Santa Recycles Christmas - 2020

Here are the first two chapters of a New Christmas Story.

I will be posting chapters each week through December.

Check back to follow the story as it unfolds and comes to a conclusion.

Merry Christmas, David Stevens

Chapter 1



The man known to millions as Santa Claus or Saint Nick or oh so many other names that applied around the world, was currently, on this wet July Tuesday, sitting in a window seat of a trucker’s café looking through the rain at a large metal gate whilst waiting for his lorries to arrive.

David Stevens (an old friend of Santa’s) had arranged for the lorries and also provided their drivers. Once Santa had asked him to help in making a fundamental change to the way the North Pole created Christmas for the children of the world. The idea had bloomed in Santa’s mind when the snow had been falling and his wife had presented him with an afternoon mug of hot chocolate, and an idea. He would love to have been able to claim that he had thought of the change, but in truth, and Santa was always truthful, it had been solely down to her.

Mrs. Claus was an amazing woman. She had grown up in the real world, then one late Christmas Eve she had met Santa for the first time. From there it had happened. The magic flowed and they fell in love, not that evening, not even that week, but over quite a long time. Santa had taken her to his home, and she had been grabbed by the dedication of the elves to both Santa and Christmas. The friendliness of the reindeer when Santa proudly introduced her to them, and then there were the beautiful views of the snow and ice.

Santa had proposed and she had accepted. They had been together for centuries with never a cross word between them. (Umm, depending on who you asked.) Time for the people and creatures of fairae ran differently to the rest of the world and its occupants.

Though centuries had passed, those living at the North Pole, beneath the canopy of invisibility and magic that protected it from casual observers, never appeared to age. Santa likened the effect to time stopping once you entered the North Pole grounds of his home.

The first lorry arrived. It swung up to the gate and stopped. A head with a cap perched on it leant out, a thick, wild and very bushy beard being all that Santa could see beneath the cap. A guard took an offered paper and pointed deeper into the site before handing back the paper and watching as the head vanished within the cab. The engine roared as the truck drove forward and turned out of sight. Shortly another and another and still more arrived. Their drivers each handed over their paperwork, took it back and disappeared into the complex of buildings and roads.

Santa watched the arrivals and shortly their departures with a deepfelt pride filling him as his wife’s idea took a step closer to reality. To his left two men talked in what they thought was private whispers, one had seen the bearded man looking out of the window and pointed out that he looked like Santa Claus. His companion had turned casually (but noticed by Santa though ignored) then when he turned back to his companion, he had said that he agreed. What made Santa smile was the comment that the man would like his job, “as he only worked one day a year!”

If only he thought, if only he sighed before looking back out of the window and finishing a rather inferior mug of hot chocolate. He missed his own North Pole special brew, but duty called, and he always responded.

Satisfied that all was going as planned, he waved a cheery goodbye. He placed a suitable amount of money to cover his bill, along with a Santa sized tip for the waitress, and departed.

He walked a short distance and then turned down a side street, walking on into the world of trade closing in around him. At the base of a deserted looking warehouse he stopped and glanced up. He knew the roof was flat and perfect for his needs. Santa was an expert on buildings and how to enter them. After all, he had spent a great deal of time on roofs.

He blinked, a mist appeared swirling around him, the ground vanished and was instantly replaced by a tar and gravel roof surface, heavily worn by the sun over the many years it had stood here. The road he had stood on looking up was sixty feet beneath him now.

Santa reached into his coat pocket removing a phone. He moved with the times as he always had. Now it was mobile phone, previously it had been a pager and before that, he thought, was best forgotten. He dialed the long committed number from his memory and waited.

“David, everything went as planned. Could you ask Royal if he would collect me?”

Santa ended the call. The less said on mobile phones the better he believed. A few minutes passed and then high in the sky a dot appeared. It swirled around circling the building at a distance, gradually closing until with the back-beat of huge wings the world’s oldest dragon, ‘Royal’, a beast from the very distant past landed a few feet away in a wonderful display of controlled flying.

Santa approached the huge grey dragon, which in greeting lowered its head and extended a massive leathery wing to the ground. Santa boarded via that wing and once seated at the base of Royal’s neck and holding on tight to a collar provided for such travel, he waited slowly breathing out in expectation. The other wing extended, the mighty chest expanded, and Royal launched himself and his companion vertically into the air. One… then two… then a constant stream of wing-beats followed. Far beneath the booted feet of Santa the ground moved as the dragon flew, their destination known to both of them.

The flight passed swiftly, shortly Santa spotted the walls and gates of David Stevens’ manor home. No matter what direction you approached the grounds from you always came directly to the shut gates. Royal flew onwards crossing from one world into another. He was home. He was back in his world. There, (he looked down) before him a ring of concrete waited, inset to a neat shrub lined lawn. He extended his wings whilst tilting the tips down slowing their flight. His landing, as befits a proud dragon of a certain age, was perfect. Santa smiled as David rolled his wheelchair out of his office doors to greet them.

“All went well I presume, as you are both back here,” David called up to the dismounting Santa Claus.

“It could not have gone better. The battle dwarves passed unrecognised through the gate and are even now heading back out fully loaded.”

David smiled. His plan was working and that could only be good. Santa would leave soon, but not until he had eaten and then maybe not until the first of the lorries had returned.

Santa ate a little, drank a little of his special hot chocolate blend, a gift given to David previously, and now the only place outside of the North Pole that such a delight could be found. Santa had a long trip home to come shortly and he decided that despite the budding excitement that filled his thoughts, he needed to rest. So it was that two hours later he was standing beside the wheelchair of his friend David, watching as a column of lorries slowly drove through the distant gates and headed at a crawl up the long drive.

“Time for me to go David if I am to have everything ready for the arrival.”

David nodded, not taking his eyes off the approaching vehicles. Then as though Santa’s words had finally sunk in he looked up, smiled and nodded.

“I had the reindeer made ready to fly. It’s probably a good idea you leave now as I think they might just be getting impatient.”

Santa laughed. Having said a fond farewell to his friend he walked away, crossing the roadway and entering into a barn. David had been right, his team of flying reindeer were stomping and snorting with impatience to fly. The sleigh was firmly harnessed to them and all was set as he sat down on his seat. Santa rarely used the sleigh other than on Christmas Eve, but he had needed it for this trip as nothing could transport him across the world with the speed of those beautiful and very special reindeer.

Santa looked over the raised and eager antler holding heads and watched as the barn doors slid open sideways, a quiet word and movement was felt as the sleigh was pulled out onto the road. Another whispered command and with all their might the reindeer accelerated towards the oncoming lorries.

There was no danger. The reindeer knew exactly what they were doing and Santa trusted them implicitly, which might not mean that the human camouflaged battle dwarf driving the lead lorry would feel the same way. To the driver’s relief the reindeer and its sleigh exploded into the fast darkening sky, with a clap like thunder. They, it, and Santa accelerated towards the North and home. Santa was gone, heading home and invisible as he had switched on Vindec the Mage’s ‘not seen’ pulse emitter. Magic Santa thought was so useful, most of the time.

David watched, a smile on his face at the imagined thoughts of his battle dwarf. Next to his wheelchair the air shimmered, Vindec had arrived. The ‘Mage’, as he was often called, was not that imposing to look at, he being small of stature. He dressed in a long flowing robe as suited one of his magical nature. In his hand he held a wooden staff capped with a brilliant stone that seemed to swirl and change shape each passing second. Other stones lined the trunk of the staff adding their light.

Vindec was clearly seen by the driver of the slowly approaching lorry. An indication caused the driver to turn from the road into a field. Previously Vindec had given his instructions to all of the drivers and now was the time to follow them. He and David moved towards the gate, which led into the grass coated field.

Lorries turned in before them, each then driving a short distance and peeling off. The lorries parked next to each other with their closed backs forming a half circle. Doors opened and from within cabs the men leapt out. Before they touched the floor they changed, a flash of brilliant light followed a swirling of mist. The feet that touched the floor were large, booted and attached to short stubby legs, which when the eye tracked upwards revealed not men but creatures far more ancient.

They were battle dwarves, protectors of David’s Manor home and its residents. Around their waists were slung a short, pointed sword and a dagger held in a leather sheath. A spear materialised firmly gripped in confident hands. Each walked the length of the huge lorries they had driven into this field, arriving at the closed doors they halted.

Vindec muttered unheard words and the lorry doors all opened as one. Revealed within were large bundles, compacted rope strung packs of what could best be described as rubbish. The packs shimmered. As Vindec’s staff raised they shrank until they were tiny neat parcels. The battle dwarves pulled out a large tarpaulin and a rope net from within each of the lorry backs. First, they laid out the net then carefully, to avoid getting snared in it themselves, they laid the tarpaulin atop of the net. Then each bowed, raised their hand and departed to their more normal duties. The battle dwarves had done all and more than was expected of them. Now the rest of David’s plan fell to the responsibility of others, two of whom were currently circling the field and slowly closing in.

From the backs of each of the lorries a dance conducted by Vindec commenced. Tiny parcels lifted from their places and floated gently to the floor, landing and stacking themselves within the tarpaulin. Once each was secured the next added itself to the stack until nothing of the full load remained within the now empty lorry backs.

The double doors swung shut, catches flipped up and over securing them and then the lorries slowly melted away, returning once more to wherever they had originated from. Shortly there were only piles of netting tightly wrapped around tarpaulin, each of which began to shrink still further, until only a tiny package remained where once had been hundreds.

Finally, two further nets materialised on the ground, both neatly spread out before David and the Mage Vindec. The parcels lifted from the ground and spread themselves onto the latest netting, which, when all were placed perfectly wrapped itself around them. Nothing was loose; nothing could fall out no matter how vigorously it was shaken.

From above the circling dragons closed in and landed. Robert, the younger red dragon, approached David and waited, whilst Royal, the most ancient dragon, bowed low to Vindec and also waited. David mounted astride Robert’s broad back, his wheelchair locking into a carrier designed specifically for such a load. Then Royal picked at the larger of the two packages before securing his talons into the net. With his massive leathery grey wings spread he launched himself into the sky. Robert did likewise with the smaller package. With David astride his back he swiftly joining Royal and together with controlled wing-beats they set off into the clouds following the long vanished Santa and his reindeer pulled flying sleigh.


Chapter 2


Jessica, known to her friends as Jessie, was a girl with a secret, which is not unusual for a twelve-year-old. But Jessie was also a girl who knew how to keep secrets. Her secret lived, after a fashion, in her bedroom. Resting in plain sight, to all who looked at it without knowledge for to them it was a rocking horse. To Jessie it was a doorway to a world of magic she and her mother had been introduced to the previous year.

Jessie was at school, or to be more accurate she was standing beneath a tree looking down on a boy who was trying not to look like he wanted to cry. She liked the boy. His name was John and he lived on a farm not far away. He, she knew, was a bit of a loner; mostly because the only time he saw his classmates was at school.

“Are you okay, John?” She enquired feeling self-conscious standing above him looking down. She decided to sit whether he wanted her to or not.

“I’m fine!” He snapped back, which told Jessie a lot because he never snapped at anyone.

“Come off it, clearly you’re far from alright!” She said. Looking into his face and still seeing the lingering trace of tears.

“I’m fine!” He repeated, still lying Jessie knew.

“So, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing!”

Something had to give because soon the bell would go and they would have to return to class.

“Tell me!” Sometimes she could be quite forceful, not often, but sometimes, and this time it worked. John blurted out that they were going to lose the farm. That the water for the cows had dried up because of a new housing development a few fields away and the price they got for the milk had dropped yet again. They had no money left. Apparently, he had heard his father telling his mother and he dare not say anything because they would know he had been sneaking a listen.

Her mother was home when Jessica flew through the front door. Racing along the corridor before bursting into the kitchen.

“No running in the kitchen, hot pans!”

Jessica skidded to a halt, her excitement evident to her mother.

“So, what’s so important that you have to race in here?”

“I have to go and see David. He’s the only one that can help John!” She panted out throwing her school bag onto the kitchen table.

“David! You have to go and see David? Well not until you have had some tea my girl!” Her mother stated and in such a way that Jessica knew there would be no arguing.

Tea eaten. She jumped up from the table kissing her mother and glancing outside to make certain that it was dark enough for her to leave. It was. Night came early when there were high clouds, and high clouds there were everywhere she could see.

“Mum, thank you!” She said.

“What for?”

“For being you, and for not asking me questions!”

“In reality, unless I lock you out of your bedroom I can’t stop you going, but as I have to work tonight I will cancel the babysitter as clearly Lady Stevens will not let you fly home very late at night. So, I shall expect you home in time to go to school, and my girl, you can explain then…”

Jessica turned away a slight smile on her face. Only her mother could be so understanding, but then she had reasons to be. She raced upstairs to change and depart.

Her bedroom was a typical young girl’s bedroom. In one corner, placed on a table, was a neat doll’s house perfectly furnished and clearly loved. In another corner was a floor to ceiling shelving unit filled with paperback books. The most prominent being the complete ‘Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe,’ The Narnia series, by C.S. Lewis. Next to the boxed set was a well-thumbed paperback set, so clearly the owner of the bedroom loved the tale, but hated the idea of damaging, by her use, the best copies. She had gathered them together in assorted pressings until she had the complete tale.

Next to them was a set of small, but beautifully illustrated copies of the ‘The Farloft Chronicles’ by Theresa Snyder and beyond them was a calendar, which her mother had acquired for her. It had become a treasured possession from the second she opened the package for it was signed by the same Theresa Snyder, who was the author of the same Farloft books. It contained illustrations of Farloft, the huge green dragon. A dragon she knew really existed because she had met him.

Tucked in an alcove across from both the doll’s house and the bookcase was a wooden painted, hand carved, rocking horse. It had a red leather saddle and it seemed to be calling to the young girl as she looked around her bedroom. Her clean well-organized bedroom. She glanced out of the only window to see the true dark of night encroaching as the sun set below the horizon. Across from her, the alcove glowed. In her thoughts a voice called to her.

She approached the rocking horse and before she could think of anything she had climbed aboard and was waiting expectantly. Beneath her the muscles flexed as life burst through the inanimate wood. The head reared upward, the legs seemed to stretch, the body fattened becoming rounder and scaly. The rocking horse changed colour as it grew to match her size.

It morphed into the young dragon ‘Silvertip’ made by magic and provided to encourage her story writing by David Stevens and Santa himself. The wings unfurled as the saddle on which she was sitting, deepened. Before she could blink the dragon moved out of the alcove. It beat it wings once and the window before them changed, they were off on another adventure but this time it was to help another person.

The young dragon took a hop, and a step passing through the space where her bedroom window should be but was not. The ground appeared beneath them - a long, long way beneath them - as they burst into the early dusk sky. They were flying! They were free and in both the girl’s mind, and because of that in the dragon’s thoughts was David’s magical manor home. The wings stretched out beating at the air as the girl and her dragon climbed higher, swiftly passing through the clouds bursting into the upper part of the sky, which glittered with the faint glow of distant stars. They turned Southwest. The young dragon’s wing beats increased. It understood its rider’s desire perfectly and so they flew.

They followed the road that led past the recessed drive and gates of David Stevens magical manor home. Without hesitation they flew directly over the gates. Looking down Jessica saw a couple of battle dwarves waving at them. They were welcome here at anytime. David himself had told her so. Had they not been they could not have flown over the gates and onwards through the image of a large house that most people saw when they looked up the drive from the road.

They followed the drive for quite a while passing buildings and a lake and seeing distant woods and mountains, until before them, Jessica saw the lawn she was looking for. A lawn with a concrete dragon landing plinth. They had never actually managed to land on the plinth. Taking off they had mastered; the landings were another thing.

They lost height, aimed and descended, once again missing (and much to the annoyance of David’s gardening fairies she knew) they tore twin lines with twin claws that formed furrows across the surface of the neat lawn. Deeply etched furrows that would have to be fixed ‘yet again’ by the gardening fairies.

They stopped just short of the house and just as the backdoor opened revealing the smiling face of her Ladyship. Lady Susan Stevens as she should be called but her Ladyship to friends.

“Jessica, what are you doing here?” She asked looking puzzled.

Jessica dismounted from her dragon. It, like most young dragons, curled up on the grass and tucked its head beneath a wing and instantly set about enjoying a snooze until it was called upon once more by her rider.

“I need to speak to David. It’s important, very important. I need his help!”

“He isn’t here and won’t be back until late tomorrow at the earliest. Can I help?”

Jessica shook her head trying to decide what to do next.

“Come with me young lady. You look as though you have all the troubles of the world resting on your shoulders.” Here Ladyship led Jessica through the backdoor and then turned right and entered into David’s office. She sat down on a sofa patting the place next to her and waited.

Jessica still trying to sort out her thoughts sat next to her Ladyship and remained silent chewing at her bottom lip.

“Talk, otherwise we will never discover an answer, will we?”

Jessica recognised herself in those words. She had said similar when she had pushed John to tell her what was going on and was so troubling him.

With a deep breath and a quick wipe of her eyes she told her Ladyship everything. She, as a wise adult, listened hard saying nothing until the troubled girl had said all there was to say, then decisively she stood up and crossed to David’s desk. She punched a number on the telephone and waited. A voice, a very familiar deep voice, answered with a cheery “Hello.” Her Ladyship recited all that she had been told and then waited. David, who was the voice on the other end of the phone, said nothing for a few seconds and then in one word he expressed the answer. “Vindec! Call him in and tell him I said to sort this mess out once and for all.”

“I have to go now things are happening here and Santa wants my full attention.”

With a swift goodbye David vanished. Jessica could hear the empty buzz of the disconnected telephone line. She looked up at her Ladyship who was walking around the desk and opening the window. She had something that looked like a blackboard pointer, which she held outside and twirled round and round before returning to Jessica’s side. Before them the air swirled, clouds formed and from within stepped a slightly comical (to Jessica) looking man dressed in all his wizardly finery. Vindec had arrived.

Vindec the Mage listened as her Ladyship explained first the problem as she saw it and also made clear that David approved, and had requested that he, Vindec, sort it all out as soon as he could. Vindec listened in silence. A look of deep thought flickered like a candle in the dark across his face, until with a nod of understanding he looked at her Ladyship and then at Jessica. He sort of smiled and then in a swirl of mist he vanished.

The cold that had filled the room with his arrival and departure vanished, a lightness replaced it. Her Ladyship rubbed her hands together, smiled beautifully and then said, “Well, that’s that done!”

Jessica looked stunned. She had been so worried for John and felt that David had been her only hope and here was her Ladyship smiling with obvious pleasure and saying that the problem was, or at least soon would be, solved.

Jessica wondered exactly what that thought might mean. She found herself wondering what Vindec, the old Mage and wizard, would do to solve John and his family’s problems. She hoped it would be effective and happen very soon.

~*~ 

Vindec looked about his cavern home having returned there to prepare. He needed to see the situation and then to think. As David had stressed urgency, apparently, he would not take long about his investigations. The fog swirled and before him appeared the image of an old, but quite nice (if a little run down) farmhouse. Within he saw the farmer and his wife sleeping. In another room he looked down on the boy. He knew everything. All which had happened flittered into his mind. Vindec used his power well and shortly he had his answers. From there it was for him a simple step to creating a cure for this family’s woes.

The fog vanished and with it the Mage departed about his work. All for those that slept within would soon discover that their lives had been change for the better. Vindec intended to please his good friend David by his concern and attention to detail. ‘Let the magic flow,’ the words echoed around the cavern as the smoke of the Mage’s departure faded, ‘let the magic…’ the cavern fell silent.