Extraordinary Christmas. Story for Maison and West

- This is a stupid rule and I’m not gonna follow it! – said West seriously.

He was sitting on the dining table with his legs on it. He saw how angry and irritated his dad was, but he was still standing on his own. West turned aside and began to think over this situation. He was looking at starry Christmas sky.
Why couldn’t I just sit on the table? It is so interesting and exciting. Who invented such a weird rule? West was fully aware of the reason why it is not allowed to play with power plugs or knives. They are definitely dangerous! But why couldn’t I sit ON the table? – thought West. At that very moment, as a confirmation of his thoughts, a bright falling star cut the sky and left its vanishing trace in full darkness.

- I wish there were no rules at all. Never! And I want to live alone.

The dad was so angry. He wanted to say something but then suddenly he heard some noise. Something fell down in the living-room. The dad went there to check everything. West was so curious that he got down from the table and quickly followed his dad. Maison, West’s younger sister, was standing in the room, looking confusedly at her mother’s favorite cup broken to pieces on the floor.

- What’s going on here? - the dad asked.

Maison didn’t know what to say. She was at a loss and pointed at the pieces, looking guiltily at her dad. Another dad’s outburst was interrupted by flapping sound outside the window. The children ran to the window to look what had happened.

The dark Christmas sky was brighten up by colorful glimmering fireworks. Fantastic light flowers appeared in the sky above the festively decorated town, and then they slightly began to disperse. The children were full of delight. They wanted to share their joy and happiness with their dad. Maison and West turned to their dad, but he wasn’t there. The smiles died on their lips.

- Dad! – called West
- Is dad playing hide-and-sick? – asked Maison looking at her brother.
- I don’t know! – West shrugged his shoulders.

The children walked along the room looking around. The dad was nowhere to be seen. The house sank into the silence, and in this silence a knock on the door seemed absolutely stunning. Children looked at each other and smiled

- Mom is here! – the children cried out and hurried up to the front door.

They were happy to think mom was there. It was frightening to be alone in this room. Despite all West’s efforts to look brave and courageous, he felt his heart leapt into his mouth.
West unlocked the door and the children looked happily at the person standing behind the door. But that wasn’t Mom! The boy next door was standing there. He was a few years older than West.

- Hi! – said West, trying to come to senses.
- I want to take your presents away, – said the boy, smiling.- They were always better than mine. - West frowned.
- But that will never do! That is wrong! – objected West.
- Go away, – said Maison timidly, hiding behind her brother’s back. West, I’m scared of him! – cried the girl.
- Everything is possible right now, – the boy shrugged his shoulders, – There are no rules anymore! – he exclaimed, – And I can get your Christmas presents.

The boy moved Maison and West aside and got into the house. West tried to push him back, but he didn’t manage to do it as the boy was older and much stronger than West was.
At that moment, West was terrified more than ever. Their dad wasn’t still there and there was a strange boy in the house. There was nobody to protect them. Maison called her brother. He turned round. The girl was looking at the street through the open front door. People outside were crashing the windows and then getting inside the other houses. Everything was in total chaos. Nobody even really cared about what was happening. All were doing whatever they wanted, even if it was unacceptable. People took what they wanted and got into the places previously forbidden. It seemed that everything was exactly what West had always dreamed about – there were no rules and he was completely free. However, he was terrified of what was going on.
Meanwhile, the children heard strange voices and the sound of breaking glass in the room. Maison was scared and came closer to her brother. Her eyes were full of fear and West realized that there was nobody but him to protect his younger sister.

- Let’s go! – said West to his sister and took her hand.

West put his boots on then helped his sister. They went out into the garden, which was full of unwelcome guests. Maison held her brother’s hand tight. She was afraid of losing him and leaving on her own.
The children got cold very quickly. West felt regret he had not put on his warm jacket. He stopped and looked at his sister. Maison was sobbing. Her nose, ears and cheeks turned red because of freezing cold.

- Where are we going? – asked Maison. Her eyes were full of tears.

West didn’t know where to go. He wanted just to protect Maison and find their mom and dad. But he didn’t know where to find them. Maison looked at the sky. It was dark and full of tiny stars.

- I am cold! – said Maison.
- Me to! – agreed West.
- Let’s come back! Maybe mom and dad are already there, – asked Maison silently.

West hesitated for a moment. Of course, it would be great if the parents were home waiting for their children. However, he had all the reasons to doubt - all those people were still inside.
Maison was weeping and West didn’t like that. Actually, he didn’t like girls crying. They were standing on the crossroad with no people around. There was no one to help them.
Suddenly, West heard a strange whistling sound behind. It was getting louder and then was dying away. It made West turn back. Maison was standing and rubbing her cold palms. She was trying not to cry and turned towards the direction where the strange sound came from.
Surprisingly, the children saw an old blue telephone booth. There was an alarm light on its roof and a board with the information how to call police in case of emergency on the door.
Such booths used to be met everywhere in London. Nowadays there were hardly any left. So it was difficult to say where this weird booth had come from.

- What’s that? – asked Maison.
- I don’t know! – shook his head West.

Although West was willing to run away, curiosity got the best of him, and he decided examine this strange booth that had appeared from the air. The door of the booth opened smoothly. West and Maison stepped back. A tall man in a smart suit and chequered coat come out of the police booth. He wore shabby leather low-heeled shoes. His clothes seemed to be out of season. He cautiously stepped his foot on the snow.
The man looked around. Suddenly, he noticed two children and raised his eyebrow surprisingly.

- You aren’t dressed warm enough, are you? – The man smiled to children carelessly, – It’s too cold here, isn’t it?

West was not going to answer. He was still thinking of going away, but the man in a coat and that strange phone booth were so tantalizing that he couldn’t take his eyes of them.

- Yes, it’s cold, –answered Maison. And who are you?
- Wait a minute! – said the man, looking closely at Maison.- Have you been crying? – He asked. He noticed tiny beads of ice on her eyelashes. This was what frost had done to her tears.
- Yes, – said Maison quietly– Our mom and dad are lost.
- Something strange has happened to all those people! – West added, – they are not following any rules. It seems like they don’t know what the word “RULES” mean.
- Yeah, – agreed the man, as if he understood what the boy meant, – sometimes rules are not so bad, are they?

Then the man turned back and looked at children. He was standing on a threshold of his blue booth.

- Are you going? – he asked the children, inviting them in.

West hesitated for a moment while Maison went straightforward into the booth which was tempting the children with its warmth and coziness. West followed Maison. He couldn’t let his sister stay alone with a stranger.
The booth was incredibly spacious inside. West turned back and looked around the booth. That was a weird big room without corners but with rounded walls. There was a huge post with a multifunctional control panel in the middle of the room.
The children felt safe and warm in the room and didn’t want to leave it.

- It looks bigger … - started West.
- Bigger inside than outside,- that strange man ended the phrase.

The man was checking something on the panel. He pushed some buttons and switches on the panel looking at the monitor. The door shut behind West. Looking back from time to time, Maison went up the stairs, which lead him from the entrance to the control panel.

- Who are you? – asked Maison.
- I am the Doctor.- the man shrugged his shoulders. – I don’t understand, –mumbled the Doctor, looking at the panel, – WISHMASTER?! Was there a falling star?
- Who are you, doctor? – asked West. But the man said nothing.
- Where are we? – whispered Maison. She was carefully examining the room.
- This is TARDIS. – explained the Doctor, without taking his eyes of the monitor. TARDIS is the time and space machine. It transfers people to different spaces and time periods.
- But this is impossible! – exclaimed West.

The Doctor glanced at West and smiled as if the boy was talking complete nonsense.

- Was there a falling star? –repeated the Doctor. Have you seen a falling star?
- Yes, – nodded the boy. I have noticed a falling star.

Maison looked with an interest at her brother.

- Can people hold a falling star in their hands? – asked Maison.
- Oh, yes! I think I have found it! – exclaimed the Doctor. He noticed something on the monitor.
- Yes, here it is!! – mumbled he, looking at the panel. – Wait a minute! – the Doctor left the panel and made for the exit. – Let’s go! – he murmured to children.
- It is cold outside! – Maison objected, – I don’t want to go.
- Oh, no, no, no! You won’t be cold. – The Doctor tried to calm her down.

He opened the door. Instead of cold and snowy weather, there was another room outside. It was huge and dark. The doctor invited children in. West came in first. Maison followed him. She didn’t want to stay alone.

- Hey, is anybody here? – asked Doctor.

He noticed faint light in the corner and made his way towards it.

- Yes! This is the machine that makes dreams come true! I was right! – exclaimed the Doctor happily.

The light had brightened. The children followed the Doctor and saw a bright yellow ball. There was a hole in the roof right above this ball. The hole seemed to appear after the ball had fallen. The Doctor carefully took the ball.

- Hey, baby, did you do all the mess here? – The Doctor asked the ball. – Of course, that was you who had done all this mess!
- What is it? – asked Maison with all her curiosity. She was studying the ball with curiosity. The children came closer to the ball.
- It is the machine that makes dreams come true! – explained the doctor. It makes dreams come true when it falls to the surface of the planet.
- Is it an alien? – asked West.
- Is it alive? – asked Maison.
- Yes, it is! – Answered the Doctor – It’s an alien and it’s alive! And it has fulfilled somebody’s wish. It has caused a complete mess. Someone wished that there were no rules at all and children could live without their parents! The Doctor glanced at West and Maison.
- What a stupid wish!

West felt sorry. He remembered the words he had told to his father at the moment the star was falling from the sky. He realized that was his own wish! That ball fulfilled HIS wish! Nevertheless, West didn’t want to confess and tell Maison and the Doctor about it

- Can this ball turn everything back? – asked West
- It can fulfil just one wish! – answered The Doctor. It is disappearing now because it has fallen on the earth. And it’s too old.
- How can I make a wish? – asked West.
- Just look at the ball and make a wish. – replied Doctor.

The boy looked tensely at the ball.

- I wish everything turned back! – uttered the boy. – So? Has it worked?
- No, it hasn’t. – said Doctor. – This is weird. Have you made a wish before?
- Why?
- It can make a wish come true only once for each person! It won’t work if the ball has already made your previous wish come true. West blushed.
- Yes, I have – his eyes dropped.

The Doctor and Maison looked surprisingly at the boy.

- Yes, I wished that there were no rules at all and we could live without mom and dad. – whispered West.
- That is a terrible wish! – exclaimed Maison.
- I didn’t think everything would be like that! – objected he and looked at the doctor. – Can you make a wish to correct everything?
- No, I can’t. – the Doctor shook his head. – I’m not a human. I am the Doctor.
- What can we do then?
- We have one person to help us. – smiled the Doctor and looked at Maison. You can make a wish to the ball!
- Really? – said Maison happily. Could I wish whatever I want?
- Yes, of course!
- Do it, Maison! – encouraged her West.

Maison hesitated for a moment. She wanted a lot of sweets and fun. She wanted the best dresses and toys. She wanted to be grown up and drive a car. Suddenly, she looked at West then at the doctor and realized that she couldn’t make a wish just for herself. She had to wish something for her brother and for other children.

- I wish everything would be as it has been before! – she said.

The ball lightened up, became bigger and then slowly disappeared. West looked around to check everything. Suddenly it became quiet. He realized that he was sitting on the dining table. He was at home.

- Don’t sit on the table, West! – said dad to West. West smiled happily. – It is a rule and you have to follow it.

At first, West wanted to say that the rule is so stupid, but then he changed his mind. Having remembered everything, he got down from the table. West came into the living room and saw Maison holding mother’s favourite cup. It wasn’t broken. But unexpectedly, she dropped the cup and West managed to catch it. He didn’t let it break down.
West and Maison glimpsed at each other.

- Doctor! – said they simultaneously. West put the cup down and they rushed to the door.

They ran to the crossroad where the TARDIS had to be.

- Doctor! – cried Maison.

But TARDIS had disappeared. The children were standing on a lonely street. The street was grey and boring. The roofs of the houses, sidewalks and window sills were covered with the snow.

- Let’s go home, – said West taking Maison’s hand.

Maison didn’t move with her head to one side and was looking at the place where not long ago the strange blue booth was standing. She took out her hand from brother’s hand and then folded her arms.

- Let’s go! Mom and dad will be worried, –reminded her West, - The Doctor is gone. He won’t come back.

Maison glanced at West, but this time with a pity.

- I am sorry, Maison, – said West. – Let’s go home.

Slowly, Maison followed her brother. West was confidently walking ahead. Maison was going behind. She was upset and disappointed. Time after time she turned back, as if she was waiting for the Doctor and TARDIS.
When Maison realized the Doctor wouldn’t come back, she turned aside from the crossroad. Everything was festively decorated, but Maison didn’t pay attention to it.
When children turned round the corner, they heard familiar whistling sound, which they didn’t expect to hear.
The children turned back and hurried to the place that the sound came from. West was the first to see TARDIS. He was standing in the middle of the road with his mouth open in surprise. It was really TARDIS.

- He is here! – exclaimed happily Maison and ran to a blue booth. West followed her.

The door opened and The Doctor came out. He was wearing the same strange suit. The Doctor was hiding something behind his back. West and Maison were staring at the Doctor enthusiastically. The Doctor smiled mysteriously. He took out something he was hiding.
In that snowy Christmas town the Doctor’s bunch of flowers was incredible. A lot of snowy white dandelions were like the Christmas miracle!
The Doctor gave dandelions to Maison. She was absolutely delighted. She took out one dandelion and slightly blew at it. A lot of tiny umbrellas began to fly around the earth. While Maison was looking at the amazing flight, the Doctor turned to West and gave him a piece of magical paper.

- I think you would need this sometime. – said the Doctor and smiled cunningly. This magic paper shows people whatever they wish to see.

The Children said goodbye to the Doctor. This time they were completely satisfied and happy. They were watching the Doctor leaving. When TARDIS disappeared Maison blew off a few more dandelions. The children were looking at this magic for some minutes and then went home.
The dad met them on the street. He left his house to look for the children.

- I love you, dad! – said Maison and hugged her Dad. – I missed you so much.

West also hugged the dad. The dad cuddled Maison and West.

- I know, that I am not at home every time you need me, – said the dad, – but I love you so much!!
- We know that! – assured him children.
- Hey! – Cried mother. – It is too cold! Go home!
- Mom! – cried West and Maison.

Children hurried up. Mom and dad followed them.
All people in the town were celebrating Christmas. Maison was thinking about sweets their mom had bought for them, whereas West decided to share his presents with boys living next door because from that moment he knew more than anyone else in the town.

Thanks for the translation Åâðîïåéñêàÿ øêîëà/European School