The engine pulled slowly out of the station, its long train of carriages behind it, filled to bursting with girls off for their holidays. Through the quiet countryside it went, through small towns and villages, and at last ran through the smoky outskirts of London.

“The boys’ train is due in two minutes before ours,” said Anne, leaning out of the window, as the train drew slowly into the London station. “If it was punctual, they might be on our platform to meet us. Oh look, George, look — there they are!”

George hung out of the window too. “Hi, Julian!” she yelled. “Here we are! Hi, Dick, Julian!”

Chapter Two

Back at Kirrin Cottage

Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy went straightaway to have buns and ginger-beer at the station tearoom. It was good to be all together again. Timmy went nearly mad with joy at seeing the two boys. He kept trying to get on to their knees.

“Look here, Timmy, old thing, I love you very much and I’m jolly glad to see you,” said Dick, “but that’s twice you’ve upset my ginger-beer all over me. Has he behaved himself this term, George?”

“Fairly well,” said George, considering. “Hasn’t he, Anne? I mean — he only got the joint out of the larder once — and he didn’t do so much harm to that cushion he chewed — and if people will leave their goloshes all over the place nobody can blame Timmy for having a good old game with them.”

“And that was the end of the goloshes, I suppose,” said Julian, with a grin. “On the whole, Timmy, you have a rather poor report. I’m afraid our Uncle Quentin will not award you the usual twenty-five pence we get for good reports.”

At the mention of her father, George scowled. “I see George has not lost her pretty scowl,” said Dick, in a teasing voice. “Dear old George! We shouldn’t know her unless she put on that fearsome scowl half a dozen times a day!”

“Oh, she’s better than she was,” said Anne hurrying to George’s defence at once. George was not so touchy as she had once been, when she was being teased. All the same, Anne knew that there might be sparks flying over her father taking Kirrin Island these holidays, and she didn’t want George to fly into a temper too soon!

Julian looked at his cousin. “I say, old thing, you’re not going to take this business of Kirrin Island too much to heart, are you?” he said. “You’ve just got to realise that your father’s a remarkably clever man, one of the finest scientists we’ve got — and I think that those kind of fellows ought to be allowed as much freedom as they like, for their work. I mean — if Uncle Quentin wants to work on Kirrin Island for some peculiar reason of his own, then you ought to be pleased to say “Go ahead, Father!” ”

George looked a little mutinous after this rather long speech; but she thought a great deal of Julian, and usually went by what he said. He was older than any of them, a tall, good-looking boy, with determined eyes and a strong chin. George scratched Timmy’s head, and spoke in a low voice.