Everything at school was going fine. Life was boring once again. Elsie still felt like a thousand feet away from her friends. Of course, what happened in Cape Cod seemed to bring Anthony and Skye closer to her in a way that left Cassian, Vivian, and Pepper a little confused. Elsie knew that they just wouldn't understand if they tried to explain what happened.

Of course, her friends were left a little bewildered by her sudden friendship with Rory. Sometimes Rory would join them at their table and sometimes Elsie joined Rory at her own solitary table while she ate and read.

Right now, Rory was off at her table, while Elsie was with her friends, when Vivian asked,  "So, are your grandparents still arguing?"

"No, they stopped a while ago," Elsie told her.

Vivian nodded, "Right."

The doors to the cafeteria opened and Mrs. Verdinas went over to Rory, tapping her on the shoulder, making Rory jump.

They spoke for a moment before Mrs. Verdinas left the cafeteria.

Cassian told them that his dad had suggested Rory to find friends because she was a 'loner', even though she has Lane and maybe Paris too. Although his dad had also told Lorelai to pick a group and fraternize with other Chilton mothers.

The next day, things seemed fine, although Skye was complaining about her Spanish teacher, "I hate that I have to correct her. It's getting to the point that I think I can teach the class."

Sometimes Elsie was surprised to remember that Skye was actually half-Mexican (Skye's words); she just happens to take after her extremely white dad. It was obvious most people assume she's full white; even her friends forget that. Then she speaks Spanish fluently or they catch a rare glimpse of Skye's parents.

Rory came into the cafeteria and went to sit down with the Puffs, because she didn't know about them being a sorority. Of course, the Puffs were one out of ten known ones, but the Puffs were number one.

Elsie didn't care about being a part of the sorority, but she wouldn't exactly say no if she were asked to join. 

For whatever reason, Emily decided on 'barbecue' for dinner. Elsie had no clue where Emily got the idea from, but they were having it.

Elsie was sitting on the patio trying to make conversation with the chef who was barbecuing.

Eventually Lorelai and Rory came out onto the patio.

"Hey, cool!" exclaimed Rory.

Lorelai asked the chef, "What's up, Poppin' Fresh?"

Rory said, "Ooh, corn!"

"Nice," Lorelai said. Rory and Lorelai grabbed the corn cobs. "Thank you."

The both of them started eating the corn cobs, making sounds of pleasure.

Emily came out onto the patio, "What is this? A refugee camp? Come inside and eat at the table."

"Mom, the whole point of barbecuing is to eat outside," Lorelai explained.

"Animals eat outside. Human beings eat inside with napkins and utensils," Emily retorted. "If you want to eat outside, go hunt down a gazelle. Make your decision. Elsie and I'll be inside." She went inside and Elsie made a plate of food and went inside.

Lorelai and Rory walked in with plates.

Emily started off with, "I'm extremely disappointed in you, Lorelai."

"Hold on Mom," Lorelai said. She took off her coat, sat down at the table, and put her napkin on her lap. "Okay, go ahead."

"I had lunch with Bitty Charleston today and she told me what happened with you and the headmaster," Emily said.

"What?" Lorelai said, "Geez, does that woman do nothing all day but hide under his desk with a tape recorder?"

"Don't insult my boyfriend's mom," Elsie told her, agitated.

"After all we've gone through to get Rory in that school and then you humiliate all of us by not being involved," Emily said. "That is just incomprehensible."

Lorelai accused Rory, "Hey, she wasn't involved either."

"Wow, just sitting here," Rory said.

"You are a grown up," Emily told Lorelai. "You have to set an example. If she's not involved with school, then she learned it from you."

"Yeah," Rory agreed.

"How hard is it to help out just once in a while?" Emily continued, "Join a group, attend a meeting, and all for the sake of—"

"Mom, stop already," Lorelai interrupted. "I have joined a group, okay?"

Emily was surprised, "You have?"

Rory asked, "You have?"

"Yes," Lorelai replied.

"Which one?" asked Emily.

"I'm gonna join the Booster Club, mmkay?" Lorelai said, "The Booster Club, I'm going to boost."

Emily said, "Well, the Boosters are a very fine organization."

"That's why I picked 'em," Lorelai said.

"They do very good work for the school," Emily continued.

"All went into the picking process," Lorelai said.

"And the matching sweatshirts they wear are just darling," Emily added.

Elsie grinned at the look on Lorelai's face.

After Emily got home from the 'fashion show', Elsie asked her, "Did you strangle her and leave her body in the punch bowl?"

"I wish," Emily replied, showing Elsie some pictures of the fashion show.

"At least you looked like you had fun," Elsie told her while eyeing the photos, "While dressed up as Nancy Reagan."

"By the way, a friend of yours called me and told me that you're being kidnapped tonight," Emily told her.

Elsie wass confused, "Was it at least a good ransom amount?"

"This Francie girl told me that they're gonna come in while you're asleep, wake you up, kidnap you, and take you out to breakfast in your pajamas," Emily explained.

Elsie asked, "Why would she do that?"

"Apparently it's a school thing," Emily told her.

"Let's just hope that I don't end up like Shanda Sharer," Elsie told her. "If I do, I'm haunting you for the rest of your life."

"I wouldn't ask for anything less," Emily told her.

After getting dragged out of bed, Rory and Paris were there, before Francie ended up putting a blindfold on Elsie and led them into some building. Although judging from the short distance that they had traveled and growing up near Chilton.

She wasn't entirely sure why it was necessary for her to be in her pajamas.

"Okay, just a little further," Francie said.

Elsie bumped into what felt like lockers, "Ow!"

Ivy shushed her.

"Sorry," Elsie said.

They moved a bit ahead before they were stopped.

"Okay, that's far enough," Francie said. "Ladies, here on the spot, tonight in this place, where so many others have come before you, we invite you to join us."

"Ladies, remove your blindfolds," Ivy said.

They removed the blindfolds.

"We're at Chilton," Rory pointed out.

"Keys please," Francie said to Ivy, who took out some keys.

"What are we doing at Chilton?" asked Rory.

"Will you please be quiet?" Paris hissed at Rory, "We are being Puffed."

"What you are about to do and what you are about to say will remain forever between the members of the Puffs and only the members of the Puffs," Francie said.

Once Ivy handed the keys over to Francie, she opened the door. Everyone, except Rory, Paris, and Elsie went in.

"This is the headmaster's office," Rory said. "How did she get the keys? I'm sure he didn't give them to her."

"Stop it," Paris told her. "We are making very important social contacts here."

"Hey, I'm not looking for contacts," Rory said. "I have friends. I'm fine."

Paris snapped, "Well, how nice it must be to be you. Maybe someday I'll stumble into a Disney movie and suddenly be transported into your body, and after living there awhile, I'll finally realize the beauty of myself. But until that moment, I'm going to go in there and I'm going to become a Puff. Now get out of my way." She stomped her way in.

Rory and Elsie looked at each other. Rory seemed to be asking if going in there was worth it.

Elsie shrugged and went into the headmaster's office to stand around the desk, while Lem lit a candle.

Francie explained, "The historical bell of Chilton, one-hundred-twenty years old. Every member of the Puffs has stood here under the cover of night to pledge her lifelong devotion to us. 'I pledge myself to the Puffs, loyal I'll always be, a P to start, 2 F's at the end, and a U sitting in between.'"

Rory said, "Anne Sexton, right?"

Francie said, "Once you've finished your oath, you will ring the bell three times."

Ivy said, "Rory?"

"Yeah?" replied Rory.

"You first," Ivy told her.

Rory stepped up to the desk, "Um, I pledge myself to the Puffs..."

"You have to hold the candle," Ivy told her.

Rory picked up the candle, "I pledge myself to the Puffs, loyal I'll always be—"

Francine said, "Sing out, Louise."

Rory said, "A P to start, 2 F's at the end, and a U sitting in between." She rang the bell twice before the door opened.

"I wouldn't do that again, Miss Gilmore," Headmaster Charleston said.

The light turned on and there was Headmaster Charleston with two security guards behind him.

He made them all take a seat on the couch and chairs while he lectured them, while he paced, "Disappointment, disillusionment, frustration, astonishment. I suppose you could say I am experiencing all of these emotions. Finding some of Chilton's best and brightest acting in such a destructive, immoral and illegal manner will make all of us think long and hard about the manner in which we are educating you girls. But that is all in the future. How do we handle this now? Well, suspension will be considered, detention and extra credit to maintain your current GPA standing will be a given."

Rory muttered to Elsie, "This is unbelievable."

Headmaster Charleston said, "What was that, Miss Gilmore?"

Rory replied, "Nothing."

Headmaster Charleston said, "No, I distinctly heard you mumbling something in a rather disgruntled tone, I'd like to know what it was."

Rory said, "I said this is unbelievable."

Headmaster Charleston said, "And why is this unbelievable Miss Gilmore?"

Rory explained, "Because I didn't even want to be here in the first place."

The headmaster started, "Oh, now Miss Gilmore..."

Rory said, "Things were going fine, my grades were good, I joined the paper. My routine was down."

The headmaster repeated, "Your routine was—"

Rory continued, "And I have friends. I have a steady boyfriend, and my mother and I are freakishly linked, and Lane and I have been best friends since kindergarten. But you don't see that because I don't live in this town, and if you don't see it then it must not be true. And you call me in here to lecture me because I'd rather read at lunch than endlessly discuss the euthanasia of homecoming."

The headmaster started, "You're reading had—"

"You told me and you told my mother that I needed to socialize, and if I didn't, it would be frowned upon and it would hurt me getting into Harvard," Rory continued.

Headmaster Charleston admitted, "Well, yes, we did say that."

Rory said, "So, I did it. I sat down at a table. A random table."

Francie asked, "Random?"

Rory continued explaining, "And the next thing I know, I'm being pulled out of my bed in the middle of the night and I'm blindfolded and then before I know it, I end up here with the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, reciting poetry and lighting candles, and now I'm gonna be suspended because I was trying to do what you told me? What's fair about that?"

Elsie tried, "Will it help that I didn't even know that this was going to happen? If I knew breaking and entering would've been a part of it, I wouldn't even have allowed it to happen."

The secretary said, "Headmaster Charleston, the parents are starting to arrive."

Headmaster Charleston said, "Thank you Mrs. Trager." To the girls he said, "All right ladies, we'll continue this conversation tomorrow and for many days after that. You may go." He looked at Rory, "Miss Gilmore, I think that maybe you and I should talk some more.

They, except Rory, left. Emily was there with Lorelai.

"For the record, I had no clue breaking and entering was going to be a thing," Elsie said to Emily.

"I know," Emily said, grabbing Elsie's shoulders and leading her away. "I didn't even get a chance to ring the bell."

"How disappointing," Emily told her.