Ann Martin - Baby-Sitters Club 058

Margo let me in. She's the seven-year-old Pike. Claire, the kindergartener, is the five-year-old. Then there are eight-year-old Nicky, nine-year-old Vanessa, and the ten-year-old triplets, Adam, Byron, and Jordan. (They're identical.) "Hurry and come in!" exclaimed Margo, tugging at my hand. "Come see what we're doing. We are very busy." Margo pulled me into the rec room where I found her brothers and sisters poring through magazines and comic books.

"What is this? A reading club?" I asked.

Jordan snorted. "A reading club?" "Jordan," said Mrs. Pike warningly.

"Sorry," said Jordan immediately.

Mrs. Pike looked at me apologetically. Then she said, "Mal, Stace - this should only take about an hour. I know you have a club meeting at five-thirty. I'll try to be back by five." "Okay/7 Mal and I replied.

Mrs. Pike hurried through the door to the garage, and I approached Jordan. "So what are you doing?" I asked.

"Ordering stuff," he replied.

Vanessa looked up from a corner of the couch where she was sprawled, one magazine open in her hands, two others spread across her stomach. "You wouldn't believe what you can order," she said. "And cheaply. I already ordered a sample of hair conditioner. And a bust-developer. The bust-developer cost five dollars, almost, but the conditioner was practically free." "Now we're going to see what else we can get for free," added Nicky.

"Here's something!" Adam called out triumphantly. "Well, it's almost free. For twenty-five cents you can order a trial pack of Ever-Flow baby bottle liners." Mal and I exchanged a Look. Oh, well. At least the kids were busy. They entertained themselves until their mother returned.

Chapter 2.

"EvenFlo baby bottle liners!" cried Mal.

"A bust-developer!" I crowed.

"I think my brothers and sisters are truly looney-tunes," added Mallory. "Every last one of them." "How long have they been 'ordering stuff'?" I wanted to know.

"For about a week." Mal and I were pedaling our bikes to Claudia Kishi's house, where the BSC meeting would be held. "It started when Adam was looking through the back of one of his comic books and found an ad for something called 'fool's gold.' The ad said he could order his very own piece of fool's gold - in a quality felt pouch with a drawstring - for just fifty cents. So he did. And he and the other kids have been ordering things ever since. None of it has arrived yet, though." We rode up Claud's driveway and chained our bikes to the lamppost. Then we ran along the front walk and let ourselves inside. (All the BSC members do that. The Kishis don't mind.) "Hello!" I called as we ran upstairs to Claudia's room.

"Hello!" Claud's voice drifted back to us. Claud is the vice-president of the BSC, I'm the treasurer, and Mallory is a junior officer.

Claudia Kishi is my very best friend in the entire world, and I am hers, even though we have only known each other since the beginning of seventh grade, when I moved to Stoneybrook for the first time. Like most best friends, Claud and I are practically twins in some ways, and true opposites in other ways. We are opposites in terms of our family situations and our looks. As you know, I have no brothers and sisters, and my parents are divorced. Claudia has an older sister (Janine the Genius) and her parents are happily married. Also, Claud has never moved. She was born in Stoneybrook and grew up in this house on Bradford Court. In terms of looks, I have fluffy blonde hair which my mom allows me to get permed, blue eyes, and I'm fairly thin, probably because of the diabetes. Claud, who is Japanese-American, has long, silky jet-black hair, and dark, almond-shaped eyes. Despite an addiction to junk food, she is not fat (or thin - she's just right) and she has a complexion like someone in the "after" part of a Clearasil ad.

But Claud and I have the exact same taste in clothes and fashion, and very similar interests. We are both sophisticated and trendy. I know I sound like I'm bragging, but everyone says this about us. We keep track of the new-styles, and we wear tights and boots, baggy tops, and big jewelry. Claud likes hats, and often wears one, and we experiment with makeup and accessories. We experiment with our hair, too, especially Claudia.

Claud and I could talk about fashion and try on clothes endlessly, but we do have other interests - and those interests are another of our differences. While I enjoy school and especially like math, Claud can't stand school. She's an awful student and a terrible speller (although she's smart). What Claud likes is art. She's been taking art classes for years, and her room is full of evidence that she's a painter, a sketcher (is there such a word?), a potter, a sculptress, and a jewelry-maker. Claud makes lots of her own jewelry and often makes jewelry for her friends, too.

Let's see. Here's one other difference between Claud and me. Claud, as I mentioned, is addicted to junk food. Also to Nancy Drew mysteries. Since her parents don't approve of either habit, Claud ends up hiding stuff all over her room - candy, cookies, Ring-Dings, Ding-Dongs, mystery books. Of course, I can't eat most of the stuff Claudia craves, but she's nice about keeping pretzels or crackers on hand for me. Claud is always thoughtful.

"Hey, you guys!" called a voice.

"Hey!" replied Claud and Mal and I.

Standing in the doorway were Mary Anne Spier and Dawn Schafer, the secretary and alternate officer of the BSC. Guess what. They are best friends and stepsisters.

Like Claudia, Mary Anne grew up in Stoneybrook and for years she lived here on Bradford Court, across the street from Claud. She's an only child, and her mother died when Mary Anne was a baby, so until seventh grade, her family consisted of her and her father. Mr. Spier was extremely protective of Mary Anne, and also quite strict with her, but Mary Anne, although she's shy, managed to make a few good friends, including Kristy Thomas (her first best friend), who's the president of the BSC, and also Sam Thomas's sister (remember?). Then, when Dawn Schafer moved to Stoneybrook from California after her parents got divorced, Mary Anne became friends with Dawn, too. In fact, Dawn soon became her other best friend. Then (and this is the good part) Dawn and Mary Anne decided to fix up Mrs. Schafer and Mr. Spier. After their parents dated for what seemed like forever . . . they got married! That's how the best friends became stepsisters. So Mary Anne finally had what she thought of as a "real family." (In my opinion, one person can be a family just as nicely as a mom and a dad, two kids, a cat, and a dog.) Anyway, Mary Anne seems happier now and a little less shy. And her dad is a little less strict. But Mary Anne is still quiet. Plus, she's romantic, and she cries at the drop of a hat. Mary Anne was the first one of us BSC members to wind up with a steady boyfriend. His name is Logan Bruno, and he's one of the nicest guys I know. He and Mary Anne are perfect for each other, although they have had their ups and downs (like most couples, I guess).

Mary Anne has brown eyes and shoulder-length brown hair, and she's short, one of the shortest girls in our class. (Kristy is the shortest, though.) Thanks to her father, Mary Anne used to have to dress like a first-grader and wear her hair in braids. Now she's allowed to dress more the way she wants (which is tame compared to Claud and me), and to let her hair down. She is not, however, allowed to get her ears pierced. Every other member of the BSC, except for Kristy, has pierced ears.

Claud even has double-pierced ears, while Dawn has two holes in one ear and one hole in the other. Oh, well. Mary Anne can still wear earrings. Claud makes clip-ons for her.

Dawn is pretty different from Mary Anne. For instance, she comes from a very different family. She was born in California and lived there with her parents and her younger brother Jeff until the divorce. (Jeff still lives in California with his father.) After the divorce, Dawn made the adjustment from her warm, sunny home state to cold, snowy Connecticut. (Dawn moved here in the middle of winter.) Now her new family - Dawn, her mom, Mary Anne, Mary Anne's dad, and Tigger, Mary Anne's gray tiger kitten - lives in the farmhouse Mrs. Schafer (now Mrs. Spier) bought. Dawn loves the farmhouse. It is old and quirky, has a secret passage which was once part of the Underground Railroad, and may even be haunted by a ghost. This is perfect for Dawn who adores mysteries and ghost stories.