"Blyton, Enid - St Clare's 01 - The Twins At St Clare's" - читать интересную книгу автора (Blyton Enid)

"I'm not Isabel, I'm Pat," said Pat. "I've come about the match on Saturday."
'Well, there's nothing more to tell you than I told you just now," said Belinda.
"That's just it. You didn't tell me just now -- you told my twin, Isabel," said Pat "I was down in the town. I know you said I wasn't to go -- but I'm so like my twin that I knew nobody would ever know."
"Rather a mean trick, Pat," said Belinda, in a scornful voice.
"I know," said Pat, in a troubled voice. "I'm sorry for that. I've come to say thank you for putting me in the match, but of course I don't expect to play now. Anyway, I couldn't have you being decent to me if I was playing a trick just to pay you out. And I'll take my share of the jobs with Isabel now. I was silly before. That's all, Belinda"
"No - not quite all," said Belinda, in an unexpectedly gentle voice. "I've something to say too. You've done something rather mean, but you've been big enough to put it right. We'll say no more about it -- but you'll play in the match on Saturday!"
Pat flew off to tell Isabel, her heart leaping for joy. How decent Belinda was! How could she ever have thought her beastly and horrid?
"I'll boil her old kettle and clean her old boots and even scrub the floor now!" thought Pat. "And my word I'll shoot a dozen goals on Saturday, see if I don't!"
She didn't - but she shot one very difficult one - and how pleased she was to hear both Isabel and Belinda shout, "Well done, Pat! Oh, good shot, good shot!"


A Battle With Mam'zelle

Every week the twin's form had marks for different subjects. Pat and Isabel had been used to being top in most things at Redroofs, and it was with shame and dismay that they found they were nearer the bottom than the top at St. Clare's.
Hilary saw them looking unhappy about it and she spoke to them. "You've got to remember that you are the only new girls in your form," she said. "The rest of us have been in the form at least two terms, and we are used to St. Clare ways. Cheer up!"
It was "Mam'zelle Abominable" who really upset the twins. She would not make allowances for them, and when they sent in badly written French essays, she was very angry.
She had the pile of French books on the desk before her, all neatly marked with "Trшs bien" or "Bien" or
"Excellent". But when she took out Pat's book and Isabel's they were both marked the same. "Abominable!"
"This will not do!" cried Mam'zelle, banging her big hand down on the books. "C'est abominable! You will write the whole essay again today, and you will bring it to me after supper."
"We can't write it again today, Mam'zelle," said Isabel, politely. "We've got art this afternoon, and after tea we've got permission to go to the cinema together. We shan't have time to rewrite it. Can we do it tomorrow?"
"Oh, que vous ъtes insupportable!" raged Mam'zelle, stamping her foot on the floor, and making the books on her desk jump and slide. "How dare you talk to me like this! You present me with a shocking, yes, a shocking essay, and then you talk of going to the cinema. You will not go! You will stay behind and write the essay for me. And if there is more than one mistake you will write it all over again! That is certain!"
"But -- but - we've got the tickets," said Isabel. "We had to book our seats. We. .."
"I do not care about seats, I do not care about book-lag!" shouted Mam'zelle, now quite losing her temper. "All I care about is that you should learn good French, which is what I am here for. You will bring me the essays tonight."
Isabel looked ready to cry. Pat looked mutinous, and stuck out her lower lip. Every one else enjoyed the row and a few of the girls were secretly very pleased to see the twins taken down a peg. Nobody dared to be inattentive after that, and the lesson went very smoothly, though Pat was sulky and joined in the lesson as little as she dared.
When the lesson was over the twins had a few words together. I'm going to the cinema!" said Pat.
"Oh, no, Pat!" said Isabel, shocked. "We can't do that. We'd really get into a terrible row. We'd better stay behind and do the work again. For goodness' sake let's!"
"I'm GOING to the cinema!" said Pat, obstinately. "I'll fit in the beastly essay somehow, and you must too. Let's do it directly after dinner. I don't care how badly I do it either."
But after dinner they had to go to a meeting of their form to plan nature rambles, so there was no time then.
Art took up the whole of the afternoon. Isabel began to be worried. Suppose Pat insisted on going to the cinema even if they hadn't rewritten their essays? She could not imagine what Mam'zelle would say.
"Let's miss our tea," said Isabel to Pat as they ran down the stairs after the art lesson. "We could do our essays then."
"Miss my tea! No, thank you!" said Pat. "I'm jolly hungry I don't know why art makes me hungry, but it always does. And I know Janet has got a big pot of plum jam sent to her that she's opening this tea time. I'm not going to miss my share!"
Isabel was hungry too, and she weakly gave way. She knew that if they were going to get into the cinema in time they wouldn't have a moment to spare for anything after tea, let alone rewriting essays! "I really shan't go to the cinema," she thought. "I daren't. Honestly, I think Mam'zelle Abominable would go up in smoke if she heard we'd gone."
But after tea Pat dragged Isabel off to the dormitory to get her hat and coat. 'We're not really going, Pat, surely!" cried Isabel.
"Indeed we are!" said Pat, sticking out her lower lip. "Come on."
"But, Pat -- we'll really get into a simply enormous row!" said Isabel "It isn't worth it. Perhaps Mam'zelle will give us an hour's extra work every day or something like that. Janet told me that once she had to stop in after tea for a whole week and write out French verbs for checking Mam'zelle just a little bit. And she wouldn't count this a little thing."
"Don't be a coward, Isabel," said Pat. "rye got a plan. Mam'zelle said we were to take our essays to her after supper, didn't she? But she didn't say what time after supper! So when we're in bed and think the others are asleep, we'll slip down to the common room in our dressing-gowns, rewrite our essays then - and give them to Mam'zelle when they're finished!"
"Pat! I'd never dare to!" cried poor Isabel. "Think of going to find Mam'zelle at that time of night in our
dressing-gowns. You must be mad."
'Well, Mam'zelle has made me feel mad," said obstinate Pat. "Anyway, I don't care what happens. You know we never wanted to come to St. Clare's - and if it's going to treat us like this, I'm jolly sure I won't stay. I'll get expelled!"
"Pat, you're not to say things like that!" said Isabel.
"Think what Mummy and Daddy would say!"
'Well it's their fault for sending us here," said Pat, who really was in a great rage.
"Yes, but, Pat - think how awful it would be if Red-roofs heard that we'd been sent away from St. Clare's," said Isabel in a low voice.
Pat's eyes filled with tears. She didn't want to think of that. "Come on," the said, gruffly. "I'm not going to change my mind now. If you're coming with me, come. If not, you can jolly well be a coward by yourself!" But Isabel was not going to be left by herself. She put on her hat and coat. Janet came into the room as the twins were going out.
"Halo, ballot" she said. "So you are going to the cinema after all! Whenever did you find time to rewrite your French?"
"We haven't done it," said Pat. Janet gave a long whistle and stared at the twins in surprise.
"I wouldn't like to be in your shoes tomorrow when you tell Mam'zelle that!" she said. "You really are a couple of idiots. I can't think why you should go out of your way to make things difficult for yourselves!"
The twins did not answer. They ran downstairs and were soon in the town. But neither of them really enjoyed the show, although it was a fine nature-film. They had to leave a little before the end to get back to supper in time. There was a debate afterwards that they had to go to, and they both wished they could miss it. But it was taken by Winifred James, the head-girl, and neither of the twins dared to ask if they might miss it.
Nine o'clock was the bedtime for their form and the two forms above them. Chattering and laughing, the girls went upstairs and undressed. Usually a mistress came to see that all the girls were in bed, and switched off the lights - but tonight Hilary announced that she was to see to this.
"Miss Roberts is with Miss Theobald," she said, "so I'm on duty tonight. Hurry, all of you, because the light will go off in five minutes' time, and you'll have to finish in the dark if you're not ready."