Stories

Christmas stories

4th December

Mitzi was sleeping quietly over the potted plant her masters (well, I doubt the cat would agree with this term as she thought all her life they were her servants) had settled on the windowsill so she could supervise what was happening outside. The tiny tiger appreciated their intention of providing her a small green spot during the winter when all the plants outside were withered and dead. Inside, though, there were plenty of leaves and flowers she could play with.

She lifted her head and looked outside. Her eyes got big. Her body tensed. Her pinky tongue was forgotten outside her mouth. Small cotton-like flakes flew in the air. She'd seen something similar last week when the puppy, in a moment of ravenous fury, had ripped apart his beloved teddy-bear. It had been such a sweet teddy-bear. Mitzi remembered the moment her servants had brought him the toy.

More and more white flakes danced in the air and the cat was amazed by the spectacle in front of her. As she got over the first shock, she meowed as loud as her tiny lunges allowed her to (which was enough to announce to all the neighbors that she was awake. She wanted outside.

The snow was already thick, so thick that Mitzi had to jump to stay above. She was happy. The snow was so cold, but she didn't care about it. She jumped and played around. She even climbed into a tree in the front yard.

Then he appeared. Dark on the immaculate snow, big, heavy foot, shiny fur, full of beans and ready to attack: the killer of the teddy-bear. R.I.P little teddy-bear. The destroyer of mama's boots and papa's fluffy slippers.

He barked delighted to have found a living fur-ball to play with. Mitzi ran, faking fear. A single slap of her front paw and he would stop. But she didn't want him to. So, she ran, jumped, climbed on the trees and back again in the snow.

5th December

Mila had cleaned and polished her little boots (with a little help from her father). She was so excited as she looked at her boots, settled in front of her room, ready to be visited by Saint Nicklaus. She put a textil snowman next to the boots so they would look better when Saint Nicklaus would come.

The snowman was one of her favorite toys. She'd taken it everywhere she went. Even during summer. She loved his sparkly eyes and twinkling stars which adorned his snowflake coat.

Her heart beat fast. She didn't want to meet Him. She knew she hadn't been a good kid. She was afraid he would scold her for what she'd done. She knew he'd got upset one year and left her a tiny stick (only bad kids receive sticks). He'd later brought some sweets. Not as many as he'd brought the years before or after that.

Another year, he brought so few sweets that she wondered what she'd done wrong that year. She was sad enough that her daddy was in the hospital. He'd assured her he was alright, but even though it was strange and she was scared.

Yet she'd said nothing that year, aware that Saint Nicklaus knew better why she didn't deserve more.

Her mother invited her to dinner, but she couldn't go as she needed to pass by the boots and she risked meeting Saint Nicklaus. She listened carefully. She thought she heard something. Her heart beat so fast. So, so fast.

Eventually, her mother came and took her. With her parents it was different. She wasn't afraid anymore. They would keep her safe. She didn't have the slightest idea what danger they needed to protect her from, but she knew she was safe.

As they were eating together, she being noisy and bull of beans, as usual, her mother said out of the blue:

"Hei, the door. Did you hear? Someone was upstairs." Mila's heart pounded faster and faster. She was afraid. "Mila, did Saint Nicklaus come?" Her mother continued.

"Not yet." She muttered.

"I think he did. Go and see."

"Nooo." She wasn't going to tell them she was afraid, but she wasn't going alone, either. "Come with me."

It was the same every year. That year, Saint Nicklaus not only filled the boots with sweets, but added a few jellies in the snowman's bag. She was lucky that her mother found them while cleaning the room.

Panda-Bear

Panda-Bear was the new acquisition of the family. It was hardly an acquisition as he'd come by himself and refused to leave while the family had no choice but to feed and welcome him.

Okay, you are probably wondering what Panda-Bear is. Now, he's an old lazy fluffy cat after he's been with that family for over ten years (and hopefully he will stay another ten if not more).

Then, he was a skinny white and black kitten. The mixture of his fur colours made him earn this name.

One of his favorite playgrounds was the bathtub. Yes, you heard right. The door had to be opened so he could sneak inside, threw some noisy thing in the tub (be it a small brush, a button, a bar of soap, or anything noisy enough), and started to pay in. The noisier the better.

Sometimes he would sleep quietly in the bathroom. You could see a small fur ball curled somewhere in a corner. Then, when he felt energetic enough he would jump into the bathtub, regardest if it was already occupied. Once, he was saved by the Father who'd caught him before Panda-Bear would have plunged gracefully into the hot water Father had prepared for himself.

Once though, as Mila came home from the Christmas holidays, he sneaked so quietly that she only realized he was around when she heard something panicking in the water. It was him.

It took him a while to regain his pride and only the pleasure of noisily climbing the stairs up and down, up and down, until he would get tired and everyone would be well-awake, cheered him up again.

The Christmas tree. Some many shiny balls to play with. Panda-Bear's eyes glitter with mischief. Without any warning, he climbed up the tree, upper and upper towards the golden star on the top. He did not even bother to hide his satisfaction. He knew he shouldn't have been there, but he didn't care. Or maybe, he thought his owners weren't bright enough to notice him.

Eventually, he hid under the bed covers and fell into a deep sleep. He'd had a long day. There were too many things to play with, too many stair steps to climb and it was so warm and cozy there. It was natural he was exhausted. So exhausted.