Chapter 6

Michelle paused for a minute. She thought she had heard someone call her name. She turned around, but didn't see anyone. Oh well. She shrugged it off and kept going.

Some time ago she had changed direction, and now she found herself once again at the "Take a Picture with Santa" display. Michelle sat down on a nearby bench, and watched as people waited on line while Santa took yet another coffee break. She quietly laughed at them. Those kids had no idea they were waiting so long to sit on some guy in a Santa suit's lap. "They're being tricked, just like I was."

"Well maybe 'tricked' isn't the right word." Startled, Michelle turned to her left. There was Santa, or at least someone who looked a lot liked him. He was wearing a traditional Santa suit, and had a big, round belly. Michelle briefly wondered why he wasn't back on his throne instead of wasting his break sitting next to her. It's probably some guy with a fake beard.

"Oh, no, it's real. Pull it - it won't come off." "Santa" said, as if reading her mind.

Michelle did. No matter how hard she tugged, the beard stayed firmly in place. "Wow, you are the real Santa! You even knew what I was thinking!"

Santa let out a deep chuckle. "Of course. I know everything about everyone, Michelle."

He even knows my name! Michelle thought excitedly. "But what did you mean by 'tricked' not being the right word?"

"Well, 'tricked' is often used when someone is fooling another person in a hurtful way," Santa said as he stroked his long, white beard. "But, when parents tell their kids about me, they're not doing it to be unkind."

"They're not?"

"Of course not. Why would they want to? Could you imagine your daddy doing anything to purposely hurt you?"

Michelle thought about that. "No, I guess not. He's always trying to make me happy."

"And he did, didn't he?" Santa said, "I mean, weren't you happy all those Christmases where you eagerly awaited my visit?"

"I guess I was…" Michelle said. Then she thought about all those good times she had with her family while they made cookies for Santa or opened presents that were under the tree on Christmas morning. "I know I was."

"And yet you wonder why parents let their kids believe in me?"

"Not anymore." Michelle laughed. Now she got it. Parents told their kids about Santa to make Christmas special for them. Believing in Santa created happy memories, memories that wouldn't be forgotten when kids grew older. But one thing was still bothering her. "Santa, why do parents tell their children that you don't exist?"

Santa frowned. "Because in order to believe in me, you have to believe in magic. When most people get older, they try to explain everything, and when they do, the magic dies. They let their kids believe, because they're still young enough to. But then after a while, kids start asking questions, and parents tell them to, well, grow up."

"That's sad. I wish that everyone could believe in Santa." Suddenly, she got an idea. "Santa, would it be ok for my family to meet you? I mean, Stephanie met you once, and she still believes."

"Stephanie Tanner?" Santa paused, as if in deep thought, "Oh, yes, I remember. It was that time your family got stuck in an airport and I came by to make them feel better."

Michelle nodded. "Right. She also said that part of the reason she still has faith is because she saw you fly away in your sleigh. If Daddy, Uncle Jesse, and everybody saw it too…"

"Ho ho ho!" Santa laughed, "Michelle, that's a wonderful idea. In fact, I have my sleigh on one of the mall's garages. Care to come with me?"

She impatiently agreed. Then, Santa got off the bench and started walking towards his sleigh, with Michelle never far behind.

The continued walking for another ten minutes until they reached the elevator. Then, Santa pressed the down button, and they waited. It's safe to say that they got more than a few strange looks from those waiting with them. After all, it's not often that you see Santa taking the elevator.

They went down to the parking level and walked to the wall on the far left. He took a key ring out of his pocket, and went through them. "Ah, let's see…workshop, reindeer barn, the house…oh, here it is." He put the key in the lock, and pushed open the door. Michelle looked inside and gasped.

A huge, red sleigh stood in a cavernous garage. It looked as if it could be on the cover of a Christmas card, with a deep red body and brass trimming. Once Michelle went in further, she could see two rows of four reindeer, all with brown coats and full antlers. Each one had their names on their leather harness, and she looked at them one at a time. "Dasher…Dancer…Prancer…Vixen…Comet…hey, that's my dog's name!" Michelle giggled, then turned around. However, Santa was no where in sight. "Santa?" She called out, getting worried, "Are you there?"

"Michelle? Is that you?" A voice came from the entrance, but it wasn't Santa's.

She instantly recognized whose voice it was. "Daddy!" Michelle screamed, then she raced to the door and gave him a big hug. "Daddy, look – Santa is real! That's his sleigh!"

Danny wasn't alone. Everyone else came into the room, each with a look of awe on their faces, but still delighted to see Michelle. They each gave her a big hug before going over to examine the reindeer. "Michelle, these reindeer are amazing!" D.J. exclaimed as one nuzzled her neck.

Stephanie laughed when Prancer stuck his nose in her pocket. "Yeah, I've always wondered what Santa's reindeer looked like."

"Good to see you, Munchkin." Jesse said affectionately as he scooped her up into his arms. Then he turned towards the girls, "Now, Steph, don't get too excited. They're probably just something one of the stores is using to promote sales."

"But Uncle Jesse, they are Santa's reindeer!" Michelle persisted. "He even told me so himself!"

Danny laughed. He was so relieved to see his daughter, he didn't care what she said. "Sure he did, honey." Not wanting to be apart from her too long, he took Michelle out of Jesse's arms and held her in his own.

"You bet I did." Santa said as he came out of a door, which was on the other side of the room. "They're the best flying reindeer in the business."

Jesse and Danny looked at the newcomer with apprehension. For all they knew, he could be a kidnapper in a Santa suit. "And who would you be?" Danny asked.

Santa just gave him a incredulous stare. He then gestured to his clothing. "I think that's fairly obvious."

"Ho ho ho, very funny." Jesse said flatly. "Now really, who are you and why were you with Michelle?"

"Well, she seemed so down when she was sitting on a bench, I couldn't just help but cheer her up." Santa went over to the sleigh and attempted to sit in the driver's seat, but Nicky and Alex had beat him to it. "Whoa, sorry, Nicky and Alex, but Santa needs to sit there."

As she took the boys out of the sleigh, Becky looked at him with skepticism. "How do you know their names?"

"Because he Santa, Aunt Becky." Michelle stated firmly, "He knows everything about everyone!"

Santa chuckled, "That's right, Michelle. Now, if you'll excuse me, folks, but I need to take a ride home and check up on things. It is only few weeks 'till Christmas, after all."

What a fruitcake. Jesse thought sourly. He was surprised when Joey, who was standing next to him, called out, "Ok, bye Santa!"

"Joseph, are you serious? That guy is not Santa….he's…he's…a nut in a red suit!"

"Jess, will you pipe down for a second and turn around?" Joey insisted.

Jesse did, and, to his amazement, the garage door was opening. Stephanie and D.J. ran to the back of the room so as not to get trampled. The group, all except for Michelle and Stephanie (who weren't surprised in the least), stared in wonder as the sleigh and reindeer rose several feet above the ground.

Smiling, Santa turned around to face the Tanners, "Have a merry Christmas, and I'll make sure to stop by on Christmas Eve!" He gave a cheery wave.

Michelle waved back, "You got it, dude!"

"Ho ho ho!" Santa gave a deep, belly laugh, and called out, "On Dasher, on Dasher, on Prancer and Vixen, on Comet, on Cupid, on Donner and Blitzen!" The reindeer backed up, then flew away, and they kept flying until the sleigh was nothing more than a speck on the clear afternoon sky.