MacBook Battery Charge Problem - With a Twist

I got a white MacBook in October to replace an ailing iBook. It ran fine for almost five months, with a slight twist that I've been reticent to come on here and ask about.
Problem #1: The battery charging had what I'd call frustrating behavior. The computer would not charge the battery unless I practically ran the battery down to nothing. Usually it wouldn't start charging until 20-30% charge. My old iBook would start charging at about 85%, so I just figured it was some failsafe that Apple was building in to the new system to improve long-term battery life. This frustration continued until today when...
Problem #2: I went to a coffee shop to do some work. I'd forgotten the night before that I hadn't let my battery run down enough to charge it, so the battery was at 35%. Okfine. I'll run it for a few minutes and then plug it in. I wait. 30%, 25%, 20% and whenever I plug it in to test, it won't charge. I run it all the way down to the point where the system automatically goes to sleep. The battery won't charge. I've reset all the things that can be reset, I've reseated the battery, I've turned it off and back on, I let it sleep for an extra amount of time to squeeze that extra bit out of the battery. No beans. The thing refuses to charge.
In system info, the battery information shows that it's completely dead (remaining power at zero across the board, not the negative numbers I've seen reported in other threads). The power information recognizes that it's a battery with 0% charge, but only says "Calculating until full..." Given that it won't charge, it's going to be calculating for a very long time. The battery flashes one light when I press the button.
I'm going to take it in to an authorized service whatsit on Monday, but in the meantime, what is it likely to be? I've seen answers ranging from bad battery to faulty motherboard. Is there any step I've overlooked to try before resorting to a trip to the store?
Thanks in advance.
MacBook Core Duo White 2.0GHz Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Yeah, if it says your battery is only at 18% of it's charge after just a few months, then there is definitely something wrong with it. They will probably give you a replacement battery, considering it is still under warranty. My iBook (2 Years Old) is down to 29% of it's original charge capacity, so I am in need of a new one myself :\
2 Years is what Apple says is the average life span of a laptop battery.
14 in. iBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8) 1.5GB RAM 60GB HDD 1.42GHz G4

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