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MissAmeliacaughtmyshouldersandshookmeashardasshecould；andsheprovedtobestrongerthanyoueverwouldhavethoughttolookather。
“Takeyourseat！“shecried。“Youarearude，untrainedchild！“
“Theydofight！“Iinsisted，asIheldmyheadhighandwalkedtomydesk。
Leonlaughedoutloud，andthatmadeeveryoneelse。MissAmeliahadsomuchtodoforafewminutesthatsheforgotme，andI
knownowwhyLeonstartedit，atleastpartly。Hesaidafterwarditwasthefunniestsightheeversaw。Mycheeksmartedandburned。Icouldscarcelykeepfromfeelingtolearnwhetheritwereswelling，butIwouldn’thaveshedatearorraisedmyhandforanythingyoucouldoffer。
RecesswascomingandIdidn’tknowwhattodo。IfIwenttotheplayground，allofthemwouldteaseme；andifIsatatmydeskMissAmeliawouldhaveanotherchanceatme。Thatwastoomuchtorisk，soIfollowedtheothersoutdoors，andohjoy！therecameLaddiedowntheroad。Hesetmeononeofthepostsofthehitchingrackbeforethechurch，andwithmyarmsaroundhisneck，Isobbedoutthewholestory。
“Shedidn’tunderstand，“saidLaddiequietly。“YoustayhereuntilIcomeback。I’llgoexplaintoheraboutthebirds。
Perhapsshehasn’twatchedthemascloselyasyouhave。“
Recesswasoverbeforehereturned。Hehadwethishandkerchiefatthewaterbucket，andnowhebathedmyfaceandeyes，straightenedmyhairwithhispocketcomb，andbeganunlacingmyshoes。
“Whatareyougoingtodo？“Iasked。“Imustwearthem。Allthegirlsdo。Onlytheboysarebarefoot。“
“Youareexcused，“answeredLaddie。“Three-fourthsofthedayisenoughtobeginon。MissAmeliasaysyoumaycomewithme。“
“Whereareyougoing？“
Laddiewasstrippingoffmystockingsashelookedintomyeyes，andsmiledapeculiarlittlesmile。
“OhLaddie！“Icried。“Willyoutakeme？Honest！“
Helaughedagainandthenherubbedmyfeet。
“Poorabusedfeet，“hesaid。“SometimesIwishshoeshadneverbeeninvented。“
“Theyfeelprettygoodwhenthere’sice。“
“Sotheydo！“saidLaddie。
Heswungmetotheground，andwecrossedtheroad，climbedthefence，andinaminuteourredbirdswampshuttheschoolhouseandcrossoldMissAmeliafromsight。ThenweturnedandstartedstraighttowardourBigWoods。Icouldscarcelykeepontheground。
“Howaretheothersgettingalong？“askedLaddie。
“She’scrossastwosticks，“Itoldhim。“JohnnyHoodhasn’tshotonepaperwad，andLeonhadn’tdoneathinguntilhelaughedaboutthebirds，andIguesshedidthattomakeherforgetme。“
“Good！“criedLaddie。“Ididn’tsupposetheboythoughtthatfar。“
“Oh，younevercantellbylookingathim，howfarLeonisthinking，“Isaid。
“That’sso，too，“saidLaddie。“Areyourfeetcomfortablenow？“
“Yes，butLaddie，isn’tmyfacemarked？“
“I’mafraiditisalittle，“saidLaddie。“We’llbatheitagainatthecreek。Wemustgetitfixedsomotherwon’tnotice。“
“WhatwillthePrincessthink？“
“Thatyoufell，perhaps，“saidLaddie。
“Dothetearsshow？“
“Notatall。Wewashedthemallaway。“
“DidIdowrong，Laddie？“
“Yes，Ithinkyoudid。“
“Butitwasn’ttrue，whatshesaid。“
“That’snotthepoint。“
WehadreachedthefenceoftheBigWoods。Heliftedmetothetoprailandexplained，whileIcombedhiswavinghairwithmyfingers。
“Shedidn’tstrikeyoubecausewhatyousaidwasnotso，foritwas。Sheknewinstantlyyouwereright，ifsheknowsanythingatallaboutoutdoors。Thisiswhatmadeherangry：itisherfirstday。Shewantedtomakeagoodimpressiononherpupils，toarousetheirinterest，andawakentheirrespect。Whenyouspoke，allofthemknewyouwereright，andshewaswrong；thatmadeherridiculous。Can’tyouseehowitmadeherlookandfeel？“
“Ididn’tnoticehowshelooked，butfromthewayshehitme，youcouldtellshefeltbadenough。“
“Shesurelydid，“saidLaddie，kissingmycheeksoftly。“Poorlittlewoman！Whataworldofthingsyouhavetolearn！“
“Shouldn’tIhavetoldherhowmistakenshewas？“
“Ifyouhadgonetoheralone，atrecessornoon，orto-night，probablyshewouldhavethankedyou。Thenshecouldhavecorrectedherselfatsomeconvenienttimeandkeptherdignity。“
“MustIaskherpardon？“
“Whatyoushoulddo，istoputyourselfinMissAmelia’splaceandtrytounderstandhowshefelt。Thenifyouthinkyouwouldn’thavelikedanyonetodotoyouwhatyoudidtoher，you’llknow。“
IhuggedLaddietightandthoughtfast——therewasnoneedtothinklongtoseehowitwas。
“IgottotellherIwaswrong，“Isaid。“Nowlet’sgototheEnchantedWoodandseeifwecanfindtheQueen’sdaughter。“
“Allright！“saidLaddie。
Heleapedthefence，swungmeover，andstartedtowardthepawpawthicket。Hedidn’tdomuchgoingaround。Hecrashedthroughandover；andsoonhebeganwhistlingtheloveliestlittledancytune。Itmadeyourheadwhirl，andyourtoestingle，andyouknewitwassingingthatwayinhisheart，andhewasjustlettingoutthemusic。Thatwaswhyitmadeyouwanttodanceandwhirl；itwassoalive。Butthatwasn’tthewayinanEnchantedWood。Ipulledhishand。
“Laddie！“Icautioned，“keepinthepath！You’llstepontheFairiesandcrushawholebandwithonefoot。NowondertheQueenmakesherdaughtergrowbigwhenshesendshertoyou。Ifyoumakesomuchnoise，someonewillhearyou，thenthiswon’tbeasecretanymore。“
Laddielaughed，buthesteppedcarefullyinthepathafterthat，andhesaid：“Therearetimes，LittleSister，whenIdon’tcarewhetherthissecretissecretanotherminuteornot。Secretsdon’tagreewithme。I’mtoobig，andbroad，andtoomuchofaman，togocreepingthroughthewoodswithasecret。Iprefertoprintitonabannerandrideuptheroadwavingit。“
“Like，——`Ayouthwhoboremidsnowandice，Abannerwithastrangedevice，’“Isaid。
“Thatwouldbe`abannerwithastrangedevice，’“laughestLaddie。“But，yes——somethinglike！“
“HaveyoutoldthePrincess？“
“Ihave！“Laddiefairlyshoutedit。
“DocsSHElikesecrets？“
“NomorethanIdo！“
“Thenwhy——？“
“Thereyougo！“saidLaddie。“Zeus，butthewomanisbeginningtomeasleoutalloveryou！Youknowaswellasanyonethatthere’ssomethingwrongatherhouse。Idon’tknowwhatitis；I
can’tevenmakeasensibleguessasyet，butit’sworsethantheneighboursthink。It’sathingthathasdrivenafamilyfromtheirhomecountry，underanamethatIhavedoubtsaboutbeingtheirs，andsentthemacrossanocean，`strangersinastrangeland，’asitsaysintheBible。It’ssomethingthatkeepsaculturedgentlemanandscholarragingupanddowntheroadsandoverthecountrylikeamadman。Itshutsawhite-faced，lovely，littlewomanfromherneighbours，butIhavepassedherwalkingtheroadatnightwithbothhandspressedagainstherheart。
SometimesittriesthePrincesspastenduranceandcontrol；andithashersowornandtiredstrugglingwithitthatsheiswillingtocarryanothersecret，ratherthantrytofindstrengthtodoanythingthatwouldmakemoretroubleforherfatherandmother。“
“Wouldittroublethemforhertoknowyou，Laddie？“
“Solongastheydon’tandwon’tbecomeacquaintedwithme，oranyone，ofcourseitwould。“
“Can’tyouforcethemtoknowyou？“
“ThatIcan！“saidLaddie。“Butyousee，IonlymetthePrincessashorttimeago，andtherewouldbenouseinraisingtrouble，unlessshewillmakemeherKnight！“
“Buthasn’tshe，Laddie？“
“Notintheverylittlestleast，“saidLaddie。“ForallIknow，sheismerelyusingmetohelppassalonelyhour。Yousee，peoplerearedinEnglandhaveideasofclass，thattwoorthreegenerationsspentherewashout。ThePrincessandherfamilyareoftheunwashedBritish。Father’speoplehavebeenherelongenoughtojudgeamanonhisownmerits。“
“YoumeanthePrincess’familywouldthinkyou’renotgoodenoughtobeherKnight？“
“Exactly！“
“Andweknowthatourfamilythinkstheyareinfidels，andwickedpeople；andthatifshewouldhaveyou，motherwouldbesickinbedoverit。OhLaddie！“
“Precisely！“
“Whatareyougoingtodo？“
“ThatImustfindout。“
“Whenitwillmakesomuchtrouble，whynotforgether，andgoonlikeyoudidbeforeshecame？Then，allofuswerehappy。Now，itmakesmeshivertothinkwhatwillhappen。“
“Metoo，“saidLaddie。“Butlookhere，LittleSister，rightinmyface。WillyoueverforgetthePrincess？“
“Never！“
“Thenhowcanyouaskmeto？“
“Ididn’tmeanforgether，exactly。Imeantnotcomehereanddothingsthatwillmakeeveryoneunhappy。“
“Oneminute，Chick-a-Biddy，“saidLaddie。Sometimeshecalledmethat，whenhelovedmetheverymostofall。Idon’tbelieveanyoneexceptmeeverheardhimdoit。“Letmeaskyouthis：doesourfatherloveourmother？“
“Loveher？“Icried。“Whyhejustloveshertodeath！Heturnssowhite，andhesuffersso，whenherpainistheworst。Loveher？Andshehim？Why，don’tyouremembertheotherdaywhenhetippedherheadagainsthimandkissedherthroatasheleftthetable；thatheaskedherifshe`lovedhimyet，’andshesaidrightbeforeallofus，`WhyPaul，Iloveyou，untilIscarcelycankeepmyfingersoffyou！’Laddie，isitlikethatwithyouandthePrincess？“
“Itiswithme，“saidLaddie。“NotwiththePrincess！Now，canIforgether？CanIkeepawayfromeventhechancetopassherontheroad？“
“No，“Isaid。“No，youcan’t，Laddie。Butcanyouevermakeherloveyou？“
“Ittakestimetofindthatout，“saidLaddie。“Ihavegottotry；soyoubeawomanandkeepmysecretalittlewhilelonger，untilIfindawayout，butdon’tbotheryourheadaboutit！“
“Ican’thelpbotheringmyhead，Laddie。Can’tyoumakeherunderstandthatGodisnotamyth？“
“I’mnonetoosurewhatIbelievemyself，“saidLaddie。“NotthatthereisnoGod——Idon’tmeanthat——butIsurelydon’tbelieveallfather’steachings。“
“IfyoubelieveGod，dootherlittlethingsmatter，Laddie？“
“Ithinknot，“saidLaddie，“elseHeavenwouldbeallMethodists。
AsforthePrincess，allshehasheardinherlifehasbeenagainsttherebeingaGod。Now，sheislearningsomethingontheotherside。Afterawhileshecanjudgeforherself。Itisforus，whoprofesstobeaChristianfamily，toprovetoherwhywebelieveinGod，andwhatHedoesforus。“
“Well，shewouldthinkHecoulddoagooddeal，ifsheknewhowmotherhatedaskinghertocometoourhouse；andyetshedidit，beautifullytoo，justtogiveherachancetoseethatverything。ButIalmostmadeherdoit。Idon’tbelievesheeverwouldalone，Laddie，oratleastnotforalongtimeyet。“
“Isawthat，andunderstooditperfectly，“saidLaddie。“Thankyou，LittleSister。“Hepickedmeupandhuggedmetight。“IfI
couldonlymakeyousee！“
“ButLaddie，Ido！I’mnotababy！Iknowhowpeopleloveandmakehomesforthemselves，likeSallyandPeteraregoingto。IfitiswithyouaboutthePrincessasitiswithfatherandmother，whyIdoknow。“
“Allright！Hereweare！“saidLaddie。
HepartedthewillowsandwesteppedontheMagicCarpet，andthatminutetheMagicworked。Iforgoteveryawful，solemn，troublousthingwehadbeentalkingabout，andlookedaroundwhileLaddiekneltandhuntedforaletter，andtherewasnone。
ThatmeantthePrincesswascoming，sowesatonthethronetowait。Wehadn’trememberedtobathemycheek，wehadbeensobusywhenwepassedthewater，andIdoubtifwewerethinkingmuchthen。Wejustwaited。Thewillowwallswavedgently，themosscarpetwasspottedwithlittlegoldpatchesofsunlight，intheshadeafewoftheredflowersstillbloomed，andbig，lazybumblebeeshummedaroundthem，orahummingbirdstoodonairbeforethem。Asortofgoldenthrobbingfilledthewoods，andmyheartbegantoleap，why，Idon’tknow；butI’msureLaddie’sdidtoo，forIlookedathimandhiseyeswereshiningasIneverhadseenthembefore，whilehischeekswerealittlered，andhewasbreathinglikewhenyou’vebeenrunning；thensuddenlyhisbodygrewtenseagainstmine，andthatmeantshewascoming。
Likethatfirstday，shecameslowlythroughthewoods，stoppinghereandtheretotouchthetrunkofatree，putbackabranch，orbendoveraflowerface。Brownasthewoodfloorwasherdress，andcardinalflowersblazedonherbreast，andthesamecolourshowedonhercheeksandlips。HereyeswerelikeLaddie’sforbrightness，andshewasbreathingthesameway。I
thoughtsuretherewasgoingtobesomethingtorememberalifetime——IwassoexcitedIcouldn’tstandstill。BeforeitcouldhappenLaddiewentandsaiditwasa“beautifulday，“andshesaid“itdidn’tshowinthewoods，butthepasturesneededrain。“Thenshekissedme。WellifIever！Isankonthethroneandsatthere。Theywentontalkinglikethat，untilitwastoodulltobear，soIslippedoutandwanderedawaytoseewhatIcouldfind。WhenIgrewtiredandwentback，LaddiewassittingontheMagicCarpetwithhisbackagainstthebeech，andthePrincesswasonthethronereadingfromalittlebook，readingsuchinterestingthingsthatIdecidedtolisten。Afterawhileshecametothis：
“Thouarematedwithaclown，Andthegrossnessofhisnature，willhaveweighttobeartheedown。“
Laddiethrewbackhishead，andhowhelaughed！ThePrincessputdownthebookandlookedathimsosurprised。
“Areyoureadingthattomebecauseyouthinkitappropriate？“
askedLaddie。
“Iamreadingitbecauseitisconcededtobeoneofthemostbeautifulpoemseverwritten，“saidthePrincess。
