Christmas with the Calvins

Chapter Thirty-Nine

"But if Comet can't fly, and the Jetpacks are broken, How did Dad and Curtis get back?" Charlie asked his sister. He, Jess and Carol were on the way back to the Miller's house, trying to think of a way back to the North Pole.

"I'm not sure Carol's up for it." Jess said, biting her lip.

"What could be more shocking than finding out Santa Claus is real?" Carol laughed.

"Finding out the Tooth Fairy is real."

As it turned out Charlie, like Neil, had learned a few tricks for pulling your own teeth out. He shared some of his methods and graciously offered his own set of pearly whites to help them get back to the Pole. Originally they'd planned to nab the Tooth Fairy while he was pretending to nap, but the fairy arrived soon after learning of another uprooted tooth at the Miller house.

"Santa's elf!" He exclaimed when he spotted Jess standing with Charlie and Carol. "Does Santa need more help from me?"

"Kind of." Jess nodded. "We have to get Carol up to the North Pole."

"You must be the Mrs.," Tooth Fairy nodded. "Okay. Yeah I can do it. We've got to get you up there before Christmas Eve ends." Carol was stunned. Her mouth hung open and she was trying he best not to freak out; to remain calm with the whole situation.

"I always thought you were a woman..." She remarked breathlessly.

"That's what everyone thinks." The Tooth Fairy hung his head. "I've been trying to get a name change for years. Matter of fact Santa suggested 'The Molarnator' at the last meeting. But I guess Tooth Fairy is easier for the kids." He shrugged. "Okay, who's ready for a ride?"

"Say," Charlie interrupted. "Do you think you could bring me along too? I'd like to make things up to my dad." The Tooth Fairy looked Charlie up and down.

"I can't carry all three of you at the same time." Tooth Fairy decided. "I could maybe make two trips, but definitely not three."

"Then I'll stay behind, again." Jessica volunteered. "Charlie and Carol are really needed at the Pole right now. Just someone promise me that once they get up there, You'll send my husband to collect me."

When Scott and Curtis had opened the doors to the workshop, three tin soldiers were there waiting for them. The soldiers captured the pair and brought them before Toy Santa. Curtis sat tied to his boss by a giant red bow. He looked around the workshop and realized things had only gotten worse in the few hours that he and Jessica were gone. Now all of the elves were locked up in the Pantograph room. Their panicked cries barely audible through the glass doors.

"SCOTT CALVIN isn't it?" Toy Santa yelled in the real Santa's face. Toy Santa was dressed in some sort of military jacket, colorfully decorated too. Santa's famous fur lined coat was gripped tightly between the toy's plastic fingers.

"Yeah." Scott replied. "And what are you suppose to be?"

"A better, stronger version of what you used to be!" The toy tyrant chuckled. "With a flawless complexion, I might add."

"Listen to me! I'm back now. So untie us, let the elves go and give me back the coat."

"Hmmmm...NO CAN DO! It's Christmas Eve! I have coal to deliver! And I don't want those naughty kids to suffer!" Laughing, Toy Santa marched away followed by a pack of his tin soldiers.

"This is all my fault." Curtis sighed now that they were alone. "I thought I could create another Santa. My elfin pride blinded me to all reason. There's only one Santa." He said, looking over his shoulder at the big guy.

"Well, I've done a pretty rotten job." Scott sighed himself. "I didn't check the list twice. My son thinks I betrayed him. My Son-in-law's trapped twenty feet away from me. My daughter's stranded in Illinois. I've hurt the woman I love. I ruined Christmas."

Both men sighed again as flakes of snow started to drift down from the ceiling. Wait a second, snow? Curtis and Scott looked up to see Charlie rappelling down to them. Relief washed over them as their rescuer's feet were planted safely on the ground. All three of them were very glad for Bernard's old gift of climbing equipment.

"Charlie!" His father smiled. "How did you get here?" Without a word Charlie flashed his dad a winning smile. The boy's front molar was missing. He got right to work, untying the father of Christmas and his elf. At the same time the Tooth Fairy landed with Carol in his arms.

"Scott!" She called to him. He turned around, and she flung herself at him. "I got to fly in with the toothfairy!" She remarked excitedly.

"Yeah." He grinned. "Are you okay?" She nodded.

"She, has a beautiful smile." The tooth fairy interrupted. "And if anybody cares, I'm exhausted."

"Thank you for everything, my friend." Santa said, shaking the Tooth Fairy's hand.

"No, thank you!" The Tooth Fairy insisted. "I am, the Molarnator!" With a quick flutter of his wings the Tooth Fairy slash "Molarnator" flew away through the roof window Charlie had rappelled from.

"We have to get this open!" Curtis pointed at the door to the Pentograph room.

"There's a spare key in my office." Scott remembered. "Charlie why don't you..."

"I'm on it, Dad!" The boy assured him. With Charlie's long teenager legs, he was able to quickly bound up the stairs and snag the spare key ring from his Dad's office. "Here I've got it." He tossed the keys from the top of the stairs and Curtis caught them with ease. After only a few seconds more the North Pole's elf population was free. Bernard was leading the charge with many of the tops elves as they rushed out of Pantograph room, expecting a fight.

"Santa!" The head elf breathed a sigh of relief when he spotted his father-in-law amongst the crowd. "You're back!"

"Of course I'm back!" Scott laughed. "You won't be getting rid of me that easily."

"Of course." Bernard nodded. "That's not...that's not what I meant at all. You were gone for so long and I feared...Well I thought...we were worried."

"Carol, meet Bernard." Scott introduced. "Bernard's my head elf, my right hand man."

"Head elf?" Carol repeated. "You're Jessica's husband?"

"You've met my wife already?" Bernard smiled. "Is she here in the crowd somewhere?" He stood on the tips of his toes trying to see above the shuffle of elves. On the far side of the workshop, Curtis was trying to organize the others so that they could take out Toy Santa. He suspected Jess would be among them helping Curtis to arrange everything, but after quickly scanning the room Bernard didn't see his wife anywhere.

"We left her at home." Charlie confessed. "Tooth Fairy couldn't take us all. And she volunteered to stay behind. You know how she hates flying." Bernard nodded before looking up at his father-in-law.

"Santa..."

"Go get her, Champ." Scott nodded.

"We'll be back before anyone notices I was gone." The Head Elf promised before disappearing.