Alice-Miranda At School (11 page)

Alice-Miranda glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner of Miss Higgins's office.

‘Goodness, it's already after nine!' She folded the letter and returned it to its envelope. ‘I need to get back to the house and help poor Millie with Alethea's hair.'

‘You need to do what?' Miss Higgins's eyes widened.

‘It's a long story, Miss Higgins, and I'm sure you don't have time for it now. I should go, otherwise
poor Millie and the other girls will have to do all the work without me. Considering it was my mineral water that caused the problem in the first place, that would be awfully unfair.' Alice-Miranda walked towards the door. ‘Perhaps before I go back I should find poor Jacinta and tell her that Miss Grimm hasn't changed her mind.' Alice-Miranda tapped her finger on the envelope. ‘It's just that I hate to disappoint her.'

‘No, Alice-Miranda, don't do that just yet. I have another idea. Jacinta's parents are awfully well off. Perhaps if I suggest to Miss Grimm a donation of some sort, she might just reconsider.' Miss Higgins rested her chin in her hands.

‘So Millie was right.' Alice-Miranda sighed and placed her hands on her hips.

‘About what?' Miss Higgins asked.

‘Well, Millie said that the only reason Alethea is Head Prefect is that her father paid an enormous amount of money to build the new library. She said whoever pays the most gets the most. I think that's just awful. What about the girls who are here on scholarship? Their parents could never afford to pay extra. I'm sure they struggle just to manage the uniforms and things. My mummy came here and my
grandmother and all my aunts and they have only ever said that this was the most wonderful school, with so much … what's the word I'm looking for … it starts with “i”, I think …' Alice-Miranda's voice trailed off.

‘
Integrity
. That's the word you're looking for.' Miss Higgins looked ashamed. ‘I'm sorry for suggesting it, Alice-Miranda. It's just that in the last ten years, Miss Grimm … Well, things have changed and I couldn't say for the better. I shouldn't be telling you this; in fact I can't understand why I am even thinking about telling you. You're a child and you don't need to be thrown headlong into the awful world of grown-ups.' Miss Higgins's eyes glazed over and Alice-Miranda thought she was about to cry.

‘What is it, Miss Higgins? What happened to Miss Grimm?' urged Alice-Miranda.

‘I can't.' Miss Higgins turned away, then stood and walked to the filing cabinet behind her. Hurriedly she pulled open the top drawer and began flicking through the files. Without looking up from her task she said, ‘Off you go, Alice-Miranda. Please don't say anything to Jacinta. I will see if Miss Grimm will change her mind, and I won't mention anything about a donation. But you should go and
see Miss Reedy. She'll help you study for the test. Please work hard. It would be so terrible …' Her voice quavered.

‘What would be terrible, Miss Higgins?' Alice-Miranda was standing in the doorway holding the envelope rigidly.

‘To lose you,' Miss Higgins whispered and motioned with her hand for Alice-Miranda to go.

Only when she heard the door click shut did Miss Higgins dare to look up. Two fat tears tumbled from her eyes, splashing onto Alice-Miranda's file. They couldn't lose her – Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale needed a girl like Alice-Miranda more than ever.

The hair washing went mostly without incident. Alice-Miranda arrived just in time to do Alethea's hair herself. Alethea had spent the first half-hour bossing Millie and the other girls about telling them exactly how she thought things should be done. The fact that the whole exercise had to take place in the dormitory bathroom added somewhat to the drama. Alethea decided that she must have a proper salon with chairs and basins. The handbasins would do, but she sent Shelby and Lizzy to see Charlie. They demanded that
he come to the house and set up a row of chairs at exactly the right height so the girls could lean their heads back into the sinks, like in a real salon. But they had to be comfortable, which any person who's ever sat in one of those salon chairs knows is almost impossible. The only thing that makes having your neck angled at ninety degrees even bearable is the thought of the delicious head massage. So after considerable stamping of feet and screeching from Alethea, Charlie somehow managed to angle the chairs towards the basin at what seemed to be the right height.

‘Alethea, lean back please,' Alice-Miranda begged. She was standing on a footstool that Charlie had found for her. ‘I can't reach if you keep on leaning forward and you'll end up with water all down your back.'

‘But it hurts,' Alethea complained. ‘Hurry up and get on with it. And you'd better do a good job – or perhaps you'd like to do this every Saturday morning for practice?' she snapped.

‘I'd rather wash Charlie's gardening socks,' Millie sighed under her breath.

‘That could be arranged,' Alethea replied. Millie flinched when she realised Alethea had heard her.

A pile of empty mineral water bottles littered the tiled floor.

‘What a waste,' Madeline whispered as she began picking them up and depositing them into a large garbage bag, which Charlie had brought up earlier. He had sensed that there was something not quite right about the situation but knew well enough that if it involved Miss Goldsworthy it was far better left alone. Besides, Alice-Miranda had an army of assistants and if anyone could handle a tricky situation it was that little one.

Alice-Miranda found that running a comb though Alethea's blonde locks was more difficult than she had expected. The mineral water seemed to strip the conditioner away, leaving a tangled mess.

‘Ow, ow, ow!' Alethea squealed. ‘You're hurting me!' She grabbed Alice-Miranda's arm and began to inflict a very nasty Chinese burn.

‘Stop it, Alethea!' Alice-Miranda commanded. ‘Now you're hurting me.'

Alethea withdrew her hands immediately, startled at being told off.

‘You wanted me to do your hair and I am doing my very best. There are a few knots and I am trying to untangle them. So if you don't mind, please be quiet and enjoy having your hair done,' Alice-Miranda demanded.

The other girls were horrified. They had never heard Alice-Miranda raise her voice before, let alone dare to speak to Alethea in such a way.

‘Oh no,' Ashima whispered to Ivory. ‘We're going to cop it now.'

But to everyone's surprise Alice-Miranda managed to get the rest of the tangles out without much more than a yelp here and there.

When at last she was finished, Alethea spent at least fifteen minutes admiring her reflection in the mirror. Fortunately she hadn't realised that her hair looked a lot less shiny than before they washed it.

‘Beautiful,' Alethea sighed.

‘It must be hard to be you,' said Millie. She stood behind Alethea, smiling at her in the mirror.

‘Whatever do you mean?' Alethea flicked her hair over her shoulder. ‘I should think it's very easy being me. I'm rich, I'm beautiful and I can do anything I want. Silly girl, being me is a dream.'

Millie turned away and put two fingers in her mouth. She spun back around to face Alethea, who had at last managed to drag herself away from her reflection.

‘Of course. I only meant that, well, there's such
pressure to be beautiful today. And goodness, beauty does take time,' Millie said with a smile.

‘That's not something you'll ever have to worry about, Freckles, is it now?' With that Alethea strode out of the bathroom, leaving Alice-Miranda, Millie and the other girls surveying the puddles of water.

‘She's foul,' Madeline said with a shake of her head. ‘Don't let her worry you, Millie.'

‘I wonder why she feels the need to be nasty?' Alice-Miranda asked as she picked up a cloth and began wiping down the first sink. ‘Perhaps her mother isn't very nice to her.'

‘She's just spoiled rotten,' Susannah replied. ‘But we've only got to cope with her for another year and then she'll be gone. Thank goodness Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale is a prep school. Imagine putting up with her all the way to leaving.'

‘Where is she going next?' Alice-Miranda looked up from her scrubbing.

‘I don't know and I don't care,' Millie replied. ‘Although I suppose we'd better find out and make sure that none of us is going there too. Imagine – having a couple of years off and then suddenly arriving at the new school only to find … Alethea.' Millie called the name like a narrator in a horror
movie then clutched her hands to her throat and stuck her tongue out.

‘Come on, let's get this place cleaned up.' Ashima picked up the towels draped over the chairs.

‘Can you help me take the chairs back to Charlie?' Alice-Miranda asked Millie.

‘No – I'll go and get him and he can take them,' she replied.

‘But he's so busy in the garden. I'm sure we could manage.' Alice-Miranda picked up a chair and began walking it out the door.

‘Okay, I'm coming,' Millie called and followed her into the hall. ‘By the way, you didn't tell us what happened with Miss Higgins.'

Alice-Miranda walked the chair slowly down the steps, careful not to tumble forward under its weight.

‘It was nothing really. Just an outline of when I have to do all those things Miss Reedy read out on Monday.'

‘Well, when do you have to do them?' Millie asked.

‘I have to sit the test on Monday.'

‘Monday? That's so unfair! You don't even know what you have to study. Did she say what the pass mark would be?' Millie asked.

‘Ninety-five per cent. And I sort of know what I
should be studying, so right after we finish cleaning up I'm going to see Miss Reedy. She offered to help me this morning.' Alice-Miranda continued to the bottom of the steps with the chair.

‘Gosh, that's amazing,' grinned Millie. ‘Reedy actually offered to help you? She's usually too busy on the weekends with Mr Plumpton. She must really like you, Alice-Miranda.'

The two girls made their way over to the greenhouse, where they found Charlie trimming his orchids. They left the chairs outside.

‘What was all that then?' he asked Alice-Miranda. ‘Did you do something to upset Miss Goldsworthy?'

‘No, it was nothing,' Alice-Miranda smiled. ‘Thanks for the chairs. I wasn't sure where they came from so we've set them down outside. What's all that over there?' Alice-Miranda had spied a broken orchid and a crumpled blanket in the corner of the greenhouse.

‘I don't know, miss,' Charlie replied. ‘I came in this morning and found it like that.'

Millie's eyes widened. ‘Maybe there's a tramp about. Imagine – someone lurking around the grounds at night. How exciting!' She shivered.

‘Goodness, Miss Millie, that's quite an imagination you have there. I'm sure there's no one about these parts 'cept me and the other staff – and all you girls of course.' Charlie shook his head. ‘More likely some of the girls playing hide-and-seek.'

Alice-Miranda studied the bedraggled pile. An uncomfortable thought occurred to her, but she shook it off quickly.

‘I was just about to put the pot on. Can I interest you girls in a cup o' tea?' Charlie lit the stove.

‘Sorry, Mr Charles, I can't stay. I've got a test to study for – but Millie might like to join you.'

‘You're welcome to, lass,' Charlie smiled at Millie. ‘I've got a lovely treat from Mrs Oliver.' He lifted a cloth to reveal an enormous piece of apple pie.

‘Gosh,' Alice-Miranda laughed. ‘You must be her favourite.'

Millie hesitated. ‘Are you sure?' she asked Charlie.

‘It'd be nice to have some company, Miss Millie.' Charlie's blue eyes sparkled.

‘See you later, Alice-Miranda – good luck with Miss Reedy,' Millie said as she pulled up a chair.

Meanwhile, Ophelia Grimm was watching from her wardrobe. There were several cameras trained on
the courtyard that Alice-Miranda had to cross before heading back to the dormitory.

Miss Grimm tracked Alice-Miranda as she skipped along, oblivious to the unseen eyes. ‘So, she doesn't need to study for my test,' Miss Grimm said aloud. ‘Thinks she can pass by flitting about does she? We'll see about that.'

Miss Grimm got up from her seat and slammed the secret door shut. It was time to set that test.