Чудоба, или Приключения Алочки и Васи

Wait for me, I’ll be back soon! – he blurted out inspired by the idea of cutting loose and cheering up his granddaughter.

It turned up to be super interesting in the entresols: there were carefully put old carpets, books, magazines, a stack-stand for a Christmas tree in the form of a huge snowflake, boxes with garlands and Christmas toys. That was a fund of unexplored things which she was pulling out and studying.

In order to distract her from throwing about this home junkyard which there was many, Baba Galya said,

– Katushka, let’s drink some tea with sweets, and I’ll tell you a story about my brother and me, how we went to look for a Christmas tree.

– But I’ll go up there again, okay? – descending the ladder answered the girl, she adored the Granny’s stories.

The kettle made a noise and turned off. Granny got a bag with multicolored sweets.

– Guess what color this sweet is? – asked lively Grandmother Galya putting her hand into a bag with multicolored sweets.

– Green! – granddaughter answered playfully.

– You haven’t guessed, you haven’t guessed! – smiled granny, – Now this sweet is mine. Guess what color this sweet is?

– Maybe red? – Katya asked hopefully.

– Attagirl! This sweet is yours! – said Baba Galya giving “Red poppy” to her.

Katushka unwrapped the chocolate sweet with joy, bit off a piece and took tea with an appetite.

– Now I want to make play, – said granddaughter taking the bag. – Guess what color this sweet is?

– Yellow!

– So cunning you are, Baba! I won’t have sweets so if you play like that! Well, here you are! – and she gave “Pineapple” sweet to her grandmother.

 – Listen, Ba, you wanted to tell me how you had gone to get a Christmas tree with brother…

– Ah,…yes! – pronounced Baba Galya chewing her aromatic sweet.

Whengrandmotherstaredtellingaboutherchildhood, Katusha was narrowing her eyes and imagining that little Galochka – Alochka –is a girl from nursery, that they often walk holding their hands, that they’ve been friends for a long time and they share the most intimate secrets.

And everybody says: surprising the way Katusha and Alochka are alike: their smiles, figures and vivacity of characters!

Lookingatthesparklinginterestinthegranddaughter’s eyes, grandmother continued.

It was winter in one small village in the Urals where was located my grandfather’s military base. Dad was at work, and we with my brother Vasya and mother were preparing for the New Year.