The Enchanted Castle | Page 2

was
to our hero but the work of a moment," said Gerald, and went to suit
the action to the word.
It was a very sleek boy, brown and thin and interesting-looking, that
knocked at the door of the parlour where Mademoiselle sat reading a
yellow-covered book and wishing vain wishes. Gerald could always
make himself look interesting at a moment's notice, a very useful
accomplishment in dealing with strange grown-ups. It was done by

opening his grey eyes rather wide, allowing the corners of his mouth to
droop, and assuming a gentle, pleading expression, resembling that of
the late little Lord Fauntleroy who must, by the way, be quite old now,
and an awful prig.
"Entrez!" said Mademoiselle, in shrill French accents. So he entered.
"Eh bien?" she said rather impatiently.
"I hope I am not disturbing you," said Gerald, in whose mouth, it
seemed, butter would not have melted.
"But no," she said, somewhat softened. "What is it that you desire?"
"I thought I ought to come and say how do you do," said Gerald,
"because of you being the lady of the house."
He held out the newly-washed hand, still damp and red. She took it.
"You are a very polite little boy," she said.
"Not at all," said Gerald, more polite than ever. "I am so sorry for you.
It must be dreadful to have us to look after in the holidays."
"But not at all," said Mademoiselle in her turn. "I am sure you will be
very good childrens."
Gerald's look assured her that he and the others would be as near angels
as children could be without ceasing to be human."We'll try," he said
earnestly.
"Can one do anything for you?" asked the French governess kindly.
"Oh, no, thank you," said Gerald. "We don't want to give you any
trouble at all. And I was thinking it would be less trouble for you if we
were to go out into the woods all day tomorrow and take our dinner
with us something cold, you know so as not to be a trouble to the
cook."

"You are very considerate," said Mademoiselle coldly. Then Gerald's
eyes smiled; they had a trick of doing this when his lips were quite
serious. Mademoiselle caught the twinkle, and she laughed and Gerald
laughed too.
"Little deceiver!" she said. "Why not say at once you want to be free of
surveillance, how you say overwatching without pretending it is me
you wish to please?"
"You have to be careful with grown-ups, " said Gerald, "but it isn't all
pretence either. We don't want to trouble you and we don't want you to
"
"To trouble you. Eh bien! Your parents, they permit these days at
woods?"
"Oh, yes," said Gerald truthfully.
"Then I will not be more a dragon than the parents. I will forewarn the
cook. Are you content?"
"Rather!" said Gerald. "Mademoiselle, you are a dear."
"A deer?" she repeated "a stag?"
"No, a a cherie," said Gerald "a regular A1 cherie. And you sha'n't
repent it. Is there anything we can do for you wind your wool, or find
your spectacles, or ?"
"He thinks me a grandmother!" said Mademoiselle, laughing more than
ever. "Go then, and be not more naughty than you must."
"Well, what luck?" the others asked.
"It's all right," said Gerald indifferently. "I told you it would be. The
ingenuous youth won the regard of the foreign governess, who in her
youth had been the beauty of her humble village."
"I don't believe she ever was. She's too stern," said Kathleen.

"Ah!" said Gerald, "that's only because you don't know how to manage
her. She wasn't stern with me."
"I say," what a humbug you are though, aren't you?" said Jimmy.
"No, I'm a dip what's-its-name? Something like an ambassador.
Dipsoplomatist that's what I am. Anyhow, we've got our day, and if we
don't find a cave in it my name's not Jack Robinson."
Mademoiselle, less stern than Kathleen had ever seen her, presided at
supper, which was bread and treacle spread several hours before, and
now harder and drier than any other food you can think of. Gerald was
very polite in handing her butter and cheese, and pressing her to taste
the bread and treacle.
"Bah! it is like sand in the mouth of a dryness! Is it possible this pleases
you?"
"No," said Gerald, "it is not possible, but it is not polite for boys to
make remarks about their food!"
She laughed, but there was no more dried bread and treacle for supper
after that.
"How do you do it?" Kathleen whispered admiringly as they said good
night.
"Oh, it's quite easy when you've once got a grownup to see what you're
after. You'll see, I shall drive her with a