Shasha at Malory Towers

A narrow shave

"What happened to you?!" Alicia was the first to ask. "Mam'zelle!"
Mam'zelle threw her head back and laughed heartily. The girls eventually joined in too, not sure what she's laughing at.
"It is a treek!" Mam'zelle said with a wide grin. "Just like what you did to me!"
They realised how they have been caught.
"Sorry, Mam'zelle..." Betty eventually said. "But your eyes...?"
"It's the contact lenses that I found in a catalogue," Mam'zelle said with a chuckle. "Pretty neat, n'est-ce pas?"
She tried to take them off to show the girls, but they quickly stopped her.
"Mam'zelle, don't!" Sally warned. "Your eyes will hurt! You better do it in the bathroom later, after washing your hands."
Mam'zelle sighed and put her sunglasses back on again. The match was at half-time, and slices of lemon were handed around to the players.
"You did a great job, Darrell," Molly praised. "Keep up the good work!"
Darrell swallowed a chunk of lemon and smiled. "Thanks, Molly!"
The game began again, and Darrell was taking the lead. She caught the ball in her net, and swiftly passed it to her teammate. That girl was tackled, and soon, the ball went there.
Darrell ran after her and tackled her, getting the ball into her net. There were many opposing team members waiting to tackle her, so Darrell decided to go for a long shot.
Literally.
She swung her net it the air and threw the ball with all her might. It was as if time was slowed when the rest of cheering girls anxiously watched the ball being hurled.
They screamed happily when the goalkeeper failed to catch the ball. They sang, they danced, the cheered.
But the game wasn't over yet. There was still six minutes left.
Darrell played with all her heart, proud that she won her team a goal.

"Miss Williams, can you find Mam'zelle Dupont?" Miss Grayling suddenly said, stopping said mistress as she walked past them. "Mam'zelle Rougier is saying strange things about her..."
"Is something wrong?" Miss Williams asked, puzzled. "Mam'zelle, what happened to you? You look as if you've seen a ghost!"
"That woman... she is a witch!" Mam'zelle Rougier exclaimed in terror. "Miss Grayling, she has to be sent off!"
Miss Grayling gave Miss Williams a smile, a smile that tells you that she doesn't believe her either. Miss Williams chuckled, and went to look for the plump Frenchwoman.
She walked around, and at last she spotted Mam'zelle among the crowd of students.
"Mam'zelle!" Miss Williams called. "Miss Grayling wants to see you!"
Mam'zelle groaned and got up. The girls winked at each other when they remembered how she was still wearing those scary contact lenses.
And then they became anxious for her.

Mam'zelle followed Miss Williams and saw Miss Grayling in the distance, next to a trembling Mam'zelle Rougier. She already knew what this was about.
"Excusez-moi, Miss Williams," Mam'zelle quickly said. "I need to go to the bathroom. It is very urgent. I'll meet you back in a minute."
Without waiting for an answer, Mam'zelle hurried off to the bathroom and took her contact lenses off before safely putting them back in their case. She washed her eyes, and put some eye drops into her eyes. She blinked a few times and left the bathroom, wiping her face with a hanky. She went to the headmistress and smiled, her sunglasses still on.
"Bonjour, Miss Grayling," Mam'zelle Dupont greeted formally. "What is it that you wanted to tell me?"
"Miss Grayling, ask her to take those glasses off!" Mam'zelle Rougier exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at her. "Her eyes... they are not normal! They are... they are ABOMINABLE!"
"I think you mean abnormal, Mam'zelle," Miss Grayling corrected with a chuckle. She turned back to the plump woman. "Mam'zelle Dupont, take those sunglasses off. Mam'zelle Rougier claims that you have monstrous eyes."
Mam'zelle Dupont grinned and slowly removed her sunglasses, her eyes shut.
"Open your eyes!" Mam'zelle Rougier shouted in french.
Mam'zelle Dupont did, and the bony woman stared in shock. She even whimpered slightly and started accusing her of shapeshifting.
"Mam'zelle Rougier, nothing of the sort has happened," Miss Grayling said. "I've been working with Mam'zelle Dupont for years now, and she's a very good woman. Now please, excuse me."
She walked away, leaving the two Mam'zelles with Miss Williams.
"I'm not gonna be between your fights," Miss Williams said, raising her hands in surrender while she left too.
Mam'zelle Rougier started shouting at her, even shoving the Bible in her face. Mam'zelle Dupont didn't stay silent, she scolded back.
In french.
"I am a normal woman!" Mam'zelle Dupont argued. "You are the witch!"
Gwendoline walked past there and chuckled. The others had already told her about Mam'zelle's 'treek' and she was in on the joke too. She stopped in her tracks when Mam'zelle Dupont called to her.
"Gwen!" Mam'zelle called, shortening her name, much to her surprise. "Come here for a moment."
Gwendoline did and tried to flash them the sweetest of her smiles.
"Good afternoon, Mam'zelles," she greeted. "How are you today?"
"Gwendoline, this woman's eye were red and green not long ago, n'est-ce pas?" Mam'zelle Rougier asked her. "Now, if you tell me the truth, I'll buy you a lot of chocolates from the town later."
Gwendoline thought for a moment. Free chocolates...
But then she spotted Mam'zelle Dupont behind her, silently begging her to decline. She knew if Mam'zelle Rougier used Gwendoline as a witness, the girls would hate her, and Mam'zelle would be forced to leave.
And that would mean Mam'zelle Rougier replacing he as their french mistress.
And that would also mean no more tricks in class.
"No, Mam'zelle Rougier," Gwendoline shook her golden head. "Her eyes were fine. I even sat with her while watching the match. Right, Mam'zelle?"
"Oui, ma petite," Mam'zelle said with a smile. "We watched the match together!"
"But why did you leave?" Mam'zelle Rougier persistently asked. "You saw her eyes, n'est-ce pas?"
"No, Mam'zelle," Gwendoline said. "I left because I wanted to get a drink from the stall the seniors set up."
She then excused herself and hurried off to the rest of the girls. She told them of her small adventure with the Frenchwomen.
"Good work, Gwen!" Alicia cheered, much to her surprise. "You saved our dear old Mam'zelle!"
They started cheering for her, and the lacrosse girls were informed of this little tit bit during their victory feast in the dining hall.
The day was very eventful for the lower-fourth of Mallory Towers.