A/N: And here we have the annual Drill Christmas tale, a slightly different one this time that will be spread across five (relatively) short chapters. It also links back to a "It's a Wonderful Drill Life" from two years ago.
Massive thank you to cakeeatingwingedcat for the idea, I hope I've done it justice.
"I know I don't need to tell you how important this assignment is."
"No boss."
"And I expect you to help each other, especially Lura, this is their first assignment after all."
"Yes boss."
"Right so, any questions before you leave?"
"Just one, what about the older humans? Same as before?"
"Exactly the same as before. Have your fun but don't make things too difficult. This should be a special time for them as well.
"Will they ever come? Here I mean, like you asked her to?"
"Timing my friends, just like we discussed. I met her again at the right time and she will bring her girls to our home when it's appropriate for them."
"Promise?"
"I promise." Nicholas smiled at his four best Elves. "Now, off you go and I'll see you in a few weeks."
As he watched them check their supplies one last time before waving goodbye, he thought about the woman he had met again two years previously. He also thought about his old friends who had not lived to see their daughter and granddaughter blossom and overcome so much, had not met the family she lived for but who would have been so proud of her.
Now that little girl he had first met all those years ago was his friend. Their communication over the past few years may have been irregular, a somewhat unfortunate impact of his lifestyle, but their letter exchanges meant so much to him. He smiled, recalling some of the many questions he had been asked in those letters, questions he could not always answer. Even without being there to see the reaction he knew what his evasiveness would cause, had seen the same frustration in her mother and grandmother over the years. And somehow he had a feeling he would see the same frustration in a certain little girl who, just like the women who had come before her, was born with a thirst for answers and a distaste for ambiguity.
Nicholas was an old man, exactly how old even he wasn't sure anymore, in the role he had been assigned in life age didn't matter very much. But with age came experience and certainty and as a result, he knew one thing. "They have plenty of time to learn and to explore. And like I told those little mischief makers of mine, time to make plenty of visits to our home when they can really enjoy it."
While Nicholas took advantage of the calm and lost himself in his reflections, his workers had arrived at their destination and getting settled in their secret home. It wasn't difficult to stay out of sight, Elves were extremely small after all, with the ability to make themselves even more minute when necessary.
"Come on." Fifo, the leader of the group led the way from their first hiding place in the castle grounds. For a small creature, they moved quickly and the other Elves had to hurry themselves to keep up with them.
"I'm so excited.", Lura, the newest member of the group whispered as they came to a stop. "My very own human."
"You're more than ready.", Trian, who considered themselves a well-tenured Elf, answered with a smile. "Just remember what Nicholas said and don't be afraid to ask for help."
Before Lura could answer they were interrupted by a squeak from Edra, the most excitable member of their team. "I can see them."
Together they peered through the crack at the four girls who Nicholas had asked them to take charge of. For Fifo, Trian and Edra, this was a familiar ritual, however, they still marvelled at how much the girls had grown and admired the new addition to the group.
"What do you think?", Fifo asked Lura.
"I think she's as cute as a button.", the young Elf sighed happily.
Edra looked at their own clothing before rolling their eyes. "How can a button be cute? It's purely functional. She is very pretty though. Look, there's my one, the blonde girl. I like her, she's feisty."
"A bit like you.", Trian observed. "That's my girl there, wearing the pink jumper. She's so sweet and cuddly, clever too."
"My girl is very clever as well.", Edra added quickly.
"There's my charge." Fifo chose to ignore the inevitable squabbling and focus on their girl. "She's, well she's just lovely. Creative, spirited, smart and very loving and kind too ."
There was a sudden silence from the other three Elves and a question that remained unspoken for a long moment.
Eventually, Trian picked up the courage to ask, "How much longer?"
They all knew that Fifo had been tasked with a rare case. It wasn't just that Abby didn't have powers, she was older, and as a result, the other Elves assumed there would be a limit on the time she could remain Fifo's charge.
"Always.", Fifo beamed. "Nicholas said the normal rules don't apply here. These girls will remain our charges. And in the future, when they have families of their own, we'll look after them too. Provided we keep doing a good job of course."
"We will.", their companions promised faithfully, thrilled that they too would get a chance to remain with these humans for a lifetime.
With that discussion out of the way, it was time to get to work. While their role wasn't ever to spy, there was a certain element of observation that they had to do in order to carry out their jobs. There were rules though and Fifo was anxious that they stuck to them.
"Use your Elf-sense and be careful of private moments. Remember what happened last year Edra?"
Edra blushed, they believed it was called kissing. And though the big humans seemed to be having a lot of fun doing it, they didn't need to see it again. "Yes Fifo."
"Good, and remember, we cause mischief, not trouble."
"We can leave treats too can't we?" Trian hoped they hadn't missed any updates to the rules. Mischief was great but leaving treats was the best.
"Of course. Right, let's go back to our sleeping spot for now. We need to get some rest so we can start working properly tomorrow."
The Elves were reluctant but knew Fifo was right. They took one final look before starting to follow their leader back to their temporary home.
"Eeek." Lura jumped as the large creature loomed in front of them. They had never seen such a thing,
"Calm down young one." Fifo tapped their companions arm kindly. "This is our friend. Hello Morgana."
Constance's familiar regarded the four creatures before letting out a soft miaow.
"It's good to see you too and we're very well thank you." It was Trian who responded. "We're looking forward to spending time with you and your family, we had fun last year didn't we?"
It seemed from her purr that Morgana agreed, as did Pixie and Minnie who were close behind her.
"Yes, we'll be here for a few weeks.", Fifo promised. "Plenty of time for fun. Well, the girls will be looking for you so we'd better go. See you tomorrow, come on Elves, it's time to hit the hay."
Fifo and their crew had only just turned the corner when the door opened.
"We were wondering where you were." Abby crouched down so she could give each of their pets a gentle scratch, noticing as she did how excited they were. "We were just talking about Christmas. If I didn't know any better I'd say you were doing the same. Anyway, let's get you fed will we?"
"I wanna help.", Zara shouted.
"We can all help.", Abby sighed. "Well, except Fleur but you can watch can't you?"
"Ahh ahh." Fleur giggled as she was picked up by her eldest sister and carried downstairs to the living area. On the way, she glimpsed something that caught her attention. "Oh.", she gasped.
"What are you so excited about?" Abby asked before giving the baby a kiss. "Are you getting ready for Christmas like we are? I told you, you're going to love it."
"Eeeee." Fleur forgot about what had distracted her and instead watched with glee as Pixie, impatient as always, ran around waiting to be fed.
Meanwhile, someone outside was equally excited. "She smiled at us, did you see?"
"We did young one." Fifo smiled at Lura. "Got good eyes that one. Luckily she's too young to say what she saw, but let's not take any more chances for tonight. Don't worry though, we'll be back tomorrow, I promise."