He and Alice discuss their hopes and fears for the future as they walk back up the hill. Will the war end or wont it? Will they be allowed to go home or won’t they? All they can do is sit things out and see what the future brings. At least Mrs Postlethwaite isn’t as mean as she used to be… she is very much still firm with the children in her care but since Billy lost his father she has softened a little.
They’re only two weeks into their summer break when Mrs Postlethwaite takes Billy into to town to get his new school uniform. “But, what if the war ends and I can go back home?” he says, thinking it’s far too soon to assume he’ll still be an evacuee when September comes.