It was the happiest of times. Three children were chasing each other round the living room, watched by two sets of parents.
"Careful!", called out Herman, with a smile on his face, as Wilhelm nearly upset the fire guard.
Wilhelm pulled a face: "You're not my daddy", he said.
"But he's right", said Theobald, though he too could not help smiling.
"I'm going to hide!", shouted Isaac, and he darted out of the room, with Rebecca and Wilhelm running after him.
Lena got up from her seat to keep an eye on the three wayward children: she had barely got to the living room door when Rebecca could he heard screaming:
"Found you!": it seemed that her brother had been hiding in the kitchen cupboard.
"Stay where we can see you", said Lena, and the three children wandered back to the living room, where they began to play a game of "Guess Who?"
Herman eyed the children affectionately.
"The wonders of youth", he sighed. "No worries, no cares, just fun and games."
"They should enjoy it while they can", said Lena.
"Don't say that", said Herman, "things are looking up now. The inflation's over, the French are out of the Ruhr, that lunatic who tried to seize power in Munich is in prison."
"You think Hitler's a lunatic?", said Theobald. "I thought he talked a lot of sense."
Herman and Lena stared at him. Was this really Theobald talking, Herman thought. An uncomfortably still atmosphere had descended on the room.
"Are you joking, Theobald?", asked Herman.
"I'm not, I mean it", replied Theobald. "He said it like it was, about how we were betrayed, none of that tip-toeing around that's in fashion these days."
"But he wanted to be a dictator", Lena pointed out.
"Maybe that's what we need", said Theobald. "Get rid of the weakness we've had since 1918".
"But what about us?", asked Lena, indicating herself, her husband and their two children. "As Jews, where would we be if Hitler had got his way?"
"Read the trial transcript", insisted Theobald. "He didn't attack the Jews at all."
Herman's and Lena's mouths were wide open.
"But he has said that before", said Herman, speaking very slowly. "It was all over the papers, remember, saying that we're vermin, that we should lose our citizenship, that we're to blame for everything that goes wrong, that we should all be hanged."
"Maybe he's changed his mind", suggested Theobald.
Herman and Lena staged at each other in disbelief. The children suddenly stopped playing.
"Why are you saying these things?", asked Lena. "I always thought you were a sensible man."
Theobald looked at the floor, swallowing hard.
"I've met a man called Franz", he said. "He's helped me see the light about the betrayal of this country, he's showed me a lot of nationalist groups, he's been very helpful."
"Is he anti-Semitic?", asked Herman, though he half-guessed the answer.
"Well, yes", said Theobald sheepishly. "He does think that you are to blame for everything, but I don't think that. Please believe me." He looked plaintively at his friends. Isaac and Rebecca made their way over to their parents, seeking some reassurance, but Herman and Lena were too distracted to give it. Wilhelm sat down next to his father.
"Have you told him about us?", inquired Lena, a hard edge to her voice.
"I haven't", said Theobald. Then suddenly a thought seemed to cross his mind. "Maybe if you could meet him, he'll realise that not all Jews are bad."
"Really?", asked Rebecca in a puzzled voice. Isaac gave his father a troubled look.
Lena stared up at her ceiling. It was hard for her to take in what she had just heard. After a few awkward moments, she turned to Gertrud.
"Please, Gertrud", she said. "Talk to him, make him see sense."
"Why should I?", asked Gertrud. "A lot of what he says is true, the Republic has let us down at every turn, something needs to be done about it, I think these groups he's involved with have something going for them."
"Have an open mind, come and meet Franz", said Theobald.
"Absolutely not", said Lena. "I will never meet such a horrible man."
"You haven't met him", said Theobald, with a hint of anger. "You need to see him, maybe you'll like him."
"If Daddy likes him, he must be good", piped in Wilhelm.
"I'm not sure about this . . ." began Herman.
"Do it for me", said Theobald. "I really want you to meet him, he's really friendly."
"Surely, Herman", said Lena, "you're not going along with all this rubbish."
"Well if Theobald really wants me to . . .", said Herman.
"Oh, Herman", sighed Lena, "do you really think this Franz is going to be all lovely to us, once Theobald tells him that we're Jews. Do you really think a man like that can have his mind changed?"
"He sounds really horrible, Daddy", said Rebecca.
"You must meet him, I insist on it", said Theobald.
"All right then", said Herman. "We'll go through with it."
Rebecca was open mouthed. Isaac's head darted from left to right, trying to make sense of it all. Wilhelm looked proudly at Theobald.
"You can't", said Lena. "It's madness."
"It's what Theobald wants", said Herman.
Lena opened her mouth to argue, but then realised it would be useless.
"Jews? You're friends with Jews?", exclaimed Franz. He was so shocked that he dropped the receiver.
"Yes", said Theobald, part embarrassed, part defiant.
"Why didn't you tell me?", Franz demanded: he was in the process of bending down to pick up the receiver again as he said this.
"Because . . . well . . . because . . .", mumbled Theobald.
"Because you thought I would have stopped being friends with you?"
Theobald's silence told Franz all he needed to know.
"Well let me tell you", he said, "you were absolutely damned right. There I was, thinking you were a good German, and now you tell me your best friend is a dirty Jew."
"We've known each other for years and he's a really decent man". Theobald sounded almost pleading.
"A decent Jew? That's like saying a clever Negro, or a vegetarian tiger."
"He fought for us in the Great War", said Theobald, who had now recovered his courage. "He loves this country."
"How do you know?", asked Franz. "He might have joined the army just to stab us in the back."
"He wouldn't do that", insisted Theobald.
"Of course he wouldn't tell you that", scoffed Franz, "but he's sly, all Jews are, they're very good at hiding what they're up to, that's why people like you are taken in by them."
"But would you please agree to meet them? For me." Theobald was desperate.
"Of course I will", said Franz, "and I'll tell them exactly what they are."
He abruptly put the phone down. Well, Theobald thought, at least he agreed to meet them, that's a start.
A week later, one evening, Herman and Lena knocked on Theobald's door, without much enthusiasm or expectation. Theobald welcomed them in enthusiastically and led them into the sitting room, where they saw, sitting on the sofa, Gertrud and a strange man whom they knew instantly must be Franz.
"Franz, this is Herman and Lena", announced Theobald.
"So these are your Jewish friends", said Franz sneeringly.
"I will not be spoken to like that", said Lena.
"I'll say what I want, don't we all believe in free speech these days?", taunted Franz.
Herman sighed. Franz now turned to him.
"So how did you stab us in the back?", he demanded, getting up from the sofa and thrusting his face into Herman's. "Go on, answer me."
"I don't understand what you mean", said Herman, in as dignified a manner as possible.
"According to Theobald, you fought in the Great War", said Franz. "So tell me how you betrayed us."
"I did not betray us, I was awarded the Iron Cross, and when Theobald was gassed at Cambrai, I helped get him to hospital."
"Liar", snarled Franz. "You're a Jew, you're a liar and a traitor."
"Let's go, Herman", said Lena. "I knew it all along, this thing was a complete waste of time."
"Please stay", urged Theobald, "and show him that he's wrong, show him that you're good people."
Lena made no attempt to conceal the scorn in either her face or her voice.
"How stupid are you, thinking he can change. Men like that never can. You now have a choice, Theobald: you must stop seeing him, or I never want to see you again."
"I'm not stupid", spluttered Theobald. "You need to know your place, you can't tell me who I can and can't see."
"But you've chosen to be friends with a man who hates us for being Jews", said Lena. "How can I ignore that? You are utterly ignorant of who this man is."
Theobald was quivering with rage now: he made an angry step towards Lena. Herman stepped in between them.
"I'm afraid she's right, Theobald", he said, with a heavy heart. "We simply can't be friends with this man."
"So you're deserting me", shouted Theobald, "just because you don't like my new friend?"
"It's he who hates us, we've done nothing to him", Herman pointed out.
"Let's go, Herman", said Lena again.
For the second time, Herman sighed, and he and Lena walked out through the front door, though not before Herman had thrown a backward glance at Theobald. As Herman closed the door, he and Lena could hear Franz shouting, "Dirty stinking Jews!"
Outside in the calm night air, Herman and Lena breathed heavily.
"Perhaps you were a bit harsh", suggested Herman.
"How do you mean?", asked Lena.
"I'm just thinking", said Herman, "maybe if we were a bit more careful with Theobald, we might be able to turn him."
"Turn him?", echoed Lena.
"You know, make him see that Franz is a bad man", said Herman.
"He won't do that, he's too far gone", said Lena. "And I don't for one moment regret what I said to him. We need to forget about him now."
"But he's my best friend . . ."
"He was, but that's over now", said Lena. "But anyway, it's cold out here, let's go back."
And before Herman could argue, Lena strode ahead of him in the direction of their house: Herman could only follow her helplessly.
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