Alice-Miranda At School (16 page)

At breakfast Miss Reedy made the usual round of notices. At the end of the information about debating trials, music practices and sporting fixtures, she made one final announcement.

‘May I take this opportunity to wish Alice-Miranda Highton-Smith-Kennington-Jones all the best for her Wilderness Walk adventure? Although we are not able to offer her bodily assistance, I'm sure that all of us will be there with her in spirit.' Miss Reedy then asked Alice-Miranda to stand
while Millie led the school in a rousing three cheers.

In the depths of her wardrobe Ophelia Grimm was watching the morning's antics. Although she couldn't hear what was going on in the dining room, she had a most uncomfortable feeling. She would have to tell those stupid men to hurry up and get the sound enabled in all areas – not just the assembly hall.

Her thoughts fixed on Alice-Miranda. Five days in the woods should sort her out. Ophelia had planned the route herself, setting what might only be described as a very challenging course indeed. The little brat had to retrieve a set of flags to prove she had covered the route exactly as it was marked. She had ordered Higgins to instruct Charlie to place the flags in the most difficult of places: the top of a tree, beside a beehive, in an animal hole. While he seemed somewhat soft in the head of late, with all that smiling and whistling, she still trusted him to do the right thing. Without his job at Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale, he had nothing.

The sight of almost the entire dining room clapping while that infernal pest stood up was more than a little disturbing. Although she did notice that Alethea, Danika, Shelby and Lizzy didn't seem the least taken in by her. Ophelia knew she'd made a fine
choice in Alethea as Head Prefect. That girl could be relied on to do the right thing.

Alice-Miranda finished her breakfast and went outside to retrieve her pack. It seemed the whole school turned out to wave her goodbye.

Miss Higgins gave her a quick hug, as though she suspected someone might be watching, and shoved a small bar of chocolate into her hand. ‘A treat,' she smiled.

‘Well then, lass, off with you.' Mrs Oliver hugged her too, then brushed a tear from her eye. Mrs Smith did the same. She and Dolly smiled at each other with an unspoken understanding about this tiny girl with the chocolate curls.

Charlie walked with her across the lower oval to the gate.

‘Bye,' Millie called, waving furiously. A chorus of ‘goodbye', ‘see you soon', ‘good luck' and ‘you can do it', followed Alice-Miranda until the bell rang and the girls headed off to class.

Charlie dropped to one knee and met Alice-Miranda's eyes. ‘Now, lass, you know I have every
faith in the world that you can survive out here for five days. But if you get into trouble, remember our plan and stay exactly where you are. If you are not back by 4 pm on Friday, I will be out there as fast as my legs can carry me.'

‘Thanks, Mr Charles.' She reached out and hugged him. ‘I'll see you on Friday,' she called as she headed through the gate.

Charlie felt a stinging in his eyes. He brushed the moisture from his cheeks and smiled. Ever since that child had arrived he felt different. Better. Happy for the first time in a very long while.

Alice-Miranda bounced along the track beside the stream. It didn't take too long before she found the first red flag, which was marked ‘Number 1'. She collected it from a low fork in an oak tree and placed it into the top of her pack. When she was tired, she rested, when she was hungry, she ate her snacks, and when the light was fading, she picked a camp site, pitched her tent, built a fire and cooked herself some rice. By torchlight she wrote in her diary.

The next morning, Alice-Miranda washed her face in the river, packed up her belongings and ate her breakfast while consulting the map. Today she would begin the climb into the mountains and the trails would become a little more difficult to follow.

Back at school, Miss Grimm wondered where Alice-Miranda might be. Crying in her tent was what she hoped, but she had a nagging feeling that perhaps that would not be the case.

Alice-Miranda walked all day, following her map and winding her way uphill. She collected another two flags and decided that she had travelled far enough. One of her flags was at the base of a tree that had a very large beehive hanging from a high branch. She wondered who had thought to put up the sign that said:
Take care – beehive above
. She was extra cautious not to upset the bees and managed to get the flag without any bother at all.

All day she had had the nagging feeling that someone was watching her. She really did hope that it wasn't someone from school. Charlie knew how much she wanted to do this on her own, and she couldn't imagine that it was any of the teachers – and certainly none of the girls. As the afternoon sun began to sink over the inky mountains, Alice-
Miranda selected a camp site and repeated her actions from the previous afternoon. While she was getting dinner from her pack she heard a rustling in the bushes. Her heart began to beat a little faster but she told herself not to be scared. She would be fine. As she emerged from her tent she thought she saw a figure move in the trees.

‘Hello, is anyone there?' she called. ‘I'm going to cook some dinner and if you'd like to join me you're most welcome. But if that's you, Mr Charles, please go home. I'm fine.'

There was no reply, so Alice-Miranda set to, gathering some kindling from around the edge of the camp site. When she returned there was a little pile of rocks beside her tent.

‘Thank you,' she called. ‘If you'd like to join me I'll put two dinners on.'

Alice-Miranda looked around and still couldn't see anyone. Strangely, she wasn't afraid. If this person had taken the time to collect some rocks for her to build a fire then she didn't think they would want to hurt her.

She retrieved her saucepan, filled it with water and put it on the fire to boil. When the water was simmering she tore open one of the packets and
scattered the little beans into the pan. Within minutes the aroma of a fresh lamb roast filled the air.

Alice-Miranda thought that the smell might bring whoever was hiding out of their cover. But it didn't. She ate her dinner alone, the forest sounds her only company. Again she wrote in her diary before bed.

Alice-Miranda awoke with a start. The dawn light streamed through the gauze window above her head.
She could have sworn there was a shadow but when she tore open the tent's zip she saw no one.

‘Is anyone there? Please, you are most welcome to join me for breakfast. Don't be scared. I want to be your friend,' she called. The poplars rustled gently in the breeze, the only answer to her questions.

Alice-Miranda ate her breakfast and packed up her camp site. She studied the map and realised that today she would have to travel further than any other. The trail was densely wooded and the path was steep. As she walked, Alice-Miranda realised that she was climbing quite high.

Through a gap in the trees she glimpsed the whole of Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale laid out beneath her. It was breathtaking. She moved closer to the edge of the track to take some photographs and saw that the trail rose steeply from a rocky outcrop below. She edged forwards carefully, leaving her pack behind her. A flat rock made the most wonderful seat and she sat taking in the view below and picking out all of the landmarks. There was the lake, the lower oval and the upper oval, the classrooms, the stables; she could even see where Miss Grimm's study was, below the tower in the main building. It was a glorious view.

With the sun on her face and a breath of wind behind her she closed her eyes and drank it all in. Suddenly a crunching sound made her jump, and her camera fell from her hands and wedged into some rocks below.

‘Oh blast!' she exclaimed. ‘Silly girl!' She reached out to try and get the camera but she was too small and it was too far away. The only solution was to climb down further. Alice-Miranda stood up and peered over the edge. It didn't look too far. Just as she was about to step off the platform a man's voice shouted.

‘No! Amelia, no!'

Alice-Miranda steadied herself and only just managed to fall back onto the rock platform. A giant hand reached out and grabbed her arm and then she was back on the edge of the trail. She lay on the ground, squinting up at a man she had never seen before. The cut of his clothes was expensive but they were very dirty. His unshaven face, long hair and lean limbs gave him the appearance of a scrawny giant but there was something kind in his eyes. Alice-Miranda sat up. He stared at her intently, as though he was seeing the face of someone he knew a long time ago.

‘Hello,' she said quietly. ‘My name is Alice-Miranda Highton-Smith-Kennington-Jones and I am very pleased to meet you, Mr …?' She held out her hand.

The man stood still, just staring. It was as though he was unable to speak.

‘Thank you for saving me. If you hadn't come along I could have tumbled all the way down there. It was very silly of me to take such a risk. Mr Charles would have retrieved my camera for me when I went back to school.' She tried again. ‘Do you have a name, sir?'

The man looked as though he was about to speak, gulped, but said nothing.

‘I have some food, over there in my backpack,' Alice-Miranda pointed to where she had left her pack in the bushes. ‘I could get you something.' He looked as if he had not eaten properly for quite some time.

Alice-Miranda stood up, dusted herself off and slipped her hand into his. Without another word, she led him back along the trail to where she had left her things. There was a clearing with some rocks. She motioned that he should sit down. All the while he did not take his eyes off her.

Alice-Miranda decided that the man must be in shock, like when someone has an accident or they see something unexpected. A hint of brown material was poking out from behind a rock. She walked over to have a look and saw a tramp's stick, with his possessions tied into a bundled piece of fabric.

‘Do you have a home, sir?' she asked.

He said nothing.

Alice-Miranda decided that the best thing she could do would be to give this poor fellow a strong cup of tea. But that required her to build a fire first. She quickly set about gathering rocks and kindling and soon had the last of her water boiling and hissing.

She handed him a tin mug and found a biscuit in her pack.

‘Please, sir, a good strong cup of tea will have you feeling better in no time.'

And so she sat down beside him and waited until he had a few sips. He turned to look at her. She smiled, her hair shining in the sunlight, her eyes dancing merrily.

‘You're not Amelia,' he said at last.

‘No, sir, my name is Alice-Miranda Highton-Smith-Kennington-Jones. I go to Winchesterfield-
Downsfordvale Academy for Proper Young Ladies and I am seven and one-quarter years old.'

‘But on the rock out there, for a moment you looked just like her,' he whispered.

‘Who do I look like?' she asked.

‘It was a long time ago.' He turned away, brushing a tear from his eye.

‘Well, sir, I know that I'm only seven and one-quarter but I am a very good listener.'

He turned to face her. There was something about her, not just that she looked like Amelia. He wanted to tell her things he hadn't told anyone before.

‘My name is Aldous Grump and, a long time ago, I had a little girl called Amelia.'

Alice-Miranda held out her tiny hand. ‘I am very pleased to meet you, Mr Grump.' She handed him a gingersnap biscuit.