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Chapter Nine

At the end of the hopping season, the Londoners returned home. For the first few weeks the village seemed empty but then, over time, everyone reverted to their usual routine and with the exception of a few air-raid warnings, life in the village settled down to business as usual.

It was time for Maggie to start school and despite knowing all of the village children she was quite nervous about her first day. William and Iris took some time off from work to accompany her. She insisted on carrying her own lunch, her reading book and her gas mask.

“I do want to go to school but I also want to stay and help in the orchard,” she explained, as they walked towards the village.

“You will be fine, young Maggie,” said William “you are growing up fast and it will be good to learn new things and you can still play with your friends at play time.”

“I suppose,” said Maggie. “But what if I don’t like it?” She looked at her father in alarm. “Will I have to go back tomorrow?”

“Of course, you will like it,” said Iris briskly. “You need to get good learning to get on in the world. Off you go.”

“Look,” said William. “There’s Sally Vinter over there. How about you go and talk to her because she’s new to the village, it will be harder for her. Go and make friends and everything will be alright. You can tell us all about your day later.”

“Alright, Dad,” said Maggie, as she hugged her parents and trotted off in Sally’s direction.

As Iris and William were walking back towards home William said, “Not sure where those five years went, are you?”

“No, they went by very quickly,” said Iris, secretly she thought that the five years hadn’t gone quick enough. But now that Maggie was at school, she would have a whole six hours a day that were Maggie-free.

“She’ll be fine,” said William, mistaking Iris’s quiet mood for concern about their daughter. “She makes new friends easily enough and she’ll have the class teacher eating out of her hand in no time,” he said laughing, “she has a way about her, she will be fine whatever she does in life.

“Iris, if you don’t mind, I’ll leave you here as I’ll pop into Foxden Orchard to check on a few things before I head back to the workshop. See you later, love.” He pecked Iris on the cheek as he ventured off towards Foxden.

Iris joyfully made her way back home in readiness for peace and quiet and having the house to herself. She had no intention of going back to work today. She had only been home around twenty minutes when something caught her eye by the kitchen window. She looked closely towards the vegetable patch and noticed that every now and then, the tall potato plants seemed to shudder. There was no breeze so she wasn’t sure what was causing them to move like that. Perhaps there was a stray cat about or… Iris quickly looked towards the chicken coop wondering if the chickens had escaped. She could see that the gate was still latched. She wiped her hands dry on her apron and ventured out towards the vegetable patch, clutching a shovel, just in case. As she got closer to the potato plants she could hear loud sniffing sounds. Just as Iris reached out to part the leaves, Maggie sprung up like a jack-in-a-box and stormed towards the house.

“Don’t like it,” she sniffed. “Don’t want to go to no bloody school.”

“Maggie!” exclaimed Iris. “No bad language young lady, where on earth did you hear that from?”

“Pete and Billy said it once. I know it’s wrong but I don’t want to go to bloody school.” Maggie turned, hand on hips, facing her mother. “I want to stay home with you. I can help here. You said I was good at home.”

“You have to go to school or the village bobby will be upset with us, don’t you see? And as for Pete and Billy, well they shouldn’t use bad language in front of you. I will speak to Betty about that. Now, come inside, we’ll clean you up and I will take you back.”

Maggie reluctantly complied. She didn’t want to be in trouble with the bobby and she didn’t want her parents to be in trouble either. She had enjoyed talking to Sally before school but when the time came to walk inside the school hall she had bolted for home.

Iris walked Maggie back to school and discreetly spoke to her teacher. There was only one desk available and that was in the front row right under the teacher’s nose. How lucky was that? Iris hurried back home, annoyed but eager to enjoy what time she had left on her own.

Maggie and Sally bonded straight away through the most bizarre turn of events. While the teacher was writing his name on the blackboard, Maggie had tilted her chair backwards and leaned on Sally’s desk behind for support.

“What are you doing?” whispered Sally. “Get off my desk.”

“Can I borrow a pencil?”

“No, get off my desk or I’ll bash you with my ruler.”

“Go on then, I dare you.”

Sally hit Maggie over the head but this caused her old brittle wooden ruler to smash in three pieces. Sally’s face reddened in shock and those who saw what had happened, burst into laughter. Maggie joined in.

“Sally Vinter and Margaret Harris,” said Mr Turk quite sternly as he turned around from the blackboard, “come here please.” He put down the chalk and a hush descended over the classroom. “Quite a first day, wouldn’t you say?”

All eyes were on the girls who looked a picture of guilt as they stood shoulder to shoulder and looked at their teacher. He was relatively short and Sally thought he was very big around the tummy. Her father said it was rude to call people fat but all of a sudden she had the urge to giggle because when she looked down slightly she saw that his tummy was covered in fine white dust from when he had turned around and his tummy had rubbed off some of the chalk from the blackboard.

“You will please go and stand in separate corners of the classroom with your backs to the class in silence for the next ten minutes, is that understood?”

“Yes, Mr Turk,” they both muttered.

“Maggie,” said Maggie. “My name is Maggie, not Margaret.”

“Very well, Maggie it is. Now off you go.” He pointed to the far corners. The girls walked away, not really understanding how long ten minutes would be.

Their friendship was strangely set up for life from that day onwards.

When William arrived home that afternoon Iris told him of the morning’s events. They decided to make no reference to it because Maggie seemed much happier now. Maggie told them both over supper that she and Sally had decided to sit together in class.

“We’re also going to share my ruler because Sally broke hers,” she said, smiling innocently. She shrugged. “School doesn’t seem so bad. I might go tomorrow.”