William in Trouble by Richmal Crompton Read Free Book Online

gone an’ you’ll get home all right.’
    She stopped crying and gazed at him, then the hope died from her face and she burst into a wail.
    ‘B-b-but you don’t look like a fa-a-a-airy,’ she sobbed.
    ‘I could make myself look like one,’ said William grimly. ‘I bet I could—Look – look at me now.’
    He gazed into the distance, his features composed into a simper that suggested to an impartial observer a mixture of coyness and imbecility.
    ‘Oh, no-o-o-o!’ she wailed. ‘It doesn’t—Oh, don’t !’
    Disappointed, William dismissed the expression which had been meant to represent the faëry for which in his heart he had such a profound contempt.
    ‘Well,’ he said, ‘if it looks wrong, can’t I cover my face or somethin’?’
    Her tears ceased. Her eyes shone. She clasped her hands.
    ‘Oh, I forgot! ’ she said, ‘there’s a veil. They won’t see your face. Oh, you are a nice boy. Will you really do it? Listen, I’ll tell you just what to do. I’m Fairy Daffodil – I’ll get you the clothes in a second. There’s a cap of daffodil petals, and a veil that comes down from them over your face, so that’s all right. And you have to hide behind the green bank at the side of the stage behind a lot of green stuff and leaves. Miss Pink and Miss Grace went into the woods in the car
this morning, to get the green stuff and leaves. You go there early, about two, and then when the others come they’ll be so busy getting ready that they won’t bother you. I’ll
leave you a book, and you can pretend to be reading, and when it begins you wait there till someone calls, “Fairy Daffodil,” and then you come out and bow and say, “Here am I
– speak, Queen.” And when that bit’s over you just sit down on the stool by the side of the queen’s throne and you don’t speak again. It’s quite easy. Oh, it is kind of you, dear boy.’
    William’s freckled countenance flamed again.
    ‘Oh, it’s nothin’,’ he said modestly. ‘It’s nothin’ to what I’d do for you, an’ it’s nothin’ to what I’ve done. Why,
I’ve been where no white man’s ever set his feet before. This is nothin ’ to that. An’ if they catch you and bring you back,’ he gave a short sinister laugh,
‘well, they’d better look out, that’s all.’
    She gazed at him with bright eyes. ‘Oh, it is kind of you. I – I’d go now, at once, but I’m so hungry and – it’s treacle-tart today.’
    The guests swarmed into the school hall. In the middle of the second row sat William’s father and mother, Mr and Mrs Brown. The room was tastefully decorated with leaves
and bracken.
    ‘I like to come to all these affairs, don’t you?’ said the lady next to Mrs Brown. ‘I really didn’t want to have a big girls’ school so near the
village, but now it’s come it’s best to be sociable, and I must say they’re always very good about sending out invitations to all their little affairs.’
    ‘Oh, yes,’ said Mrs Brown vaguely, ‘and it all looks very nice.’
    The curtain rose and the two ladies continued their conversation in a whisper.
    ‘Very pretty,’ said Mrs Brown.
    ‘Isn’t it?’ said the other. ‘Oh, it’s quite a nice change to come to a thing of this sort once in a way—’
    ‘Well, I must say,’ admitted Mrs Brown, ‘I like to get right away from home sometimes, because, really, at home I’m on pins the whole time, not knowing whatever
William’s going to do next. At a place like this I feel safe. It’s nice to be anywhere where I know that William can’t suddenly rise up before my eyes doing
something awful.’
    ‘Fairy Daffodil!’ called the fairy herald on the stage.
    A figure arose from behind a leafy barrier, took an ungraceful step forward, tripped over the leafy barrier and crashed to earth – leafy barrier and all. The yellow headgear rolled off on
to the floor revealing a tousled head over a stern earth-streaked freckled face.
    ‘What’s your boy like?’ said