First Term at Malory Towers (5 page)

Everyone appeared to look up to Pamela, the head-girl, too. She was clever, and rather literary. It was said that she was already writing a book. This impressed the first-formers very much. It was hard enough to write a decent composition, let alone a book.

No one seemed to like two girls called Doris and Fanny. “Too spiteful for words.” said Alicia, w ho of course, could always give an opinion immediately about anyone or anything from Winston Churchill down to the little boy belonging to the Tower House cook. “They're frightfully pi.”

“What do you mean pi?” said Gwendoline, who hadn't apparently heard that word before.

“Golly—what an ignoramus you are!” said Alicia. “Pi means pious. Religious in the wrong way. Thinking they're wonderful and nobody else is. Trying to stop people's pleasure. They're a sickening pair. Always on the prowl and on the snoop. Once, when I slipped across the Court in the night to join Betty Hill, in West Tower for a midnight feast, Doris saw me out of the window, and lay in wait for me to come back. Beast.”

“Did she catch you?” asked Mary-Lou, her eyes wide with alarm.

“Course she didn't! You don't think I'd let myself be caught by the Pi Sisters, do you?” said Alicia, scornfully. “I spotted her when I came back, and shut her in the boot- cupboard.”

Irene gave one of her loud explosive giggles and made them all jump. “I'd never think of the things
you
think of, Alicia!” she said. “No wonder the Pi Sisters glare at you in Prayers each morning. I bet they'll watch out for you to do something you shouldn't, and tell on you.”

“And I bet I'll get the better of them!” said Alicia, grimly. “If they try any tricks on me, I'll try a few on them!”

“Oh, do, do,” begged Darrell, who had a great weakness for jokes and tricks. She didn't always dare to do them herself, but she was always ready to back up any one else who did.

Darrell soon got to know all the different classrooms too. She knew the art-room, with its clear north light. She hadn't yet had a lesson in the lab or laboratory, which looked a bit frightening. She loved the great gym with all its apparatus of swings, ropes, vaulting-horses and mattresses. She was good at gym. So was Alicia, who could climb like a monkey, and was as strong as a horse. Mary-Lou, of course, was too scared to do anything unless she was made to.

It was fun, the way all the girls slept in the Towers, and had their lessons in the other parts of the great building.

Darrell knew where the teachers lived now in the building facing south, except those who, like Miss Potts, and Mam'zelle, lived in with the girls, to keep an eye on them. She began to wonder how she could have felt so lost and overawed when she first arrived. She didn't feel a bit like a new girl now.

One of the things that Darrell liked best of all was the big swimming pool down by the sea. This had been hollowed out of a stretch of rocks, so that it had a nice rocky, uneven bottom. Seaweed grew at the sides, and sometimes the rocky bed of the pool felt a little slimy. But the sea swept into the big natural pool each day, filled it, and made lovely waves all across it. It was a sheer delight to bathe there.

The coast itself was too dangerous for bathing. The tides were so strong, and no girl was allowed to swim in the open sea. But anyone was safe in the pool. One end was quite deep, and here there were diving boards and a chute, and a fine springboard for running dives.

Mary-Lou and Gwendoline were terrified of the pool, Mary-Lou because she was afraid of water, anyhow, and Gwendoline because she hated the first cold plunge. Alicia's eyes always gleamed when she spied the shivering Gwendoline, and the poor girl so often had an unexpected push into the water that she soon began to step in hurriedly whenever she saw Alicia or Betty coming near.

The first week went very slowly. There was a lot to learn and know, things were so new and exciting. Darrell loved every minute, and soon got into the way of things. She was naturally quick and responsive, and the girls soon accepted her and liked her.

But they neither accepted nor liked poor Gwendoline, and as for Sally Hope, after trying in vain to draw her out a little, and get her to talk of her family and home, the girls let her live in her shell, and not come out of it at all.

“First week gone!” announced Alicia, some days later. “The first week always crawls. After that the days fly, and it's half-term in no time, and when that's gone we're looking forward to the hols. You've soon settled in, haven't you, Darrell?”

“Oh,
yes
.” said Darrell. “I love it. If every term is as nice as this, I shall be thrilled!”

“Ah, you wait,” said Alicia. “Everything's always all right at first -but when you've had a wigging or two from Mam'zelle, and been dosed by Matron, and kept in by Potty, and slated by Miss Remmington, and ticked off by one of the older girls and...!”

“Oh stop!” cried Darrell. “Nothing like that will happen, Alicia. Don't try and frighten me!”

But Alicia was right, of course. Things were not going to be quite so smooth and easy as Darrell thought!

DARRELL had good brains and she had been taught how to use them. She soon found that she could easily do the work of her class, and in such things as composition was ahead of most of the others. She felt pleased.

“I thought I'd have to work much much harder than at my old school,” she thought to herself “But I shan't! It's only maths. I'm not so good at. I wish I was as good as Irene at maths. She does things in her head that I can't even do on paper.”

So, after the first week or two, Darrell relaxed a little, and did not worry herself too much about her work. She began to enjoy amusing the class a little, just as Alicia did. Alicia was thrilled to have someone to help her in her mischief.

Betty Hill went much further than Alicia. Darrell sometimes wondered if there was anything she would stop at. There were two mistresses that Betty and Alicia played up to. One was Mam'zelle Dupont, the other was a quiet, gentle mistress who took needlework, and sometimes took prep, time at night. Miss Davies never seemed to realize that Alicia and Betty could play tricks on her. Mam'zelle did realize it, but was taken in all the same.

“Did you ever hear how Betty put a white mouse into Mam'zelle's desk one day?” said Alicia. “Poor little thing, it couldn't get out, and suddenly, in despair, it pushed up the little ink-pot, and stuck its nose out of the ink-pot hole. Mam'zelle nearly had a fit.”

“What did she do?” asked Darrell, with great interest.

“Flew out of the room as if a hundred dogs were after her!” said Alicia. “When she was gone we took the mouse out quickly, and Betty hid it down her neck. So, when Mam'zelle ventured back, and ordered one of us to turn her desk out and get the mouse, there was none to be found. Mam'zelle thought her eyes had gone wrong!”

“Oh, I
do
wish I'd been there!” sighed Darrell. “Alicia,
do
do something funny like that. Do something in maths, can't you? I know Miss Potts is going to go for me over my maths, prep, and something like that would take her mind away from me!”

“What! Play a trick like that in Potty's class!” said Alicia, scornfully. “Don't be silly. Potty's up to everything. You can't fool
her
.”

“Well—in Mam'zelle's class, then,” begged Darrell. “I like Mam'zelle, but I haven't seen her in a temper yet and I'd like to.
Do
do play a trick in her class.”

Alicia felt that she would have a most admiring spectator in Darrell, if only she could think of something. She screwed her forehead into wrinkles and thought hard.

Betty prompted her. “Can't you think of something Sam or Roger or Dick did last term?” she asked. She turned to Darrell. “Alicia's three brothers all go to the same school,” she said. “And there's a master there called Toggles—at least that's what the boys call him—and he's such a dud the boys can play any trick they like on him and get away with it.”

Darrell thought Roger, Sam, and Dick sounded fine brothers to have. She wished she had a brother too. But she had only a younger sister.

“There's one thing Roger did last term that was quite funny,” said Alicia, suddenly. “I believe we could do it. But you and Betty will have to help, Darrell.”

“Oh, I'd
love
to,” said Darrell. “What is it?”

“Well, Roger pretended to be deaf,” said Alicia. “And everything old Toggles asked him he pretended to hear wrong. When Toggles said “Johns, sit still in your chair!” Roger said “Give you a cheer, sir? Certainly! Hip, hip, hip, hurrah!”

Darrell laughed. “Oh, Alicia! That would be fun! Do, do pretend to be deaf, please do. We'll play up to you like anything. We will really. Do it in Mam'zelle's class.”

The first form soon heard that Alicia was going to pull Mam'zelle's leg, and were thrilled. The first excitement of coming back to school had worn off. The girls were restless and ready for a bit of excitement.

“Now.” said Alicia, “I'll pretend to misunderstand what Mam'zelle says—and then you can repeat it very proudly, Darrell, and then you Betty, and then the rest of the class. See? We'll have some sport.”

Mam'zelle, all unsuspicious of this deep-laid plot, entered the first-form classroom smiling brightly the next morning. It was a beautiful summer day. She had had two letters from home, giving her the news that she had a new little nephew. She had on a new brooch, and had washed her hair the night before. She was feeling in a very good temper.

She beamed round at the class. “Ah, my dear girls!” she said. “We are going to do some very very good French today,
n'est ce pas
? We are going to be better than the second form! Even Gwendoline will be able to say her verbs to me without one, single, mistake!”

Gwendoline looked doubtful. Since she had been at Malory Towers her opinion of her governess at home had gone down. Miss Winter didn't seem to have taught her half the things she ought to have known! On the other hand, thought Gwendoline, she had raved over her hair and blue eyes, she had praised the sweetness of Gwendoline's temper, and said how graceful she was in all she did. That kind of thing was most enjoyable to a person like Gwendoline. But a little more learning would have been very useful to her at Malory Towers.

She wished she had learnt a lot more French. Mam'zelle had exclaimed at the little she knew, and had even suggested extra French lessons in order to get her up to the average standard of the form. But so far Gwendoline had been able to avoid extra lessons, and she was quite determined to go on avoiding them! French five times a week was bad enough without extra time tagged on.

She smiled back rather doubtfully at Mam'zelle, hoping that Alicia would soon begin her performance, so that Mam'zelle's attention would not be directed at her. Mam'zelle beamed round again. She thought the girls looked eager and responsive this morning. The dear girls! She would tell them about her new little nephew. That would please them, no doubt!

Mam'zelle could never stop herself from talking about her beloved family in France, if she had had news of them. Usually the girls encouraged her, because the more they heard about
la chère
Josephine, and
la mignonne
Yvonne, and
la méchante
Louise, the less they heard about verbs and genders. So they were delighted when Mam'zelle informed them of her new nephew.

“
II est appele, Jean
—he is called John. “
II est tout petit, oh, tout petit!
” Mam'zelle held up her two hands and measured a small distance between them to show how little her new nephew John was. “Now what does that mean?
II—est—tout—petit
. Who will tell me?”

Alicia was sitting in an attitude of strained attention, leaning forward as far as possible over her desk, one of her hands behind her ear. Mam'zelle noticed her.

“Ah, Alicia, you did not hear me very well? I will re peat.
II—est—tout—petit
. Repeat to me, please.”

“Pardon?” said Alicia, politely and put both hands behind her ears.

Darrell wanted to giggle already. She tried to keep her face straight.

“Alicia! What is wrong with you?” cried Mam'zelle. “Can you not hear?”

“What do I fear? Why, nothing, Mam'zelle,” said Alicia, looking slightly surprised. Somebody giggled and then smothered it quickly.

Mam'zelle said “Can you not
hear?
” repeatedly in a loud voice to Alicia.

“Beer?” said Alicia, more astonished, apparently, then ever.

“CAN YOU NOT HEAR?” shouted Darrell, joining in the game. And the class joined in too. “CAN YOU NOT HEAR?”

Mam'zelle banged on her desk. “Girls! You forget yourselves. What a noise to make in class.”

“Mam'zelle perhaps Alicia is deaf.” said Darrell speaking as if Mam'zelle herself were deaf. “Maybe she has ear-ache.”

“Ah,
la pauvre petite
” cried Mam'zelle, who suffered from earache herself at times, and was always very sympathetic towards anyone else who did. She bellowed at Alicia.

“Have you ear-ache?”

“A rake? I don't want a rake, thank you Mam'zelle,” replied Alicia. “I'm not gardening today.”

This was too much for Irene, who let out one of her explosive laughs, making the girls in front of her jump.

“
Tiens!
” cried Mam'zelle, jumping too, “what was that? Ah, you Irene—why do you make that extraordinary noise? I will not have it.”

“Can't help sneezing sometimes, Mam'zelle,” stuttered Irene, burying her nose in her handkerchief as if she was about to sneeze again. Curious noises came from her as she tried to choke back her giggles.

“Alicia,” said Mam'zelle turning back to the mischief-maker, who at once put both hands behind her ears, and frowned as if trying her best to hear. “Alicia, do not talk to me of rakes. Tell me, have you a cold?”

“No, I've no gold, only a ten-shilling note,” answered Alicia, much to Mam'zelle's mystification.

“Mam'zelle said COLD not GOLD,” explained Darrell at the top of her voice.

“You know—COLD, the opposite of HOT,” went on Betty, helpfully. “Have you a COLD?”