The Dragonfly Pool

The Train

Aunt Hester and Aunt Mary had always done their best to share in y/n's life. When y/n was six years old and had been cast as a sheep in the nativity play they had read books about agriculture and sheep farming and taken y/n to the zoo to watch the way the clovenfooted mammals moved their feet and y/n's performance on the day had been very much admired.
So now they tackled Angela of the Upper Fourth and The Madcap of the Remove and enjoyed them very much, though they were a little worried about how y/n's would get on, having to say 'spiffing' and 'ripping' all the time, and shouting, 'Well played, girls!' on the hockey field.
What they couldn't do however was get y/n's schools uniform together, because no list came from Delderton.
' You must worry dear,' said Aunt Mary.' The school will let us know in good time and then we'll go and fit you up. They'll pay it's a full scholarship.'
'Yes but there are so many things... Eight pairs of shoes; I'll get muddled. And a liberty bodice... I don't really know what that is,' said y/n.
She was really worried too about the rules: the curtsy to the headmistress and remembering to call her Ma'am. And if the rules were going to be difficult, breaking them in the right way was going to be difficult too. The midnight feasts in the dorm, for example... What if she stepped on an open tin of sardines and brought the Matron running? Because Aunt May's letters in violet ink were apt to be rather emotional and Aunt Hesters green ink were almost impossible to read, Dr Hamilton asked his receptionist, Miss Hoy, to write to the school for a list of the things Tally would need.
But before they got their reply Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia, and after that no one had time to worry about braided blazers and green knickers with pockets in them, let alone about feasts in the dorm.
The milkmans son got his call up papers for the army and Dr Hamilton spent more and more time at the hospital, where they were arranging for the evacuation of Patients to the country; posters appeared telling people to grow vegetables and 'Did for victory' , Aunt Hester said she wanted to go and entertain the troops.
'I know I'm not young,' she said, 'But my voice is still good.'
Then, just a week before the beginning of term, a letter came from the school secretary at Delderton announcing the departure of the school train from Paddington Station at ten o'clock on 13 April. There was still nothing about the school uniform or the rules and regulations.

'They'll probably fit you out when you get there, like in the army,' said the aunts consolingly.
And y/n tried not to panic because she was going to an unknown place without any of the right things and without at all knowing how to behave.

After all, men were joining the army or going to fight in aeroplanes or down in ships, and here she was fussing about liberty indices and stepping on sardines.

Two days later there was a phone call from Aunt Virginia. Margaret was not starting school till the day after y/n, but Rodericks school, Foxingham, which was also in the West Country, started the same day and his train left Paddington at almost the same time.

'So we could take y/n to the station,' she said.
'There's plenty of room in the rolls.' To her husband she had said,
' It would be nice for the girl to arrive drives. First impressions are so important.'

Y/n looked anguish at her father. 'Oh please, I want you to take me.'
'Dont be foolish,' said Dr Hamilton. 'You don't suppose we'd let anyone else see you off?'

Because of course May and Heater were coming too. Actually, rather a it of people had wanted to come and see y/n off: Kenny and Maybelle; the receptionist, Miss Hoy; Sister Felicia from the convert...but Dr Hamilton had persuaded them that y/n would do best with only her immediate family to say goodbye.

Paddington Station on the morning of 13 April was in a state of bustle and confusion. Parents towed their children to what they hoped was the right barrier; loudspeakers crackeld, announcing changes of platform; porters with their trollies tried to avoid the passengers who asked them things they didn't know.