Life wasn't fair.
No, it wasn't, I thought to myself, as I walked down the corridor with the new headmistress, Miss Parker. She was quite old and she wore a weird pink suit but so far she had been nice to me. I wasn't prepared to talk to her, anyhow. I wasn't going to talk to anyone. I hadn't spoken in five years.
She sent me to have my final enrolment form completed. "Just to the student council room," she said, "You can stay there with Nathaniel until lunchtime, and then you can start classes in the afternoon. He'll show you." She waited hopefully for my reply. I had already shown her I wasn't going to talk. She probably just thought I was a sullen little brat and that I was just having a teenager strop. Well, maybe I was.
I nodded and used the map she had given me to get to the student council room. I looked around me. There was a big white table with purple chairs. There was a computer with a spinning chair (I loved those) and a lot of metal filing cabinets.
"Hello? Can I help you?"
I turned around and saw a boy of about my age, tall and lean with blonde hair and dark brown eyes. He was seriously good-looking, but I shouldn't be interested in him. I wasn't. And why would he like me? I never spoke. I was a cursed girl.
I nodded at him. He put his head to one side. "Well? What would you like me to help you with?"
I held out the form to him. He raised his eyebrows.
"Do you have a voice?"
I shook my head. He nodded, and took the form. "You're new, right?"
I nodded again. He scanned the pieces of paper all held together with a paper clip.
"Well, if you tell me answers then I can write them down." He took a pen out of his chest pocket. He had this funny look on his face. I glared at him. He was trying to trick the sullen brat into talking, was he?
I took my own pen out of my blouse pocket (I only carry one with me, and anyway it's a special pen, but he has a whole load of them, all different ones) and snatched the form back. I filled it in as he watched me, apparently in amusement. He looked sort of uptight, not like the other boys, with his shirt tucked in, top button done up, and his tie to the top. But he seemed amused as I completed the wretched form, the corner of his mouth lifting as I hastily scribbled down the answers. It asked stuff like my full name, my date of birth, stuff like that. It was stupid – Uncle Jack had already done that a million times. I then had to copy it down again for my ID card, which the guy said he would type up for me to get the card done as soon as possible. I wondered how long I would have to wait. How long was 'as soon as possible?' Lots of people had said that to me in the past, and it had never happened. No – I couldn't think of the past now...
"Well, my name is Nathaniel," said the blonde boy, "I guess you knew that."
Nodding at people often got tedious, so I just looked at him. He offered to let me come with him to get the forms handed in and to get the card done and to get my homework diary, etc. To say yes I had to nod.
"I guessed that you were the new girl," said Nathaniel as we walked, "Miss Parker told me. Wait a second..." he frowned at the papers. "You've put your name down as 'Ginny?'"
I gave him one curt nod of my head.
"Miss Parker said your name was Ginevra."
"My name is not Ginevra!" I snapped.
Nathaniel looked at me. I clamped my hand over my mouth in horror. I wasn't meant to speak! What was wrong with me? When people called me Ginevra I would get annoyed and I would yell at them. Why, I didn't know. It just annoyed me so much.
"Ah, so you have a tongue?" laughed Nathaniel, and flicked me gently under my chin. I flicked him right back, but hard so that he flinched.
"Watch it! Right, let me hand these into the office for you..." He pulled me in too, introducing me and everything. I just waved a bit. Then he gave me my blue homework diary and the bell rang.
"There goes the bell for lunch," he said, "I have to go now, but... well, afterwards, you can come and find me if you want, and I'll show you to your classroom."
I shrugged, then nodded, and then sped off before he could talk to me again. I managed to find the canteen (it wasn't difficult. All I had to do was follow the other kids) and I got out my packed lunch. Aunt Lola had made it. I ate my sandwiches and my cake and I drank my juice, and then when I was feeling pretty full I went to the toilets to read my book. It was Peter Pan in Scarlet. I'd already read it loads of times, but I loved Peter Pan so much that I read it over and over again.
When lunchtime was over I started looking for Nathaniel. Maybe I did need help getting to my classroom. I saw him and went over to him, looking him in the face earnestly. He turned away from his mates and said, "Do you need me to help you find your classroom?"
I nodded, handing him my schedule.
"You're in my class!" he said, and he looked pretty glad about it. I followed him all the way to my Maths class. He put his hand on my back as we went through the door to meet the teacher. She was called Miss Morley. She was a right cow and kept on calling me Ginevra even when I made Nathaniel tell her I didn't like it, and then after a while she shouted at me for not speaking, and I still wouldn't do it. Nathaniel looked at me in a sad way, but I wasn't doing it. Not even for him.
I got sent to the headmaster, but I didn't care. Long ago, hadn't I promised that I would never speak again?