53 Starry Night

53 Starry Night By the time Peanut had steered them to the far side of the final pond, night had fallen. The sky, sketched in several shades of dark blue, appeared to move and swirl with the breeze, ebbing and flowing around a beautifully composed canvas studded with large, yellow stars. The dappled, sun-flecked terrain of the Light District had given way to the harder lines and more distinct brushstrokes of Vincent Fields. Peanut looked to their right. She could see a small town, half a mile or so away, silhouetted against the brilliant sky. The few splashes of cosy, warm orange in the windows of the houses suddenly made her miss the comforts of home. And Mum.

'That looks like as good a place as any to start looking for the Yellow House,' she said to herself. 'The sooner we find it, the sooner we can bed down for the night.'

She gently woke the others and they set off across the fields, following the paths cut into the corn. Eventually they arrived at a flat, dusty road that led into the town.

It didn't take long for them to find the Yellow House, despite the fact that there were no streetlights. It certainly lived up to its name! The small cottage was on the corner of the first block of buildings they came to and, compared to the buildings surrounding it, it was luminous. It didn't look like anybody was home. The green shutters were all closed and, although the cottage itself shone, there was no light coming from inside. Peanut strode confidently forward and knocked on the door. Nothing. She knocked again. Still nothing. Oh, Peanut. I'm so tired. Please can we just go back to sleep?' pleaded Little-Bit. Peanut was tired too. She tried the door handle and, to her surprise, it opened. Great. Come on. ' Er, I think this is what's known as 'breaking and entering"' said Rockwell. ' Yes, I suppose it is,' said Peanut, before kicking off her boots and disappearing inside, closely followed by Little-Bit and Doodle. Rockwell shrugged and followed them. The front door led straight into a sitting room, sparsely furnished with a few simple wood and wicker chairs, a couple of old crates that doubled up as tables and a green spiral staircase in the corner. The floor was covered with large terracotta tiles that felt nice and cool against the children's tired feet.

On one of the chairs sat an envelope with a large letter P printed on it. Peanut picked it up and opened it. Peanut Jones. At daybreak, head to Die Brücke. Stay close to the city limits. You will be met at the beginning. Agent X 'Met at the beginning?' said Rockwell. 'The beginning of what?' 'I guess we'll find out,' sighed Peanut. 'More importantly, I wonder who Agent X is.' 'We don't have to leave until daybreak? So does that mean we can go to sleep?' said Little-Bit. ' Yes,' said Peanut, relieved that they were in the right place and back on track. 'Head upstairs and see if you can find a bed. At the top of the stairs was a small bathroom and a bedroom containing three small but comfortable-looking beds and a dog basket. The children washed their faces and climbed in.

Despite their exhaustion, all three struggled to sleep. 'Peanut...' said Little-Bit after a couple of minutes. 'I wish Daddy was here. He would love this city.' Then, after another minute, 'Do you think we'll ever find him?' 'You're right,' said Peanut. 'He would love it here.' Her eyes prickled. 'And yes, I do think we're going to find him. I can feel it in my bones. 'Whenever I couldn't get to sleep, he would always sing me songs.' Peanut, will you sing to me now?' 'You know I can't, LB. My voice is awful. It would give you nightmares.' 'Oh pleeeeeaaaase, Peanut. Just a nursery rhyme or something.' Just close your eyes LB and—' 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star...' A clear, sweet voice from the other side of the room started to sing. '...How I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high Like a diamond in the sky. Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are.' 'Rockwell,' Little-Bit yawned. 'I'm beginning to like you. Within a minute they were all asleep.