Straight On Till Morning

two

The next day at school, Emily and Wendy sat in their classrooms practicing their embroidering. Emily watched as Wendy checked to make sure Miss Fulsom wasn’t looking before she continued her drawing of the boy from last night. Emily shook her head as she nervously glanced at the old woman before turning back to her embroidering, Wendy was sure to be caught. 

Smack!

All the girls turned to find Miss Fulsom’s ruler on Wendy’s desk and Emily instantly knew that her sister was going to be in big trouble when they got home.

~~~

Emily walked with her siblings as Wendy followed miserable and dreading her father getting the letter. A boy on a bicycle passed them and rang his bell causing Wendy to look up and stared after him with wide eyes.

“The letter.” She said softly before she ran after him. “Wait! Stop!”

“Wendy!” Emily called after her sister. Nana ran after her and the rest of the Darling children weren’t far behind.

“Come back!”

“Wendy! Nana, come back!”

It had started to rain and by the time Emily and her brothers had arrived at the bank, Nana had knocked Wendy and the boy off their feet and ran straight into Mr. Darling and his boss. Letters and paperwork scattered as they all groaned in pain, Mr. Darling was furious.

“I have been humiliated!” He shouted later that night as he dragged Nana to the backyard and the children protested. “No! I must become a man that children fear and adults respect, or we shall all end up in the streets!”

“George, not so loud.” Mrs. Darling said.

“The neighbors will hear.” Aunt Millicent added.

“Let them hear. Let the whole world know! This is not a nurse! This is a dog.” Nana whined before Mr. Darling ripped the bonnet off her head causing them to all gasp. “Tomorrow you will both begin your instruction with Aunt Millicent. It is time for you to grow up.”

Emily clenched her jaw and stomped off to the nursery. Her siblings filed in shortly after with their mother. The children all climbed into their beds and watched as their mother locked the window.

“Mother, can anything harm us after the night-lights are lit?” Micheal asks.

“No, precious.” Their mother smiled lovingly. “They are the eyes a mother leaves behind to guard her children.”

As their mother lit the night-light beside Wendy’s behind the girl sat up and looked up at the woman. “Mother, must you go to the party?”

“Yes, Mother, you don’t have to go!”

“Please, Mother.”

“Father can go by himself.” Emily and her brothers ran over to Wendy’s bed as they tried to convince their mother to stay.

“By himself?” The woman repeated, “Your father is a brave man. But he’s going to need the special kiss to face his colleagues tonight.”

“Father? Brave?” Emily scoffed.

“There are many different kinds of bravery.” Her mother told them. “There’s the bravery of thinking of others before oneself. Now, your father has never brandished a sword nor fired a pistol, thank heavens. But he’s made many sacrifices for his family and put away many dreams.”

“Where did he put them?” Micheal asks curiously.

“He put them in a drawer. And sometimes, late at night, we take them out and admire them. But it gets harder and harder to close the drawer. He does. And that is why he is brave.” Emily glanced at the window and furrowed her brows as she caught a glimpse of a shadow passing quickly. “And remember, every cloud has a silver lining. Now, off to bed.”