The thread about 'old fashioned' words sparked the idea for a rather different sort of birthday for one little girl who I've called Hetty. 
Hetty’s Birthday
“Hetty, Hetty”, called her mum. “Come on, it’s time for your birthday cake.”
Hetty, her four best friends and Polly her little sister hopped and skipped into the dining room where her Dad was carefully placing a star-shaped, glittery cake, with ten candles. He took out a match from the box in his other hand and carefully cupping round each candle lit them. Mum drew the curtains and in the half light the candles sparkled and flickered.
Hetty loved her birthdays, and this was the best bit. She knew she would have to blow extra hard to extinguish so many tiny lights in one breath. Her friends and family sang ‘Happy Birthday’ loud and clear, and her best best friend, Tina, urged her to blow out the candles.
“Don’t forget to make a wish”, said Aunt Margot as Hetty took in a huge breath, closed her eyes and leaned forward towards her shiny star with its magical lights.
With a mighty blow, Hetty moved her head round the cake and as she did so each little point of light flickered and faded in a tiny puff of smoke ……
….. Hetty opened her eyes, and rapidly blinked several times.
The little girl next to her gasped. “Where did you come from?”
“Come from?” Hetty shook her head and looked round.
“I don’t know. Where’s my cake. Where am I … and who are you” she said, her gaze returning to the little girl.
“Imetty”, she said, a little indignantly. “Who are you?”
“Metty. Is that your name?”
“No, I. Am. Etty. Etty. is. my. name.”
“Oh, my name’s Hetty. That’s funny, they’re nearly the same.”
“That’s really old-fashioned,” Etty said a little scornfully. “‘H’ was done away with years ago.”
“Don’t be so silly”. Now Hetty was getting a bit cross with the girl. Of course ‘H’ hadn’t been done away with. What was she talking about. Hetty slowly looked round her. Etty looked about her age, but her clothes were very strange. They seemed welded to her body, and Hetty noticed a little silver disk in her arm.
“What’s that?” said Hetty, a little on the rude side, but she was very confused.
“What? Oh, that my PAD, of course. Where’s yours?”
“I don’t know what you mean. What’s a PAD?”
Etty sighed. “Don’t you know anything!” It wasn’t a question. “Your PAD, your Personal All-purpose Device, you know. Most people have them in their arm, so where’s yours?”
By now Hetty was feeling a bit like Alice in Wonderland when she fell through the rabbit hole. She shook her head, puzzled.
“It’s the source of all the information you want. You got one when you were born and it stores all your personal data and gives you access to all the knowledge in the universe.”
“Look”, she said. “What’s the date?”
“September the 15th” replied Hetty. Etty touched her PAD and the date flashed up on the wall, and a voice intoned “The date is 15th September 2108.”
Hetty stared in disbelief at the wall. How could that be …. slowly the penny dropped. Her wish had come true. “Please", she’d said. “I want to look into the future to when I’m 100”.
“It’s 2108”, she gasped. “What year did you think it was?” asked Etty.
“It was 2018, and I was blowing out my birthday candles.”
“You’re weird. 2018 was ..” she tapped her PAD again and the message “90 years ago” flashed on the wall. The voice continued, “She will have to go back soon. She hasn’t got long here.”
Hetty and Etty looked at each other, taking in the similarity in heights and hair colour and each recognising themselves in the other. A bit like a mirror image.
Etty spoke first. “Your clothes are strange. They look like images we had in Social Istory at Education.
“Do you mean ‘school’? asked Hetty.
“No I only go to Social School to be with my friends. Education is what we learn from the PAD teacher.”
“Don’t you do that at school?”
“It’s Social School. I keep telling you. Didn’t they teach you to listen in 2018. All that stuff I’ve ‘eard about about books and class rooms and things - that’s from the Dark Ages. Everything you call school comes through my PAD.”
“Is this your bedroom”. Hetty looked round at the bare walls with a couple of strange-looking furniture items.
“We’re building a new ‘ouse this week-end”, said Etty. “All my stuff ‘as gone to the reduction cabinet, and Mum and Dad are reducing the ‘ouse to the ground before they start to program the PPU to build the new one.”
Hetty just stared, her mouth open in bewilderment. “PPU?”
“Look”, Etty explained, “ when you’ve finished with something you send its program to the Reduction Cabinet and it gets broken down into material to be used again. Then you feed the program for what you want into the PPU - the Personal Production Unit. It does everything. I think in your day they were just 3D printers. Now they build the house, do the shopping, everything. Anything you want you program the ..” “PPU!” said Hetty.
The girls burst out laughing.
Etty’s PAD flickered into life. “Time’s up now” said the voice.
Hetty and Etty looked at each other and had time for a quick hug.
“Hope to see you again, Hetty.”
“And you, Etty - 2108 sounds interesting.”
“Hetty, come on, love, I’ll help you cut your cake”. Mum put Hetty’s hand over her own as she slowly sliced into the sparkling star-cake.
Later that night, Mum came to tuck Hetty into bed.
“Thank you for a fantastic birthday - it’s been the bestest ever”, said Hetty, sleepily.
“What was the best bit, Hets?” asked Mum.
“Being in 2108 and meeting Etty, but I wish they ‘adn’t, err, hadn’t abolished H.”
“Shhh”, Mum put her finger to her lips as Dad appeared at the door. “I think she’s already asleep and dreaming.”
“Night, night, Hetty’, they whispered. “Sweet dreams, darling.”
Hetty’s Birthday
“Hetty, Hetty”, called her mum. “Come on, it’s time for your birthday cake.”
Hetty, her four best friends and Polly her little sister hopped and skipped into the dining room where her Dad was carefully placing a star-shaped, glittery cake, with ten candles. He took out a match from the box in his other hand and carefully cupping round each candle lit them. Mum drew the curtains and in the half light the candles sparkled and flickered.
Hetty loved her birthdays, and this was the best bit. She knew she would have to blow extra hard to extinguish so many tiny lights in one breath. Her friends and family sang ‘Happy Birthday’ loud and clear, and her best best friend, Tina, urged her to blow out the candles.
“Don’t forget to make a wish”, said Aunt Margot as Hetty took in a huge breath, closed her eyes and leaned forward towards her shiny star with its magical lights.
With a mighty blow, Hetty moved her head round the cake and as she did so each little point of light flickered and faded in a tiny puff of smoke ……
….. Hetty opened her eyes, and rapidly blinked several times.
The little girl next to her gasped. “Where did you come from?”
“Come from?” Hetty shook her head and looked round.
“I don’t know. Where’s my cake. Where am I … and who are you” she said, her gaze returning to the little girl.
“Imetty”, she said, a little indignantly. “Who are you?”
“Metty. Is that your name?”
“No, I. Am. Etty. Etty. is. my. name.”
“Oh, my name’s Hetty. That’s funny, they’re nearly the same.”
“That’s really old-fashioned,” Etty said a little scornfully. “‘H’ was done away with years ago.”
“Don’t be so silly”. Now Hetty was getting a bit cross with the girl. Of course ‘H’ hadn’t been done away with. What was she talking about. Hetty slowly looked round her. Etty looked about her age, but her clothes were very strange. They seemed welded to her body, and Hetty noticed a little silver disk in her arm.
“What’s that?” said Hetty, a little on the rude side, but she was very confused.
“What? Oh, that my PAD, of course. Where’s yours?”
“I don’t know what you mean. What’s a PAD?”
Etty sighed. “Don’t you know anything!” It wasn’t a question. “Your PAD, your Personal All-purpose Device, you know. Most people have them in their arm, so where’s yours?”
By now Hetty was feeling a bit like Alice in Wonderland when she fell through the rabbit hole. She shook her head, puzzled.
“It’s the source of all the information you want. You got one when you were born and it stores all your personal data and gives you access to all the knowledge in the universe.”
“Look”, she said. “What’s the date?”
“September the 15th” replied Hetty. Etty touched her PAD and the date flashed up on the wall, and a voice intoned “The date is 15th September 2108.”
Hetty stared in disbelief at the wall. How could that be …. slowly the penny dropped. Her wish had come true. “Please", she’d said. “I want to look into the future to when I’m 100”.
“It’s 2108”, she gasped. “What year did you think it was?” asked Etty.
“It was 2018, and I was blowing out my birthday candles.”
“You’re weird. 2018 was ..” she tapped her PAD again and the message “90 years ago” flashed on the wall. The voice continued, “She will have to go back soon. She hasn’t got long here.”
Hetty and Etty looked at each other, taking in the similarity in heights and hair colour and each recognising themselves in the other. A bit like a mirror image.
Etty spoke first. “Your clothes are strange. They look like images we had in Social Istory at Education.
“Do you mean ‘school’? asked Hetty.
“No I only go to Social School to be with my friends. Education is what we learn from the PAD teacher.”
“Don’t you do that at school?”
“It’s Social School. I keep telling you. Didn’t they teach you to listen in 2018. All that stuff I’ve ‘eard about about books and class rooms and things - that’s from the Dark Ages. Everything you call school comes through my PAD.”
“Is this your bedroom”. Hetty looked round at the bare walls with a couple of strange-looking furniture items.
“We’re building a new ‘ouse this week-end”, said Etty. “All my stuff ‘as gone to the reduction cabinet, and Mum and Dad are reducing the ‘ouse to the ground before they start to program the PPU to build the new one.”
Hetty just stared, her mouth open in bewilderment. “PPU?”
“Look”, Etty explained, “ when you’ve finished with something you send its program to the Reduction Cabinet and it gets broken down into material to be used again. Then you feed the program for what you want into the PPU - the Personal Production Unit. It does everything. I think in your day they were just 3D printers. Now they build the house, do the shopping, everything. Anything you want you program the ..” “PPU!” said Hetty.
The girls burst out laughing.
Etty’s PAD flickered into life. “Time’s up now” said the voice.
Hetty and Etty looked at each other and had time for a quick hug.
“Hope to see you again, Hetty.”
“And you, Etty - 2108 sounds interesting.”
“Hetty, come on, love, I’ll help you cut your cake”. Mum put Hetty’s hand over her own as she slowly sliced into the sparkling star-cake.
Later that night, Mum came to tuck Hetty into bed.
“Thank you for a fantastic birthday - it’s been the bestest ever”, said Hetty, sleepily.
“What was the best bit, Hets?” asked Mum.
“Being in 2108 and meeting Etty, but I wish they ‘adn’t, err, hadn’t abolished H.”
“Shhh”, Mum put her finger to her lips as Dad appeared at the door. “I think she’s already asleep and dreaming.”
“Night, night, Hetty’, they whispered. “Sweet dreams, darling.”
But I'm glad you enjoyed it. 
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