“What?” Nancy exploded. “But that’s menial labor! My mother is head of—” She stopped abruptly.
“Yes, Miss Rattcliff? Do go on,” Headmistress Nightworthy said coolly, raising an eyebrow at her.
“My mother wouldn’t like this,” Nancy said sullenly. “And she pays good money to send me here.”
“Correction, she paid good money,” the Headmistress said crisply. “Unfortunately, much of the fortune she acquired went to the legal fees she incurred during her trial. As of right now, you are a scholarship student, like Miss Latimer, here.” She nodded at Megan.
“Headmistress,” Megan said, speaking up. “I don’t mean to interrupt you, but aren’t you afraid if Nancy and her friends help serve the food, they’ll do something, well, nasty to it?”
Headmistress Nightworthy nodded.
“A very good point, Miss Latimer. I am not concerned about magical interference since our kitchens are a magic-free zone, in order for the ovens and stoves to work, but it’s certainly possible to tamper with food in many non-magical ways.”
“Please! We’re not going to mess with your disgusting Norm food,” Nancy spat at Megan and me.
“No, you most certainly will not,” the Headmistress said, frowning. “Because for the next month, the three of you will be eating from the Norm selections the cafeteria offers at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Just as an insurance policy against any contamination you might be contemplating.”
“What?” Nancy squealed. “Headmistress, you can’t do that to us! We’re Sisters—we have certain dietary needs—”
“Which, as I understand it, are not that different from what humans need to thrive,” Headmistress Nightworthy said calmly. “So a month on the Norm diet won’t hurt you a bit. Now…” She clapped her hands with finality. “I’ll be certain to speak to the cafeteria and janitorial staff to let them know you’ll be helping out. And I will be getting regular reports to be sure you’re doing a good job without shirking.”
Nancy’s face turned red and then white as the Headmistress spoke. Her thick lips grew thinner and thinner until they almost disappeared into a thin white line.
“Headmistress Nightworthy!” she exclaimed when the tall Nocturne finally stopped talking. “You’re treating us like common servants. This is absolutely unfair!”
“You’re correct, Miss Rattcliff,” the Headmistress said, causing all of us—including Nancy—to gape at her for a moment. “If I was being ‘fair’ when I dished out your punishment, I would go by the ancient Rule of Equals—what the humans call ‘an eye for an eye,’” she went on. “In which case, I will give you a choice. You can either help in the kitchens and clean the Dining Hall for a month, or you may each have a large bite of the chocolate cake which you be-spelled and be subject to your own three-squared cheer charm for the next month until Ms. Yasmeen can remove it at the next full moon.” She raised an eyebrow at Nancy and the other Weird Sisters. “The choice is yours.”
Nancy scowled and the other two girls looked abashed. It was clear they didn’t want to be unable to stop laughing for the next month. But at the same time, they didn’t want to have to do “menial labor” as Nancy had put it, and eat the nasty Norm food for a month either. However, they had to pick one and Nancy could no longer say that her mother was the head of the Windermere Coven or claim that she paid enough in tuition to buy her way out of the situation.
They were stuck and from the angry, sullen looks on their faces, none of them was very happy about it.
“We’ll take the kitchen duty,” Nancy said at last, speaking for all three of them.
“Along with cleaning and eating Norm food,” Megan reminded her sweetly.
Nancy shot her a venomous glance but didn’t say anything—clearly she didn’t dare threaten either one of us in the presence of the Headmistress.
“Very well, I’ll inform the cafeteria staff that you’re on your way,” Headmistress Nightworthy said briskly. “You’d better hurry if you’re going to make it in time to help serve dinner, girls. Go on now—go.” She clapped her hands sharply and with a last angry glance, Nancy and the Weird Sisters filed out of her office.
14
Kaitlyn
“Well, that’s that.” The Headmistress nodded with finality. “Thank you for your help, Ms. Yasmeen,” she added, speaking to the Elementary Casting teacher who had been standing quietly and watching the whole thing.
“Of course, Headmistress.” Ms. Yasmeen nodded and left the office.
Megan and I started to do the same but, to my great distress, Headmistress Nightworthy called me back.
“Miss Fellows,” she said to me. “Would you mind staying for a moment?”
Megan shot me a worried glance and moved to take my hand in protective solidarity. The Headmistress saw her move and gave a swift shake of her head.
“Miss Latimer, I appreciate the fact that you stand by your Coven-mate, but I must ask for a bit of privacy. I promise what I have to say to Miss Fellows is not bad—she is not in any kind of trouble.”
“Well…all right.” Reluctantly, Megan let go of my hand. “I’ll wait for you right outside the office,” she promised.
“Thanks.” I nodded uncertainly, my heart pounding. Despite the Headmistress saying I wasn’t in trouble, being asked to stay after and speak to her alone still made me incredibly uncomfortable.
Headmistress Nightworthy didn’t waste any time. The minute the thick black door shut behind Megan, she turned to me, frowning.
“Miss Fellows, I just want you to know that I was made aware of the…incident that happened in your Physical Education class earlier this semester,” she said to me. “It is the main reason why Mr.
