Simran

“Smells are odd things. They follow you about when you’re not thinking about them, but when you put your nose to where they ought to be, they aren’t there. The”
― Eva Ibbotson, The Secret of Platform 13

“You’ll never know what you’ve done for me,” he said as they reached the gates of the level crossing. “If there’s anything you want--”
Clovis grinned. “Can I have Maia when she’s grown up?”
Finn’s smile vanished in an instant.
“No,” he said.”
― Eva Ibbotson, Journey to the River Sea

“Would you like me to stop talking? Because I can. I have to concentrate, but it's possible”
― Eva Ibbotson, The Morning Gift

“They went on arguing, but Maia had forgotten them again, following Finn in her mind.
Where was he? Did he have enough wood for the firebox? Were his maps accurate? Did he miss her at all?

Finn did miss her--she would have been surprised to know how much. He had never sailed the Arabella alone for any distance and it wasn’t as easy as he’d hoped. While she was under way he managed well, but when it came to anchoring in the evening or setting off at dawn, he would have given anything for another pair of hands. Not any pair of hands--Maia’s. She had obeyed his orders quickly but not blindly; he had learned to trust her completely.
And she was nice. Fun. Quick to catch a joke and so interested in everything--asking about the birds, the plants. This morning he had found himself starting to say, “Look, Maia!” when he saw an umbrella bird strutting along a branch, and when he realized that she wasn’t there, the exotic creature, with its sunshade of feathers, had seemed somehow less exciting. After all, sharing was something everyone wanted to do. He could hear his father’s voice calling, “Look, Finn, over there!” a dozen times a day.”
― Eva Ibbotson, Journey to the River Sea