Christmas Chronicles

Christmas time is here at last. The crew of Avant City are preparing for the holiday season in very different ways.

Sam is excited to be shown the ways of celebrating the season with the help of Aster and Alex; Meanwhile, Robin and Andy are dragged to a faraway land that holds the power to make their wishes come true.

'As the two girls began to argue again, Sam and Willa let out sighs of defeat. The older wizard went back to her book while Sam stared out the window at the glistening world outside. It seemed the snow had finally stopped falling and now the courtyard outside was covered in a white wonderland. An idea quickly presented itself to Sam.
"Hey. How about we go outside? I've never gotten to go outside and play in the snow before and maybe you could teach me some 'Christmas tradition' that I should know," he proposed, hoping that would bring the two younger teens out of their squabble. Alex and Aster looked at each other with a slight glare before wide smiles plastered their faces and they descended upon Sam, dragging him outside and into the frosty outdoors. What had he just gotten himself into?'

Work Text:

In the air, the snow is bright
Like all the stars in the sky tonight
This time of year is magical and free
With all the wishes of you and me
To the stars of the north and snow of the streets
Enjoy this time and enjoy this treat

The snow was slowly fluttering down to the ground and Sam stared through the window at it in wonder. It was amazing to be able to see the snow fall without feeling the bitterness of the cold. He would be able to stretch his wings out and not have them cramped up all season.

Turning away from the window, Sam looked at his two friends who were at the bottom of a pine tree that Willa had brought indoors. Aster was tied up in a long, thick, shiny fluffy string while Alex was attempting to untangle her but given the younger teen was also attempting to reach a box full of shiny objects, it wasn't going anywhere.

"Why are you trying to decorate a pine tree?" the young gargoyle questioned. The two girls looked over at him, previously engrossed with their predicament.

"We're helping Willa decorate for Christmas? We'll trying to anyway, if Aster would let me get her out of this tinsel," Alex commented before glancing over at the younger teen.

Aster rolled her eyes in annoyance. "It's going to take forever to untangle me from this tinsel so we might as well start decorating the tree."

"We need the tinsel to decorate so if you could just let me get it off," Alex barked back.

As the two girls began to argue again, Sam couldn't help but sigh. But something Alex had said came to the forefront of his mind.

"What is 'Christmas'?"

Aster and Alex ceased their arguing and stared at the young gargoyle with looks of surprise.

"You… you don't know what Christmas is?" Aster questioned, looking much more surprised than Alex.

Sam tilted his head in confusion. "Should I know what it is? I've heard people mention it in passing but I don't know what it is or why people are so excited to celebrate it."

After a moment of silence, Aster managed to get herself out of her tinsel trap and rushed over to Sam with her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Oh we're going to teach you everything wonderful about Christmas. It's amazing. There's snowmen, Christmas carols, presents-"

"Let's calm down a little shall we," Alex cut in, stopping Aster's rambles before they got too far, "How about we start at the beginning, ease him into it."

Aster beamed at Alex then beamed at Sam who felt slightly worried. The two girls guided Sam over to the steps leading out the room and sat him down while they sat in front of him.

"So…" Aster began. "Christmas is a tradition started back way long ago but the more modern version started because of this guy called Jesus-"

"Who may or may not have actually existed," Alex added on.

"-was born a few thousand years ago and people celebrated his birth. Eventually that evolved over the years and the more modern version is people celebrating the winter season and giving each other gifts and enjoying each other's company. It's called a lot of things in a lot of places but here we call it Christmas."

"Back in my day, we used to call it Yule or Winter's Blessing."

All three teens jumped in surprise when Willa spoke up, looking over to where the older wizard was perched in her usual chair in the corner, sipping a cup of tea and reading a book.

"It's a lovely holiday but overrated in my opinion. Too much yapping about presents and spoilt kids whining about not getting what they want," Willa continued, taking a sip of her tea. She gave Sam a warm glance and a smile. "I'm surprised you never celebrated Winter's blessing. Did you or Nau never have time for it?"

Sam's heart deflated slightly at the mention of his brother's name but he quickly shook it off. "I don't remember ever doing anything. Whenever winter came we just tried our best to get through it. Also other… things got in the way of probably celebrating it. Is it something I should start being interested in?"

Aster put an arm around him and smiled enthusiastically. "Yes. Like I said, Christmas is amazing. Oh something I forgot to mention is Santa, he's a big part of Christmas nowadays. He's the one that delivers presents to families all around the world. And you gotta make sure you've been good otherwise you'll get coal instead."

A scoff escaped Alex as she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Don't tell me you still believe in Santa. Everyone knows he's just a fairy tale to tell little kids."

The younger teen stood up, faking offence. "Not real? Of course he's real. He brings the spirit of Christmas joy and also presents."

"No-one's ever seen him so he doesn't exists," Alex argued.

"But if no-one's ever seen him then that means he could be real," Aster rebutted.

As the two girls began to argue again, Sam and Willa let out sighs of defeat. The older wizard went back to her book while Sam stared out the window at the glistening world outside. It seemed the snow had finally stopped falling and now the courtyard outside was covered in a white wonderland. An idea quickly presented itself to Sam.

"Hey. How about we go outside? I've never gotten to go outside and play in the snow before and maybe you could teach me some 'Christmas tradition' that I should know," he proposed, hoping that would bring the two younger teens out of their squabble. Alex and Aster looked at each other with a slight glare before wide smiles plastered their faces and they descended upon Sam, dragging him outside and into the frosty outdoors. What had he just gotten himself into?

___________________________________

Andy shivered, clutching his backpack as he and Robin walked along the sidewalk. After a successful trip to the mall (at least on Andy's part), the two boys were to head back to Willa's place to meet up with the others. The green eyed teen enjoyed the sound of crunching snow beneath while Robin slightly trudged along, a scowl on his face. He hadn't gotten a single thing on their trip to the mall and he just seemed extremely grumpy and prickly lately.

"Cheer up Robin, it's nearly Christmas. It's no time to be down in the dumps," Andy remarked, bumping his friend in the shoulder with his own. The blond wizard did nothing but scowl more and let out a huff.

"There's nothing good about Christmas. It's just noise, colder than usual and annoying whiny singing," he grumbled.

"Yeah but isn't it also about spending time with loved ones? I'm surprised you didn't buy anything for Sam or Willa," Andy remarked.

All that got him was Robin sending him a nasty glare his way to which the white haired teen put his hands up in defense and went back to being silent as they walked. Okay, Clearly that was a touchy subject, noted; He wasn't going to pry anymore. But thinking about the holiday brought back memories for the green eyed teen.

"You know, this will be mine and Alex's first Christmas in a warm home again," he commented, staring up at the greying sky. He heard Robin give a curious hum so Andy took that as his que to continue.

"Before April of this year, me and Alex were homeless. We quite often had to steal to survive and I'll admit it wasn't the best of circumstances. Christmas wasn't a particularly good time as the cold would just become worse but at least there would be good food stands they could take from," Andy recalled.

"It must've been hard," Robin commented.

The white haired teen gave a half-hearted shrug. "It was but it wasn't the worst. I at least had Alex with me."

Surprisingly, Robin began to speak up, "I also used to live on the streets until quite recently. I believe May was when I moved in with Willa and Sam."

That took Andy by surprise. The young wizard had never mentioned not living with Sam or Willa before; Andy always just assumed they'd lived together since forever.

Robin continued, "I didn't just stay in one place. In the six years I've been on the streets, I've been all over the country and a bit of Canada. I only ever had myself and Al and I was perfectly happy."

At the mention of his name, the snake familiar slithered out of Robin's colour and gave him a gentle nudge as the young wizard silently hugged himself. Andy wanted to give him a hug of his own but from what he'd seen, the only physical contact he was happy to accept was from Sam.

As the two boys walked, their path took them through the park and right next to the nature preserve where Robin suddenly stopped walking and stared directly into the darkened woods. Andy quickly noticed and back-tracked until he was standing beside his friend, who continued to stare into the forest.

"Is everything alright? You look like a deer in headlights," Andy tried to joke but given Robin's lack of a reaction, didn't go well.

Slowly but surely, the young wizard made his way over to the wired fence and quickly climbed over it.

"Robin," Andy hissed, making his way over to the fence and following his friend over it. "This is trespassing. We're not allowed to be here."

"Oh it's fine," Robin dismissed, beginning to walk away. "If anyone comes by I can just erase their memory. We'll be fine."

A moment of silence passed before Andy spoke up. "You haven't erased my memory, have you?"

"Not knowingly and not while I've known you," the young wizard replied which put Andy's mind at ease but now he was slightly more cautious to not get on the bad side of his friend. The white haired teen had to jog a little to catch up to his friend who was swiftly making his way through the dense wood.

"Why are we even going this way?" he questioned, trying not to trip over an exposed root.

"There's some strong magic coming from here; Light magic. It's like nothing I've ever felt before. I wanna know what it is," Robin called over his shoulder, climbing over a particularly large rock.

"But do we have to go see it now? I'd rather go home first," Andy mumbled.

"Oh hush, this won't take long."

Not wanting to leave Robin by himself, Andy reluctantly kept following. After a lot of slipping in and around rocks and trees, the two boys made it to what had to be the center of the nature reserve. It was a giant frozen lake with a single thick tree in the center of it. But that's not what Andy was focused on.

What interested him more was the eight, almost golden looking reindeer in the small clearing in front of them. They were at least three times the size of a normal reindeer and glistened in the sunlight, making their snow white antlers almost glow with an ethereal light. It was a magical sight to behold. Robin went to get closer to them but Andy transformed and held him back and dragged them into a nearby bush.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" Robin growled, getting out of the younger teen's grip.

"I know they're all pretty looking but what if they're dangerous. I mean look at the size of them," Andy cautioned.

The yellow eyed teen rolled his eyes, standing up. "It's fine. I'm not a baby and besides, I know how to handle some reindeer."

Robin swiftly made his way over to the reindeer while Andy internally panicked. The young chimera went to stop his friend but paused when the reindeer didn't make a move as Robin slowly walked up to one of them. The young wizard held out his hand. The reindeer gave it a curious sniff before it gently pressed its nose against it and Robin let out a cheerful laugh.

"It's okay. They're not going to hurt you," he called over to Andy who was still hiding behind the bush. Andy hesitated but slowly inched his way closer, still transformed in case he needed to bolt.

When he was close enough, Robin gently grabbed his hand and placed it on the reindeer's nose. Andy could feel a massive wave of something flowing from the golden creature, most likely magic. Andy couldn't help but let out a chuckle of his own.

"Is this what you sensed?" he questioned, looking down at the younger teen who was stroking the reindeer's side. The blond wizard gave a confirming nod.

"There's something definitely different about these guys. They don't seem normal for a magical being," he commented.

"Whatever kind of reindeer they are, this is my first time petting one," Andy commented, moving his hand to the side of the reindeer's face to pet it even more.

Robin hummed in acknowledgement. "Makes sense. Alex mentioned you lived in Greece before so I doubt you saw many if any at all."

"Are you a reindeer expert or something?" the green eyed teen asked.

Robin shook his head. "No. I just saw a lot of them back in Alaska and got to know what they like, dislike and even how to ride them."

With that comment, the young wizard clambered onto the reindeer's back, proudly sitting upon it.

"I get you're having a good time but I don't think we should be riding these reindeer. We don't want to anger whoever owns them and we should be heading back," Andy commented, looking back towards the trees.

An annoyed sigh escaped the young wizard as he looked down at the young chimera, "Come on Andy, don't be a spoilsport. Have some fun, live a little. Nothing's gonna happen."

Looking around at the herd of reindeer then back up at Robin, Andy wanted to argue that it was dangerous but seeing the look in Robin's eyes made him falter a little. Maybe this would make his friend better and maybe he had a point; he needed to live a little.

Taking Robin's outstretched hand, Andy was hoisted up onto the reindeer's back where he proceeded to de-transform back to his human self. Robin let out an excited laugh and even Andy let out a small chuckle. Their excitement was cut short by the ringing of a high-pitched bell echoing around the area. All the reindeer stopped in their tracks and raised their heads towards the lake.

"Uh, what's going on?" Andy cautiously asked.

As if responding to his question, a swirling vortex made of ice and snow appeared on the shore of a lake; almost looking like a portal. As soon as the portal appeared, all the reindeer charged straight towards it which unfortunately included Robin and Andy. It all happened too fast for them to escape being dragged into the snowy vortex to places unknown.

___________________________________

The first thing Robin felt when the bright lights faded was the cold impact of falling face first into the snow. Standing up and shaking the snow off, Robin glanced around at where they'd ended up. From what could be seen, they were in a dense snowy spruce forest. It had somehow become night despite it previously only being on the cusp on the sun setting.

Hearing a cough, Robin looked over to see Andy had come to his senses and quickly hopped to his feet, transforming in the process.

"Where are we?" the young chimera asked, brushing the snow off his clothes.

Robin gave a half-hearted shrug. "Canada if I had to guess."

Looking around, the young wizard noticed the reindeer had disappeared, leaving only hoofprints embedded in the snow. Not wanting to be left in the middle of nowhere, Robin quickly followed along the reindeer tracks with Andy following behind him.

As they walked, a howl echoed around the snowy landscape. The sound made Robin freeze up and stopped Andy in his tracks. Robin whipped his head around, trying to find the source of the sound. But nothing was to be seen except snow and trees.

"I'm sure it’s just a wild wolf," Andy reassured, "If we just keep moving we'll be fine."

Robin gave the slightest of nods and slowly kept walking, with Andy mostly pushing him along. It was just a wild wolf. It was just a wild wolf. It was just a wild wolf-

A snap brought Robin out of his thoughts and froze him to the stop, staring straight towards a creature that hung in the shadows, it's yellow eyes gleaming. The creature looked like a strange mix between a wolf and a cougar with gleaming white fur and piercing yellow eyes. As the creature let out a threatening growl, more of the creature appeared from the shadows, their lips curled into a growl. One of the creatures let out a howl and leapt at Robin. He closed his eyes and held up his arms and prepared for impact but suddenly felt his weight completely shift off the ground and into the air.

Peaking an eye open, Robin found himself held up in the air by Andy as the young chimera sprinted for dear life as the wolf-cougar's raced behind them. Reaching into his sleeve, Robin quickly pulled out his wand and shot a fireball at the creatures. The fireball narrowly missed the creatures and collided with the bottom of a tree.

"Be careful. We don't want to set the forest on fire," Andy yelled, narrowly missing tripping over a tree root.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Robin snapped, keeping one eye on the creatures.

"I don't know but no more fire," Andy snapped, swiftly turning to the right and continuing to sprint.

Something shimmered in the corner of Robin's eye and turning his head, the young wizard saw what looked to be a small town in the middle distance.

"Quick, that way!" Robin yelled, pointing in the direction of the light.

Turning on an angle, the two boys narrowly avoided being rammed into by one of the creatures that hit a tree instead. The boys ran and ran until the town came closer into view.

As soon as they were on the edge of it, something in Robin's system went haywire, causing him to freeze up and go stiff like a board and surprisingly, Andy acted the same. Robin fell out of his friend's grasp and the two boys went tumbling to the soft soil ground. The young wizard let out a groan, clutching his head. It felt like someone had electrocuted him and hit him with an ice block.

Feeling something smooth gently hit his face, Robin opened an eye to see Al hovering over him, worry gleaming in his eyes. Reaching over, the young wizard gently scratched his familiar's head with his finger.

After a few minutes of laying in the soil, Robin managed to gather the energy to sit up. Andy was sitting next to him, de-transformed and clutching his chest.

"You good man?" the yellow eyed teen asked.

Andy looked over at Robin and let out an exhausted sigh, "I'm good. I'm just… whatever that was just knocked the energy right out of me."

Robin nodded in agreement. "Same. It felt.. odd."

Glancing at where they'd come from, the golden eyed teen was surprised at what he saw. A giant rainbow barrier was suddenly there, or maybe it was there before and they weren't able to see it from the outside. It shifted in colours and appeared to be made of the same type of stuff as a soapy bubble. On the other side of the 'bubble' were the horde of wolf-cougars, prowling at the edge. They made no move to pass through like the boys had; maybe they weren't able to. But why?

With one last glare, the creatures stalked back into the forest. Robin and Andy glanced at each other, unsure of how to proceed. Clearly the creatures couldn't get past the bubble so they were safe inside. But where were they?

Standing up, the boys turned around to see they were in a village that looked like something out of a Christmas movie. Wooden lodges, an absurd amount of fairy lights, festive decorations and so many Christmas trees. Not to mention everything was tiny; the tallest building came up to Robin's chin.

"We haven't grown, have we?" Andy asked, inspecting the inside of one of the little buildings.

"I don't think so. The trees outside this bubble seem normal sized, I think this town is just miniature," Robin replied, slowly walking into what looked to be the town square.

Andy walked over and crouched down to inspect the little ornaments on the ground. "You know what this place reminds me of? One of those model villages people set up for Christmas, only bigger."

Robin couldn't help but let out an annoyed groan, "Great, just another thing I have to deal with. More Christmas shit."

Glancing around, the yellow eyed wizard noticed something, or the lack of something.

"Say-" he began, "Aren't there usually people in these model villages?"

As if summoned by his words, a horn sounded out around the area and bright lights blazed around Robin and Andy. In a flurry, the two boys were tied up tight, their arms bound to their sides as they fell to the ground with a soft thump. Robin shook his head and glared up at the lights that had stopped moving. They were not lights at all, but little winged creatures, no bigger than Robin's palm. They were humanoid in appearance but had little antenna, fairy like wings, bug like appendages and were a vibrant colour that spanned all over their bodies.

"Hey, let us go you pests," Robin demanded, trying to wriggle free of his restraints. One of the little creatures, an orange one, flew up to his face with an aggravated expression.

"Shut it you outsider," they yelled, holding a raised fist in Robin's direction. "You're on our turf so we can deal with you however we want."

___________________________________

Andy let out a groan as he and Robin were thrown into a cell, still tied up. The cell was Christmas themed; There was tinsel hanging along the ceiling; the bars looked to be made of candy canes and the floor was the same texture as rock candy. This whole place was quite festive looking.

Looking back through the bars, the young teen stared at the two fairy-like creatures that hovered outside. Despite being tiny beings, they were surprisingly strong enough to drag them all the way through the snow and through the several hallways that led to the jail cells. The fairy creatures gave one last glare at the two boys before they disappeared through the archway. Letting out a groan, Andy attempted to wriggle out of his restraints but found himself falling onto his side.

"Are you able to get out?" he asked Robin, who was somewhere behind him.

For a moment he heard nothing but grunts from the other boy before he replied, "Nope. Whatever those fuckers did it's tight and also restricts my magic."

Well that wasn't a good sign. There had to be a way out. Looking down, Andy inspected what they'd actually tied up with. At first it looked like a black rope but something about it seemed off. The texture felt nothing like a rope and there was an odd smell coming from it. An idea from the back of his mind presented itself. There was nothing else to try.

Taking a deep breath, the white haired teeth sunk his teeth into the restraint. Surprisingly, he got a sweet, spicy yet metallic taste from it as a chunk was ripped away. He knew what it was, this was liquorice. How liquorice became a means to tie someone up was a question for another time. At least he and Robin had a way out of there.

Digging his teeth into the sweet treat, Andy quickly ripped away the restraints that bound him and stood up, brushing himself down. He glanced down at Robin who had somehow ended upside down against the wall, likely trying to wriggle out of his bounds.

"How the fuck did you get out?" he questioned.

Andy shrugged. "It was just liquorice. It's quite easy to tear through."

Robin faked a gag but rolled onto his side so Andy could kneel down and undo his restraints. Once the liquorice was undone, the young wizard leapt to his feet quite gracefully and proceeded to kick the bars of the cell clean off. So they really were made of candy canes.

"Let's make a break for it before those little bugs come back," Robin commented, grabbing Andy's hand and beginning to run through the archway leading to freedom. However, they did not make it far as two beings stood in their way.

An orange toned fairy hovered in front of them, an orange bandana adorning their neck, their antenna vibrating violently as their several hands curled into fists. But what really caught Andy's attention was the man standing just behind the fairy. The man was just above Robin and Andy's height and had pale skin with silver eyes and hair that was ruffled out like he'd just gotten out of bed. He wore a pale red long sleeved shirt with bright red suspenders that connected to his dark red dress pants and black boots. The silver haired man looked at the two boys with surprise which quickly morphed into a warm gaze.

"Stand down Bea. These boys are no harm," he stated, glancing over at the orange fairy.

The fairy- Bea looked at the man with an expression of horror. "But sir! These boys came through the barrier and were marching through the village. They attracted the wolfars here. We need to keep them locked up for safety."

"These are children and they are not to be harmed. Understood?" the man calmly asked, the look in his eye seemed to unsettle Andy as well as the fairy he was staring at.

Bea sucked in a breath and spoke through gritted teeth, "Yes sir."

"Yeah, that’s right bug, back off," Robin laughed. Andy silently wished his friend would shut up.

Bea looked at Robin with eyes of pure anger, flying up directly to the young wizard's face, poking him in the face.

"Call me a bug again and you'll find out what it's like to be a Christmas light you glowstick," she growled.

"That's enough Bea. Go check on the other fae to make sure none of them are unwell," the man in red commanded.

Bea looked between the man and Robin for a brief second before glaring at the young wizard and flying down the hall and out of sight. Andy let out a silent sigh of relief.

The silver haired man also let out a sigh, staring down at the two boys. "Sorry about that. We just wanted to take precaution for anyone that enters out village"

Robin opened his mouth to speak but Andy quickly cut in, "We understand and we're grateful there was no fighting, right Robin?"

The yellow eyed teen's only response was to roll his eyes and turn his head away.

"Anyway-" Andy continued, "We'll be on our way now. We're sorry to have caused you any trouble."

The older man's eyes morphed into what seemed to be sadness as she shook his head. "I'm afraid that's not going to be possible."

"And why not?" Robin questioned, looking over at the man with a glare.

"You came here through a portal, did you not?" the man questioned. Andy nodded while Robin continued up his glare.

"Well you see, that portal only opens a few times a year and the next time it opens will be on Christmas eve. I would also advise against trying to go outside the bubble as the weather is extremely harsh this time of year."

Andy couldn't help but let out a groan of disappointment. They were stuck here? Well, there were worse places to be stuck in. The man gestured for the boys to follow him and began walking down the hallway. Not wanting to be left behind in a strange place, Andy followed along and eventually and likely reluctantly, Robin followed along.

"Who even are you? There doesn't seem to be any other people here aside from those 'fae'," Robin questioned.

The man in red let out a hearty laugh that seemed familiar. "My name is Jeff. We're currently in my workshop and the village you found houses my workers."

"Why do you have a workshop in the middle of nowhere?" Andy inquired.

"I like to keep my business quiet and private. Don't want anyone getting any previews of my work," Jeff said with a wink.

As the trio walked, they passed a large window that gave view to the workshop that Jeff was talking about.

It was grand, with a main room that spread to who knows how far, with benches laid out in rows with half made toys scattered about. There was also a surprising amount of Christmas decorations scattered about. It was then it all clicked together in Andy's brain.

"Hey uh Jeff. You wouldn't happen to also be Santa, would you?" he questioned.

Jeff let out another hearty laugh and glanced over his shoulder. "What gave it away? It was the laugh wasn't it. It's always the laugh."

Happiness practically exploded inside Andy and he grabbed Robin's shoulders and shook them violently.

"Oh my gosh oh my gosh. Robin can you believe it?! It's the real life Santa. I knew he was real. I can't wait to rub it in Alex's face when we get back. I knew she was wrong," Andy exclaimed.

Robin let out a scoff and quickly removed Andy's hands from his body. "Who says this guy is the real deal? And even if he is real, shouldn't his job be making people happy? Doesn't seem like he's been doing a good job of that lately."

Santa said nothing as they walked, not even turning his head while Andy could practically feel the anger vibrating off Robin's being. Okay, so he really wasn't a Christmas guy, noted. What holidays did he even like if he didn't like Halloween or Christmas?

The green eyed teen was quickly brought out of his thoughts as he accidently ran into Santa who had stopped walking. The man in red opened the door they had stopped in front of and gestured inside.

"This is where you shall be staying until we can get you home. I hope it satisfies your needs," he explained.

Entering the room, Andy was amazed. The room wasn't too large, only having two twin beds, a fireplace and an archway leading to a balcony. But by god it was so posh and grand and warm and ever so Christmasy.

"If you need anything then ring this bell and either I or one of my staff will come by and help you. Also word of caution, stay inside the bubble; it’s for your own safety," Santa explained, gesturing to a bell hanging beside the door. And with that, Santa was gone, leaving the two boys alone in what Andy guessed was their new room for a while.

The white haired teen threw his bag down and collapsed onto one of the beds, almost melting into the softness. This was like a childhood dream come true.

Lifting his head, Andy saw Robin leaning on the balcony, overlooking the village below. His shoulders were hunched and there was a darkened look on his face.

"What's with the glum look? We're in Santa's workshop. It's so magical and amazing. How are you not at least somewhat impressed?" Andy questioned, fully sitting up.

Robin's face morphed into a snarl and he walked over to the other bed, sitting on the very edge of it.

"You wouldn't get it. And besides, people aren't always what they're cracked up to be," he grumbled. The young wizard hunched in on himself and Andy supposed it was best to leave Robin to himself at the current moment.

Looking outside at the darkened sky, Andy couldn't help but feel an extreme rush of happiness. He wasn't going to let Robin's sour mood distract him from the fact that Santa was real and he was going to get to spend time with the myth himself. If only Alex could see him now.

___________________________________

Sitting against the couch upstairs, Alex let out a huff. Aster had totally cheated to win that snowball fight. Granted, they had never stated they couldn't use powers in the fight but it was the principle of things. Poor Sam was quickly been taken out by a fast snowball to the face and the rest had led up to Aster taking Alex out with a giant snowball down the back of her shirt. That had gained the younger teen a black eye which she was currently nursing next to Alex on the couch with an icepack. Sam was laying on his stomach on the floor in his gargoyle form. He had a picture book in his hands, trying to catch up on the Christmas 'lore' he'd missed out on.

Alex glanced at the sky outside the sky-light. The stars were out. Where on earth were Andy and Robin? They were only supposed to go to the mall for a quick trip; how long were they going to take?

"You two haven't heard anything from Andy and Robin, have you?" Alex questioned. Sam lifted his head up from his book and Aster looked over at the blue eyed teen.

"Not a word."

"Nope, not a thing."

"It's not like Andy to disappear without a word," Alex commented, taking her phone out of her pocket to check it. Still nothing.

Hearing footsteps come from one of the staircases, Alex raised her head to see Willa holding a few books under her arms. She went to walk down the hallway but paused when she looked at the teens.

"Are Robin and Andy still not back?" the older wizard inquired.

All the young teens gave a half-hearted shrug. Willa gave a curious hum and her eyes briefly glowed before she placed her books down on a stand.

"That's odd. I can't sense Robin's magic within the city, nor Andy's," she commented, summoning her staff to her side.

That sent alarm bells off in Alex's head. Andy wasn't even in the city? Had he been kidnapped? Was he in danger?

Before anyone could act, a flash of light caught everyone's attention. From the light appeared a piece of paper that fluttered around the room before hovering in front of Willa. The older wizard plucked the paper from the air and began to glance over it.

"What is it? Have you been summoned to some magical place that is in dire need of your assistance?" Aster inquired, discarding her ice pack to get a closer look at the paper. Willa kept the paper out of view and quickly closed it.

"Well I have good news. Robin and Andy are safe and sound. The bad news is they won't be back until Christmas eve," she admitted with a sigh.

"WHAT?!" all three kids exclaimed.

"They're both okay-" Willa attempted to reassure them, "But they've somehow ended up with a friend of mine who lives way up north. He promises to keep them safe."

Alex couldn't help but narrow her eyes. "Who is your 'friend'?"

"He's a wood-worker. His name is Jeff. I've known him for quite a while," the older wizard explained.

"Can't we just go and get them ourselves?" Sam questioned.

Willa shook her head. "I'm afraid not. Jeff lives quite up north and it's quite hard to even get there."

Alex went to ask another question but Willa put her hand up, silencing the white haired teen.

"Just know that the boys are safe and all we can do is wait for Christmas eve to come," Willa explained, letting out a sigh before beginning to walk away.

Before she left the room, she turned her head back. "Aster, Alex. I think it's time you both headed home. You don't want to keep your families waiting."

Alex wanted to argue but Aster cut in, "Yeah. We'll head out. Damien will need to be informed of where Andy is."

Again, Alex wanted to argue but knew Aster was right. Damien would need to know why Andy would be missing for a few weeks. Saying a quick goodbye to a dejected looking Sam, the two girls slowly made their way off the property and onto the long winding path that led up to the place.

Not long into their walk, Alex couldn't help but let out a grumble. "We should go and get them back anyway, Willa's probably just exaggerating."

"We should trust what Willa is saying. She knows what she's talking about," the green eyed teen replied.

"But does she?" Alex rebutted. "I just don't want to sit by when I know Andy will be worrying about being far away from home."

Transforming, Alex spread her wings to take off into the air.

"Goodnight Aster," the young chimera stated before taking off into the cold winter night.

___________________________________

Waking up the next morning, Andy felt his body jump out of bed in anticipation. It wasn't a dream after all. It was all still real. He was still in Santa's place. The sleep he'd gotten was amazing and so were the red flannel pajamas he'd been given to wear.

Stretching his limbs, Andy strolled over to the balcony and looked over at the Christmas village below. The young teen could see small fae fluttering around the buildings, in the streets and in the air. The snow around the place seemed in pristine condition. Everything was like a Christmas wonderland. It was like a kids dream come true.

The sound of the door opening brought Andy back to reality and caused him to look inside the room. From the small opening in the door hovered a lime green toned fae. Their forest-green hair was long and flowy with simple daisies adorned all throughout it; they also had a long sundress that swayed around in the air.

"Oh you're awake, that's good. My name is Stem, Jeff has assigned me to watch over you while you're here. If you could get ready as quick as possible and meet me outside, that would be wonderful," the fae- Stem greeted them before disappearing and closing the door.

Robin grumbled from his placement in his bed, shifting about but not waking. If they had somewhere to be, they both needed to be awake. Quietly walking over to the bed, Andy looked over his sleeping friend. He was curled in on himself, his blond hair barely being visible underneath all the pillows and blankets. It looked like a little nest. How on earth would he wake Robin up? From what he could recall, Robin was a bit of a heavy sleeper so it could be difficult to wake the young wizard.

After a few moments of thinking, an idea presented itself at the forefront of Andy's mind. A possibly mischievous idea. A smile crept onto the green eyed teen's face and he stretched his fingers out. Digging his fingers into his friend's neck, Andy began to tickle his friend to hopefully wake his friend from his slumber. It worked; while it also gained him a lovely punch to the face.

Later on (and after a fresh black eye adorning Andy's face), the two boys were freshly dressed and followed Stem through the long grand hallways of Santa's shop. Stem pushed open two giant golden doors to reveal that grand workshop Andy had seen before. It seemed even bigger now that the young teen was inside it.

Flocks of fae fluttered about the room, flying from room that were attached to the side, the benches where toys were scattered and something Andy had somehow missed before. A giant marble fountain was station far in the back underneath a wide skylight. The most notable thing about this fountain was that instead of spewing out water, the fountain spewed out rainbow glitter or sparkles which the fae took to their benches. Andy couldn't help but look around in amazement, his jaw wide open. Robin still didn't look impressed, his arms folded and his head down, glaring at the ground. When they reached the edge of the fountain, Andy reached his hand out to touch the rainbow glitter. Before his hand could reach however, it was quickly slapped away by a familiar orange fae. It was Bea, the fae they had met the day before.

"Do not touch the fountain. That is raw magic that is not for you to just grab," the orange fae scolded.

Andy recoiled and shuddered under the fae's glare which was almost as bad as Robin's glare. Speaking of the young wizard, he'd placed himself in front of the white haired teen. Andy saw light sparking between his friend's fingers, as if he was getting ready to fight.

Luckily no fight broke out as Stem flew over to Bea and held her hand, whispering something to her and giving her a small kiss on the cheek. The orange fae glanced lovingly over at Stem before sending a glare the boys' way and flying off. Andy let out a sigh of relief and the sparks ceased from Robin's hand but the blond wizard did not calm, glaring in the direction where Bea had gone. Stem gestured to get the boy's attention and led them over to a secluded bench in a corner of the room.

On the bench was a bowl of that rainbow glitter, another bowl of paper slips and a conveyor belt next to the bench that led into a hole in the wall. Stem sat down on one side of the bench while the two boys sat on the other side.

"Now. What I'm about to show you has never been witnessed by an outsider. You have both been allowed to learn this as dictated by Jeff himself," Stem explained, gesturing to all the objects around them.

Andy sat forward eagerly while Robin leaned back against the wall. Stem stretched her limbs and in a flash of rainbow light, she looked more human (no wings or extra arms) and was more human sized, just a bit shorter than Andy. The green fae picked up a slip of paper and a handful of the rainbow glitter. She sprinkled the glitter over the paper and allowed the paper to rise into the air as it glowed an array of colours. The paper morphed into a blob which then morphed into a regular looking teddy bear. The bear floated over to the conveyor belt which carried it away into the wall.

"Woah, how did you do that?" Andy asked, staring at Stem and feeling excitement flowing through his veins.

Stem smiled warmly and laughed, "It's quite simple. We have written wishes from people all over the world. We then use wish magic to make them come to life. And on Christmas eve, we deliver them."

Andy couldn't help but eye the bowl of paper slips eagerly. "Can we try?"

"I'm afraid not. These wishes are delicate and we don't want to mess up anyone's wish," Stem stated, softly shaking her head.

Andy deflated in disappointment. An idea quickly presented itself in the young teen's mind.

"Can we make our own wishes? That way we won't mess anyone's up besides our own," Andy suggested, feeling hopeful.

Stem once again softly shook her head. "I'm afraid not. That is not how the magic works."

"How does it work then?" Robin spoke up, the first time they'd spoken since he'd entered the room.

Stem looked down at the bench, beginning to make wishes again, not saying a word. Unsatisfied with no answer, Robin leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. Not seeing much else to do, Andy watched as Stem made wishes, watching as the different wants came into being. He was in Santa's workshop, he was in a place people would kill to be in. He couldn't think of a better place to be.

___________________________________

Come the next morning, Aster felt weird as he headed towards the local ice rink. She'd slept surprisingly fine and everything had proceeded like normal but there was just something she couldn't shake.

The young teen spotted Alex and Sam already waiting outside behind one of the pillars that led into the building. Neither looked particularly happy and Aster could understand why. According to the texts Alex had sent earlier that morning, she'd spent all night in her chimera form hoping Andy would send her a message and heard nothing but radio silence. Rushing over, Alex and Sam looked up when the younger teen stopped in front of them.

"Hey guys. You ready to go inside?" Aster questioned. Alex looked uncertain while Sam looked confused.

"Do we have time for this? I know you want to hang out but I'd rather be looking for Andy," the white haired teen questioned, glancing at the building skeptically.

"We've been over this. Willa said we have to wait and we can't go get them ourselves," Aster said with a sigh, not wanting to have this conversation again. Alex opened her mouth to speak but quickly shut it, glaring to the side.

"As much as I'd like to go search for Robin myself, Willa does have a point. We should trust her and trust that they'll be back safely. If they're together then they'll look out for each other," Sam signed, his face morphing into a happier expression.

Aster couldn't help but nod along. "Sam has a point. They'll look after each other and I'm sure they wouldn't want us endlessly worrying. We should enjoy ourselves while it's still the Christmas period."

After a few long moments of silence and Alex not looking the younger teen in the eye, she let out a reluctant sigh, "Okay fine. I guess you both have a point."

Aster felt herself bouncing on her feet and she could see Sam had a giddy smile as well. Not wanting to waste any more time, Aster grabbed both her friend's hands and dragged them inside the building. Once the trio was inside and had gained their skates (and after some confusion about what Sam's shoe size was), they were ready to go on the ice.

Despite being earlier on in the day, it was somewhat busy with a small variety of ages skating around. It was a large rink so they'd have plenty of space. Alex was the first one on the ice, skating off like a blur. Aster was about to step onto the ice when she looked back and saw Sam a bit hesitant to leave the outside of the rink. He'd been so enthusiastic only a small while ago.

"Something wrong?" Aster inquired. Sam looked around before gesturing Aster to come closer.

"I'm not sure if this is a good idea. I mean, what if I slip and fall through the ice?" Sam whispered, eyeing the ice wearily.

"I can assure you that you can't fall through the ice. We aren't over a lake," Aster replied.

"But what if I fall?" Sam hissed.

"Then you just get back up again but if you honestly aren't feeling it then you don't gotta do it," the younger teen assured.

Sam shook his head. "No no. I can do this. You're both helping me experience Christmas activities so the least I can do is try them."

A small smile crossed Aster's face and she gently patted Sam on the back.

"Remember, you can always back out," Aster stated before stepping onto the ice.

It had been a few years since the young hero had been skating; the last time she could recall was with her brothers a year or two ago. Letting her skates glide along the ice, Aster flew around the rink with surprising grace. If her superhero gig didn't go through maybe she could become an ice-skater.

Feeling her ever buzzing energy rushing throughout her, Aster began to easily do laps around the rink, even passing Alex a few times. The white haired teen quickly caught up to Aster and smirked, the younger teen took that as a challenge. The two teens raced around the icy arena, weaving in and out of people. Aster was certain she was about to win but one of her skates suddenly went sideways and the young teen had to keep herself from falling over, in which Alex sped right on past her. The young hero internally cursed her bad luck.

Standing up and brushing herself, Aster glanced over at the edge where she spotted Sam clinging to the edge and slowly edging himself around the edge of the rink. Skating over, Aster looked up at her friend.

"What are you doing over here? Did you nearly fall over?" she questioned.

Sam let out a sigh and shook his head. "No. I just don't think I'm able to stay up on the ice," he said in a hushed tone. That made Aster frown slightly.

"Would you like my help? I could hold your hand if that would help you balance," she offered, holding out her hand. Sam looked between Aster and her hand before slowly and gently taking it. The younger teen gently brought Sam out from the edge of the ice and began gently skating around.

At first the human-disguised gargoyle started to shake but as he got into a rhythm he started to relax. Aster couldn't help but smile. After a few laps, Aster gently let go of Sam's hand and let him glide free. He worriedly looked over at Aster but the young teen gave a thumbs up in encouragement. The older teen looked forward with a bright smile and with his arms out, skating along the ice with a carefree-

Sam tripped and hit the ground faster than Aster could react and all the youngest teen could do was cringe as the oldest teen skidded across the rink, eventually coming to a stop. Not wasting any time, both Aster and Alex rushed over to their fallen friend and helped him to his feet. His expression was dazed but he seemed overall alright, aside from the giant gash on his right cheek. He was surprisingly bleeding lime green coloured blood. Maybe that had something to do with being a gargoyle or having magic. Did Robin and Willa have different coloured blood?

Alex led the trio off the rink and to a secluded part of the area. Aster quickly grabbed her bag and reached inside for the small first aid kit she kept on hand. She cleaned up Sam's wound quickly while Alex applied a gauze pad, covering up the gash.

"I'm so sorry for letting go. I thought you were doing well," Aster apologized, feeling her shoulders slump.

Sam shook his head. "Don't be sorry. I was going too fast and wasn't looking where I was going. But can I suggest we do something else? I feel like this hasn't gone that well," he signed.

Alex let out a tired sigh and nodded. "I agree. We don't want to draw more attention to ourselves."

Aster could see their points.

"Does cookies sound good?" she asked.

"Cookies sound good."

"I don't know what a cookie is but it sounds nice."

Getting their stuff together, the young teens made their way away from the ice and towards more Christmas activities.

___________________________________

Robin found himself waking up quite early one morning; the sun wasn’t even over the horizon yet. He felt tired, bored and fed-up. The young wizard had only been there for what was likely only a few days but felt like weeks. He was getting out today. Quickly putting his clothes on, Robin glanced over at Andy who was still fast asleep. He felt bad about leaving his friend behind but told himself he’d come back for him when he found a way to get away from this cursed place.

It didn’t take long until Robin was at the edge of the village, staring at the vast rainbow barrier before him. Jeff’s warning made it’s way to the front of his mind but he quickly brushed it aside. The older man's words would not scare him. Robin swiftly passed through the bubble, ignoring the intense shiver that shook his body and the lack of breath it left him. At least it didn’t cause his body to freeze up this time. Bundling his jacket closer to his body, the young wizard pushed forward into the thick snowy forest.

A gentle wind blew by as he walked which chilled Robin’s body to the bone. He was used to the cold but this? This was a different type of cold. Al poked his head out of Robin’s scarf and stared up at his other half with concern.

“You know this is a bad idea. We really should head back before the weather gets worse,” the snake familiar hissed, glaring around at his surroundings.

Robin couldn’t help but scoff, “I’m not saying any longer with him. There’s a way out of here, I know it; They’re just lying to keep us there.”

Al went to say something but shook his head and let out a sigh, hiding back in the young wizard’s scarf.

After walking for felt like hours, Robin made it to what looked like the burnt ruins of a village, the same size as the fae village; Maybe this had been another place the little beings lived. Inspecting the buildings more, they looked like they’d been scorched but not by normal fire; there was a glimmer to the charred wood that gleamed in the early morning light.

Reaching out, the young wizard immediately recoiled his hand when a jolt shocked his body. That wasn’t normal magic, not of any kind.

The echoing snap of a twig brought Robin’s attention to the shadows of the trees surrounding the ruins. Gleaming yellow eyes pierced the shadows before revealing themselves. The wolf-cougars, the wolfars, a huge pack of them. Fuck; he’d forgot about them. Every alarm in Robin’s body went off and he whipped his wand out, shooting out a ball of light directly at the closest wolfar. Instead of hurting the creature, leaving a scratch or doing anything, the attack was absorbed into the wolfar, the creature staring at the young wizard as if hungry for more. Well fuck. Robin went to run but noticed he’d been back to the bottom of a cliff with the pack surrounding his only exists. One of the creatures leapt at the young wizard and Robin closed his eyes and braced his arms for a nasty bite; a bite that never came. The whine of the creature and the thud of something landing in front of him confused the young wizard.

Opening his eyes and lowering his arms, Robin saw Bea in a humanoid form (similar to how Stem had looked), standing in front of him with orange gauntlets adorning both hands. The pack of wolfar’s growled at the new arrival and a few of them leapt at Bea. the humanoid fae knocked the creatures back with such force that she sent them crashing into the trees.

When a path in the pack opened up, Bea grabbed Robin’s wrist and ran, dragging him with such force he was worried his arm would pop off his body.

The orange fae turned to the young wizard and growled, “What the fuck were you thinking? I know you were told not to go outside the bubble. What the fuck is your problem?”

Robin rolled his eyes in annoyance. “I don’t need to explain anything to you.”

Bea scowled but kept running as the howling indicated the pack of wolfar’s were nearby.

The duo ran and ran until the bubble came into sight. As soon as they passed through, Robin felt his breath leave him and a flash of light surrounded Bea, reverting to her small fae form. Looking over his shoulder, the young wizard saw the wolfar’s clawing at the bubble like it was stone, unable to pass through. Some of their claws sunk into the bubble but nothing went deeper than that. The creatures clawed and snarled for a while before giving up and stalking back into the shadows of the forest.

Robin leaned against a stone pillar, trying to catch his breath. It was only then he noticed they’d ran to an area of the village he didn’t recognize. They were below the rock ledge that housed the main workshop with rock formations surrounding either entrance to the village buildings.

Catching his breath, the young wizard saw Bea floating nearby, glaring at him.

“What?”

“If things get worse from here I’m blaming you,” the orange fae stated, both sets of arms folded.

Robin rolled his eyes and folded his own arms. “It’s not my fault I want to leave and neither you or your boss are going to stop me.”

All of a sudden, Bea flew forward, grabbing Robin’s scarf and yanking him forward so their faces were practically touching.

“Listen here you little shit. I get you don’t enjoy being here and to be honest, I don’t like having you here either. But you need to understand this; We want to keep you safe as you and your friend are only kids and we can’t let anyone else die, not on your watch. So you’re here until Christmas and you’ve gotta except that, whether you like it or not,” Bea all but growled.

She let Robin go and floated near the rock of the cliff face, touching it with a gentle hand. Robin readjusted his scarf and stared after the fae. While he didn’t enjoy getting yelled at, he started to understand why Bea was so angry; he would be angry if he had to deal with himself too. It didn’t take long for something the orange fae had said to come to the forefront of his mind.

“What do you mean ‘let anyone else die’?”

Bea looked away from the wall and at Robin before gesturing to follow her down a tunnel that was in the side of the cliff. Not seeing much else to do, Robin followed her.

The young wizard followed the glowing fae down the dark tunnel, it’s walls slowly forming from bland rock to glittering stone, as if there were stars in the walls. Eventually the tunnel came to a end which revealed a grand cavern with many gemstones lodged in the walls; But what really caught Robin’s attention was the giant floating crystal in the middle of the room. The crystal was rainbow in colour with white specks floating within the colours. There was a light pouring through a hole underneath the crystal that passed through the rainbow object and into a hole in the ceiling. It was simply a spectacle to behold.

“What is this place?” Robin questioned.

“This is the wishing well and this-” Bea gestured to the crystal behind her. “-Is the wishing crystal. It’s the source of all our wish magic here.”

“What does this have to do with my question?”

“I’m getting to that.”

Bea looked back towards the crystal with a somber expression.

The orange fae let out a sigh before explaining, “Jeff got this crystal back when he started working with wishes as a gift from the gods to be used wisely. For hundreds of years, years before I was born, everything went perfectly until Jeff had an idea.”

“You see, before that point, the village had problems with predators like bears and wolves so Jeff had the idea to use the wishing crystal to wish for some protectors that could chase away the predators and keep us safe-”

“The wolfars.”

“Correct. They were the perfect protectors for a while until they slowly started attacking that obtained magic. We had to flee the village and hide in the workshop. Not everyone survived. It was then the bubble was created to keep the wolfar’s out and keep us safe. And we made a rule that no-one was allowed to use the wish magic to make a wish for one’s self again,” Bea finished, glancing at the ground.

Robin couldn’t help but feel sadness for the small fae. It wasn’t easy losing a home due to forces out of your control and to lose loved ones as well…

“If the wolfar’s are such a problem, then why not wish them away?” he inquired.

Bea shook her head, glancing back towards the crystal. “We would be using a wish for ourselves and that’s what caused our problem in the first place. We don’t know what consequences we’d be getting and it’s too risky to try it.”

So all this was Jeff’s fault; just when it couldn’t get any worse.

The orange fae finally turned her gaze back towards the young wizard. “I’m telling you this in good faith. That I hope it gets you to stop trying to escape as if we disturb the bubble too many times, it could cause disaster.”

Robin nodded in understanding. While he was desperate to get out, he wouldn’t risk lives over it. Feeling exhausted, Robin stretched his limbs and began making his way out of the tunnel with Bea swiftly following. Maybe waking up too early wasn’t a good idea in the first place.

A question slowly made it to the forefront of Robin’s mind. “When I attacked the wolfars earlier, my magic was just absorbed into them. You got any idea why that would be?”

All Bea could do was shrug. “Wolfars absorb any magic thrown at them so you can't attack them magical. I doubt one attack on them will mean much. Now come on, we should get back before Stem kills me for being awake before her…”

Robin couldn’t help but laugh at that.

___________________________________

Sam was somewhat confused when Aster and Alex dragged him out of the warm confines of his room and into the snowy streets. He quickly donned his human disguise and followed the two girls to whatever activity they were going to do. Neither of them would tell the young gargoyle where they were going.

Eventually the trio arrived at a destination Sam didn’t recognize ; It was a large clearing in the park but there were small wooden stalls arranged in rows with christmas decorations dotted around the place.

Sam knelt down to Aster and leaned close to her ear, “Where are we?”

Aster looked over at him and smiled. “This is the local Christmas market. It usually takes place in the middle of the city but this year they moved it here, likely for a change in scenery.”

“How does it differ from a regular market?” Sam questioned.

“It has Christmas items and only happens this time of year,” Alex answered, beginning to walk towards the thick of the market. Not wanting to be left behind, Sam and Aster quickly followed.

When Sam actually got to see what was inside the market, his curiosity practically exploded. He dragged his two friends around, checking out each stall for longer than they probably should’ve. The stall owners were surprisingly really nice and let the older teen browse for a while.

During their exploration, Aster stopped them when they passed a large stall. There were a few attendants running the place, serving people cups with a brown liquid. They waited in line for a while until they got to the front and obtained some cups of the strange substance. Sam couldn’t help but sniff the cup and was surprised when it smelled warm. The young gargoyle caught Aster and Alex’s attention and pointed to the cup.

“Ah, that's just hot chocolate. It’s quite nice but it’s a drink Andy likes more than me,” Alex explained before taking a sip of her own drink.

Excitement flooded Sam’s veins. He’d had some chocolate before when Robin gave him a small piece so if this was like that, he’d love it. Downing the drink in one go, Sam was not expecting the liquid to burn his throat, causing him to cough quite harshly. The two younger teens panicked and helped him over to a bench and Aster handed him a bottle of water. The young gargoyle quickly took the water and drank it slowly but constantly. The two younger teens looked down at him with worry.

“Are you good? Did you drink your hot chocolate all at once?” Alex inquired. Sam couldn’t help but sheepishly nod.

The white haired teen shook her head and sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Aster on the other hand burst out laughing. Sam felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment and he looked down to the ground. He heard Aster let out a yelp and looked back up to see the youngest teen rubbing her shoulder while Alex glared over at her.

Staring back over at Sam, Alex gave him a small smile and gestured her head to the side. “Come on, let’s continue exploring.”

After the hot chocolate incident, Sam didn’t feel as enthusiastic in exploring but was still enjoying himself. The trio of teens made their way through the streets of stalls. As they passed through one set of stalls, Sam noticed one particular building that looked different than the rest. It was slightly bigger than the other stalls, was hollowed out with a fancy looking chair and a really fancy small christmas tree. There were several people dressed in greens and reds with pointed plastic ears with a man in red and white clothes with a white beard sitting in the fancy looking chair.

Probably noticing his confusion, Aster smiled warmly and gestured over to the area where the young gargoyle was looking, “Oh I see you’ve noticed Santa's grotto. They’re a staple during the holiday season. It’s where people can visit Santa and his elves.”

That piqued Sam’s curiosity again. “Does this mean Santa’s real?”

Alex let out a hearty laugh, “Ha, yeah fuck no. They’re fake santa’s that are really just there for the little kids. Make them believe that Santa is a real thing.”

“Oh here we go again. Mrs ‘I’m too cool to think Santa could be real’,” Aster stated, rolling her eyes.

Alex scoffed, folding her arms. “I’m just being realistic.”

The two girls began squabbling loudly as they walked which caused Sam to hang back a bit, silently wishing they would stop. Glazing around at the stalls hoping to find a distraction, a certain stall caught his attention and caused him to stop. Walking over, the young gargoyle began inspecting the wares. There were several rows of different kinds of animal plushies that looked so fluffy and so cute. The stall owner, an older woman, smiled at Sam as he looked over the different animals.

“Any particular one catch your eye?” she asked.

As the lady spoke, an animal plush revealed itself to Sam; a small Robin. Picking up the plush, the oldest teen couldn’t help but let a small smile form on his face.

“Alright, that will cost you five dollars,” the stall owner announced. It was at that moment Sam realized he didn’t have money. Feeling dejected, Sam went to place the plush back but stopped when the old lady placed her hand on the plush and pushed it back towards him.

“How about I let you have it? In the spirit of Christmas,” the lady stated, giving Sam a warm smile.

Thanking the lady with a quick nod, Sam hugged the plush and rushed away to find wherever Aster and Alex had gone, eager to show off what he’d acquired.

___________________________________

Robin stretched his limbs as he sat on the uncomfortable bench against the wall. He and Andy had been there for a over a week at that point and the young wizard felt like he was at a breaking point. He was so bored. Watching the fae make wishes had gotten boring after a day or two (at least for Robin) and there was not much else to do. Staring across the workshop, Robin stared at Andy who was excitedly staring at a group of fae making a giant swing set. At least one of them was enjoying themselves. It must be nice to still enjoy Christmas.

When Robin was about to drift off to sleep, a purple light appeared before his eyes, causing him to open them and stare at the fae in front of him.

“Jeff has requested to see you and Andy in his office.”

Stretching his limbs, Robin slowly followed the fae while Andy quickly followed after him. Making it to Jeff’s office which was at the very top of the workshop, Robin had one word for it; overkill. It was fulled to the brim with every Christmas decoration you could think of. And there was Jeff, sitting at his fancy ass desk with his fancy chair and a long list that fell over the front of the desk with dozen of names scratched onto it.

The older man glanced up from his position and put down his list, smiling warmly at the boys.

“Hello boys. I take it you’ve enjoyed your stay here so far?” Jeff inquired. Andy nodded enthusiastically while Robin grumbled and folded his arms.

“Since it’s nearly Christmas eve, I thought I’d give you two a little something, to make up for you not being with your families during this time,” Jeff explained, pulling two small presents out from his pockets. One was white with a green ribbon and the other was red with a gold ribbon.

Andy was handed the white present and gleefully took it while Robin was offered the red one. The young wizard refused to take it, glaring at the older man.

Jeff looked at him with disappointment. “Is something wrong?”

“Is this really how you think you can do things? Just play nice and give us presents? Is this really how you can think to make up for the things you’ve done?” Robin growled, folding his arms.

The older man looked at him with shock. “What do you mean?”

Robin slapped the present away and glared at the man in red. “You know what you did. To here and to me. You’re nothing but a coward, too scared to help out kids in needs when they’re desperate for any help and you’re a joke, not able to clean up your own consequences when you created them.”

“I’m sorry-”

“Don’t even try it,” Robin cut him off, “It’s far too late for you to try and apologize and now you have to live with what you did.”

Robin stormed off before the older man could reply.

The young wizard swiftly walked through the city until he ended up at the bubble. He wasn’t going to go through it, he wouldn’t but he needed somewhere quiet to be. Holding back a scream, Robin punched the ground which surprisingly formed cracks in the snowy ground. Glancing at his hand, he saw how it was coated in light magic, like a glove. Quickly waving the magic away, the young wizard collapsed onto his back, staring up at the sky. The winter sun burned brightly and Robin closed his eyes to take in what warmth he could. He felt Al curl around his neck which he appreciated, needing a familiar comfort.

Eventually a shadow blocked Robin’s view from the sun and he opened his eyes to see Andy hovering over him. Letting out a sigh, the young wizard sat up as the white haired teen sat down next to him.

“How are you feeling?” Andy asked.

Robin couldn’t help but laugh dryly, glancing over at the younger teen, “How do you think?”

“You weren’t exactly the nicest with Santa back there, you wanna talk about what happened?” Andy inquired.

Robin rolled his eyes, “He can take it. He’s a grown man. And he’s not exactly the nicest person but you probably haven’t noticed it since you’re too oblivious to realize.”

The white haired teen’s eyes widened in shock and he looked offended. Robin internally cursed himself.

“Sorry, that was rude. I’m just… annoyed and miserable here. I really just want out,” Robin sighed. “I really should talk to someone about this and I guess now is as good a time as any.”

Robin tried to begin but struggled to find the words at first. Taking a deep breath, Robin eventually found them, “It began the first Christmas I was on the streets. I… had no-one else to go to so I wandered around and I’d admit it was hard. A ten year old, with only the clothes on my back, with the harsh cold and having to steal scraps of food just to survive.”

He turned his head towards the workshop. “Back then, I still believed in Santa and the spirit of Christmas. I’d pray every day, hoping he’d show up and help me or just do anything. I prayed and prayed but after the second year of nothing, I gave up. If he wasn’t going to help me then I’d have to do things myself.”

“Christmas just became a painful reminder of what I didn’t have anymore and of the man that never bothered to listen. And learning that he was real? That just dug up memories I’d buried long ago,” Robin mumbled, looking towards the ground and kicking the snow underneath his feet.

Feeling something press against his side, Robin looked up to see Andy leaning against him which normally would have annoyed the young wizard but at that point, he appreciated it. He needed the comfort at that moment.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that and I’m sorry for not trying to help you find a way back. Alex has likely been really anxious about where I am and I shouldn’t have ignored that,” the green eyed teen stated, looking down in shame.

Robin shook his head. “It’s not your fault. You’re just enjoying a holiday you love and I shouldn’t be someone to bring that down. And besides, the weather outside the bubble isn’t great and you’d probably freeze into an icicle before we even made it halfway to the water.”

Andy let out a fake gasp and slightly swatted Robin, causing the young wizard to laugh.

After sitting there for a while, both boys stood up and stretched, trying to get the cold out of their bones.

“You wanna go play cards in our room?” Robin inquired.

Andy looked at him with a puzzled look. “You play cards?”

A card appeared in the young wizard’s hand before he waved it away. “I’ll have you know I’m a master at cards and at party tricks. It’s one of my many tricks I picked up on my travels.”

“Well okay then Mr magician, lead the way,” Andy smirked, allowing Robin to take the lead as they walked.

What both boys were unaware of was the crack in the ground had gone all the way to the bubble and through to the other side, splitting the ground underneath the barrier and leaving gaps where the outside air blew into the safety of the bubble and possibly something else as well.

___________________________________

Andy and Robin hadn’t even made it to the bottom of the workshop stairs when a howl pierced the air. Screams also quickly began to fill the air as fae began flying for their lives towards the workshop, nearly bumping into the two boys in the process. Not wasting any time, Andy transformed and picked up a frozen up Robin, flying up and placing him on top of the workshop roof.

Robin attempted to slowly make his way down from the roof. “I don’t need to be up here, I can fight, I can-”

Another howl made Robin freeze up again.

“It’s alright Robin. I can help handle this,” he explains before flying off.

The young chimera’s eyes scan for any sign of Santa but the man in red was nowhere to be see. All he could spot was Bea in her humanoid disguise fighting off a few wolfars. Flying over and hitting one of the creatures with his tail, Andy sent the wolfar flying.

“Is everyone alright?” he asked while punching two more creatures.

Bea kicked a wolfar away before looking at him, “We’ve got everyone in the bunkers with Jeff but they won’t hold forever unless we find a way to get rid of these guys for good.”

The orange face was suddenly stricken and looked uneasy and panicked, quickly running off. Andy wasted no time in racing after her.

“Where are we going? Shouldn’t we be fighting the wolfars back there?” the young chimera asked, briefly looking back at where they’d come from.

Bea shook her. “Those are only distractions. What they’ll all be heading for is the wishing well. If they get their paws on it, we’ll be done for.”

Andy nodded and kept following Bea but a question appeared in his mind. What was the wishing well?

Heading into a dark tunnel, the two beings ran until the tunnel expanded upon a giant cavern with many colourful crystals and a rainbow crystal in the middle. This must be the wishing well; and luckily for them, there were no wolfars to be seen, only other humanoid fae. Bea quietly talked with them before the flock of fae surrounded the crystal in a defensive circle which Andy quickly joined. It was clear what the plan was, none of the creatures were to get to the crystal.

“Remember, wolfars will absorb any magic so fighting has to be physical contact only,” Bea called out.

Andy flexed his tail and his hands, reading himself. The wolfar pack burst into the cavern and the fight began. Claws and fists went flying. Andy had to hold in a yell as several of the white furred creatures sank their teeth into Andy’s arms. The young chimera threw the creatures away and backed closer to the crystal, almost falling over the hole the crystal was over.

As Andy was distracted, he didn’t notice a wolfar jumping past him until it was too late. The wolfar almost clamped its jaws onto the rainbow crystal. The creature was stopped when a yellow blur slammed into its side, sending the wolfar flying into a crowd of them, briefly dazing them. The blur revealed itself to be Robin. The momentum of his quick speed dropped and he was quickly sent plummeting into the hole. Luckily Andy caught him just in time, yanking him back up to solid ground.

“What are you doing here?” Andy asked while they had a quick moment to breath.

Robin rolled his shoulder, letting out a grunt, “I can’t run from these things forever. No matter how scared I am, I got to help.”

Andy couldn’t help but smile but not for long. The wolfars had gathered themselves and began their charge again. The fight continued for what felt like hours. Every time it seemed the wolfar were downed, they got back up again with new life. They just kept coming and nothing would keep them down. They needed another option.

A possible idea appeared in Andy’s mind and he quickly leaned over to Robin and Bea, whispering the idea to them. Both of them nodded.

“Cover us,” Bea yelled to her fellow fae who nodded in understanding. The orange fae transformed into her smaller form and flew up to the crystal.

Picking Robin up, the young chimera flew up and held him up to the crystal. The young wizard placed his hands upon the crystal with Bea doing the same. The crystal flashed under the touches and rainbow sparks began to pour out. Andy felt Robin began to shake but held firm and made sure the older teen did not fall away from the crystal. He also swayed his tail over to make sure Bea did not fly away. The cavern began to shake violently but the trio did not falter. The crystal flashed a blinding light, causing everyone in the cavern to briefly loose their vision.

When the light vanished, Andy saw the wolfars crumble into dust and be absorbed right back into the crystal. Once every wolfar was no-more, the crystal stopped its sparking and returned to its regular complexion.

Andy, Robin and Bea floated to the ground and relaxed, letting out sighs of relief. The other fae let out cheers and hugged each other. Andy de-transformed, sat down and closed his eyes, letting his body rest for just a moment.

___________________________________

For the next few days, everyone rested up after the wolfar attack. The crack that had led the wolfars in had been patched up since even though the creatures were gone, the safety the bubble provided from the weather was unmatched.

Christmas eve had arrived at last and everyone was preparing for last minute things. The sleigh had been brought out and polished; the golden reindeer that belonged to Jeff were saddled up and fed. The sack on the back of Jeff’s sleigh had quite a few toys but a lot less than Robin was expecting. When he’d asked about it, Bea explained that Jeff only hand delivered a few presents himself while all the other presents would be teleported by the other fae which made sense.

Soon enough, it was time for Robin and Andy to leave. They were waving goodbye to the fae that had housed them and kept with company. Stem gave a tearful goodbye and Bea gave a respectful nod. Maybe they could meet again some day.

Jeff was in the classic Santa get up, hat and all. He looked ridiculous but Robin wasn’t going to say anything if he and Andy wanted to get back before Christmas. To the young wizard’s surprise, Jeff pulled out another present from this pocket, this time the present being a dark green box with a pale yellow ribbon. It was also much bigger in size. Robin couldn’t help but look sceptically up at the older man.

“Listen, I told you I don’t want your present-” Robin tried to say before Jeff cut him off.

“I know I know. And I want to apologize for not being there. I wish I could answer every call but there are so many people in the world that I cannot get to them all.”

Robin didn’t feel exactly happy with that answer but he’d take it.

“And besides,” Jeff continued, “This gift is not for you. It’s for Sam actually. I know he’s been having not the best time lately and I know you and Willa are doing your best so I decided to get him this little gift but am giving it to you to give to him. I know he’d appreciate anything from you.”

Robin couldn’t help but blush and quickly took the gift, shoving it in his backpack and trying to hide his face. Jeff just burst out laughing. Climbing into his sleigh, Jeff gestured for the two boys to follow and they did so, getting comfortable on the surprisingly plush seats. Leaning over the side, Robin and Andy gave one last goodbye as the sleigh took off into the snowy sky.

“So how long will it take us to get home?” Andy asked.

Jeff looked at what looked like a fancy satnav that sat on the front of his sleigh. “I suspect at least an hour or so. You two aren’t used to the fast travel yet so I can’t use that but it won’t take that long since it’s only a few countries over.”

That surprised Robin. It’d take quicker than he expected. They’d be back soon enough.

Leaning back, Robin settled in for the ride while Andy looked over the side of the sleigh in amazement. Robin watched him carefully.

“Be careful. You may be able to fly but I don’t want Alex getting on my ass for letting you fall from the sleigh,” the young wizard cautioned.

The younger teen looked over at Robin with a mischievous grin that he usually found on Aster. Andy jumped over the side and Robin scrambled to the edge to see where his friend had gone. A flash of green appeared down below and Andy flew upwards, freshly transformed. The young chimera flashed him a grin and the young wizard couldn’t help but shake his head but with a smile. Show-off.

Not to be one to be one upped, Robin also jumped off the side of the sleigh and whispered a spell under his breath, activating his light steps. It was a rough landing at first but eventually Robin got a steady run going and managed to catch up to Andy and Jeff’s sleigh. While he still wasn’t as athletic as he wanted to be, the young wizard had improved greatly compared to months back.

Robin ran and ran and he’d run all the way back to safety, back to home.

___________________________________

Staring up at the sky, Sam clung his clothes closer to his body, attempting to feel it’s warmth. He usually didn’t feel the cold this bad in his gargoyle form but for some reason, the cold bothered him more this night. He was sitting on the roof of Willa’s place with Aster and Alex, bundled up with a bunch of blankets, the three of them staring up at the snowing sky. It was Christmas eve and there was no sign of Robin or Andy. Willa had said her friend would return them on Christmas eve yet there they were, still waiting.

Aster deflated like a balloon, clutching her blanket close. “Should we head in for the night? I know we said we’d wait out here but maybe they’ll be back tomorrow morning.”

“I’m not leaving this roof without my brother,” Alex retorted, keeping her eyes on the sky.

Sam didn’t want to give up either, missing Robin dearly but it was only going to get colder and getting frostbite or a cold would help no-one.

At some point, Willa came onto the roof. “Kids, I think you should head inside, it’s quite late and I don’t want you missing time with your families.”

Alex began to argue but Sam drowned it out when he heard a new noise in the air. A strange jingling sound like he’d heard at the Christmas market. He quickly shushed everyone and stood up, staring at the sky.

“Do you hear that?” he asked.

At first no-one answered but slowly the jingling became louder and louder.

“I hear it. It sounds like sleigh bells but where are they coming from?” Alex inquired, glancing around on the rooftop for the source of the noise. But the four of them were the only things upon the stone roof so it could only come from down below, or up above.

Glancing up, Sam could barely make out the shadowy outline of something hovering in the sky high above them. It was too hard to make out but it was certainly where the bells were coming from. All of a sudden, a rope descended from the object and two beings descended from that rope.

“ROBIN!”

“ANDY!”

Sam picked up his best friend and brought him into a tight hug while Alex brought Andy into a hug of her own, Aster joining in. After a few moments of hugging, the boys were released and everyone began asking questions about where they’d been for several weeks.

Robin and Andy looked at each other with a smirk before looking back at the group and replying with, “We’ve been with Jeff.”

The three other teens were confused by the statement while Willa looked towards the sky with a warm smile.

“Come on kids, let’s get back inside and warm you up, and then get a good night’s sleep for tomorrow,” the older wizard stated, carefully guiding the crowd of teens inside.

Christmas morning came in a flash and everyone was excited.

For Aster, enjoyed a fantastic feast with her family after an intense morning of opening presents and a small video game tournament between her and her brothers.

For Alex and Andy, they enjoyed a warm meal with Damien before marathoning all ‘the best christmas movies of all time’ according to the older man.

For Robin and Sam, they celebrated the day with the amazing food Willa had prepared before playing the many board games the older wizard had stashed away (Robin was pretty sure some of these were not legal anymore). When exchanging gifts, Sam gave Robin the plush Robin he’d found with a little golden ribbon attached. Robin tried to not cry from the warmth he felt in his heart. The young wizard handed over the gift Jeff had given him to give to Sam. When Sam opened it, his eyes widened in surprise. It was a large gray and black plush dog that warmed up when it was hugged. The young gargoyle began to cry and brought Sam into a bone-crushing hug.

Christmas went by without a hitch and everything was wonderful. And I hope you dear viewer, have a wonderful Christmas as well.

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← Previous Work Part 30 of City Chronicles : Year 1

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