Darrell, “if it gets any louder, someone will hear, and the cat will be out of the bag!”
Gwendoline and Mary-Lou were quite terrified of this strange knocking. They clutched each other, as white as a sheet.
“Come in,” said Darrell, at last, in a low voice, when there was a pause in the knocking.
The door opened slowly, and the girls stared at it, wondering what was coming. In walked June—and behind her, rather scared, was Felicity!
“June!” said Alicia, fiercely.
“ Felicity ” gasped Darrell, hardly believing her eyes.
June stared round as if in surprise.
“Oh,” she said, “It's you, is it! Felicity and I simply couldn't get to sleep because of the storm, and we came to the landing window to watch it. And we found these on the ground!”
She held up three hard-boiled eggs! “We were awfully surprised. Then, we heard a bit of a noise in here and we wondered who was in our common-room—and we thought whoever it was must be having a good old feast—so we came to bring you your lost hard-boiled eggs.”
There was a silence after this speech. Alicia was boiling! She knew that June had watched them coming back because of the storm—had seen them going into the first-form common room—and had been delighted to find the dropped eggs and bring them along as an excuse to join the party!
“Oh,” said Darrell, hardly knowing what to say. “Thanks. Yes—we're having a feast. Er...”
“Why did you use our common-room?” asked June, innocently, and she broke the shell off one of the eggs. “Of course, it's an honour for us first-formers to have you Upper Fourth using our room for a feast. I say—this egg's super! I didn't mean to nibble it, though. So sorry.”
“Oh, finish it if you like,” said Darrell, not finding anything else to say.
“Thanks,” said June, and gave one to Felicity, who began to eat hers, too.
It ended, of course, in the two of them joining in the feast, though Darrell really felt very uncomfortable about it. Also, for the first time she realized that the three girls from West Tower were still there, in North Tower where they had no business to be! Still, how could she turn them out now? She couldn't very well say, “Look here, you must scram! I know we said join the feast when we were down by the pool—but we can't have you with us now.” It sounded too silly for words.
Darrell did not enjoy the feast at all. She wanted to send June and Felicity away, but it seemed mean to do that when the feasters were using their common-room, and June had brought back the eggs. Also she felt that Alicia might not like her to send June away. Little did she know that Alicia was meditating all kinds of dire punishments for the irrepressible June. Oh dear—the lovely time they had planned seemed to have gone wrong somehow.
And then it went even more wrong! Footsteps were heard overhead.
Things happen fast
“Did you hear that?” whispered Sally. “Someone is coming! Quick, gather everything up, and let's go!”
The girls grabbed everything near, and Darrell caught up the brush by the fireplace and swept the crumbs under a couch. She put out the light and opened the door. All was dark in the passage outside. There seemed to be nobody there. Who could have been walking about overhead? That was where the first-form dormy was.
June and Felicity were scared now. They shot away at once. Betty, Eileen and Winnie disappeared to the stairs, running down them to the side-door. They could then slip round to their own tower. The others, led by Darrell, went cautiously upstairs to find their own dormy.
A slight cough from somewhere near, a familiar and unmistakable cough, brought them to a stop. They stood, hardly daring to breathe, at the top of the stairs. “That was Potty's cough,” thought Darrell. “Oh blow—did she hear us making a row? But we really were quite quiet!”
She hoped and hoped that Betty and the other two West Tower girls had got safely to their own dormy without
Gwendoline and Mary-Lou were quite terrified of this strange knocking. They clutched each other, as white as a sheet.
“Come in,” said Darrell, at last, in a low voice, when there was a pause in the knocking.
The door opened slowly, and the girls stared at it, wondering what was coming. In walked June—and behind her, rather scared, was Felicity!
“June!” said Alicia, fiercely.
“ Felicity ” gasped Darrell, hardly believing her eyes.
June stared round as if in surprise.
“Oh,” she said, “It's you, is it! Felicity and I simply couldn't get to sleep because of the storm, and we came to the landing window to watch it. And we found these on the ground!”
She held up three hard-boiled eggs! “We were awfully surprised. Then, we heard a bit of a noise in here and we wondered who was in our common-room—and we thought whoever it was must be having a good old feast—so we came to bring you your lost hard-boiled eggs.”
There was a silence after this speech. Alicia was boiling! She knew that June had watched them coming back because of the storm—had seen them going into the first-form common room—and had been delighted to find the dropped eggs and bring them along as an excuse to join the party!
“Oh,” said Darrell, hardly knowing what to say. “Thanks. Yes—we're having a feast. Er...”
“Why did you use our common-room?” asked June, innocently, and she broke the shell off one of the eggs. “Of course, it's an honour for us first-formers to have you Upper Fourth using our room for a feast. I say—this egg's super! I didn't mean to nibble it, though. So sorry.”
“Oh, finish it if you like,” said Darrell, not finding anything else to say.
“Thanks,” said June, and gave one to Felicity, who began to eat hers, too.
It ended, of course, in the two of them joining in the feast, though Darrell really felt very uncomfortable about it. Also, for the first time she realized that the three girls from West Tower were still there, in North Tower where they had no business to be! Still, how could she turn them out now? She couldn't very well say, “Look here, you must scram! I know we said join the feast when we were down by the pool—but we can't have you with us now.” It sounded too silly for words.
Darrell did not enjoy the feast at all. She wanted to send June and Felicity away, but it seemed mean to do that when the feasters were using their common-room, and June had brought back the eggs. Also she felt that Alicia might not like her to send June away. Little did she know that Alicia was meditating all kinds of dire punishments for the irrepressible June. Oh dear—the lovely time they had planned seemed to have gone wrong somehow.
And then it went even more wrong! Footsteps were heard overhead.
Things happen fast
“Did you hear that?” whispered Sally. “Someone is coming! Quick, gather everything up, and let's go!”
The girls grabbed everything near, and Darrell caught up the brush by the fireplace and swept the crumbs under a couch. She put out the light and opened the door. All was dark in the passage outside. There seemed to be nobody there. Who could have been walking about overhead? That was where the first-form dormy was.
June and Felicity were scared now. They shot away at once. Betty, Eileen and Winnie disappeared to the stairs, running down them to the side-door. They could then slip round to their own tower. The others, led by Darrell, went cautiously upstairs to find their own dormy.
A slight cough from somewhere near, a familiar and unmistakable cough, brought them to a stop. They stood, hardly daring to breathe, at the top of the stairs. “That was Potty's cough,” thought Darrell. “Oh blow—did she hear us making a row? But we really were quite quiet!”
She hoped and hoped that Betty and the other two West Tower girls had got safely to their own dormy without
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