The tentative silence was broken as a cheer went up on the other side of the room. Sally was busy trying to ignore it as she wanted to get her work done on time so she could go home. It was that wonderful time of the year again, the holidays. Her workplace around this time of year becomes a bit of a madhouse. Everybody is rushing to get things done on time and trying to meet their deadlines. Everyone is in high spirits and singing holiday songs or talking about the plans they have made with their families.
Sally was not one of those people. She thought the holidays were just a gimmick for stores to make money and rob good hard-working people of their well-earned cold hard cash. Her family had never celebrated the holidays when she was younger either. She had no siblings and was an only child. Her dad had left her and her mom on their own when she had just turned twelve, and before that he was always drinking. He could also barely hold down a job when he had one. Whereas her mother was a druggie and had been one since before she was born and was barely able to take care of herself. Her mother had passed away when she turned eighteen and was out on her own. Her parents had never even bothered with the holidays as they were too self-absorbed in their own issues. They also did not have the money as the money they did make went either to drugs or alcohol. She spent most of her childhood watching as others celebrated Christmas and were ever so happy around the holidays. She felt jealous as first as everyone else was happy whereas she was miserable. Eventually she began to greatly dislike the holidays and everything surrounding it.
The cheering had finally died down on the other side of the room and everybody was beginning to work again. She had wondered what the cheering was about for the briefest second before she decided it was not important. She finished up what she was working on and turned it in to her supervisor. Her supervisor smiled merrily at her and wished her happy holidays. The company she was working for would be closing for the next two weeks for the holidays and had given its employees paid time off for them. This happened each year and every year Sally did not celebrate the holiday season as she could not understand the importance of it. What she did do was catch up on shows she was watching and get other things done. She had very few friends as she found it hard to connect with other people and all her grandparents had passed away. She also did not have any aunts or uncles.
She briefly smiled back at her and went to pick up her purse and winter jacket. She donned them and left work. She did not want to return to her lonely apartment just yet. So, she decided to try the new coffee shop that had opened up just a few blocks from her work building. As she was walking on her way there, she noticed all the holiday decorations in the stores around her and the Santas sitting waiting for donations. She scowled at all these things and just wished the holidays could be over already. She finally reached the coffee shop and found that it was one of the few places in the area without any holiday decorations. She entered the coffee shop with a smile on her face thinking maybe for once she had a place that viewed the holidays the same way she did.
However, once she had crossed the threshold of the building the coffee shop changed into a black void. In this black void was a single point of light visible in the distance. She turned around trying to exit the shop but just found more blackness of the void. The only way she had to go was towards the light. She started walking towards it and as she got closer, she noticed that it was not a light at all. That it was some sort of figure that was glowing which was emitting the light from its very being. Once she was standing in front of the figure. She could make out that it was the figure of a lady that had put on a few good pounds and was entirely silver. The lady was dressed in what appeared to be a ball gown and her face had a cherry look to it. Her hair was pulled back into a bun.
The figure stared at Sally for a moment before addressing her “Sally Winters you have been brought here as you do not care for the holidays. I am the spirit of holiday joy and have come to judge you. You must pass a test of mine before you can leave this place. This test is to truly be happy to see anything holiday related and feel happiness. If you succeed you shall leave this place with the ability to finally appreciate the holidays. However, should you fail, you shall stay here and turn into a spirit yourself.”
Figuring she really did not have a choice she agreed. The void around her then shifted and a room came into view. Before her was a tableau of holiday related things. There was a Christmas tree and Christmas village to her left, there was also a nativity scene to the right of the Christmas tree. To her right was a menorah on a table. Straight before her was what looked like it was a living room set up to celebrate New Years. She tried to feel joy upon seeing all this but was unable to muster any. Eventually what felt like eternity passed but was only one hour. She was grimacing at the spectacle before her the whole time. After that time was up things faded back into the void and the spirit was before her again.
The spirit spoke to her once again “Sally winter you have failed your task and therefore will become a spirit yourself. You shall become the spirit of the scrooge. As you do not like the holidays and scoff at them.”
As this was said Sally noticed she was losing colour and becoming a darker shade of silver. She had now become the spirit that hated the holidays, the scrooge.
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