RICK and ROY

Roy elbowed his friend in the ribs. "Look, he's done." The boys watched as J. Q. King returned to where he had been standing.

"You know," Rick said. "I don't understand what's up with that guy. He looks harmless enough, but I'm still pretty scared of him."

Roy nodded in agreement."I think he knows something that he's not telling us."

"Maybe."

They both paused in their conversation when J. Q. King lifted his hand for silence. "Now that we all know each other, you may take your belongings and follow me to your rooms."

Roy groaned. "I left my bags near the front door."

"Don't worry, I'll wait for you."

Rick watched his friend push through the line of students who were joining their host in the middle of the room with their luggage. He recalled what J. Q. King had said to him and to Roy and shuddered.

"You two are good friends?" the man had asked.

"Yes," they had replied in unison.

Rick remembered how he had chuckled as he studied both their faces with an odd intensity. "You have more in common than you realize," he had muttered almost inaudibly before walking away.

Rick sighed and shuffled his feet. He didn't know if he could take it. June to August! It hadn't seemed long when first reading the invitation, but now that he was at the mansion with all the other students and J. Q. King, he realized it was longer than he would have wished. What have Roy and I gotten ourselves into this time?

The group of students was starting to follow their host down the hall when Roy finally came back. "Wow," he gasped. "That was harder than I expected. That Star girl hit me over the head with her makeup bag!"

"Why in the world would she do that?"

Roy laughed. "I tripped over someone's duffel bag and stepped on her foot."

Rick snickered. He realized how much harder the summer would be if his friend wasn't there to cheer him up.

"Come on," Roy said when they were done laughing. "We'd better not fall behind."

And so they ran down the hall to catch up to the others.

STEWART

The hallway that J. Q. King had chosen was dark and quiet, besides the occasional oil lamp hanging from the wall and the excited whisper of the students.

Stewart walked silently by himself. He was the last student to follow besides Rick and Roy, who were still catching up.

He didn't know what else to do but walk and study his surroundings. The hall was wide, decorated with wooden tables covered in lace doilies and antique porcelain figures. Every now and then they would pass a large vase filled with bouquets of red flowers of all types, or see a tall, card tower that matched the ones on the lawn. The walls were adorned with old wallpaper riddled with patterns of intricate red and yellow hearts. The carpet under their feet was red.

Ahead of the group of students walked J. Q. King and three maids. As far as Stewart could tell from behind, their uniforms were exactly the same. Even their hair was identical.

The hallway went on without end for some distance, but soon they came to a place where there were doors in the walls to either side of the group. J. Q. King pointed them out as he passed. "That is the library," he said, gesturing to a pair of wide double doors. "There you will find all that you need for research. There are no computers in this mansion, so all the information you will find as text."

A boy near the front of the group groaned.

J. Q. King continued. "I know that may be hard for some of you, but you must adapt. Moving on, that door and the one further down are the main bathrooms. There are of course more of them; you each have a private one connected to your room. But these are—as you will find—much nearer to the classrooms and will be easier to access during your learning hours. Girls in this one and boys down the hall."

Stewart looked, and found that instead of the customary "women," the door was instead labeled "queens."

This is getting a bit old, he thought.

After passing the bathrooms, the group moved on and eventually came upon the classrooms. There were rooms for science, engineering, history, math, English, world languages, and the arts. Each door was labeled with its subject's name and the teacher.

"I am well aware," J. Q. King added, "that you already went through a long school year, and you studied most of these subjects thoroughly. Luckily for you, I am not going to force you to endure ones that you do not like this summer. Instead, this afternoon...,"

Stewart glanced at the watch on his wrist. Already almost two in the morning.

"...you will choose three of the offered classes that you would like to take. School will be only three hours a day besides Sundays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. However, to make scheduling easier for myself, the school day will be split into four periods. All of you will have exactly one open period in which you can do as you please. Studies will begin at ten AM and end at two PM. At all other times, you are welcome to explore the mansion and its grounds, have fun amongst yourselves, and...practice your wonderful talents."

As he talked, the group came upon a branch in the hall. J. Q. King took a right fork and came upon a pair of double doors. "This is the gym," he said. "It includes a basketball court, and a swimming pool, among other things. If any of you want, there is an option to take a class in physical education."

Stewart saw Madison grin with prideful pleasure.

J. Q. King gestured down a hall to their left. "If we should go down that way, we would soon come to the doorway leading to the theater. Anyone who is studying music or acting may practice there. There are many different instruments if you wish to use one. However, you must inform me before borrowing any of them."

J. Q. King backtracked to the main hall and continued straight from there. After a few minutes of silent walking, they finally came upon a cluster of doors. "These are your rooms. Further down the hall," he said, pointing, "you will find a staircase. It leads to the second floor, where you will gather for meals. You may choose whether or not to eat there, but meals will start and end at the same time every day with no exception, besides today. After your schedules are in place, breakfast will be from eight o' clock to nine thirty and dinner will be served from five thirty to seven. Lunch will be distributed by the maids during your class hours. Do you all understand?"

Of course.

"Now," he said, turning to them and clapping his hands together. "You may choose if you wish to have a room to yourself, or to share one with another student. At least four rooms must be shared. Boys and girls in separate rooms, please."

The students nodded.

"Good," J. Q. King said with a satisfied grin. "Now decide amongst yourselves."

Stewart watched as people quickly started to pair up. He made no move to do the same. I'll just wait until they're done. If there aren't enough pairs, then maybe I'll join.

In the end, there was no need for him to do so. Exactly four pairs emerged: Rick and Roy, Kathryn and Julia, James and Nathan, and Lara and Heather. It looks like I'm one of the lucky loners. As usual.

J. Q. King eyed the groups, pleased with how nicely they had evened out. "Good," he said. "Now go and pick your rooms. Quickly! The sooner you decide, the sooner you can go to bed."

Stewart slowly followed behind the others. They excitedly ran to peek into each door and see what they looked like on the inside, argued a bit, and eventually settled beside their favorite one. Stewart was the last to pick. He ended up standing beside the farthest door down on the left side of the hall and waited there for J. Q. King to speak again.

"Remember to sign up for classes tomorrow. If you forget, I will place you in the most convenient ones. Choose the ones in which you will do best."

Amanda's hand shot up. "What if some of us aren't good at three of those subjects?"

"Then you should pick the ones you want to be good at," he replied with a wink.

Maybe I should take languages, Stewart thought. If I took sign language, I wouldn't have to write down what I want to say. As long as the person I'm speaking with knows sign language.

J. Q. King looked each student in the eye. When he reached him, Stewart could sense the strangeness of his gaze and looked away quickly.

"Stewart McAffy," J. Q. King said loudly. Stewart faced him warily. The other students looked from him to their host, then back again expectantly.

The man smiled warmly. "Good luck in your studies."

Stewart nodded and shifted his gaze once more.

MADISON

Madison looked away from the silent boy and sniggered. What a freak, she thought. If I was him I'd learn how to talk or leave Murray Mansion. How in the world is an odd kid like him supposed to be as talented as me?

It seemed to Madison as if most of the kids at PITY were not noticeably talented. Either that or they were strange and didn't fit in, like that mute Steven kid--if that was his name. Madison didn't remember, and she didn't care. He's a nobody, like almost everyone else here. PITY is a joke.

She did not voice these thoughts out loud, though. She didn't want to get kicked out because of a bad attitude. She still had to check out the gym.

It took a while for her to notice that J. Q. King had been speaking while these thoughts whirled around inside her head. It didn't seem as if she had missed much, though; he was just wrapping up the tour and briefing them on further rules.

"You must behave as though you were at a school," he was saying. "No vandalism, horseplay, or other immature shenanigans. No inappropriate dress, no misconduct towards your fellow students and the maids, no foul language. Lights go out at ten o'clock, and absolutely do not enter the uppermost floor of the mansion."

"Why not?" the girl, Amy, piped. Or at least that's what Madison thought her name was.

"Because," said J. Q. King grimly, "I must be allowed to maintain my privacy."

Madison rolled her eyes. "If you say so," she muttered.

"If you wish to contact me," he continued, "you cannot do it directly. Please speak with one of my maids. They will help you reach me." After he had finished, he said a quick farewell and vanished into the dark hall, his maids trailing behind.

"Well, that was creepy!" Madison said when they were out of earshot. "How about we call this a night, guys?"

Some students nodded in agreement, while others stared at her. All of them gradually slipped into their rooms.

Madison entered her own room and sighed with contentment. The room was much fancier than her own at home. A stained glass window covered with an intricate lace curtain faced out to the grounds. The floor was shining polished wood and the walls were glowing with light from oil lamps. The bed looked soft and comfortable, draped with red silk blankets and white sheets. The pillows were heart- and diamond-shaped.

"Of course," Madison mumbled.

After she brushed her teeth and changed into her pajamas, she went rummaging through her suitcase. She pulled out an old teddy bear, a blue elephant, and a toy tiger. She set them on her bed and smiled at them as she knelt on the floor.

"Good night, Mr. Dimpleton," she whispered to the bear. She faced the elephant. "Sleep tight, Penny. And Dr. Gregg," she tapped the tiger on the nose, "don't let those stupid bedbugs bite."

She gave the stuffed animals a squeeze and settled in to sleep.