Nina stood in Santa and Mrs. Claus's bedroom, frozen with shock. She had seen the vision quite clearly; the only thing she hadn't been able to see was the person who took Santa. Her nerves shaken up, Nina calmed herself down before leaving the bedroom.
Once she went back downstairs, Nina found Mrs. Claus in the kitchen, finishing up washing the dishes. Nina stood beside her and said, as calmly as she could, "Mrs. Claus?"
Mrs. Claus turned towards Nina and immediately knew something was wrong. "What's the matter, Nina?"
"I don't want you to be alarmed, but I just had a vision...I saw Santa being kidnapped."
"By who?" The elderly woman's expression was troubled.
"I don't know. I couldn't see them, but I saw someone taking him and disappearing with him. Don't worry, though. I'm going to find out who did this."
"You be careful," Mrs. Claus warned, hugging her.
"I will." With that, Nina went outside.
Snow Miser, Heat Miser, Melvin, and Tingler were standing in the front yard, talking. Nina wasted no time telling them what she had discovered. "All I saw was bright light, and Santa being taken and disappearing," she explained.
"That doesn't give us much to go on," Snow Miser stated.
"Except the one who took him probably isn't human," Melvin suggested.
"That's a possibility," Nina said, "but Snow Miser is right. Without knowing who took Santa, we're pretty much still at square one."
Tingler suggested, "Why don't you talk to the Great Ak and ask him for advice? He and the Council may have some ideas on how to find Santa."
"That's a great idea," Nina said. "I'll go to the Forest of Burzee and talk to him. Does anyone want to go with me?"
"I'll go," said Snow Miser.
"Me, too," Tingler said. "We'll use my ring to get us there."
"We'll head back to my place," Heat Miser told them.
"Okay. We'll see you guys later," Nina told Heat and Melvin.
Soon, Nina, Snow Miser, and Tingler were in the Forest of Burzee. The Great Ak appeared before them. "Welcome. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"
"We need your help," Nina stated, getting straight to the point. "Santa Claus has been kidnapped, and we don't know where he is or who took him."
The Master Woodsman frowned. "This is very serious. Let us sit down and discuss this."
The four of them sat around in a small circle. "Please, tell me what happened," the Great Ak urged. "Spare no details."
The others told him what little they could, and Nina finished their story with, "And we have no clues, nothing to go by. Do you have any suggestions?"
The Great Ak sat in silence for a few moments, then finally spoke. "It sounds as if you have been doing all you can thus far. There are great evils in this world, and no one can face them alone. You already have many people helping you, I imagine, but the Council of Immortals will assist you, as well."
"Thank you so much," Nina said, gratefully.
"Good luck to you all," said the Great Ak.
Once they said their goodbyes, the three went back to Santa and Mrs. Claus's home. Nina said, "Let's check and see if Heat Miser and Melvin have come up with anything."
"I will stay here and speak to the animals," Tingler told them.
"Okay," Nina replied, and Snow and she hugged him before leaving in Nina's plane.
Once they landed in front of Heat Miser's castle, Nina knocked on the door. Melvin opened it, looking pale. Nina immediately looked concerned. "Melvin, what's wrong?"
"Heat Miser's gone!" Melvin cried out.
"What do you mean he's gone?" Snow asked.
Melvin stepped aside and let them in. "I can't find him anywhere! I've looked all over for him!"
"Calm down, Mel," Nina told him after they came in. "Where was the last place you saw him?"
"In the kitchen," Melvin answered, holding out his arm and gesturing toward the room he was referring to. "We were talking, and I left the room, and when I came back, he was gone!"
"He's got to be around here somewhere," Nina assured him. "Maybe he went to his mom's."
"He didn't say anything about leaving. He always tells me if he's going out," Melvin said, wringing his hands.
"I'll call her and see if he's over there," Snow Miser said. He dialed Mother Nature's number, and her face appeared on the screen. "Hey, Mom. Is Heat Miser at your place?"
"No," she answered.
The three immediately became confused. "Okay. Can you call here if he shows up?" Snow asked. "We can't find him."
"Of course."
After they hung up, Melvin and Snow Miser were both agitated. "He couldn't have gone far," Nina said. "How about we search the place again? Snowy, you can get around easier. Why don't you go to a few places and see if anyone else has seen him?"
Snow Miser looked unsure. "I don't know, Nina. Something isn't right. I mean, first Mr. C. disappeared, and now my brother is missing. I don't know if I should leave you."
"I'll be okay. Mel and I are going to stay here. You and I will catch up later." She kissed him. "Don't worry about me."
Snow gave his fiancee a small, sad smile. "I always do. Always will."
She smiled back. "I love you, Snow God."
"I love you, too, my little snow angel."
"Please let me know if you find him," Melvin told Snow.
"Will do. I'm sure he's fine. Ol' Hothead can take care of himself," Snow Miser said, trying to reassure him.
After Snow Miser left, Nina and Melvin searched the castle, looking for Heat Miser. They met back up in the throne room. By this time, Melvin was more distraught than ever. "He's not in the castle!" he cried out, dismayed.
Nina gently patted his back. "I'm sure he didn't go far. What were you guys talking about the last time you saw him?"
"We were talking about Santa Claus and were trying to think of how we could help find him," Melvin replied after taking a brief moment to remember. "Heat Miser was going to start baking some bread, and I left the room for a little bit. When I came back, he was gone."
He started crying. "Nina, I'm so worried about him! I love him so much!"
Nina hugged him. "I know you do. How about we go in the kitchen and see if he left a note saying where he was going?"
He nodded, and they went into the kitchen.
There were bowls, spoons, a loaf pan, baking flour, and a red oven mitt on the counters, the makings of a loaf of bread not even started. Nina noticed that the other oven mitt was on the floor, and she picked it up.
Immediately, she saw Heat Miser being grabbed by a figure. Unlike in her last vision, she could see this figure clearly. The figure was tall, paper-white, and slightly translucent, with no defining features. It looked just like Melvin did as the Shapeshifter.
Nina looked up at Melvin in horror, clutching the oven mitt. Seeing her expression, Melvin asked, alarmed, "What's wrong?"
"Melvin..." But she was too horrified to finish her sentence.