"Blyton, Enid - Malory 02 - Second Form at Malory Towers" - читать интересную книгу автора (Blyton Enid)

Belinda and Ellen seemed to be very keen to know all the details about the various teachers. Darrell and Sally were pleased to supply them. Daphne, of course, went to Gwendoline for information.
"You've got to be careful of both Mam'zelles." said Darrell. "But most of all of Mam'zelle Rougier, the tall thin one. They've both got tempers—but Mam'zelle Dupont's temper is just a short, hot one, and Mam'zelle Rougier's is a real bad one!”
"And look oat for Miss Carton, the history mistress, because, if you don't like history, shell sharpen her tongue on you!" said Alicia. I do like it, so I'm all right. But if you don't, took out!”
The first day passed pleasantly and interestingly. The new girls were taken to see the various parts of the big school buildings, the tennis courts, and the gardens. They marvelled at the great swimming-pool hollowed out from the rocks continually filled with fresh water each tide.
"I suppose you can swim very well." said Daphne to Gwendoline. Gwendoline hesitated and looked round. She had been boasting quite a lot to Daphne, but not in the hearing of the others. Now Darrell was too near for her to make any untruthful statement about her swimming.
"Well—not so well as the others," she said. "I bet you swim the best," said Daphne, warmly. "You're too modest!”
Darrell giggled. No one could call Gwendoline modest, surely! She was the worst boaster in the school, and sometimes could not draw the line between stupid boasting and real untruth.
Ellen said she could not swim. ”I’ve never had much time for games.” she said. "But I'd like to play them well. I’ve had to work so hard always."
"You must be jolly clever." said Mary-Lou, "You won the only scholarship offered that would take you to Malory Towers, didn't you?"
"Yes. But I don't believe I’m really clever," said Ellen, the little line deepening on her forehead and giving her a worried look. "I mean—I can work and work and work, and remember things all right—but Fm not brilliant like some girls. Some don't need to work hard at all—they're top because they're so clever, and they can’t help it. I have had to work for everything. Still—I badly wanted to come to Malory Towers, and here I am. so the hard work was worth it!"
"Well, you try being good at games as well as at work," said Sally, who was very keen on all games herself. "You know what they say 'All work and no play...'"
"Makes Jack a dull boy—and Ellen a dull girl!" said Ellen, with a small laugh. "I'm afraid that's what I am, too—dull!"
Belinda loved everything about Malory Towers. Irene, who seemed to have taken her as much in tow as Gwendoline had taken Daphne, was delighted with Belinda's rapturous admiration of everything.
"Oh, the views!" cried Belinda. "Look at that sea! Look at the colours in that swimming-pool! Where’s my paint-box, quick!"
It was men that for the first time the girls discovered Belinda's talent. She could draw and paint marvellously well. Best of all, or so the girls thought, she could caricature anyone in a bold pencil or charcoal drawing, producing a comic exaggerated likeness that sent everyone into peals of laughter.
"Well have some fun with you, Belinda!" said Irene. "You can draw Nosey Parker—and Mam'zelle—both Mam'zelles, in fact—and Matron—and everyone. I'm glad you came. Well certainly have some fun with you!"
Settling In
On the first day of the term Miss Parker announced who the head-girl of the form was to be. The class were all agog to hear her, and sat like mice whilst she
rustled her papers and looked for her pencil.
"I am sure you all want to know who has been chosen for head-girl this term," she said. "Well, I will not keep you in suspense long. After a short discussion at the staff meeting we decided on—Sally Hope."
The girls clapped and Sally blushed red. She was very pleased indeed. Miss Parker went on, glancing at her notes as she spoke.
"You may perhaps like to know what girls were in the running for the position. Darrell Rivers was, Jean MacDonald was another. Winnie Toms was a third."
Everyone expected to hear Alicia's name mentioned, or Irene's. But Miss Parker did not give any more names at all. Irene didn't mind. She knew she was a scatter-brain and she didn't in the least want to be head of the form. So long as she had her music she was happy. Being head of the form might rob her of some of her practice time t
But Alicia did mind. She had been top of the form last term. She had a fine brain and an excellent memory, and although she never needed to work hard because she had these to help her, still she certainly had done well last term.
And yet she wasn't even in the running for the position of head-girl! She bit her lips and wished she could stop herself going red.
There's too much favouritism!" she told herself, fiercely. "Just because I play the fool sometimes and upset the mistresses, they won’t even consider me as head!"
But Alicia was not altogether right. It was not playing the fool that made the staff pass over her name, but something else. It was Alicia's hardness to those she didn't like, her sneers at those less clever than herself, who needed help, not taunts. Often the staff
laughed privately over Alicia's ridiculous tricks, and enjoyed them—but nobody liked her wild and unruly tongue, and the sharp things it could say.
"She'll get a lot of admiration and envy but she won't get much love or real friendship from others," Miss Grayling had said at the staff meeting. "As for Betty, her friend, she is clever too, but a little empty-head, compared with Alicia, who really has it in her to make good if she tried. It isn't Alicia's brain that is at fault, it's her heart!"
And so the choice had been made—Sally Hope, the steady, loyal, kindly, sensible Sally. Darrell's best friend. Sally might not be top of the form, but she would always listen to anyone in difficulty. Sally would not do brilliantly in exams, as Alicia would—but she would always help a younger girl at games or lessons. She would be completely fair and just as head-girl of the form, and she wouldn't stand any nonsense.
Everyone in the form knew that a good choice had been made, although some of them would have welcomed a bad choice, for they didn't like Sally! Gwendoline was furious. So was Betty, who had hoped that Alicia would have been chosen. So were one or two of Betty's friends, not in Sally's dormy.
Darrell squeezed Sally's arm. "Jolly good!" she said. "I'm glad. Won't your mother be pleased? You'll be head of our dormy too, Sally. Sucks for Gwendoline!"
It certainly was most annoying for Gwendoline that night in bed, when Sally took command. Sally did not mean to use her new power too much or too soon, but she knew that if Gwendoline began to be silly again, she would have to make a stand at once. Gwendoline didn't understand leniency, but took advantage of it
So, as soon as the whispering began again, after lights out, Sally spoke up.
"Shut up, Gwendoline. I told you that last night I wasn't head of dormy then. But I am now. So shut up when I tell you."
"Poor Daphne's homesick," began Gwendoline. "It won't make her any better if you whisper stuff and nonsense into her ear." said Sally.
There was a short silence. Then Belinda's voice cut through the darkness, asking a question.
"Sally! What happens if we disobey and go on whispering when the head-girl has said we're not to?" "Nobody ever does," said Sally, grimly. "But I believe there is an unwritten law at Malory Towers that if anyone makes herself a nuisance at night a nice big hair-brush is chosen and a few slaps given."
"Oh!" said Belinda, and snuggled down in bed, grinning to think of what Gwendoline would feel now. Would she whisper again or not?
Gwendoline had opened her mouth to continue.her conversation with Daphne, but when she heard Belinda's question and its answer, she shut it again, shocked. How dare Sally hint such a thing to a second-former! She debated whether or not Sally was just saying it to scare her. But. remembering Sally's grim voice, she decided she wouldn't risk it. It would be too humiliating if Sally really did carry out her threat. Daphne would never respect her again t
So there was peace in the dormy, and when Matron came silently to the door, there was only the regular breathing of ten girls to be heard. Eight were fast asleep. But two were awake.
They were Gwendoline and Ellen. Gwendoline was cross, and that always made her wakeful. Ellen was thinking about her work. She had done fairly well in the test-papers that morning, but not brilliantly. Was she really up to the second-form work here? Oh yes, she had won that scholarship, but it wasn't brains that
had done it, only hard, hard work. Was it going to be terribly hard work here to keep up with the others? Her brain didn't seem to work so easily as it used to. Ellen was worried, and did not fall asleep till long after Gwendoline.
It took the new girls a few days to get into the way of things. Ellen and Daphne learnt their way about more quickly than Belinda, who kept turning up in the wrong classroom continually. She would go into the first-form classroom instead of in the second form, and Miss Potts got quite annoyed with her.
"Belinda! Don't ten me you're here again!" she would say. "Do you particularly want to work with the first form? Of course, if you really feel that the work of the second form is..."
But by that time Belinda had fled, muttering hurried apologies. She would appear in her own form-room a minute or two late, giggling.
"I'm so sorry, I got lost. Miss Parker," she would say. and subside into her seat.
"Ill look after her a bit. Miss Parker," said Irene. But Miss Parker forbade that immediately.
"That would mean the two of you getting lost," she said. "You'd probably be down in the swimming-pool waiting for a diving lesson whilst we were all up here doing maths. It's time Belinda learnt to look after herself. After all, she's been here three days now!"
"Yes, Miss Parker," said Belinda, meekly, and began to make a little sketch of the teacher on her blotting-pad. She was always drawing, wherever she was. She kept a little sketch book in her pocket and filled it with odd drawings of the girls, the flowers on the windowsill, the view from the window, anything that caught her observant eye.