‘A Beatles song,’ Millie insisted. ‘“All My Loving”?’
‘What about “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square”?’ suggested Polly.
‘Here’s an idea. What about “Lili Marlene”?’ said Ronnie, giving Bill a sly look.
Bill glared at him. ‘Shut it.’
‘“Lily of Laguna”?’
Bill got to his feet. ‘I said, shut it.’
‘“Lily of the West”?’
Bill punched Ronnie in the face. ‘I warned you!’
‘Not again,’ said Percy furiously. ‘I knew it was too good to be true.’
‘Coo, a proper fight,’ said Florrie in delight.
‘Smack him, Bill,’ yelled John.
‘Really, I think we need to get these children home,’ Aubrey said. ‘This is hardly appropriate.’
‘They’ll kill each other!’ Agnes shrieked without a hint of irony. ‘Oh, somebody do something!’
Suddenly, Bill and Ronnie were dangling in the air, held in the strong grasp of Quintus Severus, who had each of them by the scruff of the neck.
‘You know, you guys really need to get a grip.’ Harmony shook her head at them. ‘Still fighting over this Lily girl, right?’
‘She wasmygirlfriend,’ Bill said furiously. ‘And he went and did the dirty on me with her!’
‘And then took great pleasure in telling you all about it,’ Harmony said, rolling her eyes. ‘Which led to you two fighting on the station platform while you waited for the train to come and take you on your journey back to the front.’
‘Yeah,’ Ronnie said. ‘Except we never made it, did we?’
‘Because of you!’ Bill said angrily.
‘Because of you!’
‘Because you’re both nuts,’ Harmony said. ‘Too busy arguing to think that at the centre of it all was a young woman who didn’t really care about either of you.’
‘Lily loved me!’ Bill cried.
‘Lily loved us all, mate,’ Ronnie said with a smirk, earning a shake from Quintus which made his teeth rattle.
Harmony turned to face the others. ‘Does anyone know what happened to this Lily girl after these ridiculous guys got into a fight on the platform and fell under the train as it pulled in?’
Both young soldiers winced at the thought, even though they mercifully had no memory of the actual moment their deaths had occurred.
‘I do,’ said Peter sheepishly.
Bill and Ronnie stared at him.
‘You do?’
‘Well, go on then,’ Bill said. ‘Tell me! What happened to Lily?’
Peter cleared his throat. ‘Er, well, about three months after your funerals she married a young man called Albert Smith from Kingsford Wold. He was exempt from the fighting due to him being a teacher. When he got a position at an exclusive boys’ school in Derbyshire with accommodation included, he proposed and she accepted straight away. They moved to their new home the day after the wedding, I do believe. Her mother was very proud. She was telling all her friends that she knew her Lily would do well for herself. I, er, happened to overhear the conversation.’
