Compiled English Edited Stories 3 -5 - first draft

Theme 1: Wanderlust (Travels and Travelogues) 3
I Want to See the World that You Saw 3
Chandrika Chakrabarti, Class III-I 3
My Encounter with The Nawabs 3
Eshanika Dutta, Class V-H 3
Making Memories Among a Valley of Flowers 4
Ishaan Chaudhuri, Class III-I 4

Theme 2: Inhabiting Nature (Nature-based Narratives) 7
In Conversation with Nature 7
Ishika Das, Class IV-D 7
The Tree 7
Riaan Mukherjee, Class III-G 7
The Fabulous Tree of Light and Colour 8
Divyanshi Ghosh, Class III-F 8
The Circus Lion 9
Laisha Jaisinghani, Class IV-A 9
(Inspired by the Circus Elephant) 9

Theme 3: Copying with Corona (Lines written under Quarantine) 10

Reinventing Life after the Lockdown 10

Aritra Bhattacharjee, Class V-A 10

Virtual Classes - the Life Force of a Newbie during the Lockdown 11

Rudransh Saxena, Class V-E 11

The Lockdown and I 12

By Dhruvin Konar, Class III-I 12

Theme 4: The Fantastic Realm of Fun Facts 13
The Glass Island 13

Giving Nature’s Garbage Disposers their due Respect 14

Theme 5: Soul Food (Good Reads) 16

An Angel for Me 16
Divyansi Patra, Class IV-G 16
At the Appointed Hour 16
Abhradeep Dutta, Class V-H 16
In Search of Hidden Treasure 17
Rishijit Mondal, Class V-J 17
A Change of Heart 18
The Killing of a Sacred Deer 19
The Tale of Timothy the Tortoise 20
Indrashish Saha, Class III-I 20
Empress Victoria 21
Yashvi Sardar, Class V-H 21
The Ordinary Paintbrush that was not so “Ordinary” 22
Nivriti Khemka, Class III-B 22
The Wonderful World of Words 23
Anshujita Ghosal, Class III-F 23
Irakra 24
Adwik Bairagi, Class V-H 24
Hands Deep in a Choc Chip Cookie 26
Eshan Saha, Class IV-F 26
Wisdom’s Worth 27
Divyanshi Ghosh, Class III-F 27
The Nightmare 28
Ritisha Basak, Class 3-F 28
A Night with the Poker 29
Bikramaditya Mazumdar, Class V-C 29
A True Friend 33
Anisha Pradhan, Class - ??? 33
The Tree near my House 34
Ayushman Kar, Class II-C 34
A Christmas Miracle 34
Samanwaya Saha, Class ??? 34
Sam and His Trip 36
Arkodeep Kundu, Class III-G 36

 

Wanderlust (Travels and Travelogues) 

I Want to See the World that You Saw

Chandrika Chakrabarti, Class III-I

I want to see the world that you saw.
The rivers, ponds, lakes and seas,
I want to see
The world that you saw.

I want to see the world that you saw,
The birds that fly in the open sky.
I want to spy
On the world that you saw.

My Encounter with The Nawabs

Eshanika Dutta, Class V-H

Woohoo! We were going to Lucknow. Pulling
out my Disney-themed suitcase I started
throwing in my essentials. It was December, and
I checked the weather on my phone. Brrr… it
was freezing cold where we were headed for, so
I had to pack in a lot of winter wear.

At long last, D’ Day arrived and off we went to
‘The City of the Nawabs!’

After a two-and-a-half-hour long journey we
landed at Lucknow with a bump. The moment I
stepped out of the airport I could feel the chill
down my spine. Thank God I had kept my
woolen scarf handy...Phew! We hired a taxi and
went straight to the Hotel since it was already
too late in the evening to venture out.

First thing in the morning, after having a sumptuous breakfast, we
headed out to the Bara Imambara - a huge ancient Mughal
architectural complex constructed during the rule of Asaf -ud-Daula
comprising a mosque, courtyard, gateways, stepwell and the most intriguing
Bhul Bhulaiya! We got three tickets and followed our tour guide into the
labyrinth of the Bhul Bhulaiya! The tour guide informed us that the king and
the queen played Hide-and-Seek in alleys of this ancient labyrinth…seriously!
We also explored all the nooks and corners of the three different divisions of
the Bara Imambara.

Our hungry tummies led us to the hub of Lucknowi cuisines - where we settled
down comfortably to try out some of the famous chaats, the Galawati Kebab
and, of course, the Biryani. I was famished and dived right into the
yummylicious street food that finally satisfied my gastronomic cravings.

For the next couple of days, we visited a few more iconic places to get the
Nabawi feel of life. We travelled by auto rickshaws, welcoming the thrill of the
chilly wind piercing our skin. We got chatty with the driver who gave us quite
a few interesting snippets of the city.

Travelling almost always remains incomplete without “Shopping” so The
Hazrat Gunj Market was the last but not the least on our bucket list of places
to visit. The market was lined up with shops exhibiting Lucknow’s exquisite
“shadow stitch” - the Chikankari. I nagged on until my parents agreed to buy
me a super classy and gorgeous Kurta Palazzo set. I even bought some
souvenirs for my friends back in Kolkata to present as mementos while
retelling the tales of the Nawabs ingrained in my memories.

All in all, Lucknow was an amazing place to visit! If not for anything else then
surely for the Galawati Kebabs!

Making Memories Among a Valley of Flowers

Ishaan Chaudhuri, Class III-I

Last year, in August, we decided to trek up to Hemkund Sahib and the Valley
of Flowers (VoF), the smallest National Park nestled in the Uttarakhand
Himalayas.

I was very excited about the upcoming adventure which was to begin from
Pulna, a small village 3 km away from Govindghat, located along the banks of
the Alakananda near Badrinath.

We trekked for about 10 km to reach Ghangaria - our stop for the next three
days. The trek took us through beautiful hills in full bloom and cascading
waterfalls with the Laxman Ganga flowing by our side. Despite the
exhaustion, we were refreshed by the clean mountain air.

The next day we left Ghangaria early for a one way 5 km trek to the Valley of
Flowers, traversing a narrow, rocky path. We came across an agitated
Pushpawati gushing down a cliff! Upon crossing the river, the trail became
even more steep. The trees and flowers here were different from what we had
seen before.

We finally reached the summit, which overlooked a lush green river valley
along with glistening streams, more snowy peaks and flowery meadows. We
crossed a log bridge over a waterfall to enter the valley. I had never seen so
many flowers at one place, in brilliant hues of red, blue, yellow, purple, green
and many more!

We rested while munching on biscuits and nuts. Soon it started
raining and though we wanted to stay on, we had to return through a
now-slippery trail. By the time we reached Ghangaria, I was
exhausted and hungry.

The next morning, we paid a visit to Hemkund Sahib on ponies. I was excited
to ride a pony - it was very gentle and I patted it often! The path to Hemkund
Sahib was paved but very steep. The climb took us through beautiful valleys
surrounded by tall mountains. We also saw the rare big white lotus called the
Brahma Kamal.

Hemkund - the source of the Laxman Ganga, is a big lake, fed by snowmelt
water from the mountains. I touched the ice-cold water of the Kund and was
amazed to see a few Sikhs taking a dip in the lake! We later visited the
Hemkund Sahib Gurudwara and the Laxman Mandir, ate hot Khichdi at the
Langar and returned to Ghangaria.
Our return trek was equally enjoyable but a little more tiring. We spent the
night at Govindghat and left for Haridwar to catch the train back to Sealdah.

It was a special trip with many happy memories. I was thrilled that the places
in my General Knowledge book were no longer only pictures; they were now
very beautiful memories I hope to revisit again!

Inhabiting Nature  
(Nature-based Narratives) 

In Conversation with Nature

Ishika Das, Class IV-D

The little tree by the old road fence
Stood soaking in the Summer Sun,
Mused "I want to grow up tall and dense,
As growing up seems so much fun."

The little brook beneath the mossy bridge
Babbled and sang away all day.
"I want to become a radiant river,
And so I'm hastening on along my way."

The little bird fluttered far across the yard
Leaving behind the comfort of its nest,
Promised itself "One day I'll become a big strong
bird,
If, each day, I try my very best."

The Tree

Riaan Mukherjee, Class III-G

I can listen to the tree
Although I am just in class three.
I can clearing listen to them speak,
But people think them speechless and weak.
The story they tell me is filled with pain
By cutting them down, what do we gain?

They have always been helping me and you
And this great fact is not very new.
They are the means of our very survival
And so, our care for them is vital.
After all… It’s the least we can do.

The Fabulous Tree of Light and Colour

Divyanshi Ghosh, Class III-F

Long long ago, there existed a beautiful little village amidst a cluster of snowy
mountains. It was perfect… well, almost perfect. The village had everything
ofbeauty – but there were no trees at all in the village.
Then, one day, a miracle happened.
After the season’s very first monsoon shower, right in the heart of the village a
tiny magical bush popped out of an 18 foot high mound covered in sticky
moss. It was magical because it bore luminous leaves of different colours. The
villagers were astonished to see such a beautiful bush in their village where no
trees grew. They named the bush the Fabulous Tree of Light and Colour. The
Tree soon grew to become the most precious possession of the villagers,
especially the children who grew a great fondness for it. With each passing
monsoon, the bush grew into a big strong tree. Its leaves became even more
bright and vibrant, their shades of light acquired more sparkle.
It proved useful to everyone in the village - they all got something from the
tree. Birds like woodpeckers and squirrels made their nests among its
branches. It bore an array of fruits - mulberries and dragon fruits, peaches
and plums. What a wonder!

Flower bushes started sprouting around the tree, guarding its beauty.
The children played under the shade of the beautiful tree. The village
now became the most beautiful village of all because of the Fabulous
Tree of Light and Colour.

The popularity of the Tree spread far and wide bringing tree thieves to this
tiny little beautiful village. When they finally found the Fabulous Tree, their
eyes glowed with greed. They came up with an incredulous idea - “We have
finally got a tree. We have got to chop it down!” they happily exclaimed.

Their exclamations and loud noises woke up the sleeping little children who
played under the shade of the Fabulous Tree. They spied the tree thieves from
their windows and knew what was about to happen. Their Fabulous Tree was
in grave danger! In a flash, they sprinted out of their beds and ran towards
their Tree.

“What, a group of children, who think they can save the Tree from us!” said
the thieves.

“Bring it on!” said the thieves.

But Alas! They could not get a single child, you know. When they neared the
children or tried to touch the tree, the children kicked and bit and pushed the
bullies sending them rolling down the 18 feet mound.

By morning, the news of saving the Fabulous Tree of Light and Colour from
the greedy tree thieves had spread across in the village.

“Well done!” said the proud villagers to their children.

And thus, the Fabulous Tree of Light and Colour lived on for many years. As
for the village, it grew incomparably beautiful and sparkling with each passing
day. The villagers still sat under the tree and received rich gifts of medicines,
food, fibre, timbre and spices from the Thankful Tree. The children continued
to climb the tree, play under its shade and pick fruits.

Moral: Every tree is our friend, and every green friend is worth fighting for.

The Circus Lion

Laisha Jaisinghani, Class IV-A
(Inspired by the Circus Elephant)

Has the lion forgotten his almighty roar?
Or his feasting on his favourite wild boar?

Has he altogether forgotten about his kingdom?
Well, that’s not true, he’s currently fighting for his freedom.

The food he gets is not quite enough,
Life in the circus is unbearably tough.
Night after night caged and in chain,
He bravely bears up all his pain.
Return him to his kingdom!
Restore him his freedom!
And he will surely be happy again.

Copying with Corona  
(Lines written under Quarantine)  

Reinventing Life after the Lockdown

Aritra Bhattacharjee, Class V-A

The Virus…

The COVID-19 virus was suspected to have been an
experimental virus that escaped the comfort of its
petri dish to infect the people of a seafish market
Wuhan City, China. It has slowly crept from city to
city, hitching around the world, piggybacking on
humans, happily wiping out a massive chunk of our
population since then. This virus currently lives in
blissful cohabitation with the citizens of most
countries including India.

Thanks to the COVID-19 virus, many people have lost
their lives. Hospitals are running out of room to treat
people. So, to control this virus a lockdown was

declared.

The lockdown…

Even after declaring the lockdown the virus continued spreading fast and
wide, increasing by 1000-2000 cases a day. So I think if we stay in our homes
for a few more days it could be safe for us and we will not get infected.

Because of this lockdown we cannot meet our relatives or
enjoy holidays outdoors. But if we strengthen our minds,
our lives can be saved. It is better that we take this
lockdown seriously and stay at home. Countries like
America, Australia and Russia have witnessed a lot of
deaths because the people of these countries thought it
was not important to follow the lockdown and now they
are in deep trouble.

The Society in Upheaval...

Now we all know that because of the
lockdown we cannot go out of our homes, the
resources that we had stocked up are finishing fast
and people are facing a lot of problems. Some people
are also starving. The economy is suffering and many
people are losing their jobs.

The Flipside…

The Lockdown is solving problems for the
environment. The ozone layer is slowly healing itself,
the animals that were not seen in the last
10 years are now being spotted in unusual places.

Glaciers are melting less than in the past. The air pollution is almost gone, and
we can see the Himalayas from Siliguri and Jalandhar! Accidental deaths have
reduced to almost zero and the incidence of diseases have reduced
dramatically, other than the corona of course!

Overall, the lockdown has come as a blessing in disguise
for our planet.

How did I utilize the lockdown?

Many people are trying something new during this time.
Some are cooking while others are learning new dances,
arts, etc. I get to spend more time with my parents and I
feel very good. We can now joke, laugh, play and have
fun together. I have all the time to explore the world and
universe.

Virtual Classes - the Life Force of a Newbie during the
Lockdown

Rudransh Saxena, Class V-E

On the 21st of March 2020, amidst the COVID-19 pandemonium, I arrived at
this beautiful city of Kolkata, bearing infinite dreams and hopes and
imagining what my new school would be like.

I would wake up everyday and open my new school books and sift
through their pages. This would make me feel happier and brighter. I
eagerly waited for the day I would enter the campus of my new school,
looking forward to making fresh new friends.

My hopes were
shattered as the
lockdown was
announced. My life
changed thereafter
- as the lockdown
proceeded, I would
feel a rush of anger
thinking about my
unfulfilled dreams
and a restlessness
to join my new
school.

The lockdown
extended further
making me even
more miserable,
irritable and isolated.

And then the unexpected happened - the school announced the beginning of
Virtual Classes. the best thing to have happened during these gloomy
lockdown days, my entry into my Virtual Classrooms rapidly revived my life
force. It became my sole source of happiness.

Studies and schooling were never so much fun! Subjects were never so
interesting. My teachers, never so supportive. They’re the best ones I’ve ever
got! My heart pumps with joy when I hear my adorable nickname ‘Ruddy’
given by my class teacher! ‘BINGO!’ in the Math Class pushes me forward in
my weakest subject! Hindi was never so engaging before! The true meaning of
discipline I learned in English Class. Science is completed in the class itself!
No one can make me do sketches as well as my best drawing teacher can! And
yes! Now I can sing and dance too! All this magic has been made possible by
my new school, my principal and my teachers who gifted me this virtual
platform to learn, grow and make friends galore!

Gone are the days of loneliness and sadness! I have finally discovered Joy in
the wonderful City of Joy!

The Lockdown and I

Dhruvin Konar, Class III-I

I was so happy when I Received my new books for class III. I was so looking
forward to meeting my friends. But that was not meant to be for there was a
tiny monster roaming around, intent on taking over the world.

So, I was barred from
going outside to play my
favourite sport, football.
I also could not go to my
favourite sweet shop to
buy my favourite
"Rasgulla”! That was
that.

Several sad days later, I
woke up one morning
and headed for the
balcony to sit and watch
a few pigeons that
seemed to drop by
everyday in search of
scraps. I fed them
pulses and we became
friends in a few days. I
began taking notice of
the things around me,
things I ignored owing
to my busy life. I noticed
a beautiful flowering plant on our balcony that needed watering. I took
responsibility for watering it daily. The plant, in turn, bloomed for me every
day.

I can feel a change outside. There is so much silence and no pollution. I can
hear birds chirping here and there. The sky seems bluer. My life may not be
the same as before but the change isn’t as bad as I imagined.

If only I could have had all of these in a monster-free world, and, of course,
football!

The Fantastic Realm of Fun Facts  

The Glass Island

Debadipta Das, Class
Murano - about 1.5 kilometres north of Venice, is a series of islands linked by
bridges in the Venetian Lagoon, but what it is more renowned for is its long
tradition of glassmaking that can be traced all the way back to as early as the
8th century CE.

Glass was one of Renaissance’s most coveted treasures. In 1291 the
Government of Venice banned furnaces from Central Venice, fearing fire and
the destruction of the city's mostly wooden buildings. This, coupled with the
intention of isolating the glass blowers to prevent sharing valuable glass
making secrets that were passed down from one generation to the next
prompted the government to move them to the island of Murano.

Murano glass is made up of 70% silica sand, added to 30% of fluxes
(soda and lime), which allows the glass to be melted at a lower
temperature. For this reason, it is possible to create homogeneous and
bubble-free Murano glass.

The master glassmakers of Murano are able to blow very thin and airy,
delicately shaped forms using a few simple iron tools that have hardly evolved
over these past hundreds of years. Murano glassmakers refined many
technologies including optical clean glass, enamelled glass (smalto), glass with
threads of gold (aventurine), multi-coloured glass, milk glass and imitation
gemstones made of glass.

One can spend hours on one’s visit to the island simply browsing through the
hundreds of showrooms and shops standing on either side of the canal,
displaying objects ranging from huge chandeliers, vases to tiny beads and
earrings of assorted colours and fragile shapes. The Murano Glass Museum
itself exhibits the evolution of glassmaking ranging from Egyptian times
through the ages down to the present day.

After all, this is where the world’s showiest pieces of glass dazzle for all the
world to see.

Giving Nature’s Garbage Disposers their due
Respect

Arshiya Bhattacharya, Class V-A
Seen as a harbinger of death, circling the dying, ready to pick at flesh with its
big, bulky beak, a vulture’s fondness of scouring for carion has led to its
creating a terribly ominous aura around itself.

Vultures are scavenging birds - with a bald head and a neck devoid of feathers.
They have a comparatively bulky body and an extremely corrosive stomach
acid that allows them to consume rotting animal corpses.
And yet, they are vital to the disposing of dead carcasses that would otherwise
be a breeding ground for diseases and who knows what!
As nature’s army of garbage disposers, they prove themselves absolutely
essential to maintaining ecological balance by efficiently keeping the
environment clean and free of contagious diseases. They clean up the
countryside of carcasses (remains of dead animals left uneaten by predators)
thus, also preventing huge amounts of greenhouse gases from being produced.
But like most species these days, the vultures are under threat.

The Indian Vultures are Old World natives of India, Pakistan and
Nepal, who can dispose of flesh and eliminate bacteria. These animals
are helpful, if not vital, in countries such as India, where cattle (a valuable
asset) are kept until they die of natural causes – but are not eaten.

Listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2002, the Vulture
population has severely declined. They are dying of kidney failure caused by
diclofenac poisoning.
It is therefore important to remember that even though the vulture may not
present itself as cute and cuddly and may lack the social graces to mingle with
our kind, they are still a critical piece of our complex ecological jigsaw.
The battle to save these universally accepted ‘natural sanitary workers’ may
not sound as grand and noble as fighting for one’s motherland, but, I do
believe it is time to stand by these misunderstood creatures and pay them their
due respect.
After all, our survival depends on it.

Theme 5: Soul Food (Good Reads) 

An Angel for Me

Divyansi Patra, Class IV-G

The day I awoke into this world,
She looked into my wee, round face.
She held me close, all wrinkled and curled
And said, “So we finally meet after waiting for days.”

I looked at her and deeply thought,
“Why is she looking so fondly at me?
Her face resembles God a lot,
She’s an angel from heaven, she just has to be!”.

Slowly as days and months moved on,
She showered me with love and care.
Even after ten years have gone
I still feel lonely when she’s not there.

At times, she scolds
me for playing
rough games
Or when I’m
gravely under the
weather.
The world may
have given her
different names
And I
I just call her
Mother.

At the Appointed Hour

Abhradeep Dutta, Class V-H

A poor, pious cobbler lived all alone in a small little shack. The last of his
family members, his 12-year-old child, had recently passed away. Yet he never
blamed God for his misfortunes. His only wish was to get one opportunity to
serve his Maker.

So God decided to grant the cobbler his wish. One night, He appeared before
the cobbler in a dream and promised to visit him the next day.

Anticipating a grand
apparition the poor
cobbler woke up early
and waited for the
appointed hour.

He ran to the door as
soon as he heard
shuffling footsteps
outside his house. All
he found was a
miserable old man,
wading through the
thick snow with great
difficulty. Taking pity,
he brought the
shivering man inside
and offered up his
breakfast. The lit the
only log he has left to
warm up the miserable old man. The man thanked the cobbler and left when
he felt invigorated.

Morning turned to noon and there was still no sign of God.

A little after noon still more shuffling and swearing led the cobber back to his
door. He saw a small boy being shaken by the collar by an apple seller. The
little boy was so hungry that he had stolen an apple from the apple seller’s
basket. He paid the lady for the stolen apple to save the hungry little urchin.
He offered the boy his lunch and made him promise not to steal again.

Noon gave way to dusk and God had still not paid the Cobbler a visit.

The cobbler was about to give up on God when he heard someone
knock on his door. He opened the door to a feeble young girl carrying an
equally feeble child in her arms. She begged him for some charity. He packed
up the last of his meals in the only clean sheet he possessed and gave it to the
young mother. She blessed him and left.

That night the cobbler went to bed cold, hungry and disappointed. God had
failed to keep his appointment.

God appeared a second time before the cobbler that night.

The cobbler said “All I ever wanted was a chance to serve you. I waited for
you all day, but you never showed up.”

And God replied, “I came to you in many forms - as a shivering old man, as a
hungry urchin and as a helpless young mother in need. You served me well
when you served them all.”

The Killing of a Scared Deer

Upamanyu Sengupta, Class-5J

Suresh was a ruthless hunter who never ever missed his mark. One day, he hot
down two deer at one go. They instantly died. The pain of the dying animals
did not really mean anything to him. They were just two of the many deer that
he had shot down before them.
On one of his hunts he ended up with a punctured tyre. He was looking
around for a garage nearby, but no garage was in sight. After waiting for what
seemed like ages, he spied a car coming his way. He decided to hitch a ride to
the nearest garage. The driver agreed to help him.
The driver drove on for a while and then stopped at a bend in the winding
road. He excused himself and got out of the car. He said he needed to relieve
himself.
Barely did he disappear into the nearest thicket, the door suddenly snapped
shut with a loud noise. Confused, Suresh tried hard to open the door - it
wouldn’t budge. He panicked. The car seemed to come alive - it started up on
its own, dangerously swerving down the bend. Suresh didn’t know what to do.
Before he could understand what was happening the car fell into a big ditch!
When he came to his senses, he found himself on a dark and dense forest floor.
Two beautiful deer were staring down at him. They looked so harmless and
were in no hurry to run away. He could have shot them easily if only he had
his gun with him.
Both animals had a wound on their chest, where someone had shot them.
Stunned, Suresh looked around. As his eyes grew accustomed to the darkness,

more animals began appearing - with similar wounds where Suresh
had shot them. They seemed to have come back to life to haunt him.
He tried to get up and run. He tried calling for help. But, all in vain.

The animals began closing in on him. He closed his eyes in fear. He felt
something cold rest on his shoulder. It was the driver. Suresh was back in the
car, exactly where the driver had left him.

Suresh realized his unforgivable mistake. He understood his victims needed
justice. He knew he had to make a big sacrifice to pay for his act of killing a
sacred deer.

He asked the driver to drop him off at the nearest police station. He turned
himself in and confessed to all his crimes. He willingly served his sentence for
several years. He never laid a hand on a gun ever again.

The Tale of Timothy the Tortoise

Indrashish Saha, Class III-I

Timothy was a lazy Tortoise who loved sleeping and playing all day. His friend
Richard, the Rabbit, on the other hand, was very responsible and loved to
read books.

Ricky announced one
morning, “The day is
perfect for a bit of light
reading. What do you
think, Timmy?” The
tortoise retorted back,
“Who reads these days
when there are more fun
things to do with your
time. Besides, “Reading”
is boring.”

Hurt by Timmy’s rude
comments, Ricky walked
away. Timmy, upset by
Ricky’s behaviour
slumped back home with a
grumpy face.

No sooner had Timmy unlocked his door than his telephone rang out
with a ‘Brr, Brr, Brr!’ Timmy placed the receiver to his ear and
groaned, “HELLO!” On the other side, Fredrick the Fox heard Timmy’s
groan and asked in a concerned voice, “What’s wrong Timmy, have you
caught an early Flu? Why on Earth do you sound so low?”

Timmy replied, “Ricky and I have had a fallout. Ricky wanted us to read
books and I wanted to play. All this makes me so sad.”

Freddy soothed his friend, “Ricky loves books yet he always plays your games
whenever you need a playmate. It should not hurt if you try reading books
once in a while, just to make Ricky happy.” Besides, “Reading” is super
exciting, it opens up a world of possibilities right before your eyes. It’s pure
Magic. So you can give it a try.”

The next day, Timmy went over to Ricky’s house and borrowed “Alice in
Wonderland”.

He started reading and within no time he realised he just couldn’t put down
the book. The moment he finished the book, he ran back to Ricky’s for more
and more and more.

Ricky and Timmy became inseparable friends. You would either find them
spending their leisure in a park or a cafe, a bookstore or at the community
library, with their noses buried deep within the pages of a book, hanging on
every word the pages had to offer.

The Wonderful World of Words

Anshujita Ghosal, Class III-F

I always used to insist on my Mum telling me stories - each day a new one.
Every afternoon and every night her narratives sent me off to sweet sleep.
Over time, her stock of stories began to dwindle as my need for new stories
kept increasing. But my mum was not one to give up - she started buying me
books so quench my hunger for words. I used to gobble up each word of each
book as soon as I laid hands on them. My demands for new books grew by the
day.

Curious, my Mum asked me one day "Why do you keep asking for books?"

I emphatically answered "Because each book is magical. It gives me
a pair of wings to fly to far of lands, meet fairies and goblins, explore
a chocolate castle, trek the cookie and cream mountains with
Geronimo and his friends, fight like a valiant knight, creep through the secret
corridors of a Pyramid, solve mysteries like Tintin and Snowy, invent
something you like Professor Calculus and Professor Shonku, chase
man-eaters alongside Jim Corbett with my toy rifle through the forests of
Kumaon...".

The list seemed endless. I could have gone on for days. Mum laughed.

"And what do you gain by reading these books?" she quietly asked.

For a second, I scratched my head
and thought hard and said " I learn
new words."

"And?"

I was confused and had no answer.

She took me in her arms and said
“Every story hides within its many
pages a lesson which, if we follow,
would make us strong and wise from
within. We just have to find this real
treasure buried deep within each
book. Once we find it and free it, out
comes a world of endless possibilities
which can take us places if we
understand it and use it appropriately
in our daily lives.”

And that is the real reason for reading books.

Irakra

Adwik Bairagi, Class V-H

Legend speaks of a strange old man who lived in a strange eerie Citadel atop a
strange old mount in the middle of Nowhere. He had no feelings, no friends, no
family, no pets, no one to love him or miss him when he died. His pale, gaunt
face flaunted a thin, jagged jawline with coppery teeth, pointed ears and a
head without a single strand of hair on it. His body was bent and crooked but

his spirit was unbroken. Whoever came close to him would be
charred to ashes.
The inhabitants of the Valley below had named him Irakra.

To keep Irakra from descending onto the Valley below, they had built him the
Citadel in the hopes of pleasing him enough to leave them unscathed. It was
gilded in gold and inlaid with pure diamonds and gemstones that gave off a
fiery hue. The Citadel shone and sparkled in the burnished sun. It was his safe
haven, his only prized possession in the universe - the thing closest to his heart.
Irakra would keep it forever.
Irakra opened up his heart to the Citadel - he gave it the ability to fly over
land and sea and the ability to appear and disappear into thin air whenever
someone tried to breach its walls. The Citadel was also given a voice to
communicate with his - whispers that registered in his sharp pointed ears and
made sense only to him.
The Citadel was a living entity, loyal only to its Master. Separating the two
would have meant tearing Irakra’s heart out of his emotionless breast.
Irakra never interfered with the people in the Valley below. This angered the
strong and fierce Grim Goldem - Irakra’s arch Nemesis.
The Grim Goldem was the Monster of the Night. He was pure evil, with long
flowing ebony strands, short stature and eyes that appeared to bulge out of its
sockets. He lived in a spectacular fortress in the middle of the dense dark
forest in the Valley below. His fortress was guarded by a Chimera - a
three-headed ferrell wolf with the talons of a falcon and a serpentine tail.

No one dared approach the Fortress or its ferocious guardian.
Goldem was the richest man in the Valley, but his heart lay
somewhere else.

Unlike Irakra who lacked emotions, Goldem cared a lot about what people
thought of him. He was envious of the love and respect the people showered on
a lonely heartless crooked creature.

Why couldn’t they love and respect him instead. Why did they not gift him a
Citadel?

Seething with rage and greed, Goldem decided to lay siege on the Citadel. But
the Citadel sensed Goldem's hatred and whispered a warning into Irakra’s
sharp ears.

Goldem launched a fierce attack on Irakra’s Citadel. To save his Master the
Citadel disappeared, speeding swiftly away on golden wings, never to be found
again.

Legend says, the Grim Goldem still stands atop the strange old Mount, sad
and alone, waiting to catch a fleeting glance of Irakra’s sparkling Citadel.

Who knows, you may have already spied them swishing across the starry night
sky, if you were lucky enough.

Unlike the inhabitants of the Valley, you call them the Halley’s Comet.

Empress Victoria

Yashvi Sardar, Class V-H

I was born in the year 1889, in the first Calcutta Mint, next to the
Black Hole of the Old Fort William. The moment I was born, my
maker held me up - a proud father. Although I was officially named
the ½ pice copper, everyone used to call me the Empress Victoria. I loved my
name. I also loved the fact that I shone like dull gold in the light of the sun. I
loved the way my father fussed around keeping me safe in the folds of his
breast pocket, close to his heart.

I was finally released from the mint, polished and ladylike, to be broken in by
the world. My father was heartbroken to part with me, but I was too excited to
let his sadness dampen my spirit.

The moment I was placed in the wagon with the rest of my kind I realised I
was special at all - there were countless others that looked exactly like me!
Had I known then that I was to be manhandled, that I would change hands
that way seconds change to minutes, I would have never left my home. I would
have begged my father to hide me and never let me go.

Over the next few years I was tossed around a million times over. I have had
the feel of all sorts of hands - mean greasy hands, perfumed dainty hands, the
gloved hands of the aristocrat, the foul hands of the fishmonger. I was easily
lost and found by people. Everyday was the same old adventure with a new set
of people. I got to meet interesting people and visit intriguing places. One
minute I found myself travelling in the silken purse of an 80-year old lady, the
next minute I was given away to the carriage driver. He gave me away to his
5-year-old daughter who passed me on to the shopkeeper next door for a
buttery biscuit. I slipped out of a moth-eaten hole in his trouser pocket and
bounced and rolled into a nearby gutter, helplessly drowning in muddy water,
for sixteen years waiting for some galant stranger to stoop down and rescue
me.

On one such adventurous day, I was indeed picked up by a rosy-cheeked little
boy. He carefully wiped the mud off my body. He turned me over several
times, he sized me up. I had gained in age and experience but my beauty had
faded over time. He still seemed to like what he saw. He ran to his mother and
said “ Look Mama, I have found a rare coin. It must be over a hundred years
old.” Mama took me and me as well. She then decided I was worthy of her son.
She bathed me and polished me and handed me over to her son who placed me
among his treasure box of mixed finds.

After a lifetime of living in squalor and pain and humiliation I have
no regrets. Now, at least, I matter to someone in the world, enough to
be cherished and cared for. That is more than I can say for the rest of my kind.

Hands Deep in a Choc Chip Cookie

Eshan Saha, Class IV-F

While I sat in deep concentration, trying hard to complete my assignments, I
kept overhearing the word CHOCOLATE repeatedly. The word slowly melted
above my head, trickling into my vacant mind and erased what little was left
of my willingness to study. I “zombie”-walked to where my mother was,
stooped over her tiny phone screen, too engrossed in memorizing the recipe of
the Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe on Youtube. Taking advantage of the
situation I bent over her shoulder for a quick sneak-peek. The chef’s masterful
hands were mixing in the ingredients, pulling out a fresh batch of steaming
cookies and dribbling melting chocolate all over. With each step it was as if the
room was filling up with the warm aroma of chocolate fudge.

Unable to contain my excitement, I pleaded with my mother to try my hands
at baking chocolate cookies. She
agreed on the condition that I
finish my assignments on time. So
the following day, I padded along
with my mother to The Food
Decor Shoppe to procure all
necessary ingredients.
Giddy-headed I lost myself in the
baker’s paradise with its shelves
displaying dainty little edible
decorations - sprinkles and gel
colours, baking ingredients and
tools, moulds and trays, whiskers
and spatulas, a wide variety of
gelatin, frozen fruits, cake fillings,

and whipped cream. Mother
purchased some refined flour,
baking powder, cocoa powder,
icing sugar, vanilla essence, butter
and chocolate chips closely

following and ticking off the list I had drawn up during my second
viewing of the video.

As soon as I reached home I set up my “chef’s counter”, strategically placing
all the ingredients I had just bought from the store at arms distance. I propped
up Mother’s phone in front of a jam jar. Following the demonstration on the
video, I took 1 cup flour and emptied it in the mixing bowl along with 1
teaspoon of baking powder and 5 teaspoons of cocoa powder. In a separate
bowl, I started mixing the sugar and the butter with a hand-blender. Mom told
me that when it will change its colour and become lighter and fluffier, we
would need to add the flour into the mixture. After a good amount of whisking
it was time to lightly turn in the two mixtures for another 3 to 4 minutes. In
went a few drops of vanilla essence and oodles of chocolate chips. After a final
expert chef’s toss it was time to shape the dough and place them on the
well-oiled butter paper that lined the baking tray. Mother showed me how to
shape the cookies with bare hands and spatula. We even gave it a professional
touch by adding some fork marks on it and then placed the circular pre-baked
cookies at an equal distance from each other.

The oven was already preheated to 180o Celsius for 5 minutes. Mother
gingerly slid the tray into the oven.

We impatiently waited for 7 long minutes. Given that this was my first shot at
baking on my own, I was eager and restless to see the outcome of my hard
work. But 7 minutes seemed like 70 hours!

Finally, the smell of freshly baked butter and chocolate wafted out of the bake
and filled the room (this time I wasn’t imagining it). Mother pulled out the
tray and together we stared down at what looked like the most perfect cookies
ever to be baked.

They were just right, in shape and texture. They were divine to taste. I bit into
a warm cookie, closed my eyes and savoured the meltdown inside my mouth.

My mind immediately discarded all my past ambitions and began brewing up
a new image - that of a Master Chocolatier.

The Ordinary Paintbrush that was not so “Ordinary”

Nivriti Khemka, Class III-B

On my way to the park one evening, I saw an old lady struggling with some
heavy grocery bags. She seemed fatigued and helpless, so I went up to her and
politely asked her if I could help. Surprised, the old lady agreed to my offer.

She exclaimed, “Oh dear! Thank you so much for helping me.” We
divided the burden equally among us and walked on till we reached
the old lady’s house.

The lady was beaming with gratitude. She said, “You’re a very kind and
helpful child. You are bound to do
wonders one day. Take this paintbrush
as a gift. It’s not an ordinary
paintbrush so remember to use it
wisely.”

What could the old lady have meant
when she asked me to use the
paintbrush wisely. The paintbrush
seemed old and ordinary enough. I was
overcome with great curiosity. I wanted
to test it out to see the “magic” for
myself.

As soon as I reached home, I quickly sat down with paints, a glass of water
and a sheet of paper. I drew a gigantic chocolate-chip cookie and painted over
it with the paintbrush the old lady gave me. All of a sudden, there was a big
flash and a gigantic cookie appeared out of thin air, right where my painted
cookie ought to have beem.

“Wow! Unbelievable! This paintbrush is incredible!” I realised at once why
the old had advised me to use her gift wisely.

A few days later, while daddy and I were watching the news, we learnt about a
group of underprivileged orphans starving in an abandoned building. I
immediately told daddy I wanted to help. Daddy was delighted to hear of my
concern. We agreed to visit them the next day. That night I stayed awake and
painted all the essentials the orphans would need - fruits and clothes and
sweets and books. Daddy had managed to fish out all my old toys and the stuff
I had outgrown. We packed these along with the things my paintbrush had
given me into small gift parcels.

We went to their shelter and distributed our gifts among the children. The
little children were overjoyed and thanked us for our generosity. Ever since
that day, daddy and I make frequent visits to help out the underprivileged

people in and around our locality. All thanks to an extraordinary old
lady and her gift of an ordinary old paintbrush.

The Nightmare

Ritisha Basak, Class 3-F

Deep in a forest, in a small little hut

there lived little Mina and Grandpa
Wilson. They had no neighbours and
lived far away from the city.
Grandpa Wilson was very old so
Mina had to do all the household
chores by herself.

After foraging for some fruits and
vegetables for dinner one day, an
exhausted Mina returned home and
lay down her tired head on her wee
bed. She closed her eyes. But

something wasn’t right. She forced
open her eyes and tried to focus on
what appeared to be a note tucked
up on her pillow. It wasn’t there
when she left for the woods.

Mina read and reread the note.
Someone seemed to have scrawled a
few words in a hurry. It read:

Grandfather in hospital. Heart wasn’t
beating.

She realised Grandpa had taken

seriously ill in her absence! She
raced through the woods towards
the hospital. She reached there to
find Grandpa in a room. A red light
was burning above the door. A nurse
came over and sat beside her.

She told Mina that two people were passing through the woods on
the way to the next town. When they found the hut, they decided to
ask permission to rest for a while. But they found the door wide
open. Grandpa was lying by the door face down, almost ashen, out of breath.
He kept on murmuring “my granddaughter, My Mina” over and over. They
left Mina a note and immediately carried him to the hospital.

She held onto Mina’s tiny hands until the light went out.

The doctor came out and approached little Mina, head bowed. She knew in
that moment she was never going to see Grandpa ever again.

Mina walked back home and fell on Grandpa’s empty bed. She just couldn’t
stop crying.

Then something strange happened. The hand she could recognise anywhere in
the world was patting her head. Soothing words were trying to calm her down
- telling her everything is fine. But how could it be. He’s Dead!

She looked up into Grandpa’s big warm wrinkled face. He wasn’t dead after
all. She hugged him tight.

"What is the matter, child? Why were you crying in your sleep?” asked
grandfather anxiously.

"Never mind Grandpa! You’re here, That is all that matters!”

Wisdom’s Worth

Divyanshi Ghosh, Class III-F

Anyone passing the grave at the far end of the Cemetery of the Sacred Heart,
would have been startled to find an unburied girl decaying under a bloody
moon. A closer inspection would have revealed two ghastly holes on her body -
one on her arm and the other on her forehead. An inquisitive onlooker, on
further inquiry, would have caught the culprits responsible for the presence of
those gaping hollows on the poor girl's body.

It all began in the dead of the night when, all of a sudden, the brain and a

muscle from one of the girl’s arms popped out of the dead girl’s
body and fell onto the ground. They twitched and came alive
magically. The two organs acknowledged each other’s presence:

"Hi! I'm Wisdom", said the
brain.

"Hey yourself! They call me
Strength", the muscle replied.

Strength being a pompous
organ arrogantly challenged
Wisdom to a “friendly”
wrestling match. To her
absolute astonishment, it wasn’t
she but Wisdom who won the
match and all the subsequent
matches that followed. This
started to annoy Strength.

After a lot of planning and
practise, Strength proposed a
Final Showdown. Wisdom
agreed. Each organ bagged
equal scores at the end of four
rounds. In the final round as
they confronted each other
Wisdom realized it was
pointless proving one’s worth to
another who is blinded by self-pride. He also realized that Strength was’t the
kind to back down or lose with grace. Both organs had given their utmost, but
Wisdom decided to lose the fight.

“Yes! I won!” exclaimed Strength, clapping her hands gleefully. She
immediately proposed a toast to a long-lasting friendship. Wisdom agreed.
They became best friends forever.

It’s true that being Wise is always better than being strong,
It’s wiser to accept what’s right than fighting for what is wrong,
For Wisdom may have lost a battle but victory was his all along.

In Search of Hidden Treasure

Rishijit Mondal, Class V-J

Twelve-year-old Asim lived in a remote village near Purulia. He loved reading
mystery and adventure novels. Above all he loved the idea of going on a
treasure hunt. While planting a tree one day, Asim’s spade hit something hard
in the soil. Curious, he dug on till he finally exposed an old, rusted iron box.
He carefully pulled the box out of the soil and cleaned off the dirt. He looked
around to see if anybody was watching, then ran back home and hid the box in
a safe place.

The next morning, he informed his friends of his latest find.

“Hey, I’ve found something,” taking a long breath he continued, “I want you
to come to my house.”

“Is this another joke of yours?” asked Velu.

“No, this time it’s true! “, persisted Asim.

After school they all headed for Asim’s house. Once inside his room, Asim shut
the door and retrieved the box from its hiding place. He pried open the lid
using a sharp penknife. All of them huddled around the parchment that came
out of the box. It looked like an old map.

“Could the map lead us to hidden treasure?”, mused Rito, another of Asim’s
friends. “Hidden treasure! ” they all exclaimed excitedly. They decided to
follow the markings of the map next morning to see where it leads. The day
flew by on golden wings.

Next morning all four boys met up outside an abandoned temple, under the
old banyan tree outside the village. They were all prepared with all the
necessary provisions needed for a treasure hunt. The map led them into the
forest behind the temple, all the way to a cave in the Ayodhya Hills. Using
candles they began exploring the cave until they found a wooden box! They
were overjoyed beyond measure.

Since the box looked big and heavy, they decided to open the box in the cave
itself rather than dragging it back into the village. With some difficulty they

finally managed to break open the lock. Inside it, there appeared to
be many clay toy-like sculptures. They were a tad disappointed.

“All this journey only for a box of simple earthen toys?” Velu broke the
silence, saying aloud what seemed to be on everyone’s mind.

“I think I have seen pictures of such toys before, in the museum where my
uncle works. These look like the toys the Prince of the Kashipur Rajbari used
to play with when he was of our age”, said Rito, “They were reported to have
gone missing along with the prince’s jewels around 400 years ago or so my
uncle says.”

Rito removed the toys. At the bottom of the box lay what appeared to be a
necklace and some brooches and earrings made of dull metal and stones which
had lost their shine. The children gasped.

“These are priceless!”

“Well, what shall we do with them?” asked Velu.

“We’ll hand them over to the Kashipur Museum. Rito’s uncle will know what
to do with them.”, said Asim.

They all agreed. They were all delighted to have found actual treasure. The
happy bunch of kids returned from the hunt as the sun set below the horizon,
basking in the glory of the most unforgettable adventure of their lives.

A Change of Heart

Raktima Chakraborty, Class V-A

In the darkest and meanest alley of a town lived, a young boy named whose
father earned his bread and butter by not what we would call a noble
profession- as he was a robber who occupied the top spot of the Most Wanted
Criminals in town. Cedric, however, was different - he was a singer rather
than a pickpocketer at heart.

When a daring act of burglary had put Cedric’s father behind bars, the boy
begged the police to let him go, but the pleas of the little boy went unheeded.
His father, however, told Cedric to be proud of his father’s act of bravado and
follow in his footsteps.

On his way back home, an intriguing poster caught a disheartened Cedric’s
attention. The words “STAGE CHAMPS” glared back at him in bold. Dazzled

by the words, he thought he finally had a chance to showcase his
talent to the world.

During his next visit, the little boy excitedly put forward his intentions to his
father. His father retorted, “We were born to steal stuff. STEALING is in our
blood”.

Although he understood his father’s expectations of
him, Cedric did not want to miss the opportunity to
prove his worth. The next day he signed up for the
auditions.

Lacking professional training he encountered several
obstacles at the very first go but things started tuning
in after a few sessions and with perseverance. Over
time, Cedric started gaining the spotlight by stealing
the hearts of the judges as well as the audience. Back
in jail, Cedric’s father witnessed his son’s rise to fame
but was unwilling to accept what Cedric was
becoming.

The Day of the Finals, Cedric had to perform in front
of a large audience. He just had to win over the world.
More importantly he had to make his father see him
for who he was. The competition was a success.

Cedric went to prison but was hesitant to tell his father of his new found
identity. To his surprise, his father embraced him and told him how proud he
was of his son’s success. His father had taken special permission to view
Cedric’s performance on television.

From then on there was no looking back. Cedric and his father were no longer
the meanest gangsters of the darkest alley in town. Cedric quickly rose to fame
as one of the most prominent singers of time.

Stealing ran in their blood no more.

A True Friend

Anisha Pradhan, Class - ???

“Oh my dear! Happy birthday!” said Mom. Rishi woke up and almost jumped
on the bed. “Oh Mom! Why didn’t you wake me up at 6 AM? I know that my
school is from 7 but I needed to discuss my birthday party with Arin.”

[2 weeks ago]

On 7th May, Rishi’s birthday would arrive. He was very excited about
it. In the evening Rishi sat with his mother and invited all his friends
to the party, except one. Suddenly his mother asked. “Aren’t you
going to invite Arin?”

When he joined their new school, Rishi made so many new friends that he
forgot all about Arin. But Arin was still his classmate. Then Rishi muttered
“Maybe some other day”.

One day when Rishi came back from school, he found that his parents had
gone out for some reason. Then he called his friends and asked them if he
could stay in their house till his parents came back. But some said they had
gone out for a picnic or they were in a movie theatre while others said that
there was no room in their house. So, Rishi had no choice and he had to call
Arin. “Certainly, you can stay in my house till your parents come.” So, Rishi
went to his house.

The following day, Rishi came back home
very excited because it was Rishi’s
birthday the day after! That day Rishi’s
Report Card was given. When he checked
his grades, they were average. Rishi was
expecting more. He had never got so less
when he studied with Arin. Then he
checked his notebooks. Some of his works
were incomplete. So, he decided to
complete them. He called up Samir, one of
his new school friends.

“Sorry Rishi, none of my work is
complete”, said Samir.

All the others said the same. So, he called
Arin for help. “Of course, I would like to
help”, said Arin cheerfully. Rishi was
speechless. None of his friends helped him
in the time of need but Arin did. At that
moment, Rishi realized hat Arin was his
true friend. After Rishi completed his
work, he thanked Arin and invited him to
his birthday party.

The next day Arin and Rishi entered the
class together talking excitedly about the
evening party. Suddenly, Samir called
Rishi.

“Hey Rishi, come and sit with us!”

“Sorry but I have to sit with Arin from now on. He helped when I
needed it the most.”

All of his friends were ashamed of themselves.

A Night with the Poker

Bikramaditya Mazumdar, Class V-C

It was mid-dawn and I was a little too early to wake up. I was very eager to
know what would happen to Uncle John, who had been very valiant to go and
spend a night with the Poker. I really thought about Uncle John and how he
was insulted in front of the entire town but my parents stood beside him at
that crucial period. “Hey, look, is that our own John? Yeah he acted so
heroically and now his dead body is lying on the ground,’’ came voices from
behind. “Just a day before he was the world’s biggest bluffer,’’ came another
voice. I was completely horrified to listen to that and felt pity for Uncle John. I
wanted to inspect the dead body, but the problem was that I wasn’t allowed at
this hour. As I tried to sneak out of the house, a voice said, “What’s up,
detective?’ It was my sister Julie.

“Phew! You really scared me, I was jolted. I was going to inspect the dead
body and wanted to check if it was similar with the previous cases,’’ said I.

“I didn't quite get you,’’ she questioned.

“Now, as you know many people have tried to spend a night with that Poker
and whoever did so trying to catch that ghostly spoiled brat- the poker- has hit
the wall.Well,I’m planning to have supper with him,’’ said I.

“Have you lost your mind? You are talking like an insane guy! You sound as
though he is your uncle or cousin. Going there is like saying ``Come lion. Eat
me. It is as if you know nothing about that poker,’’ cried Julie.

“No, Julie I am not out of my mind and neither my senses. I’m just too zealous
to see that Poker with my own eyes tonight. And I am sure about this,’’ I
declared . I never even bothered to listen to what my sister said and I never
believed that ghosts existed. When I went near that dead body I saw that the
body was not even touched. But his pockets were torn and empty. I knew the
Mayor would only allow those people in here who are super rich. I recalled
that in the earlier cases nobody was killed and they had only lost all their

belongings and equities. I think Uncle John must have discovered
something very precious ,a secret, or something very important. So
the people involved in this matter (or the poker himself) knew that this would
spread like wildfire. This can be the only reason behind this murder. I
returned home, but I had a feeling that the Mayor was somehow involved in
this thing. I heard my parents talking about some people who have recently
gone missing. I went to ask them “Mom, who has gone missing?’’

“Samuel, Bob, Tom and Henry - the ones who had carried John’s body. But
most surprisingly, John’s body is missing too.’’ she replied.

It is queer that a dead body goes missing along with all the people who carried
it. Or perhaps, what I was thinking was right. I wanted to ponder alone for a
while with peace, just when my sis came.

“Brother, I want to help you with this,’’ she said.

“No way, you’re nowhere in this. Be a good girl and just stay put in here, and
I’ll be safe. Don’t underestimate the aptitude of your brother.’’ I yelled.

As always, my sis went to her room with a murky face. I thought that if I
suspected Mr. Mayor, I would need evidence. I would need to feed him a
sleeping pill, and if at night I see anybody I will change my decision. So with
an excuse that it was my birthday, I went to his office and said “Sir I am very
sorry to disturb you at this hour but I can’t help it as it’s my birthday. And
giving the Mayor a chocolate is my pleasure.” He took it and even ate and said
“Thanks child, may God bless you.’’ I thought that if he were the person
involved he would not show up today. But if he does, then my work becomes
all the more complicated and muddied, as there would be a second person
involved.

It was evening and I went to tell my parents about it. They were shocked to
hear this, but my dad was an army man and very adventurous. He was my last
hope. He allowed and said “When you have decided then go, but take care of
yourself.” He then added, “It’s almost time, off you go.’’ I was very eager to
discover the real truth. My mom was very scared and wished me good luck. I
hugged my mom and dad and took their leave. I started to walk towards the
lane and suddenly somebody held my shoulder tight. I was alarmed and
looked behind to see Julie.

“Gosh, you here!”, I exclaimed. “I told you to stay safe and that would be only
possible if you’re at home. And please don’t tell me that I shouldn’t be going.
My ears are tired of listening to the same idiotic words of yours.”

“I’m warning you...don’t go there and if something happens, don’t
blame me because for sure that poker will be waiting for you.’’ said
she.

I proceeded and reached there soon. It was very spooky, uncanny and eerie
down there. I could hear the pet Alsatians barking, the hooting of the owlets
and the meows of the cats and the sound of the running wheel by the hamster.
Then, Tip, top, clip, clip! Came sounds of footsteps from behind. In the dark I
couldn’t quite see the person but apparently, it was a teenage girl. I followed
the sound but couldn’t see anyone. I looked down to see the prints of high heel
sandals with pink glitter that were shimmering. The shoe was Julie’s. Dad had
got it for her, and it was the last piece in the store. And till date I’d never seen
anyone else wearing that pair of sandals apart from her. There was a trail of
the glitter and I followed it, I never knew that there was another way to reach
the haunted villa. I reached there in no time, but couldn’t figure out how that
trail was left. And since there was no shortcut to reach our home, how could
Julie’s sandal be involved? I was suspicious and wary about her. I took one
step at a time and was very cautious of any sudden attacks on me. I slowly
opened the door. It made a screeching and rusty noise. As I stepped forward
my hand got scuffed against the door. I was injured. I realised that this door is
made up of pure iron. I stood there for some time and was definite about one
thing- that what I was thinking was gradually (or perhaps rapidly) coming
true. “Meow, meow!”, came the sound of a cat, I at first thought that it was a
stray cat. But when it came into the moonlight, I was astonished to see that it
was Rosy, and her face had a gleam. I went near Julie’s favourite cat in the
entire town, and as I came closer I saw that she had a necklace in her mouth,
which she dropped in front of me. Then, she quickly ran away. I picked it up
to see that the necklace was Julie’s!! I was completely blank and was in a
dilemma whether I would be able to solve this puzzle or not. There was a long
flight of stairs which might have been to the right. I was keeping a close look
at my shadow as I never knew when I’d be attacked by that Poker. As I
walked I saw something rising behind me and I was alarmed. I turned back to
see a knife narrowly missing me, followed by a movement on the floor. It was a
close escape and I ducked it just in the nick of time. To be precise, I thought
that there was a motive behind this ghostly act, but I wasn’t sure. As I reached
the top, a gleaming light dazzled and awed me. I turned my face to see and
was really surprised to find a hill of money!!! Pure cash!!! I knew that all of it
was a false drama, which is why no one got killed and only got robbed. There
was surely a big mastermind behind all this. I needed to take a photo and
escape from there right then. While taking the phone out it slipped and fell

behind and as I turned back I was almost dead to see a tall person
with a black over coat and a bamboo stick in hand with a scar on his
forehead, He was wearing a black sunglasses. BANG! He hit me on my head
and I fell down on the ground, unconscious. Ouch! I squeaked as I regained
consciousness. My head was badly bleeding, I felt dizzy and was in a terrible
state. I was tied to a bar and my hands were tied with iron chains. As I opened
my eyes I saw the same man there and asked, “Who’re you? Don’t act like a
coward, show your real face if you have the guts in you!” As he revealed his
face I was totally surprised and astonished to see Uncle John!

“Impossible! You can’t do this Uncle John; we all thought that you were dead
except me.”, I exclaimed.

“Why, dear” came another vice from behind John. It was our caretaker,
Rupin. I shouted “BETRAYER! TRAITOR! You were kicked out of the house
because you had tried to poison my food. You were never a good person and
never trustworthy. And-’’

“Stop, your nonsense blabbering.” he interrupted. “Today I’m gonna kidnap
you and demand a lump of cash for you. Oh, and your sister too,”.

“Leave her alone! Do whatever you want to me but if you even try and touch
her I’m gonna kill you.” I yelled. I then asked “Where is she?’’ Rupin said
“Right behind you.’’ I turned back to see her in the same state and I felt really
ashamed because being a brother it was my priority to protect my sister. But
now I couldn’t even do that.

“You never knew anything.’’ said Uncle John.

“I knew everything,” I replied. “ When I saw your dead body lying, I felt
confused, as nobody was killed thus far. But why you? I thought that you had
discovered something important, but I was mistaken. It was a mere act of
being dead. And I got to know this when I heard that you had killed Samuel
and the others who were talking to you. The motive for this is to make people
not come here anymore, and you scared them for this. Secondly, I offered the
chocolate to the Mayor as on that day I saw you spying on me. I knew that you
were going to do something to make me believe that somebody else is the real
person, but I’m too smart for it. Then your main target was me!! Since you
had that Rupin with you, he paid you a big amount and that too after so many
years, as it took him time to gather the sum. And today you had planned to
kidnap Julie to bring me here. But when you came to know that I am coming

here on my own you were overjoyed. When I came here I scraped
my hand while coming in and I got to know that it was used to scare people by
moving itto and fro with a strong magnet. And there are hidden chambers
below which are used to attack people.”

Replied Uncle John, “Oh, I see you're a very smart guy. But say goodbye, as
Rupin will now do the rest’’ I was completely horrified, I never ever thought
that something like this would happen in my life in my wildest dreams. I was
very scared, and then I saw a switch or a red button on the floor. I noticed that
it was connected with the biggest magnet in the house. As Rupin almost pulled
the lever of the gun, I somehow with great effort reached that button and
pressed it with my leg and BANG! came a noise from behind and from beside
me. To my dismay Rupin’s gun went BOOM! And at that very moment the
bullet and the gun were attracted by the magnet and the direction of the bullet
changed.

“What is all this nonsense going on!’’ yelled Rupin.

“People who lay traps for others often get caught in their own traps, my loyal
caretaker.’’ said I. But even I was getting attracted as my chain was made of
iron. I could feel that the pin which held my hand was responsible to keep the
iron chain around my hand stay tight, was getting attracted and Ting! It got
stuck on the magnet. Uncle John yelled, “You little monster, I am gonna kill
you myself!” As he was approaching I closed my eyes and when I opened them
I saw him lying on the floor and my sister standing and grinning.

“Good gracious, you were just behind me unconscious and how did you get
up?” I asked.

“I was never unconscious. When I was running Rupin was too clever to catch
me, not from behind but from the front. He had a stick with him and when he
tried to hit me with it, I ducked and then fell on the ground and they came to
the conclusion that I was already unconscious. I took this opportunity as a
golden one and had been waiting for the opportune moment.” explained Julie.

“I am so proud of you, Julie!” I exclaimed.

“Let's teach these goons a lesson,” she said.

“With pleasure, my queen,” I went to handle Rupin as he was lying on the
floor injured and I thought it was never good to fight with an injured person. I

lent my hand to him as he slowly got up and pulled me back and I
was hanging on the cliff of the stairs. I looked below and saw that it
was steep.

“Good people often end up helping others but end up falling into trouble
themselves.” Rupin laughed and said.“It was my biggest blunder to help you, a
person who doesn’t know to respect somebody’s helping attitude.” replied I.

“Stop your blabbering. I’m gonna uproot your fingers and you are going to
have a nice time down there.” As his hand came closer I grabbed his finger
and then jumped from there and straight fell on the ground. We were both
well on our heads, and I was half dead. My eyesight was getting blurry!! I
could see that my sister also fell from there. At that very moment I saw the
police jeep and we all fainted. As I regained consciousness, I was astonished to
see the Mayor and my parents with the police. I was alarmed to see them, and
I said “What-t-t-t happened? Where is Rupin? Where is Uncle John?” “Relax
my boy, relax, everything is in control,” said the Mayor. My sister came from
behind and gave me a big hug and I felt so relieved. I had a broken wrist as
when I fainted Uncle John had fired the gun on my wrist, but the police also
fired him there. It was really painful, as it was the first experience of getting a
bullet. My dad said, “Great, boy, you were a real hero!!’’

My mom cried, “You should have not gone there. What if that idiot would
have fired you in your chest or somewhere-’’

“Mom relax, I’m fine,” I said.

“We are really proud of you, my child. You are going to be awarded for this
brave act of yours,” said the police officer.

“It is my pleasure to help my town from these scavengers in the market” I
said. “And the ones who are already in the Poker fan club might be a little
aware.”

The Tree near my House

Ayushman Kar, Class II-C

One day David was thinking, what should he do now? He decided to go to the
park. When he reached the park, he saw a big tree with lots of leaves. His
friend Tommy was playing there. He asked, “Tommy, my friend, what is that
tree over there?”. Tommy said, “Oh! that tree? It’s a Mango tree”. “But this
tree was not in the park before and how can this be a Mango tree? I cannot see

a single Mango hanging on it”, said David. Tommy asked, “David,
are you scared of this tree?”. “Yes”, answered David. Tommy said,
“We should not come here”. After some time, they started walking
towards the gate of the park. David and Tommy were walking back home.
Soon Tommy reached his home but not David. He decided to see the tree
again. This time he saw three mangoes hanging on the tree. He said to himself,
“strange tree!” and ran from the park and reached home.

David had his dinner and went off to sleep. In his dreams, he saw the tree
coming closer to him and he started shouting “Mummy! Mummy!”To his
surprise he found himself lying near the tree in the park. He screamed once
again “Mummy!”. Winds were blowing very fast in the park. The dry leaves of
the tree were rustling on the ground. the tree swaying from side to side . It was
midnight and in the light of the full moon, the tree looked like a witch.
Somehow, he ran from there and reached home.

Everyone was awake. He told the whole story to everyone, but nobody believed
in him except his grandfather. He said,“many years ago, an old lady lived in
the place where the park is now. The tree belonged to the old lady. One day
when the three boys were stealing mangoes from the tree after school, the old
lady saw them. She wacked them for hours till they fell sick. The people of the
town became very angry and they started beating the witch with sticks and
stones. After a while they realised that the witch died. They decided to bury
the body beneath the tree. From then on, the tree is known to be haunted, and
children have fallen a prey to the revenge of the witch.

A Christmas Miracle

Samanwaya Saha, Class ???

Once upon a time there lived two kind hearted children named Clara and Tom
in an orphanage. They were siblings, very loving siblings. They had a pet cat
named Lisa. Every year on Christmas, the children would exchange presents.
Even Lisa used to get presents! Christmas was thus the best and most exciting
time of the year in their otherwise boring life. Clara often used to dream that
one year she would get something special, something magical; though she
knew it would never happen.

Soon it was another Christmas and it was time for a new present! Tom opened
his present first.

“Wow! It’s the shirt that I always wanted! Thanks Clara” exclaimed Tom.

Then it was Clara’s turn. “Oh! What a pretty necklace! I love it!” Clara
hugged the necklace and as soon as she did so, a portal opened right in front of

their eyes. Before anyone could say anything, the portal pulled
Clara inside. Tom tried to save her but he too was dragged in.

“Where are we?” asked Clara as she found herself in a strange place. But
before Tom could answer, a strong tornado pushed them towards another part
of the place. Tom said, “That was odd!” Then out of nowhere, a trail of light
appeared and having no other option, they followed the trail. As the trail
ended, they found themselves standing in front of a huge Christmas tree. They
were both astonished. The tree looked just like the magical tree they had once
seen in a film!

It was already evening and since they had to stay somewhere until they could
get back home, they went under the tree and made themselves comfortable.
Soon it got dark and it was bedtime. They created a fireplace to keep
themselves warm. They had a very nice sleep, but Clara knew in her mind that
something was going to happen- not sure whether good or bad.

The next morning, everything seemed to be normal. Even Clara started to
think that nothing would happen. It was just an ordinary day. But suddenly
the tree started to glow. It glowed for a long time until finally, it stopped.
“Wow! What was that?” asked Tom anxiously. But all he could hear was Clara
murmuring “I knew something would happen! I knew something would
happen!”

Tom said “ Nothing bad will happen Clara.” As he said that, a silvery voice
said reverberated “Yeah you are right! Nothing bad will happen!” They
looked at it in amazement. It was a
cute female elf! “Hi! My name is
Harmony. Who are you two and why
are you here?” asked Harmony.

“Hi, I am Tom and this is my sister
Clara. She just hugged her Christmas
present, a necklace, a portal opened
and we got pulled inside” explained
Tom.

Harmony understood what had
happened and said, “Oh, it must be the
magic necklace! Only the good kids get
them and get an opportunity to visit
Santa’s magical land. If you want, you
can stay here with me for some time”,
offered Harmony. The children

thought it would be nice to stay with a magical person and so they
agreed.

Their stay with her was joyful and exciting. She even showed her
around Santa’s workshop. The children found out that Harmony was a
candy-maker and was one of the most important elves in the elf workshop.
Every day, they used to do different winter activities like ice skating, snow
sliding, snowball fight and snowman making. Every night they used to sit
under that magical Christmas tree and drink hot chocolate. Sometimes they
shared Christmas tales. Sometimes, Harmony gave the children candies and
gifts. They had lots of fun together.

After a few days of fun and frolic in this magical land, one day Tom thought
that the people back in their orphanage must be worrying about both of them.
He asked Clara if she felt the same way. “It would be nice to stay here a little
longer, but I suppose we should leave now” she replied. They went to
Harmony to say that it was time for them to go back to their home.

“Good morning children,” shouted Harmony as she saw Tom and Clara
coming.

“Hi Harmony” Tom and Clara chorused sadly.

“What is the matter?” asked Harmony.

“It’s just that we have to go, people at our orphanage are waiting for us,”
explained Tom.

“I will miss you but before you go, take one ornament from the tree” replied
Harmony.

The children took an ornament each. Clara chose a white and pink one and
Tom chose a blue one. Harmony then explained to them that if they rub the
ornaments, her face will show up and they can then talk to her.

“Take care of the magic ornaments and take care of yourselves” said
Harmony.

They said their last goodbyes and Harmony muttered a spell and they
magically vanished.

The next morning when they woke up, they found themselves in their own
beds. They quickly got out of their beds and grabbed their ornaments. They
rubbed it as fast as they could and there on the ornament was Harmony’s cute
face.

“Hi Harmony” they happily screamed!

“Hello children, how are you doing?” asked Harmony.

“We are fine, thank you. How are you?” the children asked.

“I am fine too” replied Harmony.

They talked about how they had felt, what they were doing and what their
future plans were. They used to talk almost every day. They became really
close friends. The elf continued to guide them to choose the right path in life
and they lived happily ever after.

Sam and His Trip

Arkodeep Kundu, Class III-G

Once there lived a boy named Sam. He lived with his parents and his little
sister Amina. He was very intelligent. One day, they decided to go from Delhi
to Rajasthan for a holiday. So they booked their tickets quickly. Then they
packed all their things very quickly. When they were going to sleep, it was
already 11 pm. They were very tensed because their plane was at 9 am. They
woke up, it was 7 am. So, they dressed. They got on the plane and till then,
everything was happening smoothly. When they reached their destination they
were looking forward to a place to live in. After a long time they found a hotel.
They booked a room in the hotel. That day, they did not go out as they were
very tired.

That night when they were sleeping, they heard some sounds like ‘Tik Tok Tik
Tok’. They thought it was the sound of a clock. So, they went back to sleep.
Next morning, they decided to explore the place.
They were going to visit some of the historical
places of Rajasthan. While travelling through
the desert, they suddenly saw a strange cave.
They were curious. Four of them went inside the
cave. As they entered they heard some strange
sounds. They were all scared. They rushed
back to their hotel and told the manager what
had happened. The manager was very angry,
his eyes had turned red. Then they understood
that he was a ghost. They saw a box of
matchsticks on the manager’s table. They lit a
matchstick and threw it at the ghost. Then the
ghost died and as soon as possible Sam and his
family returned back to Delhi and never went
out of Delhi again.