The Nutcracker of Winter
1
It was Christmas Eve and Toothiana watched the snow fall outside her window. The street lights glowed as the flecks of snow gently descended onto the sidewalk. She watched people go by bundled up in coats and scarves making their way home from the day's activities.
She shivered just from watching them, she had been inside all helping her father and sister helping set up all the decorations before her mother got home. Her father always put up the decorations on Christmas Eve. Her mother was always working but it was to be expected when your own mother was an airplane pilot. Toothiana never really saw her and when she did, she had to make sure she spent as much time with her as possible.
The arrival of a car outside suddenly drew her attention and Toothiana stared at the red pick-up truck. A large towering man stepped out, adorned in a thick black coat that obscured his face. However Tooth only needed to see the car and she knew her who it immediately belonged to.
"Uncle North!" She cried, running down the stairs and creating thumping footsteps. She was suddenly joined by about three young girls who were running after the teenager. They were shouting excitedly as the front door opened.
Tooth was the first one to jump onto North and he gave a hearty laugh hugging Tooth back. The three trouble-makers otherwise known as Tooth's sisters also joined in the hug. The weight was enough to almost topple over North who was a very heavy set man and very strong.
He managed to steady himself on a radiator and let the girls drop him.
"Everyone's excited to see me, no?" He asked, his voice reminiscent of his russian heritage.
"We only get to see you once a year, Uncle North! You're always busy with the toy shop." Bratati piped up. She was the oldest of Tooth's sisters being around twelve years old.
"Ah so everyone is excited to see me! I must come more!" North announced and Tooth smiled as she listened to her sisters babble to him. They were telling him everything that had happened to the family over the past year to birthdays and vacations that they had been on.
Once the three of them had talked their head off for a couple of minutes. North began to take off his large coat. He hung it on the staircase and turned to Tooth who had been standing behind him throughout the exchange of the children.
"Where is Haroom?" North asked.
"Dad's in the kitchen, trying to make your favourite cookies. I think he's going to burn them again. He's not a great cook even with something as simple as cookies." Tooth laughed causing North to smile. The smile reached his blue eyes, they seemed to gleam with wonder.
If Tooth was to describe North, she would have described him as the Santa Claus you didn't expect. At a towering 6 foot five, he dwarfed the small girl who had stopped growing short of five foot. He only appeared to be in his sixties and had long white hair. His beard was also long. If Tooth didn't know any better, she would really call North the real santa claus as he did have quite a belly on him but this was easily hidden by his height and muscle.
He wasn't really her 'Uncle'. He had looked after her when she had been younger at the toy shop when her parents had always been working and that they hadn't been able to afford a babysitter unlike now with her younger siblings. North was just an old family friend.
"Why not your's Tooth? You have a special magic." North recalled. Tooth knew he was remembering last year where she had decided to cook some cookies for a school christmas fayre. She had some left off and North had scoffed them all.
"Afraid not this year. You still have the trusty 'Sleigh.' then." She noted. She was referring to his pick-up truck.
"Yes! You cannot beat 'Sleigh', most-trusty worthy vehicle."
"Now let's go get cookies!" North announced and Tooth followed him into the kitchen.
Her father was running around the kitchen, wafting away a bit of smoke away from the oven. Tooth grimaced. Why hadn't she just agreed to do them again? Well she would have been hyperactive in the kitchen for one. She loved baking, there was so much you could create!
Haroom placed a tray on the kitchen side. Tooth caught sight and noticed that they were black and she almost cried. They were horrible to look at! Almost like when someone's tooth had a cavity. She knew that cookies could give you cavities but you should be allowed to enjoy yourself once in a while.
North looked at them but didn't hesitate to pick a cookie off the tray and shove it straight into his mouth. He crunched down on it quickly and swallowed it before it could burn his throat.
"Not your best, Haroom. Still something to eat." North gave his comments about Haroom's cooking and began to laugh. His laugh was loud and deep, always coming straight from his belly as if he meant it.
"It could have been worse." Haroom muttered still wearing his cookie apron.
Tooth stared at his father, somehow he had flour in his hair and all over his face.
She took a look around the kitchen, it was like a battlefield. Flour and pastry were everywhere along the kitchen sides and up the oven door. She sighed, they had to clean up quick before her mother came home tomorrow.
"Dad, why don't you go and have a shower?" Tooth smiled and gestured upstairs.
Haroom nodded, taking off his apron. "Yeah, I will. I'll be done in a bit, go in and join your sisters. I'm sure they're waiting for their presents off North."
Haroom walked past his daughter and she followed him out and turned left to enter the lounge. North came in after and sat on the couch, he had taken up most of it but this didn't seem to faze Tooth's sisters as Bratati was on his knee. The other two, Dhali and Chitta were on the floor staring up at him.
"Are we going to get our presents now, Uncle North?" Dhali asked, bouncing on the spot. Tooth smiled at her six year old sister. At the youngest, she was usually the most shy but North seemed to bring out the curiosity and wonder in her.
"Yes, young Dhali!" North said excitedly and dug into his pant pocket. He gave her a wooden carved bird and Dhali expressed delight as she touched it. "It's so pretty!" She cooed.
He handed out similar carvings to the other two girls who both equally expressed pure delight as well.
Tooth knelt down next to Dhali so she could get a better look at the carving. It was a hummingbird but the shape was a little different. The strange thing about the carving was that it had human eyes and a small little beak. Tooth would have almost called the carvings, fairies.
"They're beautiful, North. Did you make them yourself?" Tooth asked. North nodded and smiled. He had always been very skilled with his hands.
"I also have something for you, Toothiana." North said and pulled out another thing from his pocket. Tooth swore that his pockets were bigger on the inside, how much could he fit in them?
She caught sight of it and noticed that it was wood. Was it a hummingbird carving as well?
"What is it?"
North presented it to her and she stared at it. It was a nutcracker but it didn't look like traditional nutcrackers. It's hair was white and it's eyes were a strange blue that seemed otherworldly. It had a very beautiful face to look at before the dispenser. The nutcracker was wearing a blue coat covered in buttons and brown pants however the strange thing was that the nutcracker had no shoes on. It was almost like the paint had been scratched off. It was a beautiful nutcracker but why had North given it to her, she didn't need it.
"North, it's beautiful but I don't understand. I don't eat nuts so I don't really need a nutcracker."
"I have given it you because you used to play with it when you were a child!" North replied. He looked excited as Tooth held the nutcracker in her hand.
"I don't remember." Tooth answered, trying to remember about the nutcracker in particular. The only thing she could bring up was a hazy fog.
"Well you were very little indeed!"
"Did you make this?" Tooth wondered, turning it over in her palm.
North shook his head. "Came into my possession many years ago. I cleaned attic and found it, thought that you might want it."
Tooth was too kind to deny a gift, so she accepted it. "Well thank you, North. I think I'll put it on my shelf."
She was seventeen years old! What was she supposed to do with a nutcracker? She supposed she could use it for decoration but it would have to go back into the attic after Christmas was over, it was such a waste of such a beautiful ornament. Tooth decided that she was going to keep it in her room for the time being.
Tooth excused herself from the company and went upstairs. She walked back into the room and saw a slightly empty shelf. It had a few plushies on it and other ornaments but she couldn't decide where to place the Nutcracker. Pushing a few books aside on teeth, she placed it on the bottom shelf away from sight. It would have to do for now.
She caught a glimpse of herself as she walked past her wall mirror. Her dark brown hair was still covered with her multi-coloured streaks that had been an experiment. She didn't know about them yet but thought that she might keep them. Tooth had dark skin that was the jealousy of many of her friends who couldn't tan to save their lives. Tooth guessed it came from being Indian.
Walking past the mirror, she went back downstairs to join North and her sisters. Her father joined them about ten minutes later and they talked for a while about mishaps and about Tooth's upcoming exams. She was in her last year of high school and wanted to follow in her father's footsteps and become a dentist. Tooth knew that this was going to be a lot of work but she had been studying a lot and she felt ready for them when they came the following spring.
The night soon got away from them and it was soon time for North to go. Tooth was one who saw him to the door.
"Nutcracker is very special, Toothiana. Took good care of it." North stated as he said goodbye and walked out into the snow and towards his car.
Tooth waved goodbye and didn't really take into account what North had meant. Did he mean the design was unique? She shrugged it off, whatever he had meant, it didn't really matter.
It was almost 11 and Tooth gave a long yawn. Her sisters would be tucked in bed as they were waiting for Santa to come and bring them more presents. She supposed it was time for her to head to bed too. Her father was probably already in bed by now.
Tooth didn't bother to get changed, instead she slumped on her bed in her sweater and jeans and fall asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.
For about an hour, the whole house was quiet as a mouse. All that could be heard were the occasional groans of the house settling and the clock ticking.
However as soon as the clock struck midnight, a strange ethereal glow began to appear in Tooth's bedroom.