Imaginarium

The Night Knight Bus

It was at around 11:30 pm on a certain day of a certain year. The windows were closed tight. The door was barred shut. All were asleep, except me. I couldn't sleep for two reasons, Firstly, that night was unnaturally dark, Secondly, I had slept through half of that day.

This certain day was a special day. Yes, it was a holiday. I found it special because of another reason. Nothing was normal that night. Though my house was quiet, many other people apparently weren't. I could feel the soft light of the moon caressing my face with its dim light.

Ignoring my petty nighttime fears, I closed my eyelids for another attempt at sleep and - the grandfather clock chimed. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven... on and on it went to eleven and the next chime stopped halfway. All I was thinking at that time was,

"Stupid old clock! Probably broke down again!"

Then I felt it. A change. There was more light coming from the window than before. It couldn't be a car, since we didn't live by the road. Anyway, my window faced the backyard. I got up and stumbled over to the window. The light hurt my eyes and I had to blink many times.

Then I saw the most amazing sight ever! There was bus at my window! This is pretty impossible since my room is in the second floor, but it was there! I leaned over the window. I leaned out more. Then I just slipped and fell into the bus. Pretty stupid and clumsy: that's me!

The suddenly a conductor stood over me. He spoke in a brisk manner, jumbling all his words into one vague word.

"Welcome to the Night Knight Bus! Can I have your ticket, please?"

"My ticket?" I stammered, "What ticket?"

"Ah, there it is!" he cried, pulling out a ticket from behind my ear, "Enjoy your night ride, miss. Oh, and hold on to something."

Then the bus jolted forward. It was so fast and it was obviously flying. I screamed and grabbed a seat. It was like travelling in zero gravity. As I screamed my head off, I surprisingly registered many things in my mind. There were many other children in tow, too. many were floating around in merry mood, and were slamming into furniture and windows when the bus stopped at intervals. They never got hurt.

The bus itself looked ancient and normal. There were lanterns hanging from the ceiling to illuminate the interior. The speed of the bus was unimaginable and it even went upside down! I slammed into many things, like seats, windows, glass partitions, and even into children. It was fun and it didn't hurt a bit. I saw France, England, Japan, Germany, Russia, America, and almost the whole world.

I was enjoying slamming into everything in sight when the conductor called my name. I slammed from the very back seats to the very front seats. Then I stumbled disoriented down the bus steps and into my bedroom.

Strangely, I was exhausted. I was in bed in a matter of seconds. As I lay, drowsy, I heard the clock chime twelve.

A/N: I got my ideas from 'Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban' and 'The Polar Express'. I wrote this for an exam BTW. Hope you enjoy it!

By Hasini N. Eliyapura

31st January 2011