Magical

Chapter 9

     Bernard took a nervous breath as he sat across from Santa. Santa was behind his desk, checking his list for the second time to make sure there were no mistakes. Bernard bit his lip, wondering if he should find a way to get the big guy's attention as he found himself getting more uncomfortable by the minute.
     Finally, Santa set his pen down and looked up at his Head Elf. "I suppose you're wondering why I called you in here, Bernard." Indeed, Bernard was wondering that very thing. Santa sighed. "I called you here because I need you to do me a very big favor. Think you can?"
     Bernard nodded. "Of course, sir! Whatever it is, name it."
     "Well, it is Winter break and my daughter is coming to visit me over that time."
     Immediately, Bernard felt a tightening in his chest when Santa mentioned Rose. "Rose is coming..... here? To the Pole?"
     Santa fixed Bernard with a look that made him even more nervous and Bernard hoped the big man didn't know what had happened when he'd visited her last Christmas. He kept halfway expecting Santa to bring it up and get incredibly angry with him.
      "Yea. Unfortunately, I have a lot to do and I need someone to get her here safely and keep an eye on her. So can I count on you to go get her for me and keep her occupied for say, an hour until I finish up in here?"
     Bernard was torn. He both wanted very badly to see Rose but also very badly to avoid her. That Christmas had been complicated enough but then she had gone and kissed him! It had brought on feelings he'd never experienced in his over 2 thousand year old existence.
     It would've been the perfect moment too, except that when it was over, she had apologized for it, saying she had no idea why she'd done it in the first place! Her words had left a hole in his heart, hurting him worse than anything else could've.
     They'd seen each other a few times since then, but he was always afraid of letting her back in and he knew why. He was falling in love with her. Slowly to be sure, but still falling. And there was nothing he could do to stop the feelings.
     Still, Santa didn't know what had happened that night and he couldn't fault Rose for what she'd done and said. He was too old for her anyway. What did he think was gonna happen? Yet...if he saw her again...
    Bernard nodded. "Of course I can do that."
    Santa smiled. "Thank you, Bernard."
    Bernard forced a smile on his face. "Well, if that's all, sir..." Santa nodded, "I'll be going now."
     With that, Bernard left Santa's office. Taking a deep breath, he appeared outside the Miller's house. Rose was standing in the snow-covered yard, watching the sky.
     Bernard smiled at seeing her again. She was even more beautiful than the last time he'd seen her! Her hair wasn't nearly as long as she'd cut it some months back after being dumped by a jerk of a guy from her school. Bernard and Santa had both agreed that guy would be on the naughty list for years to come!
     Her hair was covered in small snowflakes, just like the first time he'd seen her, her cheeks turning a rosy pink from the cold, her hazel eyes an almost gray from the look of concentration on her face, and she was covered in a long white coat, lilac scarf, black gloves, and those knee-high boots she loved so much.
     His smile widened further when he saw that the necklace he had given her was still glimmering around her neck. "Hey, Snowflake!" He called.
     She turned towards him when she heard him call her by the nickname he'd given her two Christmases ago. A huge smile spread across her face. "Bernard!" She called, happily.
      With that, she spread her arms wide and ran towards him. Bernard, caught off guard, didn't have enough time to react and she collided with him, making them both fall to the ground, snow rising around them.
     Bernard couldn't find it in him to even be the slightest bit upset at her knocking him off his feet as she laughed joyously at seeing him again. Her hair was falling in her face and he couldn't stop himself from taking a strand of it and placing it behind her ear.
     "Oops, I'm sorry, B!" She said as soon as she realized the position they were in.
     "It's ok, Snowflake." He assured her.
     After helping each other to their feet, Rose hugged Bernard tightly, arms wrapped around his middle. "I missed you." She whispered. She pulled away and smacked him on the arm. "Where have you been?" He rubbed his arm with a small "ow". "You've been gone a long time and I was bored and lonely without my best friend!"
     In reality, Rose knew why he'd been avoiding her. It wasn't because he was busy or knew she had a lot going on. It was because he simply didn't want to see her. She knew ever since she'd kissed him last Christmas. There was no way he could ever feel for her what she felt when he was around. She had the biggest crush on the Head Elf -- actually she was falling for him -- but, of course, he wouldn't be interested! He was important and powerful. She was just a normal girl who was way too young for him to think of her as anything more than a child!
     "I'm sorry." Bernard whispered. "I wanted to visit you. Believe me, I did."
     Rose hugged him again, burying her face in his sweater. "I missed you."
     Bernard threw his own arms around her, shutting his eyes. "Trust me. I missed you too." He kissed her forehead gently as they enjoyed that small moment of privacy.
                            * * * * *
     A few minutes later, Rose gasped as she took in the North Pole again in all its glory. The place was even more beautiful than she remembered! Bernard chuckled as he took her hand. "So what would you like to do first?"
                          * * * * *
     Scott smiled as he made his way out to the village where Rose and Bernard were having a snowball fight. From what he could see, Bernard was letting Rose win. Rose threw another snowball at Bernard who dove into the snow to avoid getting hit and Scott laughed at the scene.
     Rose looked up and smiled. "Hi, daddy!" She ran over to hug him.
     "Hey, pumpkin. I'm sorry I took so long to get here."
     Rose parted from their hug. "No problem, dad. I've been spending some time with Bernard. He showed me all the shops around the village and all sorts of other things here! It was so beautiful."
    "Well I'm glad you had a good time. C'mon, princess. I think you and I have some catching up to do."
                             * * * * *
    Santa unlocked his office door and both he and Rose were surprised to find a bunch of people waiting in there that neither one knew.
     In one chair sat a woman with beautiful long black hair, dark eyes, a kind smile, and beautiful brown skin, dressed in a dress and golden headwear. At her feet knelt a woman the polar opposite with long blond hair tied in a braid, blue eyes, and pale skin, dressed in a simple blue blouse and long white skirt.
    In another chair sat an old man, bald, with a long white beard (longer than Santa's), dressed in robes. A large husky sat in his lap. Lounged in Santa's chair was a middle-aged man with closely cropped black hair, dark eyes, and a sweet smile, dressed like a dentist. A woman stood next to him, tall, golden blond hair, violet eyes, and fair skin, dressed in a long dress with large dragonfly wings sprouting from her back.
     What looked like a giant bunny sat cross-legged on the ground. Another tall woman with golden hair, silver eyes, warmed over golden skin, dressed in a golden dress stood below him. And up in the air was a man with a small pair of wings.
     "Who are you people?!" Santa shouted, annoyed at the "people" in the room.
     The dark-skinned woman stood from her spot and addressed them. "Hello, Santa, Rose. We are the Council of Legendary Figures. I am Mother Nature and this is Eve, my guardian." She pointed toward the older man. "That is Father Time and his guardian, Fido." She gestured to the man and woman behind Santa's desk. "That is the Tooth Fairy and his guardian, Delia." She gestured to the bunny. "That's the Easter Bunny." Then to the man in the air. "That's Cupid." And finally to the golden woman. "And his sister and Guardian, Eros."
      "Scott Calvin. And this is my daughter, Rose Marie Calvin."
      Mother Nature smiled. "We know who you are. We are here to introduce ourselves and welcome you to the Council of Legendary Figures."
     "Well thank you, Mother Nature."
     "And there is one other thing. Your daughter is special. I have noticed her distress over being parted from you and her hope to stay here at the Pole."
     Scott looked at his daughter inquisitively. "Is that true?"
     Rose took a deep breath. "I was hoping to have a home and job here."
     "Well, we're here to let you know that not only is that dream possible, we can make it a reality."
      "How so?" Rose asked.
      "We can test you. If you prove worthy, we can make you a legendary figure."
      "Worthy how?"
      "Every legendary figure on the council that is a guardian is hand appointed by a member, that being you, Santa, and is tested to determine if that person can do their job as your guardian. Interested, Rose?"
      "Very."
      "Wonderful! Let's begin."