God's Crusade

Part Sixteen

Hearts and Minds

December 2040

Mrs Slade persuaded Hermione. Not her father. And no one forced her. She listened to her grandmother talking about her friends in the congregation, and how certain things were just done in Reigate, and she realised it would make the old lady happy. It was, as far as she could really make out, a social thing for her grandmother and her friends. It was seen as the proper thing to do, and anyone who ever rebelled against the norm was not entirely acceptable. Mrs Slade talked about her friends and their children and grandchildren all the time. It was all quite competitive for her, almost like an endless game of one-upmanship, and although she did not like the idea of voice modesty anymore than Hermione did it was more important to her not to lose face. So and so did this, she got that at school, and so forth, all things that Mrs Slade had missed out on over the years with her son living abroad, and introducing Chris and his lovely daughter to all her friends was clearly a very big deal as a result, which just made Hermione want to please her even more. It came over her all of a sudden, whilst shopping in Knights, a really sweet little store on Bell Street in Reigate. Hermione asked if it would be a good idea to buy and wear a muzzle for Church, and her grandmother almost fainted with delight at the suggestion, before hurrying her off to choose one.

Her father did not object, of course. He was just pleased his dear mother and his darling daughter were getting along so well, and in confidence, later, he told Hermione that he was so proud of her. He felt a little guilty about seeing so little of his parents over the years. Pippa had never wanted to visit and he was always so busy at work, terrified to leave his office in case someone else came up with the next big idea, so he had neglected them. His mother's illness, the divorce and his own career meltdown had made him look back at the past in a rather different light, and he wanted to make amends. Hermione made his dear old mother swell with pride and he also said it would help her get the full cultural experience. He told Hermione that her endeavours to please her grandmother, and her attitude to the rigours of British life, showed great maturity and sensitivity. Considering her beloved mother always treated her like a little girl, being called mature was always likely to get Hermione on side with a smile on her face.

The muzzle was surprisingly easy to fit, Hermione thought, as her grandmother tenderly slipped the soft pink plastic into place. It did not hurt and she could taste a hint of peppermint as she bit down, as directed, hearing a dull click, which her grandmother told her was the feeding tube locking together. For a moment or two she sort of moved everything around by flexing her jaw, getting it comfortable, but then it started to get harder to move anything and finally impossible. Her grandfather explained that the heat inside her mouth set the plastic to her precise shape. It would slip back out later, as soon as the mechanism was unlocked, and afterwards she would be able to put it in and take it out as easily as a set of dentures or a tooth brace until it was time to get a new one. Hermione could obviously not respond, and she just stood there, staring hard into the long mirror, feeling the hard plastic plate holding down her tongue. It was a weird experience. Her grandmother just made light of it, giving her a hug and saying that she would not even notice it by lunchtime. Then she got out a pair of mittens and put them on Hermione too.

"I will technically be your guardian today love, so I don't wear these...but all the nice girls do, I promise. I don't need to wear a muzzle either as I am taking care of you, which is going to be my pleasure." Mrs Slade explained, all smiles as she prepared her granddaughter for her big moment, obviously swelling with pride. "Cecilia Martin is going to just die of jealousy when she see's you in a Harrods gown, proper mittens and a muzzle. Her grandchildren are complete tearaways. I have seen them arrive at Church without even gloves before. And you don't need to be so respectful as them as you are a tourist, so to see you doing it so willingly and so...oh my darling...this is the best day of my life..."