CHAPTER SEVEN

THE KEY TO THE GARDEN

Two days after this, the rain ended. Mary woke up and could not believe what she saw. The sky was the most beautiful blue! Mary had never known that the skies could be so blue. In India, the skies were always hot and yellow. But this sky was a deep, cool, wonderful blue, like a jewel. There were tiny white clouds in the air.

"It's beautiful!" cried Mary. She jumped out of bed.

"Yes, it's nice at this time of year!" said Martha cheerfully. "The blue sky reminds us that spring is coming. It's still a long way off, but it's coming."

"I thought it always rained or looked dark in England," said Mary.

Martha laughed. "Oh, no! Yorkshire is the most beautiful place on earth, when the sun shines. Wait till you see the purple and yellow flowers growing, and smell the young grass. You'll want to stay out on the moor forever, just like Dickon does."

"Could I ever get there?" asked Mary. She stared out at the moor. It seemed to go on forever.

"I don't know," said Martha. "I don't think you've ever used your legs in your life. I don't think you could walk five miles. It's five miles to my family's house."

"I would like to see your house," said Mary.

Martha stared at Mary for a moment. Then she went on with her cleaning. She thought that Mary's face did not look as sour as usual. It looked like her youngest sister's face, when she wanted something very much.

"I'll ask my mother," Martha said. "She almost always finds a way to do things. It's my day off today, and I'm going home. Oh, I am glad! Maybe mother can ask Mrs Medlock about it. Mrs Medlock likes my mother."

"I like your mother, too," said Mary.

"It seems like you do!" said Martha.

"And I haven't even met her. I like Dickon, too," said Mary.

"Well, it's hard not to like Dickon. All the animals like him. I wonder what he would think of you," she said curiously, looking at Mary.

"He wouldn't like me," said Mary in her cold little way. "No one does."

Martha looked as if she was thinking about something. "How do you like yourself?" she finally asked.

Mary was surprised. She thought about it for a minute. "I guess I don't really like myself," she said. "But I never thought of it before."

Martha laughed. "That's something Mother once asked me. I've never forgotten it."

Martha left as soon as she had given Mary breakfast. She was going to walk five miles to her family's little house. There, she would help her mother with the washing. She would bake bread and enjoy herself very much.

After breakfast Mary went outside. She felt a little lonely, knowing Martha wasn't going to be there when she returned. She went into the gardens as quickly as she could. The first thing she did was to run around in circles ten times. This made her feel better. After a minute she went into one of the kitchen gardens. She saw Ben Weatherstaff, the old gardener, working there. The fresh air and blue sky seemed to make him feel good. He spoke to her.

"Spring is coming," he said. "Can you smell it in the air?"

Mary breathed deeply. "I smell something fresh and good," she said.

"That's the smell of the good earth, getting ready to grow things. If you look into the gardens, you'll see small plants beginning to grow."

"What are they?" asked Mary.

"They're different kinds of flowers. Crocuses and daffodils. Haven't you ever seen them before?" asked Ben.

"In India, we don't have flowers like that. And it is always hot, and wet, and green. After it rains, things will grow very quickly."

"Well, they don't do that here. But you watch. They'll get a little bigger each day," said Ben.

"Are there also flowers growing in the garden where the robin lives?" Mary asked.

Ben didn't seem to like this question. "Ask the robin!" he said. "He's the only one that knows. No one has been inside that garden for ten years."

Mary walked away, thinking. She liked the mysterious garden, even though she'd never been inside it. She liked the robin, too. Also, she liked Martha, and she even liked Dickon and Martha's mother, even though she'd never met them. This seemed like a lot of people to like, when you'd never had friends before!

Suddenly Mary heard a bird singing. She looked at the ground and there was the little robin! He was eating worms and seeds that had fallen on the ground, and pretending not to notice her. But Mary knew he had been following her. "You do remember me!" Mary cried. "Oh, you are prettier than anything in the world!"

The robin sang and hopped along the ground. Mary laughed and talked back to him. The robin looked like a little person, with his tiny bright red chest and his bright eyes. He was beautiful. Mary forgot she had ever been angry or unhappy in her life.

As Mary stood there, talking to the pretty robin, she saw him hop over to a little place on the ground where the earth had been turned up. It was like a very small hill of dirt, under some bushes. A dog had been digging there, looking for a rabbit. Mary looked at this area, without knowing why. She saw something lying in the dirt that was a little bit shiny. She walked over to look at it. It was a large, old key, with a thick metal ring attached to it.

Mary picked it up and looked at it. She was amazed and a little bit frightened, although she didn't know why. "Perhaps this key has been buried in the ground for ten years," she whispered. "Maybe it's the key to the secret garden!"

(end of section)