"O God, make me grow, make me grow in the night."
He was always measuring himself, and had been found by Nurse one day lying flat on his bed, his wrists and his ankles tied to the head and foot rail of the bed. "I'm trying to stretch myself," he said, and Nurse had laughed at him, and told him he would grow in "God's good time." So now he made a rush for Diana, and she fled round the room. Chairs were knocked over, and when Nurse came in to see what was the matter, there was a writhing mass of legs and arms on the floor. Diana was kicking and screaming for all she was worth. If she were inclined to be the taller, Chris was the stronger, and he was on top of her now. Nurse soon restored quiet and order.
"You ought to be ashamed of yourselves," she said sternly; "the first evening your mother is here. She'd be ashamed to own you if she'd seen you a minute ago!"
"Shall we see her again?" questioned Diana eagerly.
"No, not unless you're sent for, and I know your Granny won't do that."
But they did see her again, for when they were in bed she came to visit them in turn. Diana and Chris had each a small room of their own, and Diana was the first one to be visited.
She sat up in bed with wide starry grey eyes, as she gazed in rapt admiration at her mother. Mrs. Inglefield had changed her cloth gown, and was in a powder-blue velvet tea-gown edged with sable fur. A string of pearls was round her white throat. Diana had sometimes hung over the banisters and watched some of Granny's friends go into the dining-room when they came to dinner, but though she had admired all their lovely clothes, none of them had ever belonged to her. She put her little hand out and stroked her mother's long open velvet sleeve. And then her mother knelt by her bed and looked at her with laughing eyes.
"Do you remember me, my sweet? Five years ago I brought you and Chris to Granny, and I thought my heart would break. Hasn't she been a good kind Granny to take care of you and keep you for me all these years? You were such a tiny girl, not three years old. I suppose you can't remember me? I'm quite a stranger to you."
Diana gave a little gulp. How she wished she could remember! But she wouldn't tell a lie.
"I'm 'fraid I don't remember," she said with downcast head. "But you aren't a stranger, for we've had your letters, and Chris and I have been counting the days till you came. And, please, we do belong to you as much as Noel, don't we? But of course he knows you better than we do."