As Rose followed Bernard and her dad into the workshop, she marvelled at everything she saw. The place was like all she had imagined as a child, a perfect winter wonderland full of elves building toys she would've died for when she was a kid.
Everytime something caught her eye, she would smile wide and her eyes would light up with the childish wonder she'd had when she was a kid. Everytime that happened, Bernard would find himself smiling at her merriment.
After awhile, Scott overtook the moment with his complaints of the situation he was in. "Look I am not Santa Claus!" He argued for the 15th time.
"Did you or did you not read the card?" Bernard finally asked, getting annoyed.
"Yea I read the card!"
"Then you're the new Santa! In putting on the hat and coat, you accepted the contract."
Scott played with a toy tool belt as he asked, "What contract?"
"The card in the Santa suit. You said you read it, right? So when you put on the suit, you fell subject to the Santa clause."
"The Santa Clause?" Rose asked.
"Oh you mean the guy who fell off my roof!"
"No. Not Santa Claus the person. Santa Clause, the clause."
"What's that mean?" Rose asked.
"You got the card?" Bernard asked.
Scott pulled it out and Bernard read it off to him, explaining the situation.
"What does that mean?"
"It means you put on the suit. You're the big guy."
"That's ridiculous! I didn't put on the suit-"
Bernard finally snapped. "Please try to understand this!" Literally everyone in the room was taken aback at the Head Elf's outburst. Bernard took a deep breath and smiled at Scott as he continued, "Let me explain something to you, ok?" He pulled Scott after him as he explained the situation, Rose following behind them. "Toys have to be delivered. I'm not gonna do it. It's not my job. I'm just an elf. It's Santa's job but Santa fell off a roof -- your roof. You read the card. You put on the suit. That clearly falls under the Santa Clause so now you're Santa, ok?"
Scott turned to his daughter. "You told me to put on the suit."
Bernard turned his gaze to Rose who shrugged. "I didn't know about any of this."
"It's not your fault." Bernard said, softly. "It's no one's fault. But your dad accepted the contract so now he's Santa."
"I do have a question." Scott said.
"What?"
"When can we get out of here?"
At that moment, Charlie came running up to the three. "Dad, sis, you gotta see this place!"
Rose smiled and picked Charlie up, spinning him around. "Come here you little monster!"
Bernard smiled at the sight before turning his attention to Scott once more. "Tomorrow morning. You have 11 months to get your affairs in order then you're due back here Thanksgiving."
"Ooh...can we come?" Rose asked.
Bernard smiled again. "You're more than welcome to come here any time you wish."
"I'm not coming back here Thanksgiving." Scott protested.
"I'll ship the list to your house."
"What list?"
"Y'know...the list." Bernard said. Seeing Scott wasn't getting it, Bernard softly sang, "He's making a list."
Charlie, hearing, sang louder, "Checking it twice!"
All of a sudden, all the elves sang, "GONNA FIND OUT WHO'S NAUGHTY OR NICE!"
Bernard facepalmed and Rose let out a little laugh that made him smile. "Look just put a P next to the children that are nice and a C next to the children who are naughty."
"Oh I get it! P for present and C for coal."
"That's right!"
"How do I know who's good and bad?" Scott asked.
"You'll just know."
"What if I don't wanna do this?"
Bernard ran up on Scott in a rush. "Don't even kid about a thing like that!"
"Why? What if I don't buy into this Santa thing? What if I choose not to believe it?!"
Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and stared in astonishment at him. Even Rose threw her dad a dirty look. Scott managed to look super uncomfortable at the attention.
"Then there would be millions of disappointed children around the world. You wouldn't wanna be responsible for killing the spirit of Christmas, would ya....Santa?" With that, he turned around and started heading down the stairs. "Judy will take you to your room. Get out of the suit. It needs to be cleaned."
"And taken in."
"Then get some sleep. We have a lot of work to do and only a year in which to do it."
With that, he left, being replaced by a beautiful young elf who looked like a 12 year old with long black hair, kind eyes, and a sweet smile. "Judy?" Scott asked.
"That's me!"
She led the Calvin's into their room where she helped them into some sleep clothes. Charlie was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Judy turned her attention to the other two. "You have really pretty hair." She complimented Rose.
"Thanks, yours is really pretty too and I love your dress."
Judy smiled. "You have my thanks. Here, try this on."
She handed Rose a beautiful white night gown. Rose immediately went into the bathroom to change while Judy chatted with Scott. Once Rose got back from changing, she fell asleep.
* * * * *
Rose woke up sometime in the middle of the night, feeling hungry. Her dad and brother were fast asleep so she took care to slowly sneak out of bed and quietly close the door.
After wandering around for a few minutes, she saw one door ajar down a long hallway with light coming from it, spilling into the hallway. She approached it and knocked softly.
Bernard was up late, finishing up some paperwork, when he heard a soft knock at his office door. He opened it to find Rose standing there.
She looked beautiful, dressed in a white night gown, her red hair cascading down her back. Immediately, all the feelings he'd had earlier that day came crashing back down upon him.
"Hey." She whispered. "I'm sorry if I disturbed you but I got hungry and I was trying to find the kitchen and I saw your light still on..."
Bernard smiled. "Hey, don't worry about it. I oftentimes stay up late. And I'll be more than happy to show you to the kitchens, Snowflake. I was just about to get something to eat myself."
Rose raised an eyebrow. "Snowflake?" She questioned.
Bernard froze, realizing what he said. A crimson blush spread across his cheeks and he said, "It's a nickname. Is that ok? To call you Snowflake?"
"I think it's cute." She flirted. "So...food?"
With a smile, he said, "Come with me." He took her hand as he led her to the kitchens. Not once did he release his grip on her, not even when they made it to the kitchen. "Um...we don't have much since it's late but I can make us a couple of sandwiches and cocoa and there should still be some cookies left over."
"That sounds great, Bernard."
Bernard felt his heart start beating faster the second that Rose said his name. He still didn't understand the feelings that she was making him feel everytime she was around. Glancing down, he noticed their hands still entwined. A bit awkwardly, he parted his hands from hers and went to make the sandwiches.
A few minutes later, he had two sandwiches ready with a plate of leftover cookies and two mugs of hot cocoa. He set it all down in front of her on the table and pulled out a seat for her.
Rose blushed everytime he accidentally brushed his skin against hers. She realized she may have more than a small crush on the Head Elf. He sat down across from her and they started eating.
"I hope you like ham and turkey. It's all we had."
"It's delicious." Rose said with a smile.
"So tell me about yourself."
"My life isn't that interesting."
"Still, I would like to get to know you."
Rose smiled again and told Bernard about her life. When she mentioned her parent's getting divorced, he shuddered a bit, offering his apologies. After awhile, she demanded to know more about him and the North Pole. He spent a lot of time explaining things to her, smiling all the while.
Finally, it got late and he took her back to her room. "Will I see you again?" She found herself asking.
"Soon." He promised.
"'Night, Bernard. Mr. Head Elf." She laughed a bit.
Bernard smiled at her antics. "Sweet dreams, Snowflake."
With that, she went into her room and snuggled down next to her father and brother. Bernard watched her for a minute then sprinkled some dust over top the sleeping family. "See you next year. Good luck."
They disappeared from sight and Bernard crept back to his house to sleep at last.
YOU ARE READING
Magical
RomanceEver wonder how Bernard knew there was a new Santa in the first Santa Clause? Or why he was so friendly toward Scott in the second? Or even why he wasn't in the third? Or what happened afterwards? Well your answers are in here. Rose is Scott's daugh...
