Chapter Seven
Back at Little Fordham, everyone had a nice long rest after the trip. Spiller was happy to sleep well, eat well, and listen to Pod and Homily discuss plans for their new home at the mill, offering suggestions when he could, but he knew he was overdue for a trip down to Burgonet's place and that he'd have to set off again soon. It was almost the end of June and he was way behind schedule. Pod had the new shoes ready for Burgonet and Arista and Spiller wanted to deliver them.
He also wanted to be alone with Arrietty and alone time was getting hard to come by at Little Fordham, with all of the new security measures Pod had put in place. Spiller stuck it out for two days, picking up assorted things that the visitors dropped, but he soon felt ready to set off again.
Before they did that, though, Arrietty wanted to stop and see Miss Menzies. One morning Spiller told Homily and Pod over breakfast that he wanted to do some borrowing at Mr. Pott's house and wanted Arrietty as a lookout. He assured them that he had seen Mr. Pott setting out all the supplies for brick building in the scullery so he would be busy all day and out of their way. Arrietty's parents finally consented.
Spiller and Arrietty made it to the kitchen just in time for breakfast. Miss Menzies shared oatmeal with brown sugar and cream, and orange juice with them as she told them excitedly about the new event that was coming up in her life.
"Abel has been invited to a benefit dance for the Railway Benevolent and when I told him that it sounded like ever so much fun he agreed to go and take me with him."
Arrietty's mouth dropped open. Miss Menzies had told her all about the London dances she had been forced to attend as a girl and about how much she had hated them. This was completely out of character for Miss Menzies.
"I have a new dress, dark blue taffeta. I'm going to look like very nice," Miss Menzies continued happily, "and I have long white kid gloves."
This caught Spiller's attention, which had been wandering. "Where do you get them?" He demanded. "I need a pair of those for Arrietty's Aunt Lupy. She makes suits out of them that are really hard wearing but the one she brought with her from the house they came from is almost gone."
"Oh, I can give you a pair," Miss Menzies told him. "I have several pairs left over from different affairs I've gone to. I hardly ever use them. I really only need to keep one pair of them just in case. Should I run home and get them?"
"Hate to put you out of your way," Spiller said regretfully.
"What if you come with me?" Miss Menzies said excitedly. "I'd so love you to see some of the things I'm working on and I may have other things that you can use. Abel certainly doesn't need me to help with brick building. I was just going to putter around the village redoing all of the string in the trains and chimneys so they will be ready to smoke this weekend." Her eyes darted around the room and settled on Mr. Pott's market basket. "Could you ride in that do you think? Or would you be too afraid? I would walk every so carefully. I promise."
Arrietty looked at Spiller and said quite firmly, "I would not be afraid."
"Nor I," he said stoutly. Taking Arrietty by the hand he took her over to the side of the basket as Miss Menzie's carefully lined it with a kitchen towel for padding. He helped Arrietty up the side as Miss Menzies stood tensely by. She had promised never to pick the borrowers up but this seemed quite different. When Spiller and Arrietty were sitting securely in the middle of the basket she carefully picked it up.
"I'll see you later, Abel," she said.
"Be careful, Margaret," he answered. "It's supposed to rain this afternoon. Otherwise instead of making bricks in the scullery I'd be out tarring rails. They need it bad down by the custom house but it's no use doing it when there's going to be rain. If it rains hard stay at home until it stops. Don't need you catching a chill when you're so all fired up about the benefit."
"I'll be fine," Miss Menzies said, picking up the basket ever so carefully. To Spiller and Arrietty's delight and amusement, she gave Mr. Pott a kiss on the cheek before she left. As she walked away they could see Abel Pott smiling. They looked at each other and smiled as well.
As Miss Menzies headed through the house she said in a low voice, "I can't wait to see his face when we get to the benefit! It's not just a dance, you see. I wouldn't have begged him to take me along if that's all it was! No, they're going to give him an award in honor of his support of the Railway Benevolent! He's going to get a plaque with his name engraved on it! Won't he be surprised? They asked me to make sure he came. He never goes to the dances, since of course, he can't dance," she said in a breathless hurried way as they left the house and started down the walk. "As if that mattered! He has so many friends there who would enjoy seeing him but this is different. I was so happy to be able to help."
"You'd better quit talking," Spiller said amused, as the basket bounced slightly when they headed down the street. "People will think you're odd talking to yourself."
"I'm used to that," Miss Menzies said, somewhat bitterly, "to people thinking I'm odd, I mean. I do stand out from the crowd, and always have, but it doesn't bother me anymore. I think it would be awfully boring if everyone were the same."
But after that she did quiet down. Arrietty kept a tight hold on Spiller's hand and he patted it reassuringly with his other hand. "Better than riding in young Tom's pocket, ain't it?" Spiller whispered into her ear. His breath tickled and she tried not to giggle.
"Yes, it is that," Arrietty whispered back, "but I wasn't afraid then. I trusted you and I trust Miss Menzies, and so I'm not afraid now, either. She's not going to hurt us, Spiller. I wish I could make Papa see that."
Spiller sighed. He could see both sides of the argument. "Not on purpose," he answered, "but maybe without thinking she could. Accidents happen and while she's happy with only Mr. Pott there's always going to be others around them, on account of the village and the trains, and not all of them are as nice."
He lay back then on the comfortable towel, and with a hand behind his head, studied what he could see of the sky looking up past Miss Menzies' jacketed, bony elbow. The clouds were scuttling by and the sky was darkening. "Might rain this afternoon at that," Spiller said. Arrietty lay back too, and curled up at his side, and watched the sky with him until Miss Menzies stepped up onto her front porch and the basket swung a bit as she fumbled for her key.
Inside her cottage the parlor was small but cozy. Two canaries in an elaborate cage on a stand were singing sweetly to greet them. Miss Menzies set the basket down on the floor between a fine rocker with plush cushions, and a small low table that was covered with spools of thread, scraps of material and a small sewing scissors with handles shaped like a stork.
"Oh, how lovely," Arrietty said, pointing to the scissors when she reached the top of the basket and was getting ready to climb out.
Miss Menzies who had hung up her jacket and was taking her hat off, looked up. "Would you like to see them?" Arrietty nodded excitedly, and Miss Menzies very gently handed them to Spiller, who admired them along with Arrietty. "I have several pairs of those that are just the one piece and several in little boxed sets," Miss Menzies admitted. "They are called Etui. At one point I was collecting them. I also have a heron scissors, and a fox with a stork. That one is my favorite. They're quite rare. And I have several other Victorian sewing kits as well."
She reached into a basket on a higher table and took out some small boxes. Sitting on the ottoman in front of an arm chair on the other side of the room she opened them and set them onto the floor where Spiller and Arrietty could see them. One case was brass plated and shaped sort of like the blade end of a sword, and when Spiller pulled it open, there were two small pairs of scissors in it, one a bit longer than the other. "That one is German," Miss Menzies explained.
The next box was quite heavy for its size, and elaborately carved. There was a thimble inside with a bright floral edge, along with another small pair of scissors, even smaller than the other two pairs in the previous box. "I'm not sure that these scissors are original to this box," Miss Menzies said with a sigh.
"This one is walnut, with a leather expanding side. I bought it because I liked the little brass plaque on top," Miss Menzies said, opening the next box. "The frame and clasp are brass, too."
The plaque had a pagoda scene on it and Arrietty could see right away why it had appealed to Miss Menzies. Inside the case there was a bodkin with a ribbon threader eye, a scissors, a thread winder with a matching pagoda scene, a brass thimble, and a metal crochet hook.
"Such riches," Arrietty marveled. "Papa would do anything for just one scissors like these. We have half a nail scissor, that Spiller uses to cut up meat and other things, and we feel lucky to have that!"
"Then I shall give you one set to take home to your Papa," Miss Menzies said firmly reaching out for another box. "This one, I think. This one is the best. It's a sterling silver case." When she opened it, it took Arrietty's breath away. The case had a blue satin interior and included a small pair of scissors, a mother of pearl handled stiletto, a mother of pearl handled buttonhook, a carved bone crochet hook, a needle case, and a thimble. "There is a bit of rust on the stiletto and the buttonhook, though," Miss Menzies pointed out regretfully.
"Soon get that off, I could," Spiller said, examining the buttonhook.
"You can't give this away!" Arrietty cried, forgetting once more her promise not to speak to a human. "It must be worth a lot!"
Miss Menzies laughed. "It's mine and I can do what I wish with it. I really have too many. It was a silly notion from the start. I want you to have it. You'll put it to better use than I ever did. Now, how about luncheon? I have some nice chicken salad, and we can have tea and scones. Come along to the kitchen. You can talk to me as I get things ready. It might be easier for the two of you if I put down a dishtowel and let you picnic on the floor. Would that be all right?"
"Would be fine," Spiller said, "but if you could give us a thimble to drink out of that would help." He was itching to explore the cottage, instinctively realizing how rich in borrowings it would be, then with a start he remembered that Miss Menzies would probably just give them anything they asked for. It was an odd feeling.
"Oh, no need for that," Miss Menzies said. "I have a doll's tea set on the shelf with the other knick knacks. I just have to wash the cups and plates for you." She walked over to the stand and took down two plates, saucers and cups. They all headed down the hall to the back of the cottage.
An old terrier was sleeping in a basket in the kitchen, in a patch of sunlight. When he looked up, Miss Menzies stopped short. "Stay," she said to him firmly, and looked back at the borrowers. "I forgot to ask you if you're afraid of dogs! I don't think Scrap would hurt you. He's very old and getting lame but I can put him out of the kitchen if you wish."
"No need," said Spiller, walking bravely over to the basket. "How you doing, old fellow?" The dog looked at him perplexed and let Spiller rub his black nose. "Where I grew up the place was crawling with hunting dogs. Dogs is all right if you talk to them."
"Thank goodness," Miss Menzies exclaimed, going to put the kettle on. She put a bit of chicken salad, a cucumber sandwich cut in half, and half a scone on a saucer and rummaged in the drawer until she found a small seafood fork. "This is the best I can do," she said, holding it up. "Will it be all right?"
The borrowers assured her it would be, and when she set the saucer down, they shared the food out onto the plates. She put some tea into the tiny tea cups and when she set them down they drank gratefully.
"When I was a little girl my father used to take me to Hamley's Toy Shop on Regent Street in London," Miss Menzies reminisced. "I've loved little things my whole life. Papa and I had such wonderful times looking at all of the furniture and dishes. I got my first dollhouse when I was three, you see, and I got a more elaborate one when I was six and an even bigger one when I was nine. That one stood on a stand in the nursery and had eight rooms and a balcony that had little pots of dirt on it that I used to plant herbs in. I have that one still, up in the attic."
She rambled on for quite a while about her father and all of the dollhouse items he had given her, remembering every shopping trip in detail. Her eyes grew overly bright when she talked about his death. "I couldn't sleep that night so I went into the old nursery and played with the dollhouse, thinking of him. It comforted me, you see. Working with miniatures still does. It was such a relief when I started helping Abel."
She talked for a long time then about Mr. Pott, his kindness, his steadfastness, and it was clear to both Spiller and Arrietty that her affection for him was deep.
"I can make a living though my art and my books," she finally said, "but it's when I work with miniatures that I feel the happiest. That's why I was so happy to find all of you. You gave me wonderful ideas for my children's book series about fairies. They're selling very well these days. You were like a dream come true for me."
"You're a dream come true for Mr. Pott," Spiller assured her. "He needs you as much as you need to be needed."
Miss Menzies started. "I'd never thought of it that way. I suppose you're right. I do live a very full life but Abel makes it a better one. We work so well together, you see. Oh, well, I suppose I'd better go look for those gloves."
When she rose from the table, she glanced out the window. "Oh! Look how dark it's getting! It is going to storm after all! I must get you back to Little Fordham at once!" She hurried into the back bedroom to get the gloves but it was much too late. A rolling thunder went over the house, a bolt of lightning lit up the window, and rain suddenly came down in sheets. When she came back she had the gloves in her hand but she shook her head as she looked out the window. She couldn't even see the road, that's how hard the rain was.
The room was darkening so she lit the gas lamp and looked out the window again. "Oh, dear, what will we do? We'll all drown in we go out in that but can we afford not to try? What will Homily and Pod think when you don't come back? They'll be worried sick. They'll probably think you were kidnapped again!"
"I doubt it," Spiller said, taking a bite of scone, even though he was already stuffed. "He wouldn't want us running about in this storm. He'll realize we had to hole up somewhere."
"When we come back with all of those nice things," Arrietty said, "he'll get distracted pretty quickly. This reminds me of that storm we had when we were living in the kettle."
"Kettle?" Miss Menzies arched one brow over a violet eye. "What do you mean living in a kettle?"
Spiller, with help from Arrietty, told her all about his kettle, how cleverly he had rigged up the line to open and close the lid, and how they had stayed in it until the rainstorm came that carried Pod, Homily and Arrietty away. He told her how he had found the kettle gone when he had finally returned from his trip and how he had gone downstream looking for them.
Arrietty told the story of their trip down the river, how they had gotten stuck in the pile of sticks, and how Mild Eye the gypsy had come along fishing and tried to get at them. Spiller took up the story then, and explained how Mild Eye had set the rope, how he had managed to cut it by climbing the tree, how Mild Eye had been caught by the policeman who'd been out looking for poachers, and how they'd used that distraction to escape back down the river in Spiller's boat and finally reach Little Fordham. Miss Menzies was mesmerized but when the story finally ended, the rain was still pouring down.
"This is a fine mess," she said with a sigh. "Even if I did try to get back Abel would have my head. I think we're all trapped for the night. I'll put the supper on, and we can see how it is when we're done with that, but I'm afraid this is going to go on all night."
"Is what it is," Spiller said shortly.
While she cooked dinner she and Spiller chatted about things that could be used for storing food for the winter. Spiller wanted to try to keep Pod and Homily in Little Fordham as long as possible, since Arrietty was not anxious to live under a floor again, but he didn't know how he would be able to keep them until winter. In winter, there would be no visitors so if they stayed would have to stockpile food and fuel. And even if they did move to the mill, they would still need something to use for food storage. Miss Menzies promised to give it some thought. She had seen some small stoneware crocks somewhere, with corks, but she couldn't remember where or what their original purpose had been.
"Spices? Medicine? I just can't remember. But I know I saw them, about so high," she said, holding her thumb and forefinger apart. "They would be perfect for what you are describing. I'll keep considering until I do remember and when I do I'll buy as many as you need."
They had beefsteak and baked potato for dinner, and fresh green peas from the garden. Helping himself to one of the latter, Spiller said, "We've got to get dried peas for winter. They keep so well. Not just for you all, but Lupy liked to keep a store of them, too."
"I could help you with that," said Miss Menzies.
After dinner they went back into the parlor because Miss Menzies said she wanted to show them what Mr. Pott had made her for her birthday. "Arrietty will like it, I think," she said, smiling mysteriously. When they sitting on the rug in front of the sofa, she left and came back with something large. They could see a round base as she set it down.
"Oh," Arrietty breathed, getting up and running to it. "Oh!"
It was a hand carved miniature carousel with four little horses on golden poles that circled around a main pole decorated with blue and gold ribbons. The horses had gilded saddles and delicate carved flowers around their necks. The carousel was attached to a music box which sat under the base of the carousel. When Miss Menzies wound it up the horses circled around.
"Would you like to ride it?" Miss Menzies asked casually.
"I'd love to!" Arrietty said, running up to it, remembering all the stories Miss Menzies had told her about horseback riding with her dear Aubrey. "Spiller, let's try it. Do!"
"I'm not getting on that frilly thing," Spiller said shortly, but when Arrietty begged, of course he gave in. Miss Menzies kept winding it whenever it started to slow down. They rode it around and around until Arrietty was getting dizzy and Spiller was heartily sick of the tune.
"You just fit!" Miss Menzies said when the horses finally stopped. She was delighted. Spiller was happy to be done with it. He swung his leg over the horse he'd been riding and went to help Arrietty down. She slid off into his arms, laughing.
"That was so much fun!"
"For you," he said, rolling his eyes, but it was worth it when she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.
"Thank you for riding with me," Arrietty said.
They looked outside then and to their dismay the whole street was one big puddle. "I'll have to find you something to sleep on," Miss Menzies said. "We can't go out in that. It's a deluge."
She went off into the kitchen and came back with two brand new quilted potholders for them to use as mattresses. Then she rummaged around for enough handkerchiefs to use as sheets, and some squares of wool to use as blankets. They got busy making up their beds as she watched them fondly. "I am glad you came to stay, though. I've had such a lovely evening."
"I have, too," said Arrietty, crawling into her snug little bed.
Spiller sat on his cross legged, and looked up at Miss Menzies. "Pod won't ever know we were here. I promise. I'll just tell him after we went to Mr. Pott's house we got caught by the rain. It will be all right. You'll see."
"I hope so," Miss Menzies said, lowering the lamp. "Good night, Spiller. After breakfast, we'll figure out a way to get that sewing kit and the gloves over to the Crown and Anchor."
"Roll up the gloves and tie them to the top of the box," he said. "Then I'll rig up a piece of twine or something and pull the box through the grass like a sled."
"Why Spiller, that's a wonderful idea. I'm sure we can get a piece of string in between the lid and the bottom of the box. Isn't he clever, Arrietty?"
But all they heard out of her was a soft snore. They looked at each other and shook their heads grinning in unison.
The sun was shining brightly when they woke up and heard the sounds Miss Menzies cooking in her kitchen. They had a fine breakfast of eggs, sausage and fried potatoes. Then Miss Menzies and Spiller tried to rig up something to pull the sewing kit. Twine was too thick. The lid wouldn't close over twine, but a piece of embroidery thread worked very well once they tied a knot in each end to keep it from slipping out. Miss Menzies rolled the gloves up into a tight bundle and they got that tied around. Then she put the whole thing into the basket and the borrowers climbed in. It was steamy outside as the sun dried up the puddles but they were safe enough in the basket even if it was a bit hot. When they got to Little Fordham Mr. Pott wasn't inside the house, but when they got to the back, they could see him by the station, presumably wondering when it would dry up enough for him to tar the lines he hadn't been able to get to yet.
They considered carefully how close Miss Menzies could get to the Crown and Anchor without Pod and Homily being able to see her. It's funny, Arietty thought, to be worrying about Mother and Papa seeing Miss Menzies, when it's usually them worrying about her seeing them. When she had gone as far as she dared, she took out the sewing kit in the silver case, and set it down carefully in the grass next to an alder tree. They all said goodbye, and she watched Arrietty and Spiller each take hold of the embroidery thread and start pulling.
When they got to the back of the Crown and Anchor, Homily came to the door in tears. "Oh. Arrietty, we were so worried about you! Why didn't you come home yesterday?"
"We were going to but then we got caught by the rain. It was coming down so hard there for awhile," Arrietty said, "but you must go get Papa! Wait until he sees what Spiller borrowed!"
Pod came and helped them slide the silver box into the kitchen. "The gloves are for Lupy," Spiller said. "She was running out of white kid, but the box is for you."
Just as Arrietty had predicted, when Homily and Pod saw the wonderful set of tools, all their worries about Spiller and Arrietty being gone all night flew out of their heads. They examined them all until it was time for Arrietty and Homily to make something for tea and even as they ate, they debated about what to do with the box.
"I'd keep the tools in it when you're not using them," Spiller said.
"But when we've got it closed it might make a lovely seat," Homily said.
"It's beautiful," Arrietty pointed out, happy that her mother hadn't asked any more questions.
The next couple of days were so hot and humid no one felt like doing anything. Homily didn't even want to light the stove for cooking so they scavenged all their meals from what the visitors dropped that weekend. Spiller and Arrietty, longing for the cool breezes off the river, decided to visit Burgonet and Arista and to go berry picking on the way. The blackberries and strawberries were getting ripe, but they had to figure out how to store them on the boat. Arrietty remembered the old berry basket that they had used for the balloon and they checked the storeroom to see what shape it was in. It was still a bit stained and slightly battered but Spiller thought he could figure out a way to put it under the canopy of his boat.
"As long as we have all the other cargo on the other side when it's full it should balance out," he told Arrietty.
"I can't wait to see Arista again," Arrietty said as they ate one last evening meal before starting out. "She's going to love the shoes you made for her, Papa."
"I hope so," he said. "After you get berries to them, do you all think you could bring a basket back for us? That was one of the best things about living in the boot, the fresh berries and dandelion salad and all. This Pott is a clever fellow, but he's death on dandelions. They get dug up the minute they sprout."
"Oh, Pod, remember when we tried being vegetarians?" Homily laughed.
When Spiller and Arrietty left to go get the berry basket and take it to the boat, Spiller had his quilt and Arrietty had a little bundle with a bit of bread and part of a bath bun that one of the visitors had dropped. Pod gave his usual stern warning to Spiller about taking care of Arrietty, and Homily wished them good luck and good borrowing. They set off in a fine mood when the moon rose. It was a late start but Spiller liked to travel that part of the river at night. Arrietty fell asleep almost at once and dreamed she and Spiller were riding magical horses with flowers around their necks through Little Fordham.
She had been so looking forward to the trip but when dawn came and they stopped at a hidden spot in the reeds off the beaten paths of humans to tie up and get ready to pick to pick berries to take to Arista and Burgonet, they both got hot and crabby.
Hot as she was, Arrietty blamed Spiller's bad mood on the heat and the fact that he was probably exhausted from working the silver knife all night, and tried not to aggravate him. They managed to get the basket full and rearranged the cargo. Then they decided to take a swim in the river to rinse off and cool down.
"Don't look until I get in," Arrietty warned Spiller, who paused from removing his kid vest to laugh uproariously.
"Ari, it's not like I haven't seen it all before."
"WHAT?" She was astounded.
He watched the color rise in her face and her eyes flash, and shrugged. "I used to see you playing in the river all the time that year you lived in the spinney. I'd be going down the river and there you'd be. I wasn't looking," he added hastily, seeing the shock refuse to leave her face, "but I couldn't help but see!"
She stood stock still in her under vest and petticoat, holding her dress in front of her. Then her shoulders slumped and she blushed even harder if that were possible. "I guess we're even then, because I saw you, too."
His black eyes snapped around. "When was this?"
She winced and stammered, then said, "That time it was pouring rain and you showed up at the boot and my mother made you get inside and throw your clothes out to her so she could hang them in the annex to dry. I peeked."
He laughed again, just as uproariously. "Did you like what you saw?"
"Well," Arrietty said thoughtfully, "a lot of what she'd told me about growing up made a lot more sense after that."
"I'll bet," he said. "So if we're even, it doesn't matter if we take a nice swim, does it? I mean, it's nothing new to either of us, and we're getting married anyway, right? Then it won't matter."
She finally managed a small smile. "I suppose so…" and they both tossed aside the last of their clothes and jumped in. The water was cool and they swam and splashed each other for a long time. Then he swam underwater, caught her foot and tried to pull her under. She shrieked with laughter as they both popped up, spitting water.
"Sure you're not angry with me anymore?" He asked, as they swam back to the boat.
"I wasn't really angry," Arrietty replied. "Tell me, though. Did you like what you saw?"
He grinned at her. "Certainly did. Like you better now though that you've filled out a bit more, though. Ari, you're so beautiful."
"Oh, get on with you!" She swam around to the other side of the boat to climb in, leaving him to climb in on the side by the cargo. By then it was late in the morning and he curled up in his quilt and fell fast asleep. Arrietty watched him fondly until she decided she could use a nap, too.
In the early evening they woke up, had a meal of bread and strawberries, washed down with water, and a big piece of bun, thick with currants and sugar, for dessert. When Spiller decided it was late enough to get going again, they untied both ends of the barge and he pushed them off into the open river with his butter knife.
When they got to the spot where they had to tie up to go to Arista and Burgonet's place, it was late at night. They tied up carefully. When the front and back of the boat were secure, they debated for awhile about how to cover up the berries until morning. They couldn't manage to carry the basket alone but they didn't want anything getting in and eating them. This led to an elaborate covering of the basket with almost everything they had along outside of Spiller's quilt.
Then they walked hand in hand up to Burgonet's place, with Spiller balancing his quilt and kit bag over one shoulder, and Arrietty carrying the bags of shoes and her meager traveling possessions in her other hand. She liked holding his hand. It was rough and calloused but it made her feel secure. He had worked so hard for so many years to make his way in the world. That was something to be proud of.
When they got into Spiller's room she got ready for bed quickly and he settled down on the rug rolled up in his quilt. "Good night, Spiller," she said softly as he laid down his dark head. "I'm so glad I'm here with you."
"Good night, Ari. I'm glad you came, too."
When Spiller opened his eyes, he could tell from the way the shadows lay in the passage that it was late morning. He sat up. "Ari, wake up."
She muttered, and then stretched in the bed. "Is Arista here?"
"I don't think she knows we're here. It's late. Later than I've ever slept here before." He stood up and stretched a bit more himself. "They must not have heard us come in."
Arrietty bolted up in bed." I hope nothing has happened to them!"
"What could have happened?" Spiller asked, watching her swing her legs over the side of the bed. She had slim ankles and long, well shaped feet.
"I don't know," she answered, picking her dress up and sliding it on over her head. "Could the Vicar have gotten a cat?"
"The Vicar hates cats. He thinks they're sneaky," Spiller said, rolling up his quilt and tying it.
"Well, that's a relief," Arrietty said, pulling on her stockings and shoes. She reached for the bag containing the new shoes and asked, "Should I bring anything else?"
"No, we can leave our things here," Spiller said. "Let's go."
They walked down to the gate, which was securely closed, and Spiller leaned over it to undo the latch. When he had it open he motioned Arrietty in and followed her. He didn't latch it back up. When he felt Arrietty's eyes on him he said, "We'll need it open for when we go get the berries."
They walked down the hallway to Burgonet's door. Spiller stuck his head in. "Hallo," he said.
Burgonet turned around from where he was puttering in the kitchen and his face lit up. "Spiller! Where in the world have you been? Did you take the river down to the sea?"
"Just been busy," Spiller said with a grin, and he glanced back at Arrietty.
"Oh, could I use you!" Burgonet said, looking at her. When she went into his arms for a joyous hug, he added, "How about staying for a few days and helping me catch up on the cooking and the cleaning?"
"Why, where is Arista?" Arrietty asked, alarmed. "Is she sick?"
"Morning sickness," Burgonet said. "She's expecting in the New Year and has been a little green around the gills."
Both Arrietty and Spiller were delighted with this news. While Spiller and Burgonet were backslapping each other, grinning like fools, Arrietty went back to the bedroom to see her friend.
"I hear congratulations are in order!"
Arista looked up from her bed where she'd been dozing on her side with her head on her hand, and smiled weakly. "Thank you! I'm really happy but I didn't know it was going to be so hard. The first few weeks were just awful. I'm getting a little better now but I'm still useless until midmorning and I find myself exhausted right after supper."
Arrietty sat on the edge of the bed and hugged her. "It will be worth it when the baby comes! It's so exciting."
Arista let go of Arrietty, and stood up. "So what did you and Spiller bring?" She asked, splashing some water on her face and brushing her hair.
"Berries, lots of them, and Papa finished the shoes."
"Jam," said Arista. "If you don't mind helping we can make jam…after we try on the shoes of course."
When they came out of the bedroom Burgonet had made a pot of tea and Arrietty and Spiller had some while their friends tried on the new shoes. Burgonet and Arista both loved them, and were amazed they fit so well. They admired them for a long time. Then Spiller and Burgonet decided to go try to bring in the berries. Arrietty, instantly worried, offered to help them, but they insisted they could manage. Burgonet told her that they had a piece of tin with string attached to it, hidden down by the river that they used to drag things up to the Vicarage. If they could get the berry basket onto the tin then it would be easy to move across the grass.
"Like we did with that box from Miss Menzies," Spiller said.
When they had gone, Arista asked who Miss Menzies was, and Arrietty told her the whole story. She was quite shocked that Arrietty had made friends with a human being, but when Arrietty pointed out that Spiller had made friends with Tom Goodenough and that everything had worked out with him, Arista had to admit that was true.
"I think you're both very, very brave, though," Arista said. "I've always been told you can't trust them, and for the majority of them I think that staying away from them is the best policy."
"Most of them yes," Arrietty agreed, thinking of Mabel and Sidney and the attic.
On the way to the river Spiller asked Burgonet how things were going. He shrugged.
"Aside from being tired all the time and that bout of getting sick in the morning, I think it's going all right. We've waited for this for so long. It's hard to believe it's really happening. I don't know how I will handle it when it actually does happen, though. I'll probably pass out or throw up."
Spiller tried to remember what he had heard when his siblings had come, but those days were hazy. "There's a family I know with five children. Next time I go there I'll ask the parents if they have any tips for you."
Burgonet looked relieved. "I'd appreciate that. I don't even know where there are any others. There haven't been any here as long as I've been here, and they'd pretty much all gone or died out when I left the house I'd lived in when I was a boy."
The men started bringing in the strawberries first, and so Arrietty and Arista had to stop talking and start jam making. Thankfully Arista had a large stock of sugar and enough containers to can with. Arrietty had fun. She didn't want to leave. She wanted to stay and help Arista and Burgonet, and have fun with them forever, but after two days Spiller got restless.
"Ari," he told her, as they shared the little hallway room that last night, "it will be autumn before you know it. You and your family need to be at the mill by then so you can get settled in before winter. I have things to do. I need to get back and see how Lupy's doing with my clothes for winter and I need to drop off those gloves. She won't need them until spring but they're better off at her place than with us. I need to go down the drain and check all of my spots along the way. I've neglected them for too long and I haven't been by my stove in way too long."
"I just like being with you," Arrietty said softly, propping her head on one arm and looking down at him, where he was curled up on the rug. "I want to be with you all the time and I like Arista and Burgonet. I wish we could stay until the baby comes. I'd do everything for her."
Spiller rolled his eyes. "Are you mad? We can't stay here until January! You've never tried to sleep in this room in the winter. It's as drafty as it gets. Besides, your parents would strangle me if I kept you away that long. We'll come back and see the baby when the snow starts to melt, I promise, but for now you need to get home and I need to get back onto the river."
He rolled over pretending to sleep, but all the while he was wondering what it would be like when he and Arrietty really did live together. He decided that he'd made the right decision. She was still too young to think about such things. There'd be time enough for that later.
In the morning after a big breakfast and lots of goodbye hugs, Spiller and Arietty packed up the jam and tea that Arista was sending away with them and headed back to Little Fordham. They stopped for the promised berries for Homily, but when they arrived didn't unpack anything else when they got there. Pod agreed with Spiller. They didn't need those things in Little Fordham. They needed to get them to the mill. Spiller only stayed at the Crown and Anchor that one night. He and Pod left the next night after they added some more supplies to the boat that needed to go downriver, the tools from Miss Menzies, some more yarn and a few other things.
He and Pod said their goodbyes to Homily and Arrietty at the Crown. Homily didn't want to come down to the river to see them off, and while Arrietty would have, Spiller thought it best if she didn't. He kissed her quickly and waved as he and Pod walked away, Pod dragging the tool box and Spiller carrying a spool of thread and a bag of buttons that had been scavenged at Little Fordham. Aside from the fact that they still did not have a stove, the new home was about ready to move into.
When Spiller and Pod got everything arranged, they were tired and looking forward to a nice cup of tea and a good rest at Daubrey's house, but that was not to be. They filled up bags of flour for Sateen, and made good time on the river, but when they got there, it wasn't Actina who met them at the door. It was Halberd.