| The next day, Ermintrude approached her siblings. "Have we any plans for how to spend the day? For on a glorious day like today, surely we must go outside?" "I believe, from the twinkle in your eye, sister dear, that we need not plan, as you have already." smiled Peter. "Yes, you believe correctly." returned his sister. --- An hour later, the MacDonalds' eldest daughter was happily leading her siblings to the foot of the Sonnenscheinspitze. "I promised that we would meet them here." she told them almost excitedly. "I am to introduce you all and we are to meet their cousins. Their mother, you see, has twins in the family, a brother and sister, and both are married, with families. They say that their cousins have mostly left school, but there are sixteen-year-old twin boys, and they have a fourteen-year-old cousin." "You have still not explained who 'they' are." pointed out Betsy. "I, personally, am envisioning a crowd of young men." "Ah." teased Oliver "All females do at your age." Betsy was too well-brought-up to rise, so Ermintrude explained. "They are a crowd of, apparently, brothers and sisters, some adopted, of varying ages. The eldest is 25 years old. They youngest are barely a few months of age - actually, no, nearly a year, Len told me. Ah, there she is!" They spotted a young woman who was waving frantically. Ermintrude waved back, in a more stately way. "Come on, you people!" cried Len, then grinned round at them all as they reached her. "Follow me, and we'll meet everybody else." Introductions were made, Len to Matthew, Peter, Oliver, Betsy, George and Jane, and the MacDonalds to the Maynards' cousins. "These are Peggy, Rix, Bride, Jackie, Maurice, Maeve and Daphne; Davie, Sybil, Josette, Ailie, Kevin and Kester." Hands were shaken, much to many people's surprise, the Maynards had not made any implication as to the formality of the MacDonalds' manners. "Come on." said Josette. "Let's go." --- It was an exhausting climb for the MacDonalds, who had never climbed before and had not expected to, and had walked in a stately manner with decidedly straight legs. They were grateful when they could seat themselves down neatly on the soft grass where, with their backs straight and chins up, they struck a sharp contrast with the lolling Maynards, Bettanys and Russells. Everyone was grateful for the lavish picnic that the families' various maids had provided, and again the MacDonalds stood out as they ate daintily, mostly taking the meat pies and apples. The others took everything, being starving hungry. The talk turned to family matters, and George puffed himself up, looking important. "Mother has decided that, as we have settled here, she is to find her eldest brother and re-unite with him. He is a doctor at the Sonnalpe Sanatorium." Len frowned as she nibbled a patê-filled roll. Her conversation with the first Miss Maynard had returned to her, and things were slowly sliding into place. Yes, Papa had a sister who had married and moved away... --- That evening, the group went into town. The Maynards had recounted the amazing tale of how the MacDonalds had never eaten fish and chips. That was their dinner. |