Page 25 of Tendu: Dancing in the Castle

I squinted against the bright light of the studio and pushed his hand off my shoulder. “Get away from me.”

“Phi, why didn’t you tell me?” asked Justin from where he sat on the floor, tearful and green looking. “Why didn’t I ask? I mean, I did think…. You were so quiet. Something brutal went on with Tuesday, didn’t it?”

I nodded. “I ran away. He didn’t get me. I ran away.”

“Gonna puke,” said Justin, retching and trying to stand.

“You do seem to be having impressively strong reactions,” said Michelle, her red shoes uncomfortably close to me, alongside Aleks’s black ones.

“What have you done to Justin?” I shouted at her, standing up as the air became red and cloudy. “And to the rest of us?” Some of the others were clearly in distress too.

She smiled, showing brilliant white teeth, and a quiver of exhilaration ran through her body.

“Amalphia. What is it you are feeling?” asked Aleks, feigning big brown puppy-eyed concern.

“I’m seeing the truth,” I said, then shoving him back. “You. You’re playing a game with me.”

Justin spluttered again, and I put my arm round him. Will went under his other arm to aid our escape, but the way was barred.

Madame Genevieve was furious. “Amalphia Treadwell! Apologise this instant! You do not speak to visitors in my school like that!”

My voice was loud. And rude. “Me apologise? Me?”

“Your scholarship is on shaky ground as it is, young lady.”

“You should be worried about litigation, Genevieve,” I told her, truth still with me. “You’re negligent for letting this experimental, and potentially harmful, activity go on in your school.”

I turned to Michelle, the need to unleash pure facts on her, too great to be resisted. “None of your reds match.”

Her smile wavered.

Will and I helped Justin down the corridor to the toilets, leaving Madame, Aleks and the many tones of red staring after us.

Justin hung over a sink in the grey light of the bathroom.

“I kneed him in the nuts,” I told him. “He dropped like a stone.” That, at least, was a satisfying memory.

“You should have told me, reported him, something…”

“Zolotov did something?” asked Will. “He hurt you?”

“Yes,” I said. “But, no, this... This thing was someone else. It doesn’t matter. Are you all right?”

“Yeah, babe,” said Will. “It’s you that’s crying.”

I touched my wet cheeks and tried not to think about why they were that way. “I’ve got to go. I can’t take any more from any of them today. You coming?” I asked Justin and opened the window.

“Not out a window, I’m not. We’re on the second floor, Phi.”

“It slopes down to the street,” I explained. “It’s easy enough. Will, I need you to do something for me.”

“Anything, Malph. You didn’t see. You see, I didn’t…” He trailed off, presumably full of his own weirdness from the class.

I gave him his instructions. “I need you to tell Aleks that Justin’s being sick, and we’ll be back through in a bit. And get my bag for me. Say I need something out of it.”

Will returned quickly from the task and was upset that I wouldn’t let him come with us.

“Don’t screw up your scholarship too,” I advised, and he nodded.

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