ℭ𝔥𝔞𝔯𝔩𝔬𝔱𝔱𝔢 𝔖𝔲𝔩𝔩𝔦𝔳𝔞𝔫 ¤ 𝔇𝔬𝔠𝔱𝔬𝔯 𝔚𝔥𝔬

Chapter 23

"I don't remember London being so busy," Pearl said.

"Don't forget that England has just gone to war..." Charlotte replied. "And when was the last time you were in London?"

"A toddler, give or take..." Pearl replied, making the two girls laugh.

The two girls continued to walk down the busy streets. Market stalls and shops stood almost everywhere. Where they didn't, houses and factories replaced them.

"Anybody need a ride?" a voice said.

Charlotte followed the voice to a man standing next to a beautiful white horse and a pure black carriage. Charlotte smiled and reached for her purse, which she was glad she still had.

"C'mon," Charlotte said, taking Pearl's hand. "Saves us having to walk to the other side of the city."

The two girls walked up to the man and gave him the name of the building they wanted to go to.

Suffragette Hall.

The girls awed at all of the buildings. They even passed Big Ben and The House Of Parliament, which they both had to admit was quite incredible.

As they were about to enter the Suffragette Hall, Pearl stopped. She looked very nervous and her hands were shaking a little.

Charlotte noticed and faced her best friend, "What's wrong?"

"Do you think they'll allow two thirteen-year-olds to sign up?" Pearl asked. "I feel like they have an age limit."

Charlotte smiled slightly as if she knew Pearl would've asked. She reached into her bag and pulled out a newspaper clipping before handing it to Pearl.

"Youngest suffragette signs up aged nine?" Pearl reads.

"If they let her sign up, I'm pretty sure they'd allow us to sign up too" Charlotte smiled.

///

Within two hours, Charlotte and Pearl were carrying more than they had when they left the train station. They were also following a lovely nice woman who had offered them both a place to stay.

"By the way," the lady spun around and faced the two girls, smiling at them, "I'm Margaret. Margaret Olive."

"Charlotte Sullivan," Charlotte smiled, pointing at herself before pointing at Pearl, "And Pearl Robins."

"Pleasure to meet both of you," Margaret smiled. "My house is just around the corner here."

The house was very nice. Small, but nice. 

There was a table and a cooker in one corner, with a kettle resting on the top. There was a small sofa rested up against the wall in another part of the room. There was a small chandelier above them and a mirror on the wall by the front door. In the other room, there were two beds against one of the walls and two wardrobes.

"The wardrobe on the left is empty, so you can put your things in there," Margaret smiled. "The bed to the left is one of yours, the one on the right is mine. One of you can sleep on the sofa, and there are spare blankets if you guys get cold."

"Thank you, Margaret," Charlotte smiled. "This is very generous of you."

"Do you want the bed?" Pearl asked. 

"Thanks, Pearl, but after sleeping on a thin mattress for a few years, I think I'll sleep better on the sofa," Charlotte explained. "The bed's all yours, as long as you want it."

"Thanks, Lottie," Pearl smiled.

///

A few hours later, the sun had set, the lamps were on and the three girls were sitting at the table, all sipping cups of tea and exchanging stories.

Margaret was telling the girls about her fiance and showed them a photograph of him and her.

"This was taken a week before he went off to fight," Margaret sighed. "He writes at least once a week, but there's not a day that goes by that makes me fear there may be a day he may not write back."

"He sounds like a wonderful man," Charlotte smiled. "He reminds me of my boyfriend. He went off to fight too, and promised me a lot of things."

"He shouldn't make promises he can't keep," Margaret said.

"That's exactly what I said after he made his first promise to me," Charlotte replied, making the three of them laugh.

"What's your husband's name?" Pearl asked.

"Patrick Olive," Margaret smiled. "What was your boyfriend's name, Charlotte?"

"Timothy," Charlotte smiled. "Timothy Latimer. I wish I had a photo of him so I could show you him."

"It's okay," Margaret smiled. "What about you, Pearl? Do you have anyone special?"

Pearl shook her head, "I spent a lot of my life around girls, so I was never really able to talk to a man. I don't even know what I could and should say if I ever meet one."

"Well, we can help you with that, Pearl," Charlotte smiled.

"And don't worry," Margaret smiled. "You'll find someone eventually. Sometimes, it takes others longer to find the one they were destined to fall in love with."

"That was very wise, for some strange reason," Charlotte giggled.

"Well, James did always say I was strangely wise," Margaret smirked, but the three of them burst into laughter once again.

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Author's note:

This chapter is by far not my best. I struggled with this, that's obvious. 

Since I'm going off-script, it's a tiny bit more difficult. 

Anyway, see you guys in the next chapter!