Pegasi and Prefects (22 page)

Diana’s been spending a lot of time with Kitty and, presumably, her crowd, lately. Perhaps the Fifth are having a midnight feast or something. I really hope it’s something as innocent as that, something that will mean I can pack them all off to bed and make them write me a short essay on why they need their sleep, some minor breach of rules that doesn’t put Cecily’s precious School Banner at risk. I have a dragging feeling in the pit of my stomach that it won’t be something so babyish and simple to deal with. Diana isn’t really the sort to hobnob with the lower forms at midnight feasts and, come to that, the Fifth’s record of night-time wanderings is a little less innocent than secret boiled eggs and ginger beer.

I drag myself back to my feet and walk softly along the passages, checking all the usual places for illicit feasts, or come to that, casinos: the Fifth common room, the music rooms. I even ease open the doors of the Fifth dormitories and peek inside. The demons in the Fifth are sleeping like precious angels. Well, all barring one.

Naturally, Kitty Eversleigh’s bed is the empty one.

I curse again and resort to my last guess, the study Diana and I share. It only takes me a moment to see that the window, apparently closed, has in fact a ruler wedged into it to prevent it latching against someone’s return.

It’s going to be, I suspect, a long night. I settle into an easy chair near the door and resign myself to the vigil. There are books lined up on the shelves, including one on gryphon breeding that Mother has sent and I am just longing to read, to while away the hours. If only I dared put on a lamp and read to keep myself awake, without alerting the two miscreants that I’m lying in wait.

I decide to work on my plans to encourage Harry and Rosalind to fall in love instead. After all, I think bitterly, it’s usually the best way to keep me tortured and awake all night.

My romantic plans don’t change much, no matter how often I go over them. They are two of the nicest people I know, after all. They’d be a perfect couple. If I could only convince Rosalind to keep all those heavy pale waves of hair out on display instead of tied up in childish plaits, and get her talking about Fabled Beasts so that her fiery enthusiasm for them overpowers her timidity, I can’t see how Harry could help falling in love with her. Harry, who will spend all night working on some doomed foal, won’t be able to help having his protective instincts roused by someone like Rosalind, which is half the battle. And Harry… he is good looking and chivalrous and kind-hearted and another Fable Empath and Rosalind will adore him and I will just have to bite down and endure it, because it is a hundred times better than some stranger carrying her off.

I fall into miserable day dreams of them together, Rosalind’s face turned up to him with the soft glow of affection that in my heart should always belongs to me. Will still, in part. She promised forever friendship. It’s just that it will rightfully belong more to someone else later, which is good and natural and inevitable, and a loving friend would be happy for her.

I cuddle deeper into my dressing gown, shivering. I pull my knees up to myself. The ache in my tooth is still numbed, at least. I’m feeling sad and so terribly drowsy.

The clink of the window coming up wakes me fully. I remain motionless, trying to breathe softly, listening to the scuffling as the two girls come in the window and close it behind them. Then I am up and between them and the door before they can react to my presence, my back against the wood as I flick on the electric light switch.

Kitty and Diana blink at me. They are wearing wraps turned inside out to hide the school colours, over evening dress, dance slippers in one hand and school shoes on their feet. Kitty, as a Fifth former, shouldn’t even have a party frock at school. I have no idea how she hides it from Matron.

Diana turns pale, then red. Kitty, for her part, gives me an impudent smile. “Couldn’t count enough sheep, Charley?”

“
Not quite enough, no.” Deep fury is welling up in me. I’m so tired. My head aches. My tooth is starting to twinge again, too. I don’t want to deal with these two idiots and I don’t want to tell Cecily that any kind of conduct Banner is further and further away from School House because of their actions and feel that somehow it’s my fault for catching them and—I could just spit. Instead, I lean back against the door.

“
Let us past, there’s a dear. We’re all cold and tired and we’ll feel better for some sleep. We can have a chat about this in the morning.” Kitty dimples up at me, stepping forward and putting a hand on my arm. I’m almost sure she’s wearing powder and rouge and that her long lashes shouldn’t be quite so black, not with that red-gold hair.

For some reason, the thought that she’s wearing makeup puts the seal on my fury. “Are you both completely mad?” I struggle to keep my voice down. “You know that breaking bounds at night could get you expelled! We’re going to Miss Carroll, now!”

Diana is neither red nor white now. She’s a sickly grey. She lifts a hand as if to touch me and drops it, helplessly.

“
Charley—Charley, you can’t.”

I glare at her. I hate her. I really hate her, with a deep loathing that makes me tremble. It’s going to be ugly, and horrible, and I hate her for ruining Cecily’s chances at her precious Banner, and I hate her most of all because her unhealthy pallor and obvious terror forces me to feel sorry for her. Everything that has gone wrong this year feels, in this moment, to be Diana’s fault. The only thing stopping me from crossing to her and shaking her is the need to keep the door blocked, with Kitty so close to me and still cheekily unperturbed.

“
I don’t have any choice,” I say, shortly. “I’m a Prefect. This needs to be reported.”

“
Oh, Charley, you can’t mean it,” Kitty wheedles, stroking my arm. I shake her hand off. She narrows her feline eyes, thoughtfully.

“
You don’t understand,” Diana says. “This is my last chance. I can’t be asked to leave another school!”

I press my palms to my eyes and slide to a sitting position against the door. “You have to be pulling my leg,” I say, with no real hope. After all, new girls in Sixth form are unusual enough that there’s probably a story behind them.

“
How many schools
have
you been asked to leave so far?” Kitty asks. She sounds inquisitive and sympathetic and not at all scared about her own prospects.

“
Th-three.” I peer out between my fingers. To my despair, Diana is shaking and crying. “I didn’t think Daddy would find another school to take me, until Miss Carroll agreed to have me here at Fernleigh Manor. I was never officially expelled,” she says hurriedly through her tears, “just that they all told Daddy that there wouldn’t be a place for me next term. I can’t be expelled from here, I just can’t! Charley, please!” Her voice rises in a wail.

“
Three expulsions is a pretty good record. I mean, I’m pretty bad, and I’ve only been expelled once. What on earth did you do?” Kitty asks curiously. She is still carrying on as if this was a friendly conversation, and I want to slap her.

“
It doesn’t matter what I did! Oh, Charley—I know you hate me, but please!”

I realise I can’t go on letting Kitty carry on the conversation. I relent, just a little. “All right. Have it your way. We’ll go to bed, and after prayers, I’ll call a full meeting of prefects. You can explain yourselves and we’ll decide together what to do.”

“
Not Miss Carroll?” Diana scrubs at her tear-wet cheeks with the back of her fists.

“
I can’t promise. It depends what Cecily and the others decide.” I clamber wearily to my feet. “Get out of those ridiculous frocks before you freeze to death, and go to bed.” I hold the door open for them.

Kitty has the cheek to give me another smile as she leaves. Diana steps after her, then turns back, tear-streaked and blazing.

“
I suppose you want me to thank you for not going straight to Miss Carroll. High and mighty prefect, giving the naughty children a chance. What does it matter, though, if we go to a dance? I’m nearly eighteen! You had no need to interfere.” Her voice is hot and vindictive and full of spite. “It’s natural to want to dance and meet young men and have a good time. I haven’t done anything really wrong—anything sick or perverted. You are the one who truly deserves to leave Fernleigh Manor, you know that as well as I do.”

She turns on her heels and whirls off. I stand there dumbly, letting her go.

It doesn’t matter what Diana says. I’m still a Senior Prefect. I still can’t let them get away with flouting the strictest rule in all the school. Even if she is right about our relative sinfulness.

I wait for a while before following them. I want Diana safely in bed before I get back to the Blue Dorm, so that I don’t have to face her. When I’m sure it’s safe, I make my way slowly toward my cubicle, feeling ill and feverish and wanting bed more than anything. Almost more than anything.

I want, desperately, to wake Rosalind and cling like a kid, to be comforted. She could make it feel better, I’m sure. She could—oh, I am such an idiot. Perhaps if I’d gone to her, she could have used her Gift to ease my toothache, and I never would have stumbled on Diana’s secret. It’s too late now, and with Diana hunted to a corner, the last thing I dare do is enter Rosalind’s cubicle. I push my way past it, into my own, and curl up miserably on my bed.