𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕤𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕠𝕟 || 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘺𝘧𝘪𝘤

⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ 𝕔𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕨𝕖𝕝𝕧𝕖‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆

"Ticket please."

Johnny came to a stop in front of the train conductor, handing his ticket to him before he boarded the train. The conductor punched the ticket with as much reverence as head the first time. When it was handed back to him, the original letters of M and E were accompanied by an S, I, and an L.

"Smile?" He read, looking up at the conductor for confirmation. "Like when Santa told me to keep smiling?"

"It's up to your interpretation," The train conductor said mysteriously, but he gave Johnny a small wink, and Johnny was pretty sure he was right. "Next!"

Harvey stepped up, presenting his ticket. The train conductor handed it back; it read QUIET. Harvey looked up at the train conductor, a confused look on his face. the train conductor merely smiled and said, "Wise is the man who knows when to listen and when to speak. I think you'll do well to remember that."

Harvey paused for a moment, letting that sink in, before nodding and moving into the train.

Trucy was the next to step up, holding his jacket and her ticket up to him.

"Thank you, little miss." He slid the jacket over his arms before taking her H-E ticket. A wide smile broke across her face when he handed it back to her.

"Hope." She chirped.

"An important thing in today's world." The train conductor tipped his hat at her as she walked into the train before turning to take Aadrik's ticket, reading H-I.

Aadrik stared down at the word HUMILITY. "It says–"

"Ah!" the train conductor cut him off. "Not everyone needs to know everything about you, my boy."

Realization washed over Aadrik's face and he nodded, turning to follow Trucy to their shared seat. Ananya almost missed her cue, too busy chatting with Clove, but she hurriedly stepped up to shove her ticket into the Conductor's hand. The U-P was returned reading SUPPORT; Ananya didn't feel words were necessary, she simply smiled to show her thanks, which earned her a tip of the hat.

"You go ahead," Agnes said, pushing Clove forward a bit. She handed her ticket over and then rubbed sleepily at her eyes; the adrenaline was beginning to wear off. But she still had the smile of a cat that caught the canary when her ticket was returned reading CURIOSITY.

Feli was next, and he showed the train conductor his ticket. "BE what, Mr. Conductor?" He pointed to the existing letters. The other three letters were quickly punched and as he returned the ticket, the train conductor said, "Be brave, Mr. Lamarie."

Felix looked like he might cry at being called brave, but a gentle nudge shuffled him into the train, leaving Agnes as the last passenger. He took her ticket from her, and then returned it. She cocked her head at the word FAMILY.

"Mr. Conductor, how can one person be family? Everyone else got character traits or tips. What does family mean?"

The conductor seemed to know something she didn't when he smiled and said, "You'll know."

.｡❅*⋆⍋*∞*｡*∞*⍋⋆*❅｡.

The next morning, none of the eight children were close to each other. They were strangers, that became friends, and then became strangers again. But they'd never forget each other.

Just like Ananya will never forget waking to her mother in tears at their small Christmas tree. She'll never forget the way she ran to comfort her mother, asking what the matter was, only to learn they were happy tears. Her mother had gotten a promotion. Nanya could only assume this is what Santa meant when she'd have a surprise at home and if she ever saw him again, she was sure she could never thank him enough.

Just like Felix will never forget being called brave by the Conductor, by Santa. The memory would continue to surface throughout his life, every time something scary came up. He woke up on Christmas changed; his father still doesn't understand what happened to change Felix into someone willing to step outside their comfort zone (even if he did have to always have his frog in his backpack, by his side, even well into his teenage and young adult years).

Harvey was met with heaps of kisses from his moms as they opened Christmas presents together; his mothers smiled as he explained his night at the North Pole. Aadrik chose to donate some of the things he no longer needed to children who didn't have permanent, loving homes. To people like Trucy. Not that Trucy did bad in the new year; she settled into her new home, where she grew up with loving adoptive parents. And the next year, Clove did in fact write to Santa for a new sled to fit her new size. As she did for years following. By the time she was an adult, she had an entire collection to pass down to her own kids.

Johnny began to respect his sister's choice of not believing in Santa. It was sad, but there wasn't much he could do. He never stopped believing though; more importantly, he never stopped smiling that infectious smile, that brought light and joy to all around him.

And perhaps the most unforgettable event of all: the moment Agnes woke to her dad's hand on her shoulder, shaking her awake to wish her a Merry Christmas. She had bolted up in bed, almost head butting her father, and wrapped her arms around him so tight, he had to tell her that he couldn't breathe (and even then, she held on for just a few more seconds).

When asked about his surprise arrival, he was told he had gotten random permission forms to return home at midnight, and had taken the first flight back, arriving just in time. When he showed her the letter, it looked suspiciously familiar. It was like a sense of deja vu to see it, and to this day she wonders if it was the envelope Santa had shown the square.

And if it was, she would never forget the boy that used his Christmas wish to bring her Dad home.