The Demon Headmaster

by Cross, Gillian

  ‘You would,’ muttered Lloyd. ‘You don’t understand. I just hope he gets the registers out without any trouble.’

  ‘Why should there be any trouble about registers?’ Dinah sniffed. ‘That’s silly.’

  Lloyd opened his mouth to answer her, but before he could say anything a tall, fair-haired boy came slouching across the playground towards them. He did not seem in any hurry, but as soon as he was close to Lloyd he whispered, with great urgency, ‘Quick! What was Harvey doing, going into school? I tried to catch his eye, but he didn’t see me.’

  ‘That’s OK, Ian,’ Lloyd said. ‘He’s gone in to do registers.’

  ‘Registers?’ Ian’s face did not change from its casual, cheerful expression, but his voice sounded horrified. ‘No he’s not. Rose came out and told Sharon to do them, because it was so late. She said the Headmaster wouldn’t have anyone else in there before school started.’

  ‘Oh no!’ Lloyd gasped. ‘Orange onions with silver skins! I’d better go in and try to get him out before anyone sees him.’

  ‘It won’t matter, surely,’ Dinah said. ‘If anyone sees him, they’ll just send him out again.’

  Lloyd and Ian looked contemptuously at her. ‘You’ll see,’ Lloyd said. ‘Here.’ He fished his mother’s letter out of his pocket. ‘Take this. I’ve got to go and look for Harvey.’

  Without another word he was off, hurrying up the steps into the school. Ian turned away and Dinah was left standing all alone in the playground, shivering in the bitter, wintry wind. She looked thoughtfully up at the school. At one window, she could see a motionless figure, in a green blazer with a large white P sewn on to one pocket. It was gazing through the window, but not at her. Its eyes were fixed on the steps up which Harvey and then Lloyd had just hurried. Dinah stared at it for a moment and then, with a shrug, turned back to the playground.

  3

  The Headmaster

  It was a big playground, full of groups of strange children. No one so much as glanced at Dinah and she felt very awkward. But she was not a person who showed her feelings. Her pinched mouth did not relax for a moment. She looked round, wondering if there were any games she could join in. She thought there would be football, skipping, and Tig. And lots of people shouting and telling the latest crazy jokes from Friday night’s Eddy Hair Show.

  But it was not like that at all. All the children were standing in small neat circles in different parts of the playground, muttering. Carefully Dinah sidled up to the first circle, trying to catch what the voices were saying. When she heard, she could hardly believe it.

  ‘Nine twenty-ones are a hundred and eighty-nine,

  Ten twenty-ones are two hundred and ten,

  Eleven twenty-ones are two hundred and thirty-one …’

  Extraordinary! She left them to it and moved across to another group, wondering if they were doing something more interesting. But they seemed to be reciting too. Only what they were saying was different.

  ‘William the First 1066 to 1087,

  William the Second 1087 to 1100,

  Henry the First 1100 to 1135 …’

  She stood beside them for some time, but they did not waver or look round at her. They just went on chanting, their faces earnest. Behind her she could hear a third group. There, the children were muttering the names of the capitals of different countries.

  ‘The capital of France is Paris,

  The capital of Spain is Madrid,

  The capital of the United States is—’

  ‘New York,’ said a little girl’s voice.

  ‘Lucy!’ A bigger girl took her by the shoulder and shook her. ‘You know that’s not right. Come on, quickly. What is it?’

  ‘I can’t—I can’t remember,’ Lucy said in a scared voice. ‘You know I’ve been away. Tell me. Please, Julie.’

  ‘You know we’re not supposed to tell you if you haven’t learnt it,’ Julie said crossly. ‘Now come on. The capital of the United States is—’

  Miserably, Lucy chewed at her bottom lip and shook her head from side to side. ‘I can’t remember.’

  The whole circle of children was looking accusingly at her and Dinah was suddenly annoyed with them for being so smug. Stepping forwards, she whispered in Lucy’s ear, ‘It’s Washington DC.’

  ‘The capital of the United States is Washington DC,’ Lucy gabbled, with a quick, grateful smile.

  From the rest of the circle, cold, disapproving eyes glared at Dinah. Never be too clever, she thought. I should’ve known that. Her face pinched up tight again as she stepped back and heard them start up once more. ‘The capital of Russia is Moscow. The capital of Brazil is—’

  Woodenly, Dinah walked on round the playground, waiting for the bell to ring or the whistle to go.

  But there was no bell. No whistle. Nothing. Instead, quite abruptly, all sounds in the playground stopped and the children turned round to stare at the school.

  There on the steps stood a row of six children, three boys and three girls. They were all tall and heavily built and they were marked out from the others by a large white P sewn on to their blazer pockets. Without smiling, the tallest girl took a pace forwards.

  ‘Form—lines!’ she yelled into the silence.

  ‘Yes, Rose,’ all the children said, in perfect unison. As quietly and steadily as marching soldiers, they walked together, forming neat straight lines which ran the length of the playground. Each child stood exactly a foot behind the one in front. Each line was exactly three feet from the one next to it. Not quite sure what to do, Dinah stood by herself, a blotch of blue among the green.

  The tallest boy on the steps walked forwards.

  ‘Lead—in!’ he bellowed.

  ‘Yes, Jeff,’ chorused the children.

  Still in total silence, they began to march forward, row by row, up the steps and through the door into the school, their eyes fixed straight ahead and their feet moving in step. There was no giggling or whispering or pushing. The whole thing was utterly orderly, the only sound being the steady tramping of feet.

  Dinah continued to stand still, watching, until the playground was almost clear. As the last line marched off, she tacked herself on to the end of it and walked towards the school. When she got to the top of the steps, Rose stuck out an arm, barring her way.

  ‘Name?’ she said briskly.

  ‘Dinah Glass,’ Dinah said. ‘I’m new, and—’

  ‘Just answer the questions,’ Jeff interrupted her. ‘What’s that you’re wearing?’

  ‘It’s my old school uniform. I—’

  ‘Just answer the question,’ he said again. There was no friendliness in his voice and as he spoke he looked not at Dinah but over her shoulder. ‘It is not satisfactory. All pupils here shall wear correct green uniform. Kindly see to it.’

  He looked so haughty and spoke so stiffly that Dinah was irritated.

  ‘I don’t know why you’re being so bossy,’ she said coldly. ‘Anyone’d think you were one of the teachers, instead of a measly kid like anyone else.’

  ‘All pupils shall obey the prefects,’ chanted Rose, in the same stiff voice. ‘The prefects are the voice of the Headmaster.’

  Dinah felt puzzled, but she was determined not to show it. She thrust her chin up and looked straight at them. ‘Well, I think you should take me to see the Headmaster. I’ve got a letter for him.’

  The prefects looked doubtfully at each other. Then Jeff vanished inside the school, while the others stood barring Dinah’s way. It had grown colder and the icy wind was turning her fingers blue. She lifted them to blow on them.

  ‘Hands by your sides,’ Rose rapped out instantly. ‘Good deportment is the sign of an orderly mind.’

  Stubbornly, Dinah went on blowing. At once, Rose said, ‘Sarah! Simon!’

  Dinah’s hands were instantly seized by two of the other prefects, who forced them down to her sides and stood holding them like that until Jeff reappeared.

  ‘The Headmaster will see you,’ he said. ‘Follow me.’ />
  Thoroughly bewildered now, Dinah walked into the school after him and along a straight corridor. At her old school, all the walls had been covered with pictures and drawings done by the pupils, but these walls were completely blank, except for a framed notice hung halfway along. Dinah swivelled her head to read it as she passed.

  The man who can keep order can rule the world.

  Frowning slightly, she went on following Jeff until he came to a stop in front of a door which had the single word HEADMASTER painted on it.

  He knocked.

  ‘Come in.’

  Jeff pushed the door open and waved Dinah inside, pulling it shut behind her.

  As she stepped through, Dinah glanced quickly round the room. It was the tidiest office she had ever seen. There were no papers, no files, no pictures on the walls. Just a large, empty-topped desk, a filing cabinet, and a bookcase with a neat row of books.

  She took it all in in one second and then forgot it as her eyes fell on the man standing by the window. He was tall and thin, dressed in an immaculate black suit. From his shoulders, a long, black teacher’s gown hung in heavy folds, like wings, giving him the appearance of a huge crow. Only his head was startlingly white. Fair hair, almost as colourless as snow, lay round a face with paper-white skin and pallid lips. His eyes were hidden behind dark glasses, like two black holes in the middle of all the whiteness.

  She cleared her throat. ‘Hello. I’m Dinah Glass and I—’

  He raised a long, ivory-coloured hand. ‘Please do not speak until you are asked. Idle chatter is an inefficient waste of energy.’

  Unnervingly, he went on staring at her for a moment or two without saying anything else. Dinah wished she could see the eyes behind the dark lenses. With his eyes hidden, his expression was unreadable.

  Finally, he waved a hand towards an upright chair, pulled round to face the desk. ‘Sit down.’ He sat down himself, facing her, and pulled a sheet of paper out of a drawer.

  ‘Dinah Glass,’ he said crisply, writing it down in neat, precise script. ‘You are being fostered by Mrs Hunter?’

  Dinah nodded.

  ‘Answer properly, please.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘And why is she not here, to introduce you?’

  ‘She couldn’t come, but she’s sent you a letter.’

  Reaching across the desk, the Headmaster twitched it out of her hand and slit the envelope with a small steel paperknife. As he read the letter, Dinah settled herself more comfortably, expecting to be asked a string of questions.

  But there were no questions. Instead, he pushed a sheet of paper across the desk towards her. ‘This is a test,’ he said. ‘It is given to all new pupils.’

  ‘Haven’t you got a report on me?’ Dinah said. ‘From my other school?’

  ‘No one else’s reports are of any use to me,’ said the Headmaster. ‘Please be quiet and do the test.’

  His voice was low, but somehow rather frightening. Dinah took a pen out of her pocket and looked down at the paper.

  The questions were fairly hard. Mostly sums, with a bit of English thrown in and one or two brain-teasers. She knew that most children would have found them difficult to answer and she paused for a moment, working out where she was going to make her deliberate mistakes. Not too many. Just enough to avoid trouble.

  Then she picked up the pen and began to write. As she scribbled, she could feel him watching her and every time she glanced up he was the same. Pale and motionless, with two black circles where his eyes should have been. She was so nervous that she stumbled once or twice, getting some of the answers right where she had meant to make mistakes. To keep the balance, she had to botch up all the last three questions. Not very good. It did not look as convincing as it should have done. Her hand trembled slightly as she passed the paper back across the table.

  The Headmaster scanned it carefully for a moment, then looked up at her.

  ‘You are an intelligent girl.’

  Dinah’s heart sank, but, with an effort, she kept her face calm, meeting the Headmaster’s gaze steadily. At last, he said, ‘But you make too many mistakes. I wonder—’ He chewed for a moment on his bottom lip. Then he shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter. I dare say we shall find out all about you in due course.’

  She looked down to the floor, trying not to seem too relieved, and waiting to be told which class she should go to. But the Headmaster did not seem in any hurry to get rid of her. He crumpled the test paper in his hand and dropped it into the rubbish bin. Then, slowly, he reached up a hand to take off his glasses.

  Dinah found herself shivering. Ridiculously, she expected him to have pink eyes, because the rest of his face was so colourless. Or perhaps no eyes at all …

  But his eyes were not pink. They were large and luminous, and a peculiar sea-green colour. She had never seen eyes like them before, and she found herself staring into them. Staring and staring.

  ‘Funny you should be so tired,’ he said, softly. ‘So early in the morning.’

  She opened her mouth to say that she was not tired, but, to her surprise, she yawned instead.

  ‘So tired,’ crooned the Headmaster, his huge, extraordinary eyes fixed on her face. ‘You can hardly move your arms and legs. You are so tired, so tired. You feel your head begin to nod and slowly, slowly your eyes are starting to close. So tired and sleepy.’

  He’s mad, Dinah thought muzzily. The whole school’s raving mad. But she felt her eyes start to close, in spite of all she could do. She was drifting, drifting … All she could see was two pools, deep green like the sea, and she seemed to sink into them as she drifted off and off …

  She opened her eyes again and gave a nervous laugh. ‘I’m sorry. What did you say?’

  ‘You fell asleep,’ the Headmaster said coldly. ‘You have been asleep for a long time.’ He put his glasses on again.

  ‘Asleep?’ Dinah stared.

  ‘For the whole morning.’

  She looked at him in bewilderment and then glanced round at the clock on the wall. To her amazement, the hands pointed to twelve o’clock. ‘But I don’t understand.’

  ‘Perhaps you should go to bed earlier,’ he said, with a strange smile. ‘Now go and have some dinner. The dining hall is at the end of this corridor. After dinner, you will go into the Hall with Year Seven.’

  Still puzzled, Dinah nodded.

  The Headmaster looked disagreeably at her. ‘Your uniform,’ he said, ‘is not what I require.’

  ‘It’s what I had for my other school. When I was at the Children’s Home.’

  His lips narrowed. ‘I dislike argument. It serves no useful purpose. You will appear in the correct school uniform by next Monday. I am sending a list to Mrs Hunter to ensure that she buys the proper items. I like to see all my pupils dressed in an orderly manner.’ His voice rose a tone. ‘I will not endure disorder. It is inefficient. Now go and have some dinner.’

  Shakily, Dinah stood up and made for the door. As she reached out her hand for the handle, the Headmaster spoke again.

  ‘I have put you in the same class as Lloyd Hunter, but I wish you to have as little as possible to do with Lloyd and Harvey. They are not a good example. They do not fit in at this school.’

  ‘That—’ Dinah had been going to say that it would be difficult. But just in time she remembered that he did not like argument. Better to be quiet and obey. Until she had had time to think everything over, to try and work out why the school was so strange. ‘Yes, sir,’ she murmured.

  As she went out and shut the door, her head was humming with thoughts. Asleep? All the morning? It did not make sense. And had the Headmaster simply sat and stared at her all that time, without trying to wake her up? She shuddered and put a finger into her mouth to suck it thoughtfully.

  Something made her take the finger out again and look at it. It was sore. There was a small red patch at one end, as if a pin had been driven into it. But she did not remember having pricked her finger. Frowning, she walked along the corri
dor towards the dining hall.

  4

  ‘The Best School I’ve Ever Been To’

  At the door of the dining hall, Dinah stopped. She must be too early. There was no sound coming from inside, none of the hubbub of chatter that she associated with dinner time. But when she pushed the door open she saw that the room was full. Table after table of demure children in green uniforms eating platefuls of sausages and chips. Going to the counter, she collected a tray and looked round for Lloyd and Harvey.

  It was easy to see them. Although the dining hall was crowded, the table they sat at was half empty. The two of them were sharing it with Ian and two girls, one tall and red-haired and the other short and chubby. The remaining five seats were vacant. Dinah walked across and sat down in one of them.

  No one spoke to her. Harvey gave a shy smile, but Lloyd scowled and looked away and the others all stared at her, in a hostile way. Dinah chewed calmly for a moment before she said anything. Then she turned to Lloyd.

  ‘I’m in your class.’

  ‘Oh, good,’ Lloyd said sarcastically. ‘Where’ve you been all the morning, then?’

  ‘Went to see the Headmaster.’ She finished off her first sausage.

  Lloyd and Harvey exchanged glances and Ian looked at her curiously. ‘What do you think of him?’ he said.

  Dinah opened her mouth to say that she thought he was creepy and peculiar. Instead, she heard her voice say, ‘He is a marvellous man and this is the best school I’ve ever been to.’ She put her knife and fork down.

  ‘Ah ha!’ said the chubby little girl savagely. The red-haired girl prodded her.

  ‘Be quiet, Ingrid.’

  ‘But, Mandy—’

  ‘Be quiet.’

  The five of them went on eating stolidly, while Dinah studied their faces. But she could not guess anything from them. They were determinedly blank. After a moment or two, Mandy said casually, as if the question had not been asked already, ‘What do you think of the Headmaster?’

  Automatically, Dinah found herself repeating the same words. ‘He is a marvellous man and this is the best school I’ve ever been to.’