‘I thought Leveret hardly spoke to you two!’ he said. ‘I never saw her being friendly in all the time she stayed here. Not that I saw much of her, I suppose.’
‘She wasn’t friendly at first,’ said Celandine. ‘She’s never really said much and we always thought she just didn’t like us. But this time … Auntie Leveret’s really nice and I think she was a bit shy.’
Sylvie smiled at her eldest daughter; Celandine could be very perceptive for a six year old.
‘I think you’re right – she was a bit shy and also quite unhappy,’ Sylvie agreed. ‘I’m so glad you girls were kind to her and made her feel welcome. You cheered her up, I think.’
‘Yes, we did, Mummy!’ cried Bluebell. ‘Once when you were in the Village and Auntie Leveret was looking after us and putting us to bed, we found her crying and—’
‘Blue!’ said Celandine warningly. ‘That was private!’
Yul frowned at them, helping himself to more scrambled egg.
‘Crying? I hope she didn’t upset you girls.’
‘No, Father,’ Celandine said patiently, ‘it was Auntie Leveret who was upset. We gave her a cuddle and read her our new story, the one about the hares, and she really liked it. It made her much happier and after that she wasn’t so shy anymore.’
‘No, she was smiling and I expect it’s ‘cos she loved our story! And her name means “Baby Hare” so we’re going to make a new hare in our story who’s actually our Auntie Leveret!’ giggled Bluebell.
‘I’m really pleased you cheered her up,’ said Sylvie. ‘I must get to know Leveret better myself. I always thought she didn’t like me much either, but maybe I was wrong too. From now on I’ll try to talk to her more even if she doesn’t seem very friendly.’
‘I wouldn’t waste your time,’ said Yul. ‘She can be very difficult and rude and she’ll probably just snub you.’
‘Well she wasn’t rude to us!’ said Celandine hotly. ‘She was very kind and we’d like her to come and stay again.’
‘Yes, again!’ said Bluebell. ‘Tonight! Can she come tonight? It’s the Frost Moon and we can make up another chapter in our book. “The Hares at Frost Moon”, we’ll call it, and Auntie Leveret can help us with all the spelling.’
‘Are you going moondancing again tonight, Mum?’ asked Celandine. She’d been practising a special dance all month, desperate to go up to Hare Stone next spring as promised. She was disappointed when her mother merely shook her head.
‘But why aren’t you going tonight?’
‘Your mother didn’t enjoy it last time and she won’t be doing it again,’ said Yul curtly.
‘Is that true, Mum?’
‘Of course it’s true!’ he snapped. ‘That’s enough, Celandine.’
The girl looked at her mother with puzzlement.
‘But it used to be the best thing ever, you said. And you told us it was magical at the Owl Moon last month.’
‘It wasn’t magical, it was terrible,’ said Yul, glowering at Sylvie and the girls. ‘And your mother was ill afterwards, remember? She couldn’t have breakfast with us because she was all sleepy in bed in the morning.’
‘I wasn’t ill,’ said Sylvie quietly, the issue still not resolved because they’d both been skirting around it. ‘You know full well why I was sleepy the next morning. The moon dancing was magical and I loved it. But I had a bit of a fright afterwards in the darkness and I panicked.’
‘You were totally hysterical.’
‘Only because I was frightened.’
‘What frightened you, Mummy?’ asked Bluebell through her toast. ‘Was it the barn owl?’
‘No, darling, not the barn owl. I thought I heard something.’
‘What?’
Sylvie’s eyes met Yul’s over the table and she knew he was waiting to hear her answer too.
‘What was frightening, Mummy?’ repeated Bluebell. ‘Not the hares?’
‘No, not the hares either. I just … I don’t know, I thought I heard a voice and it scared me. It sounds silly now. It was all a lot of fuss about nothing and I certainly wasn’t ill.’
She glared at Yul, still upset that he’d called for Hazel and forced the injection on her.
‘It wasn’t a lot of fuss about nothing,’ he said firmly. ‘It was very unwise of you to go up there alone in the darkness. Luckily you’d told the girls where you were going so I was able to come and find you. I dread to think what would’ve happened if I hadn’t been there.’
Sylvie remained silent at this, abandoning her toast. She knew exactly what he was thinking; hearing voices had been one of the