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formidable, who would have looked more at home patrolling a prison yard than working in a care home.
    “Do as your told, Connor, or you won’t get any TV tonight. Come back to your seat.”
    Lily thought that even if the programme in question was a 3D, all singing, all dancing, naked beauty pageant, Connor would have still found Lily the better deal.
    He looked down at the hand on his arm as if it had personally offended him and shrugged it off. Lily sent out a desperate thought to him to stay back, not to cause trouble, and his expression suddenly changed. He had heard her, she was certain he had. He just stared at her, and she got the distinct impression back that he understood and backed off a little.
    “My name’s Lily.” she said. “I’m very pleased to meet you.”
    The other residents from the home had taken an interest now and were crowding around, which was probably a blessing as it took the heat off of Lily’s new admirer a bit. Lily smiled and said ‘hello’ to them, a bit overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Story Time seemed nothing but a distant memory, totally supplanted by this new and wondrous curiosity; they all seemed fascinated by her. Her braid was gently tugged, her face explored, her glasses threatened, but it was all done with gentle fingers. Could they see what she was? She had the firm conviction that they could see that she was somehow different, at least.
    Connor reached out with gentle fingers and touched Lily’s glasses, trying to take them off. She put her hand over his to stop him and just the touch of her hand seemed to be enough for him. He gazed at her in wonderment, and Lily knew that he could see her for what she was. She reached out to him, and could feel his thoughts, not words exactly, but a kind of impression of words, warning him to be careful.
    “Well, you certainly seem to be popular,” Bulldog Face said, and did Lily imagine it or was there just the hint of bitterness in her voice? She looked down at her name tag – Mavis Crichter. A hard name for a hard woman. Connor moved forwards and took Lily’s hand, slipping his fingers into hers and holding on with a firm, ‘I’m not letting go of you any time soon’ grip.
    “I think it’s the glasses,” Lily said, flushing a little, but laughing. “They seem to like me, perhaps I could come to the home and visit some time?”
    As if anything could keep her away.
    There was a moment’s hesitation from the squat woman, and for an instant, just an instant, Lily got a very strange and very disturbing glimpse at this woman’s deeper thoughts. What she saw there she didn’t like, not in the least. There was a definite shadow in this woman’s soul and although Lily couldn’t exactly understand or recognise what it was, she knew that it was something she didn’t like very much.
    “I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Crichter said. “We have a very strict routine and most of the kids don’t like anything different being introduced into the mix – it unsettles them.”
    Lily was pretty certain they did have a great many visitors, family, health workers, doctors, delivery men, and Lily knew, with absolute certainty that this woman had some hidden agenda in refusing her a visit. Unfortunately, the fact that the kids were all still manhandling Lily with great enthusiasm, did a great deal to bolster this woman’s case. Crichter’s resistance made Lily all the more determined.
    “I don’t mind, really, they aren’t doing any harm. They seem to like me. I could read to everyone, or bring my recorder and play for you all  – I think you’d all enjoy it.”
    The woman’s square shoulders went back, her jaw setting in determined resistance.
    “Well, write in and we’ll see if we can arrange something, but I don’t think it’s going to be possible. It’s obvious that you’re unsettling them.”
    This was said with unmistakable disdain. This woman had one serious chip on her shoulder – scrub that – she had a whole