erting her, and then
by what will not be named. But she 's all right now.--You belong to
me, Leuchy.'

'That I do,' replied Leucha; and so marvellously had love found out the
way that the very expression of her unpleasant little face had
completely altered. As Hollyhock's friend, she was now admitted into
the greatest secrets of the school; but the real secret of the ghost
was still kept back.

CHAPTER XX.

MEG'S CONSCIENCE.

All went well for a time in the school, and all would have gone well
for a much longer period had it not been for Meg Drummond. Meg did not
mean to make mischief; but, alas! she was troubled by a conscience.
This she considered very virtuous and noble on her part; but she was
also troubled by something else, which was neither virtuous nor noble.
She seemed jealous--frantically jealous--of Leucha Villiers.

Lady Crossways had spoken of her young daughter as 'my cold,
distinguished child, who never wears her heart on her sleeve.' Lady
Crossways was very proud of this trait in Leucha, and Leucha herself
was proud of it, and treasured and fostered it until she came across
Hollyhock. From the first she was attracted by Hollyhock--a queer sort
of attraction, a mingling of love and jealous hate; but now it was all
love, all devotion. As a matter of fact, she tried Hollyhock very
much, following her about like the kitchen cat when she smelt cream,
fawning upon her in a way which soon became repulsive to Hollyhock,
refusing to have any other friend, and over and over again in the day
kissing Hollyhock's hands, her brow, her cheeks, her lips. All this
sort of thing was pure torture to Hollyhock. But although she was
terribly tried, she determined to go through with her mission, and
hoped ere long to train Leucha into finer and grander ways. By their
father's permission, Leucha was invited to accompany the Flower Girls
to The Garden on a certain Saturday. The boys looked at her with
undisguised disdain, and expressed openly their astonishment at
Hollyhock's taste; but when she begged of them to be good to the poor
girlie, the Precious Stones succumbed, as they ever did, to bonnie
Hollyhock.

The school had been open now for some time, and the full number of
seventy was made up. Leucha was now so infatuated with Hollyhock that
she no longer regretted her being the queen of the school. Hollyhock,
for her part, held serious conversations with her sisters about the
girl whom she had so