Nobody had taken much notice of Belle until now. They had supposed she had kept so unusually quiet because she was not in her own “set,” as she loved to call her coterie of seven. But to those who were familiar with her, it was plain that something had happened. She did not seem herself. Her eyes had a strange gray look to them. Two little white dents appeared on either side of her nose and her lips were shrunk into pale, narrow lines. But that was not all. Were they dreaming or was this the first of Percy’s Hallowe’en jokes? The beautiful, proud Belle was wearing a faded yellow muslin.
She had tried to cover her shoulders with a little blue scarf, but it was impossible to deceive the sharp eyes of her schoolmates.
“Nobody’s clothes will be hurt, Mother,” put in Percy, feeling somehow that a cloud had fallen on the company, although he did not know enough about girls’ clothes to take in this remarkable change in Belle’s appearance. “Remember that this is a ghost party.”
“What is a ghost party?” demanded Fannie, suddenly becoming animated from the admiration she felt she had attracted.
“Everybody wears a sheet and pillow-case,” answered Percy, “and, for one thing, not a vestige of dress shows.”
A look of triumph came into Belle’s eyes at this and the two dents began to disappear.
“I hear the other people coming, so we had better get into our costumes if you are entirely through.”
“Come up to my room, girls. Percy will take care of the boys. Marie and I are commissioned to dress you up. I am obeying orders, you see,” said Mrs. St. Clair.
“And remember that you are supposed to be disguised,” called Percy. “Don’t give yourself away by giggling, Miss Nancy-Bell.”
“I’m sure I shan’t want to giggle if I’m dressed as a ghost,” answered Nancy, following the others up the steps.