15 A Real Shake-up
Darrell stared wildly round. Miss Potts stood at the door, a picture of absolute amazement¹. Darrell couldn’t think of a word to say. June actually had the audacity² to reseat herself on the piano-stool and play a soft chord.
“June!” said Miss Potts, and the tone of her voice made the first-former almost jump out of her skin.
“Come with me, Darrell,” said Miss Potts. “And you, too, June.”
They followed her to her room, where Mam’zelle was correcting papers. She gazed in surprise at Miss Potts’ grim face, and at the faces of the two girls.
“Tiens!” said Mam’zelle, gathering³ up her papers quickly, and beginning to scuttle⁴ out of her room. “I will go. I will not intrude⁵, Miss Potts.”
Miss Potts didn’t appear to have noticed Mam’zelle at all. She sat down in her chair and looked sternly at Darrell and June.
“What were you two doing?”
Darrell swallowed hard. She was already ashamed of herself. Oh dear—head-girl—and she had lost her temper like that! “Miss Potts—June has something to say to you,” she said at last.
“What have you to say?” inquired Miss Potts, turning her cold eyes on June.
“Well, Miss Potts—I just wanted to own up that I had been to a midnight feast,” said June.
“Hilda said that there had been no midnight feast,” said Miss Potts, beginning to tap on the table with her pencil, always a danger-sign with her.
“I know. It wasn’t a first-form affair,” said June smoothly⁶.
“I gather from Darrell’s face that it was a fourth-form affair,” said Miss Potts.
Darrell nodded miserably⁷. “Just the fourth-formers and you, June, I suppose?” said Miss Potts.
“Well—there were a few others,” said June, pretending to hesitate. “One from my form as well as me. I won’t mention her name.”

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