Enid Blyton by The Folk of the Faraway Tree

fallen down the Slippery-Slip," said Moon-Face. "And when I went down there, I shot out of the trap-door at the bottom, and there was my hat on my feet! So that was all right. Are we all ready?"
    "Yes," said J o. "But do for goodness ’ s ake look out for Dame Slap. I really do feel nervous of her."
    "Saucepan will be looking out for us, don ’ t worry," said Moon-Face. "I expect he will be at the top of the ladder, waiting. We are sure to have a lovely tea. His mother is a most marvellous cook."
    They climbed up the topmost branch of the Tree, and came to the ladder. They all went up it and found themselves in Dame Slap ’ s Land.
    There wasn ’ t much to see —only, in the distance, a large green house set in the middle of a great garden.
    "That ’ s Dame Slap ’ s school," said Jo to Connie.
    "W ho goes to it?" asked Connie, curiously.
    "All the bad pixies and fairies and brownies," said Bessie. "W e saw some once when we were there. Dame Slap has to be very stern or she wouldn ’ t be able to teach them. They are very naughty."
    "W here ’ s the back-door?" said Connie, looking nervously round. "Let ’ s go there, quick. I do think Saucepan might have waited for us at the top of the ladder."
    "Yes, I don ’ t know why he didn ’ t," said Moon-Face, rather puzzled. "Shall we call him?"
    "No, of course not, silly," said J o. "We ’ ll have Dame Slap after us at once! Come on—we ’ ll fi nd the back-door. We really can ’ t wait about any longer."
    So they went round the large garden, keeping carefully outside the tall wall, until they came to two gates. One opened on to the drive that led to the front door. The other opened on to a path that plainly led to the back-door.
    "This is where we go," said Bessie, and they went quietly through the back gate. They came t o the back- door. It was shut. No one seemed to be about.
    "I suppose Saucepan and his mother are expecting us?" said J o, puzzled. He knocked on the door. There was no answer. He knocked again.
    "Let ’ s open the door and go in," said Bessie, impatiently. "We must find Saucepan. I expect he ’ s forgotten he asked us to come today ."
    They pushed open the door and went into a big and very tidy kitchen. There was no one there. It seemed very strange. Connie opened the further door and peered into what seemed to be a big hall.
    "I believe I can hear someone," she said. "I ’ ll go and see if it ’ s Saucepan."
    Before the others could stop her she had opened the door and gone. No one felt that they wanted to follow. They sat down in the kitchen and waited.
    Connie went into the big hall. There was no one there. She went into another room, that looked like a drawing-room. Connie peered round it in curiosity. Then, in at a door opposite came a tall old woman, with large spectacles on her long nose and a big white bonnet on her head.
    "Oh!" said Connie, beaming. "Many happy returns o f the day! Where ’ s Saucepan? W e ’ ve all come to have tea with you?"
    The old woman stopped in surprise. "Indeed!" she said. "You have, have you? And who are the rest of you?"
    "Oh—didn ’ t Saucepan tell you?" asked Connie. "There ’ s J o and Bessie and Fanny and Moon-Face and Silky. We did hope that Saucepan would meet us by the ladder, because we were so afraid of meeting that awful Dame Slap."
    "Oh, really?" said the old woman, and her eyes gleamed behind her big spectacles. "You think she ’ s awful, do you?"
    "Well, J o and the others told me all about her," said Connie. "They were all here once, you know, and they escaped. They were very much afraid of meeting her again."
    "Where are they?" said the old woman.
    "In the kitchen," said Connie. "I ’ ll go and tell them I ’ ve found you."
    She ran ahead of the old woman, who followed her at once. Connie fl ung open the kitchen door.
    "I ’ ve found Saucepan ’ s mother!" she said. "Here she is!"
    The old lady came into the room—and Jo and the others gave a gasp of horror. It wasn ’ t Saucepan