Gabrielle

Dawn Break

Gabrielle drew open her balcony curtains, and drew in a deep, glad breath of fresh morning air. Her eyes wandered over the pattern of the sky, the faint pinkish gleam of the sunrise breaking at the horizon, and eventually landed on the ground, which was covered with fresh laid snow from last night.

It was Christmas!

Gabrielle felt a sudden surge of happiness inside her. Finally, the day they'd so long (and thought she wouldn't admit, impatiently) waited for, had arrived at last!

She thought twice whether to wake her parents or not, and decided on the latter. "After all," she told herself, "Christmas is about surprises!"

She resisted the urge to run to the fireplace and check her stockings, and unwillingly drudged to the bathroom to get ready. It was still cold at four in the morning, and it was an uncanny time for her to wake up. She was usually not an early bird, but the Christmas vibes had probably affected her sleep cycle.

She went through her morning routine, and was just barely able to finish as the clock struck five. She hastily grabbed a pillow and stuffed it in the cogs to stop the loud ding-dong sounds. "What are you doing, clock?" she hissed. "Mum and dad will wake up!"

Now, it is a well-known fact that clocks do not speak. Yes, they often make several sounds (the most hated one is usually whichever ringtone you choose to wake you up in the morning), but they do not interact - with humans, at least, as far as is known. But whether it was because Gabrielle was still half-asleep and drowsy, or that the clock itself had mistook the day to be Hallowe'en and not Christmas - whichever it was, or both, but the fact remained this, that the clock suddenly chimed twice as loud, and uttered eerie sounds, as if to prank Gabrielle out of her wits on a Christmas-turned-Hallowe'en.

Gabrielle jumped, and clasped her hands over her mouth. "What is it doing? It's gone mad. We ought to get the clock serviced soon."

No sooner had she uttered this, the clock fell perfectly silent. 

"Good clock," she muttered. "Now, we need breakfast - no! No! Of course not. How could I forget?"

She fled to the drawing room and glanced at the Christmas tree. It was all aglow with fairy lights, and the golden star glimmered with a half-unearthly radiance shed on the wood-brown floor.

The floor.

Wait... where was the floor?

Gabrielle laughed aloud, and almost immediately reprimanded herself. "It's five in the morning, and your Dracula-laugh will wake them up, girl!" she hissed to herself.

Anyhow, the floor was hidden under enormous piles of presents. "Oh, that must be -" She stopped herself from opening them just in time, and sighed. "Must I wait for evening?" she said, in tragic tones, with a dramatic sigh. Then she grinned.

"Oh, how lovely! Evangeline's sent me a book, I think - look at that typical cuboidal shape of the wrapping. And wonderful Marissa's gifted me something square - I have a very strong feeling that it's the chain locket I've wanted for so long. And Jenny's looks like my darling amethyst amulet - the celestial one I've begged her for. Oh Jenny, how shall I ever repay - oh!"

She had picked up a box with a dusty lid. She tried to unsuccessfully dust it, and coughed hard.

"This Christmas present will cause me allergy and asthma. God!"

But at the end, she could wipe most of it away with a cloth, and noticed that there was a pendant-shaped engraving in its center. A space to place a very small pendant - the kind you might find in a doll's set.

She frowned. Why was it so small? And furthermore, why was it there at all? It could hardly be called an ornament, or the sort of engraving to decorate a box.

It seemed to have a hidden meaning of its own, and Gabrielle didn't know the cipher...

Yet.

She was going to find it out.

Yes! Gabrielle the Brave and the Adventurous and the Valiant and the... Hungry? Her stomach rumbled, and Gabrielle was broken from her daydreaming fantasies.

"O-oh," she faltered. "Right. Breakfast."

She hied away to the kitchen, and grabbed the cornflakes' box. She dumped out three handfuls and poured in cold milk.

"What's missing?" she mumbled, as she looked.

"Oh! The spoon."

She made haste, and grabbed the first spoon in sight.

"Ah, delicious breakfast, here I come!" She dug into the soaked cornflakes.

And nearly broke her teeth.

"What on Earth is this?" she muttered, glaring in fury. "These aren't cornflakes at all!"

Then she suddenly realized what they were.