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  This would always be their base of operations, but it was not their only option, not anymore. That was the purpose of her efforts on their behalf. She wanted to get them excited about the world. It wasn’t as easy as she thought, but she was pretty sure that it had been managed.

  Lying in Santa’s arms that night, she felt the moment that Dasher took flight. The others launched moments later from wherever they had been during their sabbatical.

  Her team was headed home.

  Ru smiled and tucked herself against her ancient elf and held tight. Tomorrow was going to be one helluva party.

  Ru got up and dressed, wearing a loose cloak and nothing else. She gathered eight other cloaks from the archive and went to stand in the central landing area before Santa was even awake.

  From different points in the sky, light appeared, and the reindeer ran through sky toward her.

  They were all there, and each one had a panicked and exhausted elf on her back.

  The ladies landed on four hooves, and the moment their partners dismounted, Ru stepped forward. She handed a cloak to each one of them.

  The girls grinned and covered up. When Ru had finished her rounds, she was swamped with hugs.

  After the hugs came the questions, and Ru answered what she could while their amused partners introduced themselves. Several of the men were long-term placements, and the locals did not know them.

  The men caught up, and Ru looked at Dancer. “Yes, things did get resolved here. There has been alteration in the status quo, and I think that the changes will be to your liking.”

  Dancer grinned, and they all gathered in a group, walking to the archive, and she heard them exclaiming as they saw the changes that had been made in their absence.

  “Everybody now has a separate wing, each designed so that you can have privacy when you want it. The common areas are the same, and there is a snack ready for you.”

  The girls laughed, and their bemused men followed. The conversation pit was filled with presents covered with gleaming wrapping.

  Cupid smiled. “We brought along our own gifts.”

  “Do we want to get dressed first?” Vixen called out.

  The rest of the girls laughed, and they all gathered in the huge conversational pit and each unwrapped a segment of the new, circular couch large enough for two. The bemused elves followed, and their reindeer pulled them into the gathering.

  Ru closed her eyes and called Santa. She settled in the pit with the other ladies, and when he arrived, she pulled him down next to her.

  Once those gathered were used to the idea, conversation began to flow.

  The adventures of the reindeer were amazing and far more than Ru could have imagined. She sat holding Santa’s hand, and she opened the presents that the girls brought her. She got chocolate, jewellery, some very nice lingerie that Santa took possession of, but it was having her family back where she could see and touch them that mattered to her.

  When they had finished their party, the girls headed to their rooms with their mates in tow. Ru was left sitting with Santa and smiling happily. “You picked really well.”

  “You called it with Donder. I would never have picked him for her, but you nailed it.” He nuzzled her ear.

  She turned and straddled him on the couch, her cloak covering both of them. “I think we need a bit of privacy.”

  He grinned. “You are not the only one who can make changes to this place.”

  He stood, taking her with him, bundled up her presents and walked toward a shadowed corner of the room.

  “What is that? It wasn’t there earlier.”

  “It was installed. You now have a chamber above the hub of the snowflake. You were always central, after all.”

  The door was familiar, and when he opened it and headed up the winding staircase, she knew that they were in her tower.

  “Back to my place?”

  He wrinkled his nose. “Well, sort of.”

  When they arrived at the floor that normally housed her bedroom, it was twice the normal size and contained an extra wardrobe. “You moved in with me?”

  He grinned. “It seemed sensible as I am going to be spending every possible moment in your bed for quite some time.”

  “Don’t tire yourself out; tomorrow is Christmas Eve.” She chuckled.

  “And you will be at the head of the team, as you always are.” He nuzzled her ear.

  She chuckled. “Don’t get any ideas. I have to run around the world tomorrow, hauling your ass as I go.”

  “I thought I would just hold you until it was time to go.”

  Ru sighed regretfully. “Well, that is sensible.”

  He set her on the edge of the bed and peeled off her cloak. Kneeling between her thighs, he pressed his lips to her, sending heat through her folds before he used his tongue.

  To hell with sensible, this was more fun.

  The next morning, the reindeer were rumpled, but all lined up in front of the sleigh. When Santa hopped into the sleigh, they shifted into their beast forms and the harness elves lashed them in place under the watchful eyes of the reindeers’ mates.

  Santa settled in with the bags of gifts, and he flicked the reins, Rudolph started the team, and they lifted off to do their annual work.

  Gifts, hope, charity and love were heavy things to deliver. Ru hoped, as she always did, that they were up to the challenge. The world was depending on them.

  Epilogue

  Ru led her exhausted team across the sky. Santa didn’t even try to control her trajectory. She was taking them home whether he wanted to go there or not.

  She landed in the central landing site, and the elves rushed to release them from their harnesses.

  One by one, they shifted back to human and staggered toward the archive. The girls were picked up by their mates and carried inside for rest.

  Ru staggered upright and headed for Santa. He was just as worn out as she was.

  He left the sleigh and put his arm around her shoulders. “You should have something to wear.”

  She chuckled. “Why now? That would be a first for all of us, and it isn’t necessary. The elves aren’t even looking.”

  “And that trip around the world has made you blind. They are definitely looking.”

  She grinned. “They can take it up with me then. I am always willing to discuss things with rational beings.”

  “You would chew them up and spit them out.”

  Ru snorted. “You are delirious. You need to lie down.”

  “Only if you are with me.” He nuzzled her head, careful to avoid her horns.

  When they got to their chambers, there was no funny business. She helped him remove his suit, and they crawled into bed. With a smile, she pried the new snowflake made of Christmas magic out of her horns, and she put it on the bedpost. She would deal with it in the morning or tomorrow. Whichever one came first.

  Santa wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, tucking his chin on her shoulder while he covered her back.

  She murmured, “Should I tell them how they became reindeer?”

  “When you feel the time is right. They are content now. Let them enjoy their lives until they ask.”

  “If they never ask?”

  “Then tell them when you are ready.” He squeezed her with the arm that wrapped her waist.

  “You really are all-knowing.”

  “It is all-seeing, and I can see that you are nervous about telling them. They will understand. You saved them.”

  “I turned them into the same kind of bond servants that I was.”

  He sighed. “But they knew how to feel love. They knew how to give love, they had family and they understood what it meant to be human, just for a little while. They had a life that would never have existed without you.”

  “And I would never have been in this situation without you. So, I will blame you.” She giggled.

  He nipped her shoulder. “A little
Christmas tradition has been born, and it is only our first one together. You can blame me, and I can take it.”

  She wove her fingers through his on her belly. “I will compensate you somehow.”

  “I will put it in my letter to Rudolph next year. Now, get to sleep, little wolf. I have plans for the next year together, and I thought you would like to vacation somewhere warm.”

  She chuckled drowsily. “I don’t think I have ever spent time in somewhere warm. Warm might be a nice change.”

  “Whatever my little wolf wishes. Think about it and get back to me after I have whisked you away. You might enjoy getting out after all this time.”

  She was too tired to answer, but it was comforting to know that he was making plans for the first time in centuries. Santa would take a break and Rudolph might get a tan.

  Stranger things had happened, right?

  Author’s Note

  So, all the reindeer have their partners, Santa is taking a holiday with Rudolph, and the world has been filled with hope, love, charity and a few gifts here and there.

  My personal experience with Christmas is that it can be anything, but it is usually what you make of it. I have had horrible holidays, ones that make me cry, fill me with depression and rage. But, I have also had moments where I laughed so hard I almost peed myself, and others where I was strong enough to reach out to others.

  Now, I pick the holiday that I want to have and make that my focus. It doesn’t always work, but I have a plan.

  So, thanks from me, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, hugs and kisses,

  Viola Grace

  About the Author

  Viola Grace (aka Zenina Masters) is a Canadian sci-fi/paranormal romance writer with ambitions to keep writing for the rest of her life. She specializes in short stories because the thrill of discovery, of all those firsts, is what keeps her writing.

  An artist who enjoys a story that catches you up, whirls you around and sets you down with a smile on your face is all she endeavours to be. She prefers to leave the drama to those who are better suited to it, she always goes for the cheap laugh.