X – is for Xylophone

Charles Carson was busy decanting the wine for the evening dinner and didn't hear the light knock on his door. Or, was there even a knock to be heard? He wasn't quite sure since the little girl that opened the door wasn't usually so quiet or shy.

She tiptoed into his office and softly closed the door behind her, not uttering a single word as she leaned against the door and shut eyes before releasing a sigh of relief. She stood there for a long moment, not moving a single muscle. When she opened her eyes, she saw Mr. Carson looking at her, and she put her finger to her lips to silence him.

Now thoroughly distracted from his wine, he stood from his desk and walked over to Sybbie and knelt down in front of her. "Is there something you'd like to tell me?"

She quickly reached out and put her hand over his lips to stop him from talking. Then, she leaned over and whispered into his ear. "Please, let me hide in here. I won't be any trouble at all. I won't ask for anything. I won't bother you at all. You'll never even know that I'm here, just please, don't make me leave."

His eyebrows creased, and he tried to think of his next course of action. He decided to play along with her for a bit, at least until he got to the bottom of the situation. "Who are we hiding from?" He tried to lower his voice as much as possible, though it was still a bit louder than he'd intended.

"I'm not hiding from anybody, Mr. Carson. I just need to stay here for the rest of the night. I won't touch a single thing while you're serving dinner, or I can go and sit quietly with Mrs. Hughes. But, whatever you do, please don't send me away. I'm begging you. I won't even get into the sweets drawer and take a peppermint stick."

"I'm not concerned about that. I know you'd never take one without permission. I'm more interested in why the sudden secrecy and the need for a hiding place. You do realize that this is the first place anyone in this house would look for you, don't you?"

"Maybe, but if you're not here and upstairs with dinner, nobody will even think to look for me here. They'll check with Mrs. Hughes, but she will say I'm not in her office. Mrs. Patmore won't see me if I don't go to the kitchen to ask for a sandwich, but maybe you could get one for me so I don't starve while you're gone. It's been a long time since lunch, and I don't think I need cake for my dinner … though a slice for dessert would be good … and some milk."

"You're getting off topic, lass. Let's start at the beginning, and then I can decide if I'm able to help you. If not, we will try to find Mrs. Hughes and see what she has to say."

"That sounds fair, but could you use your quieter voice? If they hear you talking with your door closed, they might find out I'm in here before we have a plan to hide me."

"They might also think I'm talking on the telephone to a supplier in London about a wine delivery. Most people don't enter my office without knocking … only you and Mrs. Hughes are bold enough to do that and get away with it," he teased, tickling her tummy. "So, why the secrecy and need for a hiding spot?"

"Marigold got a package today from someone in the village."

"Yes, I know. I accepted it at the back door and had Andrew take it upstairs to the nursery. Nanny was supposed to give it to her and make a note for Lady Edith."

"It was from Mrs. Drewe in the village, and it was a Christmas gift from her and her husband. I don't know how Marigold knows them but that doesn't matter, I suppose. It was nice of them to send a present at Christmas to a child they don't really know."

Charles didn't elaborate on Sybbie's assumptions and made a mental note to speak to Lady Edith at the first opportunity about the parcel, just in case the nanny neglected to mention it. "Sometimes, people do random acts of kindness during Christmas as a way of spreading love, joy, and cheer."

"Well, she didn't do me any favors and believe me, nobody except Marigold is cheerful in that nursery today. That's why you have to keep me safe down here."

Before he could question Sybbie further, a knock sounded on the door followed by the twisting of the doorknob. "Mr. Carson, why is the door stuck?" Mrs. Hughes had tried to push on the door but was met with some resistance thus halting her entry.

Charles took Sybbie's hand and moved her out of the way and opened the door for his wife. "I have a visitor with a very specific problem, and we were trying to get to the bottom of it when you knocked. But, now that you're here, maybe you can help us. I seem to be getting nowhere." He quickly filled Elsie in on what information he'd managed to gather so far.

"Mrs. Drewe sent a package? And you sent it straight to the nursery?" Elsie gasped, her mind already whirling with unpleasant scenarios and trouble brewing on the horizon. "Miss Sybbie, what was in the package that she sent to Miss Marigold?"

The child shuddered and rolled her eyes, making both Charles and Elsie stifle laughter at her dramatic response. "A horrible toy that needs to go away. Maybe we could donate it to the children in the village. I know somebody would love it, just not George or me. Marigold seems happy but she's the one playing with it … constantly!"

Elsie sighed in frustration and confusion. "Please, tell us what was inside the package. It's very important if you want our help."

"It's a loud noisemaker with sticks. I forget the name of it but it's like a piano but smaller and makes a metal sound when you hit the strips with a stick. It's about this long," she said, holding out her arms to a respectable length. "Oh, and it came with a little booklet that teaches you how to play it. I think nanny called it something that starts with a "z" but I couldn't really hear her over Marigold banging away." Sybbie rested her head on Mrs. Hughes's stomach and sighed. "She hasn't stopped alllllll afternoon. If I have to hear Jingle Bells one more time … and she's not even hitting all of the right notes. It's awful. That's why I need to hide. I promise you, I won't make a sound if you'll just let me sit here and read or draw or stare at a wall."

"Sounds like Miss Marigold was gifted a xylophone for Christmas," Charles said, suddenly understanding Sybbie's predicament and immediately sympathizing with the child and her need for a quiet refuge.

Elsie and Charles shared a compassionate look over the top of Sybbie's head. They'd both been in similar situations where all one wanted or craved was a bit of peace and solitude. Charles could identify more with the child's predicament than Elsie, and he immediately offered her refuge in his office for as long as he was downstairs.

"I love you, Mr. Carson. I really and truly do. You won't have any trouble out of me, and when you get ready to leave, I can go sit at the big table or in Mrs. Hughes's sitting room. But, um, I forgot to bring a book with me, and all my paper and colored pencils are upstairs. I left in a hurry … a very big hurry. I think I'll hear Jingle Bells in my sleep tonight," she grumbled.

Elsie laughed and hugged her tightly. "No need to be so dramatic. I'm sure, in a few days, the newness of the toy will wear off and she'll go back to playing with her dolls or other toys. And, if it's as loud and constant as you say, I'm sure nanny will limit the amount of time she can play it." She ruffled Sybbie's hair and smiled sweetly at the child. "Let's go see what Mrs. Patmore is doing and leave Mr. Carson to finish his wine decanting. And, if anyone comes looking for you, we'll tell them you came down for a snack … which we will give you so that won't be a fib."

"I knew you loved me," Sybbie gushed, looking from Mrs. Hughes to Mr. Carson. "And, if you ever need to hide from a loud xylophones and little girls that only know how to play a part of Jingle Bells, I'll help you. I don't know where we'd hide you, since you're so tall, but we'd find somewhere, and I'd bring you snacks, too."

"Let's hope I never need to hide," Charles said with a laugh. "I might miss something fun with you and Mrs. Hughes. You two seem to have the best adventures."

"Our best ones are with you, too, though. Too bad you have to work or we could all go to your cottage and they'd really have a hard time finding us. Wait, you don't have a xylophone at your house, do you?" Her eyes grew wide at the prospect of seeing another one so soon.

"No, just a gramophone which plays soft music, and a wireless radio which we listen to sometimes for a bit of music. No xylophones at our cottage." Elsie laughed a little as she saw the look of relief pass over Sybbie's face.

"I think your cottage might be my new favorite place. You have a pretty tree, lots of shortbread, and no noisy toys."

"Let's get you a snack and settled in my office. Then, we'll play the quiet game for a bit."

"Oh, that's a new game. How do we play it? Is it terribly fun? Sounds exciting."

Elsie winked at Charles and guided Sybbie from his office. "Xylophones can be loud but we're about to find out just how quiet you can really be for ten minutes," she teased as she closed the door behind her.

Charles shook his head and chuckled softly to himself. If he had to put money on it, he'd bet the bank on Sybbie not lasting a full five minutes before asking a question or making some sort of comment. At any rate, he would bet money that the offending toy wouldn't stay long in the nursery … not if nanny or Lady Edith had anything to say about it. In the meantime, he and Elsie would provide a sanctuary for the little girl who discovered a lifelong dislike for xylophones and repetitive songs.

A/N: We've all been there … that one loud toy, the one repetitive song, the one thing that drives us over the brink! Thankfully, Sybbie has her Carson and Mrs. Hughes … and I've been gifted some lovely reviews from you guys. You're amazing!