"I don"t think we need discuss characters," said Maggie. "I don"t know a great deal about the Irish, but I do know that Kitty is a darling."
"Yes, so she is--one of the sweetest girls in the whole school," said Molly Tristram, who was quite as excited as Kathleen herself with regard to the party scheme.
Meantime Kitty found herself tapping at Mrs. Ward"s private door. Mrs.
Ward said, "Come in," and the pretty girl, with her great dark-blue eyes and wild-rose complexion, entered abruptly.
"Well, Kathleen?" said Mrs. Ward in her pleasant tone.
"Oh, please, Mrs. Ward, I"ve come with such a lovely scheme."
"And you want me to help you?"
"Oh yes, please, do say you will before I let you into the secret!"
"I can"t do that, dear; you must just tell me what is in your mind, and be satisfied with my decision. The only thing that I can a.s.sure you beforehand is that if it is a workable scheme, and likely to give you great pleasure, I will do my best to entertain it."
"Then we"re certain to have it--certain," said Kathleen.
"It was I who thought of it. You will forgive me if I speak out just as plainly as possible?"
"Of course, Kathleen dear."
"Well, you know you are the head-mistress."
"That is scarcely news to me, my child."
"And people, as a rule," continued Kathleen, "respect their head-mistress."
"Dear me," said Mrs. Ward with a smile, "have you come here, Kathleen, to say that you don"t respect me?"
"Respect you!" said Kathleen. "We do a jolly lot more than that. We adore you! We love you! You"re--you"re a sort of--of mother to us."
"That is what I want to be," said Mrs. Ward with fervor, and she took the girl"s hand and smoothed it gently.
"I often want to hug you, and that"s a fact," said Kathleen.
"You may kiss me now if you like, Kitty."
"Oh, Mrs. Ward!" Kitty bent down and bestowed a reverent kiss on that sweet face.
"I have permitted you to kiss me, Kitty," said Mrs. Ward, "in order to show you that I sympathize with you, as I do with all my dear girls.
But now, what is the matter?"
"Well, the fact is this. We want, during the "leisure hours" to give a party."
"Is that all? Do you all want to give a party?"
"Our side wants to give a party, and we want to invite the other side to it."
"But what do you mean by "our side" and "the other side"?"
"Oh, Mrs. Ward! you know--of course you know--that Aneta and Maggie divide the school."
"I know," said Mrs. Ward after a pause, "that Aneta has considerable influence, and that Maggie also has influence."
"Those two girls divide the school," said Kathleen, "the rest of us follow them. As a matter of fact, we only follow our leaders in the leisure hours; but as they come every day a good deal can be done in that time, can"t it?"
"Yes," said Mrs. Ward, and her tone was not exactly cheerful. "On which side are you, Kitty?"
"Oh, dear Mrs. Ward, of course, on Maggie"s! Do you think that a girl like me, with all my spirit and that irresistible sort of fun always bubbling up in me, could stand the stuck-ups?"
"Kitty, you have no right to speak of any girls in the school by such an offensive term."
"I am sorry," said Kitty. "I ought not to have said it to you. But they are stuck-ups; they really are."
"And what do you call yourself?"
"Oh, the live-and-let-live--that"s our t.i.tle. But it"s only quite among ourselves, and perhaps I ought not to have said it."
"I will never repeat what you have told me in confidence, dear. But now for your request?"
"Well, we of Maggie"s set want to invite the Aneta set to a sort of general party. We should like it to be on the half-holiday, if possible. We want to give them a right royal entertainment in order to knock some of their stuck-upness out of them. We wish for your leave in the matter."
"You must describe your entertainment a little more fully."
"I can"t; for we haven"t really and truly planned it all out yet. But I tell you what we"ll do. If you give us leave to have the party, we will ask Queen Aneta and her satellites if possible this very evening, and then we"ll submit our programme to you. Now, may we do this, or may we not?"
"Who sent you to me, Kathleen?"
"I came of my own very self, but of course the others approved. We have no intention of doing shabby things in the dark, as they do in some schools. That would be unfair to you."
Mrs. Ward thought a little longer. "I will give you the required permission," she said, "on one condition."
"Oh, Mrs. Ward, darling! what is that?"
"You can have your party on Sat.u.r.day week, and I will give you from early in the afternoon until bedtime to enjoy it."
"Oh, Mrs. Ward, you are too angelic!"
"Stop a minute. You may not care for it so much when I have finished what I have got to say."
"What is it, dear Mrs. Ward?"
"It is this: that you ask me too as one of your guests."
"Oh! oh!" said Kathleen. Her expressive face changed from red to white and then to red again. Her eyes brimmed over with laughter, and then as suddenly filled with tears. "But would you--would you like it?"
"Yes, and I don"t want to destroy your pleasure; but I presume you will have a sort of supper or an entertainment which will include refreshments. Let me a.s.sist you with the expense of your supper, and may I be present at it as one of your guests? I will promise to leave soon after supper, and not to appear until supper. How will that do?"