03 The Princess of the Chalet School (12 page)

‘It is for you from the school, Madame,’ said Inga shyly.

Miss Bettany flushed. ‘But, my dears, I thought you had quite put the idea out of your heads,’ she said. ‘It is very, very kind of you, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the thought.’ She finished tearing the wrappings off the first one, and showed a charming copy of ‘June in the Austrian Tyrol.’ The other was another view of the Tyrol by the same artist. ‘Two of my favourite pictures,’ she said softly. ‘They are beautiful! Thank you all very much indeed.’ Then she dismissed them to get ready for the trip, while she carried her new possessions to the study, where she pulled herself together.

Of what was to come she said nothing, of course; but all the girls said that although Madame was always sweet, she had never been so sweet as on this day. They went down to Spärtz by the funny little mountain train which crawls up the side of the mountain from the plain below to the great Tiernthal. With her were the seniors; Miss Maynard and Miss Carthew had the middles; and Mademoiselle, Miss Durrant, and Miss Wilson looked after the babies.

Marie and Eigen had come to help carry the baskets, and they were as excited as the rest. Never in all their lives had they been farther than Spärtz, and the thought of going in the train up the Zillerthal was in itself alone an adventure. That they should also go to Mayrhofen and see the pine-woods, where the Ziller dashes along from its mountain home to join the Inn, seemed to them to be too good to be true. They sat in awed silence at first, but gradually their tongues were loosened, and they chattered eagerly about the beauties of the journey. From Spärtz the Zillerthal winds its way by the banks of the river into the heart of great mountains, where the highest are covered with snow all the year round. Past beautiful woods the train wound by farmhouses, the walls of which were adorned with wonderful frescoes, and from which linty-locked children appeared to watch the train as it went past. They stopped at primitive little stations, Fugen and Ried and Zell-am-Ziller, where the railway branches off to the east, and so, at last, to Mayrhofen.

It was nearly twelve o’clock by the time they got there, so the first thing to do was to get to the woods and have
Mittagessen
. They set off through the little village, where there is one
Gasthof
and two or three
Pensions
, the inhabitants of which stared at them as they ‘crocodiled’ – the verb is Joey’s – along to the woods which clothe the lower part of the Ziller Alps. Here they found not only pine-trees, but birches and mountain-ash. It was an easy matter to choose a place for their picnic, and they soon found a little clearing, where they sat down, the mistresses on a fallen log and the girls on their rain-coats, which they had brought with them. Storms come up so quickly and suddenly in these long, narrow valleys that the Head had insisted on their bringing something to protect them in case of need. She had never forgotten the awful thunderstorm which had broken during the afternoon on the occasion of her first birthday in the Tyrol. They had been up on the Mondscheinspitze, and they had been up on the refuge in the herdsman’s hut for the night, as the rain only cleared off late at night, and she had no mind to essay the scramble down over tree-roots and boulders in the dark. It had been an adventure, but, as she had said at the time, one of that kind was quite enough.

It was a gorgeous feast. There were rolls, buttered, and with hard-boiled eggs beaten up with butter and cream, and shredded lettuce, in a way of which Marie alone knew the secret, slipped in. There were delicious little cakes, contributed by Dr. Jem, who had brought them on the previous evening from Vienna, where he had been attending a congress of doctors, besides those which Herr Mensch had brought from his wife in Innsbruck. There were French chocolates and bonbons, there were piles of apricots and plums and greengages, and there were two huge melons. They all ate till they had had enough, and then the baskets, which were of a folding variety, were filled with what was left, the few which were empty being folded up again and tucked into one of the full ones, and then they were taken to the post-office, where the post-mistress, a cousin of Frau Pfeifen, mother of Marie and Eigen, volunteered to look after them, while they all scrambled about the lower slopes of the mountain.

‘What is the best train to get back?’ inquired Miss Bettany.

Frau Heiliggert looked wise. ‘The train back to Seespitz leaves at eighteen, mein Fraülein,’ she said. ‘It will be well to be here in ten minutes before that time. Thus there will be no hurry. Marie and Eigen will stay with me,
nicht wahr
?’

They said they would, so Miss Bettany left them there and went back to her girls, who were awaiting her impatiently. They wanted to get off to the woods.

Having got rid of all the burdens, and also left Marie and Eigen in safe hands, Miss Bettany now felt that she might enjoy herself without any cares for the next few hours. She was glad to think that the two Tyroleans were happy with their distant cousin. She knew that they were inclined to be overawed by the whole school, although they got on well enough when there were only two or three of the girls there. This was a much better arrangement.

The girls streamed away to the woods, determined to make the most of their holiday. Some of them joined the Head and chattered eagerly in a mixture of tongues to her as they strolled along in the shade of the trees; some of them raced on with the two junior mistresses; the prefects attached themselves to Mademoiselle and Miss Maynard, who found plenty to talk about; the remainder, among whom were Jo and Elisaveta, strayed off by themselves. There was little fear of their being lost, for they had decided to keep to the banks of the river and see where it led them.

‘It’s a gorgeous day,’ said the Princess as she wandered along with Joey, who was inclined to be silent.

‘Isn’t this a
magnificent
place? I do believe I almost like it better than the Tiern See.’

‘Do you?
I
don’t!’ said Joey, aroused from her thinking by this. ‘It’s awfully jolly, of course; but the Tiern See is simply lovely, all times! You should see it in the winter when the lake is frozen over! Now this is lovely
now
, but it won’t be nearly as pretty when the winter comes. Half its beauty is the river dashing along like that. When it’s frozen it will be quite different.’

‘Yes; I suppose so,’ replied Elisaveta doubtfully. ‘And anyway, out school’s at the Tiern See, and that makes a huge difference.’

Joey looked at her doubtfully. She was half-minded to tell her what was coming to the school. Then she remembered that Madge had said that nothing was to be mentioned until after the birthday, so she said instead, ‘Let’s climb down to the water, shall we?’

Elisaveta was quite agreeable, so they scrambled down the steep, rock-strewn bank to where the water rushed along with a great deal of noise, and leaping up the stones in its bed. The children were thirsty, so they stooped down and cupped some in their hands. It was deliciously cold, as well it might be, for it came from the mountain snows, and it had a sweet taste which they had not tasted before. Of course they splashed themselves, but that was half the fun.

When they had drunk as much as they wanted, they climbed back just in time to avoid being caught by Miss Maynard, who was walking along with Juliet, Grizel, and Rosalie Dene, another of the seniors, a quiet girl, who never had much to say, but enjoyed herself in her own way.

‘Where have you two been?’ asked Miss Maynard as they joined her. ‘Don’t get lost, whatever you do!

Where are the others?’

‘In front, I think,’ replied Joey.

‘Run on and tell them not to get too far in advance. We don’t want to lose the last train; and if they get too far away, it may take some time to fetch them back,’ said the mistress.

Joey and Elisaveta trotted off, and soon were shouting, ‘Coo-eee!’ at the top of their voices. They managed to catch the girls in front, which was just as well, as they were well ahead. When the two messengers got up to them they were near the tunnel cut out of the rock where the banks deepen to a little gorge, and a plank crosses the river at a height of some thirty feet or more. Here the girls hung over the hand-rail, gazing at the water as it fought its way down to the valleys of the Lower Zillerthal. It is only a small river, but here it gives a good imitation of rapids, and the girls were fascinated by it.

Presently the others came up to them, and when they had all had their own fill of gazing, they moved on.

The banks grew lower farther up the valley, and at length it was possible to cross again by the stones in the bed. It is very shallow here, but it goes at a great rate. On the farther side there is a farm, and here they crossed and went to buy milk, which they had to drink out of a huge pan, taking it in turns to drink.

‘We can stay here for about half-an-hour,’ said Miss Bettany, after consulting her watch. ‘Don’t go too far away, girls, as we must be going back then. You must have
Kaffee
, and we do
not
want to spend the night here – nor have to walk back.’

They scattered, after promising to return in the time, and she settled herself with the seniors, who one and all elected to stay with her. It was a hot afternoon, and they wanted to rest before going back.

The juniors were quite happy to amuse themselves in the farm-yard, and pestered the good-natured Frau with questions about all the animals and the work generally. Some of the middles took off their shoes and stockings and tried paddling in the water; but they soon gave it up – it was too stony to be pleasant. Joey and Frieda sauntered off up the river, anxious to see as much of it as they could. Elisaveta and Simone crossed back to the other bank and wandered along in the other direction. They were presently joined by Margia, who had great ideas of finding gold in the water. Her only reason for this was that it looked like the kind of river that might have gold in it!

Simone was delighted to help with the experiments; but Elisaveta soon tired of messing about in the water, and went off by herself, leaving them to get joyously wet and untidy, while she strolled away, full of her own thoughts.

She never noticed how far she was getting from everyone, and it was quite a shock to her when she heard footsteps, and, on looking up, saw a tall dark man approaching her with a smile, while no one she knew was insight.

The stranger seemed to be anxious to prevent her from feeling alarmed, for, before she could open her mouth to call, he spoke, making a low bow. ‘Pardon, madame,’ he said. ‘It is our little Princess, is it not?’

Elisaveta stood upright, a little air of dignity about her. ‘Who are you?’ she asked gravely.

‘Maurús Ternikai, at your service, Highness,’ he replied.

‘How do you know who I am?’ demanded the Princess doubtfully.

‘All good Belsornians know the Little Lady of Belsornia,’ he said, giving her the title her grandfather’s people had bestowed on her when she had driven through the streets to be christened in the great cathedral of Firarto, the capital of Belsornia.

She knew by this that he must be a Belsornian, so she smiled at him. ‘What does a Belsornian do in a strange country?’ she asked.

‘He watches over the Little Lady, madame,’ he replied.

Elisaveta stared. ‘Why?’ she asked quickly.

He bowed again. ‘I trust the Gracious One will not be angry with her servant,’ he said humbly. ‘It is necessary, Highness; it is very necessary. There are dangers for all of a royal house in Europe in these times.’

Elisaveta was puzzled. ‘Do you mean from the Bolsheviki?’ she asked. ‘I do not think I need fear
them
.’

‘Nevertheless it is necessary that you should be guarded, Highness. It is the wish of his Highness the Crown Prince.’

‘He never told me,’ said the Princess quickly.

‘Yet it is his wish, Highness,’ replied the man inflexibly. ‘I am obeying my orders, Highness, and I may not leave you till you are safely with those who ought to regard you as a precious and a sacred charge, and not leave you to walk here by yourself.’

‘Oh, for that! I came of my own wish,’ said the Princess indifferently.

It was odd what a change had come over her. The jolly natural child they all knew at the Chalet School had vanished, and in her place was the Princess Elisaveta of Belsornia, who had been in danger of losing all her childhood.

The man bowed profoundly again. ‘That may be true; yet, Highness,
it is not safe
.’

The Princess raised her eyebrows. ‘I do not understand you,’ she said. ‘I am perfectly safe here. There is no one but the school here, and the farm people. I thank you, signor, for you thought for me, but I am quite all right.’

‘It may be so. At least, Highness, you will know me now, and I may be assured that I will do all in my power to save you any annoyance or trouble.’

‘That will be best done if you do not follow me,’ replied the Princess. ‘I am safe with Miss Bettany, I assure you, and I need no watchfulness but hers,’

‘The Signorina Bettany knows that I am to come,’ said the man. ‘It is her own wish that I should be here, Highness. She will tell you that herself. It is her request to his Highness that has helped to bring me so soon.’

Elisaveta bent her head. ‘If my father has sent you, I cannot do anything but obey his wishes,’ she said. ‘I thank you, signor. I will now return to the others, as we shall soon be going back to the Tiern See.’

Again she made that curiously stately little bend of the head and, turning, walked away from him.

He looked after her with a smile which was strangely triumphant. ‘The first step had been taken,’ he muttered to himself. ‘Who would have thought it would have been so easy? She even told me where she is without any questions on my part. The Prince should reward me well for this.’

Then he, too, went on his way, and was soon lost in the pine forest which grows all along the slopes of the mountains.

Elisaveta walked sedately along till she reached the place where Margia and Simone had been carrying on their gold-washing operations. They were there no longer, and that told her that she had been away longer than she intended. At that thought she flung her loyal dignity to the winds and took to her heels. She got up to the stepping-stones panting and breathless, and found that all the others had just gathered there, and they were calling her and Joey and Frieda, who came racing along from the other direction.