More Tales From The Village

    It was quiet in the village, a few minutes to curfew and housemaids flitted from cottage to cottage making citizens their nightcap of hot chocolate.
    “There you are sir” the housemaid said with a pleasing smile.
    “What is it?” No.10 asked
    “It’s good for you.”
    “It might be good for someone!”
    “Good night sir.”
    “Goodnight.”
    He didn’t drink the nightcap, instead he poured it down the sink, he thought it might not be good for him. He likes to be on his guard you see, it’s at night when they come for you those nice men in white coats. And when they have you they do unspeakable things to you. Such as feed you mind altering drugs so that you have no idea who you are, or whether you’re coming or going! They change you physically so you look like someone else, and then make you undergo a make-over so that you then look like you, but find your job is to go about the village impersonating yourself!
    In the control room an Observer turned from his monitor “Supervisor, Number 10 is proving more than a little restless.”
    “Put up camera 23, let’s have him on the screen” the supervisor ordered.
    No.10 was pacing the floor of his cottage, he sat down, and then got to his feet and paced about a bit more. No not really, No.10 was sat in an armchair quietly reading a copy of the glossy magazine Village Weekly.
    “Did he drink his nightcap?” the supervisor’s assistant asked.
    “I don’t know” the Observer replied.
    “I bet he didn’t” the supervisor said “I bet he poured it down the sink.”
    “Why should he do that?” his assistant asked.
    “He probably thought it wouldn’t be very good for him!”
    “Supervisor” said another Observer.
    “Yes what is it now?”
    “The tea’s arrived.”
    “Good, I could do with a cup!”
    “What about Number 10?” the assistant asked.
    “What about him, he’s not going anywhere” the supervisor said stirring his tea.
    “Yes but he should be asleep.”
    “He will be….eventually!” the supervisor said watching the screen and sipping his tea.
    No.10 was enjoying reading his copy of the Village Weekly, when he suddenly thought he would like a cup of tea. He dropped the magazine on the floor and rose out of the chair and went through to the kitchen and topped up the kettle from the cold water tap, then switching it on prepared to make a pot of tea. He warmed the pot first, then added three caddy spoons of tea, one for himself, one for the pot, and one for luck, then let it stand for a while. He put milk and sugar in a cup and poured out the tea. Taking the cup and saucer into the lounge he resumed his former position in the armchair, and picked up the Village Weekly and commenced reading again while he sipped his tea. Some twenty minutes later the magazine had slipped to the floor, the cup and saucer was balanced on an arm of the chair, and No.10 was sound asleep.
    The supervisor stood looking at the wall screen with a smile on his face.
    “How did you know…oh I see” said the assistant “the sedative isn’t physically put in the nightcap by the housemaids, it’s introduced into the cold water supply.”
    “You see Number 8 there is more than one way to skin a cat. Our friend Number 10 may be clever, but he’s not clever enough. Now I think it’s time we all had another brew. Do the honours Number 8.”
    “I’m just the office boy; only fit for making the tea” from across the control room floor he shot the supervisor a curious look “I suppose it’s safe?”
    “Safe?” the supervisor asked.
    “Safe to use the water, I’d hate to accidentally sedate us all!”  

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