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have at least one thing in common, but I was wrong. “You’ll like it here,” he told me. “It’s taught by Mr Kilgraw and he’s very good.”
    He looked at his watch. “We’d better hurry or we’ll be late.”
    “What’s the punishment for being late?” I asked.
    “There are no punishments at Groosham Grange.”
    Good
Latin teachers? A school with no punishments? Have I gone mad?
    But double Latin wasn’t as bad as it sounded. At Beton College it was taught as a “dead” language. And the teacher wasn’t much healthier. But Mr Kilgraw spoke it fluently! So did everyone else! By the end of the lesson they were chatting like old friends and nobody even mentioned Caesar or the invasion of Gaul.
    Another odd thing. It was a bright day, but Mr Kilgraw taught with the shutters closed and with a candle on his desk. I asked William Rufus about this.
    “He doesn’t like the sun,” William said. At least, I think that’s what he said. He was still talking in Latin.
    11.00 a.m.
    Saw Jill briefly in the break. Told her about this diary. She told me about her day so far. For some reason she’s in a different class to Jeffrey and me.
    “I had Mr Creer for modelling,” she said.
    “Pots?” I asked.
    “Completely pots. We had to make figures out of wax. Men and women. And he used real hair.”
    Jill showed me her thumb. It was cut just like mine. She had seen Mr Kilgraw immediately after breakfast.
    “I’m seeing him after lunch,” Jeffrey said.
    “Bring your own ink,” Jill suggested.
    12.30 p.m.
    English with Miss Pedicure.
    Miss Pedicure must be at least a hundred years old. She is half blind and completely bald. I think she’s only held together by bandages. She seems to be wrapped up in them from head to toe. I could see them poking out of her sleeves and above her collar. It took her fifteen minutes to reach her chair and when she sat down she almost disappeared in a cloud of dust.
    Miss Pedicure does have perfect teeth. The only trouble is, she keeps them in a glass on the corner of her desk.
    She taught Shakespeare. From the way she talks, you’d think she knew him personally!
    1.15 p.m.
    Lunch. Mince. But what was the animal before it was minced? I think I am going to starve to death.
    3.00 p.m
.
    I was meant to have French this afternoon but the teacher didn’t show up. I asked William Rufus why.
    W ILLIAM : It must be a full moon tonight. Monsieur Leloup never teaches when there’s going to be a full moon.
    M E : Is he ill?
    W ILLIAM : Well, he isn’t quite himself…
    We all had books to read but I couldn’t make head nor tail of them. I spent most of the lesson writing this, then examined the other kids in the class. I know most of their names now. Marion Grant – red-headed with freckles and big teeth. Bessie Dunlop – thin and pretty if you don’t look too close. Roger Bacon – Hong Kong Chinese. Since when was Roger Bacon a Chinese name?
    In fact all these names sound wrong. Bessie just doesn’t look like a Bessie. Why is it that I think everyone is sharing some sort of horrible secret? And that Jeffrey, Jill and me are the only ones on the outside?
    4.30 p.m
.
    Football. We played with an inflated pig’s bladder. I scored a goal, but I didn’t feel too good about it. You should try heading an inflated pig’s bladder…
    6.00 p.m.
    We ate the rest of the pig for tea. It was turning on a spit with an apple in its mouth. At least I managed to grab the apple!
    6.30 p.m.
    I am back in Monsieur Leloup’s classroom doing prep. That’s what I’m supposed to be doing anyway. Instead I’m writing this. And I’ve just noticed something. I suppose I noticed it from the very start. But it’s only just now that I’ve realized what it is.
    Everyone in the class is wearing a ring. The same ring. It is a band of plain gold with a single black stone set in the top. What on earth does it mean? I’ve heard of school caps and school badges, but school rings?
    I have re-read my first day’s