8. Green Hair Ribbon

Down here in the dark, the ribbon hardly looks green at all. She remembers it though. She remembers green. And she remembers how she found it - tied around the leg of one of the chairs in the Periodicals Section, as if it was a clue - a rosette at the end of a treasure hunt. This is the newest addition to the collection. The one she likes best. She almost puts it back on the shelf - she doesn't want to use it up too quickly.

Perhaps, she wonders, someone other than The Boss knows she is here. Perhaps someone left it for her. Perhaps it was a present.

She holds it up to her nose. If it smelled like anything, the smell is long gone now. That makes her sad. It makes her think of moss and flowers and the fact that it is so dark down here nothing can hold its colour. Nothing can grow.

She shakes her hair over her shoulders and begins to plait. Her hair is so long that if she tilts her head back, it touches the floor. The ribbon will keep it out of the way. It will help her to think. It doesn't matter that no-one will see how nice she looks.