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Snow softened village sounds.

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Inside his workshop, Tomas the shoemaker
placed his last piece of chestnut-brown
leather on the bench.

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Mira warmed her hands beside the stove
while he measured twice and cut carefully.

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There was just enough for one pair of
shoes.

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Tomas arranged the pieces around a wooden
last.

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'Tomorrow,' he said, 'I shall stitch my
very best.'

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Long after the lamp went dark, the blue
door opened a finger's width.

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Two tiny adult elves slipped inside.

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Lumi threaded a needle no longer than
Tomas's little finger.

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Nim steadied the leather against the last.

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Pull, cross, tighten; tap, turn, polish.

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They worked without wasting a movement.

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Before dawn, a handsome pair of lace-up
shoes stood neatly in the moonlight.

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In the morning, Tomas lifted the shoes and
blinked behind his round spectacles.

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Every stitch was even.

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Every edge was smooth.

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Mira turned one shoe towards the window
and smiled.

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A traveller entered, tried them on, and
paid a fair price for such excellent work.

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With the money, Tomas bought leather for
two pairs, plus thread, polish and a fresh
candle for the bench.

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That night, Tomas cut pieces for two pairs
and left them ready.

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By sunrise, two polished pairs waited on
the bench.

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The next customers paid fairly too.

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Soon the shelves held leather in warm
browns, berry red and deep blue.

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The stove stayed lit, and the workshop
bell chimed often.

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Tomas and Mira were grateful—but they
wanted to know whose nimble hands arrived
after midnight.

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One evening, they hid behind the heavy
curtain and kept very still.

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At midnight, Lumi and Nim climbed onto the
bench and began their careful rhythm.

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Tomas noticed Lumi's patched green sleeve.

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Mira saw that Nim's rust-red hem was thin
and frayed.

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The tiny boots they wore were no boots at
all—the elves worked in bare feet, even on
the coldest winter nights.

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The following day, no shoe pieces waited
on the bench.

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Instead, Mira cut two tiny woollen coats.

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She stitched a cranberry coat for Nim and
a teal one for Lumi.

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Tomas shaped four thumb-sized soles.

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By supper, two pairs of little boots stood
beside the coats: mustard yellow for Nim
and rust red for Lumi.

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Each gift had been measured, lined and
finished with care.

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At midnight, the elves found the gifts.

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Nim buttoned the cranberry coat and
stamped happily in mustard boots.

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Lumi twirled in teal wool, then admired
the rust-red pair on his feet.

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They laughed, danced around the lamp, and
bowed towards the curtain.

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Before leaving, Nim placed a hand-carved
wooden star on the bench.

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Then the two friends skipped through the
blue door into the snow.

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The elves did not return to make shoes.

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Their shelves were stocked, and the
workshop could carry on.

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They hung the little wooden star above the
bench.

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Whenever someone needed sturdy shoes but
had few coins, Tomas remembered the unseen
stitches that had helped him.

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He measured carefully, Mira chose strong
leather, and kindness travelled onwards.