It is the night of Christmas. Derpy is alone in her apartment, getting ready to go out into the cold streets. She wraps a scarf around her neck and leaves with a small note in her hands. Out of the front door, she looks up in the sky with hope. Every day in winter, since she heard of snow for the first time she had been looking up in the sky, hoping to see a snowflake falling down. But even though she gets disappointed once again, it doesn't really matter today. Because the note in her hand does contain a very special address. The address of a man who can make it snow for her this year. A guy in a black hoodie had given it to her after eavesdropping on her talking to herself.
"Go here to get your snow" he had said to Derpy, handing her the crinkly paper.
She didn't really believe in his words at first. But out of curiosity, she went anyway. Now it is only one corner that, hopefully, separates her from the, so long dreamt of, snow. She tightens the scarf, as the cold wind starts to blow harder. Never before had she been to this part of the city. She likes it here. The streets are more colorful than where she lives. Not one glass building next to the other. These have paintings on them. Crossing the corner, she sees one man standing next to a campfire in the streets. Derpy approaches him and he looks at her intimidating. Gulping down, she makes the last steps and clears her throat.
"Someone told me you could make it snow on my Christmas?" she asks him, showing the piece of paper.
"Maybe I can," he replies, straightening himself "Did you bring money?"
Derpy fumbles for her wallet and produces a $100 bill.
"How much snow can I get for this?" she asks him back.
This money resembles all of her savings from the last year. But this is it worth to her. Finally seeing snow with her own eyes. The man looks at the money and back to her, raising his eyebrow. He produces a small bag filled with something white, about the size of a kiwi.
"You sure you want this much?" he asks her unbelievingly.
"I want all the snow I can get!" Derpy exclaims.
He takes the bill from her and places the bag in her open hand. Another cold breeze make them both shudder. The man tightens his jacket and turns back to the fire. Derpy looks at the package in her hands. It is not what she imagined she would end up with. But then again, she didn't expect him to make the snow fall from the skies. Not wanting to bother the man, she puts it in her pocket and turns around to go home. Back in the warmth of her apartment, she puts the little bag on the table before taking off her jacket and shoes. After sitting down, she takes it in her hands, looking at it a little disappointed.
Careful not to spill its content, she opens the bag to inspect the white stuff inside. It is a fine powder, much unlike the snow that she saw on television or pictures. That snow was fluffy and voluminous. More and more, she gets the feeling that she got scammed by the man. But another thought comes to her mind. Snow usually falls from the sky. In a last attempt, she takes the whole content of the bag in her hands and throws it in the air. A large cloud forms from the powder. It is rather blocking the light and does not twinkle like she heard real snow would.
As it slowly falls down to the ground, some of the powder goes into her nose. It tickles her so much that she has to sneeze. Inhaling a lot of air, mixed with powder, she lets out an 'Achoo'. Suddenly, she starts to feel weird. She feels jittery, like the one time when she tasted coffee. The time seems to slow down a bit. While the rest of the powder settles, she breathes heavily.
The penny slowly starts to drop on her, as she realizes what 'snow' the man had sold her. Blinded by her desire for a white Christmas, she had bought a large amount of cocaine. Starting to panic, not only about the illegal substance, but also about her lost savings, she gets a dustpan to clean up the mess. She tries to stay clear from it now, but can't prevent herself from inhaling more. After she cleans up the remainders with a wet towel, it feels to her like no time has passed at all. The energy she has now, frightens her to some degree.
To get her head clear again, she decides to take a shower. But neither cold nor hot water can calm her mind down. Back in the kitchen, a glance to the clock reveals that not only more time has passed than she thought, but that it is already 11pm. The sun had settled hours ago and she usually would've gone to bed already. But the drug inside her body is keeping her wide awake. Not only did she not get to see the snow, what she wanted so badly, but also ruined her chance for Christmas presents. She knows that Santa only comes when you are sleeping.
Every year she was sound asleep, only to wake up to lots of presents. But now that she can't sleep at all, Christmas surely is ruined. Derpy doesn't refuse to try nonetheless. Changing into her pajama, she lies down in her bed. The more she tries to fall asleep, the more active her mind gets. Running out of stuff to think about, her mind makes up all sorts of random thoughts.
'How many Elephants would it take to sink a rowing boat?' 'Probably one.' 'If I stack 10 books, can I pull one out from the middle without the tower tipping?' 'Who knows…?’
With every minute that passes in restless thoughts, midnight comes closer and closer. When suddenly, something rumbles in the living room...
She tries to stay in bed and ignore it. If it really is Santa, there might be a chance that he thinks she’s asleep. But her curiosity gets the better of her, as she gets up and sneaks up the door to take a peak. She doesn't see anyone in the room. But a small envelope lies under the plastic tree. Derpy runs up to it and opens it eagerly. Inside is thick paper with golden imprints on it. 'Turn Around'. Confused what this could possibly mean, she turn around. And there he stand right in front of her. Santa Claus. He’s dressed like you would always see the actors on TV do. But he looks a bit skinnier and his beard is more a shade of grey than white. He looks at her through his glasses.
"Merry Christmas Derpy," he says with a deep humming voice "I have a very special gift for you this year,"
"You do?" she is still baffled by this "But I was a bad girl this year!"
"I don't see you on my list though," Santa replies.
"I-I took drugs today" she admits, ashamed of herself.
"Now, now. Maybe I write that on next year's list. But for now I want to show you something," he says with his calming voice. "Ride with me in my sleigh tonight and I'll show you something you'll never forget,"
He offers her his hand and as she takes it, they are both engulfed my some sort of sparkling dust before they find themselves on top of Derpy's house. Derpy is frightened for a second. The magical dust not only brought them up here, but also replaced her pajama with proper winter clothes. They are sitting inside a sleigh, pulled by reindeer. He signals them to start flying with a whips of the reins. With a little jolt, the sleigh slowly gains altitude. Not believing her eyes, Derpy looks around and down. When she looks back, she sees a short twinkling tail. While they make their way over the city, she can't help but start wondering.
"Santa?" she asks him "How do you deliver all the presents? Isn't it too much to do in one night?"
"Do you remember the stories about me coming down the chimney?" he returns the question.
Derpy does just nod her head.
"Did you see the trail we leave? It is magical dust that lands on the houses and sneaks into the homes to place the presents under the trees," he explains "It is quite uneventful really,"
"But why take me with you?"
"You've been on the nice list for so many years now, and not once could I fulfill your deepest wish," he says with a little bit of sorrow in his voice "I cannot influence the weather, but I can take you to another a place where it snows,"
Derpy's eyes widen with anticipation. With the drugs still in system, she can't really calm herself down again. The entire flight, she pesters him with all sorts of questions. Santa doesn't seem to mind though. He actually enjoys the company on his otherwise lonely tour. Chitchatting, the ride quickly takes them into a colder area. They don't notice, until a little flake lands on Derpy's nose. Startled by the sudden cold, she jumps in her seat. She looks around and finds herself surrounded by a fields of snow as far as she can see. The snowflakes slowly fall, creating a white curtain around them. Derpy sits there in awe, watching the world around her disappear into nothing but white. Santa signals the reindeer to slowly land on the ground.
The sleigh dashes a few meter through it, churning up large amounts of snow behind it, before finally coming to a halt. As soon as it does, Derpy jumps out of it and into the snow. Her feet sink in a few feet before she gets her balance back. The crunching of the snow is like music to her ears. Taking a handful of the white sea to her feet, she makes a snowball and throws it. Behind her Santa chuckles and smiles about her child-like behavior. Overwhelmed by all this beauty, she lets herself fall backwards. Landing with a small 'puff', she lets out a squeal of joy. With her arms and legs, she makes a snow angel. She tries to do as much as she can in the probably only little time that she has. And she is right. After a few more minutes of joyful play in the snow. Santa clears his throat.
"I am sorry little Derpy, but we have to leave now," he says with sorrow again. "I have to deliver the remaining presents. Even with my magic dust, it is still a tough task to fulfil,"
She looks down sadly, but understanding. It would be too selfish of her to hold back presents of the other kids. Nodding, she bows down and takes a last handful of snow with her before hopping back in the sleigh. As it ascends again, Derpy looks down to the pile in her hand, slowly getting smaller from the airflow. Soon, there is only little left, reminding her only too painful about the drug package she had bought earlier and her lost savings on it. A tear starts to roll down her cheek, until she finally realizes something.
The man really did sell her snow. Not in the way that she expected, but without the cocaine he would've never been awake that late and actually opened the envelope. Now that she thinks about it, another question comes up her mind. 'How did Santa know she would be awake?' Looking at him from the side, she tries to make a sense out of all this. But his mimic does not reveal anything. In fact, the flight back is a much quieter. It is until they land on the roof of Derpy's home. Santa turns to her with an apologetic expression on his face.
"There is only one last thing I have to give you Derpy," he says, producing another envelope "I had to make sure you were still awake when I come. Here is what you gave the man,"
Derpy sits there speechless. The whole thing now makes sense in her mind. Only Santa Claus could be able to plan such a thing. But there is still one last question for her.
"Why did you have to give me cocaine? Couldn't you just give me a letter saying to stay up late?" she is not really angry about it, but more astonished about his methods.
He throws back his head and starts to laugh hearty.
"No, No. That wasn't cocaine Derpy. That was caffeine powder. I could never subject you to such a horrible drug!" he tells her.
Relieved, Derpy climbs out of the sleigh and Santa blows a small handful of powder into her direction. The same sparkling dust engulfs her, taking her back into her apartment. This time it had taken the winter clothes back and replaced them with her pajama. A sudden sleepiness overcomes her and she makes her way back into her bed. Tucking herself into the warm blankets, she falls asleep in a jiffy. The night goes on silently, as she dreams of Derpy's white Christmas.
THE END
