Half a Penny

The older children led the younger ones. Tom followed behind five or six children much older than himself, head lowered as he stepped through the snow. The weather was truly bitterly cold; even his eyelashes had frozen over. If only there were some way to warm himself up now.

A warm current flowed through his entire body. Tom blinked his large eyes, unable to react for a moment. In disbelief, he pulled his little hands from his sleeves and flexed them a few times, discovering that they had truly warmed up. He pressed his lips together, trying hard to remain calm.

Mm~ I want meat. I want meat!

Tom opened his hands, glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then hid in a corner and kept praying. He waited for ages, but no food appeared. He shook his head in disappointment. It seemed his ability was not all-powerful after all. He should go work instead. Perhaps that great devil would show some mercy and give him a bite of meat.

"Honored sir, please show some kindness to Wool's Orphanage~"

"Tch." The middle-aged man in a bowler hat impatiently swept his gaze over the little runt before him. How annoying. He was in a hurry to get home and enjoy a delicious dinner. He casually took out several pennies and tossed them over. "Be grateful for my kindness, you irritating brat."

Tom bent down to pick up the pennies from the ground and clenched them tightly in his hand. Why? He did not understand. Why was he so angry and irritated? This gentleman had given him pennies; he had merely thrown them at Tom's feet. Yet it made him so furious that he wanted to hurl the coins in his hand back at him.

Kindness? Why did he not feel grateful?

Looking up at the tall figure gradually walking away, Tom suddenly had a vague feeling. Perhaps the gentleman stood so straight because he did not lack money. People like them, bluntly speaking, were merely beggars. To survive, they had to bend their backs, put on smiling faces, and beg others for charity.

"So I need money first? Then I won't feel angry and irritated?"

"Hah, an orphan wanting money? Keep dreaming, you loner." The boy standing beside him, who had overheard Tom muttering under his breath, hugged his box and snorted disdainfully. People like them would remain in the orphanage unless the Goddess of Fate favored them and someone adopted them.

Their final way out was either to labor bitterly for the rest of their lives or to do the filthiest, most degrading work. How could they possibly earn money on their own? He knew nothing, yet he wanted to make money. What a joke.

Tom did not respond. He dropped the shillings clutched in his hand into the little box. After the new year, he would be able to start learning to read. When that time came, he certainly would not waste any time. The Old Headmaster had taught him quite a few words; he only needed to see them once or twice to remember them firmly.

He would never be like that idiot Neil, who could misspell even simple words and get locked up by Mrs. Cole as punishment.

The sky gradually darkened. Tom shook the box, listening to the clinking sounds within. When no one was paying attention, he used his ability to take out half a penny (the halfpenny ceased circulation in 1985; Tom was born in 1926) and secretly hid it in the lining of his clothes. Fortunately, he wore many layers, so Mrs. Cole would not find it even if she searched him.

He liked reading books. He liked the words and pictures in them, especially when the Old Headmaster held him and slowly explained the stories to him... Sadly, he would never hear them again...

His mood worsened again. Tom patted his little face and kept telling himself that it would be all right once night came. Only in the darkness did he feel safe. The Matron would shine in the sky and watch over him.