Cat Sitter Among the Pigeons

Cat Among the Pigeons

II

“I simply can't play with the beastly thing. It's no good.”

Jennifer flung her racquet down in despair.

“Oh, Jennifer, what a fuss you make.”

“It's the balance.” Jennifer picked it up again and waggled it experimentally. “It doesn't balance right.”

“It's much better than my old thing,” Julia compared her racquet. “Mine's like a sponge. Listen to the sound of it.” She twanged. “We meant to have it restrung, but Mummy forgot.”

“I'd rather have it than mine, all the same,” Jennifer took it and tried a swish or two with it.

“Well, I'd rather have yours. I could really hit something then. I'll swap, if you will.”

“All right then, swap.”

The two girls peeled off the small pieces of adhesive tape on which their names were written, and reaffixed them, each to the other's racquet.

“I'm not going to swap back again,” said Julia warningly. “So it's no use your saying you don't like the old sponge.”