featherstone.

Mary must have heard wrong. "What?"

"Well, I have many things to tell you. But I want to have all three of you here. We need to act fast."

"All...three?" Mary wasn't sure what was going on. Was the principal going to find out who did this or not? She watched as Ms. Featherstone pushed a button on the wall and spoke into it.

"Will Megan Richards and Dawn Pritchett come to Ms. Featherstone's office immediately?"

The names seemed familiar to Mary. She didn't want to think right then, however. She closed her eyes and tried to hold back more tears. Momentarily, there came a knock on the door. The principal hurriedly opened it.

In walked two girls. Recognition immediately hit Mary. She knew them more by sight than by name. How could she not? Both of them had hair that almost reached the floor. Mary had never spoken to them before, but had shared eye contact in the school hundreds of times.

Megan. The cheerleader. Her gorgeous blond hair was her signature. Usually in a ponytail or twintails, everybody saw Megan's hair as a staple during school athletics as it bounced and danced to her cheers. The looks Megan had always shot towards Mary were somewhat contemptuous. Since Mary's long red hair was longer than she was tall ('was' being the operative word now), Megan had always seemed jealous, like she was in some unspoken hair-growing competition with her. Was that why she was here? Had SHE cut Mary's hair out of simple jealousy? Had Ms. Featherstone found her out so quickly?

No, she realized. The look in Megan's eyes as they met Mary's was pure shock, turning quickly into compassion as they scanned Mary's cropped hair and red eyes.

The girl next to her gasped, putting her hand to her mouth. Dawn. Her long black hair was a cascade of soft curls that threatened to tickle her ankles in any given moment. Mary had shared many a passing smile with her in the hallways between classes. Dawn's eyes always met her with silent praise, as if they shared some sort of sisterhood. No more, thought Mary. I'm just normal now, another girl who fell to the clip of scissors...what was happening? Why had Ms. Featherstone summoned these two? If it was to make Mary feel even more pain at losing her locks, it had certainly worked. Megan and Dawn seemed just as confused as Mary, however. In unison they asked what had happened to Mary. Dawn clutched at a lock of her own hair, as if afraid some scissor-happy psycho was on the loose.

"We have much to talk about." interrupted Ms. Featherstone. "But I think it would be more convincing if we did it in my OTHER office..."