they were about to be caught. But they breathed a sigh of relief when the policeman spoke again.
‘Do you know the punishment for wasting police time, laddie? We could slap an ASBO on you. Take my advice, young man. Get home and sober up before you get yourself arrested. Pirates with cutlasses indeed!’ The policeman turned to the rest of the crowd, ‘And that goes for all of you. Time you were home. I’d advise you to leave the city centre as soon as you can.’
O’Mullins smiled to himself. Perhaps they did have a pirate spirit protecting them after all. ‘Hey what’s an ASBO?’ he asked.
‘It must be the Scottish equivalent of the cat o’ nine tails,’ replied Skylights. They waited a few minutes until the coast was clear. Skylights grabbed O’Mullins by the arm, ran out of the close, and together they soared into the night sky. ‘I know where to go now,’ said Skylights. ‘The signpost pointed in this direction.’ No sooner were they up, than it was time to come down again. Skylights could see one or two people walking in the street below. ‘Let’s go round the back of the buildings,’ he whispered to O’Mullins. They landed unseen and found themselves in a huge campus with buildings on all sides. Together they wandered from one building to the next looking for the right place. They passed the College of Life Sciences, School of Computing, Department of Mathematics and then, ‘There it is...the Department of Marine Research,’ said Skylights reading the brass plate on one of the smaller buildings.
‘D’you have the key?’ asked O’Mullins.
‘Of course I haven’t got a key! You blitherin’ baboon. How would I have the key?’ snapped Skylights.
‘If you haven’t got a key, how are we going to get in?’
‘What’s my name?’ asked Skylights.
‘It’s Skylights,’ answered O’Mullins in a concerned voice. ‘Surely you haven’t forgotten your name as well as the key.’
‘In the name o’ Davy Jones, give me patience,’ said Skylights and taking a very deep breath he went on, stressing every word as if talking to an infant. ‘O’Mullins, I ...haven’t ...forgotten... my.... name.... and...I....haven’t ...forgotten...the...key. We...never...had... a key. My name is Skylights ! Now why do you think that is? Eh? It’s because in my younger days, before I was a pirate, I was a burglar. And do you know how I got into houses? By the skylight window. The window in the roof. There wasn’t a skylight window I couldn’t get through. I used to climb up the pipes in these days but tonight, with fairy dust, we can fly onto the roof. So let’s do it, O’Mullins. Let’s get into this building via the skylight window, me old shipmate!’
Once on the roof Skylights worked his magic on the nearest window. Squeezing through the tight space they found themselves in an attic, being used as a kind of store. Once their eyes became accustomed to the dark, they saw it was full of musty old papers, cardboard boxes and ancient looking books. They wasted no time making their way down to the next level. Security lights lit up each landing so they could read the name plates of the various doctors and professors who occupied the offices. Skylights tried the handles but, as he expected, the rooms were locked. They moved silently down to the next floor where there appeared to be only one room. A double door labelled ‘Lecture Hall’ was wide open. Security lighting showed a room with tiered seating, enough for about 50 or 60 people and a small stage with a white screen on it. Skylights shook his head, and the two intruders continued down the stairway to the next floor, the one above ground level.
‘Eureka!’ said Skylights when he saw the word LABORATORIES on the first door. ‘This is what we are looking for.’
He tried the door. It was locked. He removed his earring and, using the sharp pin, began to pick at the lock, straining to hear the tumblers in the mechanism. Before long he heard
‘Do you know the punishment for wasting police time, laddie? We could slap an ASBO on you. Take my advice, young man. Get home and sober up before you get yourself arrested. Pirates with cutlasses indeed!’ The policeman turned to the rest of the crowd, ‘And that goes for all of you. Time you were home. I’d advise you to leave the city centre as soon as you can.’
O’Mullins smiled to himself. Perhaps they did have a pirate spirit protecting them after all. ‘Hey what’s an ASBO?’ he asked.
‘It must be the Scottish equivalent of the cat o’ nine tails,’ replied Skylights. They waited a few minutes until the coast was clear. Skylights grabbed O’Mullins by the arm, ran out of the close, and together they soared into the night sky. ‘I know where to go now,’ said Skylights. ‘The signpost pointed in this direction.’ No sooner were they up, than it was time to come down again. Skylights could see one or two people walking in the street below. ‘Let’s go round the back of the buildings,’ he whispered to O’Mullins. They landed unseen and found themselves in a huge campus with buildings on all sides. Together they wandered from one building to the next looking for the right place. They passed the College of Life Sciences, School of Computing, Department of Mathematics and then, ‘There it is...the Department of Marine Research,’ said Skylights reading the brass plate on one of the smaller buildings.
‘D’you have the key?’ asked O’Mullins.
‘Of course I haven’t got a key! You blitherin’ baboon. How would I have the key?’ snapped Skylights.
‘If you haven’t got a key, how are we going to get in?’
‘What’s my name?’ asked Skylights.
‘It’s Skylights,’ answered O’Mullins in a concerned voice. ‘Surely you haven’t forgotten your name as well as the key.’
‘In the name o’ Davy Jones, give me patience,’ said Skylights and taking a very deep breath he went on, stressing every word as if talking to an infant. ‘O’Mullins, I ...haven’t ...forgotten... my.... name.... and...I....haven’t ...forgotten...the...key. We...never...had... a key. My name is Skylights ! Now why do you think that is? Eh? It’s because in my younger days, before I was a pirate, I was a burglar. And do you know how I got into houses? By the skylight window. The window in the roof. There wasn’t a skylight window I couldn’t get through. I used to climb up the pipes in these days but tonight, with fairy dust, we can fly onto the roof. So let’s do it, O’Mullins. Let’s get into this building via the skylight window, me old shipmate!’
Once on the roof Skylights worked his magic on the nearest window. Squeezing through the tight space they found themselves in an attic, being used as a kind of store. Once their eyes became accustomed to the dark, they saw it was full of musty old papers, cardboard boxes and ancient looking books. They wasted no time making their way down to the next level. Security lights lit up each landing so they could read the name plates of the various doctors and professors who occupied the offices. Skylights tried the handles but, as he expected, the rooms were locked. They moved silently down to the next floor where there appeared to be only one room. A double door labelled ‘Lecture Hall’ was wide open. Security lighting showed a room with tiered seating, enough for about 50 or 60 people and a small stage with a white screen on it. Skylights shook his head, and the two intruders continued down the stairway to the next floor, the one above ground level.
‘Eureka!’ said Skylights when he saw the word LABORATORIES on the first door. ‘This is what we are looking for.’
He tried the door. It was locked. He removed his earring and, using the sharp pin, began to pick at the lock, straining to hear the tumblers in the mechanism. Before long he heard
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