The door of the library was opened, slowly, carefully, and a girl crept in. Okay, she was a bit intimidating looking, what with the tangle of so-obviously-cut-by-herself auburn hair, the brightly-coloured, slapped on make-up, and the large, brown eyes... but at least she was making an effort. She liked the library, anyway. It was peaceful, and quiet, and teachers never looked for you there if you were skiving. OK, it was kind of full of swots, but still, you couldn't have everything.

And she liked reading. She really did, despite the fact that nobody would expect her to. Despite the fact that, by all logic, she should be thick. Anyway, she pulled a book off the shelf, started to read. It was funny how easy you could forget everything, just reading. Funny... you wouldn't expect her, of all people, to enjoy reading. Which just went to show, didn't it?

Show what? Have you been listening at all... and Nathalie was talking to herself. Bloody brilliant. She turned back to the book, and a smile spread across her face. It was one of the Discworld books, it was funny. Not her fault. Her eyes travelled across the paper fast, as if she was trying to burn holes in the ink.

Nathalie was skiving with the swots.