Mayn't I go again to see
her?'

'_And_ the parrot,' said mamma, smiling. She was sharp enough to take in
that it was a quarter for Mrs. Wylie and three quarters for the parrot
that he wanted so to go back to Rock Terrace. 'Well, you must promise
never to pay visits on your own account again, Peterkin, and then we
shall see. Now run upstairs to the nursery as fast as you can and get
some tea. And I'm sure Clem and Giles will be glad of some more. I hope
poor nurse and Blanche and Elfie know he is all right,' she added,
glancing round.

'Yes, ma'am. I took the liberty of going up to tell the young ladies and
Mrs. Brough, when Master Peterkin first returned,' said James in his
very politest and primmest tone.

'That was very thoughtful of you,' said mamma, approvingly, which made
James get very red.

We three boys skurried upstairs after that. At least I did. Clement came
more slowly, but as his legs were long enough to take two steps at a
time, he got to the top nearly as soon as I did, and Peterkin came
puffing after us. I was rather surprised that Blanche and Elf had been
content to stay quietly in the nursery, considering all the excitement
that had been going on downstairs, and I think it was very good of
Blanche, for she told me afterwards that she had only done it to keep
Elvira from getting into one of her endless crying fits. They always say
Elf is such a nervous child that she can't help it, but _I_ think it's a
good bit of it cross temper too.

Still she is rather growing out of it, and, after all, that night there
was something to cry about, and there might have been worse, as nurse
said. She had been telling the girls stories of people who got lost,
though she was sensible enough to make them turn up all right at the
end. She can tell very interesting stories sometimes, but she keeps the
_best_ ones to amuse us when we are ill, or when mamma's gone away on a
visit, or something horrid like that has happened.

They all three flew at Peterkin, of course, and hugged him as if he'd
been shipwrecked, or putting out a fire, or something grand like that.
And he took it as coolly as anything, and asked for his tea, as if he
deserved all the petting and fussing.

That was another of his little 'ways,' I suppose.

Then, as we were waiting for the kettle to boil up again to make fresh
tea, if you please, for his lordship--though Clem and I were to have
some too, of course, and we did deserve it--all the story