an army to London. Here, further in, Mary Queen of Scots was in Holyrood when this was still a sapling.’
Katie traced the lines with her fingers.
‘This tree was over four hundred years old when she fell,’ mused Harry. ‘Sometimes I think they have more claim to the earth than we do.’
His face looked distant and brooding. Katie found it hard to stop staring at him, and felt the need to break the mood.
‘Ah, but can they make pancakes?’ she said suddenly.
He smiled. ‘No. They can’t make pancakes. They can’t make wars either.’
They walked on to a glade covered in toadstools. Although still chilly, the late afternoon sun filtered through the trees in slices.
‘My mother used to bring me here when I was small,’ said Harry suddenly. ‘I really did think fairies and elves lived here then. Sorry,’ he apologised embarrassedly. ‘That’s stupid.’
‘Of course it’s not stupid,’ said Katie. ‘I still kind of believe it now.’
Harry gave a half-smile. ‘Thanks.’
‘No, I actually mean it,’ protested Katie.
‘You act that daft, I’m not surprised.’
‘Don’t talk about the fairies like that – they’ll come and take your teeth.’
He shook his head. ‘Anyway, this place is called Gealach Coille. It means, “Moon Forest” in Gaelic’
‘Oh!’ said Katie.
‘What?’
‘The language. I just realised what Louise was watching on BBC2.’
‘Well, I’m delighted for you. Anyway, this is one of our greatest concerns and, really, at the heart of why we’re recruiting PR now. To strengthen our armoury, if you like.’
‘What?’
‘Can you keep a secret?’
‘Of course,’ said Katie, crossing her fingers. She’d learned her lesson about that one.
‘This cannot get out, do you understand? The only people that know are me and Derek.’
Katie nodded solemnly.
‘This is your job, do you understand? You can be as annoying as you like, but this is the really important stuff.’
‘OK, OK.’
‘So if you want to go back to London, you have to say now. Once I tell you this, you’re committed to the end.’
Katie looked around her. Motes from the leaves floated in the beams of sunlight. There was a gentle rustle of breeze through the trees. The peaty earth gave off a rich, dank odour underneath her feet. Without thinking, she leaned her hand out and felt the stump, the lichen damp and the wood flaky underneath her fingers. It felt effortlessly strong, one of the anchors of the world that stretched far beneath the earth. Harry watched her, quiet for once. She wasn’t always a stuck-up harridan, he supposed. When she kept her mouth shut for more than ten seconds, she was almost attractive.
Katie looked up, and seemed surprised to see Harry staring at her. He dropped his gaze immediately.
‘Um, OK,’ said Katie, who had indeed been a little taken aback by the intensity of his slightly craggy stare. He still looked like a young Gordon Brown, but there was a weird bit of her wondering if that was really such a bad thing. It surprised her so much she wasn’t exactly expecting to say what she said next. ‘OK. Yes, I’m ready. I’m staying.’
His face suddenly cracked into a grin that looked like the sun coming out.
‘What?’ said Katie crossly. ‘Stop looking at me like that. What, you think I won’t make it?’
‘No,’ said Harry, who was as flustered by his idiotic grin as she was. ‘Don’t know what I was thinking of.’
‘Good. So, what’s this big secret then?’
Harry took a deep breath as his thoughts instantly returned to more serious matters. ‘Well, Gealach Coille isn’t protected.’
‘What do you mean? I thought all forests were protected?’
‘Well. We’re victims of our own success really. We’ve hit our quotas on replanting; on environmental impact, and, well, I already explained about the deer.’
‘They can’t pull this down!’ said Katie, outraged suddenly. ‘This has been here longer than anything, than any one of
Katie traced the lines with her fingers.
‘This tree was over four hundred years old when she fell,’ mused Harry. ‘Sometimes I think they have more claim to the earth than we do.’
His face looked distant and brooding. Katie found it hard to stop staring at him, and felt the need to break the mood.
‘Ah, but can they make pancakes?’ she said suddenly.
He smiled. ‘No. They can’t make pancakes. They can’t make wars either.’
They walked on to a glade covered in toadstools. Although still chilly, the late afternoon sun filtered through the trees in slices.
‘My mother used to bring me here when I was small,’ said Harry suddenly. ‘I really did think fairies and elves lived here then. Sorry,’ he apologised embarrassedly. ‘That’s stupid.’
‘Of course it’s not stupid,’ said Katie. ‘I still kind of believe it now.’
Harry gave a half-smile. ‘Thanks.’
‘No, I actually mean it,’ protested Katie.
‘You act that daft, I’m not surprised.’
‘Don’t talk about the fairies like that – they’ll come and take your teeth.’
He shook his head. ‘Anyway, this place is called Gealach Coille. It means, “Moon Forest” in Gaelic’
‘Oh!’ said Katie.
‘What?’
‘The language. I just realised what Louise was watching on BBC2.’
‘Well, I’m delighted for you. Anyway, this is one of our greatest concerns and, really, at the heart of why we’re recruiting PR now. To strengthen our armoury, if you like.’
‘What?’
‘Can you keep a secret?’
‘Of course,’ said Katie, crossing her fingers. She’d learned her lesson about that one.
‘This cannot get out, do you understand? The only people that know are me and Derek.’
Katie nodded solemnly.
‘This is your job, do you understand? You can be as annoying as you like, but this is the really important stuff.’
‘OK, OK.’
‘So if you want to go back to London, you have to say now. Once I tell you this, you’re committed to the end.’
Katie looked around her. Motes from the leaves floated in the beams of sunlight. There was a gentle rustle of breeze through the trees. The peaty earth gave off a rich, dank odour underneath her feet. Without thinking, she leaned her hand out and felt the stump, the lichen damp and the wood flaky underneath her fingers. It felt effortlessly strong, one of the anchors of the world that stretched far beneath the earth. Harry watched her, quiet for once. She wasn’t always a stuck-up harridan, he supposed. When she kept her mouth shut for more than ten seconds, she was almost attractive.
Katie looked up, and seemed surprised to see Harry staring at her. He dropped his gaze immediately.
‘Um, OK,’ said Katie, who had indeed been a little taken aback by the intensity of his slightly craggy stare. He still looked like a young Gordon Brown, but there was a weird bit of her wondering if that was really such a bad thing. It surprised her so much she wasn’t exactly expecting to say what she said next. ‘OK. Yes, I’m ready. I’m staying.’
His face suddenly cracked into a grin that looked like the sun coming out.
‘What?’ said Katie crossly. ‘Stop looking at me like that. What, you think I won’t make it?’
‘No,’ said Harry, who was as flustered by his idiotic grin as she was. ‘Don’t know what I was thinking of.’
‘Good. So, what’s this big secret then?’
Harry took a deep breath as his thoughts instantly returned to more serious matters. ‘Well, Gealach Coille isn’t protected.’
‘What do you mean? I thought all forests were protected?’
‘Well. We’re victims of our own success really. We’ve hit our quotas on replanting; on environmental impact, and, well, I already explained about the deer.’
‘They can’t pull this down!’ said Katie, outraged suddenly. ‘This has been here longer than anything, than any one of
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