The oak tree falls 6/10

“I’ve just had a thought,” said Lucy, “I’ve often wondered why Joan’s appearance was changed so much on her first day here. Supposing her uncle meant to abandon her and knew that if she looked completely different she couldn’t be traced by security”.

She smiled as she saw the implications strike the policeman, “We’ve been looking for the wrong child. She should have brown hair with two pigtails and be wearing a strange sort of blue trousers and top all made in one piece. I’ve got her old clothes and the pigtails I cut off at home. If we take her picture as she was then, I’m sure we’ll find her.”

Once again the policeman spoke into his monitor, then he turned to Lucy and Joan. “You can both stay here, the luggage will be arriving soon. However none of this explains how she got the watch or battery.”

“No, but surely if she was left here on purpose, her uncle might be just as innocent as she is, about our laws regarding use of rare materials.”

“True,” said the policeman thoughtfully; “after all if she knows about goblins she could be from anywhere. That’s why we have restrictions on harbour arrivals. In theory, off-world artefacts can’t get onto the island.”

A new set of pictures flashed up on the wall. Joan’s picture as she was now, changed slowly to look as she did when she first arrived. Lucy agreed that it was a reasonably true likeness and the computer was set to finding a match from the same set of pictures of steamer arrivals. It only took about a minute before they were watching the old Joan and her uncle walk down the gangplank and get into a taxi.

“The man left the island two weeks ago by himself, no trace of the girl can be discovered.”

“Well someone on the computer has his wits about him,” said the policeman, “but we still don’t know where you’ve come from. Our only chance is to dress you in your old clothes and take you down to the docks to see if you’re recognised. If we can prove that you’re from a foreign land, you may get away with your crimes by claiming that you were abandoned by an adult in complete ignorance of our normal conditions of entry.”