The Demon Headmaster

by Cross, Gillian

  ‘Ah ha!’ said Ingrid again, unrepentantly. The others simply snorted and went on eating their dinner.

  ‘But I don’t understand.’ Dinah looked round at them.

  ‘They all say that.’ Lloyd shrugged. ‘All of them.’ He waved a hand round at the rest of the dining hall. ‘Try asking them some time. They think he’s just as marvellous as you do. I can see you’re going to fit in beautifully.’

  Dinah looked over her shoulder at the green-uniformed children. Then she looked back at the hostile faces opposite her. She could not understand what was going on. She was not used to not understanding things. And she did not like it at all.

  ‘I bet he said you were to go into the Hall after dinner,’ Ingrid said sneeringly.

  ‘Well, yes, he did. Doesn’t everyone?’

  ‘No,’ Mandy said quietly. ‘We don’t. Everyone else does.’

  Ian gave a languid, amused smile. ‘We have extra work. With one of the prefects to watch over us.’

  ‘And you needn’t go thinking we’re thick or anything.’ Lloyd slurped up the rest of his semolina, the noise sounding disastrously loud in the quiet canteen. ‘It’s not that at all. We just aren’t like the others.’

  ‘Oh,’ said Dinah. She still did not understand anything, but she made up her mind not to say so. She would just watch and wait.

  Lloyd got to his feet. ‘Mind you’re not late to the Hall,’ he said nastily. ‘You don’t want to get into trouble on your first day, do you?’

  He turned away, and the others followed him. Harvey, going last, whispered ‘Good luck,’ and then hurried after, as if he were afraid the others might have heard him. As the five of them passed down the long canteen, two hundred pairs of eyes watched them expressionlessly, while two hundred sets of teeth chewed in rhythm.

  Ten minutes later, as if at a signal, everyone stood up. As Dinah was beginning to expect, the children formed a neat crocodile, without any pushing, and began to file silently out of the canteen.

  Waiting until nearly everyone had gone, Dinah found herself walking behind Lucy, the little girl who had not known the capital of the United States. She reached out and touched her on the arm. Lucy turned round with a jerk and then smiled timidly.

  ‘Thank you,’ she whispered. ‘For what you did in the playground.’

  ‘’S all right.’ Dinah smiled back. ‘Can’t think why the others wouldn’t tell you.’

  Lucy shrugged and started to turn away again, but Dinah had had an idea.

  ‘Have you been at this school a long time?’ she murmured.

  ‘Since I was five,’ Lucy whispered. ‘Ssh! We’re not supposed to talk.’ She looked nervously over her shoulder.

  ‘There’s no one there,’ Dinah said encouragingly. ‘We’re the last. Do you like the school?’

  She had half expected the answer, but it was still a shock when she heard it. Lucy turned to look at her and said in a rather mechanical voice, ‘The Headmaster is a marvellous man, and this is the best school I’ve ever been to.’

  ‘It’s the only school you’ve ever been to,’ Dinah said.

  But Lucy only looked puzzled and put her finger to her lips. Dinah walked on quietly, her thin face wrinkled with concentration. There was something very queer here. Something not like a school at all. Perhaps she would understand it better after she had seen what the Assembly in the Hall was like.

  Following Lucy in, she sat down in a chair at the back of the Hall. It was full of children, and teachers were seated on chairs round the edge, as silent and stony-faced as their pupils. After a moment, the Headmaster appeared. He stalked up the aisle between the chairs, his long gown flapping behind him, seeming even taller than Dinah had remembered. Slowly he climbed the steps up to the stage and turned to look down on the crowded hall below him. There was no need for him to call for silence. Everyone, teachers and children alike, was gazing at him. With a thin smile, he reached up and took off his glasses and his huge green eyes stared out at them.

  Dinah felt that he was looking directly at her. She could not move her eyes away from his steady green stare. Then he began to speak.

  ‘Funny,’ he said gently, ‘that you should all be so tired. So early in the afternoon.’

  But that’s what he said before, Dinah thought, with a jerk of surprise. When I was in his office. It’s peculiar.

  Her amazement had jolted her out of the dreamy vagueness that his voice was producing in the others. All of a sudden, she felt grimly stubborn. She had had enough peculiar happenings for one day. She tried to turn her attention away from the tall black figure on the stage, so that she could think. But it was very difficult. There seemed to be no escaping those eyes. Then, all at once, like a light, she had a little flicker of understanding.

  That’s it! she thought triumphantly. When he takes his glasses off—when I see his eyes—I want to go to sleep. And that’s when things get peculiar.

  With an almost gleeful feeling, she shut her own eyes tightly, blacking out the Hall, the rows of yawning children and the compelling green stare. This time she would not get caught.

  ‘You all look very tired,’ said the Headmaster’s hissing voice.

  No I don’t, Dinah said rebelliously, inside her head, behind her closed eyes.

  ‘So tired,’ he went on. ‘Your hands and feet are heavy, and your eyelids are like lead.’

  No they’re not, Dinah thought ferociously. She turned her head sideways and, with great caution, opened one eye. All around her, she could see heads starting to nod. Children were rubbing their eyes. Teachers were giving huge, uncontrollable yawns. Then, gradually, the eyelids closed. Dinah shut her own eyes again and listened.

  ‘You are asleep,’ the Headmaster hissed down the Hall.

  Ha ha! No I’m not, Dinah’s inside voice said rudely and triumphantly. She was going to do it. She was going to get the better of him.

  ‘When you wake up,’ his voice went on silkily, ‘you will remember that you saw a film about ants. If anyone asks, you will say, “It was a film about ants. It was very interesting. We saw how they build their nests and look after their eggs and how their queen lives.” If you are asked any more questions, you will say, “I don’t remember.” Now, repeat that, please. What did you do in Assembly today?’

  ‘It was a film about ants …’ the children started, their voices wooden, in perfect unison. Dinah joined in, trying to sound as lifeless as the rest of them, but all the time she was gloating, because she knew that what she was saying was a lie. Even if she did not understand why she was supposed to be lying.

  As the children stopped speaking, there was a pause and, unable to resist the urge, Dinah opened her eyes a fraction to glance at the rows and rows of apparently sleeping children, their faces turned to the front and their hands clasped in their laps. There was something sinister about the sight and, before she could stop herself, she shuddered. Instantly, she closed her eyes tightly and dropped her head forward, imitating theirs, but it was too late. From the front of the Hall she heard heavy footsteps coming down the aisle towards her.

  They came closer and closer, leather soles sounding loud on the wooden floorboards, and stopped right beside her chair.

  ‘Dinah Glass, open your eyes,’ said the Headmaster’s voice softly.

  Mechanically, she opened them, letting her gaze settle on a distant point, way past the Headmaster, hoping that he would think she was asleep. She could not see his face, but for a moment she thought that she had succeeded in deceiving him. He stood perfectly still, watching her.

  Then she heard him say, ‘Your left arm is completely numb. You can feel nothing.’

  Oh yes I can, her mind said obstinately—a split second before she realized what he was going to do.

  He leaned forward and she felt a sharp pain, darting into her left forearm. Unable to stop herself, she winced, looking down to see him pull out the pin with which he had pricked her.

  ‘As I thought,’ he said sharply. ‘Pretending. Look at me, Di
nah, when I’m speaking to you.’

  She went on looking stubbornly at the floor.

  ‘Look at me!’ This time his voice was loud and threatening. Frightened in spite of herself, Dinah looked up.

  He was staring straight at her, a lock of pale hair falling over his forehead and his green eyes wide and translucent.

  ‘I can see that you are not yet accustomed to our ways,’ he said, more quietly. ‘I hope you are not going to be a person who won’t co-operate with me.’

  ‘It depends what you want,’ Dinah said coldly.

  ‘But it’s not what I want.’ He sounded almost amused. ‘It’s what you want.’

  ‘What I want?’

  ‘Yes,’ he crooned. ‘What you want. You want to go to sleep. Because you’re so tired. So very, very tired.’

  Too late, she realized that she had let herself get caught off guard. This time, try as she would, she could not close her eyes or turn them away from those great pools of green that seemed to swim closer and closer …

  ‘You are so sleepy,’ murmured the Headmaster, ‘You feel you have to go to sleep …’

  I’ll forget it all, Dinah thought frantically. I’ll forget everything I’ve discovered. What a waste.

  As her eyelids began to droop, she gathered all her energies together, to try and fix something in her mind.

  Remember it, remember it, hypnotism, hypnotism, HYPNOTISM. Grimly, she struggled to concentrate. Remember it, remember it, hypnotism, hypno—, hyp—…

  But the words in her head drifted off into silence and floated away on a great tide of sleep as she slumped slowly forwards in her chair.

  This time she did not feel a thing when the Headmaster stuck the pin into her arm.

  5

  Assembly—Keep Out

  Harvey looked up from his page of sums and stared out of the window, fidgeting. All around him, the others were working hard. Ian was writing steadily, in his elegant, sloping script, Mandy was frowning over a difficult problem, and Ingrid was running her hands through her untidy hair and chewing the end of her pencil. Even Lloyd was not paying him any attention. But Harvey could not concentrate. Because Dinah had made him think about Assembly again. What did go on in the Hall when they were all in here?

  ‘Harvey!’ said Rose sharply, looking up from the book she was reading. ‘Why aren’t you working?’

  ‘I’m just thinking for a moment.’ That was true enough, anyway. He waited until Rose was bent over her book again and then prodded Lloyd. ‘What d’you think they’re doing?’ he mouthed noiselessly, pointing towards the Hall.

  Lloyd frowned at him and mouthed back. ‘Films, of course. Get on with your work.’

  Harvey looked across at the Hall and frowned. The blackout curtains were certainly drawn, as if for a film. But all round the edges of the curtains he could see thin streaks of light. And it was always like that. Every day. He often looked across while he was supposed to be working, and he had never seen the lights go out. Not once. So they could not really be watching films. What were they doing? He wriggled in his chair with frustrated curiosity.

  ‘Harvey Hunter, will you sit still and get on!’ Rose was really irritated now. Harvey could see that he would have to be careful, or something nasty would happen. He was just about to go back to his sums when he suddenly had an idea.

  ‘But I can’t concentrate, Rose,’ he said, making his voice into a whine. ‘I want to go to the toilet.’

  Rose looked even more annoyed. ‘You should learn not to be so disorganized.’

  ‘Please, Rose.’ He knew he sounded stupid, but he could not bear it any longer. He had to go and have a look in the Hall. ‘Please. I can’t wait till the end of school.’

  She looked rattled for a moment, as the prefects always did when you asked them something unexpected. Then she nodded reluctantly. ‘Oh, all right. But be as quick as you can.’

  As he jumped up, he saw the others looking at him. Mandy’s gentle face was worried. She had guessed he was up to something. He slipped quickly out of the door before she could mouth a question at him and ran along the corridor on tiptoe, until he reached the Hall doors.

  The double doors had glass panels at the top, with heavy curtains drawn across. By stretching up and peering, he could see through a narrow gap at one side, and he stood there looking.

  There was no screen on the stage, no projector, no sign at all of anyone getting ready to show a film. Instead, everyone in the Hall, teachers and children, were staring fixedly at the stage.

  On the stage stood the Headmaster, stooped forward like a giant vulture. Harvey saw, with amazement, that he had taken off his dark glasses. But I’ve never seen him like that, Harvey thought. Except on the first day I came here. He leaned further forwards, pressing his nose against the glass in an effort to try and find out what was going on.

  The Headmaster seemed to be reading aloud from a book that he held in his hands. As Harvey watched, he stopped, then glanced up and spoke a few words. Immediately, all the people in the Hall started to chant in a regular monotone, as if they were repeating back, from memory, what he had read. It must have been pages long, because the voices went on and on and on. But, struggle as he might, Harvey could not make out more than a few words. He caught ‘… system …’ several times and, once, a number ‘ … minus twenty-six point nine …’, but none of it made any sense. And still the voices went tirelessly on.

  It was tempting to stay, to try to find out more, but just in time Harvey remembered that he would spoil his excuse if he did not get back quickly. Gnawing his bottom lip, he hurried away along the corridor.

  He did not look back. If he had, he would have seen Jeff slide out from behind a tall bookcase beyond the Hall doors and stare after him with a gloating smile on his face. But it never occurred to him to glance over his shoulder. He was too busy getting back to the classroom.

  As he let himself in, Rose scowled at him.

  ‘You were too long.’

  ‘Sorry.’ He slid into his chair. Better write hard for a bit, until she had stopped watching him. He scratched away industriously, keeping an eye on her under his eyelids. When he was certain that she was deep in her book, he scrawled a message on a spare piece of paper.

  They weren’t watching films, so sucks. They were listening to the Headmaster.

  With great care, he flicked it across on to Lloyd’s desk. Lloyd gave him a disapproving frown, but when he had read the note he raised his eyebrows and a few moments later another note landed on Harvey’s desk.

  We’ll ask Dinah when we get home.

  As they sat over their tea, Dinah was even quieter than usual. She gazed into her cup, watching the brown liquid swirl round, and Mrs Hunter had to ask her three times whether she wanted another piece of cake.

  ‘Sorry.’ She looked up at last.

  ‘Thinking about school?’ Mrs Hunter smiled. ‘I was going to ask if you had a nice day. What did you think of it?’

  ‘I think,’ Dinah said steadily, ‘that the Headmaster is a marvellous man and this is the best school I’ve ever been to.’

  Harvey sniffed scornfully and looked at Lloyd, but Lloyd was watching Dinah. Her face had gone white, almost as if she were frightened by what she had said. The next instant, she had lowered her eyes and begun to munch her piece of cake.

  ‘Let’s all go in the playroom,’ Lloyd said suddenly. ‘Come on, H. You coming, Dinah?’

  Dinah swallowed her mouthful of cake. ‘If you like,’ she said carefully.

  She followed them through and sat down as Lloyd closed the door.

  ‘Now,’ he said, ‘suppose you tell us what you were all doing in the Hall this afternoon.’

  Dinah said mechanically, ‘We saw a film.’

  Lloyd looked knowingly at Harvey. ‘Oh yes? What was it about?’

  Dinah took a deep breath and began to talk as if she were reciting. ‘It was a film about ants. It was very interesting. We saw how they build their nests and look after their eggs and h
ow their queen lives.’ She stopped abruptly.

  ‘What else was it about?’ Lloyd said.

  ‘I don’t remember.’

  ‘Did the Headmaster talk to you about it afterwards?’

  ‘I don’t remember.’

  ‘Rubber ravioli!’ Lloyd burst out. ‘Don’t you remember anything? You’re a proper dunce, aren’t you?’

  Harvey giggled suddenly. ‘She’ll never be on Eddy Hair’s Great School Quiz.’

  ‘Oh, shut up about stupid Eddy Hair,’ snapped Dinah. ‘What’s all this about, anyway?’

  ‘Oh, nothing,’ Lloyd said airily. ‘We just wanted to know what happened, that’s all. But if you’re too thick to remember anything …’

  ‘I always remember things,’ Dinah said slowly. ‘Always. I don’t quite understand.’ For a moment she looked as if she were going to go on. Then her face snapped shut and she shook her head. ‘I’ve told you what I can. I can’t tell you any more.’

  ‘But I can tell you something,’ Harvey said.

  ‘Be quiet, you idiot.’ Lloyd gave him a shove.

  ‘No.’ Harvey looked obstinate. ‘It’s not fair to ask her questions and then not tell her. Besides, I want to hear what she’s got to say.’ He turned back to Dinah. ‘I sneaked out of our room and had a look through the Hall door. I didn’t see any sign of a film.’

  Dinah stared at him and he nodded.

  ‘That’s right. Nothing. No screen or projector or anything. And I was watching from across the playground all the rest of the time. The lights in the Hall didn’t go out once. So you can’t have seen a film. You’re lying.’

  ‘What did you see?’ Dinah said hesitantly.

  ‘I saw you all sitting looking at the Headmaster on the stage. He read something long out of a book and you all repeated it back. I don’t know what it was, but you must know. You all said it from memory.’

  Dinah frowned harder and shook her head. ‘I don’t remember anything like that happening.’

  ‘Huh!’ Lloyd sat down and stretched his legs out. ‘What did happen then?’