The Great Fire Dogs

by Megan Rix

  Woofer watched him patiently and then once George had finished he started to dig the pineapple up again.

  ‘No, Woofer!’

  It was time to head back inside.

  ‘Come on!’

  Woofer looked up at the window where His Majesty now stood beside Tiger Lily. George looked up too and the king raised his hand in a wave.

  Woofer wagged his tail-stub at Tiger Lily and gave one of his distinctive deep barks before following George, Scraps, Teeth and Claws back inside.

  CHAPTER 5

  Spring 1666

  Tiger Lily and Woofer were both such clever puppies that in no time at all they’d learnt how to ‘sit’, ‘stay’, ‘down’, ‘circle’ and walk backwards on command.

  George used only the tiniest morsels of cheese during training, or a broken bit of one of Annie’s biscuits, because he knew too much rich food wasn’t good for a puppy’s sensitive tummy.

  ‘Sit,’ George said to Woofer, and as he said the word he lifted the hand containing the tiny bit of cheese up to his chest.

  Still intently watching the hand with the cheese in it, Woofer did so. Like the rest of his breed, when he sat, his entire body was vertical with his hind legs sticking straight out in front of him.

  ‘Good dog!’ said George, and he gave Woofer the morsel of cheese.

  Tiger Lily watched him and then looked up at George.

  ‘Your turn now, Tiger Lily.’

  Tiger Lily’s tail wagged. Learning was fun.

  George repeated the command, along with the hand signal, and Tiger Lily immediately sat.

  When the king saw all the new things that Tiger Lily had been taught he was very impressed.

  ‘She’s learnt far more than my other dogs at her age,’ he said as he watched her circling one way and then the other. ‘It’s almost as if she’s dancing. What a clever puppy you are, Tiger Lily.’

  The next time he saw the puppies learning new things he said: ‘They should perform at the May Day celebration so the rest of the court can see what clever pups they are.’

  George gulped. The idea terrified him but he couldn’t say no to the king.

  The following day a dulcimer and a musician to play the instrument was provided for the puppies to ‘dance’ to and for the next few weeks Woofer and Tiger Lily practised every day until George only needed to give them the subtlest of hand signals and no voice command at all for a perfect performance.

  ‘Costumes!’ His Majesty said when he saw how well Tiger Lily and Woofer were doing. ‘Bejewelled collars for them both.’

  And the royal costumier set to work.

  ‘You’re probably the only turnspit dog in history to have worn a collar embedded with sapphires,’ George told Woofer when he tried the puppy’s new collar on.

  He’d have to be very careful that Woofer didn’t lose it, and that he kept it clean, despite being a dog who loved getting grubby. When the tide was low George sometimes took the puppies out of the door at the back of the king’s apartments and along the riverbank. Both Woofer and Tiger Lily loved racing and chasing each other along it. But they always got covered in grey mud, especially Woofer, who couldn’t resist digging in it, and George had to give both puppies a bath before he returned Tiger Lily to the king.

  The palace kitchens were even busier than usual as they got ready for the May Day celebrations. But busiest of all were the gingerbread makers in the kitchen next to George’s. Master Vogel, who’d come all the way from Austria, could often be heard shouting at one hapless assistant or another. George was glad he worked in Humphrey’s kitchen. There you were more likely to hear Humphrey’s big belly laugh than any shouting.

  George both admired and was intrigued by the intricate work of the gingerbread makers. He knew that Annie would be really interested to hear all about it.

  But Master Vogel was not pleased when George tried to take a closer look.

  ‘Get back to your own kitchen and take that filthy diseased mutt with you!’ he said.

  George looked down at Woofer who’d followed him and then up at Master Vogel in disbelief. The puppy wasn’t filthy or disease-ridden. Woofer looked up at George and wagged his tail-stub.

  ‘Now! I don’t want its fleas or a stray strand of dog fur damaging my work,’ the chef told him.

  Master Vogel was one of those at the palace who’d said that the turnspit dogs should be put down during the plague. Thank goodness Humphrey had been able to overrule him and the dogs were allowed to stay.

  ‘Come on, Woofer,’ George said, and they headed back to their own kitchen.

  Far fewer people were dying from the plague now in London but it hadn’t completely gone. No one was absolutely safe and it was still taking lives in the rest of the country. One village in Derbyshire, Eyam, had decided to quarantine itself when plague had struck, so that it wouldn’t spread the disease any further.

  Humphrey still insisted his kitchen staff drank his plague-prevention mixture every morning, just in case.

  ‘I don’t care what it tastes like, it’s better than getting the plague,’ he declared firmly to everyone who worked in the kitchen.

  George drank the contents of his beaker but it was hard to take Humphrey seriously because of the crushed acorns and honey mixture on top of his bald head.

  Woofer was very fond of honey and tried to lick some of it off Humphrey’s head when he bent over to pour Old Peg a beaker of plague water.

  ‘Leave my hair restorer alone, dog!’ Humphrey told him as George grinned.

  The celebration of May Day had been forbidden during Oliver Cromwell’s rule but with the restoration of the king in 1660 it had been reinstated.

  In the morning the king promenaded through Hyde Park with his courtiers, all dressed in green with flower wreaths on their heads. There were maypole dancing and morris men and a May queen was crowned to celebrate the first of May and the first day of summer.

  Woofer watched as Teeth and Claws took it in turns to walk in the turnspit wheel to cook the meat. Hundreds of people needed to be fed and all the palace kitchens were working as hard and fast as they could.

  Master Vogel shouted at his assistants as they iced the hundreds of hawthorn-shaped gingerbread flowers with white icing.

  The Stone Gallery was decorated with freshly cut, sweet-smelling May hawthorn blossoms from the gardens.

  ‘It’s magical,’ George said. He’d never seen anything so beautiful before. Woofer barked in agreement.

  A long table had already been set and George couldn’t believe how much food was laid out on it. Master Vogel’s gingerbread-flower display was the centrepiece of the royal table.

  At three o’clock James Jack brought Tiger Lily into the gallery, wearing her ruby-studded collar.

  ‘And now for your delight,’ the king announced to the assembled courtiers and guests, a strange little smile on his face, ‘may I present Miss Tiger Lily and Woofer.’

  The king nodded to the dulcimer player and the musician struck the strings with sticks that were hard on one side and soft on the other.

  Tiger Lily and Woofer stretched out a paw to each other as if they were saying hello. Then they circled to the right and then the left, gave a play-bow and stepped back and forward, before repeating the dance. They performed perfectly and at the end of the dog dance everyone clapped and clapped.

  George was hidden behind a screen and felt as proud as could be of the two puppies. James Jack slapped him on the back

  ‘You’re a natural-born dog trainer!’ he said.

  George wished his gran could have seen the performance. Now it was over he was looking forward to telling her all about it.

  He headed over to Tiger Lily and Woofer as the king fed them each a gingerbread flower from the display in front of him.

  Woofer liked his so much that he sat down in his distinctive sitting pose and put out his paw to the king for another. His Majesty laughed and gave him a second and a third.

  George took Woofer back to the kitch
en while Tiger Lily hopped up on to the king’s lap.

  ‘How did it go?’ Humphrey asked and George grinned. It couldn’t have gone better.

  Shortly afterwards Master Vogel’s gingerbread display, or at least what was left of it, was brought out to the kitchen with a message from the king that it was for Woofer and his friends.

  ‘Delicious,’ said Humphrey, stuffing three whole flowers into his mouth at once.

  George tasted one. ‘Mmm, Gran would love this – and so would Annie.’

  ‘Put some in your pocket for them then,’ said Humphrey. ‘They’re Woofer’s friends too.’

  George had only just done so when a furious Master Vogel came into the kitchen. His face was bright red and he was very angry. The kitchen, which had been very noisy only a moment before, suddenly went silent.

  ‘I didn’t make this masterpiece for you or the kitchen dogs to eat!’ the chef shouted, and he lifted up the silver platter and smashed the beautiful gingerbread display on the floor.

  Then Master Vogel stormed off as Woofer, Teeth, Claws and Scraps licked up the mess he’d made.

  Humphrey rolled his eyes at George and said, ‘Bet you’re glad you’re working in my kitchen and not his!’

  George nodded as everyone started talking again.

  Early the next morning Woofer, Teeth, Claws and George headed out of the palace with some of the gingerbread flowers that Woofer had earned, together with some meat and bread that Humphrey had given them.

  Scraps didn’t go with them because George was worried that the long walk would be too much for the elderly dog. So she stayed next to the fire with Old Peg instead.

  George had never taken Teeth or Claws to visit Gran before but he was sure she’d like to meet them.

  The two dogs sniffed at the different food smells coming from the streets as they followed Woofer, who was leading the way.

  George wished Gran could have seen Woofer’s beautiful sapphire-studded collar but he’d returned it to the royal costumier after the May Day performance.

  The puppy led Teeth and Claws down Red Chick Lane, famous for its chickens, along Fish Street Hill and then into Black Raven Alley where George’s grandmother lived.

  The raggedy cat was on the roof as usual. But this time, before it had a chance to hiss, Woofer gave a quick, friendly woof and wagged his tail-stub as if he were saying hello. He knew the creature was all hiss and no bite. Teeth and Claws, however, weren’t so sure about the cat and looked the other way, pretending they couldn’t see it.

  As soon as George lifted the latch to Gran’s front door, Woofer bounded in front of him, and Teeth and Claws followed them both into the small dark room. Woofer drooled at the delicious smell of pottage gently cooking on the fire.

  ‘Gran?’ George said as Woofer stopped in front of the old lady, asleep in her chair. ‘Gran, are you OK?’

  At a lick on her hand from Woofer, George’s grandmother shuddered and woke up. She blinked at the dog standing before her, eager to be patted, as if for a moment she wasn’t quite sure who he was. But then she said, ‘Well, hello there, Woofer. My how you’ve grown from that little puppy I first met.’

  Then she saw George with Teeth and Claws and smiled a wide, toothless smile.

  ‘George, I was just dreaming about you,’ she said as she clasped his hand with her bony fingers.

  She looked even thinner than the last time he’d been here. George bit his bottom lip.

  ‘I should have come before,’ he said.

  ‘What? No, of course not,’ she said, groaning as she stood up and headed over to the pottage simmering on the fire. ‘I’m fine. You know me. Tough as old boots.’

  George smiled. He wished Gran was as tough as old boots but he knew she wasn’t. She was looking frail.

  Teeth and Claws shyly came forward to be stroked by Gran as Woofer tilted back his head to sniff once again the delicious smell of soup, whining hungrily.

  ‘What have you got in it?’ George asked as his gran gave the pottage a stir.

  ‘Oats, two carrots, a radish and some herbs,’ she told him.

  ‘Might like to add this to it then,’ George said as he took from his waistcoat pocket the wrapped-up bit of beef Humphrey had given him for her.

  ‘Yes, I would,’ she said, smiling, and she tore the beef up into small pieces and added it to the pot on the fire.

  ‘Plus some bread,’ said George, reaching into his other waistcoat pocket. The bread was baked at the palace and much better than most you could buy from the street sellers. Gran had found a stone in one loaf she’d bought.

  ‘And there’s this to try. It’s a present from Woofer really,’ George said, giving her one of the delicate gingerbread flowers.

  ‘Almost too beautiful to eat,’ she said as she took the smallest of bites from the gingerbread flower. Then she pulled a face. ‘Bit rich for me,’ she decided. ‘Think I’ll stick to my soup.’

  Teeth and Claws lay down in front of the fire. Woofer looked at George’s gran meaningfully and then back at the soup but she only shook her head. ‘You can have some when we all do,’ she said. ‘The beef hasn’t had a chance to flavour it yet.’

  While they waited George told her about all the food at the May Day celebration and Woofer and Tiger Lily’s dance.

  ‘You should have seen her, Gran, she’s such a good dog.’

  Woofer gave a whine and George stroked him.

  ‘And you’re a good dog too,’ he laughed. ‘In fact you’re even better.’

  Woofer made a funny little noise that sounded almost as though he were agreeing with him.

  Then Gran divided out the soup, but George couldn’t help noticing that as she did so, she winced as if she were in pain and held her stomach. Woofer sat up very straight and offered his paw but she wouldn’t let the dogs have their portions until it was quite cool.

  ‘I’ll come back to visit as soon as I can,’ George said when it was time to go.

  ‘You’re a good lad,’ she told him. ‘Your mum and dad would have been proud of you.’

  George worried about Gran on the short walk to Pudding Lane, and Woofer stayed close, looking up at him with his head tilted to one side every now and again, as Teeth and Claws trotted along behind them.

  Annie was very excited about the gingerbread flower that George brought for her to try.

  ‘Mmm,’ she said, breaking off a delicate petal and closing her eyes to concentrate on the taste as she popped it into her mouth. ‘Almonds, and ginger, but not ginger dust – proper root ginger and sliced fine as a hair’s breadth, aniseed definitely and maybe just a spoonful or two of rosewater and just a hint of tansy. It really is very, very good, George. Well done, Woofer, for earning something so delicious.’

  Woofer wagged his tail at the sound of his name but he was really more interested in joining Teeth and Claws as they sniffed at the mouse family that lived under the oven.

  Hannah came into the kitchen to say hello but when George gave her one of the gingerbread flowers she decided not to eat it.

  ‘It’s too pretty for that. I’m going to keep it instead,’ she told him.

  ‘More dogs than people in this kitchen!’ Mr Farriner complained, coming in a few moments later. ‘My customers won’t be able to buy bread.’

  ‘We’d better be getting back,’ George said hurriedly, once he’d given the baker a gingerbread flower too.

  Annie came with him to the corner of Pudding Lane.

  ‘I’m worried about Gran,’ George admitted. ‘She hasn’t been right for ages.’

  ‘I’ll pop round and keep an eye on her when I can,’ Annie promised.

  ‘Thanks. Come on, dogs,’ George said, and Woofer, Teeth and Claws trotted along beside him as they all headed back to the palace.

  CHAPTER 6

  As the dry spring turned into an even dryer summer London grew hotter and the palace kitchen became almost unbearable. George, Woofer, Teeth, Claws and Scraps headed out of it through the early morning mist just
after four o’clock on the last day of July.

  Woofer, Claws and Teeth never seemed to tire of playing. Scraps, however, got very weary and now often chose to stay indoors when the others went out to play. But today she staggered to her feet, wagged her tail and came along too.

  Woofer’s current favourite place to play was St James’s Park. Although still part of the palace grounds it was much, much larger than the Privy Garden and had lakes, squirrels, foxes, bats, ducks, swans and even two great white pelicans that had been given to the king and lived on Duck Island. The shallow water around it was just perfect for the pelicans and perfect for Teeth and Claws to cool off in too. George removed his shoes and waded in after the two dogs. The water was lovely and cool. Scraps paddled at the side with Woofer.

  ‘Come on, Woofer!’ George called to him. ‘Come and have a swim.’

  But Woofer was frightened of the water and didn’t go in further than his paws and barked at Teeth and Claws, warning them to come out when they swam off.

  Woofer wasn’t too sure about the pelicans either, and he was very scared when one of them waddled over the grass towards him and opened its giant beak. Woofer headed off to a safe spot behind a tree until the pelican went back into the lake.

  He wasn’t scared of the red squirrels in the trees, though, and spent a lot of time barking and chasing after them. Not that the squirrels were worried as they jumped from branch to branch, almost laughing at the dog with the short legs and long body who thought he could catch one of them.

  It was almost six o’clock by the time George, Woofer, Teeth, Claws and Scraps headed back through the park to the palace. It was far later than George had intended but he hoped Humphrey wouldn’t mind. The dogs, Teeth and Claws at least, had worked hard the day before. Woofer had not worked so hard. In fact he’d run off when George wanted him to have a try at walking in the spit wheel.

  ‘What’s going on?’ George asked when they arrived back.

  Servants were loading goods into coaches and carriages.

  ‘The queen’s taking the waters at Tunbridge and the king’s going with her and that means just about everyone else at Court is going too!’ he was told.