Before retiring I altered the menus for the next week to be lots of plain omelets, unadorned vegetables and nourishing soups and simple grilled meats and fish.

I removed all the more exotic items from the work stations in the kitchen and placed them in the racks of the walk in spice cupboard, which I locked, along with the herb racks and I disturbed the head gardener in order to have the security codes on the greenhouses altered.

This did not remove all the things which could cause trouble but it reduced their availability to those who might not yet believe in their effects.

When Mister McGreagor returned from the disco I gave him a sherbet which would help to clear his mind and restore his judgment so he might get on with restoring our computer network controller which refuses to send off any email where the letters o and z appear next to eachother. American recipes where everything is measured in cups are unaffected, so he'll probably not find much help online.

Despite the lateness of the hour he at once set about restoring the security systems which he had allowed to become vulnerable thanks to Amber's attentions. I reflected on the wisdom of the original founders of the Institute who had offered employment to those wounded soldiers and sailors who had become eunuchs in the service of their country.

It was some time before the students settled down, but matron put something in their cocoa to enforce the curfew and a sudden silence fell.

I walked through the hushed building, chatting with Mister McGreagor over the intercom as we checked the door and window sensors were active. Someone had made quite a good job of replacing the panel in the wine cellar door, but I reminded myself to do something about battery powered hand tool availability within the Institute.

There was a caller at the front door. I opened it to find a group of Marine Commandos and Mister Brown. I claimed him from them and they vanished into the night. He seemed rather shocked.
'You can tell me about it in the morning - if you want to.' I told him, and escorted him to the entrance to the corridor of men's apartments. Mister McGreagor reminded me of which one had been allocated to Mister Brown, and I reminded him.

At last I was able to declare the House secure and return to my own apartment where I found that I had neglected to close the windows, so the rooms were rather cold. I closed them now, and opened the oak chest at the foot of the bed. It was black with age and shone with the gloss that only several hundred years of beeswax and effort can give. I lifted out one of the rabbit skin lined covers. It was one of the older ones, from when the rabbits were smaller and their fur was a light blond. The pelts had been quilted to a piece of ancient linen embroidered with a peacock and his hens, the colours still vibrant. I spread it over the bed, then checked my white uniform was ready for the morning, checked that my dark clothes were where I could find them without light, then prepared for sleep.
Before I laid down I put on the mask and started the air pump which would probably ensure I would wake in the morning. I resolved that today I would leave work at seventeen fourty at the latest and go home.