“Isn’t it kind of weird living with a human?” Johnny Linkfur shouted.
“Not at all. Humans aren’t very different from us. In fact, for those of you who don’t already know, I was raised in a family of humans, and thought I was human until just a few years ago.”
“Miss!” Charlie Hedges raised his hand.
“Yes, Charlie.”
“Who do you want to win the inter-house sports competition?”
“That definitely doesn’t come under the heading of human studies.”
“Come on, Miss. Who will you be shouting for?”
“The competition is actually on the day before I get married, so I won’t be able to make it. I’ll have enough on my plate that day, so I can’t afford any distractions. I wish all the teams the best of luck.”
“Wrongacre will win easily, Miss!”
“Rubbish. Nomad are unbeatable.”
“Longstaff forever!”
“Capstan’s name is already on the cup!”
I was surprised at just how enthusiastic all the kids seemed to be about the upcoming sports competition. When I’d been at school, I’d done everything I could to avoid taking part in sports day. Needless to say, Kathy had been star of both track and field. And of course, she’d taken every opportunity to rub my nose in it.
“Okay, kids. That’s it for today. See you next time. Mr Fleabert, make sure you drop the essay into the staff room this evening after detention. I’ll tell Mrs Eastwest to expect it.”
The kids all filed out of the classroom; Beth Nightling was the last to leave.
“Miss, can I have a word, please?”
“Of course. What is it?”
“I’ve lost my gold ring.”
“When did it go missing?”
“Last night. I always put it on my bedside cabinet, but it wasn’t there when I woke up this morning.”
“Could you have knocked it onto the floor by mistake?”
“I don’t think so, but I didn’t really have time to check.”
“It’s lunchtime now, so why don’t you nip back to your dormitory, and take a good look around. I’ll check in the staff room to see if it’s been handed in.”
“Thanks, Miss.”
“Beth, wait. Which dorm are you in?”
“Nomad, Miss.”
“Okay. I’ll catch up with you there in a few minutes.”
Chapter 5
The cakes had been replenished in the staff room, and it took all of my willpower to resist grabbing another one.
I checked the lost and found cupboard where any property that had been handed in was stored. Most of what was in there was rubbish: broken umbrellas, old hockey sticks and even a few old socks. On the top shelf was a small plastic box on which was scribbled the word: Valuables. It was empty except for a single necklace, which looked as though it had come out of a Christmas cracker.
“Excuse me, everyone!” I called out. “Can I have your attention for a moment?”
The room fell silent apart from Mr Humperdink who was grumbling to himself while poring over The Candle’s crossword. He was as deaf as a post.
“Mr Humperdink.” Mrs Daylong gave him a nudge. “Jill wants to speak to us.”
“Sorry.” He looked over at me. “I’m stuck on nine down.”
“Beth Nightling from class one-alpha has lost her gold ring. I’ve just checked the lost and found cupboard, but there’s nothing in there. I wondered if anyone has had it handed in to them, but not yet put it in the cupboard.”
No one had.
“Did you check Fleabert Junior’s pockets?” Mrs Eastwest said.
“Phil!” Mr Bluegrass, the deputy head, gave her a disapproving look. “Fleabert can be a bit of a handful, but I don’t think he’s a thief.”
“Beth thinks it went missing in her dorm,” I said. “I doubt any of the boys would have been in there.”
Miss Lombard, who, as always, was as nervous as a kitten, put her hand up, and said, “Lorraine Sharples reported that her gold ring was missing, the day before yesterday.”
Mr Bluegrass came to stand by my side. “These two incidents are not necessarily related, but I suggest that we all remain vigilant. If any more items of value go missing, please report it to myself or to the headmistress.”
***
The Nomad girls’ dormitory was deserted except for a handful of the younger girls.
“Beth, I’m afraid the ring hasn’t been handed in.”
“Thanks for checking, anyway, Miss.” She couldn’t hide her disappointment.
“I’m sure it will turn up. One of the other teachers will let you know when it does.”
“Thanks. It was a Christmas present from my grandmother. She’ll be really upset when I tell her that I’ve lost it.”
“When will you see her again?”
“Not until the end of term.”
“I’m sure you’ll have it back long before then, so she need never know.”
Just then, a loud squawk made me jump.
“That’s Rhubarb,” Beth said.
“Who’s Rhubarb?”
“He’s a parrot, Miss.”
“I didn’t know you were allowed to keep pets in here.”
“Only the seniors are allowed to have them. Rhubarb belongs to Rachel Last.”
The parrot squawked again.
“That must get annoying.”
“You get used to it after a while.”
Just then, I heard the sound of someone crying. Beth must have seen me react because she said, “It’s Felicity Charming.”
“Is she okay?”
“She’s upset about Fluff, Miss.”
“Who’s Fluff?”
“I’ll show you.” Beth led the way down the dormitory.
At the far end of the room, sitting on her bed, was a girl with pigtails and glasses. When she noticed us, she quickly wiped her eyes and stood up.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Yes, Miss.”
“Beth said something about Fluff?”
That was obviously the wrong thing to say because Felicity dissolved into tears again.
“That’s Fluff over there.” Beth pointed to a cage on the bedside cabinet.
“What is it?”
“No one knows.” Beth shrugged.
I went over to get a closer look. The weird creature looked like a cross between a guinea pig and a miniature kangaroo, but was much fluffier than either. “He’s very cute.”
“Felicity found him in her backpack when she returned from a field trip to the Valley of Shadows, didn’t you?”
Felicity nodded. “But they won’t let me keep him, Miss. Not unless I can identify what kind of creature he is by the end of next week.”
“Where’s the Valley of Shadows?”
“It’s about a thirty-minute walk from the school.”
“I didn’t think anyone was allowed outside the walls?”
“They’re not usually. Only on supervised field-trips when accompanied by the protectors.”
“Who are the protectors?”
“They’re elite wizards that the school hires whenever there’s a field trip. If a dragon was to attack, the combined power of the protectors can see them off.”
“It still sounds risky.”
“No one has been hurt so far, Miss.”
“What exactly is the purpose of the field trips?”
“To study the flora and fauna of the surrounding area.”
“I thought all of the fauna around these parts wanted to eat you.”
“Not all of it, Miss. There are lots of harmless, small creatures like Fluff.”
“And you say you found him in your bag when you got back?”
“Yes. He must have sneaked in there while we were looking at the flowers. The problem is that the school has a policy of only allowing us to keep pets under a certain size and that can be identified.”
“Don’t any of the teachers know what kind of creature Fluff is?”
“No, Miss. Mr Shuttlebug might have, but he died a couple of years ago.”
“Was he a teacher?”
“He taught woodwork, but his hobby was the study of Candlefield’s exotic creatures.”
Fluff gave out a tiny squeak.
“He is cute,” I said.
“Could you find out what kind of creature he is, Miss?”
“Me? I don’t know the first thing about exotic animals.”
“But you’re a private investigator. Couldn’t you investigate this for me? I could give you all of my pocket money for a month. Or two.”
“I don’t want your pocket money.”
“Please, Miss.”
“I’m not going to make promises that I can’t keep. The best I can do is to ask around when I get back to Candlefield, to see if I can find anyone who knows anything about this type of creature.”