22 “Ping!”
Everyone was delighted when Miss Williams announced in her quiet voice, two days later, that Darrell was once more to be head-girl of the form. “Thank you for taking on the position temporarily,” she said to Sally. “But I am now convinced that Darrell deserves to be promoted again.”
“Why, Darrell? Why has Miss Williams put you back as head this week?” asked Belinda and the others, after class. But Darrell didn’t tell them, of course. Miss Williams hadn’t actually said that it was because of her trying to put right the affair of the twins—but she knew that it was. She had really acted like a responsible head-girl then.
No more spiteful things were done to Connie, and gradually the Connie Affair, as it was called, was forgotten. Ruth seemed to forget her dislike and resentment¹, and was very sweet to Connie. “Next term,” thought Darrell, “things will be quite all right—they’ll be in different forms, and Ruth can go ahead with her good brains, and Connie can work at her own pace and keep her hands off Ruth.”
The term was slipping away fast now. Alicia was better, and fortunately no one else had caught measles² from her. Most of the Upper Fourth had already had them, which was fortunate. Alicia groaned³ because she felt sure she had failed—and would have to take the School Certificate all over again. She was to come back to school a week before Breaking-Up. The girls were very pleased. They had all missed Alicia’s quickness and sense of fun. Gwendoline was perhaps the only one who didn’t want her back. Poor Gwen—she had already lost some of her fat, through having to play so much tennis and go for so many walks, and swim—or try to—each day! But she certainly looked healthier, and her spots were rapidly going.
Clarissa amazed the class one day by coming back from a visit to the dentist and the occulist looking completely different! “I haven’t got to wear glasses any more!” she announced. “And that awful wire’s been taken from my front teeth. Do you recognize me, girls?”
“Hardly!” said Darrell, and Belinda got out her pencil to make a sketch⁴ of this different and most attractive Clarissa!
She stood laughing in front of them—her deep green eyes flashing round, and her white teeth no longer spoilt by an ugly wire. Her

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