Read Online Alice-Miranda At School by Jacqueline Harvey - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jacqueline Harvey
Ads: Link
she murmured under her breath.
âOh, thatâs silly, Miss Grimm. Miss Higgins wouldnât go off and get married without inviting you. Sheâs attending to some sort of unexpected emergency,â explained Alice-Miranda.
Miss Grimm couldnât believe this child. What a ridiculous notion â that she might be invited to a wedding. Let alone that she might actually go .
âThat will be all, Alice-Matâ Miranda.â She gritted her teeth.
Millie had already escaped to Miss Higginsâs office. Alice-Miranda turned and smiled at Miss Grimm.
âEnjoy your dinner, Miss Grimm. I will see you tomorrow â Iâm so excited about the start of school I donât think Iâll be able to sleep very much at all. I hope you can sleep.â Alice-Miranda straightened a cushion and began to retreat to the main doors.
âOf course I can sleep. Why wouldnât I?â Miss Grimm said, thinking aloud. She hadnât really meant to ask a question at all.
âWell, it must be terribly exciting to see all of the girls after theyâve been away on such a long holiday. All those lovely adventures to hear about and so many exciting things to look forward to. And the teachers are no doubt thrilled to be back with the girls and teaching their favourite subjects. Oh, that reminds me. I saw Miss Reedy and Mr Plumpton earlier and they were both very upset. Apparently they have been directed to teach subjects they are not at all used to, and, well, it does seem a little silly to have Mr Plumpton, a Science teacher with such enthusiasm for Science, teaching Drama. He says he knows nothing about that at all. And Miss Reedy said that sheâs going to be taking junior Mathematics and I understand she usually teaches senior English. Is it possible that someone made a mistake with that?â Alice-Miranda looked Miss Grimm right in the eye as she spoke.
âA mistake! A mistake! How dare you suggest such a thing? I donât make mistakes, Alice-Miranda. They will do as they are told and I will hear no more of it.â Miss Grimmâs mouth was agape, showing a gleaming set of teeth to rival an Amazonian piranha.
âWell, perhaps they could come and talk to you about it. It does seem awfully silly and they are both so ⦠passionate. Iâll tell them to make a time with Miss Higgins tomorrow. Well ⦠Iâm sorry to prattle on, Miss Grimm. Your dinner will be getting cold and it really is much better nice and warm. See you tomorrow.â And with that Alice-Miranda turned on her heel and skipped out the door, pulling it closed behind her.
Miss Grimm strode forward and snapped the lock. Her mind was racing. This child, this tiny little girl with chocolate curls and eyes as round as saucers was turning her life on its head. Putting all sorts of nonsensical ideas into her mind. Photographs â what need did she have of photographs? A sharp memory invaded her thoughts. She pushed it away as quickly as it had come. People she loved, friends and holidays. Being excited about school. Good grief â there was nothing more dull than being at school.
That night Ophelia Grimm tossed and turned in her bed. The canopy heaved as she fought round after round with her feather pillows. Her sleep was alive with dreams. Dreams of children, of girls playing and laughing. The clanging of the school bell and a hundred pairs of feet running to their classrooms.
She awoke suddenly as though falling from a hole in the sky. Her brow was peppered with perspiration; her heart ready to leap from her chest. The first shards of daylight entered the room but ittook several minutes for her to realise that she was still in her very own bed where she had slept for the past fifteen years.
Her mind was racing. What did it all mean? She hadnât dreamt for years, certainly not about children. It was that child. It was Alice-Miranda or whatever her ridiculous name was. It was her fault and she had
âOh, thatâs silly, Miss Grimm. Miss Higgins wouldnât go off and get married without inviting you. Sheâs attending to some sort of unexpected emergency,â explained Alice-Miranda.
Miss Grimm couldnât believe this child. What a ridiculous notion â that she might be invited to a wedding. Let alone that she might actually go .
âThat will be all, Alice-Matâ Miranda.â She gritted her teeth.
Millie had already escaped to Miss Higginsâs office. Alice-Miranda turned and smiled at Miss Grimm.
âEnjoy your dinner, Miss Grimm. I will see you tomorrow â Iâm so excited about the start of school I donât think Iâll be able to sleep very much at all. I hope you can sleep.â Alice-Miranda straightened a cushion and began to retreat to the main doors.
âOf course I can sleep. Why wouldnât I?â Miss Grimm said, thinking aloud. She hadnât really meant to ask a question at all.
âWell, it must be terribly exciting to see all of the girls after theyâve been away on such a long holiday. All those lovely adventures to hear about and so many exciting things to look forward to. And the teachers are no doubt thrilled to be back with the girls and teaching their favourite subjects. Oh, that reminds me. I saw Miss Reedy and Mr Plumpton earlier and they were both very upset. Apparently they have been directed to teach subjects they are not at all used to, and, well, it does seem a little silly to have Mr Plumpton, a Science teacher with such enthusiasm for Science, teaching Drama. He says he knows nothing about that at all. And Miss Reedy said that sheâs going to be taking junior Mathematics and I understand she usually teaches senior English. Is it possible that someone made a mistake with that?â Alice-Miranda looked Miss Grimm right in the eye as she spoke.
âA mistake! A mistake! How dare you suggest such a thing? I donât make mistakes, Alice-Miranda. They will do as they are told and I will hear no more of it.â Miss Grimmâs mouth was agape, showing a gleaming set of teeth to rival an Amazonian piranha.
âWell, perhaps they could come and talk to you about it. It does seem awfully silly and they are both so ⦠passionate. Iâll tell them to make a time with Miss Higgins tomorrow. Well ⦠Iâm sorry to prattle on, Miss Grimm. Your dinner will be getting cold and it really is much better nice and warm. See you tomorrow.â And with that Alice-Miranda turned on her heel and skipped out the door, pulling it closed behind her.
Miss Grimm strode forward and snapped the lock. Her mind was racing. This child, this tiny little girl with chocolate curls and eyes as round as saucers was turning her life on its head. Putting all sorts of nonsensical ideas into her mind. Photographs â what need did she have of photographs? A sharp memory invaded her thoughts. She pushed it away as quickly as it had come. People she loved, friends and holidays. Being excited about school. Good grief â there was nothing more dull than being at school.
That night Ophelia Grimm tossed and turned in her bed. The canopy heaved as she fought round after round with her feather pillows. Her sleep was alive with dreams. Dreams of children, of girls playing and laughing. The clanging of the school bell and a hundred pairs of feet running to their classrooms.
She awoke suddenly as though falling from a hole in the sky. Her brow was peppered with perspiration; her heart ready to leap from her chest. The first shards of daylight entered the room but ittook several minutes for her to realise that she was still in her very own bed where she had slept for the past fifteen years.
Her mind was racing. What did it all mean? She hadnât dreamt for years, certainly not about children. It was that child. It was Alice-Miranda or whatever her ridiculous name was. It was her fault and she had
Similar Books
