“I’m afraid it was my fault,” said Fee. “I was looking through the periscope and a seagull landed on top of it. I was studying its feet while I should have been turning the periscope round to see if we were in any danger.”
“And we were,” said Ben.
“A ship was coming straight at us,” said Fee. “Fortunately we managed to dive in time.”
“Things happen very quickly at sea,” said Badger. “One moment everything’s fine and then, before you know it, you’re in real danger.”
“Tell us about Henry,” urged Ben.
“Right,” said Badger. “So Henry was on watch with a couple of people and was looking out to sea. We weren’t moving fast as there was hardly any wind in the sails. We were just drifting, I suppose, and we weren’t too far off the shore of the Isle of Skye, which is just round the corner from here.
“Everybody who wasn’t on watch was having a lesson in knot-tying at the time and so nobody really saw what happened next, apart from the boy at the helm, and he was a bit vague about it later.
“Anyway, apparently Henry saw something on the shore and started to bark. Then, before anybody could stop him, he dived off the deck and into the water. He had seen Matron diving, you see, and must have picked it up from her. “Then he swam towards the shore and there was a lot of splashing before he turned round to swim back. But do you know what? He had something in his paws.”
“He’d caught a fish?” asked Fee.
Badger shook his head. “No, it wasn’t a fish, although it looked quite like one.” He paused. “It was a mermaid!”
Fee gasped.
“Surely not!” said Ben. “Mermaids don’t really exist, do they?”
Badger shrugged. “I’m just telling you the story. I’m just telling you what people told me.”
“Carry on,” said Fee. Ben was always saying that things didn’t exist, and she felt that if you said that all the time there would be no point in having any stories at all.
“Well,” went on Badger, “they pulled him up on to the deck and the mermaid came with him. She wasn’t pleased, apparently, and a bit cold too. Somebody lent her a jacket and they gave her a cup of soup to warm her up. Henry looked quite proud that he had caught a mermaid, but the Captain was cross with him and told him to go down to his cabin. He has a very small cabin – not much bigger than a shoebox, near the bilges.”
Fee interrupted him. “The bilges?” It was another of these special words.
“The bilges are right down at the bottom of the ship,” explained Badger. “They’re a special compartment where any water that gets in will be collected. They’re usually a bit smelly, and dark too. I wouldn’t like to go down there alone.”
Badger resumed his story. “So Henry went down rather reluctantly, his tail between his legs, while everybody looked at the mermaid.”
“She finished her soup and said something, although nobody knew what it meant. It was a sort of bubbly sound, people said. It was probably ‘Thank you’. Then she slithered off the deck – mermaids can’t walk, you see – plopped into the sea, and swam off. And that’s it. That’s the story of Henry and the mermaid. And that’s why you see him looking over the railings so much, especially if we’re anywhere near Skye. He’s looking for that mermaid or another mermaid.”
“What an amazing story,” said Fee. She hoped that mermaids existed – even if they did not – as a world with mermaids seemed far more interesting than a world without them.
“Yes,” said Badger, looking at his watch. “But we’d better get on, as we have to see Matron, and breakfast is in exactly ten minutes.”
Ben and Fee liked Matron the moment they saw her. She shook hands with each of them and gave them a small toffee. “A toffee before breakfast always helps to start the day,” she said with a smile. “Now, here is your kit – all bundled up nicely and ready to be taken off to your cabins. Socks, shirts, and so on. Pyjamas. Toothbrush. Toothpaste – I’m afraid toothpaste always tastes a bit salty at sea, but you’ll quickly get used to it. Lifejacket. Whistle. Deck shoes. Any questions?”
Ben and Fee shook their heads.
“Now let me give you a quick medical examination,” said Matron. “Open your mouths wide, please, and show me your teeth.”
They did as they were told, and Matron shone a light into their mouths.
“That all looks satisfactory,” she said. “Now show me your hands.”
They held out their hands and turned them over.
“Good,” said Matron. “All your fingers seem to be there.”
Then she tapped their heads gently with a rubber hammer. “Nothing wrong there,” she said.
And that was it.
“Off to breakfast,” said Matron.
They picked up their bundles of kit and started to leave. Ben noticed a framed photograph on the cabin wall and stopped in front of it. The picture showed a woman standing on a high diving board, with a great crowd watching from down below.
Matron spotted his interest. “Yes,” she said, “that’s me, at the Olympics. I hoped to win a medal, but I didn’t. The dive went wrong and I made the most terrible splash. It soaked the judges, I’m afraid. They were absolutely dripping wet.”
“Oh dear,” said Fee. “What bad luck.”
“Everybody laughed,” said Matron. “Including me. But the judges didn’t think it very funny and gave me no points. I didn’t mind. I knew I could dive rather well.”
“Will you show us some time?” asked Fee.
“Show you?” asked Matron. “Of course I shall. In fact, I’ll teach you, if you like.”
Fee had been smiling, but now her face fell. She had always wanted to dive, but each time she had tried it had not been a success. Whenever she went to a swimming pool she would climb up the ladder to the high board, stand at the end, and look down. She would put her hands together, just as you were meant to do, and then, right at the last moment, she would jump rather than dive. It happened every time.
“I’d like that,” she said. “I don’t think I’m much good, though. I usually flop, not dive!”
Matron laughed. “I think you might surprise yourself,” she said. “We’ll start some time soon – as long as the sea’s not too cold.”
They thanked Matron and joined Badger, who was waiting to show them to their cabins.
“We’ll have to hurry now,” he said. “I’m getting hungry and I can already smell breakfast.”
Ben sniffed at the air. There were lots of smells: salt, rope, a touch of tar – things that were new to him. But there was another, familiar smell – that of sizzling sausages.
All the ship’s meals were served in the mess hall. This was a large space, as broad as the ship itself, furnished with fifteen long tables, each large enough to seat ten people. Ben noticed immediately that there was something unusual about these tables. Most tables stand on four legs, but these ones were suspended on ropes, making them look like giant swings in a park.
“Look,” he said as they reached the door. “Hanging tables!”
“Yes,” said Badger. “And there’s a reason for that, you know. If the ship tilts over – and it does that a lot, I can tell you – the tables don’t tip. And you’ll see that the benches are attached to them, too, so that they move as well.”
“Just like a swing,” said Fee.
Badger nodded. “It’s much better this way. If you’ve ever been on a rough sea you’ll know what happens – everything slips and slides about. One moment you can be eating your corn flakes and the next your bowl is upside down on the floor – or in your lap.”
Ben looked about. There were already a good number of people in the mess hall, most of them seated at a table. Some, though, were still lined up at the galley hatch.
“That’s where we go,” said Badger, pointing. “Follow me.”
They made their way towards the galley hatch. As they went, both Ben and Fee were aware that many pairs of eyes were on them.
“They’re all look
ing at us,” he whispered to Fee. “I wish they wouldn’t.”
Badger overheard. “Don’t worry,” he reassured them, “They always stare at new people. It’s just for the first day – nobody will notice you tomorrow.”
The smell of sausages was now much stronger, and Ben heard his stomach growl in anticipation. He hadn’t had time to eat the sandwiches his mother had given them. As they approached the hatch, they helped themselves to a tray, a plate and cutlery.
Standing on the other side of the food counter was a tough-looking man, his sleeves rolled up to reveal tattoos of anchors, sailing ships and frolicking whales.
“The ship’s cook,” whispered Badger, and then, in a louder voice, “Morning, Cook!”
The cook looked at him and grinned. “Morning there, young Badger. And who have you got with you, may I ask?”
Nudged by Badger, Ben replied, “I’m Ben, Cook. I’m new.”
“I can see that,” said the cook, in a not unfriendly tone. “And you over there? You got a name?”
“I’m Fee, sir,” said Fee.
“You don’t call me sir,” said the cook. “You call me Cook. Sir is for the officers, and I isn’t an officer.”
“She’s new too,” said Badger, by way of explanation. “She’ll learn, Cook.”
“I’m sure she will,” said Cook. “We all learns soon enough if we keep our eyes open and our ears free of wax. And if we eats our vegetables too, mark you. We serve healthy food in this school, I’ll have youse know.”
“Except at breakfast,” muttered Badger.
“What was that?” snapped the cook. “You say something, Badger?”
“Nothing, Cook. Just clearing my throat.”
“All right,” said Cook, reaching for a saucepan. “Sausages this morning, with fried potatoes, and bread. Hand over your plates. Look sharp about it.”
They passed him their plates, watching wide-eyed as he put four large sausages on each, with a fifth one on Badger’s. “This young man needs a bit of building up,” he said. “Extra sausage for him. Well deserved, too.”
As the cook said this, Fee heard a hissing sound from the table immediately behind them. Half-turning round, she saw that this came from a tall boy with a cruel face and a central parting right through the middle of his slick dark hair. Fee guessed that he had seen the extra sausage being given to Badger and was envious.
Badger had heard too. “Pay no attention,” he whispered to Fee. “I’ll tell you about him when we get to our table.”
Once they had been given their fried potatoes and bread, they made their way to a table at the other end of the dining area. Fee tried not to look at the boy who had been doing the hissing, although she did catch the quickest glimpse of him as they walked past. He was looking directly at her, and their eyes met for the briefest of moments before he transferred his gaze to Ben. At that precise instant, Fee had that extraordinary feeling you have when you know, right down in your bones, that you have made an enemy. You don’t need to have done anything to deserve it, but there’s no mistaking it when it happens.
The red-haired girl Badger had pointed out earlier was already sitting at their table when they arrived. As they sat down, she looked up from her breakfast and gave them a broad smile, starting with Fee, then moving on to Ben, and finally to Badger. It was the sort of smile that makes you feel warm inside – a smile that says I’m really glad to see you.
“So,” she said, as she put down her fork. “So you’re the new people. You’re Ben and Fee, aren’t you?”
‘That’s right,” said Badger. “Ben and Fee have just arrived.”
“Welcome aboard,” said the girl. She smiled again. “My name’s Poppy, by the way.”
They shook hands.
“I’m from Australia,” Poppy said. “I live about as far from the sea as it’s possible to get. Right in the middle. The nearest town – and it’s not very near, I can tell you – is Alice Springs.”
“I’ve heard of it,” said Fee.
“Yes, you will have,” said Poppy. “We’ve got a great big red rock out there. It’s called Uluru. It’s amazing. People come from all over to take a look at it.” She shook her head. “Some people get lost out there – you have to be careful.”
Ben wondered how Poppy had ended up on the Tobermory. “My parents have a big sheep farm,” said Poppy. “It’s hundreds of miles even from Alice Springs, so I would have to go off to boarding school anyway. I had always been interested in the sea, even though I’d never actually seen it. I had books about it and I think I dreamed about it every single night. Do you know how it is when you really want to do something? You won’t be happy until you do it.”
Ben nodded. He knew what it was like to want something really badly. He had always wanted to have a friend – a really good friend.
Poppy continued. “So when my parents asked me where I wanted to go, I said I’d heard about a boarding school that was on a ship. They looked it up and … well, here I am. I’ve been on the Tobermory for two years now, and I’ve loved every minute of it. People said to me, ‘Oh, you’ll be homesick for Australia – you’ll want to go home,’ but I never felt that. Not once.”
She smiled at Ben. “You aren’t feeling homesick, are you?”
He was able to answer truthfully that he was not. Well, maybe just a tiny bit. Maybe enough to feel he would like to see his parents just for a little while …
“Feeling homesick is quite normal,” Poppy went on. “Lots of people feel a bit that way, but they usually get over it quite quickly. I really like going back to Australia for the holidays and I love being back on the farm, but I always count the days until it’s time to come back to the Tobermory.”
They began their breakfast. The sausages were delicious, and Fee and Ben decided to make them last as long as possible, eating them slowly to savour the taste. Badger ate more quickly, and had soon polished off all five sausages on his plate before starting to tackle the fried bread.
“That boy,” he said, his mouth still half full with the last sausage. “That one who hissed.”
“Oh him!” said Poppy disdainfully, peering across the row of heads.
“He’s called William Edward Hardtack,” continued Badger.
“And he’s bad news,” interjected Poppy.
“Very bad news,” said Badger. “We usually just call him Hardtack. He’s the Head Prefect of the Upper Deck, and most of the people who sleep up there can’t stand him.”
“He’s a bully,” said Poppy. “And he doesn’t like Badger. Nor me, for that matter. And we don’t like him back. He’s a real dingo.”
“A dingo’s an Australian wild dog,” explained Badger. “Poppy often says things like that.”
Badger shook his head. “I’ve never worked out why Hardtack’s so mean,” he said. “What’s the point of being that way?”
“He must think it makes him feel bigger,” said Poppy. “Most bullies are like that – they’re small people on the inside who want to be big people on the outside.”
“Yet his brother wasn’t like that,” remarked Badger. “Remember him, Poppy? George Churchill Hardtack? He left at the end of last year.”
Poppy did remember him. “He was completely different,” she mused. “He was really good at everything – swimming, diving, seamanship – everything. But he was kind as well – he’d often help people who weren’t so good at things. He once showed me a good way of tying a bowline …”
“That’s a really important knot,” Badger explained to Ben. “It’s the first knot you’ll learn – and you must never unlearn it.”
“I’ll try,” said Ben.
Poppy was still thinking about George Churchill Hardtack. “I think that maybe Hardtack couldn’t live up to his elder brother – and knew it. Rather than accepting that his brother was better than he was at just about everything – and being proud of him – he became all bitter and twisted.” She struggled to think of the right words to explain this. “Like a snake that’s got i
tself all tied up in knots and ends up biting anybody who comes near …”
“And biting itself too,” added Badger.
Ben glanced in Hardtack’s direction. “And who are the people around him?” he asked.
Badger turned his head to look. When he turned back there was an expression of disgust on his face. “His usual crew,” he said. “The thin one on his right is Geoffrey Shark, and the one on his left is Maximilian Flubber. Shark is greedy and tries to grab everything before anybody else gets a chance. He’s a thief, I think, but nobody is ever able to prove it. As for Flubber, he’ll come over all friendly, but don’t trust him – not even for one second. Hardtack has him in his pocket, and anything you say to Flubber goes right back to him.”
“Badger’s right,” agreed Poppy. “Don’t believe anything that Flubber says. He’s a big liar, although he doesn’t know how easy it is to tell when he’s lying. His ears move a little – backwards and forwards just a tiny bit – but it always gives the game away.”
Fee felt a bit anxious. Perhaps they should have gone to school on shore after all. “Are they the worst people on the ship?” she asked.
“Yes,” said Badger. “Definitely. Most of the others are really nice. It’s a friendly ship, but in every group of people, well, you know how it is …”
“He’s right,” said Poppy. “What’s the saying? There are always some rotten apples in the barrel.”
“Exactly,” said Badger. “But let’s not think about them too much. There are far better things to do.”
It was at this moment, though, that Ben noticed that William Edward Hardtack had risen from his seat and was walking towards them. He was smiling as he approached, but it was not the sort of smile that would have fooled anyone.
He was soon standing directly behind Ben, who was still seated at the table.
“You’re new aren’t you?” he said, leaning over Ben’s shoulder to shake hands. “I though I’d come and say hello. I wondered whether you were going to be on my deck.”
“He isn’t,” said Badger firmly. “He’s on Middle Deck.”
“Oh, what a pity,” said Hardtack. “Still, it would be nice to shake your hand to welcome you.”