"Yes, they have all been overcomes," repeated Nathalie, "but it will be all right if I only manage to earn-" She paused abruptly, suddenly remembering, as she saw the lines of worry about her mother's mouth, that she and d.i.c.k had pledged themselves not to talk about his operation, or to hint that they were trying to save in any way for it.

They had both been troubled when they realized that when an anxiety was mentioned her mother's face lost its happy look and she became sad and worried.

"Yes," added Mrs. Page, not noticing Nathalie's sudden pause, "I have been watching you for some time grappling with these try-outs that have come into your life, but I have said nothing, for I wanted to see if you or they would conquer."

"Oh, you dear Mumsie," cried Nathalie joyously, jumping up and giving her mother a good hug. "Do you know, I felt dreadfully the other day to think you had not said one word of praise; not that I want to be praised all the time, but still a word now and then comes in handy, you know; makes one feel so goody-goody." This was said laughingly.

Nathalie could not help feeling encouraged after this comforting talk with her mother; she felt as if she had conquered the whole world, that there was nothing she could not overcome. But the next morning such a big overcome, or try-out, as her mother had expressed it, appeared, that it sufficed to lessen the glory of her former victories.

Lucille was ill; she had retired to her bed with a fit of indigestion, and the planning for the Pioneer Stunt, the survey work that Nathalie and her committee were to do, all had to be laid aside as she was inst.i.tuted head nurse in her cousin's room.

"Oh, Mother," she moaned dolefully, as she kissed her mother good-night, "Lucille has been dreadfully cross; nothing pleases her. It has been, 'Oh, Nathalie, don't let that wind blow on me! Didn't I tell you I don't like rice pudding! Oh, you're the slowest poke!' Oh, Mother-" there was a lump in the girl's throat, "if I hadn't felt so humiliated at being spoken to in that way, I just believe I would have given her a good shaking."

"Never mind, Nathalie," replied Mrs. Page consolingly, "just remember it is another overcome and have patience. She will soon be herself again, you know she has been terribly upset, as she expected to spend a few days with her friend and she is disappointed."

"Of course, no one ever had a disappointment but Lucille!" exclaimed Nathalie irritably.

"Nathalie!" reproved her mother, with a quick glance at the girl.

"Oh, well, it's so, Mumsie," replied her daughter with the tears very near the surface, and then with another kiss she hurried to her bed.

"Have you got your Stunt written?" inquired Helen a few days later from her window as Nathalie sat writing on the veranda. She held her hand up and flourished a couple of typewritten pages as she spoke.

"No, I'm discouraged," Nathalie lowered her voice. "Lucille has been ill, and I have been kept awfully busy waiting on her. Then when I finally managed to get time to go to the library to get some dates, I lost the whole thing."

"What-the idea?"

"Yes, the idea, and everything. I had been in the library some time and had just finished. I did not discover my loss until I was almost home, so I hurried back, but the librarian knew nothing about it. I hunted until I was distracted, and then I came home; so that is the end of that. This morning I am trying to think up another one."

"Couldn't you remember it?" questioned Helen concernedly.

"No, I tried to, but I've been so busy it has just flown away."

"Well, you are a lucky girl to have brains enough to have more than one idea in your head to write up. You should have seen the Sport; she was over here last night, the picture of unadulterated woe, for she could not even scare up one idea. She hung around trying to get some suggestions from me, but I just told her she would have to do her own work. She's the best ever when it comes to anything in the way of sports, or any activity, but she will not use her brains. She has a few, at least."

"If she would spend more time reading instead of-" Nathalie stopped with slightly reddened face, for here was another overcome to win. She was thoughtless at times, never having been disciplined, and so, without meaning any harm, she was apt to express her opinion too freely about the people around her. "Oh, well," she ended lamely, "she is a good Sport; if it hadn't been for her the other night the town would have burned down."

"That's true," laughed Helen good-naturedly, and then with a wave of her typewritten pages she disappeared from the window, as Nathalie turned and with a dimpling face greeted Dr. Morrow, who had just driven up to visit Lucille.

"You haven't come to see me this time," she suggested archly.

"Oh, it's half and half this time, Blue Robin, for I have come to ask-oh, it is a message from the princess." The doctor lowered his voice cautiously as he noted d.i.c.k at the other end of the veranda. "She wants to know if you will make her another visit."

Nathalie's bright face sobered and an embarra.s.sed silence followed as she vainly tried to think of something that would excuse her from the unpleasantness of having her eyes blindfolded again.

"Why, yes, I would like to go, only you see I am very busy just now, helping Mother and doing Pioneer work, and-"

"Yes, I see," interrupted the doctor somewhat coldly, with a keen glance at Nathalie's downcast face. "Then I will tell her you are busy."

"Oh, don't say that," cried the girl in desperation. "It sounds-well-tell her I will come some time later." She felt the blood rush to her face.

"Oh, I'll manage to make her understand somehow," answered the doctor.

Nathalie sensed a note of disappointment in his voice, and then without further parley he hurried up the stairs to Lucille.

"Mother," questioned Nathalie a few minutes later, for she had confided to her all about the adventure at the gray house, "do you think I ought to visit the princess again?" She then told what had transpired between her and the doctor.

"You must be your own judge, Nathalie," replied Mrs. Page slowly. "I agree with you that it is a foolish thing for the child's mother to ask you to visit her in this way, but perhaps she may be induced to change her mind. But, after all, Nathalie, it is a small thing to overcome"-Mrs. Page emphasized the word-"when you can give the little girl so much pleasure by going."

"O dear!" thought Nathalie, as she stood waiting for the doctor to come down-stairs a moment or so later, "it does seem that since I have become a Pioneer I am just overcoming things all the time. Funny, but these things never troubled me before." "Oh, Doctor," she exclaimed eagerly, as that gentleman's genial face appeared in the doorway, "I have changed my mind, and if you like I will go with you to see the princess."

An hour later Nathalie was greeted with a cry of delight from her new friend, who clapped her hands and called, "Oh, Mother, she has come!"

Nathalie, imprisoned behind the m.u.f.fler, rejoiced at heart to think she had won another overcome.

"How do you do?" spoke Mrs. Van Vorst's low voice, and then the girl's hand was taken in a cordial clasp. "It is so good of you to come; oh, if you could only realize the joy you have brought into my child's life, and mine, too!" she added quickly.

"I am very glad," replied Nathalie simply, as Mrs. Van Vorst led her to a seat by the couch.

"Here, sit by me-no, not on that chair," commanded her Royal Highness.

Nathalie felt a tug at her skirt, she was jerked suddenly down, and then two arms were thrown around her neck. A hand touched her face, softly at first, and then with a loud, "There, you are not going to sit with that horrid thing on your face again, I just hate it!" there came a sudden wrench, something gave way, the blinders were on the floor, and Nathalie was looking at the face of the princess with free, untrammeled eyes!

CHAPTER XV-A CHAPTER OF SURPRISES

Nathalie gave a gasp of relief. Oh, it was good to be rid of that horrible black handkerchief! Then her blinders faded into the past as she became aware of the eyes that were gazing into hers, blue ones with violet shadows, fringed by long black lashes!

The eyes were set in the face of a girl about fourteen, that had, notwithstanding the pain-tired mouth with its lines of petulance, a winsome sweetness about it which partly atoned for a jagged crimson scar running across one end of the forehead, partly hidden by short, curly hair which was boyishly parted on one side.

But the blue eyes were gleeful just at this moment, as if their owner was proud of her deftness in slipping off the handkerchief. She clapped her hands and cried, "Oh, aren't you glad to get rid of that horrid black thing?"

Raising herself on her elbow she drew Nathalie's face down to hers and whispered, "Don't say a word to Mother, but it was all arranged-the doctor and I managed it-let Mother think it was an accident." Before Nathalie could remonstrate the princess called out with a merry trill in her voice, "Oh, Mother! come quick, Miss Page's blinders have fallen off!"

Nathalie flushed in embarra.s.sed silence as she heard Mrs. Van Vorst's step hurrying to the couch. O dear, what should she do? It certainly was awkward to have to deceive her. Oh, if the doctor would-but as she turned around to face the lady in question she saw that the doctor was not there.

"The doctor has gone, he had an important call to make," spoke Mrs. Van Vorst hurriedly, as she came towards the girls and saw Nathalie's look of distress. "But never mind, Miss Page, it is all right," she cried rea.s.suringly. "It was a shame to keep you m.u.f.fled up like that-just for a whim-but if you could understand!" She looked down at Nathalie apologetically.

"I should say it was a whim," broke in the princess, "and it just serves you right, too, for making her do it. Now Miss Page will go away and tell every one what a horrible-looking thing I am, and it will be all your fault because you are so afraid any one will see me, just as if I was a monster of some sort! Oh, Nathalie-can't I call you Nathalie?-the doctor told me your name, and then you know you are not so much older than I am."

"I'm sixteen," answered Nathalie readily, glad to turn the conversation from the blinders, for she saw that Mrs. Van Vorst was greatly perturbed.

"Oh, Nita, don't talk that way to Mother," cried Mrs. Van Vorst in a pained voice. "You know, dear, I only did what I thought was right, and it was to save you, people talk so!"

"I don't care if they do," broke in Nita angrily. "I have as much right in this world as they have, even if I am ugly-looking with this scar and hump, they needn't look at me!"

Nathalie started, for as the girl spoke she deliberately threw off a soft white shawl that had been thrown about her shoulders. With a sudden feeling of deep pity Nathalie recognized that the princess was a hump-back!

"Oh, you won't hate me now, will you?" pleaded Nita suddenly, as she saw Nathalie's start of surprise, "just because I'm humped like a camel."

She caught the girl's hand in hers and clung to it with piteous appeal in her blue eyes.