# No Wings explained — Five Children and It

> Chapter companion for Five Children and It by E. Nesbit.

## What happens

The children, stranded on the church tower after their wish for wings, are discovered by the Vicar and a gamekeeper. They confess to stealing food and a soda-water syphon from the Vicarage larder, but are forgiven after explaining their hunger and apologizing. They are driven home, where Martha punishes them by keeping them indoors the next day.

## Themes in this chapter

### Truth and Deception

The children confess to the theft but conceal the magical source of their adventure, leading to a partial truth.

### Wish Fulfillment and Its Consequences

The wish for wings strands them on the tower, forcing them to face the repercussions of their earlier wish.

## Character check-ins

### Anthea

Comforts Jane and takes a leading role in apologizing to the Vicar.

### Cyril

Hides the stolen soda-water syphon and confesses to the theft.

### Robert

Suggests throwing away the syphon and participates in the yelling to attract attention.

### Jane

Cries from fear and later embraces the Vicar's wife, pleading for forgiveness.

### The Lamb

Not present in this chapter.

## Key lines

> Whether anyone cried or not, there was certainly an interval during which none of the party was quite itself.

After the excitement, everyone felt shaken and not themselves for a while.

_Describes the aftermath of the wing wish and the children's distress._

> We only took bread and meat and water—and we couldn't help its being the soda kind—just the necessaries of life; and we left half-a-crown to pay for it, and we left a letter.

They explained they took only essential food and drink, leaving payment and a note.

_Cyril's confession to the Vicar, justifying the theft as a necessity._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/five_children_and_it_se/chapters/v-no-wings
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/five_children_and_it_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/five_children_and_it_se/chapters