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“Is my face dirty?”
“Not so much dirty, – as red and scratched. How did you get so chopped up?”
“It was those briers. You went over, but I went through.”
“I should say you did! Well, I don’t believe they’ll mind your looks. And, anyway, they’ll have to get used to it; you ’most always look like that.”
This was cold comfort, and Dolly’s feminine heart began to feel that their appearance would be greatly in their disfavour.
But she was of a sanguine nature, and, too, she was apt to devise expedients.
“I’ll tell you, Dick,” she said, as an idea came to her; “you know, ‘a soft answer turneth away wrath’; no, – I guess I mean ‘charity covereth a multitude of sins.’ Yes, that’s it. And charity is love, you know. So when we see the aunties, let’s spring into their arms and kiss ’em and love ’em ’most to death, and then they won’t notice our clothes.”
“All right, that goes. Let me see, – yes, your face is clean,” – Dick made a dab or two at it with his handkerchief. “How’s mine?”
“Yes, it’s clean,” said Dolly, “at least, there aren’t any smudges; but you’d better wash it before supper.”
“All right, I will. Here we go now, turning in at the gate. Be ready to jump out and fly at them if they’re on the porch.”
They weren’t on the porch, so the twins went in at the great front door, which was opened for them by a smiling maid, whose smile broadened as she saw them. Then, repressing her smile, she ushered them to the library door and into the presence of the two waiting aunts.
“Now!” whispered Dick, and with a mad rush, the two flew across the room like whirlwinds and fairly banged themselves into the arms of Miss Rachel and Miss Abbie Dana.
This sudden onslaught was followed by a series of hugs and kisses which were of astonishing strength and duration.
What Miss Rachel and Miss Abbie thought can never be known, for they had no power of thought. Victims of a volcanic visitation do not think, – at least, not coherently, and the Dana ladies were quite helpless, both mentally and physically.
“Dear Auntie,” cooed Dolly, patting the cheek of the one she had attacked, though not knowing her name; “are you glad to see us?”
Miss Rachel stared stupidly at her, but the stare was not reassuring, and Dolly’s heart fell.
“Jolly glad to get here,” cried Dick, loyally trying to carry out Dolly’s plan, as he nearly choked the breath out of the other aunt. Miss Abbie had a little more sense of humour than her sister, – though neither of them was over-burdened with it, – so she said to Dick:
“Then do stop pommeling me, and stand off where I can see what you look like!”
But this was just what Dick was not anxious to do. So he only clung closer, and said, “Dear Auntie, which is your name?”
“I’m your Aunt Abbie,” was the response, not too gently given, “and now stand up, if you please, and stop these monkey-tricks!”
Of course, since she put it that way, Dick had to desist, and he released his struggling aunt, and bravely stood up for inspection.
Miss Rachel, too, had pushed Dolly away from her, and the twins stood, hand in hand, waiting for the verdict. It was an awful moment. The physical exertion of the manner they had chosen of greeting their aunts had made their flushed little faces still redder, and the scratches stood out in bold relief.
Also, their soiled and torn garments looked worse in this elegantly appointed room even than they had in the woods or in the carriage.
Altogether the twins felt that their plan of defence had failed, and they were crestfallen, shy, homesick, and pretty miserable all ’round.
But the funny part was, that the plan hadn’t failed. Though the aunts never admitted it, both their hearts were softened by the feeling of those little arms round their necks, and those vigorous, if grimy kisses that fell, irrespectively, on their cheeks, necks, or lace collars.
Had it not been for this tornado of affection, the greeting would have been far different. But one cannot speak coldly to a guest who shows such warmth of demonstration.
“Well, you are a pretty-looking pair!” exclaimed Miss Rachel, veiling her real disapproval behind a semblance of jocularity. “Do you always travel in ragged, dirty clothes?”
“No, Aunt Rachel,” said Dick, feeling he must make a strike for justice; “at least, we don’t start out this way. But you see, we had hardly ever seen a brook before – ”
“And it was so lovely!” put in Dolly, ecstatically.
“And wild flowers to it!” cried Dick, his eyes shining with the joy of the remembrance.
“And pebbly stones!”
“And ripply water!”
“And birds, flying in big bunches!”
“Oh, but it was splendid!”
“And so you went to the brook,” said Aunt Rachel, beginning to see daylight.
“Yes’m; on the way up from the station, you know.”
“Did Michael go with you?”
“No; he sat and held the horses, and hollered for us to come back.”
“Why didn’t you go when he called you?”
“Why, we did; at least, we went in a minute. But, Aunt Rachel, we never had seen a real live brook before, not since we were little bits of kiddy-wids, – and we just couldn’t bear to leave it.”
“We waded in it!” said Dolly, almost solemnly, as if she had referred to the highest possible earthly bliss.
The Dana ladies were nonplussed. True, the affection showered on them had tempered their severity, yet now justice began to reassert itself, and surely it would not be just or fair to have these semi-barbaric children installed at Dana Dene.
“Did your aunt in Chicago let you act like this?” asked Aunt Abbie, by way of trying to grasp the situation.
“Well, you see, there never was a brook there,” said Dick, pleasantly. “Only Lake Michigan, and that was too big to be any fun.”
“Oh, isn’t Heatherton lovely?” exclaimed Dolly, her big, dark eyes full of rapture.
She had again possessed herself of Miss Rachel’s hand and was patting it, and incidentally transfering some “good, brown earth” to it, from her own little paw.
Though Dolly had planned their mode of entrance, she had forgotten all about it now, and her affectionate demonstrations were prompted only by her own loving little heart, and not by an effort to be tactful.
In her enthusiasm over the beautiful country-side, she fairly bubbled over with love and affection for all about her.
“Are you both so fond of the country, then?” said Miss Abbie, a little curiously.
“Yes, we love it,” declared Dick, “and we’ve ’most never seen it. Auntie Helen always liked fashionable places in summer, and of course in winter we were in Chicago.”
“And we were naughty,” said Dolly, with a sudden burst of contrition, “to go wading in the brook in our good clothes. Mrs. Halkett told us ’spressly not to get soiled or even rumpled before we saw you. And we’re sorry we did, – but, oh! that brook! When can we go there again? To-morrow?”
“Or this afternoon,” said Dick, sidling up to Aunt Rachel; “it isn’t late, is it?”
The twins had instinctively discerned that Miss Rachel was the one of whom to ask permission. Aunt Abbie seemed more lovable, perhaps, but without a doubt Aunt Rachel was the fixer of their fate.
“This afternoon! I should say not!” exclaimed Miss Rachel. “It’s nearly supper time now, and how you’re going to be made presentable is more than I know! Have you any other clothes?”
“In our trunks, – lots of ’em,” said Dick, cheerfully. “But these are our best ones. Mrs. Halkett put them on us purpose to come to you. I’m sorry they’re smashed.”
Dick’s sorrow was expressed in such blithe and nonchalant tones, that Miss Rachel only smiled grimly.
“Are you hungry?” she said.
“No’m,” said Dick, slowly, and Dolly added, “Not very. Of course we’re always some hungry. But Aunt Rachel, can’t we go out and scoot round the yard? Just to see what it’s like, you know. Of course, this room is, – beautiful, but we do love to be out doors. May we?”
“No,” said Miss Rachel, decidedly, and though Miss Abbie said, timidly, “Why don’t you let them?” the elder sister resumed:
“Go out on my lawn looking like that? Indeed you can’t! I’d be ashamed to have the chickens see you, – let alone the servants!”
“Oh, are there chickens?” cried Dolly, dancing about in excitement. “I’m so glad we’re going to live here!”
She made a movement as if to hug her Aunt Rachel once again, but as she saw the involuntary drawing away of that lady’s shoulders, she transferred her caress to Dick, and the tattered twins fell on each other’s necks in mutual joy of anticipation.
“You are a ridiculous pair of children,” said Aunt Abbie, laughing at the sight; “but as I hope you’ll show some of your father’s traits, you may improve under our training.”
“If we can train such hopeless cases,” said Miss Rachel. “Has nobody ever taught you how to behave?”
“Yes,” said Dick, growing red at the implication. “Auntie Helen is a lovely lady, and she taught us to be honourable and polite.”
“Oh, she did! and do you call it honourable to go off wading in your best clothes, while we were waiting for you to come here?”
Dick’s honest little face looked troubled.
“I don’t know,” he said, truly, but Dolly, who was often the quicker-witted of the two, spoke up:
“It may have been naughty, Aunt Rachel, but I don’t ’zackly think it was dishonourable. Do you?” Thus pinned down, Miss Rachel considered.
“Perhaps ‘dishonourable’ isn’t quite the right word,” she said, “but we won’t discuss that now. I shall teach you to behave properly, of course, but we won’t begin until you look like civilised beings, capable of being taught. Just now, I think hot baths, with plenty of soap, will be the best thing for you, but as you have no clean clothes, you’ll have to go to bed.”
“At five o’clock! Whew!” said Dick. “Oh, I say, Aunt Rachel, not to bed!”
“Anyway, let us go for a tear around the yard first,” begged Dolly. “We can’t hurt these clothes now; and I don’t believe the chickens will mind. Are there little chickens, Aunt Abbie?”
“Yes, little woolly yellow ones.”
“Like the ones on Easter souvenirs? Oh, please let us see them now, —please!”
More persuaded by the violence of her niece’s plea than by her own inclination, Miss Rachel said they might go out for half an hour, and then they must come in to baths and beds.
“And supper?” asked Dick, hopefully.
“Yes, bread and milk after you’re clean and tucked into bed.”
“Only bread and milk?” said Dolly, with eyes full of wheedlesomeness.
“Well, perhaps jam,” said Aunt Abbie, smiling, and somehow her smile augured even more than jam. Out they scampered then, and soon found Michael, who introduced them to the chickens and also to Pat, who was the gardener.
“I like you,” said Dolly, slipping her little hand into Pat’s big one, both being equally grimy. “Please show us all the flowers and things.”
There was so much to look at, they could only compass a small part of it in their allotted half-hour. Dana Dene covered about thirty acres, but it was not a real farm. A vegetable garden supplied the household wants, and the rest of the estate was park and flower beds and a bit of woods and an orchard and a terrace, and the poultry yard and stables, and other delights of which the children could only guess.
“Aren’t you glad we came?” said Dolly, still hanging on to Pat’s hand.
“I – I guess so, Miss,” he replied, cautiously; “but I can’t say yet, for sure. Ye’re rampageous, I’m afraid. Ain’t ye, now?”
“Yes,” said Dick, who was always honest, “I think we are. At least, everybody says so. But, Pat, we’re going to try not to make you any trouble.”
“Now, that’s a good boy. If ye talk like that, you ’n me’ll be friends.”
Dolly said nothing, but she smiled happily up into Patrick’s kind eyes, and then, with their usual adaptability to circumstances, the twins began to feel at home.
CHAPTER III
AN EARLY STROLL
Soon after daybreak next morning, Dolly woke, and surveyed with satisfaction her pretty room.
Pink roses clambered over the wall paper, and over the chintz hangings and furniture, and over the soft, dainty bed-coverlet.
It was much more attractive than her room at Aunt Helen’s, and as Dolly loved pretty things, she gave a little sigh of content and nestled comfortably into her pillows. Then she heard Dick’s voice whispering through the closed door between their rooms.
“Hi, Dolly; I say! Aren’t you up yet?”
“No, are you?”
“Yes, and ’most dressed. Hustle, can’t you? and let’s go out and chase around the place.”
“Before breakfast?”
“Yes; breakfast isn’t until eight o’clock, and it’s only six now.”
“All right, I’ll hustle,” and Dolly sprang out of bed, and began to dress.
The twins were a self-reliant pair, and quite capable and methodical when they had time to be.
Dolly dressed herself neatly in a clean blue and white plaid gingham; and as she could tie her hair ribbon quite well enough, except for special occasions, the blue bow on her golden curls was entirely satisfactory.
“I’m all ready, Dick,” she whispered at last, through the door, “and we mustn’t make any noise, for maybe the aunties are asleep yet.”
