Holy Night Special 2022

Slowly it became bright outside. It was silent, only the crackling of a fire and the icy wind that was wreaking havoc outside, were to hear. Some snowflakes danced around and got lost in the most diverse places to settle down. The world was bathed in a bright ice blue and every now and then you could see rainbow chroma shimmers in the snow. A new day awaits.

The girl breathed calmly in her sleep but was soon awakened by the increasing brightness of the morning and blinked sleepily. It opened its eyes a bit and then rubbed the sleep out of them. Yawning, she sat up and tried to wake up.

It was cold in the room, so cold that Cheyenne could see her own breath, but that didn’t bother her, after all, she had a mountain of blankets to warm her. She yawned again and opened her eyes completely. She smiled as she remembered what day it was today. She looked around the room and out of the window, where she watched as the dawning morning dispelling the shadows of the night for a while.

Today was Holy Night. An event she had been looking forward to for a long time and couldn’t wait for it to arrive. Holy Night meant for her to spend a quiet, cozy evening by the fireplace with her grandparents, Xaver and his mother. There would be biscuits, a special dinner and now and then even gifts, if the money was enough. Last year she got a stuffed animal in the shape of a cat from Xaver’s mother, which she has been cuddling every day to fall asleep ever since. The stuffed animal was homemade, only the materials had been bought by the mother. So there was a lot of love in the little kitten and for this reason Cheyenne liked it even more.

Xaver’s mother was like her own mother, whom she had never met, as she had died shortly after her birth. She didn’t miss her mother very much, because she was almost like a stranger to her and she didn’t know it any other way, but sometimes she realized that she was missing a mother in her life. But Xaver’s mother mostly treated Cheyenne like her own child. She was a loving woman, always had an open ear, was up for jokes and showed the children a lot of understanding, even if it was an unpleasant situation and other parents would scold. Xaver’s mother was very calm and nice and really loved her child more than anything.

Cheyenne yawned again. Her warm breath made the window mist up and she painted a heart with rays and a Holy Night tree on the tarnished window. She closed her eyes and grinned. Today she would play with Xaver all day and wouldn’t have to help her grandfather at work. Even in the evening he was already at home and would have dinner with her, which was rather rare. Her grandfather really worked a lot to put food on the table. She credited him highly, but she missed him many times, especially when she went to bed, and he was still not home. Today he would have time for her for the whole evening! It’s finally today! I’ve been looking forward to it for so long, I’ll really enjoy this day, after all, it’s only once a year. I’m so looking forward to playing with Xaver! He will surely freeze again, haha.

“Cheyenne, it’s time for breakfast! Are you coming down, little one?” Oh! Cheyenne was pulled out of her thoughts and jumped up from the bed. She was now wide awake and smelled a sweet scent of fresh bread and cocoa, which passed through her room. Mh, smells like Grandmother baked fresh bread and prepared hot cocoa! Delicious! The girl changed in no time at all and had now switched from pajamas with pink flowers to warm black trousers and a green long-sleeved sweater with a wolf motif. She was about to run out of the room when she remembered that she had forgotten her socks. Ah, oops… Which sock color… Purple! Satisfied with her choice, she put on the purple socks with orange petals and now really left her room.

“Good morning, grandmother! It smells so delicious, did you bake?” Cheyenne leaned against the railing of the first floor and waved to her grandmother. “Ah, good morning, little one, yes, some fresh bread, the way you like it best. And I made you cocoa too. Come down, we want to eat, dear.” Cheyenne’s grandmother smiled. She was a kind-hearted woman and always gave her best for Cheyenne. She really tried to read every wish from her lips as best she could. They didn’t have much money, but she did her best to make Cheyenne happy. For the girl, money didn’t count. She was happy if she could just spend time with her grandmother and when they did handicrafts together or played a board game.

Cheyenne trudged down the stairs and ran into the warm kitchen to the dining table. Her grandfather was already sitting at the table and smiling at her. “Well, it’s nice and warm here, isn’t it, my big girl?” “Yes, you made a nice fire, grandfather!” The girl went to him and hugged him. She was now twelve years old and since her birthday her grandfather called her ‘big girl’ and no longer ‘small girl’. Her grandmother had said she would remain to call her ‘little one’ forever, no matter how old she was. But I’m almost an adult! Meh…

She sat down at the table and her grandmother joined in, fresh, warm steaming bread in one hand and hot cocoa in the other. A bit of sausage, cheese and jam was already on the table, plates and cutlery as well. As soon as the bread landed on the table, Cheyenne stretched out her hand to take a bun and smelled it. “Hmmm!” She was happy about the smallest things, such as this piece of bread and put it on her plate. “Be careful, they can still be hot, don’t burn yourself, dear.” Her grandmother came to her side and cut open her bun. “Grandma, you really make the best buns in the whole Undercity!” “Haha, thank you, little one. I’m very happy about that.”

Just as Cheyenne was about to fill her bun, there was a knock at the front door. Huh? Oh, maybe it’s Xaver! With a quick glance at her grandmother asking for permission, the girl jumped up and ran to the front door. It opened and an icy breeze with snowflakes fell into the house. But that wasn’t all – her best friend Xaver also scurried trembling through the door and closed it right after. “Brrrr… So cold out there…” He leaned his back against the closed door and looked into the room. “G-Good morning, brrr… I’m sorry t-that I just storm in, b-but I’m freezing.” “Hahaha, all good!” Cheyenne laughed at him. Her grandmother took a blanket from the sofa and went to Xaver to throw it over him. “Here please Xaver, come in and warm up!” The boy wanted to refuse, as he does not like to use the hospitality of others, but Cheyenne’s grandmother already knew him well enough and ignored his rejection gesture.

“Uhm, hey Xaver, have you had breakfast yet?” With a questioning look, she took his cold hand. “I bet you haven’t yet!” The boy looked at her and blushed slightly, then averted his gaze. “Ehm, yes, I have, but it doesn’t matter.” “Oh Xaver, you shouldn’t lie, dear.” With an acting stern look and a finger in the air, Cheyenne’s grandmother pretended to scold him. “Hah, so you haven’t yet, then eat with us, come on.” She pulled on his hand. “That’s okay, isn’t it, grandmother?” Without really waiting for an answer, she pulled Xaver to the kitchen and in front of a chair. “But of course, I thought of something like that and made enough buns for everyone.” Although Cheyenne’s grandparents had little money, they never debated about inviting Xaver and his mother to dinner. His small family had a hard time themselves and often had to hunger.

“Good morning, lad.” Cheyenne’s grandfather winked at Xaver. “Good morning, and thank you… For the warm blanket and food. I hope we can help you or invite you…” Xaver looked to the ground. He was always visibly uncomfortable accepting the help of others. Cheyenne’s grandmother brought him a hot cocoa and put her hand on his shoulder. “Oh, dear, you’re always welcome here, you’re already part of our family, you don’t have to return the favor, you hear? You’re almost our own grandchild, so it’s all good. This doesn’t have to be so uncomfortable for you and now come and eat something. You have to grow big and strong to protect our little Cheyenne, don’t you?” “Grandmother!” Cheyenne and Xaver turned red in the face and avoided exchanging glances. The grandparents laughed and then they had breakfast.

After they had satisfied their hunger and warmed up, it was time for what Cheyenne had been looking forward to for several days. A whole day of playing with Xaver! Without having to help her grandparents or learn in books. She liked to help and learn, but of course she enjoys a whole day of free time even more. There was no school in the undercity and so she had to teach herself to read and write. She received a lot of help from her grandmother, who insisted that she learned, but most of the time she did it alone or witch Xaver so would not to be a burden to her grandmother even more.

So the two children got up and thanked the old woman for the food. “Cheyenne, do you really want to play outside? It’s insanely cold…” Xaver snuggled up even more in the blanket and put on a dog look. “Huh? Of course, we play outside, that’s what we agreed, come on, it’s going to be fun! It’s not that cold, let’s go!” Cheyenne ran to the door and put on her boots and coat. “Come on, Xaver, let’s go!” She grinned and closed her eyes for a moment. The boy sighed and surrendered to his friend. He could not refuse her wish. “Yes, yes, I’m already on my way.” With a wistful look, he put the warm blanket back on the sofa and also went to the door, where Cheyenne was already ready to leave. “Ready?” She smiled at him, and he couldn’t help but smile back. “Yes, yes, I’m here.” The girl opened the door and ran out. Xaver went after her. “Cheyenne, wait, you forgot your scarf!” The girl’s grandmother rushed to the door with a red scarf and called her back. Oh, that’s right, there was something. Oops, hehe. Cheyenne ran back to the front door and picked up her scarf, which her grandmother gently wrapped around her neck. “So, now you’re ready, dear. But don’t go too far away and don’t come home too late, yes? Take care of yourselves!” While the grandmother was still speaking, Cheyenne was already running forward again, Xaver ran slowly after her. “Yes, grandmother!” The girl turned around while running and waved to the elderly lady.

There was a lot of snow, only the main path was cleared, so you could walk on it without sinking in. The two children ran down to the river and met old Rosi and her husband on the way, who were going for a walk. Cheyenne waved to them as they walked past and laughed, Xaver greeted and then continued to run after Cheyenne. “Cheyenne, why so fast?” He could hardly keep up. She turned around while running and hopped backwards “Because it’s fun!” “Cheyenne, watch out!” But it was too late to pay attention. Cheyenne left the path and jumped directly into the high snow. She sank in and fell on her back. “Cheyenne, everything alright?” Xaver approached her with a worried expression. “Ahahahaha!” The girl laughed and rejoiced at her fall. “Again, haha, that was funny!” The boy had to smile and slapped his hand in front of his head. “You… What kind of stuff do you do… Aren’t you cold now?” “Nope, It’s fine. Oh, I have an idea!” Cheyenne began to move her arms and legs, making a snow angel. “Come on Xaver, make one too!” Xaver, however, closed his eyes and confidently declined the offer. “No. Unambiguous answer. No. I’m already cold, so I don’t lie down in the snow. You nut.” Cheyenne laughed and slowly stood up. She made her way back to the main path where her friend was standing and looked at her artwork. “Isn’t it beautiful?” “Yes, totally. Almost as beautiful as yo-” Xaver caught his breath and he put his hand over his mouth. His friend looked at him questioningly. “Like what?” “Like… your… angel figure my mom has that you gifted her once!” “Ah, yes that one, thank you!” Xaver exhaled in relief and scratched his head. “Yes… hehe.”

The two walked on to the river, which was frozen. “Hey, come on, we can ice skate on the river!” Cheyenne was happy about her idea and ran down the small but steep slope to the riverbed. “Cheyenne, wait, you’re going to break in! Be reasonable, that’s dangerous, stop!” Xaver tried to stop her but couldn’t and rushed after her. “Oh, nonsense, it’s certainly cold enough, the river is certainly totally frozen, don’t be a scaredy-cat!” “My goodness, this has nothing to do with fear, you will sink in, stop! Ah!” Xaver slipped and landed on his butt. Slowly he glided onto the frozen river and then sat rigidly on the ice. “Oh… Damn…” Cheyenne paused for a moment, then laughed and continued to descend until she stood next to the stiff Xaver. “You see. No need to panic, it’s thick enough. Now get up and don’t be a scaredy-cat.” With a mocking look, she stretched out her hand to him. She had to force herself not to grin. “Oh, love you too…” Xaver sighed and took her hand. As soon as he tried to get up, it shredded him right back. Cheyenne also slipped thanks to him and landed on her butt. “Ouch… Hahah!” The girl was obviously having fun. The boy also rubbed his buttocks and sighed again. He gave up and laughed as well.

Somehow the two managed to get back on their feet and for a while they ran on the ice. They raced, played tag, and fell countless times. Nevertheless, they had a lot of fun on the river. It must have been early afternoon when Cheyenne suddenly had the idea to build a snowman. The two left the ice and moved further away from the city. They walked along the main road and found a nice place to build a snowman. There is so much snow here, that’s enough for 10 snowmen. The two friends started to roll balls and throw snowballs at each other. They interrupted the snowman building for a small snowball fight. Cheyenne started it and caught Xaver firmly on the back. “D-ouch! Hey, you’ll get that back!” Xaver built himself a small wall and rolled some balls. “Oh, you want war? Okay, you’re going to get war, haha!” Cheyenne was happy that she didn’t have to persuade her friend to do something this time. She also built a small wall of snow and formed balls. And so snowballs shot through the air, sometimes they hit, sometimes not, sometimes in the middle of the face, sometimes on the arm or on the chest. The two had a lot of fun.

After a while, the two friends were out of breath and decided to pursue their actual plan – to build a snowman. Enough balls to roll around now. Xaver, who was slightly taller than Cheyenne, lifted the middle part to the bottom and she then fixed the head on the ice-blue sculpture made of snow. “Hm, we don’t have a carrot for the nose… And what do we take as eyes and buttons?” The boy looked thoughtfully at the snowman. “Yes… Well, anyway, we’ll just take stones, come!” Cheyenne ran back to the main road and dug for stones. Xaver did the same and soon they had collected enough for the snowman. The children went back to the building site and decorated their artwork with the stones. The snowman could now smile, see something, and even got buttons for a jacket. With a high five, the two friends finished their work and Cheyenne continued to run through the snow. Xaver after her.

In the snow there were some animal tracks to see and so they decided to follow the tracks to possibly find animals. They wondered what trace it was, but were sure that they were those of a deer. They also saw those of a hare and stopped at a clear trace of a wolf. “Oh, that must be from a wolf, come on, we’ll follow the trail. But we have to be careful… Not that we will be discovered.” Cheyenne was about to move on when her friend held her. “Hey, I’m really cold… And it’s already afternoon, I think we should go home now… And I’m not going after of a wolf anyway and you don’t pursue it either, okay?” The girl looked at her best friend. Slowly the snow fell more and more and an icy wind came up. “Hm, well, then let’s go home.” She agreed and the two trudged after the tracks they had made while walking.

Suddenly, a soft whimper sounded. Cheyenne stopped and looked around. “What is it?” Xaver also came to a halt. “Didn’t you hear that?” With a questioning look, the girl stared at him. She knew by now that she could hear better than her best friend, but the fact that he hadn’t heard that noise irritated her. “No, I didn’t hear anything. Are you sure you didn’t imagine it?” “Yes, definitely…” She looked down and closed her eyes. Cheyenne tried to listen again, but now she couldn’t perceive anything. Hm… What that was… There was definitely something… Maybe an animal? She looked in the direction from which the noise had come.

“Well, anyway, come on, I don’t want to freeze to death out here…” Xaver urged her to continue. His friend, however, stopped. I need to know what that was, it almost sounded like it needed help… “Hey Xaver, one last game, okay?” “Oh, Cheyenne, really, I’m co-” “Please! Because today is a special day! Please, please?” Cheyenne tilted her head and looked at him with a dog’s eye. Xaver sighed and closed his eyes briefly. “Well… I can’t deny you a wish. So, what else do you want to play?” “Hide and Seek!” “Right…” “You’re counting to fifty and I’m hiding in the meantime, yes?” The boy agreed. He would find her quickly anyway, since there was hardly a place to hide on the plain where they were except a few trees. He started counting and Cheyenne started running.

The noise came from this direction… The girl trudged through the high snow and had continued to prick up her ears in case she heard the beeping again. Suddenly, this is exactly what happened. There it was again, it sounds like a whining… It comes from the forest direction. She started walking as best she could – now that she was so close to finding out what made the sound, she couldn’t let Xaver find her.

Meanwhile, the wind increased and the snow fell more and more mercilessly from the sky. Cheyenne had to blink very often, because flakes constantly flew into her eyes. Her eyelashes were already full of snow and now was the time when even she noticed the cold and she began to shiver slightly. Just keep moving, then I’ll get warm again! Poor Xaver, he must be standing there freezing now, but I can’t possibly ignore it! Huh? These are the paw tracks that we saw earlier, which are caused by the wolf… But somehow I shouldn’t run into it… She stopped for a moment and followed the trail with her eyes. Argh… Of course, this leads exactly into the forest where the whining comes from… Oh, wait, maybe a wolf got injured and needs help? I could help him and then we would become friends and I would be the only one in the undercity with a wolf! B-But my grandparents wouldn’t like that and people would probably be scared, so oh yes… What a pity… But if it’s injured… I should help it… I don’t like it when animals suffer, even if it’s dangerous… I’d better not tell Xaver… With a fixed glance at the trail, she imagined how long her best friend’s moral sermon would last and shook her head. My gosh… I can take care of myself, Xaver… I know exactly what I’m doing. She nodded firmly determined to follow this trail and started moving again.

Meanwhile, Xaver finished counting and he turned around. There was nothing to see of Cheyenne far and wide. Only her tracks in the snow. “Do you even think…?” The boy shook his head and sighed. He would have found his friend in no time at all. Shivering, he began to follow the trail and rubbed his arms from the cold. The wind increased more and more and it became darker. Snow also fell more and more and slowly began to erase the traces of Cheyenne. “That… is not good now.” Xaver stopped and watched how quickly the snow shot to the ground. “It’s getting more and more… If this continues, I’ll lose track of her before I find her…” An icy strong breeze swept over the boy and blew snow into his face. He had to turn around to stand against the wind that almost knocked him over. “Oh, damn, there’s bound to be a blizzard… And we’re out here, great. Cheyenne, perfect timing as always… And if I could guess, I’d say playing hide and seek is just an excuse for you wanting to follow that wolf trail or the sound you supposedly heard… Argh, why did I agree to that, we should be on our way home a long time ago… Man, Cheyenne, I hope I find you…”

Cheyenne ran closer and closer to the edge of the forest. By now she was very far away from her home and she also noticed that it was getting darker and icier. A snowstorm was coming. And it certainly wasn’t an easy one. She couldn’t see anything of the paw tracks in the snow anymore and she wouldn’t be able to trace her own tracks. She would have to rely on her sense of direction to get back home. If I had known that, I would have told Xaver to go home… He will never find me… I hope he just goes home and doesn’t freeze to death out here… She stopped. The wind was now so strong that it threw her off balance and the snow was so deep that it already reached above her knees and it became more and more. She decided to seek shelter from the storm under the trees in the forest. She hadn’t heard the noise for a while.

Xaver could hardly see his own hand in front of his eyes, so much snow fell from the sky. He had to constantly fight against the wind to move forward. “I have…no idea where I am right now…” He had gotten lost and there was no trace of his friend. “I never thought I could lose track of her in the snow, but tadaa… I did the impossible… Great…” His whole body was shaking and he was unsure what to do. He knew it would soon be dark and then he would be lost out here. He would not survive the night in the cold if he had not been eaten by wild animals before freezing to death. “Cheyenne…” On the other hand, he was worried about his friend. “Cheyenne! Where are you?! Come on, this is getting dangerous, we have to go home. It’s getting dark! Cheyenne, come out!” His cries were lost in the wind and there was no answer. Meanwhile, it was getting darker and darker, not only because of the increasing clouds, but also because of the onset of night. They had really been playing outside all day and soon Xaver would be blind as a mole in the darkness. “Damn, what do I do now?” He stopped trembling and tried to find his balance against the strong wind. “Ngh…” He didn’t want to leave his friend out here alone, but he couldn’t find her and it would soon be pitch black, he got lost himself and noticed how he was getting tired from the cold and finding it difficult for him to walk. With a heavy heart, he decided to break off the search for his friend and look for a way home. “I’m sure you’ve gotten lost too… I get help and chroma lanterns. Don’t worry, Cheyenne, I’ll find you. Please hold on…”

Cheyenne stood under a tree, her hand touching the icy bark. Good thing she had gloves, otherwise she would probably have frozen fingers by now. And now? Should I really wait for the storm to subside? This can take all night… My grandparents and Xaver will die of worry… I really hope Xaver has gone home… If something happens to him because of me, I’ll never forgive myself… The girl began to blame herself for her ill-considered action. She had put her best friend in danger and would cause grief to her grandparents. And all this for nothing, since she could not identify the source of the noise. All for nothing…
Xaver trudged through the snow, breathing heavily. The icy air burned in his lungs, but he had to keep going, he couldn’t just stop. Time was running against him. Suddenly, he stumbled and fell. “Argh, damn…” He pulled himself together and wondered. He had fallen on an area where the snow was not so high. The difference must have made him fall. “The main street!”
I’m really far away from home… But staying here doesn’t make sense either, the storm won’t be over in the next half hour… I should try to go home. Cheyenne turned around. She was now in the forest, which meant she had to go back where she came from, towards the flat fields. So let’s go. But just as she was about to leave, the whimpering noise sounded again. This time it was barely audible and sounded very weak. Huh!!! The girl stopped and looked in the direction from which she had heard the noise. Without thinking, she started moving and running.
After a few meters she stopped again and listened. Nothing. Grr… Damn, but it was very close, it must be here somewhere, but I don’t see anything… “Hey, where are you?” She kept booting, hoping that the something would respond to her voice. A powerless whining sounded. Cheyenne turned around and found that the sound was coming from the tree behind her. It was a big tree that had many huge roots that you could see even under the snow. Suddenly, she heard another noise – it sounded like someone was digging in the snow, but only very slightly. Huh? Where does that come from, I don’t see anything… But it has to be here somewhere! She examined the tree and found a small hole in one of its large roots. She looked inside and was confirmed directly with a whine.
Xaver ran as fast as he could to make it to the undercity in time before it was pitch black. He reached the river and could hardly breathe. “Argh, it burns…” His lungs hurt, but he couldn’t stop now, he was so close now. At least he was a little warmer now, but he still felt the cold. He ran across the bridge of the river and arrived in the undercity. Chroma street lamps now illuminated his way. He had done it! Without slowing down, he ran up the path to Cheyenne’s house. The girl’s grandmother stood at the window and saw him, whereupon she opened the door for him. “Xaver, boy, we’ve been so worried, finally you’re back home!” Xaver’s mother was also at Cheyenne’s house and came to him with a blanket. “You must be infinitely cold, come here, I’ll cover you quickly. Warm up. I’m glad nothing happened to you.” “Mom, Cheyenne… She… is still outside… We… have to search for her!” Xaver was totally out of breath, rejected the blanket and grabbed himself a chroma lantern from the wardrobe. Cheyenne’s grandfather joined them. “What do you mean Cheyenne is still out? Xaver, what happened?” As soon as the boy caught his breath, he told the whole story and urged the adults to look for her. He was now shivering with excitement and also from the cold, he had tears in his eyes and was infinitely worried about Cheyenne. “I didn’t want to leave her alone, but I didn’t know what to do but get help… I don’t see anything at night… I’m so sorry, please, we have to find her!” The grandparents understood that Xaver was not to blame and that he was really worried. “Abel, please get more lanterns from the barn, we have to find the little one.” Without hesitation, Cheyenne’s grandfather made his way to the barn. “Xaver.” The boy’s mother put the blanket over him. “You stay here and warm up, we’ll find Cheyenne. You told us where you were playing.” She kissed Xaver on the forehead and accompanied him to the sofa in front of the warm fireplace. “But, but I…” “Xaver, don’t talk again, you stay here and warm up. Otherwise you’ll get sick!” Lovingly but strictly, the mother sat down the boy and got him a second blanket. “Have faith in your mother, we’ll find her. I promise.” She had never promised her son anything she couldn’t keep and so Xaver became calmer. He wiped the tears from his cheeks and snuggled up in the blankets. He looked at the small decorated Holy NIght tree and hoped that this evening would end well. The adults set off.
In the forest it was now quite dark. Fortunately, this was no problem for Cheyenne, as she could also see well at night. No one knew how this was possible. She stood in front of the hole from which the whimpering sound came and looked inside. Oh no! In front of her she saw two small paws and a wolf-like snout buried in the snow. The little creature could barely breathe, but would soon suffocate in the snow if she did not help him. “Hold on, little one…” The girl did not hesitate and dug out the feeble, trembling puppy. “So, now you can move again and breathe properly…” But the little one was just trembling on the ground, did not even have the strength to lift his head. He must have been fighting against the snow for a very long time and there was no sign of his mother far and wide. Well… It would be good for the little one, but bad for me if the mother were here… She looked at the little bundle. It was an emaciated, petite, really small wolf puppy with a silver, wet and frozen coat. But there was something special about it that Cheyenne had only seen in books before. Are these… sensors? The little puppy had turquoise, antennae-like extensions on his head. She followed the strange body parts and found the cause of the little one’s distress. Oh no, you got tangled up with your sensors… The wolf puppy had somehow managed to make a kind of knot with his sensors around one of the tree roots and could not free himself. The knot was quite tight, the little one must have tried for a very long time and with strength to free himself and thus tighten the knot more and more. “That must hurt… You feel that, don’t you?” There was no reaction. “Wait, I’ll help you…” She did her best to untie the knot as gently as possible, which was not so easy. After a while, however, she had made it and the little puppy was freed. “Ha! Done! Now you’re free again.” But the little bundle just lay trembling on the ground and did not move. Cheyenne was worried and knew that the little one wouldn’t make it through the night out here. Who knows how long he had been struggling to survive. The puppy clearly did not have the strength to stand up, let alone protect himself from the snow. And without a mother, food procurement would not be successful either. Without hesitation, she came to a decision. “Come on, I’ll take you to my house… You can warm up and when you feel better, you can get out into the wide world again, okay?” Without waiting for an answer, she took her scarf and wrapped the feeble ball of fur in it to warm it at least a little. It felt very wet and cold and if it wasn’t in a warm place soon, it would probably die.
In the meantime it had become pitch dark. Cheyenne desperately needed to take the little one to a warm place, she couldn’t wait for the blizzard to subside. So she set off. On good luck, she ran out of the forest, hoping that she was heading in the right direction to the capital. The wind whipped in her face and made it difficult for her to move. If the forest is here, then the capital should always be straight out… She pursued this theory and always went straight out. She had tightly enclosed the little bundle and put it in her coat so that it would have more warmth than just the scarf. You’re a fairy wolf, huh? I’ve seen something like you in books… You are very, very rare… What are you doing here? Were these other traces I saw of your mother? If so, why aren’t you with her? What happened…

Cheyenne trudged through the snow for quite a while. Breathing was difficult due to the icy air, but she had to bring the little puppy home and had no time to lose. Hopefully I’m really on the right track… She looked down so as not to get the snow in her face. She couldn’t see far through the storm anyway, she just had to go straight ahead. Some time later, she heard something familiar. “Cheyenne!” “Cheyenne, where are you, dear?!” Grandmother, grandfather! She looked up and saw chroma glow in the distance. That would mean that she would have gone in the right direction! “Here I am!” She shouted with all her strength, hoping that it would be enough for them to hear her. She knew she could hear far better than her grandparents and worried that she could hear her grandparents, but not the other way around. In fact, they didn’t seem to hear it, so Cheyenne trudged towards the glow. “Cheyenne! There you are, we were so worried, what kind of stuff are you doing, dear!” Cheyenne’s grandmother came up to her and hugged her. “What have you got there?” “Grandmother, we don’t have time, we have to go home quickly, otherwise the little puppy will die!” With a questioning look, the old lady looked at the girl, but did not ask any further and so they made their way home. Xaver’s mother was also there. “Well, you have a lot to report, young lady. Xaver was in tears with worry for you.” “He did what? Haha!” Cheyenne was amused, but also touched, that her best friend cared so much about her. Together they trudged through the snow and headed towards the undercity.

Xaver stood at the window, cuddled up in two blankets and waited impatiently for the arrival of his best friend and that of the adults. “They take so long… Hopefully they find her and hopefully nothing happened to her…” Then he saw how the chroma glow outside became brighter and was sure that it had to come from the chroma lanterns of the adults! “Cheyenne!” Xaver ran to the door and opened it. The freezing wind blew in his face and he shuddered, but he didn’t care. He wanted his friend to be safe. In fact, a group of people approached him and he recognized the grandparents, his mother and Cheyenne as they got closer. He ran up to the girl and hugged her, “Cheyenne, I was so worried, never do that again, okay?” “Yes, I’m sorry, it’s okay, please let me pass!” His best friend broke free from the embrace and ran into the house. Xaver stood there in confusion and then hurried after her. The adults also went into the house and locked the door from the cold.

Cheyenne knelt by the fireplace and pulled the little bundle out of her coat. She put it in front of the fireplace and took off her coat to wrap the little puppy even warmer. “What is that?” Xaver came closer confused but curious and looked at the ball of fur. “A-a wolf?” “What?” Cheyenne’s grandfather came closer and soon everyone had gathered around the fireplace staring at the little pile of misery. Cheyenne began to tell how she had found the little one and what distress he was in and that she wanted to nurse him up. “Yes and I just couldn’t let it die there… Can we please keep it until it’s fit again to survive on its own?” The grandparents looked at each other and agreed. “Well, as long as it’s so small, it’s unlikely to eat us. All right, dear, we’ll keep it for now and nurse it up again!” Cheyenne rejoiced and stroked the little bundle. “Cheyenne…” She flinched at her grandfather’s voice. “… Yes, grandfather?” Cheyenne slowly turned to her grandfather and Xaver had to pull himself together not to laugh out loud. “I think it’s great that you want to help an animal, but you’ve put Xaver in enormous danger here and yourself as well. Did you really think there would be no moral lecture now?” The girl sighed and was now allowed to listen to her grandfather’s lecture, under the grin of her best friend, how dangerous her ill-considered action was and what could have happened.

While her grandfather scolded her, her grandmother prepared dinner. It was something very special. A piece of beef for everyone with potatoes and sauce. Some of these things had been bought by the grandmother from the market with the little money they had left. Xaver sat on the sofa, leaning against his mother and cuddled up in his warm blankets. At a certain point, everyone started laughing and having fun. They were all just happy that the little adventure had turned out well. And Cheyenne took her grandfather seriously, but after a while she always found his moralizing funny, and the old man just couldn’t be too strict with her.

The five always spent Holy NIght together and Xaver and his mother were invited this time. But it would be spent at Xaver’s home next year. They always took turns. Last year they were all invited to Rosi. This year, however, the old lady and her husband had a visit from their children and wanted to spend a quiet family celebration. At Holy Night, the family is honored, the end of the year and the little things that meant a lot to the people of the undercity. You celebrate your daily bread, which you were allowed to have this year, the harvest you had, the beautiful events you were allowed to experience and that you were allowed to be at the side of your loved ones. As a special tradition, one goes through the house and consecrates everything with incense to bless it and obtain the protection of the gods. That’s why it’s called Holy Night. Also this year Cheyenne and her grandparents followed this tradition and before they had dinner they dedicated the entire house and the barn to get the blessing of the gods. Whether it was really true, nobody knew, but the belief moves mountains said her grandmother always.

After they had dinner, the girl looked after the little wolf puppy. She had left him a piece of meat and put it in front of his nose along with a bowl of water. The little one sniffed and opened his eyes, then very carefully and slowly grabbed the piece of meat and devoured it hungry. “Well, there you go, I think you’re feeling a little better. But you seem really starved… I don’t want to know how long you’ve been stuck there…” Cheyenne stroked the now dry fur of the little one’s head, who had put its head back on the ground and closed his eyes again. The girl snuggled up to Xaver on the sofa and he pulled her under his blanket. “Come here…” Cheyenne smiled with her eyes closed and was happy. An evening with her loved ones and a gift for Holy Night, which you could not pay. Even though there were no other gifts this year, she was absolutely satisfied. After all, she was allowed to save a small wolf puppy and play with Xaver for a whole day, she was allowed to have a lot of fun and a delicious dinner on top of that. Her grandmother brought the children homemade cookies and hot cocoa.

The adults sat at the table and played a board game, while Cheyenne sat cuddled up to Xaver on the sofa. “Hm… I still need a name for the little one…” “How do you even know it’s male, did you check, or what?” Xaver blushed slightly and avoided her gaze. “Haha, no, but I feel it okay? He just seems so masculine, just like you.” The girl grinned and started laughing when she saw that Xaver was really red in the face. “Haha, you’re red as a tomato!” “Stop it, you nut…” The boy twitched his eyebrows and then looked at her with just one eye. “So… Name?” His friend thought for a moment and looked at the Holy Night tree. “Ah, I’ve got it! I call the little one ‘Adocaz’.” “Huh? Adocaz? How do you come up with that now?” “Do you remember the one book with the old Ying-Yang language that we looked through together? The word ‘Adorable’ means ‘lovely, sweet’ and the word ‘Caze’ means ‘wind’. So ‘Adocaz’ – lovely wind. Because I like the incense so much and that’s also a lovely wind and above all the whole house smells just like it, so even the little one, hihi.” Xaver shook his head. “You and your ideas… Any other person would call their pet Luna, or Ruby or Teddy and you come here with your Yin-Yang language and these are probably the only words you’ve remembered from the whole book, so you’re just inventing something because it’s with lovely wind. Am I right?” “Psscht, it’s really not invented! I like it. Adocaz. I think that’s a nice name.” Xaver put his hand on her head. “Yes, yes, it’s a nice name…” Then the two snuggled up to each other again and fell asleep after a while. The fire crackled while the storm raged outside, but the two friends were happy that the adventure had ended well and they could even help a little soul. So Holy Night Eve passed and the silence of the night broke in while the undercity went to sleep.