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Whenever Alex woke froet back to sleep, so he took to roa to forget it Soenerally very few except the nocturnal creatures spent their nightsabout
It was on one of these occasions that Alex, feeling pleasantly full and the nighthts, decided to peer down the new hallway that had been beckoning to him for weeks
He never saw anyone enter or exit it, and no one else seemed to notice it at all Because of this, Alex didn’t dare to explore it when others were around, or it would be painfully obvious that he’d be walking through what appeared toover his shoulder to make sure no one was about, he slipped quietly into the hallway and tiptoed down it This hallas different from the others he’d been in It was much shorter and wider And rather than soft carpet under his feet, this floor was deep, shiny any planks There were pillars carved of the sa this hallway adoorways on either side, though the doors of those four rooave no indication of as inside As he walked farther down the hallway, he approached an area that appeared to be a lounge of so far beyond the width of the hall on either side He stopped, unsure Straight ahead, above a sofa, was an enor the lawn Alex could see stars twinkling and the shadowy trees of the jungle in the distance Ahead and to the right he could just see into an area of gadgets and gauges, a blackboard, a tube, and a kitchenette
Ahead and to the left he sahat appeared to be an office with a desk Alex couldn’t tell whether someone occupied that room, but it looked fairly dark in there He et a better look On a coatrack in the corner hung a multicolored robe very much like the robes Mr Today often wore Alex’s heart quickened, for certainly this was Mr Today’s office, and certainly students were not
He peeredthe wall behind the desk On them flashed different scenes, only Alex couldn’t make out what the scenes were They all seemed quite dark, and after a moment Alex decided that they must be pictures of the outdoors
His breath quickened as he crept closer He looked over his shoulder again and, seeing no one, pushed ahead toward the roo, and with a loud twang he fell to the floor, his nose and forehead throbbing painfully "Drat it," he said, rubbing his nose "Yeowch"
When the sharp pain faded to dull, Alex sniffed and reached his hand out tentatively until it struck so cool and slick "Glass," he lass wall all around, finding to his dismay that it encased the entire width of the hallway and there was no way around it that would give him access to either of the open rooe directly in front of him
Gingerly holding the bridge of his aching nose, he slid as close as he could to Mr Today’s office, trying to get a better glimpse of the blackboards "What in the …," he said, completely puzzled
"Well, well, Stowe You’ve found your way here too?"
Alex juain, only this tioodness He whirled around, sucking in a shocked breath, and his mouth fell open in surprise
Sarinned shakily "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question" Samheed stood tall a dozen feet away, a dark look on his face "Did I scare you? You sure jumped a htened up and dusted off his paja
"I made a little noise first, but you had your nose pressed so far into the glass I wasn’t sure you’d have heard a tank even if it rolled right past you So haven’t you been here before?"