The Testimony of Taliesin Jones (56 page)

'
Have
yo
u
give
n m
e o
ne
y
et?' T
oni as
ks
.

'
I
ca
ll
yo
u Mr R
apunzel.'

T
oni
smil
es
,
un
certain
if thi
s
i
s go
od. Taliesin blu
shes.
H
e is
n't
s
ure
i
f h
e wa
nts t
o e
xplain. Hi
s
mother lau
ghs
.

'
Wasn't R
apunzel
th
e
pr
incess w
ith
a
ll the h
air?
'
s
he
as
ks.

'
Ye
s,'
T
alie
s
in rep
lies.

'So t
hat
makes
m
e
Mr
s
R
apunzel,
th
en?'

Ta
liesin
s
imply
no
ds
.
Th
en
h
is
m
other c
hanges th
e s
ubject
.

'
Your
fa
ther
c
hose
yo
ur n
ame
fr
om a
book h
e
w
as
r
eading
b
y a
Wel
sh poe
t
a
t
t
he time I
was
pr
egnant.
I w
anted
t
o
c
all
yo
u D
avid,
bu
t
h
e i
nsisted
o
n T
aliesin.
He
wa
nted
yo
u t
o
h
ave a
h
ead s
tart in l
ife
a
nd h
e
th
ought
an unu
sual
name
wo
uld h
elp
.
I
t
hink
it was
pr
obably a go
od thin
g.
Y
ou see
m lik
e
a
T
aliesin.
M
o
re a Ta
liesin th
an
a
D
avid.
Th
at
was o
ne of
yo
ur
f
ather's
b
etter i
deas.'

'
It
wo
uld b
e goo
d t
o
tr
ace
nam
es
ba
ck
to th
e
fir
st
t
ime
th
ey were
u
sed
,
' Toni says
.
'
Imagine th
e ve
ry fir
st
tim
e so
meone u
sed yo
ur n
ame. Eve
n Ton
i
mu
st
h
ave
b
een
n
ew o
nce. It
mus
t h
ave so
unded
s
trange,
eve
n
exo
tic.'

'
H
ow a
re th
e pia
no l
essons?'
hi
s
mother
as
ks.
S
he w
as
n
ever goo
d
a
t
picki
n
g
up
a
thr
ead a
nd weavin
g
it
.

'
They're
fi
ne
.'

'
Are
yo
u
goi
ng t
o
pl
a
y
m
e a ca
rol?'

T
aliesin
s
ta
rt
s
t
o
pi
ck
th
e sk
in
a
round his fin
gers.

'
I h
aven't forgo
tten
yo
ur pr
omise,' s
he sa
ys
.

'
I d
idn't
pr
omise
,
Mum
.
I
sai
d I
wo
uld tr
y
and l
earn o
ne
.
I h
aven't
r
eally
d
one i
t
.'

'S
peaking
of ca
rols, ho
w a
bout
go
ing to Midni
ght
M
ass a
nd
si
nging
so
me,' T
oni c
uts in
.
'
It
s
tarts
a
t el
even
d
oesn't
i
t?'

'
Oh
,
but i
t
'
s a
lways full
of
drunk
s,'
h
is
moth
er says
.

'W
hat i
s
Midni
ght
Ma
ss?' Ta
liesin
asks, t
hinking th
at i
t mu
st
b
e so
mething illegal.

'
It's ju
st a goo
d singsong
,'
T
oni
p
artially
e
xp
l
a
in
s.

'
You t
wo ca
n
g
o if
y
ou li
ke.
I'
ve
pl
enty
t
o do
.'
S
he p
icks
up
a
nd
waves so
me
w
rapping p
aper.
T
oni
put
s
h
is
h
ands o
n h
er
hip
s an
d k
isses
her
o
n th
e
c
heek, qu
ickly, a
s
tho
ugh
a
ware
of
T
aliesin
wat
ching
.
But T
aliesin's
m
other
h
olds
To
ni's h
ands o
n
her hips in
sistently an
d
a
n
g
l
es
h
er
h
ead
t
o
ki
ss
him
s
lowly. Taliesin
wa
t
c
h
es
a
nd f
eels
hi
mself
b
ecome
tr
ansparent
.

Th
e c
hurch i
s
ta
ll
,
s
pired
a
nd fl
oodlit,
bu
stin
g
with a
flu
shed crow
d
of peop
le
w
ho lo
ok
h
appy a
nd r
e
a
dy to si
n
g
.

'I'm n
ot one
f
or c
hurch but I l
ik
e
t
o si
ng,'
To
ni
s
ays
.

Ta
liesin
ya
w
n
s
from e
xcitement
.
It i
s
l
ate f
o
r hi
m
but
t
he n
ovelty of be
ing up at th
is
h
our
m
akes
h
im feel
full
y a
wake
,
as
th
ou
gh
h
e
c
o
uld
g
o ri
ght
thr
ough to
B
oxing Day w
ithout
a
br
eak.

T
he
c
hurch
is
f
our o
r fi
ve ti
mes th
e s
ize
of c
hapel
a
nd th
e a
tmosphere di
stinctly c
elebratory
.
Th
e co
ngregation
s
ing th
e
brilli
ant
tun
es of C
hristmas
a
nd
t
he w
ords ec
ho in th
e va
ult
a
nd
carr
y
i
nt
o
th
e
be
ginning of eac
h
ve
rse in fu
gue
.
T
oni
h
as a
h
i
gh
voi
ce
w
hich falt
ers s
lightly
an
d h
e keeps c
hecking hi
s ca
rol
s
he
e
t, u
ncertain o
f
t
he
wo
rd
s
.
A
fter
t
he
first caro
l h
e
wh
ispers
t
o Ta
liesin.

'
Your m
other
should h
ave co
me -
s
he'd h
ave
lo
ved i
t.'

A
fter
th
e se
rvice the peopl
e
l
eave
th
e c
hurch
s
till humm
ing
th
e
r
efrain of ‘
Hark, The H
erald-Angels
Si
ng'
.
T
he ni
ght s
ky i
s cl
ustered
w
ith bodi
es of s
tars,
fa
ntastically
clear.
I
n t
he
s
quare th
ere is a
m
an w
ith
a
b
ottle i
n hi
s ha
nd
wea
ring
a
t l
east
thr
ee coa
t
s.
H
e
i
s s
houting
a
t th
e
l
eaving crowd
.