She came across to Joey's bed. "Got my message, young 'un?" "Yes, thanks awfully." "That's all right. He won't think any more of it. You come to me, if anybody tries on that sort of game again. You'll always find some fat-headed idiots in Coll who think it funny. Good-night." "Good-night, and thanks no end." Ingrid turned the light out. Blue Dorm was left in outward peace. It was outward only! CHAPTER VI A NIGHT ON THE LEADS Ingrid's steps--alert, responsible--died away into distance. Silence settled down. Then Sybil drew a long breath, and spoke in accents which were hushed, but audible. "Of all the utterly mean young skunks!" "Disgusting!" Noreen agreed. "But I suppose she hasn't learnt anything better," said Barbara. Joey wriggled in bed, but held her tongue. Let them go on; they wouldn't hurt her. "Such a pig about the bath-water--I hardly washed at all," Syb went on. "Frightfully lowering to Redlands to turn that sort in," Barbara took up the parable. Joey couldn't keep out of the fray any longer. "Did the Redlands girls want to have a nice kind fat old nurse apiece to look after them and keep them from being contaminated by less select people?" she jeered. "Poor little dears!" "We're not talking to you, Jocelyn Graham. We don't talk to girls who behave as you do," Sybil told her icily. "Righto. Don't then," Joey said, and turned over in bed. But the outraged three had not finished by any manner of means. "Sucking up and sneaking to Ingrid Latimer, too; I do call that the limit," Noreen went on. "Notice how she jawed _at_ us--and I adored Ingrid all last term." Joey was too proud to speak again after her recent snub, or she might have informed them that she had _not_ sneaked to Ingrid Latimer. As it was--let them think it if they liked--she didn't care. "Shame to put her into Blue Dorm," that was Barbara. "P'r'aps she could be cleared out." "Miss Conyngham is frightfully stuffy about changing dorms after she and Matron have worked it all out." Joey got out of bed, shouldered into a dressing-gown, thrust on slippers, and seized her blue quilt. "As it's rather difficult to go to sleep, while you're making all this row, I'll sleep somewhere else to-night, if you don't mind," she explained, with elaborate politeness, and was out of the door, trailing her quilt after her, before any of the three had recovered from the blank surprise caused by her remark. When she came out of Bathroom 8, Joey had noticed a ladder at the far end of the passage; she guessed that it must lead on to the roof. And what better place could one find to sleep on than a roof, on such a fine September night as this? Even if it rained she thought the leads would be better than a Blue Dorm full of hateful girls who talked at her. She scrambled up the latter, stumbling over the blue quilt; pushed open a trap-door, and arrived, sure enough, upon the leads, all silver in the moonlight.