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Authors: Jill Murphy
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TWENTY
own in the yard behind the kitchen, standing next to the huge bin, which had been turned on its side, Miss Cackle, Miss Hardbroom and Mildred watched as Ethel sifted through old bits of pie and custard and a mass of burnt porridge, still warm from the cauldron where the cooks were preparing breakfast.
‘Keep looking, Ethel,’ said Miss Hardbroom menacingly. ‘We’re going to turn over every old tea bag, every fish skin, until we find Mildred’s project.’
Ethel sat back on her heels, looking desperate.
‘It’s not fair , Miss Hardbroom,’ she said. ‘I don’t know how you can believe the word of a tortoise against mine.’
‘There it is!’ exclaimed Mildred, diving into a pile of incinerated toast. ‘I can see it! It’s my handwriting, look!’
Mildred held up her project, tea-stained and damp, but still recognizable as her treasured work.
Miss Hardbroom took it from her with one finger and thumb and looked at it sideways. ‘Well, well,’ she said coolly to Ethel. ‘ I never thought that I would take the word of a tortoise above yours, Ethel, but it would seem that he is the more honest of the two of you. Now then, Ethel, before you try and wriggle out of this, let me ask you, did you steal Mildred’s project, did you turn Mildred’s pot into a snake and did you ask Drusilla to imprison this poor creature at the top of the hollow pine? Take your time, Ethel. I want a truthful answer from you.’
Ethel knew that she was cornered and in the worst trouble she’d ever been, with no way out.
‘I did everything, Miss Hardbroom,’ she muttered. ‘The snake pot, the project, and I got Drusilla to hide the tortoise because he knew too much. I’m sorry I lied. I’m sorry about everything.’
Maud and Enid were in the middle of breakfast when Mildred dashed in to join them. She was glowing from head to foot and smiling so broadly that it looked as if her head might fall off.
‘What’s happened, Millie?’ asked Maud, passing her the two slices oftoast that they’d kept for her. ‘You look as if you might go into orbit.’
‘Oh, it’s wonderful, Maud,’ said Mildred. ‘Ethel’s actually confessed to H.B. and Miss Cackle that she stole my project. She’d thrown it into the kitchen bin and H.B. made her look through all the slimy rubbish till she found it. Then she confessed that she’d turned my pot into rattlesnakes and she admitted that she’d got Drusilla to hide Einstein up the tree last night –’
‘Up what tree?’ asked Enid.
‘Oh, I forgot,’ said Mildred. ‘All that happened while you were asleep. I’ll tell you about it later. I’ll just stuff down this toast or I’ll be starving at assembly.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
iss Cackle and Miss Hardbroom stood on the platform with the other teachers, looking down on the girls as they ploughed through their daily rendition of the school song.
As the last notes faded away, Miss Cackle stepped forward and smiled at her flock. ‘Good morning, girls,’ she said fondly, ‘and what a good morning it is indeed for Mildred Hubble. Step up here, Mildred – and Ethel Hallow. I think Ethel has something important to say to you, Mildred.’
Mildred and Ethel both looked at the floor as they made their way up the steps to stand under the steely gaze of Miss Hardbroom, Ethel wishing the ground would swallow her up, caught out in such a torrent of lies; Mildred self-conscious as she felt hundreds of pairs of eyes watching her curiously.
‘Various unpleasant events have happened since the beginning of this term,’ announced Miss Hardbroom, ‘and the evidence unfortunately pointed to Mildred Hubble as the culprit. I have to tell you all that Mildred was entirely innocent of any blame whatsoever. Not only has she written the best holiday project that I have ever seen, she also carried out the heroic rescue of a poor dumb animal – well, not so dumb actually – in the middle of a virtual hurricane.
‘Ethel Hallow took
own in the yard behind the kitchen, standing next to the huge bin, which had been turned on its side, Miss Cackle, Miss Hardbroom and Mildred watched as Ethel sifted through old bits of pie and custard and a mass of burnt porridge, still warm from the cauldron where the cooks were preparing breakfast.
‘Keep looking, Ethel,’ said Miss Hardbroom menacingly. ‘We’re going to turn over every old tea bag, every fish skin, until we find Mildred’s project.’
Ethel sat back on her heels, looking desperate.
‘It’s not fair , Miss Hardbroom,’ she said. ‘I don’t know how you can believe the word of a tortoise against mine.’
‘There it is!’ exclaimed Mildred, diving into a pile of incinerated toast. ‘I can see it! It’s my handwriting, look!’
Mildred held up her project, tea-stained and damp, but still recognizable as her treasured work.
Miss Hardbroom took it from her with one finger and thumb and looked at it sideways. ‘Well, well,’ she said coolly to Ethel. ‘ I never thought that I would take the word of a tortoise above yours, Ethel, but it would seem that he is the more honest of the two of you. Now then, Ethel, before you try and wriggle out of this, let me ask you, did you steal Mildred’s project, did you turn Mildred’s pot into a snake and did you ask Drusilla to imprison this poor creature at the top of the hollow pine? Take your time, Ethel. I want a truthful answer from you.’
Ethel knew that she was cornered and in the worst trouble she’d ever been, with no way out.
‘I did everything, Miss Hardbroom,’ she muttered. ‘The snake pot, the project, and I got Drusilla to hide the tortoise because he knew too much. I’m sorry I lied. I’m sorry about everything.’
Maud and Enid were in the middle of breakfast when Mildred dashed in to join them. She was glowing from head to foot and smiling so broadly that it looked as if her head might fall off.
‘What’s happened, Millie?’ asked Maud, passing her the two slices oftoast that they’d kept for her. ‘You look as if you might go into orbit.’
‘Oh, it’s wonderful, Maud,’ said Mildred. ‘Ethel’s actually confessed to H.B. and Miss Cackle that she stole my project. She’d thrown it into the kitchen bin and H.B. made her look through all the slimy rubbish till she found it. Then she confessed that she’d turned my pot into rattlesnakes and she admitted that she’d got Drusilla to hide Einstein up the tree last night –’
‘Up what tree?’ asked Enid.
‘Oh, I forgot,’ said Mildred. ‘All that happened while you were asleep. I’ll tell you about it later. I’ll just stuff down this toast or I’ll be starving at assembly.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
iss Cackle and Miss Hardbroom stood on the platform with the other teachers, looking down on the girls as they ploughed through their daily rendition of the school song.
As the last notes faded away, Miss Cackle stepped forward and smiled at her flock. ‘Good morning, girls,’ she said fondly, ‘and what a good morning it is indeed for Mildred Hubble. Step up here, Mildred – and Ethel Hallow. I think Ethel has something important to say to you, Mildred.’
Mildred and Ethel both looked at the floor as they made their way up the steps to stand under the steely gaze of Miss Hardbroom, Ethel wishing the ground would swallow her up, caught out in such a torrent of lies; Mildred self-conscious as she felt hundreds of pairs of eyes watching her curiously.
‘Various unpleasant events have happened since the beginning of this term,’ announced Miss Hardbroom, ‘and the evidence unfortunately pointed to Mildred Hubble as the culprit. I have to tell you all that Mildred was entirely innocent of any blame whatsoever. Not only has she written the best holiday project that I have ever seen, she also carried out the heroic rescue of a poor dumb animal – well, not so dumb actually – in the middle of a virtual hurricane.
‘Ethel Hallow took
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