A Unique Christmas

"Do you realise that Christmas is just around the corner?" Browny jackal asked his friend Brutus wolf, grumpily.

- Inderjeet Kaushik

"I know," cried Brutus, "I wish Santa Claus would bring us gifts too."

"Bah, Santa has never brought us gifts, and never will. We are well-known mischief-makers. I think one of us should become Santa and go to White Forest under the pretext of distributing gifts," said Browny.

"We can barely manage our own meals, where will we buy the gifts from?" Brutus replied. "Besides, we have been banned from White Forest. Have forgotten that?"

"How could I forget? That's why I want to disguise myself as Santa and teach them a lesson."

Over the next two days, Browny got a Santa costume made, which he dyed red with crushed wild berries.

He then filled a sack with toys, clothes, and gifts from his saved-up loot, and headed towards White Forest with Brutus on their rickety bike.

Parking the bike at some distance, just as Browny was about to enter the White Forest, he heard a voice.

"Halt! Who are you, and what business do you have in White Forest at this hour?" asked the guard Keshav bear, stopping him at the forest entrance.

"Ho ho ho...I'm Santa Claus!" Browny said in a booming voice. "I'm here to deliver gifts to the children of White Forest!"

"Show me the contents of your sack," Keshav said suspiciously.

Browny opened the sack. Upon seeing toys, clothes, and other gifts inside, Keshav said, "Okay, you may enter White Forest.

But before that, what gift do you have for me?"

"There's a special gift for you, Keshav," Browny said and took a pastry out of his sack. Keshav's mouth watered.

He took the pastry and crammed it into his mouth. The pastry was laced with a strong sleeping medicine and Keshav fell flat on the ground with a thud, snoring loudly.