Winnie stared at Tessie in delight. 'I don't believe ANY ONE has ever fried sausages at a birthday party in the middle of the night before!' she said. 'Not any one. It would be a most marvellous thing to do. Can we get a frying-pan?'
'You bet!' said Tessie. 'I'll ask young Gladys, the scullery-maid, to lend me one for the night. She's a good sport and won't tell. And if I can't borrow one, I'll jolly well buy one!'
'Tessie, this is going to be awful fun,' said Winnie, dancing about. 'What do you suppose you'll have for your party ' besides your birthday cake and the sausages?'
'Well, Mother always sends me a big fruit cake, a ginger cake, sweets, biscuits and home-made toffee,' said Tessie. 'And I'll have plenty of money to buy anything else we want. I'll get some tins of peaches. We all like those.'
The two girls went into corners and whispered excitedly every day. Mam'zelle noticed their inattention in class and scolded them for it.
'Tessie! Winnie! Do you wish me to send you down into the first-form? You sit there staring out of the window and you do not pay one small piece of attention to all I am saying! What mischief are you planning?'
This was so near the mark that both girls went red. 'It's my birthday soon, Mam'zelle,' said Tessie, meekly, knowing that Mam'zelle usually understood an excuse like that.
'Ah, I see ' and I suppose it is dear Winnie's birthday also?' said Mam'zelle. 'Well, unless you both wish to write me out a ver-r-r-ry nice composition in your
best French all about birthdays you will please pay attention to me.'
The two girls decided to ask only six more girls to the party. Tessie didn't see why they should all be from the second-form. 'You know, I like those O'Sullivan twins awfully,' she said. 'I'd like to ask them. They're good sports.'
'Yes ' but for goodness' sake don't ask that awful cousin of theirs, always strutting about like a peacock,' said Winnie.
'Of course not,' said Tessie. 'I simply couldn't bear her. No ' we'll ask Pat and Isabel ' and Janet. And out of our own form we'll ask Hetty, Susan and Nora. What do you think of that?'
'Yes ' fine,' agreed Winnie.
'We'll have to be careful not to let that sneaky Erica guess about our party,' said Tessie, thoughtfully. 'She's such a Paul-Pry ' always sticking her nose into things that don't concern her. She's an awful tell-tale too. I'm sure she sneaked about me to Miss Jenks, when I lost that lacrosse ball.'
'We'll tell every one to keep it a close secret,' said Winnie. 'I say ' won't it be fun?'
Tessie got hold of the twins that day and took them to a corner. 'Listen,' she said, 'I'm having a small birthday party on Thursday ' just you and five others. Will you come?'
'Oh, yes, thanks,' said Pat, pleased at being asked by a second-former.
'What time?' asked Isabel.
'Twelve o'clock at night,' giggled Tessie. The twins stared in surprise.
'Oh ' is it a midnight feast, like we had last term?' asked Pat, eagerly.
'No ' not quite,' said Tessie. 'It's not going to be held in the dormitory, like a midnight feast ' we are going to have it in that little music-room not far from my dormitory. You know the one I mean?'
'Yes,' said Pat. 'I say ' what fun! It will be a proper midnight party, all by ourselves. Who else are you asking?'
'Four from my form, not counting myself,' said Tessie, 'and you two and Janet from your form. That's all. Now mind you come at twelve o'clock. And oh ' I say!'
'What?' asked the twins.
'Don't say a word to any one, will you,' begged Tessie. 'You see, I can't ask every one, and some of the girls might be a bit annoyed they haven't been asked.'
'Of course we won't say a word,' said Pat. The twins went off together, and waited until Tessie had told Janet. Then the three of them whispered together excitedly about the twelve o'clock party! It was fun to have a secret. It was fun to be asked by a second-former ' chosen out of all the girls in their form!
Alison was very curious, for she knew quite well that her cousins had a secret. She kept badgering them to tell her.
'Oh, shut up, Alison,' said Pat. 'Can't we have a secret without telling the whole form?'
'It wouldn't be telling the whole form, if you only told me,' said Alison, opening her blue eyes very wide and looking as beseeching as she could.
'My dear Alison, telling you would be quite the quickest way of telling the whole school!' said Pat. 'You can't keep your mouth shut about anything. You just go round and bleat out every single thing.'
This wasn't very kind but it was perfectly true. Alison couldn't keep anything to herself at all, and had so often given away little things that the twins had told her that now they left her out of all their secrets.
Alison went away, pouting. Erica, from the second form, saw her and went up to her. She was just as curious as Alison about other people's plans and secrets.
'It's a mean trick, to have plans and keep every one in the dark,' said Erica. ' I know Tessie and Winnie have got some sort of plan too ' it's about Tessie's birthday, I think. I wish we could find out about it. That would just serve them right.'
Alison didn't like Erica. Few people did, for she really was a sneak. Not even the mistresses liked her, for they much preferred not to know what was going on rather than have Erica come telling tales.
So Alison would not take Erica's hint and try to find out what was up, though she really longed to do so. Erica asked her again and again if she had discovered anything, but Alison stubbornly shook her head. Silly little vain thing as she was, she was not going to find out things to tell Erica.
Hetty, Susan and Nora kept their mouths shut too, about the party. Winnie, of course, did not say a word to any one except the four in her form who knew. So it was very difficult for Erica really to find out anything much. She guessed that it was to do with Tessie's birthday ' and she guessed it was a party ' but how, where and when she had no idea.
The plans went steadily forward. Gladys, the little scullery maid, giggled when Tessie asked her for the loan of a frying-pan, She put one under her apron and went to find Tessie. On the way she met Erica.
'Whatever are you hiding under your apron, Gladys?' said Erica, with the high and mighty air that the servants so much disliked. Gladys tossed her neat little head.
'Nothing to do with you, miss,' she answered pertly. Erica was angry. She pulled Gladys's apron aside and saw the pan.
'Oho! For Miss Tessie's party!' she said. It was only a guess ' but Gladys at once thought Erica knew.
'Well, miss, if you knew, why did you ask me?' she said. 'I'm to take it to the little music-room near Miss Tessie's dormitory.'
Erica watched Gladys slip inside the music-room and put the pan into a cupboard, under a pile of music. It was Tessie's birthday today. So the party was near ' probably at night. The inquisitive girl burned with curiosity and jealousy.
Tessie was having a marvellous birthday, She was a popular girl, for she was amusing and lively. The girls gave her small presents and wished her many happy returns of the day. Tessie handed round a big box of chocolates to every one in her form. Her grandmother had sent it for her ' and Tessie meant to share something with all her friends, even though she could not share her party with every one.
Erica kept as close as she could to Tessie and Winnie that day, hoping to find out something more about the party. She saw Tessie go to the cupboard where the oilstoves were kept ' and fetch out a big stove.
She did not dare to ask Tessie what she was doing with it, for Tessie had a sharp tongue for Erica. But she hid behind a door and watched Tessie through the crack.
Into the music-room went Tessie, carrying the heavy stove. Erica's eyes shone with delight. She felt sure that the party was to be held there. 'It will have to be after eleven,' thought the girl. 'I know pretty well everything now ' serves Tessie right for leaving me out! Nasty, sharp-tongued creature! I've got a good mind to spoil the party!'
It is quite likely satisfied she knew chocolate from the classroom, meaning see
n in there, and at the layers.
that Erica would have done nothing more, now that she was the secret, if Winnie and Tessie had not caught her taking a big box that Tessie had handed round. Tessie had left it in her to ask Miss Lewis, the history teacher, to have one. Erica had had not been able to stop herself from lifting the lid to look
She could not resist taking on of the chocolates and popping it into her mouth. After all, there were plenty! But just at that moment Tessie and Winnie came running into the room.
They stopped in amazement when they saw Erica hurriedly shutting the lid of the box. It was quite plain that she had a chocolate in her mouth.
'You are simply disgusting, Erica,' said Tessie, coldly. 'If you'd wanted another
and had asked me, I'd have willingly given you as many as you wanted. But to sneak in and take one like that ' you really are a disgusting creature.'
The two girls went out. Erica had not been able to say a word.A chocolate was only a chocolate ' how dared Tessie speak to her like that? Erica's cheeks burned and she longed to throw the whole box of sweets out of the window.
But she did not dare to. She want to her desk and slouched down into the seat. 'Calling me disgusting!' said the girl, in a fury. 'I won't have it! I'll pay her out for this! I'll spoil her precious party! I'll keep awake to-night till I see them going out of the dormitory ' then I'll find a way I have them all caught!'
Chapter 5: What Happened at the Party
Everything was ready for the party. Tessie had even been into the little musicroom and lighted to oil-stove to get the room warm for her guests!
'No one ever goes in there at night,' she said to Winnie, who was afraid that somebody might see the stove, if they went in. 'The room will be lovely and watm by the time we are ready!'
The two girls cakes sent to bigger one of the other for
were in a great state of excitement. Tessie had had two birthday her, which pleased her very much. She had been able to put the the two on the tea-table for all her form to share ' and had kept the midnight party.
There were biscuits, sweets, chocolates, a big fruit cake, and four tins of peaches, with a tin of Nestle's milk for cream! There were also the strings of little sausages to fry. It was going to be great fun!
'We haven't anything to drink!' whispered Winnie to Tessie, in arithmetic at the end of that morning. 'Yes, we have. I've got some ginger-beer,' whispered back Tessie. Miss Jenks caught the word 'ginger-beer'.
'Tessie, how does ginger-beer come into our arithmetic lesson?' she enquired, coldly.
'Well, it doesn't,' said Tessie, a a loss of what to say. 'Sorry, Miss Jenks'.
Susan, Hetty and Nora winked at one another. They knew quite well where the ginger-beer came in! Erica saw the winks and smiled to herself. She was going to spoil that party, ginger-beer and all!
Everything was hidden in the music-room, ready for that night. The eight girls were in a great state of excitement. They had all been in to peep at the things in the cupboard. The music-mistress would have been most surprised if she had taken a peep too ' for instead of the usual piles of old music, a metronome of two, old hymn-books and so on, she would have seen a big birthday cake with 'Happy returns to Tessie!' on it, and a big tin full of other goodies ' to say nothing of eight fat brown ginger-beer bottles!
'How are we going to keep awake till twelve o'clock?' said Pat to Isabel and Janet.
'Oh, I'll be awake at twelve,' said Janet, who had lately got the idea that she could wake at any time she liked, merely by repeating the hour to herself half a dozen times before she went to sleep. ' I shall simply say 'twelve o'clock' firmly to myself before I go to sleep. And then I shall wake on the first stroke of midnight! You just see!:
'Well, Janet, I hope you're right,' said Pat, doubtfully. 'I've tried that heaps of times but it never works with me. I just go on sleeping.'
'It's will-power,' said Janet. 'You needn't worry. I shall wake you all right!'
So the twins went peacefully to sleep as usual at half-past nine, trusting Janet to wake them. Janet went to sleep too, saying 'twelve o'clock, twelve o'clock' steadily to herself, as she dropped off.
But alas for Janet! Midnight came ' and she slept on! Her will-power must have been a little weak that night. The three first-formers would certainly have missed the party if the second-formers hadn't sent to see why they didn't turn up!
Pat was awakened by someone tugging at her arm, and a torch being flashed into her
face. She woke with a jump and was just about to give a squeal of fright when she saw that it was Winnie who held the torch. In a flash she remembered the party.
'Pat! For goodness' sake! Aren't you three coming?' whispered Winnie.
'Of course,' said Pat. 'I'll wake the others.' She threw off the bed-clothes, slipped her feet into her slippers and put on her warm dressing-gown. She went to wake Isabel and Janet. Soon the three of them were creeping out of the room, down a few stairs, round a corner past the second-form dormitory, and into the musicroom.
The door opened and shut quietly and the three girls blinked at the bright electric light. The blinds had been drawn and the oil-stove had made the little room as warm as toast. The other five girls were busy opening tins and setting out cake and biscuits.
'Whatever happened to you?' said Tessie, in surprise. 'It's a quarter-past twele. We waited and waited. Then we sent Winnie.'
'It was my fault,' said Janet, looking ashamed of herself, a most unusual thing for Janet.'I promised I'd wake them ' and I didn't. I say ' what a marvellous cake!'
The girls set to work to eat all the good things, giggling at nothing. It was so exciting to be cooped up in the little music-room, gobbling all sorts of goodies when every one else was fast asleep.
'Oh, Susan ' you've spilt peach-juice all over my toes,' giggle Janet.
'Lick it off then,' said Susan. ' I bet you can't!'
Janet was very supple. She at once tried to reach her foot up to her mouth to lick off the juice from her bare pink toes. She overbalanced and fell off her musicstool.
'Janet! You've sat on the sausages!' hissed Tessie, in dismay. 'Get up, you idiot. Oh, the poor sausages ' all squashed as glat as pan-cakes!'
The girls began to giggle helplessly. Tessie tried to press the little sausages back into their ordinary shape again.
'When are we going to fry them?' asked Isabel, who loved sausages.
'Last thing,' said Tessie. 'That is, if there is anything left of them when Janet has finished with them!'
The ginger-beer was opened. Each bottle had a top that had to be taken off with an opener, and each bottle gave a pop as it was opened.
'If any one hears these pops they'll wonder whatever's happening in this musicroom,' said Susan.
'Well, nobody will hear,' said Tessie. 'Every one is fast asleep. Not a soul in our own dormitory knows that we slipped out. Not a single person knows our secret!'
But Tessie boasted too soon. Some one was already outside the closed door, with her eye to the keyhole and her sharp ears trying to catch all that was said. Erica knew quite well all that was going on. Soon she caught her own name, and she stiffened outside the door, as she tried to hear what was said.
It was Tessie who was speaking. She was handing round the chocolates. 'We caught that nasty little sneak Erica helping herself to the chocolates this afternoon,' she said, in her clear voice. 'Isn't she the limit?'
'Oh, she's always doing things like that,' said Pat. 'You can't trust her and inch.'
Erica felt the tears coming into her eyes. The girls had often told her unpleasant o her face ' but somehow it was horrible hearing them spoken behind her back. But the tears passed into tears of rage.
'I'll give them a few frights!' thought Erica, furiously. 'And then I'll go and fetch Miss Jenks. It will serve the wretches right.'
Erica knocked softly on the door, and then, quick as lightning, darted into a nearby cupboard. She hoped that her knocking would give the girls a shock.
It gave them a most terrible shock! They all stopped talking at once, and Tessie put down the box of chocolates with a shaking hand. They stared at one another, round-eyed.
'What was that?' whispered Tessie.
'A knock at the d-d-d-door,' stuttered Winnie.
There was dead silence. Every one waited to see if the door would open. But it didn't.
Erica was still hidden in the cupboard. As nothing happened, she crept out again and knocked once more on the door, this time quite smartly. Then back she hopped to the cupboard again, beginning to enjoy herself.