Part 13 (1/2)
”Ask Him, dear child!”
”Will He?” said Flaxie, earnestly. ”Oh, yes, I know;” and her eager face fell. ”But He'll have to make me homely to do it, just like Miss Pike.”
”Oh, no, my darling.”
”Won't He? See what a orful cole-sore I've got on my mouth. If it would stay there, and stick on always, do you s'pose I'd grow good?” asked Flaxie, thoughtfully.
Aunt Charlotte almost smiled.
”'Cause I'm willing to be a little homely,--now truly--if I can have a nice so-o-ul,” added the child, with a true and deep feeling of her own naughtiness that I am sure the angels must have been glad to see.
But she was shaking the bed again, and Uncle Ben drew her gently away, and took her down stairs in his arms to finish the rest of her ”crazy Christmas.”
CHAPTER IX.
MILLY VISITING.
Winter pa.s.sed, spring came, and April was half over before the twin cousins met again. Then it was Milly's turn to go to Laurel Grove to see Flaxie. She had written a postal-card slowly, and with great pains, to say ”she should be there to-morrow if it was pleasant.”
But how it did rain! It had rained for two days as if the sky meant to pour itself away in tears; but on Wednesday the sun came rus.h.i.+ng through the clouds, his face all aglow with smiles, and put an end to such dismal business. The rain ceased, the clouds scampered away and hid themselves, and the sky cleared up as bright as if nothing had ever been the matter.
Sweet little Milly looked out of the window, heard the birds sing, and whispered in her heart:
”Oh, how kind G.o.d is to give me a good day to go to Laurel Grove!”
She didn't own a pretty valise of brown canvas with leather straps like Flaxie's. All in the world she had was an old bandbox trunk that belonged to her mother, and she took no care of that, for Milly never ”travelled alone.”
”Well, little sobersides,” said her father, putting the check in his pocket, the ticket in his hat, and opening a car-window before he sat down beside Milly. ”Well, little sobersides, are you glad you're going visiting?”
”Yes, sir,” said she, her eyes s.h.i.+ning. She didn't laugh and clap her hands quite as much as Flaxie did, but you always knew when she was happy by the glad look in her eyes.
”I hope you two little folks won't get into too much mischief at Laurel Grove. Are you going to school?”
”Yes, sir; and oh, it's such an elegant schoolhouse!”
”Well, don't set it on fire.”
Milly blushed.
”But the teacher isn't half so nice as Miss Pike.”
The dear little girl had not been at Laurel Grove for a long while, but all the people in town seemed to remember her,--Mr. Lane the minister, Mr. Snow the postmaster, and everybody they met in the street. Her father noticed how they smiled upon her, as if they loved her, and it made his heart glad.
Preston drove his uncle and cousin home from the depot, but he almost ran into a lumber-wagon, and Mr. Allen thought he was too young a boy to be trusted with such a fiery horse as Whiz. Flaxie sat with him on the front seat of the carriage, dancing up and down, and turning around to say to Milly:
”Oh, I'm so happy I can't keep still.” She looked like a bluebird, in her blue dress and sash, with a white chip bonnet, blue ribbon and blue feather, and Milly thought there was not another such girl in the world.
It was a charming place at Dr. Gray's, and the house was full of beautiful things, such as Milly did not see at her own home; but that never made her discontented or unhappy. If G.o.d gave Flaxie prettier things than He gave her, it was because He thought best to do so, and that was enough for Milly.