"Right, we have officially seen all three of our performances and I have sat down with the other judges to decide our winner! All three groups kept to the theme of Christmas but without the clichés, though one took a darker turn then the others," Jason said, pausing to glare at us for a second. "Can I get a drum roll, please?"

In an over-enthusiastic manner, everyone in the room started to make a loud, almost thunder-like sound that echoed through the room. Although we were all standing up, we joined in as well, stomping our feet on the wooden floor and creating the loudest sound out of anyone else in the entire room. We wanted to know who had won, who had managed to convince Jason and the other two Drama teachers that they deserved to perform their piece at the Christmas fair. To be honest, I wasn't holding out for a win. We had had fun, but it drifted so far from Christmas to focus on a Halloween theme that a win wasn't likely.

For several seconds, the loud beating sound continued to reverberate around the room until Jason waved his arms to signal us to stop. He stood there for a minute, pretending to fumble with a fake envelope that held the results of the competition. Although he was trying to make it seem dramatic, it wasn't really working since there was no envelope and it wasn't as though we were winning an Oscar for our performance. Whatever his reason for dragging out may have been, it was annoying, and I wanted him to just get it over with. Mainly because I was tired but because we had planned a little surprise for Jason and I couldn't wait to get started.

"And the winner of this year's showcase and performing their piece at the Christmas fair on Friday is." He paused for dramatic effect (again). "One Christmas Night! You guys remained Christmassy whilst not bombarding us with a love story. Congratulations!"

We joined the audience in a collective applause for Ant and the rest of his group whilst they took a bow and tried to process the fact that they had just won something. I expected that Ant was also shocked that he was going to have to wear the Santa outfit in front of a lot more people than just us and some parents. I doubt the person who was regarded as one of the most popular kids in our year was pleased with something like that. Nevertheless, he looked chuffed. With Drama being one of the few things Ant considered himself good at, it was great to see him thrive at it even if it meant we had to lose. Then again, with the plan we had set up, I doubt losing was a problem.

With the winning group having been revealed, I gave the nod to Joel to get the plan in motion. We had been working in it for only a few weeks, but we were certain that whatever we had planned was going to work well enough to convince Jason that he had chosen the wrong group to win. Shooting a smile in my direction, he set about putting the plan in motion, though to anyone who didn't know what he was doing, it looked perfectly normal. Behind his back, Joel held a small joystick that once belonged to a remote-control car. With Joel's technical know-how, he had removed the motor from the car and it had been placed in something completely different. That something was slowly starting to make its way out onto the stage, though it was heard before it was seen.

"Play with me!" My voice echoed through the room, the same childish voice I had put on for our performance. Only my mouth hadn't moved, and I didn't have a microphone so there was no way my voice could have carried throughout the hall. Of course, only a select few knew that Jason didn't have a clue.

"Okay, Kenzie, that wasn't funny," Jason said, turning around to face me with a rather serious look on his face.

"Wasn't me," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"It was your voice."

"I didn't say anything, did I, Leo?"

"Nope, she was silent. I thought she had fallen asleep, to be honest."

"Shut it."

"Okay, enough of that, you two, just stay quiet please," Jason said.

"Play with me!" The voice said again.

"That time it definitely wasn't me, and you are a witness."

Next to me, I could feel Joel's arm twitch as he moved the controller. Jason was so fixated on watching me and watching what might have come out of my mouth that he didn't notice what was slowly making its way across the stage behind us. From my peripheral vision, I could see everyone in the group trying their hardest not to laugh or even smile at what was going on. The other groups were doing the exact same thing, biting their lips to not give themselves away. We might have been good with our performances, but this was difficult to ignore especially since no one else had noticed what was going on.

The voice continued to play in a loop through the room, getting slightly louder and louder as time progressed but still Jason watched my mouth, just to make sure that it wasn't me doing the talking. To be honest, I was shocked he didn't believe me, but looking back, I wouldn't have believed me either. Since Jason was fixated on me, he didn't notice the actual object that was creeping up behind him, Joel controlling it with his controller. It wasn't until one of the other Drama teachers screamed that he realised some else was going on and turned around just in the time.

Turning around, Jason came face to face with a doll that had been creeping its way across the stage since the winner was announced. Seeing the innocent-looking object moving towards him had the exact effect we were going for; it scared the stuffing out of him. The moment he saw the doll crossing the hall, its arms held out in front of him muttering the same phrase over and over again, he ran across the room screaming like a little girl. Joel used the control to send the doll rolling after Jason at an unbelievable pace, chasing him around the room in circles whilst we were killing ourselves with laughter over his reaction. We knew he'd be freaked out, but running screaming was something none of us expected and it was hysterical.

"Okay, okay! Enough already, you got me," Jason said, his eyes darting between us and the doll. "Thank you all for coming to watch our showcase, congratulations again to One Christmas Night. Parents, you can meet your kids in the corridor just outside. Children, take this contraption and yourselves back to the Drama studio to collect your stuff. Be warned, I will not forget this."

"I sense a prank war," Joel whispered, using the control to move the doll through the door and out into the corridor.

"Next term is going to be so much fun if that's the case," Leo added.

"Do you remember last time? Mrs Reynolds got caught up in the crossfire and tried to give him a detention. It was hilarious," Niska said.

"Wow, sounds like fun."

"Yeah, if you're not here, we'll send you updates. That way you won't miss a thing."

"Deal," I laughed.

Snatching my bag off the coatrack and picking up the backdrop, Niska, Joel and I headed out into the corridor to meet our families, though I have to admit that I was a little nervous to see Mama after so long. Seeing her in the Bubble was one thing, real life was a little different. The Bubble was just a series of questions and responses, me telling her about my life and what I've been up to. Whilst real life meant hugging, cheek touching (yes, she did that) and comments on how different I looked, though not much had changed in three months. I wanted to hide in Drama room for the rest of my life, but I wasn't able to do that, so I had to do the awkward friend introduction and reunion. At least Papa had other things to worry about than how much I had changed, Mama, not so much.

When we entered the hallway, it was almost impossible to pick any one person out of the crowd. Most people had already merged with their families and were finding out what they thought of their performance, the three of us were left attempting to find our families in the hubbub of people. Luckily, Granny and Grandpa weren't exactly difficult to find in a crowd due to the fact that they had a habit of standing out with their white-blond hair and annoyingly chosen red outfits. Despite the need to keep the secret about our identity, they always insisted in dressing in outfits that would give them away, including red jumpsuits. If anyone figured it out they just erased their memory, it sort of defeated the secrecy, to be honest. Then again, it meant I was able to spot them in a crowd so there were both positives and negatives.

We negotiated our way through the crowd and joined Granny and Grandpa who was standing with Mama and Nick as well as Niska's parents and sister and Joel's mum. It was weird seeing them all talking as though they had known each other for years when in reality they had known each other for about five minutes. My hope was that my parents would get on with my friend's parents, it's something every child wants. At least if the parents get along they won't try and stop me from hanging out with them, not that I saw that as a possibility. Granny and Grandpa had already approved so I expected Mama would as well, she was never one to dismiss friendship so easily.

"There they are! We're sorry you didn't win," Granny said, taking the backdrop off me before I dropped it.

"Watching Jason run for the hills was worth not winning. I'll never get that look out of my face," I said, shaking my head.

"He'll get us back for that, no doubt about it," Niska said.

"I'd like to see 'im try. Tha' was the best prank we've ever pulled, it'll go down in the history books."

"Aren't there a couple of people you need to introduce, Kenz?" Granny said, nodding her head towards Mama and Nick, who were standing off to the side. Mama was watching us, not saying a word whilst Nick was bouncing on the balls of his feet, his energy through the roof, as per usual.

"Right. Niska, Joel, this is my mum, Holly, and my brother, Nick," I said.

"It's nice to finally meet you both, I've heard so much about you, I feel as though I know you already!" Mama said.

"Mama, when are we going to see the Christmas lights?" Nick groaned, holding onto Mama's arm and swinging it around. The child was twelve but acted five and always appeared to get away with it. Looking to Niska and Joel, I rolled my eyes in response to Nick and watched as they attempt to stifle a laugh. They only knew what I had told them about Nick, witnessing it was something completely different.

"Nice to see you too, Nick," I muttered.

"Nick, we talked about this before we left, didn't we?" Mama said, glaring at Nick.

"Sorry, Mama."

"Right, as you know, the plan was for you two to come back with us for the night, but after Holly and Nick's surprise arrival, there won't be enough space in the car. Nick wanted to have a look at some Christmas lights, so they were going to walk back. You can either get a warm car ride with us or have a wander around for a bit to look at the decorations," Granny said.

"Well, I know where all the best lights are around here, so I know what I'm doing," Niska said.

"I'm with Nisk, too much energy to sit in a car. Besides, I can't leave these two alone with Nick, it wouldn't end well."

"I'll support that," Niska said.

"Very well, we'll see you all at home a little later on then."

"See ya."

With Granny and Grandpa heading back to the car, my backdrop in tow, the rest of us headed in the opposite direction in search of some Christmas lights. It was strange being with Mama again after so long, though I wasn't too keen on Nick being with us as well. In the three months I had been gone, he hadn't change one bit and was acting more like a child than ever before. Then again, I had been looking forward to seeing the Christmas lights around town for a while but never had the chance. In a way, I felt like a little kid setting off on a big adventure to see the pretty lights, and with Niska leading us, I had a feeling that it was going to be a rather Magical experience.

Niska led the way through the maze of streets in search for some of the best lights and decorations in the area and it was as though she could sniff them out. Even Nick was impressed by her art of tracking Christmas lights and he was never impressed with anything. Some of them were simple, some white lights in the window accompanied by a Christmas tree and nothing more, whilst others were more extreme. Some could have even outdone Nick if that had seen the mess he always created. They had animatronic deer on the front garden, Santa's climbing the chimneys and what looked to be an explosion in a lighting factory on the side of the building. Even the window displays were something to be admired, even though they were a little blinding if looked at for longer than three seconds.

It was weird to see my two friends, Mama, and Nick in the same room, let alone actually getting on as though they had known each other for years. Nick was in awe at Niska and her ability to find Christmas lights, as though she had a map or homing beacon, he appeared calm. For once. Joel and Mama looked as though they had bonded over me and my terrible ability to do Maths, a weird thing to bond over if I do say so myself. It was all going remarkably well until Nick decided to throw me a curve ball and ask a question. I hoped that he was too energetic to care, seeing as this was his first time in the real world around real people, but that wasn't the case.

"Did you use Magic to get the doll to talk and move across the room?" he asked, stopping in the middle of the pavement to talk to me.

"Nope, even I'm not that stupid," I said.

"Then how?"

"Joel took apart the inside of a remote-control car. He then did his weird nerdy thing and put the components in the paper mache doll and we controlled the doll using the controller. Joel had it behind his back when we were on stage. The voice was pre-recorded and played back."

"How long were you working on that one? It wouldn't have been an easy task," Mama said.

"It wasn't. We came up with the idea at Halloween, so it's been over a month of work to get it done. Nothing like spending my weekends making a doll out of paper just for one evening so we could scare Jason. It wasn't even my idea and I did most of the legwork for it."

"You made the doll?" Nick asked, tilting his head at me. "Did you make the background too? The fireplace thingy?"

"Yup. Well, I painted it and Grandpa cut the wood for me. I might be good, but I'm not that good."

"Nah, your arts awful Miss I-don't-even-plan-my-work," Niska mocked.

"Shut it."

As we continued to make our way through the streets and towards the house, I knew I was going to have to talk to Mama about my future, but I just couldn't find the words. No matter how many times I ran through it in my head, how many times I tried to find the right words to explain it to her, it was as though they weren't there. As though the words were deliberately evading me, mocking me. I knew that was wrong, though, I knew it was my own mind messing me until I gave up, put it off for one day more, one second longer. Only I couldn't. I couldn't put it off anymore, but every time I thought about, every time the idea crossed my mind, I felt like I was going to puke, and I had had just enough of thinking about my stomach pyrotechnics for one night.

All I had to do was brave up and face the truth, but how could I face the truth if it meant ruining my mother's life? I was back to my original dilemma. I had hoped that this issue would be one for me to bare, for me to face on my own, but that wasn't completely true. Whatever I decided impacted one person or another and there was no escaping that. I just had to face up to it and do it. Confront the demons then and there rather than drag it out to the end of the week. It wasn't going to anyone any good if I dragged it out longer then I needed to. With Niska, Joel and Nick out in front, I pushed the sinking feeling down and finally faced my fears.

"Mama?" I said.

"Hmm?" she replied.

"I've decided I'm going to stay, with Granny and Grandpa that is."

"I thought you might, at least a part of me did."

"Really?"

"Yes. From the moment you decided to come here, I knew that your mind was already made up, even if you didn't. Nick's had his future laid out in front of him all his life, he knows who he is, where he belongs. You're still learning who you are, and you can only do that here, not at home with me and your father."

"You're not mad at me?"

"No, sweetie, of course, I'm not! This is your life and your decision to make, I'm not going to stand in your way. I'll miss you like crazy, but I can come and visit, and you can come home for visits whenever you want, I know AJ would like that. You could even bring your friends, show them the real Magic behind Christmas. All I want is for you to be happy."

"Thanks, Mama," I said, stopping to hug in the middle of the street.

"I love you Kenzie, you know, that right?" Mama said, leaning into the hug and kissing my forehead.

"I know, Mama. I love you too."

~~~

A/N -That is it! Last Christmas is officially finished and I am actually crying over that last exchange we will ever get from Mackenzie. It's been a hell of a ride, guys.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the final chapter of the book! I've had the idea for the doll in my head for a while, but to actually write it was quite fun. Also, Nick is back and more annoying than ever xD. So, what did you all think of the last chapter? Was Kenzie right to decide to stay behind? What do you think is her next adventure in life? 

Don't forget to vote and comment if you enjoyed!

Dedication - This chapter is dedicated to CrownedMadness who has been one of the best readers in the world and who is also a great friend!

First Published - June 7th, 2018