The statue 5/15

Jennifer Jane and the dragons burst out laughing. Matilda who naturally didn’t understand the joke, looking on with a most surprised expression.

“I should think most of the people you used to know round here are dead now,” continued Freda, “come to think of it, you ought to be dead as well and you don’t seem to have even grown up yet!”

Jennifer Jane explained how she came to be there, while Angharad told her that Megan and Clarence had both died two hundred years ago. She had come through the Gate to visit her old friend just before magic had failed completely and now she wasn’t able to get home again.

“Never mind,” she added brightly, “mum always used to say how good you were with your bright ideas, so I don’t expect it’ll be too long before you’ve fixed everything and I can get back to Wales.”

The dragons and Jennifer Jane carried on reminiscing while Matilda slowly became more and more impatient.

“All right that’s enough. We’ve far more important things to do than stand around gossiping all day. How you managed to get here I still don’t know, but if you’re only half as good as the history books say you were, then I think you ought to make a start on putting things to rights. There’ll be plenty of time for chit chat once everything’s back to normal.”

Jennifer Jane and Matilda went back towards the Witches’ Home. Just before they went over the drawbridge Jennifer Jane stopped and went over to the statue.

“I’ve never seen this before, who’s it for and what does it commemorate?”

She looked carefully at the figure. The witch was holding a staff of power and even though her badges and insignia were carved from stone, they certainly made an impressive array. She had a good look at the Dame’s face, which to her surprise looked rather like photographs she’d seen of her grandmother when she was ninety years old.

Matilda was trying hard not to laugh as Jennifer Jane searched around the bottom of the plinth for a clue as to who it might be. At last she spotted a line of gold lettering partly covered by moss. She rubbed some of it away, so that she could read part of the inscription.

“To the memory of a human who became the greatest Grande Dame who ever lived: Jennifer Jane Bell.”

There were two dates after this statement, one she knew because it was her birthday, and the other was the date she’d died. She did a quick sum in her head, she was going to live for one hundred and four years!”

She turned back to Matilda with tears in her eyes. “Golly!” She couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“It sounds a strange thing to say to a child, but please come inside Ma’am and see if you can think of a way to help us with our problems.”