Disclaimer:
Trixie Belden is a trademark of Golden books. I don't own these characters and I'm not
making any money with this story, either. This story is just some personal fun I like to
have, so don't sue me, just reprint our beloved Trixie!
Special thanks to Caellian who edited this story. You are great, girl!
This story is written as a submission to Happy Holiday GWP III at Zap's. It takes place in
my German universe, about 10 years after "Wind Of Change."
A Christmas Carp Named Wandaby Susi
On December 24th, around lunchtime, 25-year-old Trixie woke up with the worst hangover she ever had in her life. Groaning, she put on her bathrobe and shuffled downstairs into the kitchen. Her husband wasn't there, but a letter leaned against the thermos jug.
Good morning, sleepy head!
I suppose, you're going to have a bad hangover after
yesterday's party.
I'll do the shopping!
Love, Jim
Trixie smiled gently. Dear Jim! Yesterday, she had passed her First State Exam after six exhausting years of law study. The surprise party her parents and friends had prepared to celebrate the first milestone of her career had been outstanding. Now she had to deal with an outstanding hangover. She poured herself a cup of hot, strong coffee. Sipping carefully, she soon felt better and switched on the radio. That was a mistake! A choir of children happily sung "In Dulci Jubilo," their shrill voices making Trixie wince painfully. Hastily, she turned the radio off.
A key turned in the back door. Jim entered the room, carrying a huge basket full of foodstuffs. He put the basket on the kitchen table and stretched his back, groaning and moaning. Bending down to kiss Trixie, he asked reproachfully "May I ask you why you told me to buy ten cans of Frankfurters? I almost broke my back!"
Trixie grinned. "They were a special offer, and they come in useful whenever I've got no time for cooking. Instead of complaining you should be thankful that I gave you the opportunity to keep your sexy little butt in shape!" she replied, pinching the said part of his supple body. Playfully, Jim slapped her hand.
"Quit that!" he said, in mock indignation. "I've got no time for that game now. There's a mountain of groceries still waiting in the trunk!" He went out and returned with two buckets filled with water.Puzzled, Trixie looked at the buckets and then at Jim.
"What's that?" she asked.
"That, Madam, are the carps you ordered," Jim replied. Trixie glanced into the buckets. Out of each bucket, a pair of carp's eyes looked back at her.
She closed her eyes, shuddering. "But I'm sure I've ordered slaughtered carps," she said.
"Why, that's what they gave me at the fishmonger's shop as I asked for your order," Jim replied, grinning.
Trixie looked at the carps helplessly. Suddenly, her face brightened. "Well, you'll just have to slaughter them tomorrow," she decided, glad she had solved the problem.
"Nope!" Jim refused, flatly.
Trixie looked at him, surprised. "But, Jim, remember, you vowed it!"
"I never vowed to commit fish murder!" Jim said, decidedly.
"But you vowed to stick by my side, for better and for worse," Trixie reminded him.
"Can't be," Jim replied, grinning mischievously. "We had a civil wedding!"
Trixie sighed desperately. "Oh, come on, Jim!" she pleaded.
Jim shook his head. "No chance, Mrs Frayne!" he laughed.
Trixie knew when she had lost a battle. A battle but not the war, she thought. Smiling at Jim she asked "Will you at least place those buckets somewhere out of my sight? I have the worst
hangover I ever had and if I have to look into those carp eyes any longer, I'll throw up!"
"Your wish is my command," Jim replied. He grabbed the buckets and left the
kitchen.
An hour later, Trixie had recovered so far that she decided to dress up for the Christmas service. A long, hot foam bath is what I need now, she thought and went upstairs into the bathroom. She bent over the bathtub to turn the water on, but suddenly she stopped. Two pairs of carp's eyes looked at her, curiously.
"JIM!!!" Trixie yelled. Immediately, Jim appeared at the bathroom door.
"Yes, my love?" he asked, grinning.
"What are those damned carps doing in my bathtub?" Trixie asked, angrily.
"Well, I thought the buckets were to narrow for the poor fish, so I put them in the bathtub," Jim replied, innocently.
"Oh, great! And where I'm supposed to take my bath now?" Trixie groaned.
"Take a shower instead," Jim suggested. Realizing, that her beautiful big blue eyes were flashing with anger, he hastily beat an orderly retreat.
After the Christmas service, they had a huge Christmas dinner at Manor House. The
Wheelers, Beldens and Lynches were all linked by their children's marriages, so they had agreed to celebrate Christmas at the Manor House. Trixie still wasn't able to eat much, and as Celia offered her another helping of the delicious meal she turned pale green color.
"What's the matter with you, sweetheart?" Helen Belden asked, alarmed.
"Uuh. Nothing, Moms!" Trixie assured her.
Madeleine Wheeler smiled, delightedly. "Trixie, are you and Jim going to announce some interesting news?" she asked. Trixie looked at her, not comprehending.
"Mother, your daughter-in-law is still suffering from a hangover -- she isn't pregnant,"
Jim remarked,dryly. The whole party burst out laughing as Trixie blushed.
After the laughter had calmed down, Honey said, tactful as usual "I'm really looking forward to our Bob-White Christmas celebration we're having tomorrow! Trixie, what delicious meal are you planning on?"
The Bob-White Christmas celebration on Christmas Day was a tradition they had formed six years ago,after the girls had finished school and each of them had her very first apartment. The Bob-Whites took turns in playing host. This year, Trixie and Jim were hosts.
"I'm planning on Carp Blue," Trixie replied, ignoring Jim's stifled laughter.
"I'll help you setting the table," Di offered. Since Trixie and Jim had get married last
August, they were neighbours. Jim had built a duplex house at Ten Acres and asked Di and Mart if the wanted to move into the other half of the house.
Next morning, Trixie woke up early. Jim was still asleep. She went downstairs into the kitchen and prepared a small, but delicious breakfast. We'll be eating all day long, she thought. I don't want my husband getting fat! She arranged the breakfast on a tray and returned into the bedroom. "Merry Christmas, sleepy head!" she said, cheerfully, putting the tray onto the bedside table. She sat down at Jim's bedside and kissed his unshaven cheek. Jim opened one eye.
"Uuh, what?" he asked, huskily.
"Your breakfast is waiting," Trixie purred, tickling his ear.
"I see," he replied. Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her down onto his chest. He rolled over until Trixie laid flat on her back. She let out a delighted little scream. Jim looked at her, hiseyes very green. Slowly, he lowered his mouth onto hers. Eagerly, Trixie responded his kiss, her fingers running through his thick, red hair. Finally, Jim raised his head. "Well, you're a rather yummy breakfast," he grinned wickedly. Trixie pulled him closer again.
"Don't talk that much," she murmured and kissed him thoroughly.
Quite a while later, Trixie and Jim shared their breakfast, comfortably leaning back in the cushions of their bed.
"Do you need some help with the preparations of the Bob-White's Christmas celebration?" Jim asked.
Trixie swiped a piece of toast from his plate.
"Well, there's still the problem with the carps. They need to be slaughtered," Trixie replied.
Jim winced. "Why does it have to be me?" he asked.
"Because you're still my handsome knight in shining armour?" Trixie asked, fluttering
her eye lashes in a perfect imitation of Di.
Jim groaned, but he finally admitted his defeat. "OK, you little witch, you've won!"
Later that day, Trixie and Jim stood in the kitchen, peeling potatoes. Suddenly, the
phone rang. Jim answered, and listened for a while, frowning. Finally, he said "All right, I'll be there in another second!"He hung up the phone and turned to Trixie.
"That was Regan. He told me that there's something wrong with Jupe. I've got to go to the stable, immediately!"
Trixie nodded, worried. "Of course you've got to go! I hope it's nothing serious!" Jim left and Trixie kept on peeling potatoes. After she had finished the last one, she sighed. Now I have to decide what to do with those darned carps she thought. She went upstairs into the bathroom. Hands on her hips, she looked at the carps gloomily. Five minutes later, Trixie still meditated over the carps, Di entered the bathroom.
"There you are! I looked for you all over the house! What's THAT?" Di asked, amazed, looking at the carps.
"Two Christmas carps," Trixie replied, absentmindedly.
"I can see that with my very own eyes," Di replied. "But why are they still swimming in your bathtub and are not in the oven, where they belong?"
Trixie explained the whole story.
"You mean, you'll have to slaughter them?" Di asked. "Yuck!"
"Yeah, yuck is the right word," Trixie replied, gloomily. Di glanced into the bathtub.
"They are rather cute, aren't they? This one looks like Wanda, and the other one, well, I think we should name him William The Conqueror because he's so fat!" Angrily, Trixie glared at her sister-in-law.
"Di Belden, have you lost your marbles? Now that you've named those fish, I'll never be able to slaughter them!"
Shocked, Di looked at Trixie. "Omigosh, I'm sorry, Trixie! I didn't think of that!" Trixie started giggling,uncontrollably. Hesitantly, Di joined her laughter. Finally, they calmed down.
"We have to find someone who'll slaughter the carps," Trixie said. "What about Mart?"
"He went to the stables with Jim," Di replied.
They heard the sound of the back door opening. "Yoohooo, Trixie, Jim, anyone at home?" Brian shouted.
"I guess our honeymooners are still upstairs in their bedroom!" That was Dan's cheerful voice.
"Uuh, Dan, worst ick factor! You're talking about my brother!" Honey giggled.
Trixie and Di looked at each other, gleefully. "Dan The Man and Trapper Brian, M.D.! Just the men we need," Trixie smirked. "A ranger and a surgeon should be able to slaughter two simple carps!" They bolted downstairs.
"Honey, Brian, Dan, Merry Christmas!" For a few minutes, they all talked at once. Then, Trixie pulled Dan aside and Di took Brian's arm.
"You're just the men we've waited for," Di purred.
Amazed, Brian and Dan looked at each other. "Don't say you're planning on going divorced from Mart and Jim," Dan grinned. Di wagged her finger at him.
"You have an evil mind, Danny Boy," she scolded, playfully. "We need your help with slaughtering the Christmas carps!" She explained the whole story.
Dan and Brian laughed out loud. "Come on, Brian," Dan finally said. "There's a lady in dire straits, bereft of her knight in shining armour. Let's do the job!" He rolled up his sleeves and went upstairs. Brian followed him. A few minutes later, they returned, each of them carrying a bucket.
That moment, the back door opened again. A little girl bolted into the kitchen and flew into Di's arms. "Mummy, Mummy, Daddy just gave me my first riding lesson on Susie. He said, I did really fine and that I'm going to be as good a rider as Aunt Honey when I'm big!" 6 year old Ricarda Belden shouted excitedly. Gently, Di smoothed back her daughter's black, unruly curls.
"That's great, darling! Now, won't you say Merry Christmas to Aunt Trixie, Aunt Honey, Uncle Brian and Uncle Dan?"
Obediently, the little girl turned towards the rest of the Bob-Whites. "Merry Christmas!" she said. Then, she looked curiously at the buckets Dan and Brian were still carrying. "What's in the buckets?" she asked. Di, having a strong sense of foreboding, tried to distract her.
"Say, darling, why don't you take a look at Aunt Trixie's Christmas tree? It's great!"
"I've seen it before! Uncle Dan, what's in this bucket?" Ricarda demanded to know.
Grinning, Dan gave in. "It's a Christmas carp," he said.
Curiously, the little girl peered into the bucket. "Oh, they're sweet, aren't they?" she exclaimed.
Di groaned. "Now we're stuck!" she whispered to Trixie and Honey. They stifled a laughter. Di glared at them. "Believe me! You don't have kids yet, but I know what I'm talking about!"
Dan and Brian tried to get out of the back door without arousing Ricarda's suspicion. But it was too late.
"What are you doing with the carps?" Ricarda asked Dan.
Dan winced. "Look, Ricky," he said, "you know that Carp Blue is a traditional Christmas dish, don't you?" The little girl nodded.
"Well, Aunt Trixie is going to have Carp Blue for dinner this Christmas. Uncle Brian and I are going to slaughter the carps now."
Immediately, the little girl started to cry. "You're going to kill them! How can you do that, they're so sweet!"
Helplessly, the adults looked at each other.
"Come on, Ricky, stop crying," Di said. "Carps are for eating. Don't you think you're already too big a girl to start such a tantrum?"
But the little girl still kept on sobbing desperately.
The back door was flung open. Jim and Mart entered the kitchen. Puzzled, they looked at the sobbing girl and the sullen Bob-Whites that gathered around her. Immediately, Mart knelt down beside his daughter and pulled her into his arms.
"What's the matter, sweetheart, why are you crying? Are you hurt?" Ricarda let out a few more sobs. This time, the sobs sounded very theatrical. She knew that her father was wax in her sturdy little hands! Mart, of course, didn't notice.
"Daddy, Daddy, Uncle Brian and Uncle Dan are going to kill those cute little carps. Please, Daddy, don't let them do it!" she said.
Grinning, Trixie and Di looked at each other.
"Yeah, Daddy, don't let them do it and spoil your own Christmas dinner," Trixie grinned, mischievously. Mart glared at her furiously. The rest of the Bob-Whites suppressed their laughter.
"Shhh, little darling, calm down!" Mart soothed his daughter. "Daddy will make sure that Uncle Dan and Uncle Brian don't hurt your carps!"
The rest of the Bob-Whites burst out laughing. "If you had told me before, in a million years I wouldn't have believed that Mart would give up his Christmas dinner." Trixie chuckled and wiped her eyes. She knelt down beside her niece.
"I can't stand to see you cry, darling. If you want it that badly, I'll let the carps off the
hook. That'll be my special Christmas gift for you, all right?" Still with tears in her eyes, the little girl nodded happily. Trixie rose and stretched out her hand. "Come on, darling, let's go to the lake and set the carps free!"
Laughing, the rest of the Bob-Whites followed them out of the back door and down the narrow path that led to the Belden Farm and to the lake. Carefully, Brian and Dan lowered the buckets into the cold, dark water. Together, they watched the carps disappear in the depth of the lake.
"Great!" Mart muttered under his breath. "And what are we going to have for Christmas dinner?"
Jim put his arm around Trixie's waist.
"We have plenty of Frankfurters. Together with potato salad and mustard they'll make a perfectly perfect Christmas dinner," he grinned.The End
Explanations
The Staatsexamen or Staatsprüfung to give it it's official name, is an examination set by state-examination boards. It has to be taken by everyone trying to get into certain professions,such as those of lawyer, teacher, doctor, pharmacist or nurse. A course of study, if required,leads to the Staatsexamen. This is followed by a two- to three-year period of practical training and the second Staatexamen, or, in case of doctors and pharmacists, the Approbation.
Carp Blue is a traditional German Christmas dish. It's served with potatoes, green salad and whipped cream with horseradish. Normally, it's cooked in a spiced stock, but I read a recipe that tells to put the carp into the oven.