Page 33 of It Always Snows on Mistletoe Square
‘It’s me ladder!’ Wilf says, immediately heading over towards it. ‘How’d it get there?’
He retrieves his ladder, then they finish lighting the rest of the street lamps before leaving the square
‘Watch.’ Estelle points and we see Nanny Avery with Timothy and Belle returning from the pantomime. When they get near to the house, a young, incredibly pale and thin boy pops up from behind the park railings.
‘Buy some mistletoe, miss?’ he asks, thrusting a bunch of mistletoe at Nanny Avery.
‘Certainly not,’ Nanny Avery says, pulling the children behind her. ‘Be away with you now!’ She wafts her hand at him like she’s swatting away an annoying fly. ‘And where did you get that mistletoe?’
‘Did he steal the lamp-lighter’s ladder to get the mistletoe down off the tree?’ Ben asks, watching the boy.
‘Hush,’ Estelle says. ‘Listen.’
Belle hides behind Nanny Avery’s skirt, but Timothy walks boldly back out in front of her. He takes a few steps towards the boy, watching him carefully.
‘Want some mistletoe?’ the boy asks brazenly, holding the bunch up again. His dark eyes are sunken and he’s so thin he looks like the slightest breath of wind might blow him over.
Timothy shakes his head. ‘Aren’t you cold?’ he asks, staring at the boy’s torn and ragged clothes.
‘Timothy!’ Nanny Avery admonishes him. ‘Come here at once.’
The boy shrugs. ‘Used to it, ain’t I?’
‘Are you hungry?’ Timothy asks.
The boy nods.
Timothy reaches into his pocket and pulls out a half-eaten bar of chocolate. He hands it to the boy, who stares at it for a moment, then grabs it and begins devouring it hungrily.
‘Timothy, what are you doing?’ Nanny Avery positions Belle on the steps in front of us, then heads over to rescue Timothy.
‘He’s hungry, Nanny,’ Timothy says, still looking at the boy, ‘And cold. And he has no shoes.’
Nanny Avery looks down at the boy’s bare feet.
‘Goodness,’ she says, looking shocked. ‘You truly are a poor waif.’
‘Have my boots.’ Timothy begins to untie his leather boots.
‘No, Timothy. How will I explain to your mother where your shoes are?’ She looks around her to see if anyone is watching. ‘Come around to the back of the house in a few minutes,’ she says quietly to the boy. ‘It’s Number Five. I’ll see if Cook can provide you with some scraps to eat and a warm in front of the fire while you eat them.’
The boy, whose face is covered in so many dark smudges it’s difficult to see where the chocolate ends and the dirty marks begin, looks suspiciously up at her.
‘It’s not a trick,’ she says kindly. ‘Mrs Bow will look after you.’
‘Yes, she will,’ Timothy says eagerly. ‘Mrs Bow is very kind to me, I’m sure she’ll be kind to you too.’
The boy nods.
‘Come now, Timothy,’ Nanny Avery says. ‘We need to get you bathed and fed early tonight if you’re to see your parents before their dinner party begins.’
Reluctantly, Timothy leaves the boy and returns to the house.
We stand back to let them pass us on the steps, while the boy still carrying his mistletoe makes his way to the back of the house.
‘Now,’ Estelle says, taking charge as usual. ‘We will skip on a little to the evening’s events.’
As we head back through the open door again, the house that was pretty dark before due to its decor, is now even darker. The hall is dimly lit by a glass oil lamp, and there’s a warm glow coming from the sitting room – now the parlour. As we enter and the clock on the mantelpiece strikes a quarter to seven, I realise the glow isn’t only coming from the fire, but the Christmas tree too, which is now lit with real candles. Their holders are clipped to the end of the branches, while their flames flicker dangerously close to the other decorations.
