Hogfather - Skin

“I think I know you, Teatime,” she said, as sweetly as she could for Banjo’s sake. “You’re the mad kid they’re all scared of, right?”

"Banjo?” snapped Teatime. “I said grab her—”

“Our mam said—”

“The giggling excitable one even the bullies never touched because if they did he went insane and kicked and bit,” said Susan. “The kid who didn’t know the difference between chucking a stone at a cat and setting it on fire.”

To her delight he glared at her.

“Shut up,” he said.

“I bet no one wanted to play with you,” said Susan. “Not the kid with no friends. Kids know about a mind like yours even if they don’t know the right words for it—”

“I said shut up! Get her, Banjo!”

That was it. She could hear it in Teatime’s voice. There was a touch of vibrato that hadn’t been there before.

“The kind of little boy,” she said, watching his face, “who looks up dolls’ dresses…”

“I didn’t!”

Banjo looked worried.

“Our mam said—”

“Oh, to blazes with your mam!” snapped Teatime.

There was a whisper of steel as Medium Dave drew his sword.

“What’d you say about our mam?” he whispered.

Now he’s having to concentrate on three people, Susan thought.

“I bet no one ever played with you,” she said. “I bet there were things people had to hush up, eh?”

***

Hogfather - p311-312