To me, it looks like a young mother mourning the lack of time she has left with her son, as he has just been diagnosed with a fatal disease. His father died a long time ago, leaving his mother all alone - only too soon. After that he got busy - always travelling for work - and he never had time for his poor, lonely mother. When he found out that he was soon to die, he chose to spend his last days with her in order to make amends and give them both some closure. The whole setting took place in the 1950's, somewhere in Britain. Its cold outside, but its warm inside the house. There are candles lighting up their rooms, a grand piano in the living room, maybe they even have a few pet cats? She's walking back into her room so she can cry herself silently to sleep, perhaps even read a little. She is lost, devastated, dissapointed, but already used to such great amounts of pain. She believes that she cannot do anything to fight back. She is calm, but only because she's already given up hope.
He is a rich, cocky, pompous ass who wants to be forever young. He spend 6 years searching madly for someone with special powers to keep him that way - until he met this old hag. He now tricks children on the street into walking down into dark alleys with him, only to be trapped and robbed of their youth. He is bitter and jealous. His mother never approved of him. His romantic interests always found him too arrogant and egocentric to be tolerable. His only companion is the hag, who will - at the end of this transaction - ultimately use him to her own advantage. She is the devils advocate. The man is but a young boy, greedily drawn towards the most delicious pastry ever - willing to betray even those whom he loves for attention and power. (Narnia ref.)
