The winter was very bad. It was cold and wet every day. Sometimes Sara walked through the snow to do her errands. Other days, the snow melted and turned into brown mud. Often there was a thick fog. On those days, the street lamps stayed on all day. London looked dark and sad.
The house across the square looked warm and comfortable. Sara could see the Large Family in their bright rooms. But the attic room where Sara lived was very cold. She could not see the sun or the stars. The clouds were always gray. At four o'clock in the afternoon, it was already dark. Sara had to use a candle to see in her room.
The cooks in the kitchen were always angry. They were very mean to Becky. Becky was the young servant girl. She worked very hard all day. One night, Becky went into the attic to see Sara. Becky looked very tired.
Becky said to Sara, "I am only happy because of you. We pretend this house is a prison. You are the prisoner in the next room. Miss Minchin is the guard. She has big keys. Tell me more stories about our prison, please."
Sara shivered because she was cold. She said, "Let us pretend something warmer. Put your blanket around you. I will tell you about a tropical forest. The monkey from the house next door lived there. He climbed tall trees and ate coconuts. I think he is sad because he misses his home."
Becky felt better. She liked the stories. Sara wrapped a blanket around herself and said, "When your body is cold and hungry, you must use your mind. You must think of something else. I practice this every day. It is becoming easier."
She looked at Becky and added, "When things are horrible, I pretend I am a princess. I say to myself: I am a princess. Nothing can hurt me. This helps me forget the cold."
Sara had a very difficult day soon after. It had been raining for many days, and the streets were full of cold mud and gray mist. Sara went out many times to do errands. Her old clothes were very wet, and her worn-out shoes were full of water.
Miss Minchin was angry with Sara and did not give her any dinner. Sara was very cold and very hungry. She walked in the street and tried to pretend. She tried to think of other things. This was very hard because she was so tired.
Sara said to herself, "Suppose I have dry clothes. Suppose I have good shoes and a warm coat. And suppose I find some money. I could go to a bakery and buy hot buns. I could eat them all."
Then, a strange thing happened. Sara had to cross a muddy street. She looked down at the ground. She saw something bright in the mud. It was a silver coin. It was a fourpenny piece.
Sara picked up the coin. Her hand was red and blue from the cold. She said, "It is true! I found money!" She looked at the shop in front of her. It was a bakery. A kind woman was putting hot buns in the window. The buns were large and sweet.
The smell of the bread was wonderful. Sara felt weak because she was so hungry. She knew she could use the money. The coin was dirty, so it had been on the ground for a long time. The person who lost it was gone.
Sara went to the shop. She saw a small girl sitting on the steps. The girl was a beggar. The girl wore rags. She had no shoes. Her face was dirty and her eyes looked very hungry.
Sara felt sorry for the girl. She thought, "This girl is even hungrier than I am." The girl looked at Sara, but she did not move. She was used to people being mean to her.
Sara asked her, "Are you hungry?" The girl answered in a low voice, "Yes. I have not eaten anything today. I have no food." Sara felt very sad. She thought about being a princess. A princess must share her food with poor people.
Sara went into the bakery. The shop was warm and smelled like sugar. Sara showed the coin to the woman and asked, "Did you lose this silver coin?" The woman looked at Sara’s wet clothes. She said, "No. You found it. You can keep it."
Sara said, "I want to buy four buns, please." Each bun cost one penny. The woman went to the window. She put the buns in a paper bag. But the woman put six buns in the bag, not four.
Sara said, "I only have money for four buns." The kind woman smiled. She said, "I will give you two extra buns for free. You look very hungry." Sara thanked the woman. She wanted to tell the woman about the poor girl outside. But other customers came in, so Sara went out.
The beggar girl was still on the steps. She was crying. Sara took a hot bun out of the bag. She gave it to the girl. Sara said, "Eat this. It is hot and good." The girl was surprised. She took the bun and ate it very fast.
Sara gave the girl three more buns. Then she gave the girl a fifth bun. Sara only kept one bun for herself. The girl was too hungry to say thank you. She ate the buns like a hungry animal. Sara said, "Goodbye," and walked away.
The woman in the bakery looked out of the window. She saw Sara give the buns to the beggar. The woman was very surprised. She thought, "That girl was hungry too, but she gave her food away. Why did she do that?"
The woman went to the door. She called the beggar girl inside. She said, "Come in and get warm. When you are very hungry, you can come here. I will give you bread because of that other girl."
Sara walked home. She ate her one bun slowly. She tried to pretend it was a big dinner. It was dark when she reached the square. In front of the Large Family’s house, there was a lot of noise and excitement.
Mr. Carmichael was going on a long journey. A brougham stood in front of the door. The children were dancing and kissing their father. They were sad he was leaving.
Sara watched them. She thought, "I will miss him too. I like to watch his happy family." Mr. Carmichael walked to the carriage. His children asked him about his trip. They asked if he was going to see the King.
Mr. Carmichael laughed. He said, "I am going to Moscow. It is a city in Russia. I must go. I want to stay here with you, but I have work to do." He got into the carriage and drove away.
The children went back inside the house. One of the girls said, "I saw that poor girl from the school. She was wet and cold. The school sends her out in the rain every day."
Sara went down the steps to Miss Minchin’s kitchen. She felt very weak. She did not know that Mr. Carmichael was going to Moscow for a special reason. He was going there to look for the daughter of Captain Crewe. He was looking for Sara.