Survivor's Christmas ~ A Photostory

All my sisters and I walked up the packed snow of our driveway, just home from a day of Christmas shopping.

Well, not all of them.

Charlie was at a movie with her friends, which meant that I was in charge!

We were all laden with gifts for our gift exchanges.

"I'm so excited with the gifts I got for everyone!" Trixie exclaimed, "Christmas has to be one of the best birthdays of the year!"

"I love the kind, giving atmosphere of Christmas. Everyone buying presents for one another..." I mused.

"I like all the sales!" Afton interjected, changing the subject.

"Yes," Ruthie agreed, "I got something I know Amelia will love for 50% off!"

Taryn, who was sulking off to one side because she got caught peeking in Claire's shopping bags, asked, "By the way, where is Amy?"

"She was having a nap so I asked Kit to watch her." I replied.

As I said it, I began to question the wisdom of such an arrangement.

Everyone was staring at me.

"You left Amy? With Kit?!" Claire asked quietly.

"Um," I was trying not to panic, "Maybe we should hurry."

"You think?" Taryn hissed.

Kit wouldn't do anything bad on purpose, except for the occasional prank, but she has a tendency to let her imagination run wild. Add in Amy's flair for drama and trouble would be brewing.

'I hope they're OK...' I thought.

***

We all rushed up to the door in a pack.

'Please be OK.' I prayed silently.

I tugged at the door with all my might but it wouldn't budge.

"It's stuck!" I grunted.

"Give it a kick." Taryn suggested.

But no matter what we did, the door wouldn't open.

"Guys," I turned to them defeatedly, "I think the door is locked."

Everyone stood there in shocked silence.

 "I guess now's not the time for a 'First time you locked us out' party." Trixie sighed.

***

Amy rubbed the sleep from her eyes she entered the living room.

"Hey, Kit. What are you doing?"

"Just watching a movie. Wanna join?"

"OK," Amy chirped.

They sat in complete silence for a while, until Amy suddenly noticed the quiet.

"Where is everyone?" She asked.

"Um, I don't know. They said something about 'Christmas' and 'leaving'."

"You mean like 'We're going away for Christmas and were leaving now'?"

"Um, maybe? I wasn't listening..."

"What?! When did they leave?!" Amy cried, jumping up off the couch.

"I don't know!" Kit replied, beginning to wish she listened when people talked to her.

"Great! Now were home all alone, the others are who knows where and -"

BOOM!

Kit was standing beside Amy now, and they were searching out the source of the noise.

It was coming from the front door.

They looked at each other, their voices overlapping as they said, "Someone is trying to break into our house!"

***

"Well, the doors locked now." Kit said, "So they can't get in."

"I'm still scared, Kit. What if they do get in?"

Kit stared at the wall for a minute, then a mischievous grin began to creep across her face.

Kit placed a hand on Amy's shoulder, "If they manage to get in then we'll be ready for them."

***

I lay against the door, panting.
"Were going to be stuck out here forever." I groaned.

"Well there's not much more we can do." Claire sighed, "At least we're warm and dry. Charlie has the extra keys, so we just have to make it until she gets home."

"Easy for you to say!" Ruthie said through chattering teeth as the freezing wind tugged at her skirt.

Taryn looked up from her pacing, an uncharacteristically serious look on her face.
"Claire, I just remembered something."
"What?"
Taryn's face was grave as she answered, "Pre-orders for 'Ember's End' open today."
"What!? But by the time Charlie gets back, they'll be gone!!!" Claire, who didn't usually care for books, cried.
 Molly had gotten the whole family hooked on the 'Green Ember' series, and they had been saving up to pre-order the last book for months.

"Well, if we want to be able to get that book, we've only got one option..."

"We need to break in."
Everyone was silent.

"How? We have nothing to use."
"Or do we?" Taryn replied.

She gestured to the bags of gifts piled in Afton's lap.
I looked at Taryn skeptically, "Are you suggesting we open our Christmas presents early?"
"Only to survive and help us break into our house..."

"Phht. Nice try, Taryn." Claire rolled her eyes, "Everyone knows you always try to open presents early, but this year-"
"I think that's our only option." I said thoughtfully.
"What?" Claire and Taryn cried.

"OK, everyone, you heard Taryn."I began, "Put Charlie's presents aside, we won't open them without her. Lay everything else out so we can see it."

Soon a pile of presents not to be opened was stacked beside the door.

And our supplies were laid out.

"Who were you going to give ice cream sandwiches too?" Taryn asked cynically.
"Um, you." Molly shrugged, "We thought you would like them."
Taryn looked incredulous, "You guys know me so well."

"Never mind that now," I brought their attention back to the problem at hand, "Trixie, Ruthie, you two are dress coolest, so you wrap up in the blankets and stay warm."

"Hey blanket partner! You ready to help me plan my next party?!" Tixie was almost bouncing up and down with excitement.
"Um..."

"The rest of you take something from the pile, and find a way in!"

Taryn, Claire, and Molly didn't miss a beat.
I think Taryn was the most excited about having to break a window.

I took a hardcover book, and weighed it in my hand, wondering how hard I would have to throw it.

 "Um, If it's alright, I'll stay here, in case Amy or Kit open the door while you're gone." Afton offered.
"Good idea." I agreed.

***

Claire had put on the think soled hiking boots.

She stared at the window by the back door.
"This is going to be epic." she breathed.

With a super awesome attempt at a back flip, Claire kicked the window with all of her strength.

"Ow. That is one tough window."

***

"OK, Molly, you can do this!"

"All you have to do is put the plant through the window."

"Just focus, and breath, and -"

"Hah. Who am I kidding? I could never break a window. I'll just tell Lanie it didn't work."

***

I returned to the front door, frustrated and cold, to find Afton looking through her shopping bags.

"Hey, Afton. What have you got?"

"Wha- oh, um nothing!" Afton squeaked as she stuffed the paper back over the gifts.

"Then... what are those?" I pointed to the contents spilling out of a bag she had knocked over.

"Wait a minute... Afton did you really buy Christmas presents for yourself?"
She laughed, "What would make you say something so crazy?"
I held up the card that had fallen out of the bag. it read: Dear Afton, Have a very merry Christmas! Love, Your Anonymous Fan

"Well, nobody else sends me fan mail, so I do it myself."
"Seriously?"
"Hey! Don't judge!"
I sighed.

"Well, it doesn't look like we'll be getting in anytime soon." I said, as the others began to come back, looking defeated.

Afton groaned and flopped back.
"This is the worst shopping day ever!"
I turned to talk to the other, but I whipped back around as Afton screamed.

"No! Get this mutt off me!" She cried, trying to fight Boulder off as he excitedly licked her face.
"Boulder," Taryn laughed, "That's enough boy."

Afton jumped up as soon as the dog moved. "Get that animal out of here! I really hate that dog."
"Wait! This gives me an idea!" I said, thinking hard.

"Here Boulder, here boy. Want to go inside?"
His tail began to wag.
"Just scratch on the door. When Amy hears you, she'll open the door for sure."
For a moment, Boulder scratched and whimpered, but then his attention was averted.

He began to growl at the bags of Charlie's presents.
One of the bags almost looked like it wiggled.

"What in the world?" I began to reach for the bag, but something else caught my ear.
Music.

I listened for a moment.
"Hey Claire?"

"Yeah?" she groaned.
"Isn't that one of your records?" I asked.
"Um, yeah, I think so."
"That means a window must be open!"

We all jumped up and rushed toward the source of the music, around the side of the house.

***

"OK, so the invisible maze is ready, the glue-and-flour trap is set, and the both bomb is prepped." Kit counted all of the traps off.
"Don't for get the knee-buster on the stairs." Amy added.
"Right. I think we're ready." Kit nodded.

"What is that?" Kit whispered, as they heard a scratching and whimpering.
"Oh no. Boulder is outside with those thieves." Amy began to panic, "Kit, we have to save him somehow! Taryn would never forgive me if something happened to him."
"OK, I've got an idea."

***

"Ready Amy?" Kit called from downstairs.

 "Sure!" Amy called back, her hand ready on the door knob.

Kit threw open the window, letting in a freezing gust of wind, and hit the play button on the record player.

She heard feet scrambling outside the window.
"Amy?" She yelled.

"I got him!" Amy replied, "He's in!"

Kit slammed the window shut and pulled the curtains.
She heard people yelling on the other side, but she was already pretty good people.

***

Everybody was feeling desperate. We had shouted at Kit through the window, but she had effectively ignored us.

"Guys, I know I said we won't open Charlie's presents, but we're coming to the end of our options. Could any of those gifts possibly help us?"
The others began to look at each other, all acting somewhat suspicious.

Finally Ruthie said, "Well, she may as well open it now. If it gets us inside it will be worth it."

Taryn sighed, "I guess you're right."
She hauled out a huge pink bag.
"It's for you, Lanie. We all chipped in. I hope you like it."
But before I could open the bag, it tipped over and a white-and-brown blur shot out of the bag.

"Meow." The kitten squeaked, as it sped toward me.

I scooped her up and held her close as sh began to purr.
"You won't be able to help us, would you?" I asked, quietly.

Almost as if she had understood, she wriggled from my grasp, and began marching around the side of the house.
We all rushed after her, because she seemed to know where to go.

She sat by an air duct, her tail twitching proudly.
I looked at the duct, wondering if we might through.

"What do you think, guys?" I asked the others.
Eventually it was decided, we had to try.

***

My kitten, who I decided to name Mischief, went first, leading the way.

I crawled out of the vent, which came out behind the TV.
"OK, guys! Come on in." I called to the others.

Soon, everyone was crowded into the living room.
Taryn was the first to notice.
"What happened here?!"

The room was in complete disarray.

"My book." Molly groaned, and stepped to pick it up off the floor.
Ruthie, know how Kit thinks, yelled, "Molly don't touch-" but it was far to late.
Molly's foot hit the tripwire.
"BATH BOMB!" Kits voice came from upstairs.

Before anyone could react. the room was flooded with bubbles.

Claire and I surveyed the bubbly wreckage of our house.

"Stay where you are!"  Kit cried as she and Amy waded through the bubbles both wielding pillows.

"Kit?" Ruthie asked.

"Ruthie? What are you doing with these house looting..." Suddenly Kit noticed that she knew the people who her bath bomb took out.

"Kit." My voice was dangerously low, "What were you thinking? Look at this mess! What is Charlie going to say when she-"
Then we all heard the footsteps on the stairs.

"Hey, Lanie. Thank you so much for watching things while I was away. I was only comfortable leaving, because I knew everything was in your very capable hand-"

Charlie stepped in a pile of bubble.
She looked up, and stood speechless in horror.

"Um, heh heh. Hi, Charlie."

"Mew." Mischief  meowed, which I took to mean, "Calm down, Charlie, it's Christmas after all."

The End
&
Merry Christmas! ❤️