Willow woke up the first day of Christmas holidays excited. Christmas was almost there. As she sat in bed, thinking about how she would spend her holidays, her two sisters woke up. “Morning Willow, morning Fear,” her older sister, Halo, chirped happily, jerking Willow from her thoughts.
“Huh? Oh… Good morning Halo, Fear,” Willow replied.
Fear nodded in response to her sisters’ greeting. Already, she had her sketch book out and was busy drawing. Fear was an amazing artist. As Willow climbed out of bed and peered over Fear’s shoulder she saw Fear drawing Santa Claus with a kid on his lap. “Great job Fear!” Willow exclaimed.
Fear simply nodded in thanks, too busy drawing to talk. Halo took a peek too and grinned. “Amazing sis,” Halo commented with a laugh.
“Girls, breakfast!” their mother called up the stairs.
“Coming Mom!” Halo replied.
As Willow saw Fear hadn’t acknowledged their mother’s call she snatched away the sketch book. “Feardia Reina Lemaya, you should listen to your mother,” Willow teased.
Fear snatched back the sketch book and hurried down the stairs. Halo smacked Willow lightly on the head then followed Fear. Willow grinned as she followed her sisters to the kitchen. Despite teasing her younger sister Willow had grabbed her notebook as she left the room and was furiously working on a story.
The three gobbled down a breakfast of pancakes that tasted like cardboard. Their mother wasn’t a very good cook, but since the pancakes didn’t taste like puke she must have tried extra hard. “Thanks Mom, they taste great,” Halo said as she finished.
It was partly true. For their mother’s cooking the pancakes did taste great. Fear and Willow nodded their
agreement both hard at work. It had been hard for their mother the past year. Their father had been the cook for the family but last Christmas he had been hit by a car. “Come on Fear, Willow, let’s go get dressed. Then we can see what Sonic’s up to,” Halo suggested.
Fear and Willow managed to put down their work long enough to get dressed but picked it up immediately after. “Oh, put it down. We’re going to visit not work. If you want to do that you might as well stay home,” Halo said with a laugh.
Willow and Fear set their work down although it was very reluctant. If it hadn’t been Sonic they were going to visit they probably wouldn’t have. Sonic was not only their neighbour but also
their best friend. He spent enough time with the three sisters they almost considered him family. Not even bothering to put on coats, the three crossed the yard to Sonic’s house.
Halo knocked on the door but Willow just pushed her aside and pulled out a key. The key fit into the lock
perfectly and Willow opened the door. Halo gasped as the key worked. “Where did you get that?” she demanded, frustrated with her sister.
“It was under a flower pot… I thought they didn’t want it anymore…” Willow explained.
Fear broke out laughing. It was just the thing her sister would do. Halo glared at them both and tried to grab the key. Willow quickly closed her hand around the key and danced away so Halo couldn’t get it. Before Halo could try again Sonic came down the stairs. “Hi guys! How’d you get in? I could have sworn the door was locked,” Sonic said.
Before Halo could say anything Fear grinned. “Hi Sonic, nope, it was open,” Fear said.
Halo sighed but didn’t comment, while Willow grinned victoriously. Fear was always switching sides and Willow had been worried she would tell Sonic about the key. But, to Willow’s relief, she hadn’t breathed a word. “Are you guys fighting again?” Sonic asked, knowing something was up.
Willow laughed and shook her head. Halo glared at Fear and Willow and muttered something inaudible. Fear simply nodded. “Unreliable,” Willow muttered, a little louder than she had intended.
Willow had known her sister was always switching sides, what more could she expect from a ten-year-old. Sonic grinned at the three sisters and invited them in for hot chocolate. They gladly accepted and while they waited for him to make it Fear found some scrap paper and a pencil
and started drawing again. Seeing Willow was bored Sonic pointed to some paper and pens. She murmured her thanks and grabbed some paper. Halo sighed and pulled out her iPod, so much for no writing or drawing. Turning up the volume, she hit play and put in her earphones.
Sonic studied the four of them and imagined all of them ten years from now in that kitchen. Halo, just as
awesome as before, was a famous singer. Fear was obviously a popular artist and still as quiet as ever. Willow was wearing glasses and, still scribbling away in a notebook, was already a popular published author. Sonic had already taken gold in the Olympics for baseball.
Sonic grinned at the thought. In his mind these four ordinary kids would all become famous. Finally he stopped daydreaming and gave everyone their drinks. Fear nods in thanks and Willow doesn’t respond. Halo pulls out her earphones and wraps her hands around her hot chocolate. “Thanks Sonic,” she says with a warm smile. “We came over to invite you to our great-aunt’s house for Christmas. Our mom isn’t coming and we don’t really know her.”
Sonic couldn’t help but grin. “Of course I’ll come! My family had nothing planned anyway!” Sonic replied.
Halo grinned; even Willow and Fear stopped what they were doing and looked up happily. After a moment they both returned to their work though. Sonic held back a laugh. They were so devoted to their work. Only Halo wasn’t listening to music 24-7, then Sonic heard her humming. Yep, they were all devoted to their work. He was lucky to get Fear to look at him, let alone talk. Willow was unfortunately talented at talking while she wrote, while Halo wasn’t all that obsessed with what she did and left time for friends.
“When do we leave?” Sonic asked after a moment or two of awkward silence.
“December 20,” Fear answered him.
Sonic nodded thoughtfully. Willow pushed her writing over to Halo and grinned. Halo started reading about some Australian kangaroos. “He’s thinking, never a good thing,” Willow said sarcastically.
Sonic smirked. “Oh shut up. I am just as smart as you and you know it,” he said.
Willow grinned and did her best to look smarter. “No! I’m way smarter,” she shot back teasingly.
Fear laughed at them. “You both have it all wrong. I am smarter, plus I am younger so you should make me a sandwich.”
Sonic and Willow laughed and shook their heads. Halo pushed the story back to Willow. “You are all wrong, you know. I am oldest and smartest, I win,” she said, winking at them.
All four of them laughed then sat grinning stupidly. Sonic’s mom came into the room while they were grinning dumbly. “Having fun, kids?” she asked.
Willow and Fear nodded and so did Sonic. “Yes Mrs. Crosshawk,” Halo replied politely.
Mrs. Crosshawk nodded. “Oh, Mom, can I go on vacation with the Lemaya’s?” Sonic asked, while she was making coffee.
Mrs. Crosshawk smiled. “So long as it’s all right with your dad it’s fine by me," she replied with a wink.
Sonic grinned knowing that meant yes, he high fived Halo, then Willow and Fear. Fear and Willow exchanged what they were working on and studied each other’s work. Fear pointed out some of Willow’s spelling and grammar mistakes while Willow pointed out some of Fear’s flaws or things that could make it better. Sonic leaned over to Halo and whispered, “they do know it’s a holiday right?”
Halo laughed and nodded. “You know as well as I do that this is what they do all the time,” Halo responded.
Sonic laughed too and got curious looks in return. He laughed even more at their curiosity. Halo raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing. After a few minutes Sonic managed to contain his laughter. “We’d better go,” Halo said reluctantly.
Fear got up from the table and dropped her drawing by Sonic. She had drawn him, purposefully giving him and extra-large nose and a goofy smile. He picked it up and gaped at it. It was clearly him, but he looked so silly. Willow and Halo peered over his shoulder and burst out laughing. “Great one Fear! It looks just like him!” Willow laughed.
Sonic glared at the three of them so they headed for the door. “Bye Sonic,” Halo said.
“Bye Goofy- Oh, I mean Sonic,” Willow said with a wink.
Fear nodded her good-bye. Sonic sighed. He guessed she had talked more than she wanted to that day. “Good bye guys,” he said as they walked out the door.
The following week went by as a blur. The girls were busy packing or baking or wrapping presents. And with the little free time they had they each worked on what they did best. Willow worked on some Christmas stories while Fear made drawings of everything. One time she got so bored she made a picture of Willow writing and right after that of Halo listening to music. Halo listened to music, or hummed songs. But when no one could hear her she was busy composing a song for her sisters.
One day, Fear woke up and knowing that it was the day they were going to leave. She sat in bed and began drawing their room. She drew her sleeping sisters with their messy hair, even the clothes that lay all around the room. She drew the frost on the window with exquisite detail. And grabbing a pink pencil crayon she added a pink tinge to the window, for the light that came through was pink.
It felt as though she drew for hours, and indeed she did. She did close ups of many of the objects. One for each of her sisters, one of the wilting flowers on the desk, one for the window and more. Finally her sisters woke up. As soon as Willow woke up she grabbed her note book. Obviously something in the room had inspired her. Halo began humming a Christmas carol and tidying up the room.
In the end, Halo had to take away Willow’s note book and Fear’s sketch book. “Time to get ready, we’re going to Canada today,” she announced.
Willow grumbled but got up and started getting ready but Fear curled up and fell back asleep. Halo gently shook Fear. “Get up. You can sleep all you want on the plane. You’re so tired I would have thought you’d got up at the crack of dawn,” Halo teased her.
Fear eyed her wondering how to get Halo to leave her alone. “I did get up at the crack of dawn,” Fear pointed out.
Halo simply laughed and went to get dressed. A half hour later all three sat at the breakfast table eating bacon and eggs that Willow had cooked, she had insisted that her mom let her. Fear and Halo were relieved that Willow had cooked for her cooking tasted okay, though they all would have preferred their dad was there to cook for them.
Finally, Sonic arrived with his things, and a very warm coat and their mom made all their things fit in the van. The drive was a long one but Halo had her music, and Sonic was crammed in between Fear and Willow, a story on one side and a picture on the other. He wondered why he was crammed in between them when Halo ought to be sitting in between them. After what felt like half an hour but was only a minute he asked them. “Because I’m reading the map,” Halo replied.
Sonic sighed. It made sense as always. Mrs. Lemaya was a horrible map reader, and she was driving. If Halo didn’t do it they would be lost in a minute. With a sigh he pulled out the stupid essay his teacher had assigned. He handed it to Willow. “Any chance you’ll do it for me?” he whispered.
Willow thought for a moment. “For like fifty bucks maybe,” she replied.
Sonic gave her a disgusted look. That was a rip off. If he wanted to pay fifty bucks he would have asked Halo. “Five,” he haggled.
Willow laughed. Fifty may have been a rip off but five was way too low. “You got to be joking, if you’re going to pay be reasonable, forty,” she argued.
Sonic sighed; he didn’t have that kind of money. He had sixty bucks, but thirty dollars of it was from his mom. “Sonic, Willow why not twenty-five bucks. It’s half of fifty,” Fear suggested.
Willow pondered the offer. Sonic nodded a bit reluctant to go so high. He had been saving up, but not for this. After a few minutes Willow said, “done.”
She probably would have started immediately but she wanted the cash first. He handed her the twenty-five dollars then rummaged around in his bag for something to do. He finally found a Sudoku book. Fear watched him fill in the numbers for a minute then grabbed her music and went back to drawing.
Eventually they got to the airport. Mrs. Lemaya hugged her daughters. “Good bye Fear. Listen to your sisters. Bye Willow. Don’t get into too much trouble and be nice to your Great-Aunt Rose. Good bye Halo. Take care of your sisters. And all of you don’t talk to strangers. Always wear you coats! Have fun! Bye Sonic,” she said.
The kids said their good byes as well and Mrs. Lemaya was still rattling off pieces of advice as they walked away. They went through security as quickly as they could and Halo bought them all a snack with the money Mrs. Lemaya had given her. “Gee Mom didn’t hold back on the money,” Willow commented, already planning on how to spend some of it.
“Oh no, you don’t!” Halo said with a laugh. “I am holding onto this money and you are not going to just spend it randomly!”
Sonic and Fear laughed. If Willow got a hold of that money it would be gone in an instant. Probably best that Halo kept it. Halo glanced at her watch. “We have fifteen minutes until we need to board our plane,” she announced.
Willow scarfed down her food then looked around. Fixing her gaze on a family she studied them for a moment, obviously guessing where they were heading, then started jotting down a story. Fear finished her food and ran over to the family. Halo grinned and put in her earphones. “Can I draw a picture of you?” Fear asked. “My sisters say I’m a really good artist!”
Fear showed them some of the pictures she had drawn earlier that morning. The father nodded and gave Fear an encouraging smile. The little girl simply pointed to the picture and said, “pretty”
“You are a talented artist. Your sisters were right,” the mother said.
Fear nodded her thanks then hurried back to the table and started drawing the family. The little girl stared in her direction and Fear managed to capture all her cuteness in the picture. Willow took a quick peek at Fear’s drawing then continued writing. “They’re great sisters,” Halo murmured.
Sonic nodded. “Yeah… I guess you’re all talented. You’re a great singer, Willow’s an amazing author, and Fear is a spectacular artist,” Sonic said.
Halo’s eyes widened in surprise at his words. “They are amazing… But how- How did you know I was a good singer?” Halo asked.
Sonic smiled. “I’m not deaf Halo. Your walls aren’t sound proof either. Halo, I’ve heard you sing,” Sonic explained.
Halo nodded; she was still embarrassed. Suddenly she glanced down at her watch. “Oh no! We better hurry or we might miss the plane. Fear! Willow! We have to go find the plane!” Halo called over to them.
Fear closed her sketchbook and walked over to join Halo and Sonic. Willow quickly finished her sentence then ran to catch up with them. Halo quickly guided them to the correct place. When they got there one of the ladies managing the flights announced that the plane has been delayed. “So we won’t be late,” muttered Willow.
After a tremendously long wait, the group was finally allowed to board the plane. They all found their seats and Willow resumed her writing. Fear had already finished drawing the family and smiled at the little girl as they took seats across the aisle. Fear leaned over to the girl. “What’s your name?” she asked.
“Moon,” the girl replied.
Fear smiled. “Moon is good name. I am Feardia Reina Lemaya, but most people call me Fear,” Fear told Moon.
Moon just smiled at Fear, wide-eyed and curious. “That is a nice teddy bear you have there. Does it have a name?” Fear asked.
“Pickles,” Moon replied.
Fear smiled and pulled out her sketch book again. She quickly drew Pickles. Then she signed the picture with her name. “Merry Christmas,” she said, handing Moon the picture.
“Tank you,” Moon answered then showed her parents the picture.
Moon’s parents smiled at Fear and she nodded in return.
The plane took off and Fear got a good image of the ground below then started to draw. Willow soon finished her story about the family and started working on Sonic’s essay. She realized why Sonic wanted her to do it when she saw it required 2000 words. “I am so not getting paid enough for this,” she muttered.
Halo glared suspiciously at Willow. “What are you getting paid to do?” she demanded.
Willow shrunk under her sister’s fierce gaze. “I’m uh… Writing… I talk as I write. You know that,” Willow said, creating the best excuse she could.
Halo didn’t believe Willow but it was a valid excuse. Halo nodded and puts her earphones in. Sonic sighed, he was good at baseball. You could not play baseball in a plane. With a sigh he pulled out his music and tried to think of what he could do. After a while, he pulled out his Sudoku and started working on it.
Fear soon put away her art work and fell asleep. Halo smiled at her sister. She was so cute. Willow had put away her
writing too and was leaning on Fear and sleeping. Halo held back a laugh. They were so funny. Halo waved at Moon then put away her music and leaned on Willow. Soon she too fell asleep. Sonic quickly noticed the three sleeping girls and could not contain his laughter.
Halo jerked awake and so did Willow and Fear. Halo desperately tried to remember where she was. “Huh? Oh, I’m on the plane…” she muttered, glaring at Sonic.
Sonic laughed a bit more then he tried to look guilty. Willow soon joined Halo in glaring at Sonic. Only Fear did not join in for she was busy talking to Moon. “Oops?” Sonic offered.
Willow frowned at him. “We were all sleeping peacefully and you wake us up and all you say is ‘oops’?” Willow demanded.
Sonic shrugged. He had learned that shrugging would result in her calming down, where talking would make her worse. She stuck her tongue out at him then turned her back to him. He sighed, knowing Willow in five minutes she would be chatting away to him. Not that he would be paying attention. Most of what she said either made no sense or she had said it like one hundred times already.
The time seemed to go by quickly and soon they felt the plane descending. The flight attendant told them that they were not at their destination. “We have been notified that there is a blizzard heading our way and so we will be landing in Prince George,” the flight attendant announced.
Murmurs of complaint rustled through the plane, most of them from the four kids. “Why is it that when I am put in charge something goes wrong?” Halo muttered.
Sonic really wished he hadn’t paid Willow to do his homework. “Crud, I really need those twenty-five dollars now,” he muttered.
Willow began scribbling furiously in her notebook and Fear began drawing a blizzard. Obviously they were inspired by the announcement. They both seemed to think this would be fun. The plane landed and Halo was getting nervous. “Uh Halo? Are you feeling okay?” Sonic asked.
Halo shot him a glare. “I am fine,” she snapped.
Sonic could tell she wasn’t fine but didn’t press her and rather dropped the topic. “Why don’t you go try to find a hotel we can stay at?” Sonic suggested.
Halo nodded and headed off to ask one of the workers. Sonic kept an eye on Willow and Fear but they were both busy so not much happened. Eventually Halo returned. “I found a place we can stay, and arranged a free ride to the hotel,” she announced.
Sonic nodded, and Fear and Willow moved their heads slightly upward and then down so Halo took that as a yes. “We have to go right now to get our stuff though,” Halo said.
Willow sighed but closed her book and stood up. Fear continued for a moment then reluctantly put away her sketch book. “Let’s go,” she said with a sigh.
The group was soon piling into a car with an elderly man. Willow pulled out her notebook again and resumed writing. Halo launched into an intense conversation with the man. When Sonic tried to figure out what it was about he discovered it was about socks, so he sat back and did some more Sudoku. Fear turned on her music and stared out the window. She watched as snowflakes began to fall. They got bigger and heavier and soon they were everywhere. “I think the blizzard is here,” Fear announced.
Willow looked up from her story and stared at the snowflakes. Halo’s conversation seemed to fade away, and Sonic didn’t even look up. He just kept filling in numbers and muttering to himself. “Sonic, didn’t you hear Fear?” Willow asked confused.
Sonic looked up and grinned at her. “Of course I heard her. I’ve just been in a blizzard before,” he told her.
Fear was drawing in her sketch book. Willow nodded and returned to staring out the window at the delicate flakes. “I could draw snow for hours,” Fear decided.
Halo forced herself to smile at her little sister. She pulled her cellphone but couldn’t get a signal because of the blizzard. In a few minutes they arrived at the hotel. “Thanks for the ride!” Fear said and gave the man a drawing of the snow, “merry Christmas!”
The man smiled at her and nodded his thanks and handed her an old drawing. “Wow you’re an artist too!” Fear gasped.
The man nodded and started helping them unload their luggage. The other three gave him their thanks then the group headed into the hotel. The lady at the front desk gave them a deal because they were kids and it was almost Christmas. As they walked into their room the three girls studied it for a moment then Fear plopped down on the bed and started drawing the room. “Gee we’ll never forget what this vacation looks like, we’ll have enough drawings to fill a room,” Halo muttered.
Willow laughed and sat down beside Fear. She pulled out her notebook and started writing. “Oh and the room next to it will be full of stories,” Halo added.
Fear looked up at her and grinned. “And the room beside that will be full of your music, piano, guitar, and flute. Plus, a few iPods and some of the songs you sing,” Fear shot back.
Willow and Fear both laughed and Halo joined them. Sonic appeared in the door way behind them. “What’s so funny?” he asked
The three just kept laughing. When they stopped they gasped for air. “There are three rooms. One full of Fear’s drawings, one of my writings and one of Halo’s songs,” Willow explained.
Sonic laughed, he could imagine that. “But there is a fourth, it’s full of my trophies and home run baseballs and baseball cards and signed gloves,” he added with a laugh.
The four of them laughed even harder than before. Fear laughed so hard that she fell off the bed. Of course Willow laughed even more because of that and fell off too. Halo decided to sit on the floor before she fell over and Sonic concluded that it was a smart move and joined her. They rolled on the floor laughing their hearts out until Sonic got up. Slowly, Halo joined him and finally, Willow and Fear returned to their work.
Halo smiled at them and looked at Fear’s drawing. It seemed she was already done the one of the room and was now drawing a puppy. It seemed odd to Halo because Fear was best at drawing what she saw. “Great job Fear! You’re getting better at drawing without having to see the object your drawing,” Halo said.
Fear shook her head and pointed out the window at a puppy shivering in the cold. Sonic gasped and jumped out the window. Dashing over to the dog he scooped it up then clambered back into the room and shut the window. “Oh the poor thing,” Halo murmured.
Willow picked the puppy up and wrapped a blanket around her and cuddled her. “What are we going to name it?” Willow asked.
Sonic eyed the dog. “Easy Willow, we’ll name him Junior,” Sonic suggested and smiled at Willow.
Willow laughed, he had no clue. “Sonic, you do know she’s a girl right?” Willow asked, still laughing.
Fear laughed as Sonic stopped smiling. “Well, I know what we can name her! We could name her Venus, Jingle or Monster,” Fear said.
Willow shook her head. Those names didn’t fit. Halo didn’t seem too concerned about the dog but she called, “here kitty, kitty, kitty!”
As Halo called the dog jumped out of Willow’s arms and trotted over to Halo. Willow grinned, “so it’s settled. Her name is Kitty.”
Halo laughed and fed her a scrap of a sandwich their mom had packed for them. Kitty
snatched it out of the air and ate it quickly. Willow smiled and started writing, probably about Kitty. Fear finished her drawing and pinned it to the wall.
The days passed and the blizzard raged outside. Soon Halo woke up and realized it was Christmas Eve. As she looked out the window she saw the blizzard was still raging outside. With a sigh she got up and pulled a Monster and an Amp out of the fridge. She grabbed one of the cups the hotel had supplied them with and mixed the two together. Every Christmas Eve morning her parents had given them all a sip of it. Willow and Halo weren’t fans for them but Fear loved them.
Halo gently shook Willow awake. Willow woke up immediately and left Fear snoring. Willow took a sip of the Monster Amp mix. Halo smiled. “Fear wake up… Its Christmas Eve… And I’ve got a Monster for you,” Halo whispered.
Fear sat straight up immediately. “Monster?” she asked searching the room. “Where is it? Can I have it?”
Halo laughed and pointed to the Monster Amp mix then nodded. Fear jumped out of bed and raced over to it. She took on a long sip. “Uh oh... Stand back,” Willow warned.
Halo grinned and took a step away. Fear was calm for a moment then launched into a hyper frenzy. Kitty squirmed out from under the blankets and chased her around the room barking. Sonic came through the door sleepily. “What is going on? You are making enough noise to wake up the whole hotel! And what is wrong with Fear?” he asked.
Halo laughed. “Christmas Eve tradition Sonic, I gave Fear a Monster Amp Mix. And Kitty is barking at her.”
Sonic sighed. “Halo that is one of the weirdest traditions I have ever heard of. And did you not read the ‘No Pets’ rule?”
Halo’s eyes widened, she had completely forgotten. Willow scooped Kitty up and cuddled her on the bed until she stopped barking. It was too late though, footsteps sounded in the hallway. Willow pushed Kitty under the bed and whispered to her, “be quiet Kitty, please!”
Fear was still full of energy and was hardly aware of her surroundings. She was running in circles now and making a lot of noise. There was a knock on the door and Halo reluctantly opened it. The lady from the front desk stepped into the room. “Children, I am very sorry. You woke many of our guests up and they have been making complaints. I let you in for less than usual but now I have to ask you to leave,” she announced.
Halo sighed and nodded. Willow decided it was alright to let Kitty go now. Fear finally calmed down and headed to the pop, but Sonic quickly grabbed the rest of her Monster Amp Mix. He was rewarded with a glare but he didn’t care. Halo began repacking their bags and Willow joined in. Fear glanced around and clued into what was happening and helped out too. Sonic quietly set down the Monster Amp Mix and headed back to his room.
Soon the four kids were handing back their keys and heading out into the blizzard. “What are we going to do now?” Willow yelled at Halo angrily.
Fear mumbled something clearly upset about getting them all kicked out of the hotel. “We don’t stop moving,” Sonic told them.
Willow groaned. She was used to spending Christmas Eve in her PJs in front of the fire writing. She had forgotten that last summer Sonic had went to a survival camp or something like that. She hadn’t really paid much attention when he’d come back and tried to teach them survival skills since it had seemed stupid to her. “Aren’t we supposed to like dig a hole or something?” Willow suggested.
Sonic rolled his eyes. “No. We’d probably freeze before we got close to finishing the hole,” he pointed out. “Now, everybody hold hands so we don’t lose each other.”
They did as he asked, Willow was on the end holding Kitty, Sonic was next to her with Fear beside him and Halo was on the other end. After a while of walking Sonic was relieved as he spotted a light in the distance. “Head for that light,” he instructed them and they headed for the light.
Jagged was staring out the window at the blizzard. She was fourteen but blizzards still mystified her. Her three-year-old cousin, Moon, was beside her, with Pickles, watching out the window. Suddenly Jagged saw movement outside. The movement formed into shapes and soon Jagged knew there were people outside. “Dad, there are people out there!” Jagged called to her father.
Jagged’s dad came into the room followed by her Uncle. Her dad took one look out the window then started bundling up in his coat. He hurried out the door and towards the kids. Jagged watched him as he grabbed one of the kids hands and led them back to the house. She got up and started making hot chocolate.
The door opened and a flurry of snow rushed in as well as the cold air. Jagged’s dad came through first followed by three girls and a boy. Jagged handed all of them Hot Chocolate and took a mug for herself. Then she sat on the couch. “Thanks,” Halo said.
Her cheeks were bright red and she looked cold. Fear caught sight of Moon and smiled. “Moon!” she exclaimed.
Moon smiled at Fear and went over to her dragging Pickles along. Sonic watched the two of them talk. “I’m Sonic by the way. As Halo already said, thank you for helping us, Halo is the oldest, then Willow, and Fear,” Sonic introduced them all.
Just then Jagged’s aunt came bustling into the room followed by her Uncle. “We don’t have any extra rooms for you to stay in, so the living room will have to do,” she announced.
The four all nodded gratefully and Jagged grinned. “I’m Jagged Durkla. You’ve already met my cousin and most likely my Aunt and Uncle,” Jagged said.
They all nodded and Fear had out her sketch book again. Moon sat under the Christmas tree playing with some presents while Willow, Halo, Sonic, and Jagged started having a conversation about bunnies. Kitty was by Moon and started swatting at a low hanging branch. “Oh no, you don’t,” Willow laughed, scooping up the dog.
Their conversation had grown into an argument by now. “Black bunnies are the cutest and the fluffiest,” Halo argued.
Sonic nodded with agreement but Jagged and Willow shook their heads. “White bunnies are most definitely cuter and fluffier,” Jagged countered.
This time no one seemed to agree. “You guys have it all wrong! Grey bunnies are cuter than white bunnies and fluffier than black bunnies therefore they are the best!” Willow put in.
“Oh you guys are all so silly. Kitty is cuter and fluffier than any bunny!” Fear called over.
All of them laughed and even Moon giggled. Kitty chased her tail a bit but everyone was exhausted. “If it’s alright I think we’re all ready to go to sleep… It’s been a tough few days.” Halo said.
The other three kids nodded in agreement and Kitty yawned too. Jagged nodded and got up. “That’s perfectly fine,” she said and walked out of the room.
Halo passed out blankets that Mr. Durkla had set on a nearby couch. When Halo saw there were only three couches she spread out her blanket on the floor. Sonic took the chair and Fear got the shorter couch. Willow got the biggest couch and as soon as her head hit the pillow she said, “Good Night”
Everybody echoed her then most of them quickly fell asleep. But Sonic could not sleep. All he could do was think about their friendship and of their futures. guessed he would end up playing baseball, maybe even get in the Olympics and hopefully get gold. Halo would no doubt become a singer and probably end up famous. Willow and Fear had clear futures as well. Sonic wanted to know if this would affect their friendship.
Sonic sighed and closed his eyes. They would always be friends. Every time he mentioned any doubt they always told him that. He grinned and was still grinning when he fell asleep.
Halo woke up early the next morning and glanced out the window to see a wall of snow. She was stiff and sore from sleeping on the ground. Seeing Willow sprawled out on the couch Halo grinned and walked over to the couch. She pushed Willow out of the couch and Willow hit the floor with a thump. “Hey! What was that for?” Willow objected.
Halo just grinned at her and sat on the couch. Willow sat beside her and leaned on her. It reminded them both so much of past Christmases that Halo let a tear slip down her cheek. Even if they weren’t where they had wanted to go they could still have a good Christmas. “Halo, why did Dad have to die?” Willow asked.
Halo sighed, her mother hadn’t managed to tell Fear or Willow what had happened to their dad. She looked down at her little sister. “Dad loved us. One day he went to go get some milk, just so you could make soup. You loved to help him cook… And on the way back another car hit his… And he died,” Halo told her.
Willow stared at Halo. Although she had known, ever since that dreadful day when he died, no one had told her. “Oh… I miss him… Mom can’t cook,” Willow said, wrinkling her nose.
Sonic stirred and then yawned. Halo smiled at Willow and hugged her. Willow grabbed her notebook, then paused and thought. In the end, she returned it to her bag. “I’ll always love you Willow, always. And don’t you ever forget that,” Halo said.
Willow nodded and hugged her back. Jagged popped into the room her arms full of presents. Sonic sat up and rubbed his eyes. “You probably won’t like them but Aunt Lilly took me shopping this morning so I bought them for you,” Jagged said setting them on the couch beside Willow.
Halo smiled and sorted through the presents. Fear’s eyes opened and she sat up and quickly drew a picture in her sketch book. “Wow! Thanks Jagged!” she said and handed Jagged a picture.
Jagged looked at the picture and smiled. She ran and put it in her room and came back. “Dad’s not much of a cook but he tells me I’m great so what do you want for breakfast?” Jagged asked.
Halo grinned at her sisters. “How about we have bacon, eggs, pancakes, waffles, and sausages for breakfast?” Halo suggested.
Jagged raised one eye brow and Halo just smiled back. “You must be hungry Halo,” Jagged said with a laugh.
Halo shook her head and her smile faded. “Christmas tradition, Dad always made bacon, eggs, and sausages on Christmas Morning,” she explained.
Jagged nodded and disappeared into the kitchen. Sonic just shook his head and laughed. “Your family has a lot of odd traditions,” he said, “what happened to just hanging stockings and opening presents and having Christmas Dinner?”
Fear laughed and drew another picture and handed it to Sonic. He looked at it then showed it to Halo and Willow. All four of them started laughing. Fear had drawn a picture of Sonic with big goofy ears, an oversized nose, and huge feet. Written on it were the words, “That’s What I Think Of YOU!”
By the time they stopped laughing, breakfast was ready and Jagged’s family was up. After they ate breakfast they sat in the living room to open their presents. Fear got a new sketch book, Willow got another notebook and more pencils, Halo was given a CD, and Sonic got a baseball. “Wow! Thanks, but how did you know all our favorite things?”
Willow asked.
Jagged smiled at Willow. “I’ve learned to tell what people are into by looking on them. Sonic clearly knows how to swing a baseball bat and pitch, and from what I can tell he’s pretty good. Fear is always doodling away in that sketch book of hers and my Aunt told me about her artistic nature. She also told me you were near the end of your notebook and that Halo liked music. Though I could tell Halo liked music because she’s always humming and you are a little author,” Jagged explained.
Willow grinned and added her new note book to her bag along with her pencils. Fear however did not put away her presents but instead drew her first picture in it. When she was done she put her book in her bag and picked Moon up and set her on her knee. Halo smiled at the two of them and sipped at some Hot Chocolate. Sonic sat beside her studying his new baseball.
The group of them all smiled at each other and seemed content. They let the silence grow and Willow started writing again. Finally Mr. Durkla cleared his throat. “The blizzard is over. If you want to call your families you can now,” he
informed them.
Halo nodded and picked up the phone. She quickly dialed her home number and waited for her mother to answer. “Hello?” Mrs. Lemaya answered.
“Mom, it's Halo. We’re staying at the Durkla’s house. They’re a family we met. The blizzard stopped our plane, but we’re fine,” Halo told her.
“Oh my poor dears, if I had known that would happen I would never have sent you!” Mrs. Lemaya replied.
Halo laughed. “Mom we’re having fun actually. We may have gotten kicked out of a hotel in the middle of the blizzard but we made a new friend. Her name is Jagged and she’s wonderful!” Halo said and grinned.
Mrs. Lemaya muttered something and didn’t sound too happy. “In any case, I’m sorry and I will let Mrs. Crosshawk know you are alright. Are you coming home tomorrow?” she asked.
“Yeah Mom, we’ll come home tomorrow. I miss you… But I kept up the traditions! Fear had Monster Amp Mix yesterday and we had bacon, eggs, and sausages for breakfast,” Halo pointed out.
“Yes darling, you’ve done well. I’m proud of you. Tell your sisters I love them. I have to go to work bye,” she said.
Halo had just enough time to say good bye before her mother hung up. Heading back into the living room she rejoined the chatter. “Sonic, Mom will tell your mom that we’re alright. Fear, Willow she sends her love. And we’re going home
tomorrow,” Halo announced.
Sonic nodded and thought it over. They had originally planned to go home on Boxing Day so hopefully they could go through with their plans. All in all, it had been a fine Christmas. He leaned forward and took a cookie off the plate. Then glanced at Fear, she was drawing as usual. Willow was writing too and Halo had just slipped a sheet of paper onto their laps. “Wow! Did you write this?” Willow asked, wide eyed.
Halo nodded shyly and Sonic already guessed it was a song. “It’s amazing Halo! Will you sing it for us?” Willow begged.
Halo shook her head and took a bite of her cookie. Willow kept begging her but Halo refused to sing the song. Sonic figure she had probably planned to but didn’t want to in front of the Durkla’s. If it had been at their Great-Aunt’s house Sonic probably would have joined Willow but as it was he could understand. “I’ll get her to sing it when we get home,” Sonic murmured.
Finally Willow stopped pestering Halo and settled down to continue writing. Halo plugged in her music and started humming along with it. Fear was still drawing in her sketchbook. Sonic looked at Jagged. “I guess we’re the only ones without something to do…” he said.
Jagged nodded and stood up. Kitty, who had been sleeping on her lap, scrambled to find a new place to sleep. “Come on, I wanna show you something,” she said.
Sonic nodded and got up too. Jagged lead him farther into the house to a room that looked like it didn’t get used very much. The doorknob even had dust on it. Jagged ignored the dust but opened the door. As Sonic peered inside he saw
signed baseballs, baseball gloves, and baseball bats. “Wow,” he murmured stepping into the room.
Everything was covered in dust, but Sonic picked up various items and blew the dust off them. He slipped one of the gloves onto his hand, swung one of the bats and tossed a baseball in the air and caught it. Jagged smiled at him from the doorway; then headed to the kitchen to start baking cookies. Sonic spent hours in
the room. He probably could have stayed in there longer but he had to eat Christmas Dinner.
As they all sat together for Christmas Dinner Halo smiled. It was pizza, her favorite meal. She almost wanted to laugh. They dug in and everyone ate until they were full. And then they sat around talking for a while. After they had talked Jagged brought out some dessert, there were cakes, pies, and cookies. Everyone had more room now so they ate lots of dessert. Finally everyone was finished eating and talking and they were all tired.
Halo was just about to spread her blanket on the floor again when Sonic stopped her. “You should sleep on the chair tonight. I’ll sleep on the floor,” he said.
Halo tried to argue but Sonic wouldn’t let her. In the end she headed for the chair and curled up on it. Soon everyone in the house was asleep.
The next morning Willow woke up first. She grinned at Halo, who was still curled up on the chair. Willow quietly walked over to Halo and pushed her out of the chair. “Willow Tonitrus Lemaya what was that for?” Halo asked her.
Willow laughed quietly. “Halo Rina Kartima that was for yesterday when you pushed me out of bed,” Willow replied.
Halo grinned and glanced at her watch. “One hour till our plane leaves we best be in a hurry,” she said.
Willow nodded and walked over to Fear. She smiled and pushed her little sister off the couch. Fear didn’t make a peep but glared at Willow. Halo shook her head at the two of them and gently shook Sonic awake. “We have to get ready to go, our plane takes off in an hour,” Halo explained.
Fear and Sonic nodded and everyone began to silently pack their things. Soon they caught the delicious smell of pancakes in the kitchen and knew Jagged had woken up. They had their things packed in ten minutes and were soon eating the tasty pancakes.
It wasn’t long before Mr. Durkla was driving them to the airport. When they arrived they all climbed out of the car and thanked him for allowing them to stay at his house and for the ride. Then they headed inside. Half an hour later, they were waiting to board their plane.
The flight was boring as ever and they mostly just worked on their hobbies, or in Sonic’s case Sudoku. It felt like ages before the plane landed in Ohio. They were all happy to get off the plane and go see their mom; Mr. and Mrs. Crosshawk were waiting beside Mrs. Lemaya when they arrived. The three girls charged over to their mom and every one gave her a big hug. The family was complete once more.
They found their bags and said good bye to Sonic then they all headed home.
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2/3/2019, 12:42 am by 
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