"Don't be too sure of mine," said Patty. "You won't find it out, because——"
But here she shook her head with the air of a sphinx, and, leaving her sentence unfinished, took up her music-case and went to practise.
Now, Patty had only been having a little fun with Beatrice. She had meant to say, "because there is no secret at all", and to have explained what was really the fact, that she had helped her brother Basil so often at home to prepare his Latin translation that the earlier part of De Bello Gallico was already familiar to her. Thinking, however, that it would be possible to continue the joke, and that it would be amusing to excite Beatrice's curiosity over nothing, she had preserved her mystery for the present, intending to explain it on some future occasion. In view of events which followed, it proved a most unfortunate occurrence, and one which she afterwards bitterly regretted. Her innocent remark led to conclusions quite unforeseen, and so disastrous that she would have given much if her words had never been uttered; but once spoken they were impossible to recall, and the mischief was done. Blind as yet to what was to happen in the future, she spent half an hour at the piano, and then went to the classroom to fetch a book which she had forgotten. It was a pouring wet afternoon, and as it was quite impossible for the girls to play their usual game of hockey, they were allowed to amuse themselves as they liked until tea-time. As a rule the classroom was empty between three and four o'clock, and Patty opened the door, expecting to find the room unoccupied. To her astonishment, Muriel was seated there, busily engaged in writing, and evidently copying something from a book which she held on her knee. She started guiltily at her cousin's entrance, as if she were being caught in some act which she did not wish to be discovered, turned crimson, and, thrusting the book into her desk, banged down the lid, and pretended to be tidying the contents of her pencil-box. It was so unusual to find Muriel at work out of school hours, that Patty could not help expressing her amazement.
"Why, what are you doing here?" she exclaimed.
"I might ask you the same," returned Muriel. "I suppose I have as good a right to come to my desk when I want as anybody else has!"
"Why, of course," said Patty. "I was only surprised."
"Then I wish you would keep your surprise to yourself. I can't think why you should always be following me about."
"Oh, Muriel, I wasn't! I only came to fetch my history."
"And I only came to do some of my lessons in quiet. The recreation room is a perfect Babel."
"So it is," said Patty. "I thought I'd learn my dates quietly in here."