The four children hurried down the hallway, moved along by the man in the black and white suit. The hall rushed by, there were so man things to see, never had they been in a house so large and grand before. Shiny things, painting, shelves full of wonders, but every time one of them would try to stop to look they got shuffled on.
“Hurry, hurry children we don’t have much time.” the man would say. “The Lord Mayor will be home soon and we still have so much to do.”
They pushed on through a large swinging door and slid to a stop in the kitchen. Oh the warm delicious smells washed over them and reminded them they hadn’t eaten in a while. All around them pots bubbled and burped fragrant steam. Cakes, pies, and breads lined the counters along with other multitudinal baskets off colored fruits and vegetables; tiny tummies growled and mouths watered. A large man in a white puffy hat and apron turned and looked at them…
“What’s this then?” he inquired glancing up at the man in the black and white suit.
“Cleaned and dressed for supper”, he said, “Lord Mayor’s orders…”
“Huh, right-o, come on you lot.” The man in the big puffy white hat and apron said and shuffled them off into the next room.
An hour later the Lord Mayor pulled up a chair and sat at the large wooden dining table. It was resplendent with fine china and silverware. Crystal goblets filled with fine wine, crusty breads, fragrant cheeses, and bowls of colorful juicy fruits filled the setting. As he sat down, the man in the black and white suit set a large pie before him, still steaming. The Lord Mayor smiled and inhaled deeply…ahhhhh mincemeat his favorite.
The Lord Mayor, taking his knife from his setting, cut himself a large helping and moved it to his plate thinking about how he had missed lunch due to meetings and other ridiculously mundane policy business. Utensil in hand he let the matters of the day melt away as a forkful of flavor passed his lips and exploded in his mouth. Oh, the spices and perfectly roasted meats danced on his tongue before sliding down his throat causing a warth to kindle the fires of goodwill inside of him and restore his faith in humanity. Two more savory bites and he felt like himself again.
Setting his fork down for a moment he lifted the glass to his lips, his nose catching a slight whiff of the red wine, red currants and a hint of allspice if he wasn’t mistaken. He had one of the finest collections in the county and very proud of it. He sat back in his chair and let the combination of sweet and tart wash the savory away. He thought about staying home tomorrow, taking the day off, and just enjoying himself for once.
“Oh, Bernard.” His mind shifted back to the present.
“Yes Lord Mayor?” The man in the black and white suit responded.
“The children?”
“Sir?”
“The children, where are they?”
“As you ordered, Sir…”
Tastebuds beckoned and another heaping forkful of pie made its way into his mouth. He really must remember to tell chef he’d outdone himself tonite.
“…Only…”, Bernard went on.
“Yes?”
The Lord Mayors had really drifted off and he was only partially paying attention to what was being said. Instead he wondered if he would have enough of this leftover to have tomorrow and, if not, he would have to ask Chef to maybe make another one for supper tomorrow.
“Well, Sir, after they were cleaned and dressed there wasn’t much left of them, so we weren’t sure what to do with them and…”
“And?”
“Well, the pie, Sir.”
“The PIE?!”
The Lord Mayor stopped mid-bite, setting his fork down, and eyed Bernard sternly.
“Bernard, this afternoon, when I put the children in your charge WHAT did I say?”
“Sir, you told me to get the children cleaned and dressed for supper.”
“Yes, and what did you do?”
“Well, Sir..I gave them to Chef, he actually cleaned and dressed them.”
“BERNARD, they were our guests FOR supper.”
“Oh?”
“Yes.”
“Terribly sorry, SIr. My mistake completely.”
The Lord Mayor sat and stared at the pie for a moment and sighed looking back at Bernard shaking his head in disbelief.
“Well, can’t be helped now. Cut me another slice and don’t let it happen again.”