Page 26 of Naughty Elf: Shimmersnap

“Well, we’ll go down the line, write down the kids’ names, hand that information to Santa when the kid goes up. Oh, and we have to give them their goody bag.”

“Santa should just know their names, shouldn’t he?” Walter winked.

I smirked. “He does, but we can’t go flaunting magic around the humans. Gotta keep it on the down-low, or they’ll get suspicious.” That was entirely too close to the truth.

“Oh, good, you two are here!” A man with a too-stiff suit and a clipboard bustled over. Sweat beaded on his forehead. “I’m so glad we have some help tonight. We’ve got more people than weexpected. We might run out of gift bags, so just try to keep things calm, okay? Parents get crazy if their kid doesn’t get something.”

“We’ll take care of it,” I said with a bright smile, grabbing Walter’s arm. “Come on.”

I led him to the front of the line, where Santa gave me a wave. I waved back. “Santa! Good to see you.”

“And you as well,” Santa said. “I hear you got yourself a new job. How’s that going?”

“It’s going great, Santa. I couldn’t be happier. This is Walter. He’s my boss.”

Santa held out his hand, and Walter shook it. “How do you two know each other?” Walter asked, a slight frown on his face.

“Oh, you know,” I said, brushing it off.

“I’ve seen him around these events before. Shimmersnap loves Christmas.” Santa winked and tweaked his nose like he was making an inside joke.

“I’ve noticed,” Walter said dryly.

Santa let out a hearty laugh, hiking up his red pants. “Well, I better get to work. You stay out of trouble now, Shimmersnap.” He winked at me.

“Of course, Santa. I wouldn’t dream of being on the naughty list.”

Walter stared at me like I’d grown a second head, but his smile was soft, almost fond. “You’re something else, you know that, Shimmersnap?”

I grinned. “I’ve been told.”

“It’s a good thing.”

“Thank you,”

“You are very refreshing, Shimmersnap, and I am lucky to know you.”

My cheeks warmed, the heat spreading down my neck, and I couldn’t hold back the grin that overtook my face. “I’m glad you think so.”

“I do. Now let’s get to work. Let’s make these kids’ day.”

We quickly fell into a rhythm—me talking to the kids while Walter wrote their names and handed them goody bags. He didn’t need to know that I was sneakily refilling the bags with a little magic every time we started running low. And with a blink, I added a few extra-special prizes here and there.

We were making good progress when we came across a young girl in a wheelchair. Her leg was propped up with a cast, her face drawn down in a frown. I kneeled down to her level.

“Oh no, Elizabeth, what happened?”

Walter shot me a look, probably wondering how I knew her name. I winced a little on the inside. Oops, probably shouldn’t have done that.

“I fell off the stage during my ballet recital,” Elizabeth said, sounding both proud and disappointed. “I twirled too hard.”

“Oh, but I bet you were magnificent up there! You’ll be back on your feet in no time.”

“I hope Santa brings me a speedy recovery,” she said wistfully. “I really want to be ready for the spring recital.”

“Well,” I said, “he’ll do what he can, but these things take time. In the meantime, how about you jazz up your wheelchair? Put some sparkles on the wheels!”

Her eyes lit up. “That’s a great idea! Why didn’t I think of asking for that?”

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