Naughtiest Girl 2: The Naughtiest Girl Again (15 page)

Then the Uphill team got the ball and sped off towards the other goal, passing gracefully to one another-and then the captain shot hard, The ball roiled right into the goal, though Eileen, who was goalkeeper, did her best to stop it.

"One goal to Uphill!" said the umpire, and the whistle blew, The game began again, and both Robert and Elizabeth were determined not to let the Uphill team get the ball if they could help it.

Elizabeth got the ball in her lacrosse net and sped away with it. She was about to pass it to Robert, who was keeping near her, when another player ran straight at her, Elizabeth tripped over and fell. She was up again in a trice-but the ball had been taken by the Uphill girl. Down to the goal sped the girl, and passed the ball to someone else.

"Shoot!" yelled all the watching Uphill girls, and the ball was shot towards the goal. It rolled inside before Eileen could throw it out.

"Two goals to Uphill!" called the umpire. He blew the whistle for half-time, and the girls and boys greedily sucked the half-lemons that were brought out to them, Oh, how lovely and sour they tasted!

"Now play up, Whyteleafe," said Mr. Warlow, coming out onto the field to talk to his team. "Robert, keep near Elizabeth-and, Elizabeth, pass more quickly to Robert when you are attacked. You two are running like the wind to -day. Shoot at goal whenever there's a chance.

Nora, feed Elizabeth with the ball when you can-she

may perhaps be quick enough to outpace the Uphill girl marking her."

Tire children listened eagerly. The Whyteleafe team were feeling a little down-hearted. Two goals to none! The whistle blew. The match began again. Nora got the ball and passed it at once to Elizabeth, remembering what Mr. Warlow had said.

Robert kept near to her and caught it when she passed it to him, He passed it back again, and the girl sped towards the goal.

She flung the ba1~ with all her might. The goalkeeper put out her lacrosse net quickly-but the ball bounced off it and rolled into the goal.

"One goal to Whyteleafe!" said the umpire. "Two to one."

Elizabeth was thrilled, She couldn't keep still but danced up and down even when the ball was nowhere near her, Nora got the ball. She passed to Robert, Robert passed back, and Nora ran for goal. She shot-and once more the ball rolled right in!

It was too good to be true!

"Two goals to Whyteleafe!" said the umpire, "Two all, and ten minutes so play!"

The Uphill children, who were all watching the match eagerly, began to shout:

"Play up, Uphill! Shoot, Uphill! Go on, Uphill!"

And the Uphill team heard and played harder than ever. They got the ball-they raced for goal. They shot-and Eileen caught the ball neatly and threw it out again! Thank goodness for that!

Two goals all, and three minutes to play. Play up Uphill! Play up, Whyteleafe! Three minutes left-only three minutes!

THE END OF THE MATCH

'TWO minutes, Robert!" panted Elizabeth. "For goodness' sake, let's play up. Oh, how I hope that Uphill School don't shoot another goal !"

The ball flew from one player to another. Elizabeth ran to tackle one of the Uphill girls, who was a very fast runner. She hit the girl's lacrosse stick and made the ball leap up into the air, Elizabeth tried to catch it but the ball fell to the ground. She picked it up in her lacrosse net, and tore off with it.

But another girl tackled her, and although Elizabeth tried to dodge, it was no use at all. She fell over and the ball flew into the air, The Uphill girl caught it neatly and raced off with it. She passed it to another Uphill girl who threw it vigorously down the field to the girl by the goal.

The girl caught it, and shot straight for goal. It looked as if the ball 'was flying straight for the goal-net-but Eileen saved it by flinging herself right out of goal She fell over as she caught the ball, but somehow she managed to fling it to a waiting Whyteleafe boy, He caught it and was off up the field like the wind, "Pass the ball, pass it!" yelled Elizabeth, dancing about, "Look out! There's a girl behind you! PASS!"

The boy passed the ball just as the Uphill girl behind him tried to strike at his stick to get the ball, It flew straight through the air to Elizabeth, She caught it, and sped off, followed by a swift running Uphill girl.

Elizabeth passed to Robert who was nearby. An Uphill girl ran at him-and he passed the ball back to Elizabeth, who ran for goal. Should she shoot from where she was?

She might get a goal-and she would win the match for Whyteleafe!

But Robert had run down the field and was nearer the goal now-she ought really to pass to him! Without another moment's delay Elizabeth threw the ball straight to Robert.

He caught it-and flung it at the goal, It was a beautiful shot. The girl in goal tried her best to save the goal. but the ball flew past her stick and landed right in the corner of the net, Goal to Whyteleafe!

And almost at once the whistle blew for Time! The match was over!

"Three goals to Whyteleafe!" shouted the umpire. "Three goals to two! Whyteleafe wins! Well played!"

Then all the watching Uphill girls cheered too, and clapped their hardest. It had been an excellent match and everyone had played well, "Another second and the whistle would have blown for Time!" panted Elizabeth, "Oh.

Robert! You were marvellous to shoot the winning goal just in time!"

"Well, I couldn't have if you hadn't passed me the ball exactly when you did," said Robert, his breath coming fast as he leaned on his lacrosse stick, his face flushed and wet, "Golly, Elizabeth-we've won! Think of that! We've never beaten Uphill before! Oh, I'm glad you shot a goal too!"

The two teams trooped off the field and went in to wash, It was nice to feel cold water, for they were all so hot! The two captains shook hands, and the Uphill girl clapped Eileen on the back.

"A jolly good match!" she said, "It's the first we've lost this term. Good for you!"

Elizabeth hadn't been able to eat much dinner, but she made up for it at tea-time.

There was brown bread-and-butter and blackberry jam, currant buns and an enormous chocolate cake. The children ate hungrily, and the big plates of bread-and-butter and buns were soon emptied.

"I'm longing to get back to Whyteleafe to tell the good news," said Robert to Elizabeth, "Aren't you? Oh, Elizabeth, I am glad you played after all-and I can't tell 69

you how glad I am that / was able to play! I hope we play in heaps more matches together. It was marvellous being able to pass the ball so well to one another!

"You shot that winning goal well," said Elizabeth happily. "Oh, I'm so tired, but so happy. I feel as if I can't get up from this form! My legs won't work any more!"

All the children were tired, but their tongues still worked well. They chattered and laughed and joked together' as they got ready to go back to the waiting motor-coach, Oh, what fun to tell the School that they had won! They all got back into the coach.

They waved good-bye to the cheering Uphill girls, and the coach rumbled off.

The children sank back into their seats, their faces still red with all their running about, and their legs tired out.

But as soon as they got near Whyteleafe School they all sat up straight and looked eagerly to see the first glimpse of the Whyteleafe children, who would all be waiting to hear the result of the match.

Joan and Jenny and Kathleen had been looking out for the coach for the last half-hour. When they heard it coming they tore to the big school door. Dozens of other children ran with them. It was always the custom at Whyteleafe to welcome home the children who had been to an Away Match.

The lacrosse team waved their hands wildly as the coach rumbled up to the big school door.

"We won! We won! Three goals to two!"

"We've won the match. It was marvellous!"

"It's the first time Uphill have been beaten!"

"Three goals to two! Three goals to two!"

The Whyteleafe children cheered madly when they heard the good news. They swarmed out round the coach and helped down the team, whose legs were still very wobbly from all the rushing about they had done.

"Jolly good! Oh, jolly good!" cried everyone. "Come along in and tell us all about it!"

So into the gym went the team, and Miss Belle and Miss Best, and Mr. Johns too, had to come along a nd hear all the excitements of the afternoon. Mr. Warlow spoke for a white and told how well everyone had played. Then John shouted out: "Who shot the goals?"

"Elizabeth, Nora-and Robert," said Mr. Warlow. "Good goals all three, Robert's was the most exciting because he shot his almost as the whistle went for Time. Another second and it would have been too late!"

"Three cheers for Nora, Elizabeth, and Robert!" cried everyone, and they clapped them on the back. How pleased and proud those three children were! Elizabeth almost cried for joy. To think she had actually shot a goal for Whyteleafe in her very first match. It was too good to be true.

Nora had played in many matches and shot many goals, so she just grinned and said nothing. But Robert was as pleased and proud as Elizabeth, though he did not show it quite so much, Elizabeth slipped her arm in his, "I'm so glad we both had the chance to play together:' she said, "And oh, Robert, you don't know how pleased I am that I've done something for Whyteleafe, even if it's only to shoot a goal! I hated Whyteleafe when I 70

first came here-but now I love it. Wait till you have been here a term or two and you'll love it too)'

"I love it already, thank you," said Robert, "And what's more, I mean to do a whole lot more for it than just shoot a goal!"

There was a special supper that night for the winning team! Hot sausages appeared -on the table, two for each one of the team. How delighted they were! And not only that, but anyone who had sweets or chocolates made a point of offering them to the team, so that by the time the bed-belt went, both Robert and Elizabeth felt that they couldn't eat anything more at alt!

Kathleen was as delighted as anyone. Her face was beaming as she brought a tin of sweets along. Elizabeth took a good took at her.

"Golly, you don't look the same girl!" she said. "Your eyes are alt smiting and your hair is shiny! You walk as if you wanted to run, and you've already got rid of your awful spots!"

Kathleen laughed. She had kept her word to herself and hadn't eaten a single sweet.

She had begun to forget herself, and to join in the chatter and jokes of the form. She held her head up and smiled gaily. Already when she thought of the horrid tricks she had played she could not imagine how she could have done them.

She had taken down Elizabeth's books from the top of the cupboard where she had put them, and had dusted them well. With scarlet cheeks she had given them back to Elizabeth, who had taken them with a word of thanks. A few scornful words had almost come to Elizabeth's tongue when she remembered how Miss Ranger had scolded her for losing her books-but she had bitten them back and said nothing.

Kathleen worked hard at the two handkerchief-cases, and embroidered them carefully and well. Each had the word HANDKERCHIEF across it, and it was a long word to sew. There were blue forget-me-nots on Elizabeth's case and pink roses on Jenny's.

Just as Kathleen was finishing the very last stitch, Jenny came into the common-

.room,

"My goodness, I wish I'd played in the match too," she said, flinging herself into a chair. "What wouldn't I do for hot sausages for supper! Hallo, Kath! What are you so busy about? Let's see."

She bent over Kathleen's work. "My goodness!" she said, "What tiny stitches-and how nicety you've worked the roses! I wish I could sew like that, I want a handkerchief-case."

"Welt, this is for you," said Kathleen, delighted. "I've done one for Elizabeth too."

"But whatever for?" asked Jenny, in surprise.

"To make up just a little bit for other things I did which weren't quite so nice," said Kathleen. "Here you are, Jenny-take yours and use it. I'm so glad to give it to you."

Jenny was very pleased indeed. She took the handkerchief-ease at once. "You are a brick!" she said, "Thanks most awfully, Here's Elizabeth! Look-Elizabeth, come and see what you've got for an unbirthday present!"

Soon both girls were examining their new handkerchief-cases in delight, and other children came round to see them, Kathleen felt proud when she heard their remarks.

"It's much nicer to do something for other people instead of against them," she thought. "But I'll never, never be brave enough to own up to the School that it was I who played those tricks! I am nicer-and kinder too-hut I'm still just as such a coward!"

ELIZABETH IN TROUBLE AGAIN.

The term went on happily, Now that the quarrels between Robert and Elizabeth, and between Kathleen and the others, had been cleared up, things were much better.

Elizabeth worked well and shot to the top of her class. Robert was sometimes second and sometimes third, which pleased Miss Ranger very much, for it was by sheer hard work that the boy did so well. Kathleen, too, worked a great deal better, and had stopped arguing in the silly way she once had, Mam'zelle was pleased with her, "The child in this class who has made the most improvement is the little Kathleen I"

said Mam'zelle. "Alt, how I thought she was stupid! How I scolded her! But now, see, her French essay is the best, and she rolls her r's in the right French way-not like you, R-r-r-r-robert, who will never, never get them right!"

Robert smiled-and Kathleen went red with pleasure. She had never been praised in class before, and it was very pleasant. She began to wonder if she was as stupid as she had always thought herself to be.

"My memory does seem to be better," she thought, "and I like working at my lessons now, I was bored before, Maybe I shan't always be at the bottom of the class now!

How marvellous! Wouldn't Mother be pleased if I came out top in something!"

She worked especially hard for Mam'zelle, and this was a great change for Kathleen, for ever since Mam'zelle had scolded her so badly she had disliked the French teacher and done her lessons carelessly. But now, somehow, things were different.