Instead Of The Head

Terence is in the museum, at the Château de Brest, with Bertille and her parents.

They are all wearing headphones, in front of Napoleon's barge.

It is a large barge, set above glass bays so you can see the bottom.

There is also a mirror above it, so you can see what's inside.

A gold Neptune and four cherubs adorn the prow. 

One cherub rides a gold sea horse.

Terence takes off his head phones.

Nice sea horse, says Terence.

I don't like it, says the cherub. 

It's not a real sea horse, says Terence.

I know that, says the cherub. It has a real horse's head instead of the head of a sea horse.

And a fish tail, instead of a sea horse tail, says Terence.

Does it? asks the cherub. I can't see that.

Look up. There's a mirror, says Terence.

The cherub looks up.

Sees what's behind him.

This explains a lot.

That does it, says the cherub. I'm dismounting.

Before you do that, boy, booms Neptune, understand you can never come back!

Woop-de-doo! says the cherub. I never want to!

It dismounts from the sea horse to the astonishment of Bertille's parents.

They both take off their headphones.

Merde! says Bertille's mother. I did not expect this. Should we alert the authorities?

Non! says Bertille's father. Let us move on. Allez vite, Bertille and Terence!

The party moves on, followed by the cherub.

He can't come, says Bertille.

But he's not allowed back, says Terence. His dad said so.

That wasn't my dad, says the cherub. That was Neptune, the sea god.

Does he have a weapon? asks Terence.

A pointy fork, says the cherub. Want to see the holes in my bottom?

Yuck! says Bertille.

Her parents are leaving the castle, in a hurry.

Bertille follows her parents. Terence and the cherub do not.

They hide in a gallery, behind a model of a ship from the old days. 

I need this. We should steal it, says Terence. 

An alarm will go off, says the cherub.

Then we'll wait, says Terence.

What for? asks the cherub. 

A plan to occur to us, says Terence.

He creeps out from behind the model. 

What if....?

Bertille's dad runs in, sees Terence and grabs him by the shoulder.

Marches him out to the car.

Bundles him into the back seat with Bertille.

It's not fair.

Never mind, says Bertille. It wasn't your fault.

I know, says Terence. Alas. It was everyone else's.