A table with ink-pots stood in the middle of each room, and a large notice enjoining, "Silence during study hours" hung as a warning over every fireplace.
Irene was given a vacant bed in No.

3 on the second floor, and found herself in company with Elsie Craig, Mabel Hughes, and Lorna Carson.

For the first two she felt no attraction, but the last excited her interest and curiosity.

There was an air of mystery about Lorna; she asked questions but gave little information in return on the subject of her own concerns.

Her bright dark eyes were unfathomable, and she "kept herself to herself" with a reserved dignity not very common among schoolgirls of her age.