12.24.08
Kirsten is an 18-inch-tall girl from 1854, Nellie is an 18-inch-tall girl from 1906, and May is an 18-inch-tall girl from maybe 1927...we haven't decided yet. Mini Kit is a 6-inch-tall doll from 1934 (though she really doesn't dress like it).
And they all love Christmas!
A strange sight greeted Kirsten on Christmas Eve...
"Sari, you evil wench!" Mini Kit shouted heroically. "Unhand that sweet cat Mabel!"
"Never!" a high-pitched voice that sounded suspiciously like Mini Kit's replied. "I will never give up--"
"What are you doing?" Kirsten bellowed.
Mini Kit raised her plastic sword. "I was just playing! Hey, I'm not on trial here!"
Kirsten rescued her beloved doll Sari. "And you!"
"May! Where'd you get that Swedish-looking sweater?" Kirsten yelled.
"That Cheap Lady gave it to me--said it was from her Secret Sister a while back."
"Oh." After a quick pause, Kirsten yelled, "Then what are you doing with my mint-in-bag My Little Ponies?"
Before May could answer, Nellie interrupted. "We didn't do any harm, Miss Kirsten. Miss May just wanted to play with them."
"Yeah, Kirsten," May said. "What's your beef? My Little Ponies weren't even around in 1854."
"They weren't around in 1920-wherever-you-come-from, either," Kirsten said. "Now gimme!"
"Miss Kirsten," Nellie said. "Maybe you could let Miss May play with one of your toys, just for a little while?"
"No!" Kirsten said. "They're mine!"
"But Miss Kirsten, it's almost Christmas!" Nellie said. "If you aren't going to get us presents, you could at least--"
"No, no! I have presents!" Kirsten ran off for a couple minutes before coming back.
"Here are your presents that I've had for months and didn't just make right now while you were waiting!"
"Says you," May muttered. "Those look like torn-off scraps of paper to me."
"They're coupons!" Kirsten said.
"How thoughtful!" Nellie said, taking her coupon.
"1 Free Hug," Nellie read. "Miss Kirsten, it's wonderful!"
May was less impressed.
"30 minutes of playing with MIB ponies (while Kirsten is watching!)." May frowned. "What does MIB mean?"
"Mint in Bag," Kirsten said.
"I think it means 'cheapskate,'" May muttered.
"I'm sure mine's better," Mini Kit said. "Gimme gimme gimme!"
"5 minutes of not hating you (only redeemable between 3 AM - 4 AM)." Mini Kit glared at Kirsten.
"These are the worst gifts ever!" May said.
"Yeah!" Mini Kit added. "I'm very lovable! Ask anyone but Sari!"
Nellie said, "Well, I liked my coupon."
"Now," Kirsten said, "when are you going to give me your presents?"
Mini Kit and May groaned.
"Fine," Kirsten said. "I'll go to bed, so Christmas will get here sooner!"
And soon, she was snoring. She woke to a strange sight--a figure with an odd light on its head...
"Mini Nellie?" Kirsten asked groggily.
"No!" the small doll said. "Miss Kirsten, I'm the Ghost of Christmas Past!"
Kirsten blinked. "What?"
"Well, Nellie used to be Mini Nellie, back in the past. And it's almost Christmas. So I'm the Ghost of Christmas Past! Do you get it?"
Kirsten just stared.
"Well, come with me, Miss Kirsten," said the Ghost of Christmas Past.
Kirsten rubbed her eyes. "Oh, this is going to be like 'A Christmas Carol,' where you show me a happy scene from when I was younger--"
"What is this?" Kirsten asked.
"Don't you recognize it?" the Ghost of Christmas Past asked. "It's you!"
"Kirsten!" Kirsten yelled. "Wake up! We're going to have so much fun--"
"She can't hear you," the Ghost of Christmas Past said. "Standard ghostly time-travel rules, you see."
"This isn't fun," Kirsten said. "Why'd you take me here?"
"You really don't remember?" the Ghost of Christmas Past asked. "For years, you lay in Miss Cheap Lady's bedroom, abandoned and forgotten. You spent a lot of Christmases all alone, like an unloved doll. Don't you remember how lonely and sad that time was?"
Kirsten went very pale. And then...
...she woke up.
"What a terrible dream," Kirsten said. "Hey!"
"What are you?" Kirsten asked.
"Come on," the figure said. "Isn't it obvious? I'm the Ghost of Christmas Present!"
"Oh," Kirsten said. "I don't need to see anything else scary. Go away."
But instead, the ghost took her right back to the living room...
"It's all right, Miss May," Nellie said. "You may play with my doll Miss Sara Kathleen Dollartree, if you'd like."
"Thank you, Nellie," May said. I'm just feeling lonely. This is my first Christmas with you, and I don't have many playthings like the rest of you do."
"No problem!" Mini Kit said.
"Just open this pony!" Mini Kit said.
"Why that little..." Kirsten would have tried to tackle Mini Kit, had the Ghost of Christmas Present not held her back.
"No!" Nellie said. "That belongs to Miss Kirsten!"
"And Kirsten's a jerk," Mini Kit said. "Just play with it!"
"I'm not trying to be a wet blanket," May said, "but I don't need Kirsten to hate me even more."
"But we love you," Mini Kit said. "Isn't that enough?"
"Miss Kirsten doesn't mean to be awful," Nellie said. "She just..."
Kirsten's eyes went wide. "Nellie really thinks I'm awful?" She swallowed. "Ghost, take me back!"
Kirsten was very, very happy to be back in bed....at least for a second.
"AAAAAAAIEEEEE!" Kirsten screamed. "Death! No! I'm too young to die!"
The figure shook its head, and Kirsten thought for a second. "Oh. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come?"
The figure nodded.
"I've learned whatever lesson I'm supposed to learn," Kirsten said. "Please just leave me alone!"
But the figure took Kirsten to a dark place.
"Miss Cheap Lady should keep her closet cleaner," Kirsten complained. "Wait--what's this--a doll box?"
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come nodded.
"I guess she got more dolls and put away the ones she didn't like," Kirsten said. "I hope Mini Kit's in there."
The Ghost shook its head.
Kirsten gasped. "No....that's not..."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Kirsten woke up in a cold sweat. "Oh no...if I'm not good, that Cheap Lady might finally lose her temper and store me away! I have to do something to convince her that I'm not terrible..."
"Did you hear something?" Mini Kit asked. A strange figure greeted them...
"St. Lucia brings you pastries!" Kirsten said. "And she invites you to forgive her."
"What are you beating your gums about?" May asked.
Mini Kit added, "It's not even St. Lucia Day!"
"I know," Kirsten said, "but I wanted to do something special for all of you, out of the goodness of my heart! It had nothing to do with three scary ghosts bullying me. Hang on a second..." She slipped away, leaving three baffled girls.
"Do you think the buns are poisoned?" May asked.
"May!" Kirsten cried breathlessly.
"Kirsten!" May stared in disbelief. "You took them out of their packaging!"
"You can play with them all day if you want!" Kirsten said. "Actually....you can even choose one to keep as your very own. As long as you choose the orange one."
May found this very puzzling, but she never was one to look a gift pony in the mouth.
"Mini Kit!" Kirsten said.
"Wow!" Mini Kit said. "A pegasus! So this makes up for you stealing the pegasus I got for Christmas a couple years ago?"
Kirsten laughed nervously. "I didn't steal her! And even if she did disappear...I was just getting her painted. And stuffed. And her wings sewn on and not made out of foam."
It was hard for Mini Kit to stay angry when she was looking at such a splendid creature. "I'll call you Hwin anyway," she conceded, petting its nose.
"And Nellie!" Kirsten said.
"Miss Kirsten," Nellie said. "The present you gave me earlier today was delightful."
"Well, I want you to have this," Kirsten insisted.
Nellie read:
NO EXPIRATION
Infinity
free
hugs
Whenever you are sad
MULTIPLE USE OK
(non-transferrable)
(especially not to Mini Kit)
Ignore that last part please
"Oh, Kirsten!" Nellie cried.
"Hey!" Kirsten said. "No fair hugging me! You're not sad! Ack!"
And they all had a very Merry Christmas after all!
On to 8.9.09