"Though nurse is getting old, she has been so much accustomed to travelling, too," said Mrs. Desart, "and we are going a long way--to Algeria; Floss, do you know where that is?"
"Over the sea!" said Floss, "I wish we might come too, mamma, Carrots and I," she exclaimed. "You will be _so_ far away."
"But you will be with auntie, and you know how kind auntie is," said her mother, forcing herself to speak cheerfully. "And it is such a pretty place where auntie lives."
"Is the sea there?" said Carrots.
"No, but the hills are," answered Mrs. Desart with a smile. "I am quite sure you will like it." And she went on to tell them so much about auntie"s pretty home that for a little they almost forgot everything but the pleasant part of the change that was to come so soon.
And it did come very soon. It seemed but a few days from the afternoon they had first heard about it all, when Floss and Carrots found themselves early one morning at the little railway station with their father, waiting for the train.
Captain Desart was to travel with them for the first hour, to take them to the "junction" where they were to change and get into a train which would take them straight to Whitefriars, near which was auntie"s house.
You will laugh, children, I dare say, and think Floss and Carrots very countrified and ignorant when I tell you that they had never been a long railway journey before. Never, that is to say, that they could _remember_--for their parents had come to Sandysh.o.r.e when Floss was a baby, and Carrots, as you know, had been born there.
So you can hardly fancy what a wonderful event this journey was to them.
Their little hearts were very full at first after parting with their mother, and sisters, and nurse, and all that made the Cove House home to them.
And their mamma had kissed them so _many_ times, as if she could not really say good-bye, though she was not generally a very petting or kissing mamma, but rather quiet and grave.
And nurse had the tears in her eyes, and Louise had them pouring down her face, and Cecil had _her_ face squeezed up in a sort of way that Floss knew meant she was determined she would not cry. Floss felt troubled in a way she could not understand, and I think Carrots did too.
They had a feeling that the bigger people knew of more reason for sorrow than had been told to them, and yet they could not imagine what it could be. And after all, to _them_ the parting for even four or five months was almost as great a trouble as they could understand! only they were going to "auntie"s!"
"And we will try to be so good, dear mamma," said Floss, bravely choking down her tears. "We will try to get on with our lessons, too, and write you nice letters. And--and--" here a sob or two _would_ make its way, "I can"t help crying a little; but I"m sure we shall be very happy, won"t we Carrots?"
"If mamma wants us to be happy, we"ll _try_, won"t we Floss?" said Carrots. He wiped the tears on his mother"s cheeks with his own little pocket handkerchief and looked up in her face piteously. "Please don"t cry, poor mamma," he said; "we _will_ be good and happy."
Then their father came in and hurried them off, and the farewells were over--that part of them, at least, for the saying goodbye to Captain Desart at the junction was rather hard too.
And at last Floss and Carrots find themselves at the height of their ambition--alone in a railway carriage travelling to auntie"s! But they do not seem so delighted as they used to fancy they would; they do not jump about and laugh and chatter in their overflowing pleasure--they sit quite still, side by side, holding each other"s hands and with little quiet grave faces.
"Things never come the same as people fancy," said Floss at last. "We never thought we should go to auntie"s because poor mamma was ill, did we Carrots?"
"No, we never did," said Carrots. "But mamma will soon get better, won"t she, Floss, at that nice warm place?"
"Oh yes, of course she will," said Floss. "But it"s a long way away Carrots, and I never thought going to auntie"s would be like this."
"No," agreed Carrots again, "we never did."
"I"m so sorry to leave them all, aren"t you, Carrots?" said Floss, her voice trembling a little.
"Yes," said Carrots; "and Floss, I"m very sorry, too, to leave the sea.
I never left the sea before, you know."
"But the _sea_ won"t miss you," said Floss, "and poor mamma and nursie and all of them _will_ miss us. That"s what I keep thinking of."
"When should we eat our dinner, Floss?" said Carrots, with an instinct that it would be as well to change the subject.
"Not just yet. When we"ve gone about half way would do; and papa said that great big place, Millingham, would be about half way."
"But if there were any other people to get into the carriage?" said Carrots.
"Well, it wouldn"t matter," said Floss. "People must eat when they are travelling."
"But wouldn"t we have to ask them to have some too?" suggested Carrots.
"I don"t know," said Floss; "I never thought of that. Perhaps it _would_ be polite. But there are only eight sandwiches, Carrots; eight sandwiches and four sponge cakes and a packet of Albert biscuits. I hope a great many people won"t get in."
No one got in at the next station. Only the guard put his head in at the door, as Captain Desart had asked him to do, to see how the little pair were getting on. Carrots had thoughts of offering _him_ a sandwich, but he disappeared before there was time to do so, which Floss thought very fortunate when she heard of Carrots" intention. "For you see," she said, "if we began offering them to him, we would have to do it at every station, and if there are eight stations before Whitefriars, all our sandwiches would be gone."
"He might have a biscuit for a change," said Carrots, submissive, but scarcely convinced. "He is a nice man, Floss--he calls us "Well, sir,"
and "Miss." Do you think papa told him to say "Well, sir," and "Miss?""
But before Floss had time to answer they had stopped again, and this time some one did get into their carriage. The new-comer was a small, neat, oldish lady. She looked rather grim at first, but after a while she grew decidedly friendly, and no wonder; for at Millingham Floss and Carrots unpacked their little basket of provisions, and I don"t think the grimmest of maiden ladies could have remained grim after the politeness with which the children treated her.
They selected the nicest looking sandwich, putting it on an Albert biscuit by way of a plate, and then, at a sign from Floss, Carrots clambered down from his seat and gravely offered it to the lady.
"I"m sorry there"s no mustard, if you like mustard," said Floss; "but Carrots and I don"t like it, and--and--I suppose nurse didn"t think of anyone else."
The oldish lady looked at the children for a moment before she replied.
"I am very much obliged to you," she said at last, "but I think I won"t take a sandwich, as I had luncheon before I left home. But if you will allow me I will have a biscuit. I am very fond of biscuits."
"I"m so glad," said Floss, hospitably. "Now, Carrots," she said in a lower voice, "you eat two sandwiches and I"ll eat two, and we"ll each have one sponge cake. And that"ll do for dinner. We"ll eat the rest in about an hour and pretend we"re having tea early."
The lady asked them a good many questions after this, and told them they were such well-behaved children, she would not mind travelling all the way to Whitefriars with them. Floss blushed a little at this; it made her feel shy to be praised to her face, but still no doubt the lady meant it kindly, and they were rather sorry when she left them, some stations before they got to Whitefriars. Their old friend the guard left them here, too, but he popped his head in for the last time to say that he was going to speak for them to "him that was coming on now." And Floss thanked him, though she had not the least idea what he meant.
But there must have been some mistake about it, for the new guard never came near them, and when, at the last stoppage before Whitefriars, another man threw the door open and demanded "tickets," Floss felt too startled by his rough manner to ask him what they were longing to know, how far they still had to go. But he took away the tickets. "So we can"t have very far to go," said Floss. "Papa said they would take away the tickets a little before we got to Whitefriars."
"Will auntie be at the station?" said Carrots.
"Yes, I"m sure she will," said Floss. "Auntie and Sybil too, perhaps.
Carrots, I do believe we"re there; the train"s stopping."
And in another minute they found themselves in a nice clean-looking station with several people standing about on the platform, evidently waiting for the train.
The children looked out eagerly. There were two or three ladies, one little girl, and a few other people--but no auntie, no Sybil!
"P"raps this isn"t the place," said Carrots.
"Please, is this Whitefriars?" inquired Floss of a porter who just then threw open the door.
"Whitefriars, yes miss. Any luggage?"
"Oh yes," said Floss anxiously, "a great deal It"s in one of the luggage carriages, and it"s marked with our name."
The man smiled. "Will you come with me, missie, and show me which it is, and I"ll get it all right for you."