"Blyton, Enid - St Clare's 03 - Summer Term at St Clare's" - читать интересную книгу автора (Blyton Enid)

With grins of delight, and secret nudges, the girls put away their books quickly. Miss Roberts went out of the room to the fourth form, where she was due to give a maths lesson also. They were filled with surprise to see her arrive so early!
'Oh Bobby, good for you! You've let us off that awful oral test!' said Alison. 'I do think you're a marvel!'
'Yes, you really are!' said Pat. 'It acted like clockwork. Wonderful!'
Oh, it was nothing,' said Bobby, modestly, but secretly very thrilled at the admiration she was getting. Other girls loved to be praised for their work or their games- but Bobby revelled in admiration for her jokes and tricks!
Only Prudence again disapproved. 'Somehow it doesn't seem quite honest,' she said.
'Well, go and sneak about it to Miss Roberts then,' said Bobby at once. 'Little Miss Goody-Goody, aren't you? Where's your sense of fun?
'What Prudence wants is a few jokes played on her,' said Janet. 'She's just too good to be true. Let's see if your wings are growing yet, Prudence!'
She pretended to feel down Prudence's thin back and the girl squirmed away angrily, for Janet's fingers were sharp. 'The budding angel,' said Janet. 'Tell me when you feel your wings sprouting, won't you?'
Miss Roberts was very much puzzled about the note and the fact that she was unexpectedly early for her next class. But this time she did not suspect a trick of any sort. She simply thought that some mistake had been made and dismissed it from her mind. She would never have thought of it again if Bobby and Janet, made bold by the success of the first trick, hadn't tried another of the same kind-far too soon!

6 JANET IN TROUBLE

THE girls were allowed to go down to the town together, either out to tea in a tea-shop, to the shops or to the cinema. No girl was allowed to go alone unless she was a top-former. The younger ones loved to slip off together. They went to buy sweets, hair-ribbons, or cakes, and if there was anything good on at the cinema, it was fun to go.
That week there was a fine film being shown about Clive of India, and as the first form were then doing the same period with Miss Lewis in the history lesson, they all made up their minds to see it.
Miss Lewis encouraged them. 'You should certainly go,' she said. 'It will make your history lesson come alive for you. I will give a special prize to the best criticism written of the film by any first- or second-former.'
It was more difficult for the first form to go that week than for the second form. The first form had every afternoon full, and four of its evenings were taken up by meetings of some sort or other.
'I shan't be able to go until Friday,' sighed Janet. 'I've got to clean out the art cupboard for Miss Walker tonight, when most of you others are going. Oh why did I offer to do it? The kindness of my heart runs away with me!'
'Well, it's not likely to run very far,' said Bobby. 'So cheer up!'
Janet threw a rubber at Bobby. They were in the common room with the others, and there was a terrific noise going on. The wireless was on at one end of the room, some one had set the gramophone going at the other, and Sheila and Kathleen were arguing at the tops of their voices about something. 'NEED we have both the wireless AND the gramophone on together when nobody is listening to either?' pleaded Pamela's voice. 'I'm trying so hard to read and remember what I'm reading, and I simply can't.'
'Well, Pam, you shouldn't be working now,' said Pat, looking up from her knitting. 'You should slack off, like the rest of us. Why, you were saying history dates in your sleep last night, Sadie said!'
'Bobby, book me a seat for Friday night,' said Janet, looking everywhere for her rubber. 'I shall have an awful rush, I know, unless I can get Miss Roberts to let me off prep that night.'
'She let me off,' said Hilary. 'I went last night, and Miss Roberts was an awful brick-let me off half an hour early so that I could see the picture.'
'Well, I'll ask her if she'll be a sport and let me off too,' said Janet. 'Oh blow, where is my rubber? Why did I throw it at Bobby? What a waste of a rubber!'
The next day was Thursday, and that evening the rest of the first form went to the cinema, except Janet, who kept her promise and turned out the untidy art cupboard for Miss Walker.
'I'll ask Miss Roberts to let me off early to-morrow,' thought Janet, as she threw all sorts of peculiar things out of the cupboard on to the floor. 'Golly, what a collection of things the art classes get! I don't believe this cupboard has been turned out 'for years 1'
The next day Janet was unlucky. She had to do the flowers for the classroom that week, and Miss Roberts discovered that there was very little water in the vases. She looked disapprovingly at Janet.
'No wonder our flowers look sorry for themselves this week, Janet,' she said, poking a finger into the nearest vase. 'This bowl is almost empty. I do think you should attend to your responsibilities better, even the little ones.'
Janet flushed. Usually she was good at remembering small things as well as big, but the flowers had just slipped her memory that day. She muttered an apology and went to get a jug of water.
She came into the classroom with it, and was just about to pour water into a vase on the window-sill when the school cat jumped in at the window.
Janet was startled. She jumped violently and jerked the jug of water. A stream flew into the air-and landed very neatly on the back of Prudence's head! It dripped down her neck at once and the girl gave a loud squeal. Miss Roberts looked up, annoyed.
'What's the matter, Prudence? Janet, what have you done?'
'Oh Miss Roberts! Janet has soaked me!' complained Prudence. 'She deliberately poured the water down my neck!'
I didn't!' cried Janet. 'The cat sprang in through the window and made me jump, that's all.'
Miss Roberts eyed Janet coldly. She had seen too much of Janet's mischief to believe that it was entirely an accident.
'Prudence, go and dry yourself in the cloakroom,' she said. 'Janet, Prudence was engaged in writing out that list of geography facts for future reference. As she will not be able to finish it now, I would be glad if you would take her book and write the facts out for her during prep this evening.'
Janet stared in dismay, remembering that she had meant to ask for early leave. 'Miss Roberts, it really and truly was an accident,' she said. 'I'll write out what Prudence was doing, but may I do it in break, not in prep?'
'You will do it in prep,' said Miss Roberts. 'Now will you kindly finish playing about with that water and do a little work?
Janet pursed up her lips and took the water out of the room. It looked as if she wouldn't be able to see the picture now. As she went to the cloakroom to put away the jug, she met Prudence, who had dried herself quickly, for she was not really very wet.
'Prudence I You know jolly well it was a complete accident,' said Janet, stopping her. 'I want to leave prep early tonight, to see "Clive of India". I shan't be able to unless you're decent and go and tell Miss Roberts you know it was an accident and ask her to let me off.'
'I shan't do anything of the sort,' said Prudence. 'You and Bobby are always playing silly tricks. I'm not going to get you out of trouble!'
She marched back to the classroom. Janet stared after her, angry and hurt. She stuck the jug back into the cupboard and slammed the door shut. Janet had a hot temper, and would willingly have poured a dozen jugs of icy-cold water all over Prudence at that moment!
When break came she told Bobby what had happened, and Bobby snorted in disgust. 'Prudence makes out she's so goody-goody,' she said, 'and yet she won't do a little thing like that. Now-let's see-is there any way of getting you off early to the pictures, Janet in spite of everything?'
'No,' said Janet, dolefully. 'Miss Roberts is taking the first and second form together for prep tonight. If Miss Jenks was taking it I'd take a chance and slip out, hoping she wouldn't notice. But Miss Roberts will have her eye on me tonight.'
'I wonder-I just wonder-if I can't get Miss Roberts out of the room again,' said Bobby, her eyes beginning to gleam.
'Don't be an ass, Bobby,' said Janet, 'she can't be taken in twice that way-so soon after, too.'
'Well--what about doing it a bit differently?' said Bobby. 'Getting you called out, for instance?'
'Oooh,' said Janet, and her eyes danced. 'That is an idea! Yes-we might work it that way. But what about that beastly stuff I've got to write out for Prudence?'
'I'll do that for you,' said Bobby. 'I can make my writing like yours, in case Miss Roberts wants to see it.'
'All right,' said Janet. 'Well now-how are we going to work it?
'I'll ask Miss Roberts If I can go and fetch a book from the library,' said Bobby. 'And when I come back I'll say "Please, Miss Roberts, Mam'zelle says can Janet go to her for some extra coaching?" And I bet Miss Roberts will let you go like a lamb-and you can slip off in time to see the whole of the picture.'