The Adventures of Thomas (MKII)

Departure

7:30 a.m., Sunday, September 8th, 1940

The denizens of London had woken up to find everything in flames and confusion. Thankfully, a good deal of buildings, including Westminster Abbey, survived. 1,600 people were dead and many were injured. Hundreds and thousands of people were now homeless because of the bombs that had completely destroyed their houses and shelters, but for one particular father and son, their house was still intact. Willie had left for the station early while Johnny was still asleep. With his chief's permission, he secured two tickets for a nine o'clock train from Euston station to Barrow-in-Furness, a 4-hour, 325-mile trip.

After returning with the purchased tickets, he found Johnny downstairs, sitting on the chair and still in his pajamas.

"Pack your things, son. We're leaving in two hours."

Johnny went back to his room to slip into his casual outfit consisting of a white polo shirt, a black blazer, dark tan shorts with matching knee socks and chocolate brown shoes.

"Must we go away?" asked Johnny. He was feeling rebellious about packing and was making a hash out of it.

Willie was stern, but concerned.

"It's for your own safety. The bomb shelter will not be able to last much longer and I don't want you here if they decide to come back. Others have already died"

Johnny nodded sadly.

"I assure you it will only be a few months and then we'll be back here safe and snug," finished Willie, sweetly.

Perhaps, as a favor for helping him, Johnny decided to help with his father's own packing in his bedroom. Amidst the clutter of the objects on the dresser, Johnny had taken a black and white photograph of a teenage couple dancing at a party while another boy of that age looked on in the background. He showed it to Willie as soon as he stumbled upon it.

"I like this photo of you and Mummy," he said changing his mood. "You both seem happy."

"That was our wedding dance back in '28 just before you were born. I can remember your mother's dress looking just like the apples on a summer's apple tree. Back then we were just kids, silly, madly in love and stupid to think we could get married right away, but we decided to wait, and then two years later she proposed to me."

In 1930, the idea of a woman proposing to a man was considered scandalous, if not progressive. But Johnny was too young to know of such things, for his world was plain and simple. Not even the war could keep him from fully comprehending a grey morality too early. Eventually, after packing their things into their respective suitcases, the last thing Willie did was lock the front door.

Johnny and Willie took a taxicab to Euston Station. On the way there, they passed the damage done to the city. Cars and busses were toppled over and bricks were scattered everywhere

The air was still grey and smoky from the bomb damage when the Morrises got out of the cab at Euston. A high glass ceiling covered the station to let in as much light as possible when they entered and when they stood in line at the ticket booth, the booking clerk was at the point of near exhaustion. He had been doing this all morning and some of the children who were too stubborn to leave their parents had nearly drained his energy. Willie greeted him in a friendly way and paid him the traveling fares. In turn, the clerk wrote out the destinations, shoved out six tickets, took the money and called "Next".

Johnny had been to all of the other London stations before, including Euston, but in his current state of fear, it was no longer a wonderful place that he and his father liked to visit on holidays. Newsstands blared headlines and photographs telling everybody that St. Paul's Cathedral was still standing, rations were being sold from sweet stalls to waiting children, while soldiers got small, wrapped candies. There weren't any shoe shiners, either. All of them had signed up to join the army. Worst of all, there were packs of children, boys and girls from infanthood to sixteen, smiling, standing calm and still or sobbing madly for mummy and daddy. They were carrying suitcases, gas masks, teddy bears, a few toys, military helmets given to them by their fathers in the expeditionary force and pocketfuls of tinned food. They also carried apples, oranges, sandwiches, dry biscuits, chocolate and barley sugar.