by Sharon



In spite of the bitter wind that blew in the Maine December night, a spark of holiday cheer threatened to nudge its way into the heart of Willie Loomis. For on this day while in town running one of his interminable errands for the master of the house, Willie had been reminded of the eminent Christmas season by all the festive displays in the store windows and on the streets. Thoughts of his younger days tumbled in his mind. Days that were marked with more innocence than the years of his maturity. 'Hah', Willie mused. 'Perhaps maturity was not a word to be used to describe the essence of one such as Willie Loomis', he thought. In the past months Willie had learned many painful lessons about the rewards, or consequences, for those not mature enough to be willing to earn a livable wage at an honest job. Willie's selfish greed had put him in his current situation of performing even less noble activities, in order to aid and protect the master of his present destiny.

Willie was determined, however, to not let such thoughts cloud his respite from the fearful drudgery which had become his life. Those memories of his younger self, relishing the traditions in his family's holiday celebrations fueled the warmth spreading on his lips in a playful smile. As Willie entered the Old House, he stamped the snow from his boots with a good hearted thump-thump and rubbed his hands together as much from glee as to warm them. With renewed courage, as well as cheer, Willie decided that tonight he would approach Barnabas about sprucing up the house, even if just a bit, for Christmas.

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting this time, Willie? If you spent as much thought and effort on the work in the house, the restoration would likely be completed by now!", Barnabas roared.

Trying not to recoil, and desperately trying not to show the feat that nearly consumed him, Willie tried again. "But, Barnabas, it might be good for all of us; even you and Dr. Hoffman, ta help take your minds off, umm, Vicki, and ya know, umm, things. It could be real nice, Barnabas, ya know, with all the candles and all. Just like all the pictures on cards of those ol' fashioned Christmas trees."

"As far as I can see, Willie, the Christmas tree is a rather recent invention of minds as simple, and as idle, as yours," Barnabas said with a condescending smirk.

Somehow Willie's enthusiasm for the project was only heightened by the exchange, and he continued to press the issue. Even so, Willie was unconsciously holding his hands clasped together; his knuckles almost white in the dim firelight. "Alright, Barnabas, I promise, we'll only put up decorations like what ya had back in your time, and it'll make the house feel more like home." 

That last remark touched some well-hidden soft spot in Barnabas' inner mind. Fully knowing that nothing Willie, nor anyone else in this time could do would make this house resemble his home of yesteryear, even so, Barnabas considered Willie's proposal. The miserable state of his existence in eternal gloom was dismal enough, thought Barnabas. Perhaps some pine boughs and boxwood fashioned into a wreath festooned with holly berries would be appropriate. Something pricked his heart, and for a moment, Barnabas looked almost as if a light might spark in his dark eyes. Willie never saw the evidence of it, however, and held his breath during the long silence of Barnabas' musings.

Suddenly Barnabas turned toward Willie and took a large step in his direction. Willie stepped back and put his arms up to deflect the blow that he thought would surely come. "I'm sorry, Barnabas, I didn't mean nuthin' by it! I'll just work on the stuff ya already gave me!

"Be quiet, you blubbering fool!" Barnabas' face was once again stern and belied no hint of the trace of sentimental thoughts in his mind just a moment before. "Go ahead, if you want. I will make some concessions to your whim to decorate for Christmas. Make sure you confine your efforts to the Drawing Room."

Willie could hardly believe his ears, and he started to grab Barnabas' hadn to shake it, but Barnabas only glared at Willie and kept his hands firmly by his sides. "And assure me, " said Barnabas, "that none of this foolishness will interfere with the rest of your work! Is that quite clear?", Barnabas asked with an ominously raised eyebrow.

"Yeh, sure, Barnabas, and, thanks".

In the next two weeks Willie fairly hummed as he tore through the Old House, finishing chores he had thought would take him months to complete. Somehow the burden of his enforced labor had been lifted by the prospect of fixing up the house for Christmas. Willie was planning every aspect of the project as he went about his daily tasks. He could visualize the Drawing Room in its holiday splendor even as he looked at the hundreds of feet of wallpaper he needed to hang. The wallpaper paste reminded him of the hours he and classmates had spent in school making paper chains to hang around the room and the teacher's desk. Willie had even made chains for the tree at home which his mother said were prettier than any store bought ornaments. He knew it was a mother's little "white lie", but it made Willie feel special and important anyway. With a small frown, Willie realized he had not felt special for a very long time. He shook such thought from his head and concentrated on what he would buy when he headed to town.

Julia Hoffman sighed as she reached for the knob on the front door of the Old House. She hesitated to open the door, because she dreaded the long day of tedious lab work that lay ahead of her. In spite of Barnabas' protests to the contrary, Julia knew she must continue to seek to perfect the serum to cure Barnabas. Julia shrugged her shoulders, sighed again, and pushed through the door. 'It must be done', she told herself.

Just as Julia started to remove her coat, she was stopped short by the sound of whistling. Julia quickly turned toward the sound. She stood in the foyer dumbfounded to see, and hear, Willie standing on a ladder, busily stacking pine boughs on the mantel of the fireplace. Willie was happily whistling the tune to "Whistle While You Work". He was humming the lines for lyrics and whistling the whistle parts! Julia almost laughed aloud. The scene playing before her was so,...what? She wasn't sure she could even describe how incongruous it seemed.

"Willie, what on earth are you doing?"

"Hey, Dr. Hoffman. Well, Barnabas said I could fix up the house for, ya know, the holidays."

Julia was incredulous! "BARNABAS, told you to decorate for Christmas?"

"Well, naw, not exactly. I asked him to let me, and I didn't think he would, but he said, 'OK'." Willie's grin was infectious, but Julia was skeptical.

Julia had to admit the pine and berries were a beautiful adornment to the mantel. And the scent of pine in the house chased away its usual musty odor. She noticed Willie had placed pine in the windows as well, and he shared with Julia his plans to make a garland for the banister on the stairway.

"This is all very nice, Willie, but it's just unbelievable that Barnabas would assent to something so,....so.." Julia trailed off; not really knowing what to say.

"So human, Dr. Hoffman?", Willie offered; his canary who swallowed the cat grin never fading.

Julia just nodded absently trying to comprehend the exchange between Barnabas and Willie that led to such an agreement. Julia did not fail to notice Willie's sly smile and again began to have suspicions about this "project".

"Willie, is there something about all this you haven't told me?", Julia queried.

"No, honest, Dr. Hoffman. Barnabas said I could fix up the place, and I guess I'm just gettin' excited about makin' this old place look alive again. It's gonna be great, Doctor, just ya wait and see. We're gonna have everything to make for a good ol' fashioned Christmas!". Willie proclaimed this as he triumphantly hammered a nail in place.

As Christmas drew closer, Barnabas began to regret his decision to let Willie decorate the Drawing Room. It wasn't that what Willie had done was unattractive, but something about this "holiday cheer" seemed wrong; very wrong. Barnabas felt a strange foreboding, and, to add to his frustration, Willie had become disgustingly cheerful of late. To make matters worse, her "eminence", Dr. Hoffman, insisted on making appearances at the most inopportune times! WOMEN--and their infernal interference in the matters of men!

Barnabas wearily trudged up the basement stairs. 'Just as I suspected', he thought as he entered the foyer. Sure enough, Julia Hoffman stood in the Drawing Room fingering some of the holly leaves now gracing the pine roping lining the mantel. She turned and greeted Barnabas with a tentative smile.

"Good evening, Barnabas."

Nodding his head slightly, Barnabas simply said, "Doctor," his eyes narrowing.

Ignoring Barnabas' obvious ill mood, Julia continued. "Barnabas, isn't it wonderful what Willie has done with this room? I didn't know you were so sentimental about the holidays, Barnabas." Julia knew she was goading Barnabas, and that could be dangerous, but, at this moment, she didn't care.

"Spare me your sarcasm, Doctor. As for sentimentality, it seems to lie in the minds of those who do not have enough to occupy their time."

"Bah, humbug, to you, too, Scrooge, " Julia said dryly.

"What the dickens are you talking about?"

"Exactly," quipped Julia.

Barnabas was becoming quite agitated. Julia continued to press him further. 

"But, Barnabas, you must have seen some value in the decorating, or you wouldn't have allowed Willie to do so."

Barnabas' look grew even more grim. "My reasons for granting Willie's request are none of your concern!

At this point Julia was both amused and exasperated. "Barnabas, there's no reason for you to be so angry. We're just talking about Christmas decorations!"

Barnabas grabbed his cape and whirled it about his shoulders. Grasping the door knob and jerking his cane from the coat rack, Barnabas snarled, "That's where you are wrong, Doctor. You and I are not discussing anything. I trust you will show yourself out!"

As Barnabas slammed the door behind him, Julia placed her thumb on her nose, stuck out her tongue, and gave Barnabas a four-fingered salute.

Christmas Eve brought a fresh blanket of soft snow powder to the Collins estate, but the evening was clear, and the winds had calmed. The stars winked in aleatoric rhythm contrasting the indigo tapestry behind them. 'It'll be easy to spot Rudolph tonight,' mused Julia.

Julia had also brought a small gift for Barnabas; a set of scrimshaw cuff links. Considering his love for ships and the sea, Julia thought this gift might be appropriately "generic". Why she was doing anything for Barnabas at all considering his recent tirades and threats to her, Julia couldn't answer even for herself. The problem was that she did know why, and it made her angry with herself. 'You are a fool, Doctor', she told herself. She could even imagine Barnabas speaking to her in the same words of reproach.

Julia squared her shoulders and continued on the path to the Old House. She was determined to enjoy the evening and concentrated her thoughts on the beauty of the night and the holiday's pleasures. Julia could see the soft light behind the heavy drapes of the house's front windows and smell the fragrant wood smoke from the fireplace.

Just as Julia neared the front door, she could hear a great clamor and distant shouts coming from inside the house. Before Julia could react, Barnabas burst through the door, wild-eyed and breathless. He grabbed Julia by the shoulders in a desperate grip. "Julia, don't go in there! Run, get away as quickly as you can!"

Barnabas looked back to the house before releasing Julia and running into the night. "Barnabas!", Julia shouted. "What is it? Barnabas!"

The indescribable noises continued to drone from the house. Julia crept close to the door; her heart pounding furiously. She took a tentative step into the foyer. An eerie pulsating glow of light seemed to emanate from the Drawing Room. A cacophony of sounds reached her ears, and as she slowly peeked around the corner, Julia saw the sources of the melee of sensory confusion.

There in the Drawing Room was the most God-awful array of garish Christmas displays ever assembled in one spot. In the window stood an aluminum Christmas tree lit by a color wheel that blared alternate colors of green, orange, red, and yellow. All the colors mixed together in a ghoulish sickly glow. A life-sized animated Santa dressed in full red velvet and wool garb waved at Julia from beside the tree and gleefully exclaimed, "HO, HO, HO" in a monotonous drone. Two stuffed reindeer stood on a circle of snow and grazed on tuffs of the carpet. Multi-colored lights outlined the mantel, the windows, and trailed down the banister of plastic stretched across the entrance declaring, "SEASON'S GREETINGS". There was even a life-sized nativity scene in the far corner of the Drawing Room, having replaced Barnabas' favorite chair. The holy family glowed with an inner light which radiated from 75-watt light bulbs placed in the backs of their heads. A scratchy phonograph rasped out an arrangement of "SILENT NIGHT".

The coup de grace was Willie himself! Dressed in a Santa hat, gloves, and a muffler, Willie pranced around the room rapping on a toy drum and singing lustily, "Willie, take your little drum, Robin, bring your fife and come, tu ra loo ra loo, pat a pat a pan".

Julia clamped her hands over her ears and tried to shout to get Willie's attention. Willie stopped his private parade when he spotted Julia standing in the doorway.

"Hey, Dr. Hoffman. Ain't it great!", Willie beamed , pointing to his holiday handiwork. Julia was still holding her ears and shouting, "It's really something else, Willie!"

"I told ya, Dr. Hoffman, we'd have a good ol' fashioned Christmas, just like all the stuff we used ta have when I was a kid. I told Barnabas it would be good for him. When he saw all this, he was just speechless with the wonder of it all."

"I dare say he was, Willie," said a dazed Julia.

"Whaddya say to a toast, Dr. Hoffman?" As Willie poured eggnog from a carton marked "Haskell Farms", he offered, "Hey, how 'bout that line from that old story.....'God bless us everyone'?"

"Yes," mumbled Julia. "God help us everyone."

---The End----