0:00 The hallway floorboards gave a sharp, sudden crack.0:04 Right then, love, snuggle down.0:07 Last time we met, brave little Maya solved the mystery of that midnight wooden train engine, but tonight, oh, we have got a brand-new riddle down the landing.0:21 Ey up, let me just set my hot brew on the coaster, shove lazy Barnaby the cat off my slippers, and we will begin.0:30 Now, young Alex had just tucked the duvet right up under their chin when the flicker started.0:39 Across the wallpaper outside, summat tall and jagged was leaping about.0:45 It had long, spindly claws that reached waaay up toward the ceiling.0:51 It bent double, then sprang straight back up like a jack-in-the-box.0:57 Alex froze under the blankets.0:59 The landing nightlight cast a sickly amber glow against the skirting board.1:06 Was it a goblin having a midnight jig?1:09 Or maybe — and keep this between us, chuck — maybe a spindly seaside shadow-witch had wandered in from the Whitby fog?1:19 Ooh!1:20 Every single time the house settled, that shape seemed to take another silent step forward.1:28 Alex felt their tiny toes curl up into two tight knots inside the pyjamas.1:34 Um, well, most folks would pull the covers right over their nose and squeeze their eyes shut till breakfast time.1:44 I mean, nobody wants to face a creature with ten dancing elbows, do they?1:51 But Alex had a heart like a little brass bell.1:55 A quiet squeak came from the hinge.1:58 Alex slipped out of bed, one bare foot at a time, onto the cold linoleum.2:04 Pad.2:04 Pad.2:05 Pad.2:05 The floor felt icy, like fresh river stones.2:09 That shadow twitched again.2:11 It dipped down low, reeeally low, like it was getting ready to POUNCE right through the bedroom door.2:20 Alex took a giant gulp of air and crept toward the sliver of yellow light.2:27 The hallway air smelled kind of like clean laundry and old carpet.2:32 Hmm, was that claw scraping against the wall?2:36 Alex peeked one single eye around the doorframe and peered into the gloom.2:43 And there — right in the middle of the drafty hall — was Uncle Martin’s giant woollen winter coat!2:51 It was dangling off the radiator hook, and the draught from the downstairs letterbox was puffing right up into the sleeves.3:02 Whoa, wait, that was not all!3:05 Little Rosie’s silver party balloon was tied to the very top button, bobbing up and down, and so — and so the real dancing monster was just a very silly bit of knitwear having a drafty cuddle with a balloon!3:23 Alex let out a giant puff of relief.3:26 It had never been a beastie from the sea at all.3:30 You see, shadows are only ever as tall as the tricks our minds play with them.3:37 In the dark, a woollen pocket looks like a goblin’s jaw, and a shiny ribbon looks like an ancient claw.3:46 But once you take that one BRAVE step into the hall, they turn back into ordinary, harmless old clothes.3:55 So now, Alex knew the landing was not spooky at all, honestly.4:00 It was just a funny, draughty old house keeping everybody safe and sound inside while the wind blew over the tiles.4:11 Right then, love.4:12 Rest those heavy eyes, pull your blankets up warm, and think of that silly dancing coat.4:20 Night night, sleep tight, chuck.
