Upper Fourth at Malory Towers by Enid Blyton Page A

being caught. It really was counted quite a serious offence for girls of one tower to meet girls in another tower at night. For one thing there was no way to get from one tower to another under cover. The girls had to go outside to reach any other tower.
    What could Potty be doing? Where was she? The girls stood frozen to the ground, waiting for the sign to move on.
    “She's in the third-form dormy,” whispered Darrell, at last. “Perhaps somebody is ill there. I think we had better make a dash for it, really. We can't stand here for hours.”
    “Right. The next time the thunder comes, we'll run for it,” said Sally, in a low voice. The word was passed along, and the girls waited anxiously for the thunder. The lightning flashed first, showing up the crouching line of girls very clearly—and then the thunder came.
    It was a good long, rumbling crash, and any sound the girls made in scampering along to their dormy was completely deadened. They fell into bed thankfully, each girl stuffing what she carried into the bottom of her cupboard, wet bathing suits and all.
    No Miss Potts appeared, and the girls began to breathe more freely. Somebody must have been taken ill in the third-form dormy. Potty still seemed to be there. At last the Upper Fourth heard the soft closing of the third-form Dormy, and Miss Potts' footsteps going quietly off to her own room.
    “Had we better take the lemonade jugs down to the kitchen now?” whispered Irene.
    “No. We won't risk any more creeping about tonight,” said Darrell. “You must take them down before breakfast, as soon as the staff have gone into the dining-room, even though it makes you a bit late. And we'll dear out all the food left over before we go down, and hide it somewhere till we can get rid of it What a pity that beastly storm came!”
    The girls slept like logs that night, and could hardly wake up in the morning. Gwen and Belinda had to be literally dragged out of bed! Irene shot down to the kitchen with the empty jugs. All the rest of the food was hastily put into a bag and dumped into an odd cupboard in the landing. Then, looking demure and innocent, the fourth-formers went down to breakfast.
    Felicity grinned at Darrell. She had enjoyed the escapade last night. But June did not grin at Alicia. Alicia's face was very grim, and June felt uncomfortable.
    At Break Alicia went to find Hilda, the head-girl of the first form. Hilda was surprised and flattered,
    “Hilda,” said Alicia, “I am very displeased with June's behaviour. She is getting quite unbearable, and we fourth-formers are not going to stand it. Either you must put her in her place, or we shall. It would be much better for you to do it.”
    “Oh, Alicia, I'm so sorry,” said Hilda. “We have tried to put her in her place, but she keeps saying you'll give us no end of a wigging if we don't give her a chance. But we've given her lots of chances.”
    “I bet you have,” said Alicia, grimly. “Now, I don't know how you deal with your erring form-members, Hilda—we had various very good ways when I was a first-former—but please do something—and tell her I told you to!”
    “Right. We will,” said Hilda, thankful that she had got authority to deal with that bumptious, brazen conceited new girl, June! A week of being sent to Coventry would soon bring June to heel—she loved talking and gossiping, and it would be a hard punishment for her.
    Hilda went off to call a form meeting about the matter, feeling very important.
    June was angry and shocked to hear the verdict of her form—to be sent to Coventry for a week. She felt humiliated, too—and how angry she was with Alicia for giving Hilda the necessary authority! Alicia was quite within her rights to do this. When a member of a lower form aroused the anger or scorn of a higher form, the head-girl of the offender's form was told to deal with the matter. And so Hilda dealt with it faithfully and promptly, and if she felt very pleased to do it, that was