"May we go to the senior's retreat, Poppy?" Gladys asked. "Your balcony
is such a dandy place to watch the road from."
Once more the twins felt a little tremble of pleasure. Although the
girls were the best of friends in spite of the difference in their ages,
the Sophomores as a class never failed in their respect to the Seniors.
"Yes, come along; we'll go with you," Poppy replied.
"I'd like to get the first look at Sally myself," Gwen added. "I hope
she hasn't forgotten to bring Aunt Jane's Poll-parrot."
They left the ballroom and walked down the broad hall all arm-in-arm.
"Seniors all busy tonight, the lights are not lit," Prue remarked as
they entered a dark room. Gwen switched on the lights and the twins
found themselves in what seemed to be a delightful chintz lined nook.
It was a small room directly over the front door. The two-story piazza,
with its enormous pillars, enclosed the balcony that led from it through
long French windows.
"This is the Seniors' Sanctum Sanctorum," Prue explained. "When the
cares of school government grow too much for them they come in here to
rest."
"It is also the chamber of horrors on occasion," Gladys added. "Just
wait until you've done something bad, and Poppy calls you in to give you
a racking over the coals."
"Why, Gladys; what do you mean by talking like that?" Poppy protested
mildly. "I just never could be severe, and I don't expect to have to be
either; especially," she added seriously, "to any girl in my sister
class."
Prue and Gladys and Ann nodded approval.
"We'll be good," Ann said seriously. "We want to give you all the help
possible."
Once more the twins felt a little glow of thankfulness around their
hearts.
The sound of carriage wheels took them all to the balcony.
"Sally!" Gladys exclaimed; and with one accord they rushed down the
stairs and out to the front porch.
Long before the carriage reached the steps, Sally was out of it. She
rumbled to the ground and ran towards them, her black bag knocking
against her knees.
"Where are my twins?" she demanded breathlessly.
Janet and Phyllis almost smothered her in the warmth of their embrace.
"Oh, Sally, you old darling!" Phyllis exclaimed. "You look so
wonderfully natural that I could eat you up for sheer joy."
"We thought you'd never get here, and we missed you on the train like
everything," Janet said.
"Hello, Sally; it's great to have you back," Gladys shook hands
heartily.
"How's Aunt Jane's Poll-parrot?" Gwen inquired. "My, how I missed that
bird this summer!"
"Well, and wiser than ever," Sally laughed as she held out her hand to
Poppy.
"It's mighty nice to have you back, Sally," Poppy smiled affectionately.
"We room together until your friend Daphne comes," Prue told her.
"Good work. Hello, Ann; what are you lurking in the shadows for?" Sally
demanded.
"Oh, I never rush, even to say how do you do to my best friend. I much
prefer to be the last on the list. Did you have a good summer?"
"Oh, wonderful!" Sally enthused. "Alice's family were awfully nice to
me, and I had a glorious time."
"It's too bad Alice isn't coming back," Gladys exclaimed. "I'm going to
miss her frightfully."
"I know, but she really isn't well enough. Why girls, she's lost
pounds," Sally replied. Alice Bard was a girl Sally had been visiting.
She had been to Hilltop for three years, but was unable to return on
account of ill-health.
"Well, come along; let's go in," Prue suggested. "After all, we're not
the only ones that want to see Sally."
They followed into the house, and Sally, after she had said "how do you
do" to Miss Hull, rejoined them and they went on up to the ballroom. A
shout went up from the girls as they saw her coming, and she shook hands
until the silence bell sounded.
"That's the trouble," Sally protested. "We no sooner get talking when
that old bell rings. There are loads of girls I haven't even had a
chance to speak to yet."
The room emptied in a minute and the twins, with Sally between them,
went upstairs.
"I can't come in and talk to you, because there's no visiting after
hours, but I'll see you bright and early in the morning," Sally
promised. "You're not homesick, are you?"
"Homesick! I should say not," Phyllis protested. "I'm so excited I'm
ready to die, and now that you're here it's simply perfect."
"I never knew there were so many nice girls in the world," Janet
exclaimed. "It's going to be wonderful, and won't it be fun having
Daphne come?"
"Indeed it will; the old quartette together again," Sally agreed. "But
I've got to fly now or I'll be caught, and that will never do on the
first night back."
They parted, Janet and Phyllis, in their own room with the door closed,
stood in the middle of the floor trying to decide why they were so
happy.
"It's wonderful, isn't it?" Phyllis began.
"It's just like a wonderful dream," Janet agreed.
"It's nice to have Sally back, isn't it?"
"You bet."
"And I love Ann."
"So do I, the best of all."
They undressed slowly.
"You honestly like it, Jan?" Phyllis inquired anxiously, after the
lights were out, and they were both in their single white beds.
Janet's hand found Phyllis's.
"I do honestly," she replied seriously. "There's something about their
spirit, the nice way they tease," she added.
"And that sort of understood respect they give the Seniors," Phyllis
replied. "It's all so nice and--and--oh, I can't think of the word I
want."
"I can; it's _happy_," Janet told her.
They were quiet for a few minutes, and then Janet suddenly sat up in
bed.
"But how awful it would have been if Miss Hull had separated us," she
said in the darkness.
"She couldn't have done that. No one ever can," Phyllis replied very
positively, but very sleepily.
"Never!"