"Waaaaaaaaaaah! WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Ssssh, stai zitto, piccolo mio", I whispered exhaustedly to Valentina as I stood swaying from side to side with her in my arms.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAH! WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Sssh, you've been changed and your Mamma just nursed you. Ssssh, ssssh...it's okay."

Then suddenly, I remembered how my parents had soothed me at night when I was very small...with a lullaby they'd often sung.

"Sleep, little one.

As you dream, make a wish.

Don't tell a soul.

For the wish must be secret if it is to come true.

Whilst you drift off to sleep, let your worries melt away.

Don't you fret, don't you fear.

For I'm with you, night and day.

Snuggle close, little one.

Keep my love in my heart.

I'll hold your hand in mine.

Then, we'll never be apart."

By now, Valentina's crying had stopped and she was fast asleep. Kissing her cheek and her forehead, I quietly placed her back inside her basket and tucked her in.

"Sweet dreams, darling", I told her.

Sleepless nights were only one of the challenges I faced as a new father. Caring for Valentina was much more difficult.

The stigmas of poverty, illiteracy and homelessness seemed to follow me everywhere I set foot. It wasn't very often that potential employers even gave me the time of day. More often than not, no one was hiring or I had doors slammed in my face. Though I didn't give up on trying to find work, Papa and I resorted to just about anything for all of us to survive.

Aside from hunting and foraging, we sifted through trash bins and dumpsters for scraps and leftover food. On good days, we came back with takeout boxes which had at least half of the meal still inside. Other times, there was only a stale loaf of bread or two to share. We redeemed old soda cans and bottles and panhandled as well.

As time passed and Valentina got older and continued to grow, finding proper clothing for her became a challenge too. Like all encampment children, she wore whatever "outfits" we could throw together from donation bin clothes to the simple dresses we made for her from scavenged rags. Still, regardless of all the hardships our family endured, we cherished Valentina and always made sure she knew how much she was loved.

December, 2008

To many people, Christmas time means lots of different things. Decorations, nice, tall Christmas trees, shopping for and exchanging gifts, family gatherings, big dinners, attending church and perhaps more.

For my family and our neighbors in the encampment, it meant sticking together against hunger and the elements...with only our faith, prayers and each other to pull through.

Kiera's POV

"Mamma...Mamma...(Cough...

cough...COUGH!...)"

Blinking, rubbing at my eyes and rolling over, I was met with an awful sight. Valentina, having crawled off of her pallet, was coughing heavily, her face was flushed and when I felt her forehead...she was burning hot to the touch. Seeing that she was also shivering, I hurried to bundle her up in light blankets and woke Emile too.

Tiptoeing into the main room, he grabbed a washcloth and used some bottled water to dampen it.

"Papi...", Valentina whined. "I want Papi!"

"Sssh, he'll be back", I whispered.

"What happened, Emile?", came Alicia's voice.

"It's Valentina", he explained quickly. "She's got a fever, chills and a really bad cough."

Minutes later, as I held our daughter close, Emile returned, folding the washcloth, smoothing Valentina's hair out of the way and placing it where it needed to be. Then, he handed me the water bottle for her to sip from.

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"No...", Valentina whimpered, turning her head.

"Please try to drink a little bit, tesoro", Alicia told her gently. "It'll make you feel better."

Then, Giovanni suddenly poked his head through a crack in the tarp. Seeing a sick Valentina sipping the water, he frowned.

"It's a little chilly in here", he noted. "Let me go and get some fuel for your stove."

"I'll come with you", said Alicia.

Not long after they returned, Giovanni managed to get a small fire going. Meanwhile, Emile and I tucked Valentina back into bed. It was only after Emile sang his lullaby to her that she was able to fall back to sleep. As for the rest of us, we were very concerned...Valentina's fever seemed to be high already!

Emile's POV

Using what little money we'd scraped together, Papa and I were only able to buy some instant chicken soup, some juice and some crackers for Valentina. We knew she needed medicine too...but we just couldn't afford it. It even crossed my mind to steal it and run back home as fast as I could. The only things that stopped me were the fact that stealing was wrong and knowing I'd end up in jail and be unable to help at all of I did.

Several days later, although Valentina's fever didn't seem to be higher, it hadn't broken. When she wasn't eating, having something to drink or sleeping, she was quite fussy and just cried.

So, I began to wander the streets from early in the morning to late at night to beg for change. I knew Kiera needed my help and I felt terrible for not being home...but since no one wanted to hire me, I didn't really have a choice.

Whether I was with someone or not, I'd never found begging to be an easy task. Most people pretended I wasn't there at all. There were times when I was given dirty looks, told I was lazy and numerous times when people swore at me. I could count on one hand how many people were willing to even hear my story. Then, one cold, wet and dreary afternoon, as I sat cup in hand, trembling and wrapped in my blanket, I received not a handout, but an offer…and an order.

“You! Kid! Ya wanna make some money?” At this, I looked up.

Standing in front of me was a man about the same age as Kiera's father Hamilton. He was quite tall, had shaggy dark red hair which he'd pulled back into a ponytail, light brown eyes and very nice clothing.

“Yes, my daughter’s been really sick with a high fever. I can't afford the medicine she needs”, I began, trying my hardest not to break down. “Please, she's only two and…”

Holding up a hand to quiet me, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet.

“Since Christmas is in a couple of days, I'm in a very good mood”, he explained. “Now, tell me, what's your name?”

“Emile Bosco, sir”, I replied. The man smirked, retrieving $200 for me to see.

“Well, Emile, my name is Rowan Corbett and I’ll give you this”, the man said pointing to the bills in his hand, “if you sing some Christmas carols for the crowds here…but you can only stop when I tell you to.”

“Okay”, I replied, drying my eyes.

So, for the next few hours, ignoring the hunger and cold I felt, I sang every Christmas carol I knew. Some more than once when someone called out for me to do so. Finally, when Rowan did allow me to quit, I was so exhausted that I fell to my knees, out of breath and trembling from both the cold and the pain of my sore feet.

“Good job, boy”, Rowan chuckled. With that, he dropped the crumpled bills in front of me and walked away.

“Thank you”, I panted.

I used the money not only to buy some fever reducer and cough syrup for Valentina, but also to buy a few small Christmas gifts and some food for all of us.

When I returned that night, the story of how I'd earned $200 left Kiera and my parents in shock. They also felt relief, gratitude and happiness.

Valentina lay bundled up in her blankets when I came to her bedside.

"She's been asleep off and on since you left this morning", Kiera whispered. "but she's asked for you every chance she's gotten".

"Papi...", Valentina whimpered, reaching for me.

"He's right here, sweetie", Kiera told her softly.

Valentina was so weak that she needed help even to sit up. She hardly made a fuss when I gave her the medicines either. It was only out of discomfort from her chills and high fever, that she began to cry afterwards.

"Ssssh, ssssh, your medicines are going to make you all better really soon", I whispered. "Papi got you a Christmas present too."

A bit later, when Valentina was asleep again, I briefly left the room to put away the food I'd bought. It was when I came back that I showed Kiera what else I'd been able to afford. All except what I'd gotten for her, of course.

"It's not much but I think it'll cheer her up", I said. Then, reaching into one of the plastic bags I was holding, I pulled out a small stuffed Border Collie.

"She'll love it", Kiera replied.

Smiling, I put the toy back in its bag and carefully hid it where I knew Valentina couldn't see or reach it. I made sure to hide Kiera's and my parents' gifts as well. I hadn't bothered to get anything from myself. My Christmas gift would be seeing my family happy.

Christmas Day

Both Mamma and Papa had suggested we dress Valentina in just a shirt and a diaper as her fever was trying to break. We had also been giving her water and juice to keep her from becoming dehydrated.

"There, there, ssssh...Valentina, please don't wiggle", I told her softly as I was trying to change her. "You wanna be all clean and dry again, don't you?" She answered by crying even more as I continued. Several minutes later, when I was finished, she was still quite rattled.

"Ssssh...I know what'll make you smile", I said, handing her to Kiera to hold. Shuffling hurriedly to the corner of the room, I bent down to retrieve both Kiera's bracelet and the stuffed Border Collie from my drawstring bag.

"Awwww, don't cry", Kiera soothed, pointing to me. "Sssh, look what Papi has..."

At the sight of the toy, Valentina's cries stopped very quickly.

"Merry Christmas, piccolo", I told her.

"Pretty doggie", she replied, hugging me. "Thank you, Papi." I nodded. When Kiera saw her bracelet, she was happy too.

"It's beautiful, Emile", she said leaning forward and giving me a kiss. "Thank you."

"Merry Christmas, amore mio", I told her.

Later, I gave my parents their gifts as well. For Mamma there was a shawl and for Papa, a thick scarf. Our Christmas dinner that evening was a rabbit stew.

Still, somewhere in Chicago, without my knowledge, the man named Rowan Corbett had another plan for me...and my four best friends.