"Seven hundred years!" I echoed.

"A long time, eh? And think, you've only been on this earth for six. I'm glad you like it."

"Does anyone live in it?"

"Oh yes, people live in it."

"Knights ..." I whispered. "Perhaps the Queen."

"Not the Queen, and they don't have knights in armor these days ... even in seven-hundred-year-old castles."

Suddenly four people appeared—a girl with three boys. They were riding across the stretch of grass before the castle moat. The girl was on a pony and I noticed her particularly, for she seemed to be about my age. The boys were older.

Miss Anabel caught her breath sharply. She laid her hand on my arm and drew me back into the bushes.

"It's all right," she whispered, as though to herself. They're going in."

"Do they live there?" I asked.

"Not all of them. Susannah and Esmond do. Malcolm and Garth are visitors."

"Susannah," I said. "That's a bit like my name."

"Oh yes, it is."

I watched the riders pass over the bridge which crossed the moat. They went under the gatehouse and into the castle.

Their appearance had affected Miss Anabel deeply. She took my hand suddenly, and I remembered Aunt Amelia's injunctions not to speak unless I was spoken to.

Miss Anabel started to run through the trees. I tried to catch her and we were laughing again.

We came to a clearing in the woods and there Janet had undone the hamper, spread a cloth on the grass and was putting out knives and forks and plates.

"We'll wait awhile," said Miss Anabel.

Janet nodded, her lips tight as though she were holding back something she wanted to say which was not very pleasant.

Miss Anabel noticed, for she said: "It's none of your business, Janet."

"Oh no," said Janet, looking like a hen with ruffled feathers, "I know that well enough. I just do as I'm told."

Miss Anabel gave her a little push. Then she said: "Listen."

We all listened. I could hear the unmistakable sound of horses' hoofs.

"It is," said Miss Anabel.

"You be careful, miss," warned Janet. "It might not be."

A man on horseback came into sight. Anabel gave a cry of joy and ran towards him.

He jumped off his horse and tied it to a tree. Miss Anabel, who herself was a tall lady, looked suddenly very small beside him.

He put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her for some seconds. Then he said: "Where is she?"

Miss Anabel held out her hand and I ran to her.

"This is Suewellyn," she said.

I curtsied as I had been taught to do to people like the squire and the vicar. He picked me up and held me in his arms, scrutinizing me.

"Why," he said, "she is a little thing."

"She's only six, remember," said Miss Anabel. "What did you expect? An Amazon? And she's tall for her age. Aren't you, Suewellyn?"

I said that I was taller than Clara Feen and Jane Motley, who were older than I.

"Well," he said, "that's a mercy. I'm glad you surpassed those two."

"But you don't know them," I said.

And they both laughed.

He put me down and patted my head. My hair was loose today. Miss Anabel did not like it in plaits.

"We're going to eat now," said Miss Anabel. "Janet has it all waiting for us." She whispered to the man: "Most disapproving, I assure you."

"I don't need to be assured on that point," he said.

"She thinks it was another of my mad schemes."

"Well, isn't it?"

"Oh, you know you wanted it as much as I did."

He still had his hand on my head. He ruffled my hair and said: "I believe I did."

At first I was rather sorry that he and Janet were there. I should have liked Miss Anabel to myself. But after a while I began to change my mind. It was only Janet I wished to be without. She sat a little apart from us and her expression reminded me of Aunt Amelia, which in its turn recalled the unpleasant truth that this magical day would come to an end and I should be back in the house on the green with only memories of it. But in the meantime it was Now and Now was glorious.

We sat down to eat and I was between Miss Anabel and the man. Once or twice she called him by his name, which was Joel. I was not told what I was to call him, which was a little awkward. There was something about him which made it impossible not to be aware of him all the time. Janet was in awe of him, I sensed. She did not speak to him as she did to Miss Anabel. When she did address him, she called him Sir.

He had dark brown eyes and hair of a lighter shade of brown. There was a cleft in his chin and he had very strong white teeth. He had white, strong-looking hands. I noticed them particularly, and there was a signet ring on his little finger. He seemed to be watching me and Miss Anabel; and Miss Anabel was watching us both. Janet, sitting a little distance away, had brought out her knitting, and her needles were clicking away, registering disapproval as clearly as her pursed lips did.

Miss Anabel asked me questions about Crabtree Cottage and Aunt Amelia and Uncle William. Many of them she had asked before and I realized that she was asking them again so that he could hear the answers. He listened attentively and every now and then nodded.

The food was delicious, or perhaps I was so enchanted that I found everything different from everyday life. There was chicken, crusty bread and some sort of pickle which I had never tasted before.

"Why," said Miss Anabel, "Suewellyn has the wishbone." She picked up the bone on my plate and held it up. "Come on, Suewellyn, pull with me. If you get the bigger half you can have a wish."

"Three wishes," said the man.

"It's only one, Joel, you know," replied Miss Anabel.

"Today it's three," he retorted. "It's a special birthday. Had you forgotten that?"

"Of course it's a special day."

"So special wishes. Now for the contest."

"You know what you have to do, Suewellyn," said Miss Anabel. She picked up the bone. "You twist your little finger round that side, and I twist mine round this side, and we pull. The one who gets the bigger bit gets the wish."

"Wish three times," said Joel.

"There's one condition," said Miss Anabel. "You must not tell your wishes. Ready?"

We curled our little fingers about the bone. There was a crack. The bone had broken and I cried out in delight, for the larger part was in my hand.

"It's Suewellyn's," cried Miss Anabel.

"Shut your eyes and make your wishes," said Joel.

So I sat back holding the bone in my hand and asked myself what I wanted most of all. I wanted this day to last forever, but it would be silly to wish for that because nothing, not even chicken bones, could make that come true. I was thinking hard. What I had always wanted was a father and mother; and before I had realized it I had wished for that—but not just any father and mother. I wanted a father like Joel and a mother like Miss Anabel. There was my second wish gone. I did not want to have to live in Crabtree Cottage. I wanted to live with my own father and mother.

The three wishes were made.

I opened my eyes. They were both watching me intently.

"Have you made your wishes?" asked Miss Anabel.

I nodded and pressed my lips together. It was very important that they should come true.

We then ate tarts with cherry jam in them, and they were delicious, and as I bit into the sweet tart I thought there could not be greater happiness than this.

Joel asked me if I rode.

I told him I did not.

"She ought to," he said, looking at Miss Anabel.

"I could speak to your Aunt Amelia," said Miss Anabel.

Joel stood up and held out a hand to me. "Come and see how you like it," he said.

I went with him to his horse; he lifted me up and put me on it.

He walked the horse through the trees. I thought it was the most thrilling moment of my life. Then suddenly he leaped up behind me and we started going quickly. We came through the trees in the woods and out to a field. The horse cantered and galloped and I thought for one moment: Perhaps he is the Devil and he has come to take me away.

But oddly enough I did not care. I wanted him to take me away. I wanted to stay with him and Miss Anabel for the rest of my life. I did not care if he was the Devil. If Aunt Amelia and Uncle William were saints I preferred the Devil. I had a feeling that Miss Anabel would not be far away from where he was, and if I were with one I would be with the other.

But that exciting ride came to an end and the horse was going slowly again through the trees to the clearing where Janet was packing up the remains of the picnic and putting the hamper into the dogcart.

Joel dismounted and lifted me down.

I was indescribably sad because I knew that my visit to the enchanted forest with its distant castle was over. It was like a beautiful dream from which I was trying hard not to wake up. But I knew I should.

He lifted me in his arms and kissed me. I put my arms about his neck. I said: "It was a lovely ride."

"I have never enjoyed a ride more," he said.

Miss Anabel was looking at us as though she did not know whether or laugh or cry but, being Miss Anabel, she laughed.

He mounted his horse and followed us to the dogcart. Miss Anabel and I got in. He went off in one direction and we went off in another to the station.

We alighted there.

"Don't forget to meet my train, Janet," Miss Anabel said.

It was a sad reminder that the day was almost over, that I would soon be back in Crabtree Cottage and this day's events would move into the past. We sat side by side in the train, holding hands tightly as though we would never let go. How the train rushed on! How I wanted to hold it back! The wheels were laughing at me, saying: "Soon be back! Soon be back!" over and over again.

When we were nearly there Miss Anabel put her arm round me and said: "What did you wish, Suewellyn?"

"Oh, I mustn't tell," I cried. "If I did they would never come true and I couldn't bear that."

"Were they such important wishes then?"

I nodded.

She was silent for a while and then she said: "It's not quite true that you mustn't tell anyone. You can tell one person. That's if you want to ... and if you whisper, it won't make any difference about the wishes coming true."

I was glad. It is very comforting to be able to share things and there was no one I wanted to share with more than Miss Anabel.

So I said: "I wished for a father and mother first. Then I wanted you and Joel to be them; and after that I wanted us all to be together."

She did not speak for a long time and I wondered whether she was rather sorry I had told her.

We had come to the station. The fly was waiting for us, and in a very short time we were at Crabtree Cottage. It looked more dismal than ever now that I had been in the magic forest and seen the enchanted castle.

Miss Anabel kissed me and said: "I must hurry to catch my train." She still looked as though she were going to cry although she was smiling. I listened to the clop-clop of horses' hoofs which were carrying her away.

There were two parcels in my room which Miss Anabel had left for me. One contained a dress of blue silk with ribbons on it. It was the prettiest dress I had ever seen and it was Miss Anabel's birthday gift to me. There was a book about horses in the other parcel and I knew this was from Joel.

Oh, what a wonderful birthday! But the sad thing about wonderful occasions was that they made the days which followed seem more drab.

Aunt Amelia's comment to Uncle William on the outing was: "Unsettling!"

Perhaps she was right.

For the next few weeks I lived in a dream. I kept peeping at the blue dress, which was hung in my cupboard. I had not worn it. It was most unsuitable, said Aunt Amelia; and I had come to the conclusion that she was right. It was too beautiful to be worn. It was just to be looked at. At school Miss Brent said: "What's come over you, Suewellyn? You're very inattentive these days."

Anthony Felton said that I went to covens at night and took off all my clothes and danced round and round and kissed Farmer Mills's goat.

"Don't be silly," I told him; and I think the others agreed that he was romancing. Aunt Amelia would never have allowed me to go out at night and take off my clothes, which was indecent, and to kiss a goat would be unhealthy.