0:00:09 > 0:00:12Here they come! My two intrepid explorers -
0:00:12 > 0:00:15Charlotte and Elliot.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18I'm their great aunt Lizzie, you see.
0:00:18 > 0:00:23And I wonder which one is coming to see me today...
0:00:23 > 0:00:26Ah! So, it's Charlotte's turn.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29Here she comes! Racing to hear
0:00:29 > 0:00:31another tale from an epic adventurer.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34CLINK! CLINK! CLINK!
0:00:44 > 0:00:47And what a wonderful adventures they were.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51So long ago and so far away.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57I collected a few souvenirs along the way.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03But my most precious possession of all
0:01:03 > 0:01:08is my extraordinary collection of teacups.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26You've still got your coat on, Charlotte. Come on.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30No time to count the clouds, we've got stories to tell.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32Now...
0:01:32 > 0:01:34let's have a lovely cup of tea.
0:01:38 > 0:01:40But first we need...
0:01:40 > 0:01:42A teacup!
0:01:44 > 0:01:46Which one?
0:01:59 > 0:02:00That one.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03Oh...
0:02:04 > 0:02:07The Merchant's Ring.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09What a choice, Charlotte.
0:02:09 > 0:02:11I do really love that story.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23This will be just perfect to drink now.
0:02:27 > 0:02:28So...
0:02:28 > 0:02:30are you ready?
0:02:30 > 0:02:31Ready.
0:02:31 > 0:02:35Then let me tell you the story
0:02:35 > 0:02:36of Great Aunt Lizzie
0:02:36 > 0:02:39And The Adventure Of The Merchant's Ring.
0:02:39 > 0:02:41Ahem.
0:02:41 > 0:02:43Oh, yes, of course.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46- Let me tell you the story of Charlotte...- He-he-he.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49..And The Adventure Of The Merchant's Ring.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52It all began long, long ago
0:02:52 > 0:02:54in ancient Britain,
0:02:54 > 0:02:58an island of green forests, majestic mountains,
0:02:58 > 0:03:01silver rivers and tiny villages.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04TINKLING MUSIC
0:03:20 > 0:03:24Charlotte had been travelling far across the Highlands
0:03:24 > 0:03:26and into the glens.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28She hadn't seen a single person for miles
0:03:28 > 0:03:31when, after following a lane through the trees,
0:03:31 > 0:03:35she came to a place where two men were resting by a wall.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38A merchant and his young assistant
0:03:38 > 0:03:42were trying to sort small bundles of cloth, ready for delivery.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44- Not so urgent.- Not so urgent.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47- Very urgent.- Very urgent.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51Not so urgent, but very important.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53Not so urgent, but very important.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56All sorted, ready for delivery.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59Hang on, there's just one pile.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01How do you know which is which?
0:04:01 > 0:04:03Oh, I was copying you.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07- I thought you knew what you were doing, Hal.- Sorry, uncle Tom.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09You need to sort those packages out
0:04:09 > 0:04:13- or you'll be wandering around the village all day.- Uncle Tom,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16- where's your merchant's ring? - Oh. Oh...
0:04:16 > 0:04:18I must have forgotten it.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21Ah, never mind, we won't need it today.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24Right, now, about this delivery...
0:04:25 > 0:04:29Charlotte could see they were getting nowhere fast.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31Perhaps a fresh eye would help.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35- Hello, I was wondering if you needed any help?- Help?
0:04:35 > 0:04:39We're successful cloth merchants and we don't need any help.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43- I thought you might like help sorting your cloths out.- Well, erm...
0:04:43 > 0:04:49OK. I don't usually do the deliveries, I just sell the cloth.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52- My sister normally does the deliveries.- Oh, that's my mum.
0:04:54 > 0:04:58- She made a map, but it didn't make any sense to me.- Nor me.
0:04:58 > 0:05:00Show it the young lady, Hal.
0:05:00 > 0:05:02I don't think I have it, do I?
0:05:05 > 0:05:08Ah! Mm-hm-hm.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14Mm, it's not the best map I've ever seen...
0:05:14 > 0:05:16but...
0:05:21 > 0:05:24Charlotte was always good with maps.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26She soon sorted the bundles
0:05:26 > 0:05:29so you could walk from one end of the town to the other,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33delivering the bundles without having to run back and forth.
0:05:36 > 0:05:37There you go.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40If you start here and work your way up,
0:05:40 > 0:05:43- they will all be in order. - Wow. Thanks.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45Now get a move on, dear boy.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48And I'll get my new hinges from the blacksmith.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50They're top-notch.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53It's for my trunk where I keep all my important stuff.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59And whatever you do, don't forget this letter, Hal.
0:05:59 > 0:06:03- I'll meet you back here.- Yes, Uncle Tom. See you later, Uncle Tom.
0:06:03 > 0:06:07- Thanks very much for your help. - Hal seemed confident enough,
0:06:07 > 0:06:10but Charlotte had a feeling she might be needed.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12And a good thing too,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15for it wasn't long before things started to go awry.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18I'm not paying and that's final.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20No mark, no payment.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23If I go back with no money, I'll be in trouble.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25If I gave money to anybody who came to my door,
0:06:25 > 0:06:28I'd soon end up in a TERRIBLE mess.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31I don't know who you are, you could be anyone.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34Charlotte could see something was badly wrong.
0:06:34 > 0:06:38- She went over to see if she could help.- Is something the matter?
0:06:38 > 0:06:42There is. He's given me this letter saying I need to pay him some money,
0:06:42 > 0:06:44but it doesn't have a seal.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47Without a seal, he could be anybody.
0:06:47 > 0:06:49Isn't that the seal?
0:06:49 > 0:06:51No, that's just the wax.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55The seal is a special stamp you press into the wax when it's warm.
0:06:55 > 0:06:59And it makes a mark which proves this bundle is from a real merchant.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02- Every real cloth merchant has a seal.- We have got one.
0:07:02 > 0:07:04It's in a ring you can wear.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07- It's called a merchant's ring. - So you say,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10- but where is it? - Well, it's not mine.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13It's my uncle Tom's ring - he's the cloth merchant.
0:07:13 > 0:07:17It's true. That's why he has all these deliveries.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19No sale, no money.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26OK, Hal, you stay here and I'll go and find the ring.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29Charlotte thought getting the merchant's ring
0:07:29 > 0:07:30would be as easy as pie.
0:07:30 > 0:07:34But, of course, it was never going to be as easy as that.
0:07:34 > 0:07:36My uncle Tom forgot to bring it today.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39I'll have to go home and get it.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42Why don't you deliver the rest and I'll get the ring?
0:07:42 > 0:07:45Oh, it's quite a long way away.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48Over the hills and down by the river. My mum will be there.
0:07:48 > 0:07:53It wasn't even lunchtime and already it had got so messy.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57She had helped Tom and Hal sort out the bundles...
0:07:57 > 0:07:59and she'd tried to help Hal
0:07:59 > 0:08:01explain to the woman that his letter was real,
0:08:01 > 0:08:04but the young woman was never going to be happy
0:08:04 > 0:08:07until the wax had a proper seal mark in it.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09No seal, no money.
0:08:09 > 0:08:14And she had thought getting the merchant's ring would be a doddle.
0:08:14 > 0:08:19She couldn't leave Hal without the merchant's ring, could she?
0:08:19 > 0:08:22There was nothing else for it but to get a wriggle on,
0:08:22 > 0:08:26over the hills to the cloth merchant's house.
0:08:30 > 0:08:35So, off went Charlotte in her old battered boots.
0:08:35 > 0:08:40She scrambled across the ancient Highlands until...
0:08:40 > 0:08:42when she was almost out of breath...
0:08:42 > 0:08:44the path ran out.
0:08:49 > 0:08:50EAGLE'S CRY
0:08:50 > 0:08:53There was only one way to get to the other side.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57Charlotte took a deep breath.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59CREAKING
0:09:18 > 0:09:21Safely across, she set off once more
0:09:21 > 0:09:24until the land opened out onto a wild valley
0:09:24 > 0:09:27beneath a wall of purple mountains.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34But there was no time to admire the scenery,
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Charlotte had to get that ring.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41Hello, are you Hal's mother?
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Yes. Is something the matter?
0:09:43 > 0:09:47Nothing serious. Hal has a letter he's trying to deliver,
0:09:47 > 0:09:50but it hasn't been sealed, so the lady won't pay.
0:09:50 > 0:09:55I don't blame her. Why didn't he just seal it there and then?
0:09:55 > 0:09:59- Didn't they have the merchant's ring?- They forgot it.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01Deary me, they always forget something.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03I wonder where he put it.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07And that was when Charlotte remembered about Tom
0:10:07 > 0:10:10and the trunk where he kept all his valuables.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Tom said something about a trunk.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14Could it be in there?
0:10:14 > 0:10:17He mostly keeps his best cloth in there,
0:10:17 > 0:10:20to keep it safe from the mice,
0:10:20 > 0:10:21but perhaps...
0:10:23 > 0:10:25But when Charlotte tried to open it...
0:10:27 > 0:10:30- It won't open.- Of course.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34- Tom was supposed to get new hinges today.- Oh.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37I tell you what, I'll lift the lid just a little bit
0:10:37 > 0:10:40- and you see if you can wriggle your arm inside.- OK.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42- Ready?- Ready.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46The lid was heavy and the broken hinges creaked,
0:10:46 > 0:10:48but as Nell stooped and strained,
0:10:48 > 0:10:51Charlotte wriggled her arm through the gap.
0:10:51 > 0:10:53You'll have to be quick, it's really hard.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56There was only the soft touch of silks and linens,
0:10:56 > 0:11:01but suddenly something cold and hard brushed against Charlotte's fingers.
0:11:01 > 0:11:02That was close.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05There it was.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08- The merchant's ring.- Well done.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10What a heavy ring it was,
0:11:10 > 0:11:14with a circle and a triangle etched into the top.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17So that was the pattern they pressed into the wax
0:11:17 > 0:11:19to seal the letters.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22- You look after that now.- I will.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24Oh, just a second!
0:11:24 > 0:11:28Give this bread and cheese to my boys.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32- Knowing those two, they haven't eaten.- Thanks. Bye.
0:11:34 > 0:11:39Back came Charlotte in her old battered boots,
0:11:39 > 0:11:43across the ancient Highlands and down the mountainside.
0:11:44 > 0:11:46There was no time to waste.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50Charlotte found the merchants where she'd met them,
0:11:50 > 0:11:53sitting on a wall looking glumly at the letter.
0:11:55 > 0:12:00- I've got the ring.- Oh, how wonderful. - Thank you.
0:12:00 > 0:12:04- And your mum gave me some bread and cheese.- Hooray, we're saved!
0:12:04 > 0:12:07- She was worried you hadn't eaten. - She's right there.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11- Shall we deliver the letter now? - No, let's eat first.
0:12:11 > 0:12:16- We can ask our new friend to join us. What do you say?- Yes, let's.
0:12:16 > 0:12:20And that was that, the whole kit and caboodle.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23Charlotte And The Adventure Of The Merchant's Ring.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27I liked Tom and Hal, even though they're a bit forgetful.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30It was amazing that they used a merchant's ring
0:12:30 > 0:12:32to prove they were merchants.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35- Did they get any better? - Well, they kept trying.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37And after that adventure,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41they made sure that one of them was wearing a merchant's ring.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45My goodness, time does fly when you're having fun. Come on.
0:12:45 > 0:12:48Your mum'll be here in a minute.
0:12:48 > 0:12:50Your coat.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05Now, how did that get there?
0:13:08 > 0:13:10Home time now, Charlotte.
0:13:18 > 0:13:20Bye, Great Aunt Lizzie.
0:13:20 > 0:13:22Cheery-bye, Charlotte.