Star of Silver Spires (15 page)

When the letter finally dropped through our letter box at home, I gave it to my mum to open, because I was just too scared to hear the worst. And before Mum opened it, she looked at me and said, “Nicole, sweetheart, if you haven't got the scholarship, it doesn't matter. We're still very proud of you, because all your teachers wanted you to go for it and they all say that you're amazingly bright.” I remember holding my breath and sucking my lips inwards as Mum read through the letter with a frown on her face. Then when she said, “You've done it, Nicole! You've got a scholarship, sweetheart!” I screamed the place down with my “
Yessssss!
” and Mum and I hugged each other and jumped up and down, and my little sisters, Clare and Clemmie, stared at us with pouty faces because they didn't want me to go away to school.

All of this came flooding back to me as I sat on my bed, and it filled me with a rosy
I did it!
feeling as I looked round at my friends, who were still laughing at what Bryony had said about her hair. But then my excitement turned to anxiety, because I didn't really have any right to call them friends yet, and a flurry of fear settled in the pit of my stomach. What if these girls didn't want to be friends with me?

I'd decided before I'd even got here that there was no way I was going to tell anyone about my scholarship. I wasn't sure if there was a rule at Silver Spires that scholarships only went to girls from families who couldn't afford the fees, and I didn't know if I was the only girl to have got a scholarship in Year Seven. All I knew was that I planned to keep the secret of my scholarship to myself, partly because people might think it's geeky to be good at schoolwork and partly because of not wanting anyone to know personal stuff about me yet.

It was a funny feeling chatting away with five people who seemed so different from me, with their big houses and their second homes, and I didn't think I'd ever been in this position before. I'd tried not to stare, but I'd caught a glimpse of some of Antonia's clothes when she'd been unpacking, and they were incredible. It looked like she had to leave half her stuff in one of her cases, because the wardrobes are only narrow. Luckily mine is exactly the right size for what I've brought with me, and the chest of drawers is the right size too, so unpacking was very quick for me.

I'm organized and tidy at home – I've had to be, because I've got such a tiny bedroom. Clare and Clemmie share a bigger one, and they're still going to share even while I'm here at Silver Spires, as neither of them likes being on their own at night-time.

“Do you think it'll be teatime soon?” I asked. We'd come to a silence in our chatter and I wanted to fill it. But my question was never answered because, at that moment, there came a knock at the door.

“Come in,” we all said at exactly the same time, and then we burst out laughing. Well, all of us apart from Antonia. She had climbed down the ladder from her bed and was looking at something on her desk. It was impossible to see the expression in her eyes, because her face was hidden by her hair. Looking at it from the side, it seemed to fall in ringlets to her shoulders and really shone in the bright dormitory light.

Miss Callow, our matron, had come in. “And how is Emerald dorm getting on, girls?” she said with a little chuckle. “Making friends? Settling in? Having fun?”

I only met Matron this afternoon when I first arrived here at Forest Ash House. But I liked her straight away because of the way she looked right into my eyes when she was talking to me, as though she really wanted to get to know me. And also, she seems like such a jolly person that I can't imagine her ever being in a bad mood. “You'll be going over to the dining hall for supper in a few minutes,” she was saying brightly now, “but first I just want to check that there aren't any more bags for Mr. Monk to pop into the storeroom.”

I realized suddenly that I was staring at her, which I knew was really rude of me, but I couldn't help it. I'd got two things wrong. Firstly, I must remember to think of the canteen as a
dining hall
. But more important than that, Matron had mentioned “supper”, and, of course, I'd stupidly used the wrong word just before she'd come in. My cheeks flooded with colour again.
It's not called tea at Silver Spires, so get that word out of your head, Nicole!

The thought of tea sent a little rush of homesickness through me, because I was imagining Mum and Clemmie and Clare sitting around the table in our cosy front room. I wondered whether they'd be talking about me. Mum had decided not to let my sisters come here with her and Dad to drop me off, because she said they'd probably only cry their eyes out half the way home afterwards. They could easily have come along, as it's a Sunday today, but instead they spent the day at Granny and Granddad's. I guessed they'd be home by now, though, having tea and asking Mum loads of questions.

“What about washing hands?” chirped Matron, interrupting my daydream. “All right, Antonia?”

I noticed, as we got down from our beds and made for the door, that Antonia wasn't moving. Matron spoke to her in a slow, loud voice. “We need to wash our hands before supper, Antonia…
Si?
” Then she burst out laughing because she'd managed one little Italian word. I was pleased, because it made Antonia giggle, but it gave me quite a shock when I realized that was the first time I'd seen her smile at all.

“
Si.
I come.”

Matron looked delighted to hear Antonia's lilting accent. “Ooh! Do you know, I've been at Silver Spires for many years and I think we might have had a couple of Italian girls in other houses, but not a single one at Forest Ash! I'm very pleased to have you here, Antonia!”

Antonia nodded and gave a small smile, but I wasn't sure if she'd understood everything. I hung back so I could walk with her to the bathroom, as the other four had gone off already. But she looked down and I had the feeling she didn't want to come with me, which hurt me a bit. I quickly told myself not to be silly, and went to catch up with the others.

Just ahead of me, Emily was telling Bryony that she was glad she was in Emerald dorm because she came from the Emerald Isle. Bryony asked Emily what she meant, but I knew from my geography that “the Emerald Isle” is the nickname for Ireland. Just behind them, Sasha had linked arms with Izzy and was trying to imitate Izzy's way of walking with her toes turned out.

“I bet you've done ballet, Izzy, haven't you?”

I didn't hear Izzy's answer though, because the four of them had gone into the bathroom by then.

“Hey, Nicole! Look at the tiles in here!” Bryony poked her head back out of the doorway and was beckoning to me to hurry up. I didn't need telling twice. I rushed to join them.

It was true, the tiles on the walls of the shower were beautiful. Lots of them were plain white, but every so often there was an odd one with a picture or a colourful pattern on it.

“This is my favourite!” said Emily, pointing to a tile with an orchard on it.

After that, everyone started searching for their favourite tiles, and in the end Matron had to tell us to hurry up and wash our hands. “Mrs. Pridham's going to be after me, wondering what I've done with Emerald dorm!” she said in her hearty voice. Mrs. Pridham is the housemistress of Forest Ash, but it was Miss Stevenson, the assistant housemistress, who appeared. “All the others have set off to supper,” she said quietly to Matron.

“There you are! What did I tell you?” Matron chuckled. “We're late! Go on now!”

As we followed Miss Stevenson downstairs, there seemed to be a different feeling in the air, and I wondered whether the others were getting at all nervous, like I was, about what was in store. Probably not. After all, we were only going to have tea – I mean,
supper
. But for me it was a big event. This was where it all began, my new life. I was going to see those beautiful silver spires in a moment, then sit in the canteen – I mean the dining hall – and be just one little Year Seven amongst all those other girls, from eleven-year-olds like me, right up to sixteen-year-olds. At least there wouldn't be any seventeen and eighteen-year-olds there, because the sixth form part of the school is on different premises.

I swallowed and glanced back upstairs at the sound of a mobile bleeping. Antonia was pulling her phone out of her pocket, and I saw her flip it open in a quick one-handed gesture. Turning back round again, I noticed Mrs. Pridham standing at the bottom of the stairs wearing a half smile, as though she wanted us to hurry up but wasn't exactly cross.

“Sorry we're late!” said Emily, grinning. Then she and Bryony were first to go out of the Forest Ash main entrance and I saw Emily throw her arms up dramatically. “Lovely fresh air!” she said, which made Mrs. Pridham and Matron exchange a smile.

I caught up with Sasha and Izzy and the three of us went out together. The other two were taking turns to guess what we might be having for supper. But I was quiet. Any second now we'd turn the corner…

And when we did, I gasped. “Look!”

The others stopped in their tracks and we all stared up at the tall spires. But a moment later they were rushing off again, chatting away. And then Antonia was right beside me.

“Like…what ees the name for them?
Diamanti
,” she breathed.

“Yes, diamonds,” I whispered. And when I looked at her, I saw that she felt exactly as I did.

Just knowing that made me so happy.

To find out what happens next, read

Ann Bryant's School Days

Who
was your favourite teacher?

At primary it was Mr. Perks – we called him Perksy. I was in his class in Year Six, and most days he let me work on a play I was writing! At secondary, my fave teacher was Mrs. Rowe, simply because I loved her subject (French) and she was so young and pretty and slim and chic and it was great seeing what new clothes she'd be wearing.

What were your best and worst lessons?

My brain doesn't process history, geography or science and I hated cookery, so those were my least favourite subjects. But I was good at English, music, French and PE, so I loved those. I also enjoyed art, although I was completely rubbish at it!

What was your school uniform like?

We had to wear a white shirt with a navy blue tie and sweater, and a navy skirt, but there was actually a wide variety of styles allowed – I was a very small person and liked pencil-thin skirts. We all rolled them over and over at the waist!

Did you take part in after-school activities?

Well I loved just hanging out with my friends, but most of all I loved ballet and went to extra classes in Manchester after school.

Did you have any pets while you were at school?

My parents weren't animal lovers so we were only allowed a goldfish! But since I had my two daughters, we've had loads – two cats, two guinea pigs, two rabbits, two hamsters and two goldfish.

What was your most embarrassing moment?

When I was in Year Seven I had to play piano for assembly. It was April Fool's Day and the piano wouldn't work (it turned out that someone had put a book in the back). I couldn't bring myself to stand up and investigate because that would draw attention to me, so I sat there with my hands on the keys wishing to die, until the Deputy Head came and rescued me!

To find about more about Ann Bryant, visit her website:
www.annbryant.co.uk

Want to know more about the Silver Spires girls?

Or try a quiz to discover which School Friend you're most like?

You can even send Silver Spires e-cards to your best friends and post your own book reviews online!

It's all at
www.silverspiresschool.co.uk

Check it out now!

First Term at Silver Spires