Tap, tap, tap.
Sounds had been coming from the cellar for as long as Biscuit could remember but he hadn't given it any thought until now.
Tap, tap, tap; once again.
“Odd”, thought Biscuit, his curiosity aroused.
For once the cellar door was open. Peering into the gloom, Biscuit decided to investigate.
The cellar stairs were dusty and steep. For a small bear jumping from one to the next, this was difficult.
Once at the bottom he looked around. A shaft of light pierced a small window in the corner, lit from a grille in the street above.
It was a gloomy room, dull and dusty. In one corner lay a wooden chest with a plain metal lock.
Tap, Tap, Tap!
This time the taping sounded urgent, and it was coming from the wooden chest.
Biscuit's fur stood on end; his eyes wide and fixed on the chest.
“Hello,” he croaked
Tap, tap, tap. Biscuit moved gingerly toward the chest, almost too afraid to venture further.
The catch on the heavy lock opened much easier than biscuit had expected. If the chest had been locked Biscuit wouldn't have been too disappointed. However, it wasn't and the lid opened just as easily as the lock. A strange smell of lavender and herbs escaped from the chest and to the great relief of biscuit nothing else escaped to greet him.
Inside lay some unusual old clothes, a small dressed doll and the ear of a small toy bear. Not a teddy bear, just a realistic soft toy bear. Biscuit gingerly reached in to touch the things.
“At last!” came a sharp little voice from within the chest.
Biscuit almost shed his fur with fright. He would have dropped the lid if he hadn't been so startled.
“Don't be afraid,” assured the voice.
Biscuit could see that the voice was coming from the little dressed doll.
“Oh...”, reeled Biscuit “You gave me such a scare.”
The little doll sniggered with amusement and the toy bear wriggled round from below the pile of clothes to see Biscuits startled face.
“ He can't talk,” the doll announced sadly.
“But you can, and you're a sort of a bear…aren't you? The doll asked.
“Of course I'm a bear,” Biscuit declared indignantly
”I'm Biscuit”
“You're a biscuit?” the doll laughed
“No, it's my name…Biscuit, what's yours?”
“Poppy,”
“Why are you in this box…”Biscuit began but was interrupted.
“It's very dark in here, are we in the nursery, is it night?”
“Eh, no” Biscuit didn't know what a nursery was, and was just beginning to realise that his new friends were rather unusual. The dolls clothes looked so different, more like ones for 'fancy dress'. Even more surprising, the doll didn't move; not at all.
“Is Emma with you?” Poppy enquired.
”I don't know an Emma, sorry”
”I thought not,” Poppy's voice saddened.
“Will you be missed Biscuit, being down here?”
“I don't know?” Biscuit replied while glancing up the stairs.
“ Will you come and see us again soon? Poppy's voice sounded anxious, almost hurried.
“You can come upstairs with me.”
“No.” the doll answered bluntly
”We cannot leave this chest, it is where we live now.”
Biscuit was puzzled and a little disappointed. The doll and the bear seemed quite happy in the chest so he thought no more about it.
”Will you come again when I tap?” Poppy asked.
“Yes I will!”
“There is much I want to tell you, many things you will need to know about…well…next time perhaps.” Poppy could see Biscuit was becoming confused so she stopped.
The door of the Charity Shop gave it's little ring as someone entered the shop. The cellar door was well ajar and Biscuit scuttled up the stairs as quickly as he could, forgetting to say goodbye to his new friends. As he reached the top he looked back, in the gloom he could just make out the chest, which was now closed.
“Did I close that?” Biscuit asked himself.
