Saving Christmas
By Frances Collinwood

Penguin Pete lives in our freezer.  He has since I was old enough to open the freezer door.  My  Dad invented him as a way of getting my older brother and sister and me to close the freezer door quickly.  

"Hurry and shut it before Penguin Pete gets out!" was a phrase often heard in our house, because even though Dad invented it, the rest of us used it too!

So imagine my surprise when a penguin really did come out of our freezer.  I had been staring into the freezer, looking for something good to warm up for snack after school when a penguin popped out.  He introduced himself as Pete.  I almost fell over.  First, a penguin popped out of my freezer.  Second, he can talk and third, his name is actually Pete.  This was too much to take in.  I sat down, right there on the kitchen floor.  

Pete kept talking to me but I was dazed.  Finally, I shook myself and listened to what he was saying.

The first thing I heard Pete say was, "Santa needs you in the North Pole!"

I just about went back into my dazed state.  I must be dreaming. 

Pete flapped his wings in front of me.  "Are you hearing anything I am saying to you?"

"I don't know. You'd better start again."

"Get a drink of milk first and a cookie because I think your blood sugar is low," said Pete and looked at me expectantly.

I don't know what a penguin knows about blood sugar but I needed a drink of something.  My mouth was dry and my head was cloudy.  I needed something.  I knew where Mom kept her secret stash of Oreos  so I went and got two (she wouldn't miss only two) and poured myself a glass of milk.  I kept my eyes averted from Penguin Pete, hoping he might disappear once I had had something to drink and eat.  I drank my milk, ate one cookie and looked intently at the other cookie.  I didn't move and didn't hear anything.  I thought I was in the clear until I heard a flapping of wings.  When I looked up, Penguin Pete was still there.

"Do you feel better?  At least you look better.  We have to get down to business.  Now, as I was saying, Santa Claus sent me to fetch you.  He needs you in the North Pole.  He actually wants your whole family to come, but you're the first one home so I'm here for you.  I'll come get the rest later.  Are you ready to go?"

"NO!  I'm not going anywhere with a talking penguin.  Even in Mary Poppins the penguins don't talk, they just dance.  I'm confused," I said.

"Not one of my favorite movies, but we won't go there right now.  I find it very interesting that the very reason I was sent to you is the reason you won't come with me.  Santa thought since your family already believed in Penguin Pete and, quite frankly, you're one of the only ones who do, that you'd be more than willing to come with me.  You are constantly talking about me.  Santa thought you would jump at the chance to actually meet me.  Would you have come if he'd sent Rudolph?  That reindeer is just too darn cocky already what with that shiny nose and a beloved children's song about him," said Pete.

"Huh," I said, eloquent as always.

"You would have, wouldn't you?  I'm never going to live this down.  Well, you'll just have to come with the penguin because I'm not about to go back empty handed.  Get your coat and let's go," said Pete.

"Get my coat?  I'm not going anywhere," I replied.

"Yes you are, and it's much too cold to travel by freezer without a coat.  Hop to it.  Get a coat and let's get going.  We need you back at headquarters," said Pete as he fluttered his wings at me.

"I'm very confused," I responded.

"I know but I don't have time to dilly dally.  We have Christmas to save," said Pete.  He waddled over to where I'd dropped my coat by the front door and retrieved it for me.  He handed it to me but I just looked at it held up by a penguin fin.  Pete continued, "You know all those fabulous moves the Penguins make in Madagascar, well I'm the one who taught them those moves so Get The Coat On." 

I put my coat on.  What else is a guy to do when you have a talking, ninja penguin in your house about to kidnap you?  Pete held out his fin and I took hold of it.  It wasn't slimy at all but firm like one big triangle hand.  He opened the freezer door and jumped in dragging me behind him.  My foot caught the door on the way in and closed it behind us.  It was cold in here.  There were swirling pieces of ice and I could see each breath I took. I was glad I had my coat.  Penguin Pete was at least a considerate kidnapper.  

It must have only taken a moment or two.  I have no idea how I became small enough to fit in the freezer in the first place, but when the swirling pieces of ice stopped, I was standing in a big meat locker, the kind I had seen only in movies.  I didn't have much time to look around because Pete was pulling me out of the locker, through a kitchen, and into Santa's workshop.  It was full of elves working at machines, like a factory.  The elves were taller than I expected, more in line with Lord of the Rings elves than traditional, midget elves.  

Penguin Pete quickly dragged me past everything so I didn't have much time to look at what was around me but I saw machines,  elves, workbenches, penguins, stacks of toys and tables full of cookies and milk.  It looked like a kid's paradise.  We exited that room and entered a hallway full of doors.  Each of the doors we passed was another room full of elves, penguins, machines, and toys.  This was a toy making factory run by Santa and his elves.  There wasn't one workshop that Santa worked at every day.  There were hundreds of workshops within this factory.  There were also lots of penguins, lots and lots of penguins.  Everything surprised me but the amount of penguins walking around the workshop surprised me the most.  How come we didn't know about the penguins?

We came to the last door on the right.  It had a homemade sign that said SANTA'S WORKSHOP.  Penguin Pete knocked on the door and then pointed to the sign.  "This sign was made for Santa 150 years ago by his sister Sandy.  She's the reason you're here," said Pete before he turned the knob and entered.  I followed.  I wanted to meet Santa.

Santa turned around from his workbench.  He looked just like you might expect but still different than any of the pictures I had seen of him.  His beard seemed whiter and his clothes were a shade of red I'd never seen in my life.  He wasn't wearing his big Christmas suit with the black buckle but something comfortable, almost like a track suit.  He seemed more alive and more exciting than I'd ever imagined and there was something else to him.  Something that made me believe in him.  Something that made me want to help him and I decided right then and there that whatever he needed me to do, I would do it for him.  I would help save Christmas!

"Ah, Ethan, just the person I needed to see," said Santa.

I got goosebumps. 

"Hi, Santa," I replied.

"Thank-you, Pete, for bringing Ethan here.  Did it go well?  Was he excited to actually meet you?" asked Santa.

"It wasn't as smooth as we thought it might be, but we're here and yes, Ethan's met me.  I'm headed back to get his brother and sister.  They should be home from school soon," said Pete.

"Thank you Pete.  I'd be lost without you," said Santa.

Pete left through the door and Santa turned to look at me again.  "Ethan, I'm glad you came," said Santa.

"I am too Santa," I said, surprised by my own desire to be here.  "I just don't know why I am here."

"It's a long, complicated story but I'll try to make it brief.  You see, I have a sister.  Her name is Sandy.  No one really knows about her.   She helped make the toys, worked with the elves and penguins, helped arrange the lists with Mrs. Claus and helped with every aspect of Christmas, but she always had me deliver the toys.   Because I delivered the toys, I became the face of Christmas.  I became the one everyone loved and talked about.  This didn't seem to bother her until some silly remark I made in 1939.  I don't even remember what it was I said, so don't ask, but she got in a huff, took what elves, penguins and other animals would go with her and moved to the South Pole.  I thought it would blow over in a few days but we haven't spoken since," said Santa.  He seemed sad.  

"It must be hard not to see your sister for 70 years," I thought.

"Anyway," Santa continued, "after she left, we were in dire straits, along with the rest of the world at war.  It took us years to recover and get up to full production again but things have been going well, until this happened.  Sandy has erected some kind of a force field around the entire North Pole and I can't fly my sleigh out of here.  She's the only one in the world with this kind of magic available to her.  Now, the only way in and out of the North Pole is by freezer, and although the reindeer can make it through the freezer, I can't take the sleigh and toys as well.  They're just too big!  There are some restrictions to magic.  That's why I need you.  I need you to break the force field and save Christmas," Santa told me.

"But I don't know how to break a magical force field, let alone one formed by a person possibly older than the earth itself," I said.  " I don't know any magic at all."

"Actually Ethan, you and your family are the only ones who can break this spell.  We've done our research.  It seems your great-grandfather was stationed in Alaska during World War II when my sister Sandy was on the lookout for a new place to live.  She didn't find the South Pole quite to her liking, or so I'm told by my wife who Sandy was still talking to at that point.  She went looking for other options.  Alaska probably seemed like a good location since it's cold and snowy most of the time, but due to the war, there was a lot of activity there.  I guess her sleigh got shot down one night over Alaska and your grandfather found her while he was out in the back country on a reconnaissance mission.  He rescued her and nursed her back to health.  Right before she went back to the South Pole, she cast a spell that gave him a small portion of her magic.  It would be passed down through his posterity, but it could only be used in emergencies.  She gave it to your grandfather to help keep him safe through the war.  It was her way of saying thank you.  It's quite an ingenuous spell because you only can use magic when you absolutely need it, thus limiting the possibility for detection.   Your great-grandfather may not have even believed her or perhaps never needed the magic and so never told anyone else about it but this magic is a part of you and your brother and sister and your Dad. "

"But I don't understand how my magic, if I really have any, can beat the force field?  Why can't you use your magic and make it disappear?"

"Great questions!  I can't believe I left that out of the explanation.  Sorry, Ethan.  Spells can only be broken or changed by the original magic that made them.  Since your magic comes from Sandy, your magic can break the spell, but we are going to need your brother, sister and dad to have enough magic to do it.  You see, the magic gets divided with each generation, so in order for all this to work, we need all of you. "

I didn't really know what to say to that.  Santa needed me.  He needed my family.  He needed us to do magic.  I was worried  because  I had never seen anything magical happen in my life, but maybe my Dad had.  He had lived longer and had more chance for it to happen, and what about Grandpa?  He'd never said anything at all about magic, ever.

The door opened and in walked Penguin Pete with my brother, Jacob and sister, Abigail (or Abbie for short).  They looked funny.  Abigail was decked from head to toe in winter gear.  She looked like she was going skiing.  She must have believed Penguin Pete and put on all her outdoor winter clothes.  She never liked getting cold.  Jacob, on the other hand, had on only a sweatshirt.  He probably didn't believe Pete was taking him to the North Pole through the freezer and wouldn't get dressed.  I bet Pete had to convince him to come while Abigail was getting all decked out.  He might have even had to kidnap him.  He's become quite skeptical since he turned 14.  

The look of surprise, wonder and bewilderment on both their faces almost made me laugh but I realized I probably looked the same when I came in a little while ago.

Abigail ran over to me and gave me a great, big, suffocating hug that was more snowsuit than anything else but it was reassuring.  Jacob came over and punched me in the shoulder as his hello.  He wasn't much into hugs anymore.  I was glad to have them there.  "Oh, Ethan, I'm so glad you are here.  When I got home from school and you weren't there I was worried.  I even sent Mom a text.  I hope she doesn't worry too much," said Abigail.  

It was then that she noticed Santa. "Oh, my.  Hello sir."  Abbie finally let go of me and I could breathe again.  

"Hello, Abigail.  It's nice to see you.  Jacob, I'm glad Penguin Pete was able to convince you to come.  We have need of all your help," said Santa.

"It took a little more convincing with that one, sir," said Pete, as he pointed his fin at Jacob.  "I just about had to drag him into the freezer."

"Just about!" sputtered Jacob.  "You did!"

"Well, well," said Santa, ignoring my brother, "they are all here now, and that's what counts."

Jacob looked a little sick.  I think it might have been a bit much for him--talking penguins, being kidnapped, Santa, freezer travel, elves, Santa's workshop.  It must be hard for a 14 year old skeptic to take it all in.

"I'm heading back now for the parents.  They should be home soon," said Pete.

"Have a safe journey and remember, if they won't come, use your magic.  We need them," said Santa.  He turned to us, "Let's get you something to eat while we wait for your parents.  Ethan can fill you in on why you're here and what we need you to do, that way I can eat.  Mrs. Claus doesn't like it if I don't eat enough.  Follow me."  

My brother and sister looked at each other and then looked at me expectantly.  I nodded and started after Santa.  It was weird having them look to me for what we should do.  I was the youngest member of our family and no one ever looked to me for help.  I guess it made sense since I had been here longer.

While we ate a delicious dinner, I told Jacob and Abbie all about our family magic and how we got it and what Santa needed us to do with it.  The entire, fantastical story was a lot to take in but as I told it to them, I really started to believe it as well.  We had magic!  Santa doesn't lie.  We didn't know how to use it or how much we really had but we had magic.  It's every kid's dream, at least every kid that had ever read the Harry Potter books, and I had just finished number five.  I just wished I was going to go to Hogwarts and get a wand, but I don't think our magic works quite the same way, but who knows?  About an hour ago I didn't even know I had magic.  

Jacob finished up his plate of food and filled it to overflowing again.  In between bites he asked, "So, Santa, what exactly do we have to do to break this force field?"

"We're not exactly sure.  We have obviously never encountered this problem before.  I've been looking in the spell books for the spell she may have used or one like it.  I haven't had any luck finding anything.  Giant force fields that cover an area as big as a city are not your standard spells.  I was hoping to get your help going through the spell books.  I thought we could start there after dinner.  We only have five more days until Christmas so we have to go quickly through the books but still be thorough.  With 5 more sets of eyes, we're bound to find the spell, but I have to warn you, there are a lot of books," replied Santa.

Just then the giant freezer door opened and out came Penguin Pete with my Mom and Dad.  They were both bundled from head to foot and had obviously come willingly.   I think the talking penguin told them he would take them to their children and they bundled up and jumped into the freezer.

"Hello, hello.  Come on in and sit down," said Santa as he stood to greet my parents.  

My Mom looked shocked, surprised and a little sick all at once.  I understood that reaction, but my Dad's eyes were bright with excitement.  You could tell he was loving everything.  Perhaps being more closely related to the magic, he loved it all the more.  Mom rushed over behind us kids at the table and made sure we were all solid and real.  We each got our own big bear hug from Mom.

Santa continued talking without even stopping, "I suppose you haven't had your dinner yet.  By the way, I'm Santa and that is Mrs. Claus over there.  You've met Penguin Pete. I'll introduce you to the rest of the crowd later, but please, come in and eat with us.  Most of your children are done, although I think Jacob might eat all night if we let him,"  said Santa as he laughed at his own joke.  His eyes twinkled and his belly really did shake like a bowl full of jelly.  

My dad came up next to Mom and reached out his hand across the table to introduce himself to Santa, "Hi Santa, I'm Larry."

Santa reached across the table and shook his hand.  "Yes, yes, I know who you are Larry.  The year you turned five you wanted a remote control, red fire engine that shot water and made siren noises.  Unfortunately we couldn't deliver because we didn't have the technology back then to do that.  I remember well trying to figure that one out in time for Christmas.  I'll send you home with one when we're done here.  And your lovely wife Sue, who every year got a new doll, and once you got a little older, Barbie dolls.  I suppose all that practice with those dolls came in handy with these three rapscallions," said Santa.

My Mom shrugged her shoulders.  She was still trying to orient herself to being with Santa.

"Oh, yes, she's an excellent mother, but why exactly are we here?  Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled to meet Penguin Pete, sir.  My father always told me stories about his exploits in the freezer and that if I left the door open, he'd escape and then who knew what might happen around our house.  Dad always said he was the one who ate all the ice cream," said Dad.

"Humph," said Pete.

"Sit down, sit down, we can't save the world on an empty stomach, " said Santa.  

My mom and dad sat down at the end of the table and we filled them in on the whole family magic thing and how we needed to use it to save Christmas.  It all seemed very real when Santa explained it this time around.  I could see my brother and sister believing it all the more this time too.   It was up to us to use our magic for good.  I felt a little bit like a superhero, or at least how I thought they might feel as they plot to save the world.  I could also see the doubt on my parent's faces as Santa talked, but I knew they'd come around.  The truth always comes out, as I knew way too well.

"Well, let's hurry and eat and get to the library," said my Dad.

"I'm done," I said.  "Can I go ahead and go the library?"

"Sure," said Santa.  "I'll have Pete take you.  Pete."

"I'd like to go too," said Abbie.

I was glad Abbie and Jacob were here.  They were both really smart and really great readers.  Those were two things I knew we were totally going to need.  

"Sure," said Santa.  "Pete!"

Pete came running with a fish in his beak.  "Just a little snack Santa, just a little snack," said Pete.

"Oh sorry, should I get someone else to take them to the library?" asked Santa.

"Nonsense, I'm good to go now.  Follow me, kids," said Pete.

"We'll be along soon, kids," said Dad.

"Mind your manners," said Mom.

"Thank you, Mrs. Claus," Abbie and I said in unison, and followed after Pete to the library.  Jacob stayed for another helping of dessert.

"I can't believe how utterly exciting this is, " said Abbie.

"I know.  It's pretty cool, but how are we going to find a way to destroy the force field around the North Pole?  If we don't, Santa can't deliver his toys, and children everywhere will be disappointed and it will all be our fault!" I said.

"We'll find something in the library.  You heard Santa, with five extra sets of eyes, we'll probably find the spell to break the force field tonight and be home for Christmas with days to spare.  It will have been an adventure though!" said Abbie.

It took only a few minutes to get to the library.  Pete opened the double doors and both Abbie and I walked in and saw rows and rows of bookshelves piled high with books.  I began to think this might not be as easy as I thought.

"Pete, which of these rows of books are the books on magic?" asked Abbie.  

I hoped it wasn't many.

"You see this small section to the right of us?" asked Pete.   I did and was thrilled.  We could get through that in a day.   Pete continued, "It's the only section that isn't magic books.  These hold the history of Santa and the North Pole.  The rest are magic books," said Pete.

We were doomed!

Pete looked back at us and, seeing our long faces, said, "The good news is that half the books have been digitized and can be searched using a database.  We have been working on this project for about ten years but other things just seemed more important at the time.  After this incident, I bet we'll spend more penguin power on scanning the rest of the books.  Penguins are great at scanning, not so good at typing.  We leave that to the elves."

"Okay, where do we start?"  I asked.

"Yes, where do the books start that aren't in the computer?" asked Abbie.

"Follow me, follow me," said Pete as he waddled down the rows of books.

We spent the next four hours going through books.  Mom, Dad and Jacob came shortly after us.  We were all looking for a spell that had to do with force fields.  We weren't very successful, but after two hours or so we started marking all the spells that had to do with removing a spell, in hopes that one of those might work.  We did get about a dozen of those spells marked, but nothing that had to do specifically with force fields.  Santa's magic books didn't have much to do with keeping people confined.  After four hours of looking at books, I was tired and a little cranky.  I'd never done anything for four hours straight, let alone read books for that long.  I was ready to get out!  

"Friends, let's take a break for the night.  It's almost 11:00 at night and well past your bedtime I' m sure," said Santa.  "Everything will look better in the morning when we come back, rested and ready.  Pete, take the kids on a short walk around the North Pole.  Show them what there is to see.  Sue and Larry, I'll take you on a quick tour of the workshop.  You haven't had a chance to see anything yet.  We'll meet back at the dormitory."

Santa and my parents headed back towards the workshops while Pete led us in the opposite direction, through a door and into a small mudroom filled with coats, boots, mittens, shovels, umbrellas, etc.  Abbie and I found our coats while Penguin Pete helped Jacob find some outdoor clothes.  I had to find some boots and mittens too, since I was under dressed for the North Pole.  Everything we borrowed was a shade of red.  They sure like red in the North Pole.  We ventured out into the cold, snowy day but I loved it.  Snow was everywhere.  It was paradise.  

Pete pointed out the candy shop where the elves made the candy for Santa.  He told us that penguins were strictly forbidden from that place because they had too big a sweet tooth, particularly for the peppermints.  We saw Santa's house and a big bunkhouse for the elves plus a smaller house for the penguins.  Pete told us that most of the penguins went south with Sandy so they didn't need a big place.

"And here is the main barn, " said Pete.  "This is where Santa keeps his sleigh and the where the reindeer live you all know and love.  There's another barn further down behind this one where the rest of the reindeer stay when they don't want to be outside.  I'll introduce you round to all the reindeer," said Pete as he swung the barn door open.  

There stood Rudolph.  I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.  His nose was actually shining.

"Rudolph, quit showing off for the visitors," said Pete.

"I'm not showing off," said Rudolph.  

I should have known the reindeer were going to speak too, but it still surprised me a bit.

"Then why's your nose glowing?  It only glows if it's dark or you're showing off, and occasionally, if you're embarrassed.  We didn't embarrass you, did we?" needled Pete.

His nose glowed redder.  A few of the reindeer snickered and I thought he might be getting embarrassed with the way everything was going.

"No, no, no you didn't embarrass me.  Come on in.  Come on in.  We've been wanting to meet the young people who are going to save Christmas for us,"  said Rudolph.  His nose dimmed to a low, red glow.  "Come, I'll introduce you round to everyone."

Pete interrupted, "Thanks Rudolph, but I'll introduce them."  

Rudolph bowed his front legs, "As you wish Pete, as you wish."

Pete waddled up to Rudolph and stuck out his fin towards him, "This is Matthew Rudolph."

"What?" we all asked in unison.

"This is Matthew Rudolph," repeated Pete.

"Matthew Rudolph?" asked Jacob.

"Yes," said Rudolph, "Matthew is my first name.  The famous song only referred to me by my last name.  It would have been kind of awkward to fit my entire name in the song.  Can you imagine the song as such?"  Rudolph proceeded to sing, "Matthew Rudolph the red nosed reindeer, had a very shiny nose.  Doesn't sound right so the author used poetic license and shortened it to Rudolph.  I'm okay with it."

"Wow!" exclaimed Abbie.  "Do all the reindeer have first and last names?"

"Of course," replied Rudolph.

"Yes, as I was saying," interrupted Pete.  "This is Matthew Rudolph and here we have Robert Dasher, Sophie Dancer, Sydney Prancer, Caroline Vixen, Joshua Comet, Joe Cupid, Charlie Donner and Andrew Blitzen.  They're quite a handful, these reindeer!"

"What?" the reindeer all replied.

"Think back to the prank of '77.  We almost didn't have Christmas that year due to your shenanigans.  And let's not forget what happened in '85 or ' 90 or '93 or '97 ," said Pete before he was interrupted by a bunch of groans and protestations.  

"After we rescue Christmas, I want details," said Jacob.  "I'm always on the lookout for a good prank."

"We never give out details, "said Prancer.  "What happened in the past, stays in the past."

"We may not give out details, but we sure do tell a mean story," said Dasher.  "After you rescue Christmas and we've delivered all the toys, I'll tell you some 'stories'."  

I looked forward to that!

"Come now, we must hurry back," said Pete.  "You need your rest."

"Good-bye," all the reindeer said.

"Good-bye," said Rudolph.  "Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you."

Pete led us to the dormitory.  It was a smaller cottage we hadn't seen yet, tucked in behind the rest.  It had everything our family could need plus a couple of bedrooms.  My parents were already there getting situated when we came in.

"Pete, this is such a nice cottage," said my Mom.  "Please give our thanks again to Santa for letting us use it."

"It's been empty for some time.  This is where Sandy used to live.  We took all the covers off the furniture and cleaned it earlier today in preparation for your arrival.  I hope everything will be to your satisfaction."

"Oh," said Abbie.  "Has anyone used it since she left?"

"We occasionally get visitors and this is where Santa has them stay.  He calls it the dormitory now, but it used to be Snow Cottage," said Pete.

"Well, thanks for bringing the kids, Pete," said my dad.  "What time should we be ready in the morning?"

"Mrs. Claus serves breakfast at 8:00.  I can come by for you at 7:30, which will give us plenty of time to get there and seated, unless you want to run by the library first," replied Pete.

"7:30 should be fine, Pete.  We'll all be up and ready," said Dad.

We looked around the cottage a bit and then all settled into bed.  It was late for me and I was tired.  I fell asleep instantly, even though the walls of the cottage reverberated with Dad's snoring.  He was tired too.  We'd had a lot of excitement.

The next morning we were all up and dressed with plenty of time to spare.  We explored the cottage a bit.  There were nooks and crannies to hide in and play in and even some of Sandy's things were still in the cottage.  My Mom was a little worried about us playing around her stuff, in case we broke anything, but we promised to be careful.  Besides, Penguin Pete showed up real quick to take us to breakfast.  He took us back to the kitchen in the workshop and we had a wonderful breakfast fixed by Mrs. Claus.  I can see why Santa has a bowl full of jelly if he gets fed like this every meal.  

After breakfast, we headed back to the library to pick up where we had left off.  Santa had examined the dozen or so spells we'd found yesterday to counteract a spell and had declared them all "insufficient for what we needed", his words, not mine.  We were back at square one, looking through hundreds of spell books with hardly a chance left and less than five full days until Christmas.  Today we had Mrs. Claus helping as well as four new penguins -- Addie, Amelia, Grace and Caleb.  Penguin Pete said that Grace and Caleb were twins but luckily not identical so it was much easier to tell them apart but I still couldn't.  All the penguins looked the same to me.  

We took a short break at lunch and had cold sandwiches.  I wanted to go see the reindeer again but Dad said there wasn't time.  I looked through stacks and stacks of books.  No spells for force fields but again a couple of spells that could be used to counteract magic.  We marked them for Santa to go through that evening.  I was beginning to think someone would need to go to the South Pole to find the spell! 

Dinner was also short and sweet, although it wasn't just cold sandwiches.  Mrs. Claus had made her famous (at least in the North Pole) macaroni and cheese.  I have to say it was really, really good and Abbie, who hates mac and cheese night at our house, ate two platefuls.  

As we were cleaning up dinner Santa said, "We'd better have a short recess and go out and visit the reindeer.  It's been a couple of days since I've been out to see them.  I don't want them to think I've been avoiding them. "

"I've been wanting to meet them," said Dad.  "The kids told me about their first names and I'd love to get to know them!"

"Me too," said Mom.

We all got dressed in our winter outerwear and headed over to the main barn.  Santa opened the door and hollered, "Merry day reindeer!"

The reindeer all lined up from Rudolph to Blitzen as if they were in the army.  They were quite a sight.  

"It's nice to see you sir," said Rudolph.  "We've missed your visits these last couple of days, especially with Christmas so close.  We've made some minor adjustments in the straps that we think will help and we've been practicing flying around in circles with Penguin Max at the reins so we'll be ready for Christmas."

"Thank-you Rudolph," said Santa.  Rudolph nodded his head.  "Thanks Max," yelled Santa.  Max wobbled out from the back and flapped his wing before he waddled back.  He obviously had lots of work to do.  "Max is the penguin who helps out with the reindeer.  He has his hands full most day with this crew.  Well, let's take her for a ride!  Who wants to go with me?" asked Santa.

We all raised our hands, including Mom who hates to fly!  I guess no one can pass up a chance to fly with Santa.  Santa quickly introduced Mom and Dad to the reindeer and then we all helped get the reindeer hitched onto the sleigh although Santa and Max did most of the work.  When Santa gave the okay, we all climbed in and sat down for the ride of our lives.  I think we must not have weighed very much because those reindeer flew across the sky as fast as a rocket.  Compared to Santa's weighed down sleigh on Christmas Eve, we must have been light baggage.  We were zooming across the sky when we ran into the force field and took a sudden curve to the right.  That was as far as we could go.  I was glad we didn't bounce off when we hit the force field like I'd seen in cartoons.  A sharp turn was much better than a bounce.  I would have been on the ground if that had happened.  As it was, I just landed in Mom's lap who was laughing and holding on very tight.  For someone who didn't like flying or roller coasters, Mom was sure enjoying herself.  I righted myself with her help and we swept across the sky again until we hit the force field and made another sharp turn.  I was holding on better this time so I stayed in my own seat.  Santa brought us back down shortly after the last turn.  I was breathing heavy from the excitement of the ride and my windswept hair was standing on end but I was in love with traveling by sleigh.  It was much better than traveling by freezer.

After the sleigh ride, we all said good-bye to the reindeer and left.  Santa lingered for a minute with Rudolph, gave his head another rub and then followed in our footsteps.  Santa's head was bowed down and you could tell the ride on the sleigh had bothered Santa.  Driving round the force field probably reminded him of our problem, the whole reason my family was here in the North Pole to begin with.  Time was flying by and if I was getting nervous about finding a way out, then Santa must be weighed down with worry.  We had to find the solution in the books!  I was ready to get back to those books and find the spell that would break Sandy's hold on the North Pole.  I have to admit, the moment we entered the library, my stomach dropped.  There was still an awful lot of books to go through and not a lot of time!

I started right where I'd left off.  Everyone was back helping look through the books and we were making better time with Mrs. Claus and the penguins help.  Tonight, Santa had added three more penguins, Jesse, Aaron and Pedro, to help in the search.  Unfortunately, even with 7 sets of human eyes and 8 sets of penguin eyes, four hours later no one had found anything and it was time to go to bed again.

"It's time for bed boys and girls.  Thanks for your help.  We'll find the solution tomorrow.  I'm sure of it," said Santa.  

I hoped so but I wasn't so sure.

"We'll meet back in the kitchen a little earlier.  How about 7:30 tomorrow instead of 8:00?" asked Mrs. Claus as she patted Santa on the back.

We all agreed.  We knew we needed the extra time and sleep would be difficult with us worrying about finding the spell.  We all left the library except for Santa.  He stayed to check out the counteracting spells we had found today.  I hoped one of them would work! 

"Mom,Dad, I just want to ask Santa if we can run by and check in on the reindeer and maybe ask them a few questions.  We haven't gotten any information from them yet.  Perhaps they know something," I said as I ran back through the doors.

I found Santa peering over a spell in one of the books we'd put on his desk.  He looked up as he heard me approach.  "Santa, can we stop by and say goodnight to the reindeer and maybe ask them a few questions?"

"Sure Ethan.  As long as there is a light on in the barn, feel free to go in, but if there are no lights on, you had probably better keep going and see them in the morning," replied Santa.  

"Thanks Santa," I said.  "Santa I've been thinking today about all these books you have here on spells and we've looked through a lot of them but there's still all those books you have that we haven't looked through yet.  Time is getting short."

"I know Ethan, but I know we'll find it in time.  I'm sure of it," said Santa.

"Well sir, I was wondering if maybe we needed to send someone to the South Pole to find the book and the spell she used to create this force field.  Then we would know what to do," I said.  I'd been thinking about this a lot since dinner.

"I have thought about that but there's no way to get there that doesn't involve a lot of travel and we don't have time.  She closed off freezer travel to the South Pole years ago.  To get there now, since the sleigh is out of commission, we would need to travel by freezer to Argentina and then fly by reindeer to the South Pole.  It would take at least a couple of days and we haven't got a couple of days, not to mention it would be a very dangerous trip."

I turned to leave the room but stopped when Santa called my name, "Ethan,  thank-you for all your help.  I'm glad you and your family are here to help us.  I know we'll come up with something.  We always have.  Goodnight Ethan."

"Goodnight Santa and I'm glad we're here too," I replied and I was.  I was glad my great-grandfather, who I'd never known, had helped Sandy and had been given magic that he could pass down to me.  I was glad I would have it to pass down to my kids.  What a magical world we live in.  I waved to Santa as I closed the door.  We are going to figure out something!

Jacob, Abbie and I raced across the snow to see who could get to the barn first.  Since the snow was so deep, it wasn't necessarily going to be the fastest person, but the person who could navigate the snow the best.  It turned out to be Abbie.  I would think that girl was half snowman, if she liked the cold better.  The lights were on in the barn so we went on in and said our hellos.  The reindeer were glad to see us.  Penguin Max came out and flapped his wing and then left us alone.  

"Max is here to keep an eye on us.  We've been known to get into trouble but since Max has been boarding with us there hasn't been much of a problem at all," said Dancer.

"What about the incident in '06?" asked Vixen.

"That wasn't much of anything," said Comet.  "There was no permanent damage to anything and no risk to Christmas.  That was just fun!"

"Pete didn't see it that way," said Donner

"That's because Pete's feathers are the ones that got singed!" said Blitzen and all the reindeer laughed.

"That's enough guys!" said Rudolph. 

"Hey!" said Vixen.

"And gals!" said Rudolph.  "We need to get to sleep soon so simmer down.  I have a feeling these guys may need some information from us if they hope to find a counter spell to Sandy's force field.  What do you want to know?"

"I have a question," shot out Jacob.  "What do you think we need to know about Sandy to get rid of this force field.  Is there something from her past that might help us?  Santa hasn't told us much about her."

The reindeer all looked at their feet or the ceiling, which is the universal sign for I don't know what to say.  I use it all the time when my teacher asks why I never remember to put my name on my paper.  However, Rudolph was looking straight ahead, not making eye contact with anyone, and I knew what that meant.  That means I have the answer but don't want to tell you.  I've used that look before too!  

"Rudolph, let's start with you." I said.  All the other reindeer looked relieved.  I did a mom move and pulled Rudolph over into a corner to talk so everyone didn't hear the conversation.  "Okay, what's the deal?"

"Huh?" asked Rudolph, pulling out my favorite answer to a question I didn't want to answer.

"What do you know that you're not telling me?  You look exactly like I do when I get caught with my hand in the cookie jar," I said.

"Neither my hand nor my hoof are in the cookie jar," said Rudolph, "but I was Sandy's best friend before she left the North Pole."

Wow!  "What happened?  Why didn't you go with her when she left?" I asked.

"It wasn't right.  She got upset over something silly that Santa said.  We all say silly things, especially to the ones we love.  It's not always right, but he was just teasing her and it got out of hand.  It's the reason he doesn't tease anyone, anymore, ever.  Santa learned his lesson.  Besides, the year before Sandy left, in '38, that was the first year Santa used me at the front of his sleigh.  I knew he needed me and the reindeer needed me and the children all over the world needed me to help Santa, so I couldn't go.  Not to mention, there was a song about to come out that was all about me.  I just couldn't go and I didn't really want too.  I didn't think she'd stay upset this long.  I thought she'd get upset, stay away for awhile and then come back and let Santa apologize.  I think that's what everyone thought would happen."

"Have you seen her since she left?" I asked.

"A few times.  I think Santa knows she's been back a few times.  It's one of the reasons he doesn't do something permanent with Snow Cottage.  I think he hopes she'll come back someday.  She did leave a nondescript box in the Snow Cottage, where you guys are staying.  It allows me to visit her and allows her to visit here as well.   I think she really misses the North Pole," said Rudolph.

"Have you ever visited her there in the South Pole?" I asked

"A few times, especially right after she left, but nothing with regularity.  It's too hard to get away from everyone without being detected.  Santa never told us we couldn't visit her, it was just a bit awkward to tell everyone where I would be going.  She really is a good person, just a bit bitter," replied Rudolph.

"Could the box have anything to do with the force field?" I asked.

"I doubt it.  It's been here all these years and there's never been a problem before.  I know she's constantly studying the magic books she has in the South Pole trying to learn new spells and become better at her magic.  Her spells don't always work the way she wants them to.  It's one of the things Santa used to tease her about.    I think she finally found something she could use against Santa and perfected her magic enough that it all came together and she created the force field.  She was still angry with Santa, although I don't think even she remembers the comment that started it all," said Rudolph.

My Mom and Dad walked in.  "Hello kids," said Dad.  "I think it's time to get moving.  You've had enough time to chat and it's probably time for the reindeer to go to bed too.  They've got a big day coming up."

"If you can get rid of that force field we do!" said Cupid.

"We will, we will," said Dad as he reassured the reindeer.

I turned to Rudolph,"Well, if you think of anything else, let me know."

"I will and please let us reindeer know if there is any way we can help," said Rudolph.

We said our goodbyes and hurried back to Snow Cottage.  We were quickly thinking of this place as home.  On the way there I told my family all the things that Rudolph had said.  It was surprising to everyone!  We decided we needed to find that box and show it to Santa in case it was the source of the force field.  Since all three bedrooms in the cottage were the same size we had no way of knowing which bedroom for sure used to be Sandy's room.  We searched all three, even though we figured the room Jacob and I were in was probably not her room due to the bunk beds.  

Abbie found the box in her room.  It was in the back of one of the drawers of the dressing table.  She  yelled for us and we all came running to her room.

"I've found the box,"  Abbie said.  

She held up a nondescript, brown jewelry box.  It didn't look like anything important and I hadn't been looking for a jewelry box. 

Abbie admitted, "I almost didn't even try to open it but I did.  Luckily, I was bound and determined to check everything.  When I opened it, nothing happened but there is a small knob like in a music box."  She pointed to the knob and we all saw it.  "When I turned the knob, music plays but most importantly, some sort of portal seemed to open up.  All I could see was snow so I'm assuming, because of what Rudolph said, that it's the South Pole where Sandy is, but who knows?"

"We'll show Santa in the morning," Mom said.  "For now, your father and I will keep the box in our room and we'll see what Santa has to say about it tomorrow.  Good night kiddos!"

We all settled in for bed but I couldn't help but wonder if the box was the key to saving Christmas.

The next morning we kids were up plotting and planning how we could use the box to our advantage.  We thought we should use it to go to the South Pole and find the book with the spell we needed.  Once Mom and Dad got up, we all headed over to the kitchen.  We made it there before 7:00.  We were all excited to see what Santa had to say about the box we had found.  Mrs. Claus was making breakfast for us and shooed us all down to the library where Santa was studying the spells we had found yesterday.  

Santa looked up as we walked into the library.  "So good to see you so early in the morning.  Come in and we can get started before we take a break for breakfast.  I looked over all the spells we marked and none will do the trick, I'm afraid."

"Santa! Santa!" I couldn't wait.

"Yes, Ethan?"

"Abbie found a box and we think it's a portal to the South Pole!" I exclaimed.

"Really, let's see the box," said Santa.

Mom handed the bag we had put the box in to Abbie.  Abbie pulled the box out and showed it to Santa.  Santa picked up the box and examined it.

"I haven't seen this box in years.  Where did you find it?" asked Santa.

"It was in the dressing table of my room.  Rudolph told us it was somewhere in Snow Cottage," said Abbie.

"Rudolph told you that?  I thought she might have been visiting him.  I guess it makes sense that those two stayed in contact.  They were always such good friends.  I'm still a little surprised he didn't go with her when she left the North Pole.  Well, anyway, this box is from my childhood.  Sandy and I created it so we could visit each other late at night when we were supposed to be in bed.  She kept it in her room and if she turned the knob she could pass through to my room undetected by our parents.  We occasionally used it to visit other parts of the North Pole too.  I thought this had been lost a long time ago," said Santa.  He went on to tell us how the box worked.  Basically, Santa or something of his had to be on one end and Sandy or something of hers needed to be on the other end, and then whoever wanted to could travel between the two locations.

Jacob spoke up, "Santa... Ethan, Abbie and I were talking this morning and we think we can use this box to visit the South Pole and find the spell book that your sister Sandy is using to make the force field.  We'd like to go and try to find it.  You know it may be the only way.  We haven't had any luck so far in the books in the library and there's no guarantee we'll find it in the remaining books.  The only real option is to travel to the South Pole, grab the book and return.  It's totally doable and we think we should do it.  Besides, searching the library is getting us nowhere!" 

Jacob looked at Abbie and me.  He can be quite convincing when he wants to.  It's why we decided he should present the idea to the adults.

"Oh no, it might be too dangerous," said Santa.  "I don't know what Sandy would do if she found you.  She used to be a very gentle soul but it's been over seventy years since I've seen her.  I never thought she would stoop to doing something like this to Christmas and the children.  I don't know how she might react if she found you.  I can't let you risk it," said Santa.  Just then a bell rang.  "Saved by the breakfast bell.  Let's all go into breakfast and we'll have no more talk of this.  The right spell is just around the next book."

Mom and Dad looked relieved as they herded us back to the kitchen.  Mrs. Claus had made cinnamon rolls, a personal favorite of mine, with eggs and toast.  It was yummy but I still couldn't get out of my mind that box and I could tell by the distracted way Jacob was eating that he couldn't either.  Abbie always did do a better job masking her emotions, but I thought she must be worried too.  We all were.  The time was ticking away to save Christmas.  

After breakfast, we all started looking at more books in the library.  I was tired of looking in books.  I needed some action, something to do and I decided we needed to steal the box, go to the South Pole and find that book.  If they were willing to go, I'd take Abbie and Jacob with me.  I might need their help, at least as a lookout or something.  I carefully walked over to Abbie and told her my plan to steal the box and go the South Pole.  She agreed to go along with me without even hearing the full plan, which was good since there wasn't really one.  I asked her to cover for me while I walked further down the aisles to talk to Jacob.  Abbie ran over and distracted Mom but she didn't have to worry about Dad because he was too involved in the books to notice anything else.  I walked down to Jacob and told him what I wanted to do.  

Jacob came up with the full plan.   At the next break for lunch, everyone would leave but as soon as everyone was out of the library, I would remember I forgot my sweater and would have to run in and get it.  I would get the box and my sweater.  I had to wrap the box in my sweater and take the entire bundle to the mudroom where I would hide it in Abbie's boot.  Since Abbie's boot came from our house, we knew no one else would accidentally use it.  Perfect!  Jacob has the best plans, even if they do usually end up getting me in trouble.

Now, I just needed everyone to go to lunch.

Finally, the lunch bell rang.  We cleaned up a bit and then all headed out the door.  Just as Santa was closing the door on the last penguin, I "remembered" I didn't have my sweater.

"Wait, Santa.  I forgot my sweater.  I need to go back and get it," I said.

"Surely you won't need it in the kitchen for lunch.  We can come back after lunch and it will still be here," said Santa.  I could hear his stomach grumbling.

"But Santa, I was hoping to run out and visit the reindeer right after lunch before we went back to looking at books.  Even at school we get a lunch recess," I replied. 

"Okay, go in and get your sweater.  I'll be right here," said Santa, his stomach grumbling again.

 "It's okay, you don't have to wait for me.  I can hear your stomach grumbling for lunch.  I'll find the sweater and come right to the kitchen.  I'll be fast.  I just have to figure out which aisle I left it in," I said.

"Santa, if it takes him half as long to find his sweater in the library as it does in the morning before school, we'd better go get some lunch or we'll starve," said Abbie.

"It's true, Santa.  He has a heck of a time keeping track of his things," said Mom.

Thank you, Mom!

"Okay, Ethan, but don't forget to close the library doors behind you," said Santa.

Yes!  I was in and no adults around.   I found the box quickly and my sweater as well since I knew exactly where I'd put it.  I laid the sweater out, placed the box on top and folded the sweater around the box, closed the library doors and ran to the mudroom where I put the box in Abbie's boot and tied the sweater around my waist.  I ran back to the library where I took a few breaths and walked back toward the kitchen.  Everything was in place.

Lunch was lovely.  Jacob, Abbie and I ate as fast as we possibly could, which had to be faster than the adults if we were going to make this plan work.  As soon as Jacob ate the last bite of his sandwich, we all jumped up and asked to be excused to visit the reindeer.  We were excused and walked out of the kitchen but as soon as we were in the hall we ran with all our might to the mudroom.  We got dressed in extra layers since we didn't know what to expect in the South Pole.  Just as we left the mudroom, I grabbed three North Pole issued walkie talkies, one for each of us and then we ran/waddled to the main barn.  

When we got to the barn, we explained to all the reindeer what we intended to do.  We were going to the South Pole to try and save Christmas.  We explained we needed someone who was familiar with Sandy's location and we needed transportation for all three of us.  I also made sure they knew that neither Santa nor our parents knew what we were doing but that we truly believed this was the only way to defeat the spell.

Rudolph stepped forward, "I have knowledge of Sandy and the South Pole.  I will provide help and transportation there.  Climb on my back Ethan.  You'll have to duck as we enter the portal.  It's not a very large portal.  I believe it was intended to be used only by small children."  

I climbed on but was not as graceful as I wanted to be.

Comet came forward, "I will transport Jacob.  You may climb on my back." 

Jacob climbed onto Comet's back and Comet humphed.  "I've got the heaviest load.  He's almost full grown size," mumbled Comet. 

Dancer came forward last, "I will be honored to carry you, Abigail.  Please climb on my back."  

"Thank you, Dancer.  I would be very pleased to ride on your back," replied Abbie, before she climbed onto Dancer's back.

We were ready.  I looked at all three of us, smiled, and reached down and set the box on a chest at the end of the room, opened it and turned the knob.  There was a scene of white, swirling snowflakes in front of us, the South Pole.  

"Please, keep this a secret as long as you can," Jacob said to the remaining reindeer.

"Let's go," I said as I hunched over as close to Rudolph as I could get.  I was followed by Jacob on Comet, and Abbie on Dancer.

Just as we went through the portal I heard an, "Oh dear!  Oh dear!" 

I looked back through the portal and saw Penguin Max jumping around and flapping his wings while the rest of the reindeer circled round him.  I turned and smiled.  The rest of the reindeer would take care of that situation.  I just hoped Penguin Max wouldn't be too traumatized by it.

I looked around me and all I saw were swirling, white snowflakes.  It was exactly the opposite of the calm, crisp snow in the North Pole.  "Any idea where we are Rudolph?" I asked in his ear.

He nodded and led us on.  I looked back and was glad for the snow because it hid the portal unless you came right on it.  We would need to remember where it was so we could return.  I hoped Rudolph was good at that kind of thing.  

Rudolph led us to a snow hill that was near a bunch of buildings.  Luckily, it wasn't very far because I was already very cold.  I can't imagine how Abbie was doing in this cold.  I was glad for the extra layers we put on back in the mudroom and, even though we had to waddle to the barn, they were wonderful right now!

We gathered round in a circle and, through our scarves and chattering teeth, we came up with the plan.  Rudolph knew where Sandy's study was located so he and I would sneak through the main building and see if the book was there.  Since she had used it for the force field spell, we thought it might be sitting out on her desk and easy to find.  We were hoping so! 

Jacob and Comet were to go to the reindeer stables and be our lookout from outside.  Rudolph knew there was a small lean to on the side of the stables where they kept fresh hay that Jacob and Comet could hide in.  They could see the only outside entrance to the study from there and alert us if anyone was coming.  If they saw anyone approaching, they were to beep us on the walkie talkie.  Rudolph pointed out the stables as best he could in the swirling snow.

We also needed to keep the way back to the portal in our sights so we could make our escape without any major problems and be sure no one else found the portal.  Abbie and Dancer were to hide in the woodshed we could see from our small hill.  

"And just what are we supposed to do if we see someone moving toward the portal? " Dancer asked.  "We don't have any weapons or even a rope to tie someone up with.  We should have brought the stun ray guns!  They would have come in handy for just such an operation."

"You're right Dancer, we should have brought them but we didn't.  All you can do now is look around for a rope and use the walkie talkie to call us for help if you need it.  Remember you must stay quiet because you will be near the elves dormitory.  They have excellent hearing," Rudolph warned.

"Those darn ears," grumbled Comet.

"Ethan and I will enter the main hall through a side door and make our way to Sandy's study from there.  It isn't very far but a very public area.  If we're lucky, we'll make it there undetected and find the book.  Once we find the book, we'll radio you guys and see if the coast is clear outside.  If it is, we'll leave through the outside door and then we all need to fly to the portal and get through it just as fast as we can!" said Rudolph.  "Any questions?"

"Nope, everything is clear as mud," said Comet.  

"Let's do this," said Jacob.

We each went our separate ways through the swirling snow.  Soon I couldn't see anyone, but that was good because then no one could see us either.  I was trusting Rudolph to get us through this.  He carried me until we reached the side of the main house.  There was a side door there you could tell wasn't used very much because of the snow piled outside of it.  We dug out the snow and then I opened the door.  I was glad it wasn't locked but I think Rudolph knew it wouldn't be.  We entered a small room that had gardening tools in it which seemed weird to me since there was only snow here.  

"Sandy hoped to someday make a greenhouse where she could grow fruits and vegetables.  Everything for that venture is in this room.  She was hoping to add the greenhouse on just past the door we just came through.  Once I saw there was no greenhouse, I knew this room would be empty," said Rudolph.

"What were we going to do if the greenhouse had been there?" I asked.

"Storm the front door and hope for the best," said Rudolph.

"I'm glad the greenhouse wasn't built yet!" I exclaimed.  "We need to work on our back-up plans."

"We'll worry about that later.  Open the door and look down the hall and see if you can see anyone," said Rudolph.

I opened the door and surprisingly, no one was in the hallway.  Thank heavens, since I didn't want to know what his back-up plan was for this.  I whispered back to Rudolph, "It's all clear, we can go."

Rudolph lead the way down the hallway toward a large room.  We could hear talking and I knew we weren't going to be able to get by them without a major diversion which I hope Rudolph had a better plan for than storming the room and hoping for the best.

We snuck up to the corner so we could better hear the conversation.

"Jeffrey, what am I going to do?" asked Sandy.

Rudolph whispered to me, "Jeffrey is the penguin that Sandy always relied on to help her out, much like Pete helps out Santa."

"Oh," I mouthed.  I didn't want to miss the conversation.

"You are just going to have to come clean with Santa.  There's no way around it because it's almost Christmas!" said Jeffrey.

"But I can't," said Sandy.

"You can, you just don't want to.  You could try contacting Rudolph, he might be able to help," suggested Jeffrey.

"That's true, but it's rather tricky getting hold of Rudolph without actually going to the North Pole, and I think if I showed up in the North Pole right now, it might be problematic!" said Sandy.

"That's for sure.  They'd probably tie you up and torture you with sweets and licorice until you talked.  I guess we'll just have to go back to the original plan of you coming clean with Santa about what you did," said Jeffrey.

"I'd rather not.  Keep thinking," said Sandy.

Rudolph and I looked at each other.  What were they talking about?  

Just then we heard bells clanging up and down the hall and a loud, voice booming, "Intruder alert! Intruder alert!"

Rudolph and I looked at each other and panicked but there was nowhere to go so we flattened ourselves against the wall, as if that would do us any good.  We heard footsteps across the room and the bells and the booming voice stopped.  

"We found them near the reindeer stables," we heard.  

I peaked around the corner again to see who it might be and there were Jacob, Comet, Abbie and Dancer surrounded by a guard of elves and reindeer.  

"And I found the girl and Dancer near the elves dormitory," said a large elf.  

I turned to Rudolph and whispered, "What are we going to do?"

"I'm not sure.  Maybe we wait here and see where they take them and then we can try and rescue them," whispered Rudolph.

It seemed like a good plan to me so we hunkered down against the wall to listen.

"I don't know who you kids are or what you want, but I know you come from the North Pole because of Dancer and Comet.  Am I right?  What are you doing sneaking around my home?" asked Sandy but she continued without leaving a chance for an answer.  "I can see Dancer doing something like this but I wouldn't have thought you would stoop to sneaking Comet."

Dancer snorted through her nose at Sandy.  "That's rich coming from you Sandy.  You've all but ruined Christmas for the entire planet and you're upset that we're sneaking around your home trying to save the day!  You should be lucky we didn't bring the stun ray guns.  We could have you know.  We've perfected them now.  They stun the person and it makes them go to sleep and they wake up five minutes later having forgotten the last ten minutes.  Comet, why didn't we bring those guns?  They would be very handy about now!"

"Dancer, I'm thinking Santa wouldn't want us shooting his sister, even if it is for a good cause.  Hello Sandy, it's been a long time since I've seen you.  You look great, much the same.  It's too bad you've gone to the dark side," said Comet.

"But I haven't, not really Comet.  It's all been a big mistake and I don't know how to undo it," said Sandy.

"What do you mean?" asked Comet.  "Didn't you put a force field around the North Pole to try and ruin Christmas?"

"Yes and no!" exclaimed Sandy.  "I am responsible for the force field but I wasn't trying to ruin Christmas.  I was just trying to remind my brother that I exist, that I am important.  He has just carried on without me as if I didn't matter at all to him.  I found this spell and decided to try it out.  I know he always makes a trial run with the reindeer about a week before Christmas and then again the night before Christmas Eve.  I thought I'd put the force field there for the first trial run, leave it there for a day or so and then remove it.  You know, make him realize that I'm still important.  I thought he might even contact me about removing it but nothing from him and now I can't remove it.  I've been trying for the last couple of days and I can't reverse the spell."

Rudolph and I looked at each other in amazement.  Sandy didn't want to ruin Christmas, she just wanted to be reunited with her brother and for him to recognize that she is important.  We could work with this!

"I'm storming through the front door and hoping for the best," said Rudolph to me right before he walked around the corner and into the room.

"Rudolph!" gasped just about everyone.   

"Hello Sandy," said Rudolph.

Sandy gasped with relief, "Rudolph, you're just the reindeer I need right now.  I'm in dire straits!  I've put a spell..."

"Yes," interrupted Rudolph, "I heard.  I guess the question now is what are we going to do about it?"

"I don't know what to do.  I've tried everything to break the spell and nothing works," said Sandy.

"You haven't tried everything Sandy.  You haven't gone to the North Pole and consulted with Santa about what the two of you might be able to do together to break the spell," said Rudolph.

"I don't think Santa wants to see me right now," said Sandy.

"I think you're wrong Sandy.  Santa always wants to see you.  It's like I tell you every time I come to visit, Santa wants you to come back," said Rudolph.

"You mean he used to want me to come back.  Right now, he just wants the spell broken so he can deliver the toys.  I'll get you the spell book and you can take it back with you.  I'm sure Santa can figure out something," replied Sandy.

"Sandy, you know you have to come back with us.  We don't have time to figure things out without you.  We need you.  Santa needs you.  Christmas needs you," said Rudolph.  "We have the portal we usually use open and ready.  Let's go. "

"I'll come with you, but on one condition.  I get to stay in the reindeer barn until after you break the news to Santa that I'm there.  I'm not sure I want to be in the room when he's told I'm back in the North Pole."

"Deal Sandy," said Rudolph.  "Anyone else who would like to visit the North Pole with us is welcome to follow us through the portal."

"I'll just get the book and then I'll be ready," said Sandy.

"I'll come help you," said Rudolph.

They headed off down the hallway and the rest of us were left to look awkwardly at each other.

"Well, I'm going back," said one elf.  "I've missed the North Pole and this may be my only chance for another 70 years."

The elves and reindeer looked at each other and then they all started saying they wanted to go back too.  

"We have to let everyone know we are going back to the North Pole for a visit," said one reindeer.

"Yes, we should at least let them know what's going on," said an elf.

Jeffrey took charge and sent elves and reindeer to different parts of the South Pole to let everyone know what was going on and if they wanted to go back and visit the North Pole, they were to come immediately.  Everyone but Jeffrey left the room.  We looked awkwardly at each other.  No one knew what to say so we said nothing.  Silence isn't necessarily a bad thing.  Abbie and I sat down while Jacob leaned on Comet and Dancer walked around the room.  We were waiting as best we could.

Jeffrey interrupted the silence, "Would you guys like a cookie?  Sandy makes the best chocolate chip cookies.  Mrs. Claus isn't the only cook in the family."

I was ready for a snack.  I hadn't eaten much at lunch and it had to be close to dinner time by now.  We followed Jeffrey to the kitchen.  There was a plate of chocolate chip cookies and Jeffrey poured us all glasses of milk.  They were the best chocolate chip cookies I had ever had!  I ate three before I was interrupted by Abbie.

"Thank-you for the cookies," said Abbie as she gave Jacob and I the eye.  We'd forgotten our manners.  She was always the one to remember her manners and remind us of ours.

"Yes, thank-you," said Jacob and I around the cookie crumbs still in our mouths.

"I'm glad you like them so much," said Jeffrey.  "Have some more and remember to drink your milk too!"

And we did.  Jeffrey ate a couple of cookies but the reindeer skipped the cookies and ate the carrots.

"Rudolph, why don't you eat the cookies?" I asked.  "They're delicious."

"Reindeer don't eat cookies.  We don't like them," said Rudolph.

"I guess I'll just eat your share," Jacob replied.

"I think you already have," said Comet.

"Well, well, I think it's time we get back.  I hear noises in the main room and we'd better check on Sandy and Rudolph.  Let's go see who has made it back," said Jeffrey.

We cleaned up quickly and then went back to the main room which was overflowing with elves and animals.  We had to squeeze by a bunch of elves that were jammed in the hallway just so we could even enter the room.

Sandy and Rudolph entered the room on the opposite side and moved to the center of the room as the elves and animals parted for her.  She stood on some sort of stool and said, "It looks like everyone would like to visit the North Pole.  I am glad.  I know you have missed our home as much as I.  There is a small portal that we must all return through.  The children, their reindeer, myself and Jeffrey will go through the portal first.  After we have talked with Santa, Jeffrey will come back through the portal and then I believe you will all be allowed to enter the North Pole.  Please be patient and thank-you for coming back with me to the North Pole, if only for a visit.  I appreciate it."

As she got down from the stool, everyone started clapping and cheering.  We left the room to applause and I once again felt like a superhero, a very confused, very full of cookies and still slightly cold superhero.  

We walked back to the portal.  It was cold.  I looked into the portal and could see the reindeer barn but there was more than just the reindeer in there.  There was Mom, Dad, Santa, Mrs. Claus, Pete, all the penguins who had helped look through the books, Max, all the reindeer and a bunch of elves and I realized I really had no idea what to expect when we got back.  I think I'd leave the explanations up to Rudolph.  

Sandy also saw everyone waiting for us in the reindeer barn.  "I'll let you go ahead Rudolph and talk to Santa.  I'll wait right here until you've explained everything," said Sandy.

"I'll stay and wait with her," I said.  I thought someone should and since the whole idea to come to the South Pole was kind of my idea and I knew that would come out in the explanation, I didn't really want to go back and face the music yet.  I was cold but not that cold.  I had no idea how mad Mom and Dad might be at me for disobeying, not to mention Santa and Mrs. Claus.  I didn't want to be on the naughty list.

"I'm going back," said Abbie.  "I'm too cold to wait here."

"We'll just leave Ethan with Sandy while the rest of us explain what happened here and we'll show Santa the book if you'll give it to Jacob," said Rudolph.

Sandy handed the book to Jacob.  She tried to stay away from the portal so Santa wouldn't be able to see her.  Rudolph, Jacob, Comet, Abbie and Dancer all went back through the portal.  I saw Rudolph nod and Jacob hand the book over to Santa.  There was a lot of hand gesturing, head nodding, some stern nods from Santa and my Dad, a few tears from Mom and Mrs. Claus, some more talking and then Rudolph came back through the portal.  

I looked over at Sandy.  She looked a little pale and a little sick.  I hoped she wasn't going to throw up.  There's nothing worse than smelly throw up to ruin a good rescue!

Rudolph started talking right away, "They are more than anxious to see you Sandy.  I explained everything to them about how you have tried to break the spell you cast but haven't been able too.  I told them the reason you cast the spell in the first place and they think that we can come up with a solution together, if you're willing.  I told them you were.  Santa said he would love for you to come back to the North Pole."

"Are you sure Rudolph?  Is it going to be okay?" asked Sandy.

"It's going to be more than okay.  You'll be back home where you belong and between you, Santa and the rest of us, we'll figure it out!" replied Rudolph.

"Then let's go," said Sandy.  

Sandy and Rudolph walked through the portal and I followed.

Santa came right up to Sandy and gave her a great big Santa hug.  I could see tears rolling down his cheek.  Mrs. Claus and my Mom had tears running down their faces.  After Santa got done hugging Sandy, I could see Sandy had tears running down her face.   

Luckily Dad wasn't crying.  I went and stood by him and whispered, "What's with all the tears?  I thought this was a good thing that Sandy came back and brought the book?"

"It is son, it is," said Dad.

"Then what's with all the tears?" I asked.

"It's hard to explain, but sometimes when people are really happy and really relieved, they cry," said Dad.

"I'm glad you're not crying Dad, but aren't you happy and relieved the book is back?" I asked.

"Very, but I'm not going to cry, at least not this time."

"Good, let's get back to the library and figure out how to break the spell.  I'm not sure I can stand much more of this happiness and relief," I replied.

"Yes, Ethan, we probably should go back up to the workshop," said Santa.  "It's getting crowded in here."

I guess he heard me.  He is Santa after all.  He probably has better hearing than Mom and he was right, it was getting crowded.  Everyone was coming through the portal from the South Pole.

"Pete, Pete where are you?" asked Santa.

"Right here," said Pete as he came running up to Santa.

"Pete, can you figure out accommodations for everyone tonight and figure out how we are going to feed everyone in the morning?" asked Santa.

"Sure, no problem!" replied Pete and he was off organizing everyone into groups.

We headed up to the workshop.  It was then that I realized how late it was.  The large clock on the outside of the workshop read 9:00.  It had taken us longer than I thought to go to the South Pole and return.

In the mudroom, we took off all our layers and Santa took us all right to the kitchen.  Mrs. Claus got to work making soup for everyone while Santa got us all some hot chocolate.  Soon we were all settled with hot chocolate and chicken soup, two of my favorite things in the whole world when it's cold.  Santa and Sandy talked quietly at the corner of the table.  Jacob, Abbie and I filled my parents in a little more on what happened in the South Pole.  They weren't happy we disobeyed them but they were glad we got the book!

"It looks like Santa may not need us after all," said Dad, "now that he has the book and his sister to help him."

What!?!  I couldn't go now.  I could tell Jacob and Abbie were just as shocked as I was.  They just sat there with our mouths open.  We hadn't thought about that.  I guess we'd be going home soon but I hoped we could see the force field destroyed and take another ride in the sleigh before we had to go home.

"In fact," my Mom said, "we should probably go home tonight so Sandy can go back to Snow Cottage since they don't need us anymore.  It's a busy time of the year for Santa and we may be a distraction for him right now."

"Now, now Susan.  Don't jump the gun there," said Santa. "We may still have need of your family.  Until the force field is destroyed, I need you to stay with us in case we need your magic.  I hope that's okay?"

"Yes!" Abbie, Jacob and I all yelled at the same time.  My parents both nodded okay next to us.

"Great!  We'll keep you in Snow Cottage and Sandy can have the guest room here in the workshop.  She and I are going to need to stay up late working with the spell book she brought so that will make it easier too.  That okay with you Sandy?" asked Santa.

"Yep, that will be just fine," said Sandy.  "In fact, let's get to it!"

"Yes, let's!" said Jacob, Abbie and I.  We were excited to find the spell.

"Actually, I think it's about bedtime for you guys.  Tonight's spell work is probably best left up to Sandy and I until we figure it all out.  I would hate for one of you beginners to do something with your magic that might compound the problem.  Better you guys get some sleep and let us figure it out.  In the morning, we'll break the force field," said Santa.

"Are you sure it can wait until morning?  I don't want to miss it," I said.

"I think it will take some finagling to figure it all out and some rest can't hurt.  Besides, we still have three days until Christmas.  We'll break the spell tomorrow and then load up the sleigh so everything is ready for Christmas Eve.  What could be simpler?  Sandy and I just need to get to the library and work out all the kinks," said Santa.  "We'll say goodnight to you guys now and see you back in the kitchen by 8:00 tomorrow morning."

"Sounds good Santa," said my Dad. 

I didn't think it sounded so good.  I wanted to go to the library too but I knew Dad and Mom were going to make sure we were all tucked in nice and tight tonight and not anywhere near the library.

"We'll just finish up here and head back to Snow Cottage for the night and we'll see you in the morning," said Mom.

"Goodnight," said Sandy and Santa as they left the kitchen.

"Kids," said Mrs. Claus, "what you did, going to the South Pole and all, was very dangerous and a little foolish."

Oh no, here comes the lecture.  I almost thought we might get away without one.

"But, seeing Santa and Sandy together makes my heart sing, so thank-you for bringing them together.  I was beginning to wonder if I'd ever see that sight again," said Mrs. Claus as she wiped a tear from her cheek and gave each of us a big hug, even Jacob who has started hating hugs.

We all helped clean up the kitchen, thanked Mrs. Claus for the food and then headed back to Snow Cottage.  It looked like it was the middle of the day as we left the workshop still in full swing.  The last couple of days until Christmas are probably the busiest.  They sure are at our house.  Outside you could see penguins and elves hurriedly exiting the reindeer barn and heading in all different directions around the North Pole.  It looked like everyone still hadn't made it through the portal although I guess that made sense if each person had to come through individually.  We swung by the reindeer barn on the way home and looked in through the doors.   The portal was open and reindeer were coming through, one right after another.  There were so many reindeer and everyone was talking to each other.  Those coming through the portal had to sidestep around groups of reindeer who were catching up after 70 years of being apart.  Penguin Pete was still there directing traffic.  He was going to have a long night!

Surprisingly, when we got back to the cottage, I fell right asleep.  I didn't realize how tired I was until Mom had to come and wake me up the next morning.  I felt her sit on the bed and stroke my head.

"Come on sleepyhead.  It's time to get up.  It's almost 8:00."

I sat right up when I heard that.

"It's about time," Mom said.  "This is the third time I've come in to try and wake you up.  Jacob wanted to get a bucket of snow but I told him I'd try one more time.  Hurry and get dressed, we're all waiting for you."

Mom left and I dressed as fast as I could, ran down the stairs and we all headed over to the workshop for breakfast.  The North Pole was bustling with all the extra elves, reindeer and penguins but it was also the day before Christmas Eve.  Things were busy but you could tell everyone was still anxious about that force field.  I couldn't wait to see what Santa had to say about that!

We headed for the kitchen and found Mrs. Claus, Penguin Pete and Penguin Jeffrey eating breakfast.  

"Come in, come in and eat breakfast," said Mrs. Claus before we could turn around and leave, which is what I wanted to do!  "Sandy and Santa have already eaten and are in the library waiting for you but Santa gave me strict instructions to feed you first.  He said you may need the extra fortification so I made cinnamon rolls."  

Mrs. Claus hurried around the kitchen while we all sat down at the table.  She had made us some eggs and bacon to go along with the cinnamon rolls.

"You make the best cinnamon rolls!" said Abbie.  

She really did.  I enjoyed every bite but then I was ready to go to the library.  My family was still eating.  Sometimes, they are really slow eaters.

"Can I go ahead and go to the library?" I asked.

"If Abbie or Jacob will go with you," said Mom.

I looked at both of them.  Abbie looked at me and then looked at her cinnamon roll half eaten and then looked at me again.  I knew she wasn't going to go.  That cinnamon roll had her hooked so I turned to Jacob.  He was shoving half a cinnamon roll into his mouth.  He gave me a thumbs up and we headed out the door before anyone could protest.

We entered the hallway at a run but there were too many elves and penguins around that we ended up doing more of a run walk thing down the hall.  Finally, we got to the library, knocked and entered.  We didn't want to scare Santa and Sandy by bursting through the door.

"Ahh, Ethan, Jacob come in, come in.  Where is everyone else?" asked Santa.

"Finishing breakfast.  We finished first so we came ahead, " said Jacob.

"What?  No second cinnamon roll?" asked Sandy.

"Oh, I had a second cinnamon roll!  I just eat faster than the rest," said Jacob.  

I wasn't about to mention his method of eating fast involved shoving half a cinnamon roll in your mouth at once!

"Well, I think we've figured out how to get rid of the force field," said Santa.  

"It took us most of the night to figure it out.  We couldn't understand why I wasn't able to reverse the spell from the South Pole.  I should have been able to do it so I tried again here in the North Pole in case proximity made a difference.  It did but the force field didn't go away, it just shimmered and pulsed," said Sandy.

"So we got to talking about the spell and what she did for the spell and how she felt after she cast the spell and we think we've figured it out!" said Santa.  "We think because it was such a powerful spell that encompasses such a large area and required all of her power to produce that she may need every ounce of her magic to reverse the spell."

"And since you and your family have some of my magic, I need your help to reverse the spell," said Sandy.

YES!  I was going to get to use magic.

"We don't know how to use magic," said Jacob.

Small detail.

"Actually, you don't need to do magic, I just need you to combine your magic with mine so we can reverse the spell," said Sandy.

"How do we do that?" I asked.

"Sandy and I have been chatting about the best way to do that.  There are three different ways to combine magic.  One involves death so we skipped that option entirely!   Another way to combine magic is to make a potion but that takes too long time to make.  It would definitely work but we don't have the time to make the potion.  The last option is an easy and quick way to combine magic between magical creatures but it isn't as powerful and so it may not be successful," said Santa.

"Yes," Sandy continued, "all we have to do is hold hands in a circle while I chant the spell.  This method works best if you need a small boost to your magic for a spell or if you want the spell to be able to be reversed by more than one person."

"This option wouldn't work if it were Sandy and I combining our magic.  It wouldn't be powerful enough," said Santa.  "However, because you are actually combining magic from the same source, we think it might have enough power to destroy the force field.  We couldn't find any instances of magic from the same source actually ever being combined together before, but there's always a first."

Just then Mom, Dad, and Abbie came in followed by Penguin Pete and Penguin Jeffrey.  We filled them in as Santa guided us down the hall toward the mudroom.  Once we got to the mudroom everyone started getting on their winter clothes.

"Why are we getting dressed to go outside?" asked Abbie.  I was wondering the same thing.

"I'm not exactly sure how the spell is going to react with all of your magic behind it so I'd rather we be outside in a large open area.  Spells are tricky things sometimes," said Santa.

"Yes, especially spells of this magnitude," said Sandy.

Just then Mrs. Claus joined us, suited up already for outside.  "This is so exciting!" she said.

I thought it was too!

After we had our jackets and boots on, we went outside.  Santa led us to the main square, which was a short distance from most of the buildings but still far enough away from everything.  Many of the animals and elves that were outside moving around turned to stare at us and must have been wondering what was going on.  They probably figured it had something to do with destroying the force field and they'd be right.  They started gathering around us and then penguins, reindeer and elves started coming out of buildings as well.  Pretty soon it looked like everyone in the North Pole was moving toward the main square.  

Santa gathered us around him.  I felt like I was in a huddle at my soccer game.  Santa was going to give us the winning strategy, we hoped.  "Okay, really all you have to do is hold hands with Sandy while she says the spell," said Santa.  "We are assuming that since your magic can only be used in emergencies that the magic will recognize the truly urgent nature of this case and combine with Sandy's.  We just have to hope that it will be enough to destroy the force field.   Think good "destruction of the force field" thoughts.  That goes for everyone gathered here!" 

Santa stepped away from us and stood by Mom and Mrs. Claus.

Sandy said in a quiet voice just for us, "Gather in a circle and hope for the best.  There's nothing you can really do to activate the magic in you but it can't hurt to think really hard about destroying the force field.  Grab each other's hands and then we'll get started."

I grabbed Dad's hand on my right and Abbie's hand on my left.  Jacob was on Dad's left and Sandy completed the circle.  We all looked at each other and then Sandy started saying the spell, using words I didn't understand.  I did my part and thought really hard about destroying that force field.  I imagined it disintegrating right before my eyes or being blown up into a million pieces that floated away into the sky or maybe it melted back to earth but I didn't like the idea of being covered in force field goop.  All of a sudden I realized I was feeling weird, like I wanted to throw up or something.  My insides were turning around on me and I thought I might lose that yummy cinnamon role from this morning.  I got goose bumps underneath all those layers of clothes but I wasn't cold.  My legs were a little rubbery too but I knew I had to keep standing.  The magic was starting to work, either that or I was getting sick, really sick.  I felt Dad squeezing my hand and I squeezed it back.  I did the same for Abbie and she squeezed my hand too.  It was good to remember I wasn't doing this alone.  I could do this.  We needed that force field destroyed.  We needed to save Christmas for the boys and girls of the world.

All of a sudden, Sandy stopped talking and I saw light coming from the top of each of us.  It gathered together into a large ball of light and then shot up into the sky.  The light hit the force field and we could see a small hole begin and stretch across the sky.  It looked as if the force field was being burnt away by the light.  The light or fire spread  further and further across the sky and the force field slowly disappeared.  Eventually, we couldn't see it anymore as it burned it's way behind the buildings and down to the ground.

A cheer went up from everyone around us.  I realized I was on my knees in the snow and stood up.  Santa, Mrs. Claus and Mom were there hugging everyone and congratulating us.  I was tired.  I didn't feel good.  I tried to talk to Mom but nothing came out.  Everyone started getting fuzzy and then it all went black.

I woke up in my room in Snow Cottage.  Jacob wasn't there but I heard talking down the hallway.  I pulled off the covers and hurried toward the talking.  I needed to know that I hadn't dreamt the entire thing.  There was Mom, Dad, Jacob and Abbie sitting around the fire drinking hot chocolate.

"Mom, Dad, what happened?" I asked.

"You fainted!" laughed Jacob.  "The most exciting day of our lives and you fainted!"

"Jacob!  That's enough.  Ethan, you did faint.  Santa thinks the magic might have been too much for you. Since you are younger than everyone else that might make sense.  Are you feeling okay?" asked Mom.

"I'm fine.  So the force field is gone?" I asked.  "It was destroyed, right?  It wasn't a dream?"

"No it wasn't a dream and yes, it really is gone.  Here, drink some hot chocolate," said Dad.

The hot chocolate tasted yummy and I realized it was just what I needed.  

"Santa even took Jacob and I for a ride in his sleigh while Mom and Dad brought you back to the cottage.  We could see the mark in the snow where the force field had burned to the ground," said Abbie.  "But don't worry, he said he would take us all for a ride before he leaves on his Christmas Eve run."

"Oh, good.  I wanted to take another ride on the sleigh," I said and drank some more chocolate.

"Me, too," said Mom.

"I'd like another go at that as well," said Dad.  "How are you feeling?  Do you feel up to heading back to the workshop and see what's going on?"

"Yes!  I'd like that ride before Santa has to leave," I replied.

"Then let's get out of here.  We were just waiting for you Ethan!" said Jacob.

We all headed up to the workshop.  Santa was instructing elves on the placement of the bags in the sleigh when we arrived.

"We'll need to shift the bags a little this year.  Since Sandy is coming with me, there will not be any room in the front seat.  All the bags have to fit in the back seat.  Put the first bag I deliver, the one to Eastern Russia, New Zealand, Australia and the other small islands, on the top and then stack each of the bags underneath that.  That will help Sandy to keep then straight.  Thanks!" said Santa.  He turned and saw us, "Ahh, Ethan, you're up.  How are you feeling?"

"Fine now," said Ethan.

"Magic can take a lot out of you.  Glad to see you're doing okay!" said Santa.

"Did you say Sandy was going with you this year Santa?" asked Abbie.

"She is indeed," said Santa.  "It's time she learned the ropes."

"Yes, it's time I learned the ropes but I'm still a little nervous about it all," said Sandy who had just walked in.  Santa put his arm around her.

"Plus, it's the perfect opportunity for us to find Sandy a husband, isn't it?" asked Santa.

"Oh Santa, let's not go there yet," said Sandy.

"You never know what destiny has in store for you Sandy," said Santa.

"Just as long as you don't help destiny along, we'll be just fine,"  said Sandy.

"If not this year, perhaps next," said Santa.  "I plan on taking Sandy every year from now on."

"Let's just get through this year and we'll see if I want to go again next year," said Sandy.

"Well, kids, are you ready for your ride?" asked Santa.  We all nodded, including my parents who aren't really kids.  "Great because the elves are going to start packing the sleigh soon for the run tomorrow and I'm sure Mrs. Claus will have dinner ready shortly as well."

"Yes and besides, we're going to need to go back home soon," said Mom.  

We all groaned, including Dad.

"But not before our sleigh ride and another dinner at the North Pole," said Santa.

"Deal!" we all yelled and headed out to the reindeer barn.  

We had a fantastic ride that took us all over the North Pole.  I have no idea how long we were gone but we were all cold and windswept by the time we returned  to the reindeer barn.  We said good-bye to the reindeer for the last time since we knew we had to leave the North Pole pretty soon and then headed up to the workshop for dinner.  Dinner was delicious as always.  Mrs. Claus had made ham and potatoes, our family's traditional Christmas dinner with cheesecake for dessert.  Yummy!  I'm going to miss Mrs. Claus' food.  It was then I realized I didn't know Mrs. Claus' name.

"Mrs. Claus, do you have a first name?" I asked.

"Ethan!" said Mom and Dad together.  I guess I wasn't supposed to ask that.

"Nonsense," said Mrs. Claus to Mom and Dad.  "It's a valid question.  Yes dear, I have a first name.  It's Kim but my friends call me Kimmie.  I'd be thrilled if you would call me Kimmie for I feel you are a dear friend."

I love Mrs. Claus, Kimmie, and not just for her food either.

In came Penguin Pete, "Well, it's time to get going.  I've got to get you home and be back to help Santa and he will need to leave sooner rather than later.  Penguin Jeffrey brought all of your things so please get dressed.  I've included an extra jacket for Jacob so he won't get cold on the way back but please, next time bring your own."

Yes!  Penguin Pete talked about a next time!  We quickly put on our jackets and boots, mittens and scarves because we knew Pete had a long night ahead of him.  Santa and Sandy came back from the workshop and gave us all quick hugs before they hurried off again.  Mrs. Claus had hugs for everyone but I think I got an extra special one from her.  I tend to be the favorite in our family.  It's because I'm the youngest and cutest.  It's hard not to love me.  

We looked at each other and then at Penguin Pete.

"Well, it looks like you're ready to go.  I want to extend my deepest thanks to all of you for the service you have given to Santa, Sandy, the North Pole and the entire world.  We all thank-you," said Penguin Pete.

"That's a very nice speech Penguin Pete.  Now get these folks home so they can truly celebrate Christmas," said Mrs. Claus.  

And with that we followed Penguin Pete into the large North Pole freezer where ice particles started swirling through the air and before I knew it I was passing by Mom's Dove bars and exiting the freezer at home.  Penguin Pete wasn't anywhere to be seen and the freezer door stood open.  I looked around and everyone was brushing the ice from their jackets and taking off their winter gear.  I moved toward the freezer door to close it but before I did, I whispered into the freezer, "Thanks Pete."  

I heard a faint "No, thank-you Ethan!" as I closed the freezer door. 

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