Part Seven Chapter 3

The c eat upins lay side by side on biers at the expect of the church. A bronze chrysanthemum oar lay on Krystals, and a white chrysanthemum cutting bear on Robbies.Kay Bawden remembered Robbies bed style, with its few grimy p last-placeic toys, and her fingers trembled on the score of service. Naturally, t here was to be an inquiry at work, because the local anaesthetic paper was clamour for one, and had written a front-page piece suggesting that the small boy had been left in the care of a pair of junkies and that his death could withdraw been avoided, if only he had been removed to safety by negligent social workers. Mattie had been signed off with stress again, and Kays handling of the case review was being assessed. Kay wondered what nub it would afford on her chances of getting another job in London, when every local authority was cutting numbers of social workers, and how Gaia would react if they had to checkout in Pagford she had not take for grantedd discuss it wi th her yet.Andrew glanced sideways at Gaia and they inter diversify small smiles. Up in Hilltop House, Ruth was already form intimacys for the move. Andrew could pronounce that his mother hoped, in her perennially optimistic way, that by sacrificing their field and the beauty of the hills, they would be rewarded with a rebirth. Wedded for ever to an bringing close together of Simon that took no account of his rages or his crookedness, she was hoping that these would be left behind, like boxes forgotten in the move But at least, Andrew survey, he would be one clapperclaw nearer London when they went, and he had Gaias assurance that she had been too drunk to know what she was doing with Fats, and perhaps she readiness invite him and Sukhvinder back to her house for coffee afterward the funeral was over Gaia, who had never been inside St Michaels before, was half listening to the vicars sing-song delivery, letting her eye travel over the high starry ceiling and the jewel-co loured windows. There was a prettiness about Pagford that, now she knew that she was leaving, she thought she might quite leave off Tessa Wall had chosen to sit behind everyone else, on her get. This brought her directly beneath the calm gaze of St Michael, whose foot rested eternally on that worm devil with its horns and tail. Tessa had been in tears ever since her first glimpse of the dickens glossy coffins and, as much as she tried to stifle them, her fluffy gurglings were still audible to those near her. She had half expected somebody on the Weedon side of the church to recognize her as Fats mother and attack her, hardly no function had happened.(Her family life had turned inside out. Colin was furious with her.You told him what?He valued a taste of real life, she had sobbed, he wanted to limit the under the weather underside dont you understand what all that slumming it was about?So you told him that he might be the result of incest, and that I tried to kill myself b ecause he came into the family? great prison term of trying to reconcile them, and it had taken a dead child, and Colins profound accord of guilt, to do it. She had heard the dickens of them verbaliseing in Fats attic room the previous evening, and paused to eavesdrop at the foot of the stairs. you can put that that thing that Mum suggested out of your head completely, Colin was saying gruffly. Youve got no physical or mental abnormalities, have you? Well then dont worry about it whatsoever more. But your counselor-at-law will help you with all of this )Tessa gurgled and snorted into her sodden tissue, and thought how smaller she had done for Krystal, dead on the bathroom floor it would have been a relief if St Michael had stepped d take in from his glowing window and enacted judgement on them all, decreeing exactly how much fault was hers, for the deaths, for the broken lives, for the mess A fidgeting three-year-old Tully boy on the other side of the aisle hopped out of his pew, and a tattooed woman r separatelyed out a powerful arm, grabbed him and winded him back. Tessas sobs were punctuated by a little gasp of surprise. She was certain(p) that she had recognized her own lost respect on the thick wrist.Sukhvinder, who was listening to Tessas sobs, felt sorry for her, barely did not dare turn around. Parminder was furious with Tessa. There had been no way for Sukhvinder to explain the scars on her arms without mentioning Fats Wall. She had begged her mother not to call the Walls, only then Tessa had telephoned Parminder to reveal them that Fats had taken full responsibility for The_Ghost_of_ Barry_Fairbrothers posts on the council website, and Parminder had been so vitriolic on the telephone that they had not spoken since.It had been such a strange thing for Fats to do, to take the blame for her post too Sukhvinder thought of it almost as an apology. He had always seemed to read her mind did he know that she had attacked her own mother? Sukh vinder wondered whether she would be qualified to confess the truth to this new counsellor in whom her parents seemed to place so much faith, and whether she would ever be able to tell the newly kind and contrite Parminder She was trying to follow the service, only if it was not helping her in the way that she had hoped. She was glad about the chrysanthemum oar and the miscue bear, which Laurens mum had made she was glad that Gaia and Andy had come, and the daughters from the rowing squad, but she wished that the Fairbrother tally had not refused.(Itd upset Mum, Siobhan had told Sukhvinder. See, she thinks Dad spent too much time on Krystal.Oh, said Sukhvinder, taken aback.And, said Niamh, Mum doesnt like the idea that shell have to see Krystals grave every time we visit Dads. Theyll plausibly be really near each other.Sukhvinder thought these objections small and mean, but it seemed sacrilegious to apply such terms to Mrs Fairbrother. The twins walked away, wrapped up in eac h other as they always were these days, and treating Sukhvinder with coolness for her forswearing to the outsider, Gaia Bawden.)Sukhvinder kept waiting for somebody to stand up and talk about who Krystal really was, and what she had done in her life, the way that Niamh and Siobhans uncle had done for Mr Fairbrother, but apart from the vicars brief reference to tragically short lives and local family with abstruse roots in Pagford, he seemed determined to skirt the facts.So Sukhvinder cerebrate her thoughts on the day that their crew had competed in the regional finals. Mr Fairbrother had driven them in the minibus to face the girls from St Annes. The canal ran right through the private schools grounds, and it had been decided that they were to change in the St Annes sports hall, and start the race there.Unsporting, course it is, Mr Fairbrother had told them on the way. Home-ground advantage. I tried to get it changed, but they wouldnt. Just dont be intimidated, all right?I ain fu ck Krys I ain affright.But when they turned into the grounds, Sukhvinder was scared. Long stretches of soft commonalty lawn, and a big symmetrical golden-stoned building with spires and a hundred windows she had never seen anything like it, except on picture postcards.Its like Buckingham Palace Lauren call from the back, and Krystals mouth had formed a round O she had been as immune as a child sometimes.All of their parents, and Krystals great-grandmother, were waiting at the polish line, wherever that was. Sukhvinder was sure that she was not the only one who felt small, scared and inferior as they approached the entrance of the beautiful building.A woman in academic dress came swooping out to greet Mr Fairbrother, in his tracksuit.You must be WinterdownCourse es not, does e seem like a fuckin buildin? said Krystal loudly.They were sure that the teacher from St Annes had heard, and Mr Fairbrother turned and tried to scowl at Krystal, but they could tell that he thought it w as funny, really. The complete team started to giggle, and they were still snorting and cackling when Mr Fairbrother maxim them off at the entrance to the changing rooms.Stretch he yelled after them.The team from St Annes was inside with their own coach. The two sets of girls eyed each other across the benches. Sukhvinder was struck by the other teams hair. All of them wore it long, innate and shiny they could have starred in shampoo adverts. On their own team, Siobhan and Niamh had bobs, Laurens hair was short Krystal always wore hers in a tight, high crib tail, and Sukhvinders was rough, thick and unruly as a horses mane.She thought she saw two of the St Annes girls exchange whispers and smirks, and was sure of it when Krystal suddenly stood tall, glaring at them, and said, Spose your shit smells of roses, does it?I beg your pardon? said their coach.Jus askin, said Krystal sweetly, turning her back to pull off her tracksuit bottoms.The urge to giggle had been too powerful to r esist the Winterdown team snorted with laughter as they changed. Krystal clowned away, and as the St Annes crew filed out she mooned them.Charming, said the last girl to leave.Thanks a lot, Krystal called after her. Ill let yer ave another look later, if yeh want. I know yehre all lezzers, she yelled, stuck in ere together with no boysHolly had laughed so much that she had doubled over and banged her head on the locker door.Fuckin watch it, Hol, Krystal had said, delighted with the effect she was having on them all. Yehll need yer ead.As they had trooped down to the canal, Sukhvinder could see why Mr Fairbrother had wanted the venue changed. There was nobody but him here to support them at the start, whereas the St Annes crew had lots of friends shrieking and applauding and jumping up and down on the spot, all with the same kind of glossy long hair.Look shouted Krystal, pointing into this group as they passed. Its Lexie Mollison Remember when I knocked yer dentition out, Lex?Sukhvi nder had a pain from laughing. She was glad and proud to be walking on behind Krystal, and she could tell that the others were too. Something about how Krystal faced the world was protecting them from the effect of the staring eyes and the fluttering bunting, and the building like a castle in the background.But she could tell that even Krystal was feeling the pressure as they climbed into their boat. Krystal turned to Sukhvinder, who always sat behind her. She was holding something in her hand.Good-luck charm, she said, demo her.It was a red plastic heart on a key-ring, with a picture of her little brother in it.Ive told im Im gonna bring im back a ribbon, said Krystal.Yeah, said Sukhvinder, with a rush of faith and fear. We will.Yeah, said Krystal, veneer front again, and tucking the key-ring back inside her bra. No competition, this lot, she said loudly, so the whole crew could hear. Bunch o muff munchers. Les do emSukhvinder remembered the starting gun and the crowds cheers a nd her muscles screaming. She remembered her legerity at their perfect rhythm, and the pleasure of their deadly seriousness after laughter. Krystal had won it for them. Krystal had taken away the home-ground advantage. Sukhvinder wished that she could be like Krystal funny and tough unachievable to intimidate always coming out fighting.She had asked Terri Weedon for two things, and they had been granted, because Terri agreed with everyone, always. The medal that Krystal had won that day was around her neck for her burial. The other request came, at the very end of the service, and this time, as he announced it, the vicar sounded resigned.Good girl gone bad Take three Action.No clouds in my storms allow it rain, I hydroplane into fameComin down with the Dow Jones Her family half carried Terri Weedon back down the royal-blue carpet, and the assemblage averted its eyes.