The next time Alfie went into Lera’s garden, he went to the back door. Lera had arranged for an old style bell to be hung next to the door, with a long cord, which reached right down to the ground. Alfie rang the doorbell, and waited until Lera answered it. This time it was a weekend.

“Hello Sweet One,” she said, and carried him inside. She sat in the living room with him, until two girls came into the room.

“Is it time to go to Grandma’s, Mum?” asked one of them.

She had children. Was she a widow?

“Almost,” said Lera, “This is my special friend Alfie. Alfie, these are my daughters, from when I was married: Chely is 14. Matilda is 9. They stay with their father every second weekend, and with me the rest of the time, although we can change that sometimes.”

Alfie wondered why Lera and her former husband were no longer together. He would have no chance to talk about it now, if they were on their way to the children’s grandmother’s place.

“I’m taking them to my mother’s to stay the weekend,” said Lera, “We’ll be having lunch there before I go. Would you like to come and meet her?”

“Yes thank you,” said Alfie.

“The children have clothes at their grandmother’s house. So we only need to walk there through the forest without carrying anything. I’ll carry you, and the children can walk beside me,” said Lera.

When they reached Lera’s mother’s house, she invited them all to sit down for lunch, which the children ate quickly, before they went off to play in other rooms of the house.

“So what exactly is your relationship with Alfie?” asked Lera’s mother Mosa.

“At the moment, we’re boyfriend and girlfriend,” said Lera.

“And what are your long-term intentions towards my daughter?” asked Mosa.

“I’d like to ask her to marry me one day,” said Alfie.

“Are you going to be able to provide for her?” asked Mosa.

“Mother, it’s hardly the thing to ask him.”

“Because of his size?” asked Mosa, “But that’s exactly the point I’m trying to make. You’d have to take care of him. He’s probably just using you for a free and easy life in a world that meets his material needs abundantly.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back in the earth school classroom, a boy called Gartin waited until everyone else had gone. He had seen Nicky and Hamilton passing a note back and forth during class, constantly adding to its contents. He had seen Nicky throw the note into the rubbish bin. Now Gartin went to the bin, rummaged around, and found the note. He opened it out again and read the contents.

“This can’t be true,” he thought, “A trans-dimensional tube to a Giant girls’ college! I think I’ll go and find that tube now, and see for myself if these two guys were mad or actually telling each other the scientific truth.”

Gartin headed for the forest, and found the tube. He passed through it and was amazed at what he discovered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Miss Brooke St Alban soon located Mrs Long.

“I haven’t found your Willy, but these are two I know got away last night,” said Brooke, “Let’s go to where the tube comes out, and we’ll talk there.”

Brooke led Mrs Long to the tube outlet, and they had a brief look, and then sat out on the nearby lawn to make their afternoon tea plans.

“One meal for each of us. You’ve done very well,” said Mrs Long, “And Miss Cartwright’s working on expanding the tube, so that we can go to Tiny Earth and get plenty more, without having to wait for them to come to us. Now let’s see who we have here.”

“Can we choose who eats whom?” asked Hamilton, “I know that we won’t get away. We should have stayed on our own earth. All we could think of was beautiful giants.”

“And what would your choices be?” asked Mrs Long.

“I don’t mind,” said Nicky, “You both have beautiful mouths. Since I have to be eaten, I couldn’t be in better hands, or mouths.”

“I’d rather be eaten by Mrs Long,” said Hamilton, “I’m just a boy, and I saw what a radiantly attractive giant teacher you were last night. Since I can’t avoid you now anyway, I might as well make the most of you.”

“Aren’t you sweet to say so?” said Mrs Long, “I’m honoured to be your first choice. I think we’d better go about it soon though. I’ve had too many escapes to lament lately. I’ll take you into the classroom and get on with it now.”

“I’m going to take Nicky up to my dormitory,” said Brooke, who was going to be a house mistress until her up coming marriage in several months’ time, “It’s the last thing he’ll ever see.”

Inside Mrs Long’s dress pocket, Casey thought about Mrs Long’s beautiful mouth. Hamilton would have a unique opportunity to touch the inside of it, but her intentions for him were not nearly so generous as her intentions for Casey. He was so glad to have found her affections, so that she would be looking after him forever, instead of eating him.

Alfie’s first meeting with Lera’s mother continued:

“That’s not true. He loves me,” said Lera.

“He’s inadequate, not worthy of you,” said Mosa.

“Mother, you are being frightfully rude,” said Lera.

“Somebody needs to bring you to your senses. If you hadn’t left Horatio, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation. I always had to watch over your every decision, and now you’ve abandoned your husband and started a dead end ridiculous affair with someone too small to be worthy of your attention,” said Mosa.

“I should have said this years ago, and you were lucky you didn’t know the truth. I never loved Horatio. He financially manipulated me into marrying him, and I went along with it for no other purpose than to run away from your authority and Father’s. At that age I was obsessed with wilful independence. I married a man I didn’t love and had two children by him, all because I disliked your constant influence on my life. I should never have gone down that path. So there’s the truth, and you criticize the first man I ever have loved. I won’t spoil your relationship with your grandchildren, but I won’t have Alfie denigrated like this, in your house, where he’s not on equal footing to speak back. We’re leaving.”

“You can’t talk to your mother this way,” said Mosa, “Blood is thicker than water.”

“Alfie has blood too, and you’ve done everything short of shedding some of it,” said Lera.

Lera stormed out of the house and took Alfie back to her home.

“I had no idea what you’d been dealing with all these years,” said Alfie, “I already loved you more than anyone I’ve ever met, but the way you stuck up for me was beyond admirable. No single mother ever has before. I’ve always been their very last priority.”

“I didn’t tell you I’d been married with children, when we first met. I didn’t know how you’d react. I wanted you to fall in love with me first,” said Lera.

“I have no doubt that I did, and now I love you even more,” said Alfie.

“What mother said about family coming first has no principle for superseding what’s right. She should have given you a friendly welcome as a potential future member of my family that you’re most likely to be. She’s had her marriage, raised children, and she has no right to spoil my choices now.”

“I adore you completely,” said Alfie and reached forward on her hand to kiss her lovely lip.

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