“We don’t take boarders,” replied Corene cruelly, grinding out the word “boarders” with vicious satisfaction.
“Oh, we know that. But Fuss meant could we come as Girl Scouts?”
“Girl Scouts!” repeated Cleo, incredulously.
“Why, yes, I think those togs are perfectly stunning and shouldn’t mind at all wearing them,” condescended Fuss. “Can you get those uniforms around here?”
A look akin to disgust crossed the face of Corene. How she longed to “speak the truth for once,” but politeness forbade the experiment.
“You can’t wear the uniform unless you are a Scout, and you can’t be a Scout unless you qualify,” she snapped.
“And what do you do to qualify?”
“Fuss and Buzz” had both seated themselves without invitation, and now their line of questions indicated rather a stay.
Corene sank back and sighed. She picked up her book and toyed with it significantly. But no one replied. There was danger of a general laugh breaking out if someone didn’t say something quickly, so Louise, just coming back from the water pail, offered an excuse.
“All right Louie?” asked Grace. She had never called Louise Louie before.