"I say, Dick!" Julian came flying into the dormitory, clutching a letter in his hand. "I've just received this letter from Aunt Fanny!"

Dick stood up from the trunk he had been packing, and turned to look at his brother, startled by the way he had come running into the room. "What does it say, Ju?"

"We can't go to Kirrin as planned," Julian replied, scanning the letter once more. "Aunt Fanny says they've had a series of frightful storms this past week or so. You know how strong the storms there can be".

Dick nodded in agreement. "Remember when one sent that old tree crashing into the roof of Kirrin Cottage?" he recalled.

"That's what Aunt Fanny's afraid of, something similar happening again," Julian replied. "She says here they've already lost several roof tiles to the gale. She doesn't want to put us in any danger. And it's so swelteringly hot that the weather forecast isn't due to improve for a week or so".

"Blow!" Dick cried, sinking down onto his bed. "What are we going to do? We can't go home, Mother and Father won't be back from Scotland for another fortnight. And I say, if we can't go to Kirrin, then the girls won't be able to either!"

"I'd thought of that," Julian nodded. "The best thing is to get in touch with them, and work out what we're to do. We can easily go off by ourselves again; after all, we've done it plenty of times before. And we're older now, and better able to look after ourselves".

"Old enough not to get mixed up in some adventure or other, you mean?" Dick grinned.

"Exactly," Julian chuckled. "I propose we go somewhere peaceful and pleasant, but not too remote. Going to those lonely, deserted hills and lakes we've been to before is just asking for adventure".

"You're right, Ju," Dick agreed. "But I don't think another adventure would be too unpleasant. I miss the clue-hunting and map-reading, don't you?"

Julian hesitated. "Yes, I do. But I'm seventeen now, Dick. I'm too grown up for adventures. And so are you".

Dick sighed in reluctant agreement. "But where are we going to go? Nowhere near the coast, that's clear".

"I'm sure we'll think of something," said Julian.

The door of the dormitory swung open, and in came one of the boys' dorm mates, Larry Daykin, carrying a cricket bat.

"Are you not all packed yet?" Larry asked, looking surprised to see the boys with trunks that were only half full. "I thought you were leaving early to catch the train to Kirrin".

"There's been a change of plan," Julian replied. "What are you doing with that bat?"

"I almost left it behind again," Larry grinned. "It's my friend Fatty's, I borrowed it some while ago. Keep forgetting to give it back".

Julian and Dick smiled back at him; they had heard many an account of Fatty, and knew all about him and the adventures Larry too had had.

"Where are you heading off to, then?" Larry asked, setting the bat down beside him on his bed.

"We don't know exactly," Dick answered. "We were thinking of going off by ourselves again. Nowhere out of the way, though; we don't want to get ourselves mixed up in anything again. Perhaps a nice town or village, somewhere".

"You ought to come along to Peterswood, sometime," Larry suggested, half-jokingly. "It sounds just the sort of place you'd want. I couldn't guarantee you no mysteries though!"

Julian laughed and resumed packing his trunk, but Dick looked thoughtful. "I say, I don't think that's such a bad idea," he said, his eyes lighting up.

"You mean coming to Peterswood?" Larry responded, surprised.

"Yes," said Dick. "I mean, it's a pleasant place, so our mother always says. It's far away enough to feel like a holiday, it isn't on the coast, and we know you, Larry, so we shan't be amongst total strangers. What do you think, Julian?"

Julian hesitated. Although he had always heard of Peterswood as a friendly, respectable place, he knew why Dick had suddenly become so set on the prospect of venturing there; Larry and his friends had never had an adventure outside of the village. Julian knew that if he did consent to their going there, they might well still end up embroiled in something or other. Yet it was the only idea they'd got.

"All right," he sighed. "We'll give it a shot. I'll go and telephone to the girls, and tell them to get the next train to Peterswood. We can meet them there". He got up and left the room, his head full of mixed thoughts and feelings about the trip ahead.

"That's settled then," Dick grinned. "Thanks, Larry, old boy, for thinking up such a wizard idea!"

"Glad to help," Larry replied. "It'll be good to have you! I say though, where will you stay?"

"I hadn't thought of that," said Dick. "We could always hire a couple of tents and set up in a field somewhere. That would be easy enough".

"We've got one I'm sure we could lend you," Larry suggested. "And Fatty or Pip will have another. I know the ideal spot, as well - Petter's Field. It's fairly near our house and there's a little stream that runs through it."

"It sounds super!" Dick smiled, feeling excited. He had been strongly deflated when Julian had informed him that they would not be going to Kirrin, but the imminent trip to Peterswood had filled him with excitement once more. It was always nice to begin the hols, especially when you had somewhere new and exciting to go! And somewhere like Peterswood was bound to be exciting, after all the marvellous adventures Larry had had there. No doubt they would meet the other Find-Outers, and the infamous Mr. Goon that he had told them all about. And they may even get caught up in a mystery of their own. Dick didn't want to get his hopes up here; he knew Julian had adamantly given up on adventures altogether. Julian could be equally as stubborn as George when he wanted to be, and that was quite an accomplishment. He wouldn't take kindly to something strange cropping up, Dick knew for certain.

Although they had all grown up considerably since their last adventure, only Julian had undergone significant change. He was still as jolly and as witty as ever, but there was no child within him anymore; he had well and truly grown up, and was as sensible and mature as any adult Dick knew. He couldn't help but admire his brother for this, but Dick wished that a bit of the old Julian would return; the Julian who welcomed an adventure with open arms and always took command of it all. Dick secretly longed for another adventure, but he could not let Julian know of this; not when he was so insistent they'd outgrown all that. He was sure that the girls would agree with him though; George would always be more than willing to plunge headfirst into any action that arose, Dick was certain of that. And although Anne had always expressed reluctance whenever there was a whiff of something odd, Dick knew that she secretly loved a good bit of adventure as much as he did. Timothy, of course, was quite happy to go along with anything that the children did. As long as they were in the middle of an adventure, so would he be!

Dick began to wonder whether Julian would be quite so determined on staying away from adventure if one did happen to crop up in Peterswood. "After all," he thought, as he added the last few belongings to his trunk. "It's quite different when you're in the middle of one. Sometimes you just have to get on with it. Hopefully, old Ju will buck up before long. He's not quite an adult yet. And you can't be the Famous Five when there's only four of you. That wouldn't work. That just wouldn't work at all!"