Free The Light Years (The Cazalet Chronicle) by Elizabeth Jane Howard Page A

while Polly was trying to think of another peace-making thing to say, she added, ‘I’m stupendously bored. I’ve put on a lot of rouge and I’m reading a book called The Painted Veil . It’s got sex in it. It’s nothing like as good as Persuasion .’
    ‘Do you think dark red would be good?’
    ‘You can get wallpaper like the sky and a sheet of different-sized seagulls that you can stick on. Why don’t you have that?’
    ‘There wouldn’t be room for them with all the shelves.’
    ‘Just don’t have boring cream. Everything’s cream here, as you know. It goes with everything, Mummy says, but in my view it just means you don’t notice anything. Have dark red,’ she added with a spurt of generosity. ‘Have you done your map?’
    ‘I did, but then I spoiled it. Have you?’
    ‘No. Whenever I think about it I can’t bear to begin. It’s pointless to make a map of somewhere that there is a map of already. I wouldn’t mind if it was an uncharted desert island. If you ask me, we are made to lead pointless lives – no wonder I’m bored to death.’
    ‘ They don’t have to do it.’ Polly was entering the game. ‘I mean, they don’t have to settle down after dinner and learn dates of the kings of England, or exports of Australia or do awful long division about sacks of flour.’
    ‘I entirely agree with you. Of course they say they know it all but you can catch them out as easy as winking. The truth is they’re just hell bent on pleasure.’ Ganging up about their parents had made her friendly at last.
    ‘They don’t even let us break up in time to meet Teddy and Simon. They can go and we can’t. That’s not fair either.’
    ‘Well, actually, Polly, that cuts both ways. Teddy and Simon don’t like being met – except by Bracken.’
    ‘Why don’t they?’
    ‘The other boys. They don’t mind fathers, but mothers are an awful hazard – wearing silly clothes and showing their feelings.’
    She didn’t say anything about sisters, and Polly didn’t want to ask. Simon’s good opinion of her was so important that she did not choose to discuss it.
    ‘This time tomorrow they’ll be back. Having their treat dinners.’
    ‘Well, we have them, too.’
    ‘But we don’t choose them. I say, Polly, that rouge. It won’t come off.’
    ‘Try licking your handkerchief and rubbing.’
    ‘Of course I’ve tried that. It comes off on the handkerchief and it seems to go on staying on my face. I don’t want it on all night.’
    ‘Try some Wonder Cream.’
    ‘I will. I gave Edna a jar. What’s Simon’s treat dinner?’
    ‘Roast chicken and meringues. What’s Teddy’s?’
    ‘Cold salmon and mayonnaise and hot chocolate soufflé. I loathe mayonnaise. I have my salmon dry.’
    Their supper trays variously arrived, but they talked on and on, so in the end it was quite a nice evening.

     
    ‘Hey! I say! Are you awake?’
    Simon didn’t answer. He was fed up with Clarkson. He lay rigidly still because the dormitory wasn’t really dark and Clarkson would be watching.
    ‘Listen, Cazalet minor, I know you are awake. I only wanted to ask you something.’
    It was jolly bad luck to be stuck in a dormitory of three, especially when Galbraith was the third. He was the senior, a sixth-form boy, but he was keen on owls and used to go off after Lights Out to watch them. Simon didn’t actually mind because he’d given them quite a decent bribe, not only the Crunchies but some wizard swaps for cigarette cards – Galbraith only collected the natural history ones. Still, it left him stuck with Clarkson who went on and on about things that Simon simply didn’t want to talk about.
    ‘I mean, how do they know that pee won’t come out – instead of the other stuff?’
    ‘ I don’t know.’
    ‘I mean – I’ve looked and there is only one place. Do you think Davenport got it wrong?’
    ‘Why don’t you ask him if you’re so keen?’
    ‘He wasn’t talking to me, he was telling Travers. I can’t ask him