CHAPTER 5 – 1933!

Mrs Thistle took only a short time to return.

‘You’ve made yourself ready?’ She looked Elvie over with a critical eye, before nodding. In truth, Elvie had been ready some time ago.

They walked through the house to Eldridge’s room as Elvie gaped at the expensive materials. Paintings and sculptures decorated the walls, and the grand stairway running to the second floor was a sight to behold. Even the carpets running hallways were luxurious.

‘Knock and wait,’ Mr Thistle said, once Elvie had reached the door to Eldridge’s study. She tentatively tapped thick wood.

‘Come in,’ Eldridge hastily called, though he sounded distracted.

She entered into a well-lit study, with a large wooden desk and a table and chair situated under the window. Eldridge sat on the chair with a frown on his face as he read the newspaper.

‘Something the matter?’

‘Oh, nothing, my dear. You know how it is with the world these days. Strange times. Who would have thought that in the modernised world of 1933, there could be so many troubles?’

She stumbled at the date and barely saved herself from spilling to the floor at his feet. 1933! He had to be joking!

He threw the paper onto the table and looked at the rain setting in outside the window with a subdued expression.

Elvie took the opportunity to peek at what he was reading, desperate to see a date or anything else which would confirm his words. The paper was dominated by three clear articles, two broadly outlined at the bottom: ‘New Chancellor in Germany Reaps Change’ and ‘Man Arrested for Defacing Queen’s Statue.’ Those hadn’t been where Eldridge’s focus lay, however, despite the fact they dominated the paper. No, what had drawn his frown was the smallest of the three articles: ‘Fire Sweeps through Cottsbury Castle.’

Elvie couldn’t spot anything helpful in the paper, apart from the tiny scrawl of the date in the top corner. She hadn’t been in an older area of town after all, she’d been in London – the London from her primary school studies. How could she have travelled to 1933?

Eldridge broke his reverie to push the newspaper out of the way, and pick his steaming cup off the table. ‘Please, Elvie, take a seat. Don’t worry about my stresses. It’s just that age thing – again.’

‘I worry about my parents,’ she replied, still distracted by the date.

He paused the journey of the cup to his mouth. ‘Why would you be worrying about them?’

Elvie focused on his face, biting back her sadness. ‘They wouldn’t know where I am. They’d think I’d vanished.’ How could they know where she was if she was in a different time?

He cleared his throat awkwardly. ‘And where would they be now? I’ll take you straight back to London if they are waiting?’ He was genuinely worried he’d stolen her. ‘I thought you were an orphaned child. The Heavens know enough of those run around these days.’

‘I’m not an orphan, but don’t worry. My parents are in Australia… I think.’

He put his cup to his mouth and took a measured sip. ‘Why don’t you tell me your story from the start?’

Elvie nodded and retold the story of the beach – the sun in her hair, the waves breaking upon the shoreline. His scepticism remained until she poured sand on the floor from her shoe. She moved on to the forest but glossed over what she still didn’t understand herself.

‘A huge forest owned by the King resides next to London, close in fact, to where I found you. Were you there? It’s the King’s property and trespass could see you arrested – so it’s a good secret to keep.

She nodded. ‘For a time I was there, looking at the trees – then I was lying on the road after I’d hit my nose.’

‘And I had found you?’

She nodded again.

‘What a strange adventure you have been upon! You get used to the abnormal when you use magic, but travelling around in the blink of an eye… well, it’s simply not heard of!’

Elvie paused to consider the man – was he trustworthy? She took a drink to buy herself a moment’s consideration, the tea tasting delicious as it swirled around in her mouth. ‘There is something else,’ she said timidly, once she’d placed the cup back on its saucer. ‘I don’t think I just travelled around. I think I travelled through time…’

His cup crashed onto the table, spilling the hot liquid over his pants. He cursed swiftly and jumped to his feet to brush it off. When he sat, he’d become more composed – at least trying to deal with his shock.

‘I’ve never met anyone from the future,’ he said carefully. ‘In all my years of magical practice, and the various travels I’ve embarked upon… Well, I haven’t ever thought of it as possible. I know this will be rude, but you did hit your head after all…’

The news was never going to be easy to receive. She was in a well-made purple dress with a yellow sash across the middle. Her shoes were polished black expensive leather. Her clothes weren’t far out of place. But Elvie had a key item which indicated her truthfulness slung across her back – which wasn’t where Eldridge focused his attention.

‘I can prove it,’ Elvie said calmly, meeting his eyes to read the question written there.

Elvie unslung the bag from her back and reached inside, shifting several items to the side before settling on the one she wanted. She didn’t have much in the bag. A drink bottle her mother had insisted she carry, as well as a sun hat and a jumper. She had a little flashlight which played music when she pushed the button, but the one item she was interested in rested at the bottom – her mobile phone.

Eldridge was not sure what to make of the thin black box Elvie removed from her bag, but as she pressed a button and it started to glow, he let out a little gasp of pleasure. ‘A light! Well, that is a clever magic. To store it in a box is thoughtful, it would make life easier at night, and it’s so portable.’

‘It’s not a light, Mr Eldridge. Here, let me show you.’ She opened the calculator function and raised an eyebrow. ‘Ask me any multiplication.’

He replied and she diligently punched in the numbers. Eldridge’s mouth dropped at the answer. ‘Do eight times twenty-six.’ Again Elvie performed the calculation to his stunned silence. He gathered himself together to say: ‘What a day of wonders I never dreamed of!’

‘It’s the start,’ Elvie replied. ‘It can do lots. Make calls, show a calendar, send messages, and look at the internet. It plays games, of course, I like those. Oh – that’s what you may like. Can I take a photograph of you?’

Eldridge was familiar with photography, even if he wasn’t sure how she would achieve it without a big enough box to put the film in, and the necessary darkness.

But Elvie lifted the camera to face him and clicked a single button. ‘Easy.’

She turned to show him the screen and this time his jaw dropped. ‘That’s me, so easily… Heavens below! How?’

‘I can’t tell you, but anyone can buy these in the future. Everyone has one.’

He sat back, stunned. ‘So in the future, you use magic to build these?’

‘We build these but they aren’t magic. They’re just parts and electricity.’ She turned the phone off and put it back into her bag. ‘We don’t do magic though, not real magic. I’ve never heard of anyone who does real magic.’

Eldridge leant back into his chair and laced his fingers before his face. ‘You’ve given me something to think about, haven’t you?’ His eyes trapped hers. ‘I don’t know what you’re doing here, or why, but I pledge myself to offer you sanctuary and protection while we try to find out.’ He smiled a warm smile, his eyes crinkling at the edges. ‘It may not be your real home, but you can think of it that way whilst you are here. Explore the grounds, read in the library – recover from your ordeal. And if you ever need anything, don’t forget that I’m always about, as is Mrs Thistle.’ It was a lovely thought to share with her, and she welcomed it.

Clearly Eldridge wanted some time to think, so Elvie made her way out the door quietly.

Despite the changes in the last day, despite the fear brimming beneath the surface and waiting to spill over, despite her desperation to see her parents and go home – she smiled. Could she find solace here while she discovered what had happened? That was her main goal now; figure out how to get home.