The streets were cold and foggy. Snow had settled on rooftops and the festivities were underway. Wreath and Christmas tree sellers lined the pavements, as carriage drivers displayed their Christmas horses up and down the snowy roads. The River Thames had frozen over like every year. Children and adults alike took to the frozen water, pulling their dusty ice skates out from closets or pulling them from beams where they had been suspended after winter was over. Lottie was no different. Wrapped in a scarlet coat with a hoodie decorated with black fur, she ran over the London bridge with her friends, down the steps and slipped on her skates. A few of her friends had already fallen over, causing all the girls to let out a happy giggle.
Their dainty hands were also covered with gloves. As the girls skated they could see their breath and their coats billowed out behind them making them feel like dragons gliding through the air. Lottie loved this time of year, everyone seemed so happy and jolly. The snow still fell gently but it wasn't enough to cause a blizzard. Lottie and her friends started racing each other they pushed unsteady people out of their ways apologising as they fell, but the girls found it amusing and kept skating ahead of each other. They passed a few tall ships that had been frozen to the spot, the ice and snow painting the bow of the ship white. They could see a few ships with Christmas decorations at the back of the ships in the Captain's quarters. At the very edge children made snowmen and had snowball fights.
One snowball was thrown off course and hit Lottie square in the face disorientating her. She lost her balance and fell hitting the ice hard, her friends skated over to her with ease and leant over her. "Are you okay?" one asked, Lottie nodded resting a hand on her head.
"Just a bump," she says and stands even though she is a little wobbly. Her friends helped her to steady herself soon the group were racing down the great stretch of the Thames together biting back the cold breeze as they skated. The only way to stay warm was to keep skating, even as darkness fell and it got colder the Thames was still flooded with people skating creating their thin white tracks. The lanterns were lit and lined the edges of the frozen river, families took their children home now. Elsie also left the group of girls as her mother called for her on the bridge.
"Elsie, time to come home!" She called softly. She bid her goodbyes and left, the girls made their way back and skated back to the steps. They sat down on the frigid stone and started to unlace their skates before carefully climbing the stairs back up to the main street, all the street lights burnt now and lit their way. The snow was starting to fall heavier now, each of the girls made it home safely and each sat in front of their fireplaces warming up.
