The Lucky Snow Leopard

by Amelia Cobb

  “And we have all our other animal friends too!” added Meep.

  “Cheer up, Ali,” Zoe said, smiling at the cub. “You can’t be sad when Christmas is just two sleeps away!”

  Ever since Ali had found out about Christmas, he’d wanted to know all about it. Zoe and Meep had explained about the Christmas carol concert, the ice-skating rink, and all the pretty decorations, and Ali had listened in amazement. When Zoe had told him about the beautiful Christmas tree, he’d leaped to the highest rocky peak in his enclosure to see if he could spot it, and purred with delight when he saw the glittering gold star.

  “Tomorrow is Christmas Eve,” Zoe went on. “That’s when Santa Claus comes.”

  Ali meowed excitedly. “No, he’s not a snow leopard!” giggled Zoe. “He’s a human, like me.”

  Ali held up a front paw and meowed again. “Oh, no! He doesn’t have claws,” laughed Zoe. “That’s just his name.”

  “He brings presents!” chirped Meep, hopping up and down.

  Ali gave a hopeful little squeak. “Yes, he might bring you a present too!” said Zoe. “But only if you’re good, and let your mum sleep.”

  Ali glanced up at Lila, sleeping in the cave, and gave a grumpy growl.

  Quickly, Zoe tried to change the subject back to something more fun. “What do you want for Christmas, Ali?” she asked cheerfully. “Some toys, or something yummy to eat?”

  But Zoe’s heart sank as Ali gave a sulky snarl in reply. Ali didn’t want presents for Christmas – he just wanted to keep his mum all to himself!

  “There, all done! Now it’s time for the carol concert,” said Zoe, hanging up the last stocking outside the giraffe enclosure. She and the keepers had walked around the whole zoo that afternoon, putting up a stocking for every animal. Bertie the little elephant had trumpeted with excitement when he saw his stocking, which had a big blue “B” sewn on to it. “Of course I’ll come and see what’s inside it tomorrow!” Zoe had promised him.

  It was a cold evening and the sky twinkled with stars. The zoo was open late on Christmas Eve, so that visitors could stay for the concert, and there was an excited feeling in the air. Some of the keepers were handing out cups of hot chocolate and gingerbread, and everyone was smiling.

  The concert was always held in front of the huge Christmas tree. When Zoe arrived, Lucy was pacing up and down anxiously. “I’m a bit nervous,” she explained to Zoe. “Great-Uncle Horace has asked me to start off the singing this year, so I’m doing the first verse by myself.”

  Zoe helped Lucy hand out sheets of paper with the songs typed out on them, so that everyone could sing along. There was a big crowd now, with Great-Uncle Horace and Kiki right at the front. When the crowd fell silent, Lucy coughed nervously and started to sing, in a rather shaky voice, “We wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas …”

  “We wish you a merry Christmas, and a happy new year!” Zoe piped up, grinning at her mum. The rest of the crowd joined in straight away, and soon everyone was singing at the tops of their voices.

  Everyone except Mr Pinch! Zoe noticed him standing moodily at the back, wearing earplugs to block out the music. Grumpy old thing, thought Zoe.

  When the last song was finished everyone clapped and cheered. As the crowds began to trickle towards the exit, chattering happily, Great-Uncle Horace called, “Merry Christmas, everyone! Thank you for coming!”

  “That was fun,” said Lucy, beaming. “We’d better get back to the cottage, I think. It’s time to hang your stocking up, Zoe!”

  “Are you going to sleep at the cottage tonight, too?” Zoe asked Great-Uncle Horace hopefully. Last year, Great-Uncle Horace had stayed over on Christmas Eve because he’d given his attic room at the Hall to a meerkat with earache, so that the poor animal could sleep somewhere peaceful and quiet until he got better.

  “Of course! It’s a Christmas tradition now. And that way, I get to spend the whole day with my two favourite people,” replied Great-Uncle Horace. “Besides, I’m not sure Santa would get down the chimney at Higgins Hall. The last time I checked, some naughty puffins had built their nest inside it!”

  As Mr Pinch marched past, Lucy called out to him. “Mr Pinch, wait a second! I want to ask you something.” She took a deep breath. “I just wondered if you’d like to have Christmas dinner with us tomorrow?”

  Zoe looked at her mum in horror, and Meep gave a squeak of disbelief. Even Great-Uncle Horace seemed surprised. Mr Pinch stared at Lucy. “Me?” he said. “Why?”

  “Because it’s Christmas!” said Lucy. “I know you don’t like it very much, but you can’t spend the whole day by yourself. Please come, we’d like to spend it with you.”

  Mr Pinch hesitated. “Well … I, err, suppose I could stop by for a bit.”

  Blushing, Mr Pinch rushed off to his office. Zoe and Great-Uncle Horace turned to Lucy, who sighed. “Look, I know Mr Pinch can be difficult, but no one should be alone at Christmas.”

  Meep was in a serious sulk. “Christmas is going to be ruined,” the little lemur grumbled.

  “At least we’ll have fun in the morning, before he arrives,” whispered Zoe, trying her best to stay cheerful. Deep down, she felt really disappointed. Mr Pinch had made it very clear that he didn’t like Christmas. She just knew he would moan all day long. It wasn’t going to be the same with him there.

  On the way home, Zoe remembered something. She had one last job to do! “I’ll see you at home,” she told her mum, and ran over to the ice-skating rink with Meep scampering beside her. That afternoon, she’d hidden something in the wooden shed where the skates were kept – a present for Ali. “Let’s give it to him now, Meep,” she said, tucking the parcel under her arm. “I know it’s not Christmas until tomorrow, but it might cheer him up.”

  When they arrived at his enclosure, the little cub was curled up on a rock. “Look, Ali,” Zoe called as she used her necklace to open the gate. “We’ve brought you a present!” She showed him the parcel and then helped him pull off the wrapping paper. Underneath was a colourful ball. “It’s covered in spots, like you!” she said.

  Ali stared at the ball. He gave it a little push with his paw, and meowed excitedly as it rolled along. Zoe grinned – Ali loved it!

  Zoe and Meep took turns bouncing the ball to Ali, and laughed as he chased happily after it. Then Meep made Zoe and Ali giggle by jumping on the ball and showing them how many somersaults he could turn without falling off! Before long, Zoe realised it was getting late. “We’d better go home, Meep. Mum will be wondering where we are,” she said.

  To her surprise, Ali let out a miserable meow. “What’s wrong?” cried Zoe. “You were so happy a minute ago!”

  Ali looked sadly at the ball and whimpered. “I’m sorry, Ali. I wish we could stay and play, too,” Zoe told him.“You know we can’t be here all the time, even though we’d like to.”

  The cub gave another small meow. “Of course you won’t have to play with the ball all by yourself!” Zoe said. “Meep and I will come back tomorrow, I promise.”

  But that didn’t help to cheer up poor Ali. He padded away behind a tree, sniffling, and Zoe and Meep couldn’t coax him out. Eventually they gave up and decided to go home, feeling a bit worried. How could she get Ali to realise how lucky he was?

  “Oh dear, Zoe. You look very glum!” said Great-Uncle Horace, as she and Meep came into the cottage.

  “I hope you’re not too upset with me for inviting Mr Pinch tomorrow,” Lucy said. “I promise we’ll still have a lovely day.” She gave Zoe a big hug. “I know what will cheer you up. Why don’t we hang up our stockings?”

  Lucy quickly went up into the attic to fetch the special box they kept the stockings in. “Here’s yours, Zoe!” her mum said, pulling it out and handing it to her. “And Uncle Horace, here are yours and Kiki’s. Mine’s next … and let’s not forget Meep’s, of course,” she said with a grin.

  Zoe hung her stocking over the fireplace, with Meep’s next to it. Lucy pinned hers next to
Meep’s, and Great-Uncle Horace added his and Kiki’s. They looked very merry, all hanging in a colourful line! Then Zoe put a mince pie and a carrot on a plate, and placed it carefully in front of the fireplace.

  “Santa will be on his way now, Zoe,” said Lucy, smiling. “I wonder what he’ll bring?”

  Zoe sighed. She just hoped Ali would cheer up in time for Christmas day. “Hopefully he’ll bring the zoo a bit of Christmas cheer,” she said, and her mum smiled.

  “I thought you were desperate for another present from Santa?” Lucy replied, winking at Zoe.

  Zoe remembered the charm bracelet she was longing for, and grinned. “Well, I’d really like that too!” she said.

  “Zoe, wake up! It’s Christmas!”

  Zoe’s eyes flew open. Meep was bouncing on her pillow, chattering excitedly. “It’s Christmas! It’s Christmas!”

  Zoe leaped out of bed and dashed down the stairs, shouting for her mum and Great-Uncle Horace. Santa Claus had been! The mince pie was nothing but crumbs, the carrot was completely gone, and the stockings on the mantelpiece were fat with presents. There were even some brightly-wrapped parcels under the tree. Zoe and Meep danced with excitement as Lucy and Great-Uncle Horace came in, yawning but looking pleased. Kiki was perched on Great-Uncle Horace’s shoulder, squawking happily.

  “Merry Christmas!” said Great-Uncle Horace, beaming. “Goodness, that stocking of mine looks rather exciting. I wonder if Santa has brought the custard creams I asked for?”

  Everyone took turns opening a present. First Zoe unwrapped a colourful book about dolphins. Then there was a box of chocolates shaped like penguins, and a pair of pink pyjamas with a pattern of tiny snow leopards. “They look just like Ali!” said Zoe, beaming.

  Zoe loved her presents, but she couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed. Santa hadn’t brought her the bracelet she’d wanted after all. She tried hard not to mind, and opened her chocolates to offer them round. Then Lucy said, “Hold on, Zoe – I think you’ve missed one.” She pointed at the toe of Zoe’s stocking. There was something small and square stuffed inside it.

  Zoe reached right inside her stocking and pulled out a little red box, tied with a gold ribbon. As she opened it something gleamed and twinkled in the light from the Christmas tree. “My bracelet!” she cried, taking it carefully out of the box. It was silver, with tiny lion, elephant and giraffe charms. “Santa brought me my bracelet!”

  “I knew he would!” said Lucy with a smile. “You’ve been so good this year, Zoe.”

  Lucy unwrapped a new bag to keep all her animal medicines in. “Just what I wanted!” she said. And Zoe proudly gave Great-Uncle Horace a special present, wrapped in zebra-patterned paper. “This is from me and Mum,” she said.

  “Although it was Zoe’s idea,” added Lucy.

  Great-Uncle Horace pulled off the wrapping paper. “A compass!” he exclaimed, holding it up. “And look, the Rescue Zoo hot-air balloon is engraved on the back!”

  “It’s so you’ll always find your way home from your travels,” Zoe explained.

  “It’s quite the nicest present I’ve ever had,” Great-Uncle Horace said sincerely.

  Zoe felt like she might burst with happiness.

  “Where’s Meep?” asked Lucy, looking round.

  There was a funny munching sound coming from Meep’s stocking. Zoe peeped inside and giggled. The little lemur had climbed right in, and was tucking into his Christmas presents! “Meep, don’t eat them all at once,” Zoe whispered when her mum and Great-Uncle Horace were busy chatting. “You’ll get a tummy ache.”

  Meep didn’t seem to mind. “Yum!” he replied, nibbling happily on another nut.

  Kiki was enjoying her stocking too. The clever macaw perched on the mantelpiece with her strong claws, bent right down and tugged out her presents with her beak. Santa had brought her a bag of nuts, three juicy carrots, and some wooden toys that she could chew on to keep her beak healthy.

  Once Zoe had helped tidy the wrapping paper away, she got dressed and headed out into the zoo. All the keepers were there already, wearing cheerful Christmas jumpers. There was still a lot of work to do, just like any other day! Zoe rushed around helping – she carried bags of nuts to the monkeys, and boxes of mangoes to the fruit bats. Everyone was having an especially tasty breakfast on Christmas morning.

  Great-Uncle Horace put on some Christmas music and everyone sang loudly. Zoe was astonished to hear Mr Pinch humming along too, when he thought no one was paying attention. “Are you enjoying the music, Mr Pinch?” she asked.

  Mr Pinch blushed. “Err – no! I just had a tickle in my throat,” he said quickly, marching off.

  Zoe tried to wish all her animal friends a happy Christmas, but there wasn’t time to visit everyone. Before long, Lucy was calling, “Zoe! It’s time to start making Christmas dinner.”

  “But we haven’t been to see Ali yet!” chirped Meep.

  “We’ll go after we’ve eaten,” whispered Zoe.

  Back at the cottage, Lucy had put a big turkey in the oven, and Great-Uncle Horace and Zoe peeled potatoes. The radio was playing more Christmas music, and it was warm and cosy in the kitchen. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. “That will be Mr Pinch,” said Lucy. “Will you go and let him in, Zoe?”

  Zoe took a deep breath as she opened the door. Please let Mr Pinch be nice today, she thought hopefully.

  Mr Pinch was standing on the doorstep, wearing a green jumper with a Christmas tree on it. He was clutching a pile of presents. Zoe was surprised to see that he looked quite nervous. “Hello,” she said.

  “Hello,” Mr Pinch said, a bit stiffly.

  “Merry Christmas!” said Lucy as Zoe and Mr Pinch walked into the kitchen.

  “We’re very glad to see you, Percy,” Great-Uncle Horace added warmly.

  Meep blew a very rude raspberry noise. “Shhh, Meep!” hissed Zoe, hoping Mr Pinch hadn’t heard.

  “Thank you for asking me,” Mr Pinch said awkwardly. “Err, what shall I do?”

  Lucy handed him a peeler and a bag of carrots. “If you could peel those, that would be lovely. If we all join in, dinner will be ready in no time!”

  Mr Pinch nodded and started work. It was quiet for the next few minutes, until Zoe’s favourite carol came on the radio. “I love this one!” said Zoe, singing along. “Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, had a very shiny nose …”

  “And if you ever saw him, you would even say it glows!” burst out Mr Pinch.

  Everyone turned to stare at him. “I thought you didn’t like carols, Mr Pinch!” said Lucy.

  Mr Pinch blushed. “Well, I don’t mind that one too much,” he murmured.

  When the vegetables had been peeled and chopped, Lucy went to check on the turkey, while Great-Uncle Horace put the finishing touches to the enormous trifle he had made for pudding. Mr Pinch and Zoe set the table together, with a red napkin and a sparkly cracker next to everyone’s plate. There was even a seat for Meep.

  Zoe tried to think of something to say to Mr Pinch. She caught sight of the bracelet on her wrist. “Look, Mr Pinch – this is what Santa brought me,” she said, holding her hand up to show him. “All the charms are different animals that we have in the zoo.”

  “Very nice,” Mr Pinch said awkwardly. “Actually, I brought you a small gift too, Zoe.”

  He handed Zoe a parcel wrapped neatly in silver paper. “Oh! Thank you,” Zoe said uncertainly, glancing at Meep. A present from Mr Pinch? she thought. What could it be?

  She pulled off the paper – and gasped. Inside was a Rescue Zoo uniform just like the ones the zookeepers wore, but in just the right size for Zoe! “Uh, I had it specially made,” Mr Pinch explained, his cheeks pink. “It’s for when you’re helping out around the zoo, so that the visitors know you’re officially allowed to be there. We, um, we wouldn’t want people getting the wrong idea. They might think we let just any children help out.”

  Zoe couldn’t believe it. “I love it!” she said, giving Mr Pinch a big hug. The zo
o manager looked surprised and a little bit embarrassed, but Zoe thought he seemed quite pleased too. Even though Mr Pinch was still a little grumpy, his present really meant a lot to her. “I’m going to wear it straight away,” she said.

  Zoe ran up to her bedroom to put the uniform on. She caught sight of herself in the mirror, and couldn’t help grinning. She really did look like a proper zoo keeper! When she came back downstairs, Lucy made her and Mr Pinch stand next to the Christmas tree together, and took a picture. “Lovely! That’s such a thoughtful gift, Mr Pinch,” she said, smiling. “Now, everyone sit down – dinner’s ready.”

  “It smells delicious!” said Mr Pinch, sounding really happy. Zoe and Meep glanced at each other, and grinned. They’d never seen Mr Pinch in such a good mood before. “It looks like Mr Pinch does like Christmas, after all,” Meep whispered in Zoe’s ear.

  Great-Uncle Horace put slices of steaming turkey on everyone’s plate, and Lucy dished out roast potatoes, vegetables and gravy. As they ate, Great-Uncle Horace told exciting stories from his travels. Zoe and Mr Pinch helped themselves to seconds, and they all pulled their crackers noisily. Everyone put on the paper crowns that fell out, and took turns reading out the jokes.

  “What do you get if you cross Santa with a duck?” asked Lucy, grinning.

  “I know this one. A Christmas quacker!” chuckled Great-Uncle Horace.

  “This is a good one!” said Mr Pinch. “What animal drops from the clouds?”

  Everyone thought carefully. “Hmm, that’s hard,” said Zoe. “An animal that drops from the clouds …”

  “I know! I know!” Meep bounced up and down on his chair, squeaking. “It’s a reindeer, Zoe! Get it? Rain deer!”

  Zoe giggled. The clever little lemur was right! “Is it a reindeer?” she asked.