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ONCE all the boys with bright futures exited the chapel, it was easy to see its state of decline. The old school building was home to many outdated traditions that would soon steal those same boys’ lighthearted vitality.
Robins, illuminated by the sunlight, turned to look at Charles, squinting from the sun’s glare. They were the only two left in the massive room.
“I wish a girl didn’t have to get wrapped up in this.”
“No, it doesn’t get in the way of our plan.”
Charles looked up and pressed his Bible to his chest.
“The monster that lives here will definitely take our side.”
Charles expressed his determination with what appeared to be blind faith. Robins merely looked at him with a feeling of bitterness in his heart.
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WE arrived at the dining hall after our first astronomy and arithmetic classes.
The menu was very plain, but that wasn’t surprising—an elderly married couple were in charge of cooking. Most meals were standard things like fish, chips, and haggis. Fish, eggs, and processed meats like bacon were common components of meals on an isolated island.
I stood in line with my large tray and placed a baked potato and bread on my plate. I’d had some tea and biscuits between classes, but I was still hungry.
A school day was a brand-new experience for me, and I was already exhausted.
It’s hard not to be distracted when boys keep glancing at me. Maybe this is why schools separate the sexes.
Noblewomen generally didn’t attend school. They employed governesses and studied at home. Subjects covered typically included things like English, French, German, piano, and dance for them to grow into fine young ladies. Their teachers and studies were rarely very strict.
Students at girls’ boarding schools were usually upper- or upper-middle-class girls with the ambition to attend college and become things like doctors and lawyers. I thought it was wonderful how they defied the society that told them women had no need for an education and were willing to forge their own path in life.
What profession might I have ended up in if I wasn’t bound by my family name?
Maybe I would have become a governess since I didn’t hate studying. I liked playing the piano too. While I wasn’t skilled at cooking, I could make scones at the very least—perhaps I could become a kitchen maid. Of course, there was no guarantee my food would taste any good.
Even if I got a job like that, I would definitely still get married one day.
I was so lucky to have met a man I wanted to marry. However, his strange nature and the fact that we were both nobles made things difficult…
I took a plate of roasted lamb with apricot sauce and looked for an empty table. But there wasn’t a single seat available. As I tried to come up with a solution, Charles stuck his head out from behind a partitioning screen in the room.
“Sit on this side, Miss Alice.”
“Are you sure?”
“We’re done eating anyway. Besides, everyone else would stop eating and run away if a girl sat at the table with them!” Robins grinned at me. Charles hurled a dish towel at him.
“Stop playing around and wipe your table. Be sure to wipe your table before you leave too, Miss Alice.”
I said goodbye to Charles and Robins, and the twins and I took our seats. I’d chosen a main dish with vegetables on the side, but Dum and Dee were eating nothing but fruit and cake.
“You two have to eat balanced meals if you want to grow up big and strong,” I chided.
“But we’re already big and strong!”
“But we’re already big and strong!”
They cocked their heads. …Yes, they were certainly big. They were as tall as the normal Dark now and blessed with fit bodies that would probably make them stars on the football field.
“I know you are. But that’s not what I mean…” As I struggled to emphasize nutrition to them, a plate full of salad suddenly appeared on the table.
“No talking back, you two. Here, eat up.” Leeds had arrived, still in his white coat. He was holding a cup of coffee. He looked out at the students, enjoying their lunch, with a disheartened face. “Just watching these growing children eat so much makes me feel full. I think I’ll stick to coffee for a while.”
“Be sure to eat properly, too, Leeds. You don’t want these two imitating you.”
All this did was make Leeds take the bread off my plate. He showed me the bundle of keys on his belt as he chewed.
“Take a look at this. Doesn’t it look like a work of art?”
Many keys were attached to a single metal ring. They came in many different sizes and materials. One was a big, discolored bronze key; another was a thin black key like a needle, and two were beautiful gold and silver.
“They gave me these and told me to pick whatever room I liked when I said I wanted to set up an infirmary. I found a place with a great view that’s perfect for naps, so visit me sometime, my lady. I’m also a housemaster for Lion Dorm and Unicorn Dorm now.”
A housemaster was the teacher who became the representative of a dorm. This person monitored the impressionable young students by establishing prefects and living amongst them in the dorm to help them however they needed.
“I wouldn’t expect a brand-new teacher to be selected,” I said.
“I used this little ol’ stigma of mine. Now, two of the old teachers think I’ve been a housemaster for years.” He nonchalantly revealed his trick to me.
I asked Leeds if the teachers were okay, considering their old age. He laughed.
“They were perfectly energetic. But now, no one will get mad at me if I’m in the castle or the dorms. What do we do from here, my lady?”
Leeds chuckled with a scheming look on his face. Dum and Dee stopped eating their cookies and waited for my answer. After all, these people were my chess pieces to move.
“Alice” was the one who gave the Liddell family orders.
I took a deep breath, transforming from a mere female student at a boys’ boarding school to the Liddell family boss.
“Dum and Dee, you two will take afternoon classes with me. Leeds, you check in with Dark and Jack to see if anything is amiss. Come to my room after light’s out if something changes, and if not, take turns staying up to guard me.”
“Understood. It’s too bad we can’t do the full huddle here.”
Leeds held up his cup. The twins and I held up our teacups, then the three of them cheered: “Anything for Alice!”
The noise in the dining hall drowned out the small chorus, but the four of us were in perfect harmony at that moment.