‘That’s really foul,’ said Leaf.
‘I’ve known worse,’ muttered a voice from somewhere under the table. Dr Scamandros looked around, but either no one else heard Suzy’s comment or they were well-practiced at ignoring her.
‘It’s writing more,’ said Arthur. The page cleared, and the invisible hand wrote on.
The particular Spirit-eater that has duplicated Lord Arthur has chosen to call itself the Skinless Boy, perhaps because in its natural appearance it does not have very much skin, instead showing exposed bone. It may be defeated by taking its seed item, the pocket from Lord Arthur’s school shirt. Lord Arthur must plunge that pocket back into Nothing.
At present, 10:20 A.M. local Earth Arthur time on Thursday, the Skinless Boy has established a temporary lair in the primary linen closet of East Area Hospital on Lower Ground Three. If the Spirit-eater moves to Arthur’s home, it is most probable that it will establish its lair in the sump cavity beneath the house, which can be accessed by raising a concrete slab in the garden near the back fence.
‘What was that about Thursday?’ asked Leaf. ‘What’s Arthur time?’
Arthur read it again.
‘It shouldn’t be Thursday back home! We need to get back on Wednesday afternoon! How can it be Thursday?’
‘Time is malleable between the House and the Secondary Realms,’ said Dr Scamandros. ‘But powerful personages such as yourself, Lord Arthur, affect and govern the relative flows. I can only surmise that the Spirit-eater, having something of your quality, has taken your place for chronological purposes. In … ah … other words, you are back.’
‘But what about Leaf? Can she go back to Wednesday?’
‘I would say not,’ said Dr Scamandros. ‘But I am no expert in these relativities. Perhaps Sneezer may know more, from the Seven Dials.’
‘Without putting it to the test, sir, I cannot say,’ said Sneezer. ‘However, as a general rule, the temporal relationship between a Secondary World and the House is set by the Front Door and defies explication. It presumably thought you had returned to your Earth and did not miss Miss Leaf, if you pardon me saying so. Therefore, the earliest Miss Leaf can return is twenty minutes past ten on Thursday. If it is still that time. More orange juice?’
‘But that means I’ll have been missing all night!’ Leaf couldn’t believe it. ‘My parents will kill me!’
Four
‘REALLY? ’ ASKED DR SCAMANDROS. ‘That seems rather harsh.’
‘Oh, they won’t actually kill me.’ Leaf sighed. ‘Even if they wanted to, they’re in quarantine, so they can only shout at me through the intercom and pound on the interview window. It’s just going to make life more difficult.’
Arthur was looking at the Atlas. Something had changed there, catching his eye. It took a second to work out what it was.
‘Hey! The time back home’s 10:21 now!’
‘I have got to get back,’ said Leaf. ‘I’ll try and do something about the Skinless Boy, I promise, but I really have to at least go and wave at my parents. So – how do I get home? And how do I get back here if … once I get hold of that pocket?’
‘Sneezer can use Seven Dials to send you back to the hospital, I think,’ said Arthur.
‘Indeed, sir,’ said Sneezer, with a low bow.
‘Coming back, I don’t know …’
‘The Skinless Boy went through the Front Door, so the House will have manifested itself on your world,’ said Dame Primus with an airy wave of her hand. ‘All you need to do is find it, knock on the Front Door, and everything will be taken care of. Now, I must insist we return to the Agenda!’
‘Okay, okay,’ said Arthur.
He turned to Leaf but was suddenly unable to think of anything to say. He hadn’t known her long but she already felt like an old friend, and he was asking her to do something really huge for him. He didn’t know how to tell her how grateful he was for her friendship and help.
‘I … I’m sorry I got you into this, Leaf. I mean I really appreciate it … you … uh … even my old friends back where I used to live wouldn’t be as … anyway … I wish there was something … oh!’
He bent his hand back behind his neck and pulled off the string with the Mariner’s medallion. It was the only thing he had that he could give.
‘I don’t know if it will be any use, but if things get really bad, try calling the Mariner. Maybe … not that he was very quick last time, but … well, good luck.’
Leaf dropped the string over her head, nodded firmly, and turned away.