Author's Note: I'm keeping the ball rolling with Chapter Two! Sorry I'm a day late with this one, but it's an extra long chapter, so hopefully that makes up for my tardiness. Thanks for all the reviews/Story Alerts/Favorite Story hits, everyone. It made my day to see my Inbox so full of positive feedback from all you wonderful readers out there. XD Christmas cookies to all of you!

DISCLAIMER: On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…The rights to "Kingdom Hearts?" Nope, I got two turtle doves instead. Darn it. -.- "Kingdom Hearts" still belongs to Tetsuya Nomura, Disney, Inc., and Squeenix. And of course, I don't own "SantaLand Diaries," either.

DEDICATION: For moon maiden time of course! Since she's amazing and awesome and all that good stuff. :D

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Blog Entry 138
December 1, 2009, 7:42 PM

Today was my first day of work. Well, not really, because I didn't do any actual working, but I get paid anyway, so I think it counts. I learned all of my duties as an elf at SantaLand (and believe me, it isn't all happy smiles and frolicking through the snow like I thought it would be. There's a lot of work involved.) I also got to meet the other elves I'll be working with. And believe me, they're some of the most…interesting people I've ever met in my entire life.

Anyone who knows me well could tell you I'm not much of a morning person. I like to stay up all night and sleep 'til the crack of noon, and I'd do just that if only Roxas would let me. After I'd hit the Snooze button on my alarm clock three times this morning, my darling little brother kicked my door open and dumped a pail of cold water over my head, yelling, "It's already 7:30, Sora! You're gonna be late if you don't get your ass out the door!"

I shot up in bed shouting something about ponies (according to Roxas, anyway, who says I always talk in my sleep and that it's really funny) I got dressed, fixed my hair, and shoved a piece of toast my twin had made into my mouth. This was all while trying to get my shoes on and get out the door, mind you. After I'd finally managed to tie the laces on both of my favorite black and yellow sneakers, Roxas practically shoved me out of the apartment, shouting, "I love you, have a good first day, now don't be late or they might fire you!"

I went down the hallway mentally cursing out all people and things blond and blue-eyed. Whoever tells you that anyone with blond hair is sweet, innocent, and fun is lying through his or her teeth. Sometimes I think Roxas is nothing but pure evil incarnate. (I love him anyway, though.)

"Baby, if I could rearrange the alphabet, I'd put U and I to-oh hey, you're not Roxas!" I looked up to see Axel leaning in the stairwell, his bright red hair practically making my eyes water that early in the morning.

"No, I'm not. Good morning to you too, Axel," I sighed, pushing my way past him down into the street.

"Hey, when you see your brother again, tell him I've got jelly doughnuts in my apartment if he wants one!"

When I finally got to the department store, I was told to wait in a small room on the second floor with a sign on the door that said "Elf Training" until the boss and the training instructors arrived. A bunch of other people were already there, sitting on hard plastic chairs and talking. It was really claustrophobic, with boring gray walls and boring industrial carpeting and a boring poster on the back of the door with "fun" tips on keeping company morale up.

Looking at the other people in the room, I was able to figure out the real reason why I'd been hired to be an elf. It was because I was short. I guess it makes sense from a business perspective…I mean, when you think of elves, you think of short creatures with pointed ears dressed in green, right? But still, it was kind of annoying to think I'd only been hired because I was a little on the small side.

I sat down, and before long I was talking with the only girls in the room, three sisters named Kairi, Namine, and Xion. Kairi was an aspiring actress, and if I were a straight guy I'd probably have been drooling over her perfect hourglass figure. Along with her shoulder-length wine red hair and sparkly blue-violet eyes, I couldn't figure out why she hadn't already gotten a part in a play.

Then I realized that she giggled at everything I said. And Kairi had a very high-pitched, annoying giggle, too. I was telling her about how I'd just moved to Hollow Bastion with my brother and she started giggling like I was doing a stand up comedy routine. "Oh Sora, you're so funny!" She said, shoving my arm playfully.

I hoped she wasn't hitting on me.

Xion was trying to start up her own dojo in Hollow Bastion, and she took the elf job to supplement her own income while that was in the works. She had the same blue-violet eyes her sister did, but her hair was jet black and cut short. She was fun to talk to and more laid back than her sister. However, she was also a lot scarier than Kairi, because she had black belts in eight different kinds of martial arts.

The youngest sister, Namine, barely talked at all. She told me she was an art student, and she spent the entire time we were in the room working in a sketchbook on her lap, her long, light blonde hair hiding her face. She looked like a shadow compared to Kairi and Xion, with really pale skin and sky blue eyes. Still, she seemed pretty normal…that is, until I happened to sneak a peek at her sketchbook. The page I saw was covered in pictures of my face, from all angles-back, front, left, right, up, and down. She'd drawn me perfectly, even down to my messy, spiky brown hair. I would've admired her skill, except that she'd surrounded each image of my face with tiny hearts.

Girls are scary.

The two other guys in the room were Zexion Okazaki and Demyx Watanobe. Zexion was the quietest guy I've ever met in my life. He said hello when I came in and told me his name, and then he didn't say another word. His hair must also be the long sought after Eighth Wonder of the Natural World. For one thing, I couldn't figure out what color it was. It looked like a cross between blue and silver, but I also wasn't ruling out purple as a possibility. He had really long bangs that completely covered his left eye as well. I spent a few minutes trying to figure out if he even had a left eye, but then he started looking at me funny, so I stopped.

Demyx never shut up, but he only talked to Zexion. Or rather, he only talked at Zexion, since Zexion seemed to find the industrial carpeting way more fascinating than Demyx and didn't say anything back to him. He didn't even tell him to shut up. I was kind of wondering if Zexion was going to snap and start strangling Demyx right then and there, because the guy was talking to him about damn near everything. (I wasn't paying attention, but it seemed like the word "sitar" came up a lot.) Demyx was the only one of us who was tall (I guess all the elves couldn't be short) and his dirty blond hair was styled into a mullet straight from the 80s.

He better not go into robbery, is all I can say. Anyone could pick Demyx out in a police lineup by the hair alone.

After I was waiting in the room for what seemed like forever, Xion said, "Hey, are people talking out there?" Everyone, even Demyx, got quiet and listened.

"Boss, I can train the new guys on my own! Why did you have to pair me up with Sephiroth?"

"He's been Employee of the Month for the past six months, Cloud. You, on the other hand, were consistently complained about in our Customer Satisfaction Surveys for having an 'attitude problem.' This is a chance for you to redeem yourself to me. And that's Ms. Saito to you, not 'boss.'"

"Yes, Strife, you'll probably scare away the new recruits if you train them alone."

"Oh, like you won't-"

"Enough, the both of you, or I'll dock your pay." And with that the door was swung open, revealing an angry-looking woman with very short yellow hair, wearing the world's tightest business suit and highest heels. Her bangs stuck up in what looked like two antennae, but the effect was anything but funny. I wouldn't have been surprised to see actual sparks fly from her electric blue eyes. Behind her were two men, one of which was the same Cloud who had interviewed me. He looked even angrier today, and was shooting death glares at the guy next to him, who had the longest silver hair I've ever seen on a man and creepy, catlike green eyes. He was also dressed head to toe in black leather, with enough belts and buckles adorning his clothes that it could have doubled as bondage gear.

"I'm Larxene Saito. I run the Radiant Garden Department Store," said the angry-looking woman. "That makes me your boss. Let's get some rules right now, before anyone here actually starts working. If I hear so much as a whisper of any of you stealing money or anything else from this store, I will dock your pay. If I hear about any of you disrespecting the customers, I will fire you. If I hear anyone talking crap about me, or your fellow employees, I will ruin you." She took a moment to look meaningfully at each of us. When she looked at me, her eyes seemed to burn straight through, right to the bone. I had a feeling I wouldn't be the only one whose dreams would be haunted by Larxene Saito. Demyx was nodding so hard I could hear his teeth clattering together, and Namine had gone paler than before, if that was even possible.

"These are your trainers for today, Cloud Strife and Sephiroth Ai," Larxene continued. "You will pay attention to them. You will learn what your jobs as jolly Christmastime elves entail so that you all can become what passes for competent workers around this place. If I find out that you have been giving either of them trouble…" Larxene left that threat hanging as she turned on her scarily high heel and left, leaving us all staring after her.

No wonder Radiant Garden has the lowest employee crime rate of any store in Hollow Bastion. With a boss like that, I wouldn't steal anything, either.

"OK," Cloud said, running a hand through his spiky blond hair. "Let's get started…"

"Do all of you know why you are here?" Sephiroth cut in.

"Hey! I'm running this training session, not you!"

"Actually, I believe that Ms. Saito put you here to assist me, Strife," Sephiroth turned to Cloud and gave him a huge smirk, which made Cloud flush bright red.

"Listen, why don't you just go back and kiss Larxene's feet some more while I actually teach these kids something useful? Y'know, besides Hair Care 101?"

Sephiroth's face darkened, and he looked for a moment as if he was actually going to hit Cloud when suddenly Zexion actually said something.

"Are you two actually going to train us, or are you just going to stand there all day and fight like imbeciles?"

Surprisingly enough, that actually shut Sephiroth and Cloud up. Who knew Zexion had it in him?

As I said before, the work of a department store elf is not easy. The first thing Cloud and Sephiroth did was to take us on a tour through the SantaLand area that we'd be working in. It spans almost the whole third floor, and it's really something else. All glitter and cottony snowdrifts framing a long, meandering path to a huge gold and velvet throne where Santa sits. Giant fake candy canes and gumdrops line the path, and robot snowmen and nutcracker soldiers wave from around the bases of two brightly lit Christmas trees near Santa's throne. The ceiling is covered in wreaths, holiday ornaments, and snowflakes.

Demyx really liked the SantaLand display. While Cloud and Sephiroth argued over how to correctly operate the snowman and nutcracker robots in case one of them ever malfunctioned and we needed to turn it off, Demyx ran up and down the path at least five times. He looked like a kid on Christmas morning, for lack of a better expression, with a big goofball grin on his face and his blue-green eyes lit up like light bulbs. "LOOK, ZEXY! THEY HAVE A LITTLE GINGERBREAD HOUSE OVER IN THIS CORNER!" He shouted.

I swear I thought I saw Zexion's visible eye twitching. Just in case he lost it right then and there, I started edging away from him. Namine, who was right next to me, followed my example.

Cloud and Sephiroth finally decided that if one of the robots does break down we should just get one of them and not try to handle it on our own. Sounded like a good idea to me, I definitely wouldn't have trusted some of my new co-workers with electronic equipment.

We also learned how to operate a cash register. The main idea of SantaLand is to go down the path, have your kid sit on Santa's lap, and then an elf will take a picture of it. The family can then buy the pictures from the store for the low, low price of only fifty bucks for a glossy package deal, and twenty bucks for a wallet size and a 30x30. Of course, since the pictures need to be processed in a lab, they won't actually arrive until January. Sephiroth stressed that we shouldn't tell the customers this, which led Cloud to start ranting about workplace ethics, which led to yet another argument that I'm not going into because it was stupid.

The cash registers are all insanely complicated. Each one's a big, heavy machine with a million buttons that looks like it came straight out of an old episode of "The Twilight Zone." And the buttons all have to be pressed in the correct order or else a light starts flashing above the register and the alarm starts going off. Of course, the order changes if the customer wants to use cash, check, or a credit/debit card to pay for a slip of paper that promises he or she will get photos at a later date. And heavens forbid they should decide midway through that they don't want the photos anymore. Cloud and Sephiroth argued (of course) on how to properly handle that, so I'm not really sure what to do, but I did gather that it involves calling over at least five supervisors, as well as a nightmare of paperwork. I decided that if I can't figure something out, I'll just say "Screw it" and give the customers their photos for free. Or maybe I can work out a barter system, like the customer can get me pizza from the food court in exchange for their photos.

I've already decided that I'm going to ask Zexion for help if I can't figure out the cash register. He got the correct orders of button pushing on his first try, amazing even Cloud and Sephiroth. Demyx couldn't figure any of it out and started banging his head on the counter in frustration. Xion karate chopped her register at one point, which caused the lights to flash and the alarms to go off. (Cloud and Sephiroth had one heck of a job getting that to stop.) Kairi hit some buttons that caused the cash drawer to burst open and shower her with the cash inside. Then everybody, our trainers included, scrabbled around on the floor for awhile looking for every last bill that fell out, because apparently Larxene counts all the money in the registers at the end of each day to make sure no one's stealing. Namine and I had the same technique. We both gave the register the hairy eyeball for a few minutes, then hit buttons. Half the time we got what we wanted, the other half the time the alarms went off. I'm calling that a success.

As elves, we take turns doing different things around SantaLand. One elf stands at the entrance to lure people inside and greet them. Another elf stands at the exit to guide people out so they don't hold up the line. Elves also take pictures (We all have to be very careful with the camera. Although it's easy enough to operate, customers complain a lot if the pictures don't turn out perfect. Sephiroth and Cloud showed us "photos gone wrong" where all that ended up in the picture was an elf's thumb over the lens or a kid's leg.) And of course we sell the photos as well. Elves also take turns being on "Santa Duty," or standing next to the throne helping Santa Claus out. Cloud and Sephiroth were really vague about what that entails, so I'm kind of nervous about it.

Elves who aren't on any specific duty just walk up and down the lines, chatting to the kids and being nice to them. Cloud and Sephiroth told us to say things like "Have you been a good boy/girl this year?" "Oh my goodness, you look so pretty/tall/smart!" (I don't know how a kid can look smart, but whatever.) "What do you want for Christmas this year?" (Isn't Santa already asking that question?) They also taught us some basic sign language in case we run into any deaf kids. Stuff like "Have a very Merry Christmas!" And "I love you!"

What Cloud and Sephiroth don't know is that Roxas and I learned some sign language because Merlin the landlord is hard of hearing. So I know how to sign things like "Santa's gone crazy and they're going to take him away to the funny farm now." And I could tell that Cloud and Sephiroth were signing "You are a piece of shit" at each other while they were teaching us.

Finally, we were all measured for our elf costumes. A woman from the clothing department, Tifa Lockheart, did the measuring stuff. The costumes are hideous. We all have to wear dark green tights, pointy-toed gold slippers, and a lighter green tunic with red and gold holly leaves on the shoulders and cuffs and a belt around the waist. And of course everyone gets a red stocking cap with a jingle bell on the tip. I guess that's so if the store ever got an employee nuts enough to steal the outfit, they could hear them running away in it.

Getting fitted for the costumes was really awkward, because Tifa has ginormous boobs and they always seemed to be right in my face as she draped me in green fabric. I don't think I was the only one who had that problem, either, because everyone, male and female, was red in the face and wouldn't look at each other after the fittings. This was followed up, of course, by Tifa giving us all a little pep talk about caring for our new uniforms before we left.

"Okay, everyone," Tifa said as she handed us all a Radiant Garden Department Store regulation elf tights, tunic, belt, slippers, and hat. "I want you all to take really good care of these uniforms, because you're not getting new ones if something should happen to these. If it tears, you have to sew it up. If it gets dirty, you've got to clean it on your own time. And please be careful about what you do in these uniforms, because I've cleaned some pretty nasty stuff out of them over the years. Sweat stains, vomit…blood, too, so be sure to watch your calendars, ladies…"

At this point, everyone either went a deep red or, in the case of Namine and Zexion, blanched and looked as if they were going to be sick. We all thanked Tifa politely and then got the hell outta there as fast as we could. I decided to take no chances and get my uniform to a laundromat ASAP.

I was on my way to the laundromat when I happened to catch a whiff of something really good. Inhaling deeply, my nostrils were filled with the smell of cinnamon, freshly baked pastries, and just a hint of hot chocolate. And my stomach took that time to remind me that I hadn't eaten since this morning, so I followed my nose down a few blocks to a little café on a corner, called "Sea Salt."

It seemed to be a popular spot, as every table was full. I managed to find an empty booth by a window, however, and relaxed with a cup of hot chocolate and an almond Danish. It was nice to just take a few minutes to eat and be with my thoughts. The café was really peaceful too, with a warm atmosphere and a low, peaceful murmur of conversation throughout.

"Excuse me, could I sit here?"

"Sure," I said, always the nice guy. The café was crowded after all, and I didn't want to make anyone uncomfortable.

"Thanks." A guy around my age, maybe a little older, slid into the seat across from mine. Once I got a good look at him, I had to take a quick sip of hot chocolate to keep my mouth from dropping open. I burned my tongue a little, but it was worth it to keep from embarrassing myself.

This guy was drop-dead gorgeous. He had a perfect complexion-pale skin, but not nearly as pale as Namine, so it made him look good instead of like a ghost. Shoulder length silver hair that I swear almost sparkled in the dim café light, and sharp, ice blue eyes that focused on me with an intelligent, slightly mischievous glimmer in them. Despite the cold weather, he wore a yellow and white sleeveless muscle shirt. On him, though, it looked good, as the fabric showed every single one of his perfect abs. His whole body just screamed "I work out every day and am damn proud of it!" He had muscles everywhere. Subtle ones though, not the creepy bulging kind you see in professional athletes who have been on steroids for ten years. A white arm warmer graced one perfect arm. I risked a quick glance down and saw ordinary jeans and blue and white sneakers. Still, this guy could have been wearing rags and still looked as if he'd just walked out of Calvin Klein ad.

"I'm Riku," said the drop-dead perfect guy who'd just sat down across from me. Me!

"Uh…" I took another quick gulp of my hot chocolate to get past the lump in my throat. Smoothest move ever. Not. "S-Sora."

"Nice to meet you. Thank you again for letting me sit here. This is my favorite place to come and grab a quick snack before heading home, but during the holidays it's always so packed. All the shoppers, y'know?"

"Yeah." I grinned and felt myself relax a bit. Riku seemed pretty nice. (Nice and good-looking? Unbelievable, right?) "It's my first time coming here, but I like it already. Even though it's crowded, it's still nice."

"You should come here during the summer, then. They make their own ice cream, and it's delicious. They call it Sea Salt, after the café, and it's…well, you'd have to try it for yourself. The taste is hard to describe."

"Sounds good. I love ice cream." You'd have to with Roxas as a brother. The guy's addicted to the stuff. We had cartons of nearly every flavor imaginable at home, and Roxas cleaned them all out weekly. I still don't know how he didn't get fat. The freezer at the apartment is already pretty well stocked now, and we've only been here a week.

"So are you new here?" Riku continued. "No offense, but nearly everyone in Hollow Bastion has been to the Sea Salt Café at some point or another, at least for the ice cream. And I hadn't seen your face before, so…"

"Yes, I'm new here. Just moved to Hollow Bastion with my brother actually. We both graduated from college not too long ago."

"That's cool…"

And before I knew it, time had just flown by. Talking to Riku was surprisingly easy, like talking to my best friend Yuffie back home. I learned that he lived in an apartment with his friend Tidus and that he was originally from the Destiny Islands. But Riku thought it was boring there, so as soon as he got an opportunity he came to Hollow Bastion for college. He'd majored in theater, but it hadn't worked out because he got horrible cases of stage fright every time he had to perform for more than just his class and was reduced to just stammering nonsense words for a few minutes on stage before running off. (He blushed when he told me this. I thought it was cute.) Then he switched to being an art major, and even now he occasionally sells a painting in order to supplement his income. He thinks cats are cooler than dogs and his favorite color is black.

I told him about growing up in Twilight Town with Roxas and about our new apartment, and we shared a laugh over Roxas's new "paramour." I even told him about my job as an elf at the department store, although I was really embarrassed. Telling a guy I thought was hot at a café that I was Christmas elf in tights was not something I wanted to do. But Riku only smiled and said I had a lot of guts to do that. When he said that it felt like my insides had been replaced with warm goo.

Then I happened to glance at my cell phone, and I saw the time on it. It was nearly six, which meant I had to get home for dinner soon or Roxas would start sending me angry texts asking me where the hell I was.

"Sorry, I gotta go," I said to Riku as I got to my feet. "I didn't know what time it was, and my brother's gonna be wondering where I am..."

"It's OK. I have to go too," Riku cut in. "It was really nice talking to you, Sora. I hope I can see you again sometime." With one last smile that made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, Riku left.

Looking those last few paragraphs over, I've realized a few things. One, I've been gushing over Riku like a teenage girl over her first crush. I don't even know if he's gay yet, and already I'm talking like he's my one true love! I'm sure you readers are laughing at this, wondering what the heck is up with me.

Second, why didn't I get a phone number or something from Riku!? I could've called him or something, and then we could have at least hung out and talked some more, even if he wasn't interested in me in a romantic sense. Stupid, stupid, stupid…I just was so caught up in the moment, I guess I wasn't thinking. But I can't help wondering if I'll ever see Riku again. It makes me smile just to think about how he made me feel, all warm and nice inside.

Is this…love I'm feeling now? I wouldn't know. I've never been in love before.

I have to post this and go soon. There's scratching at the door, which means Axel must have let his cat Mr. Stripey out again. This is the third time he's used the "Whoops, my cat got out and mysteriously came over to your apartment, now I have to come over and get him," excuse to hit on Roxas. I don't know if Axel's running out of ideas or if he just likes this one for some reason. We don't know how he's convincing the cat to come over here, either. Roxas has checked the front door a hundred times already, and he can't find anything unusual. I can't either.

Roxas wants me to post this now and get the pepper spray for him. We bought a whole bunch of it in case we had trouble with burglars here, but so far Roxas has been using it all up on Axel to keep him out of the apartment. I wouldn't be surprised if our neighbor starts to build up a tolerance to it soon.

TTFN, and happy holiday shopping!

Author's Note: I'm actually quite proud of this chapter. I hope everyone else finds it satisfactory as well.

As always, please review on your way out. More reviews means faster updates, don't'cha know! ;) And please give me some feedback on how the blog format is working out for this Fic. I like it so far, and I think I'll be using it for most of the story, but I'd like to know what you guys think too.

REVIEW CORNER Thanks for Reviewing: Neo Lady Sakura, Revolution Remix IX, Dlbn, Nekotsubasa, Jellicle-Wishes, Emerald Moonrose, moon maiden of time

See you soon,

~LWD~