man. I may be a
quarter-of-an-hour or twenty minutes away. So all you three have got to
do in the meantime is to have a good tea, and trust me. And don't think
about witches, or bad fairies, or anything disagreeable till you see me
again,' she added, nodding to the two children. 'Browner, you will see
that they have everything they want.'

Browner smiled, and Beryl ran off, and in a minute or two we heard her
come downstairs again, with her cloak and hat on, no doubt, and the
front door shut, and I heard the cab drive away.

Talking of fairies, I can't imagine anything more like the best of good
ones than Beryl Wylie seemed to us that afternoon.

Browner was very kind and sensible. For after she had poured out our
tea, and handed us a plateful of bread-and-butter and another of little
cakes, she left the room, showing us the bell, in case we wanted more
milk or anything.

And then--perhaps it may seem very thoughtless of us, but, as I have
said before, even I, the eldest, wasn't very old--we really enjoyed
ourselves! It was so jolly to feel warm and to have a good tea, and,
above all, to know that we had found kind friends, who would tell us
what to do.

Margaret seemed perfectly happy, and to have got rid of all her fears of
being sent back to the witch. And Peterkin, in those days, was never
very surprised at anything, for nothing that could happen was as
wonderful as the wonders of the fairy-land he lived in. So he was quite
able to enjoy himself without any trying to do so.

I do feel, however, rather ashamed of one bit of it all. You'd scarcely
believe that it never came into my head to think that mamma might be
frightened about us, even though the afternoon was getting on into
evening, and the darkness outside made it seem later than it really was!

I can't understand it of myself, considering that I had seen with my
own eyes how frightened she had been the evening Peterkin got lost. I
suppose my head had got tired and confused with all the fears and things
it had been full of, but it is rather horrid to remember, all the same.

CHAPTER XI

DEAR MAMMA

BERYL must have been away longer than she had expected, for when we
heard the front bell ring and a minute later she hurried in, her first
words were--

'Did you think I was never coming back? I will explain to you what I
have been doing.'

When her eyes fell on us, however, her expression changed. She looked
pleased, but a little surprised,