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Disclaimer: I only own the new characters
Chapter 3: Photo Album Memories
Bernard knocked timidly on the door of the room next to his own. From inside, he suddenly heard the scampering of feet and a voice called out, "Be there in a minute!"
He had agreed to give Noel a tour of the workshop and show her all the new things that had been installed in her absence. Needless to say, she was thoroughly impressed with the improvements.
"Maybe 20 years is too long a break in the technology age."
"You were always pretty good with computers and machines, you'll get the hang of it soon enough."
"Geez, I hope so. Maybe you could teach me, Bernard."
He smiled, "I could try. Hey, have you been through your old office yet?"
"Most of it. I noticed that you kept it clean, thank you."
"You told me that you didn't like people in your room too much, but I figured you wouldn't mind your room lab."
"You did however, have to go through my room to get to my lab, so I believe you're on notice."
"Aww c'mon." Bernard laughed, nudging her slightly. She returned with a giggle and shook her head.
"Let's get some food." Suggested Noel, pulling him in the direction of the kitchens. They raced down the hallways, avoiding the other elves with great care while moving at a breakneck speed. When they finally reached their destination, Bernard was trying to catch his breath and quickly doubled over. Noel, who had beat him there, was laughing.
"How… how did you do that?" He gasped.
"I visited a few high schools while on vacation."
"I don't get it."
"Have you ever tried to move in a high school after the lunch bell rings? Complete and utter chaos."
"Were you doing research during your vacation time?"
Noel smiled very sheepishly, "I guess I was."
Now it was the male elf's turn to laugh. This familiar sound brought out Judy from behind the kitchen doors. She was very happy and upbeat as usual, but she seemed to be even more joyous this particular season.
"You guys here to eat?"
"Yeah, do you wanna join us?"
This idea sounded very good to the little elfess, "Let's get a table."
The three made their way to the dining commons. Red and green tables, adorned with splashes of silver, white, and gold were spread out over a floor that had been painted to resemble a snowy sky.
Looking around her, Noel was beginning to realize how much she had really missed this place, her job, and these people. Everything was so nice and pure in this world, the fears, hatreds, and angers of the mortals didn't have any hold here.
As soon as the food arrived, the elves began to eat, but Noel still had a few questions, "So, what's the new Santa like?"
"His real name is Scott Calvin. He worked for a toy company before he pushed the last Santa off a roof and accidentally put on the suit."
"You know very well, Bernard, that Scott did not push the last Santa off a roof Don't worry Noel, the new Santa is one of the best we've ever had. His son's a real sweetie too."
"Do you guys remember the daughter that the last Santa had?"
Both of the other elves smiled as Noel's question brought back the memory of the cute little girl they'd met only a few times. She'd only been six or seven when her father had lost the job of St. Nick to Scott.
"She was kinda lucky I think, she got her dad back. Charlie had to deal with the fact that his dad was constantly living at the North Pole."
"Oh my gosh," Judy rested her head in her hands, "I can't remember her name right now."
"Funny, neither can I."
"I'm sure it'll come back eventually."
Bernard looked at Noel and smiled, as they both sipped their glasses of hot chocolate.
"It really is good seeing you guys together again. The workshop just wasn't the same."
Both of the elder elves looked at her nervously, "What do you mean?"
"The last Santa used to say that you guys could never go anywhere without the other one. Inseparable, in other words."
Judy could tell from the laughter she received in response, that the comment was not really a welcome one. Nervousness and confusion invaded the sound of happiness and the bright red color of Christmas flashed across the cheeks of the pair.
Seeking to change the subject, the little elfess quickly decided to ask Noel a question she'd been meaning to ask, "So, where'd you get your hair done?"
Fingering the tips of her shoulder length locks, it seemed that the older elf had never seen how the blond suddenly changed to a bright red two inches up from the bottom, "I didn't do this to it. I think it grew in because I was away from home or something."
"Nothing else seems to have changed much. You're still the same Noel you were when you left here." Commented Bernard.
Noel took in a deep breath and stared down at her suddenly, very interesting, plate of cookies, "I guess nothing has changed. Nothing at all. I've got to go guys, I'll meet you later, okay?"
After the oldest elf had left the table, Judy turned to Bernard, "Something's not right, she's not the same person."
"She seemed fine to me."
"But she's not as happy as she was before. She looks more wistful and distressed. Maybe she's just been away too long."
"20 years in the mortal world will do that to you."
It was at that moment that Curtis decided to page Judy to ask for her assistance. Mumbling her apologies, she scampered away to an unknown location on an unknown task. She no longer needed to answer to Bernard, and he didn't even think to question her.
Alone, he bit off a small section of the cookie he'd been steadily eating throughout the entire conversation. A short sigh escaped his lips as he felt his emotional weights being pulled. He hadn't wanted Noel to leave, something in him wanted to see her again, to walk and talk with her again.
This scared him drastically, he'd never felt this way for anyone before. It had to be the fact that he hadn't seen her in so many years. 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder' thought Bernard, 'But in what way did they mean?'
Determined to find his more feminine boss, he stalked off, leaving his glass of hot chocolate still full.
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"Alright Quinton, show me this techno machine of yours."
Quinton, Noel's second in command at the research and development center, was busy flipping switches and pressing buttons. He used a touch screen to process the recently entered data. Almost instantly, a blank CD was placed under a laser which wrote a new program onto it.
Noel was impressed, she walked alongside the machine as the CD was labeled, packaged, wrapped, and finally deposited in a bin. She picked up the disc and looked at the cover, "This is almost too much trouble for a copy of 'Kidz Songz'."
"Well, it cuts the production time in half."
"That's true."
A sudden crash turned the heads of the worker elves towards the door. There, picking himself up off the floor, was Bernard. Someone had left a few spare parts out and they had unfortunately tripped up the former head elf.
"Are you alright?" Asked Noel, trying desperately to hold back a laugh at how foolish her co-worker looked.
"Fine, perfectly fine. I forgot to offer you a tour of the workshop earlier, and I wanted to know if you'd want one?"
Noel knew that she'd only left him a few minutes ago, still, she never could resist that pleading expression he wore whenever he needed something, "Sure, let's go. Thanks for the updates Quinton. Keep up the good work!" She called over her shoulder as she strode out of the center.
As they entered the main workshop, Bernard suddenly grabbed Noel's hand and dragged her to the balcony. She soon saw the reason, Santa was about to make an announcement.
"Okay, everyone, I just wanted to let you know that the annual Christmas party is still on schedule and I hope you'll all do everything you can to help with preparations. And of course, I want you all to be there!"
Cheers erupted from all the elves seated below them. Many commented that they were relieved that the work for this year was almost finished. Of course, toy making would begin almost immediately for the next season, but for now, another year was marked and over.
Noticing the time, Noel nudged her friend, "I've got to go back to my room."
"I'll walk you there." He made the gentlemanly gesture she expected of him, and they strode off toward the lodging quarters.
The hallways were always so much smaller when you walked side by side with someone. Bernard deliberately leaned toward Noel, trying to keep her close to him. Why he did this, he really didn't have a clue, but Noel didn't mind the closeness.
"I guess I'll see later or tomorrow, whatever comes first." Came her rather shy voice as she slipped inside of her room.
Bernard mumbled his apparent goodbyes and strode into his own place of residence. He paced a few times before planting his feet firmly before the bookshelf. A new set of cookbooks, a gift from Judy, greeted his eye first, but he had many other types and titles. Favorite Christmas Stories, Christmas Carols, The Official Handbook of Santa's Elves, and, a dictionary.
This last piece intrigued him and he pulled it off the solid oak shelf. It had been a few hundred years since he'd looked at a dictionary, but someone always got him a new one every holiday season. Some elves, for all the toys they made, still couldn't think of decent gifts. Right now though, it was all he needed.
"Okay, let's see lovage, lovat, and love. To have a feeling of great affection or regard; especially, to entertain a feeling of tenderness or passion inspired by intimacy." He slammed the book shut and placed it on a table, "I guess that helps."
The former head elf flung himself onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling. Suddenly, he began to speak to himself, reasoning out loud as he hadn't done in many, many years, "I think I feel great affection, and I do feel a regard for her. I wonder what passion is. Santa said I had a passion for my work, but I don't feel the same way about Noel. I feel, something else for her…" He trailed off, and shut his eyes.
"I love her."
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Noel was looking for her photo album. She pulled open drawer after drawer, clawing through the items in each, searching for the old leather-bound case. When she finally found it, she let her fingers wander over the snowflake pattern on the front. Elves had been the first to mass produce cameras, and as a result, she had photos from the earliest versions to the new digital style. Judy had been kind enough to mail her the updates every year.
The older pictures had begun to yellow, but you could still see them. Pictures of every single elf's first day on the job, every Santa, and every Christmas party. The last Santa had been right, she and Bernard had been an inseparable pair. Every shot of the parties showed the two oldest elves laughing, or talking, or sitting together.
"Maybe I should go talk to him about this year's party." She pulled herself to her feet, leaving the photo album lying open on the floor.
Her feet didn't have far to go before they were in front of his door. She let her shoes sink a centimeter or so into the carpet for a second, biding her time as she rocked back and forth. Slowly, she curled her green painted nails in towards her palm, raised her fist, and knocked against the heavy oak door.
Inside, Bernard raised his head off the bedcovers and stared at the entry way to his room. Lifting himself up, he walked to his door and pulled it open, and nearly fell over in shock, "Noel?"
"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?"
"Sure, why don't you come in?" He moved to the side and gestured for her to come in and have a seat.
Almost warily, the oldest female elf stepped past him, letting her dress edges brush over his shoes. It caught his attention just the way she'd planned, "Actually, it was more of a question that I wanted to ask you."
What else could he do but shrug his shoulders, "Go ahead, I have nothing against questions."
"I was going through my photo album and I noticed that we almost always seem to be together in nearly every picture. Especially in the pictures of the annual Christmas party. So, do you wanna, go to the dance with me this year?"
The new found feelings that had surfaced in Bernard suddenly shocked him to the core. He'd only recently realized that he was falling for this elfess who stood in front of him, and instead of his normal response, something happened he didn't expect.
"We're both already going. Why should we go together?" As soon as that was said, Bernard knew he was done for. His nervousness had taken control of his better sense and his conscious had somehow decided that he wouldn't have to deal with this problem if opportunities like this one didn't take place.
Noel tried her best to conceal her crushed reaction to the news, but the pain crept into her face and Bernard was hurt to see it. He wanted to go with her, so he could have an excuse to hold her, be near her, and everything else the party promised. Before he could even attempt to take back what he'd uttered, she got up.
"I see. I can take a hint then, I'll just be going now."
Noel knew her reaction felt a little more childish to her than she would've liked, but it hadn't been her in control of it. In the hallway, she stood in front the small stretch of hall that separated the doors between their rooms. Her thoughts were incoherent to her, except one, 'Why is this hurting so much?' No tears had spilled from her pretty emerald eyes, yet it felt appropriate.
She sucked in a deep breath and fought her own emotions, but she couldn't ignore the one from her heart. After a thousand years or so of working with this male elf, she'd finally fallen for him. Noel had wondered about love more than once, or at least, more than the other elves. Having more contact with the mortals than most of her co-workers, she'd often watched the kissing couples stroll through snowy streets.
Pure magic flowed through her veins, a sign of her newfound feelings. As the oldest occupant of the North Pole, it was something that belonged to her alone. Her ears picked up a sound in the middle of this 'ecstasy' of sorts. Judy and Curtis, coming this way. Noel really didn't feel like talking to them and quickly brushed past them.
Judy whipped around to stop her, but no protests worked. Noel fumbled inside the drawer of her dresser until she found a familiar item. A sign that warned anyone passing by that the occupant of the room was no to be disturbed.
It was this sign that greeted the faces of Judy and Curtis when they went to knock on their boss's door a few minutes after they'd been ignored.
"Something's not right here." Sighed Judy, looking over at Curtis.
Curtis agreed with her, "Yeah, I hope they didn't have a fight or anything."
"Trust me, we'd have heard them yelling if there'd been a fight."
"What else could it have been then?"
"I think they just added a little romance to their friendship, and it's not working so well."
A laugh came her way, "Maybe you're right."
The couple continued their walk to go back to the workshop. Once the hall was deserted, Bernard stole out of his room to finish his work in the kitchen department.
However, a whole day passed, before they heard from Noel again.
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Disclaimer: I only own the new characters
Chapter 3: Photo Album Memories
Bernard knocked timidly on the door of the room next to his own. From inside, he suddenly heard the scampering of feet and a voice called out, "Be there in a minute!"
He had agreed to give Noel a tour of the workshop and show her all the new things that had been installed in her absence. Needless to say, she was thoroughly impressed with the improvements.
"Maybe 20 years is too long a break in the technology age."
"You were always pretty good with computers and machines, you'll get the hang of it soon enough."
"Geez, I hope so. Maybe you could teach me, Bernard."
He smiled, "I could try. Hey, have you been through your old office yet?"
"Most of it. I noticed that you kept it clean, thank you."
"You told me that you didn't like people in your room too much, but I figured you wouldn't mind your room lab."
"You did however, have to go through my room to get to my lab, so I believe you're on notice."
"Aww c'mon." Bernard laughed, nudging her slightly. She returned with a giggle and shook her head.
"Let's get some food." Suggested Noel, pulling him in the direction of the kitchens. They raced down the hallways, avoiding the other elves with great care while moving at a breakneck speed. When they finally reached their destination, Bernard was trying to catch his breath and quickly doubled over. Noel, who had beat him there, was laughing.
"How… how did you do that?" He gasped.
"I visited a few high schools while on vacation."
"I don't get it."
"Have you ever tried to move in a high school after the lunch bell rings? Complete and utter chaos."
"Were you doing research during your vacation time?"
Noel smiled very sheepishly, "I guess I was."
Now it was the male elf's turn to laugh. This familiar sound brought out Judy from behind the kitchen doors. She was very happy and upbeat as usual, but she seemed to be even more joyous this particular season.
"You guys here to eat?"
"Yeah, do you wanna join us?"
This idea sounded very good to the little elfess, "Let's get a table."
The three made their way to the dining commons. Red and green tables, adorned with splashes of silver, white, and gold were spread out over a floor that had been painted to resemble a snowy sky.
Looking around her, Noel was beginning to realize how much she had really missed this place, her job, and these people. Everything was so nice and pure in this world, the fears, hatreds, and angers of the mortals didn't have any hold here.
As soon as the food arrived, the elves began to eat, but Noel still had a few questions, "So, what's the new Santa like?"
"His real name is Scott Calvin. He worked for a toy company before he pushed the last Santa off a roof and accidentally put on the suit."
"You know very well, Bernard, that Scott did not push the last Santa off a roof Don't worry Noel, the new Santa is one of the best we've ever had. His son's a real sweetie too."
"Do you guys remember the daughter that the last Santa had?"
Both of the other elves smiled as Noel's question brought back the memory of the cute little girl they'd met only a few times. She'd only been six or seven when her father had lost the job of St. Nick to Scott.
"She was kinda lucky I think, she got her dad back. Charlie had to deal with the fact that his dad was constantly living at the North Pole."
"Oh my gosh," Judy rested her head in her hands, "I can't remember her name right now."
"Funny, neither can I."
"I'm sure it'll come back eventually."
Bernard looked at Noel and smiled, as they both sipped their glasses of hot chocolate.
"It really is good seeing you guys together again. The workshop just wasn't the same."
Both of the elder elves looked at her nervously, "What do you mean?"
"The last Santa used to say that you guys could never go anywhere without the other one. Inseparable, in other words."
Judy could tell from the laughter she received in response, that the comment was not really a welcome one. Nervousness and confusion invaded the sound of happiness and the bright red color of Christmas flashed across the cheeks of the pair.
Seeking to change the subject, the little elfess quickly decided to ask Noel a question she'd been meaning to ask, "So, where'd you get your hair done?"
Fingering the tips of her shoulder length locks, it seemed that the older elf had never seen how the blond suddenly changed to a bright red two inches up from the bottom, "I didn't do this to it. I think it grew in because I was away from home or something."
"Nothing else seems to have changed much. You're still the same Noel you were when you left here." Commented Bernard.
Noel took in a deep breath and stared down at her suddenly, very interesting, plate of cookies, "I guess nothing has changed. Nothing at all. I've got to go guys, I'll meet you later, okay?"
After the oldest elf had left the table, Judy turned to Bernard, "Something's not right, she's not the same person."
"She seemed fine to me."
"But she's not as happy as she was before. She looks more wistful and distressed. Maybe she's just been away too long."
"20 years in the mortal world will do that to you."
It was at that moment that Curtis decided to page Judy to ask for her assistance. Mumbling her apologies, she scampered away to an unknown location on an unknown task. She no longer needed to answer to Bernard, and he didn't even think to question her.
Alone, he bit off a small section of the cookie he'd been steadily eating throughout the entire conversation. A short sigh escaped his lips as he felt his emotional weights being pulled. He hadn't wanted Noel to leave, something in him wanted to see her again, to walk and talk with her again.
This scared him drastically, he'd never felt this way for anyone before. It had to be the fact that he hadn't seen her in so many years. 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder' thought Bernard, 'But in what way did they mean?'
Determined to find his more feminine boss, he stalked off, leaving his glass of hot chocolate still full.
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"Alright Quinton, show me this techno machine of yours."
Quinton, Noel's second in command at the research and development center, was busy flipping switches and pressing buttons. He used a touch screen to process the recently entered data. Almost instantly, a blank CD was placed under a laser which wrote a new program onto it.
Noel was impressed, she walked alongside the machine as the CD was labeled, packaged, wrapped, and finally deposited in a bin. She picked up the disc and looked at the cover, "This is almost too much trouble for a copy of 'Kidz Songz'."
"Well, it cuts the production time in half."
"That's true."
A sudden crash turned the heads of the worker elves towards the door. There, picking himself up off the floor, was Bernard. Someone had left a few spare parts out and they had unfortunately tripped up the former head elf.
"Are you alright?" Asked Noel, trying desperately to hold back a laugh at how foolish her co-worker looked.
"Fine, perfectly fine. I forgot to offer you a tour of the workshop earlier, and I wanted to know if you'd want one?"
Noel knew that she'd only left him a few minutes ago, still, she never could resist that pleading expression he wore whenever he needed something, "Sure, let's go. Thanks for the updates Quinton. Keep up the good work!" She called over her shoulder as she strode out of the center.
As they entered the main workshop, Bernard suddenly grabbed Noel's hand and dragged her to the balcony. She soon saw the reason, Santa was about to make an announcement.
"Okay, everyone, I just wanted to let you know that the annual Christmas party is still on schedule and I hope you'll all do everything you can to help with preparations. And of course, I want you all to be there!"
Cheers erupted from all the elves seated below them. Many commented that they were relieved that the work for this year was almost finished. Of course, toy making would begin almost immediately for the next season, but for now, another year was marked and over.
Noticing the time, Noel nudged her friend, "I've got to go back to my room."
"I'll walk you there." He made the gentlemanly gesture she expected of him, and they strode off toward the lodging quarters.
The hallways were always so much smaller when you walked side by side with someone. Bernard deliberately leaned toward Noel, trying to keep her close to him. Why he did this, he really didn't have a clue, but Noel didn't mind the closeness.
"I guess I'll see later or tomorrow, whatever comes first." Came her rather shy voice as she slipped inside of her room.
Bernard mumbled his apparent goodbyes and strode into his own place of residence. He paced a few times before planting his feet firmly before the bookshelf. A new set of cookbooks, a gift from Judy, greeted his eye first, but he had many other types and titles. Favorite Christmas Stories, Christmas Carols, The Official Handbook of Santa's Elves, and, a dictionary.
This last piece intrigued him and he pulled it off the solid oak shelf. It had been a few hundred years since he'd looked at a dictionary, but someone always got him a new one every holiday season. Some elves, for all the toys they made, still couldn't think of decent gifts. Right now though, it was all he needed.
"Okay, let's see lovage, lovat, and love. To have a feeling of great affection or regard; especially, to entertain a feeling of tenderness or passion inspired by intimacy." He slammed the book shut and placed it on a table, "I guess that helps."
The former head elf flung himself onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling. Suddenly, he began to speak to himself, reasoning out loud as he hadn't done in many, many years, "I think I feel great affection, and I do feel a regard for her. I wonder what passion is. Santa said I had a passion for my work, but I don't feel the same way about Noel. I feel, something else for her…" He trailed off, and shut his eyes.
"I love her."
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Noel was looking for her photo album. She pulled open drawer after drawer, clawing through the items in each, searching for the old leather-bound case. When she finally found it, she let her fingers wander over the snowflake pattern on the front. Elves had been the first to mass produce cameras, and as a result, she had photos from the earliest versions to the new digital style. Judy had been kind enough to mail her the updates every year.
The older pictures had begun to yellow, but you could still see them. Pictures of every single elf's first day on the job, every Santa, and every Christmas party. The last Santa had been right, she and Bernard had been an inseparable pair. Every shot of the parties showed the two oldest elves laughing, or talking, or sitting together.
"Maybe I should go talk to him about this year's party." She pulled herself to her feet, leaving the photo album lying open on the floor.
Her feet didn't have far to go before they were in front of his door. She let her shoes sink a centimeter or so into the carpet for a second, biding her time as she rocked back and forth. Slowly, she curled her green painted nails in towards her palm, raised her fist, and knocked against the heavy oak door.
Inside, Bernard raised his head off the bedcovers and stared at the entry way to his room. Lifting himself up, he walked to his door and pulled it open, and nearly fell over in shock, "Noel?"
"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?"
"Sure, why don't you come in?" He moved to the side and gestured for her to come in and have a seat.
Almost warily, the oldest female elf stepped past him, letting her dress edges brush over his shoes. It caught his attention just the way she'd planned, "Actually, it was more of a question that I wanted to ask you."
What else could he do but shrug his shoulders, "Go ahead, I have nothing against questions."
"I was going through my photo album and I noticed that we almost always seem to be together in nearly every picture. Especially in the pictures of the annual Christmas party. So, do you wanna, go to the dance with me this year?"
The new found feelings that had surfaced in Bernard suddenly shocked him to the core. He'd only recently realized that he was falling for this elfess who stood in front of him, and instead of his normal response, something happened he didn't expect.
"We're both already going. Why should we go together?" As soon as that was said, Bernard knew he was done for. His nervousness had taken control of his better sense and his conscious had somehow decided that he wouldn't have to deal with this problem if opportunities like this one didn't take place.
Noel tried her best to conceal her crushed reaction to the news, but the pain crept into her face and Bernard was hurt to see it. He wanted to go with her, so he could have an excuse to hold her, be near her, and everything else the party promised. Before he could even attempt to take back what he'd uttered, she got up.
"I see. I can take a hint then, I'll just be going now."
Noel knew her reaction felt a little more childish to her than she would've liked, but it hadn't been her in control of it. In the hallway, she stood in front the small stretch of hall that separated the doors between their rooms. Her thoughts were incoherent to her, except one, 'Why is this hurting so much?' No tears had spilled from her pretty emerald eyes, yet it felt appropriate.
She sucked in a deep breath and fought her own emotions, but she couldn't ignore the one from her heart. After a thousand years or so of working with this male elf, she'd finally fallen for him. Noel had wondered about love more than once, or at least, more than the other elves. Having more contact with the mortals than most of her co-workers, she'd often watched the kissing couples stroll through snowy streets.
Pure magic flowed through her veins, a sign of her newfound feelings. As the oldest occupant of the North Pole, it was something that belonged to her alone. Her ears picked up a sound in the middle of this 'ecstasy' of sorts. Judy and Curtis, coming this way. Noel really didn't feel like talking to them and quickly brushed past them.
Judy whipped around to stop her, but no protests worked. Noel fumbled inside the drawer of her dresser until she found a familiar item. A sign that warned anyone passing by that the occupant of the room was no to be disturbed.
It was this sign that greeted the faces of Judy and Curtis when they went to knock on their boss's door a few minutes after they'd been ignored.
"Something's not right here." Sighed Judy, looking over at Curtis.
Curtis agreed with her, "Yeah, I hope they didn't have a fight or anything."
"Trust me, we'd have heard them yelling if there'd been a fight."
"What else could it have been then?"
"I think they just added a little romance to their friendship, and it's not working so well."
A laugh came her way, "Maybe you're right."
The couple continued their walk to go back to the workshop. Once the hall was deserted, Bernard stole out of his room to finish his work in the kitchen department.
However, a whole day passed, before they heard from Noel again.
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