"This is it, this is the Fraggle hole," Robin proclaimed, pointing at the large hole in the basement wall. Zachary bent down and glanced inside. "So?" he asked, not convinced, "There's a cave, but that doesn't prove anything."

"Why are you so convinced there's nothing down there?" Kermit had to know, "You'll never see anything if you only look with your eyes, Zack."

"It's just not logical for something so big like a Fraggle colony to exist under our noses without us noticing," the boy pointed out, "Fraggles are just part of imagination like dragons and griffins and…Santa."

"Sheesh, he's really lost his imagination far too young," Kermit whispered softly to his nephew. "Now surely you can't believe Santa's a myth," he told Zachary.

"Then how does he gets the presents around the world in one night?" Zachary asked him, "Tell me how that can be possible? And how come a lot of good people, especially poor people, end up with nothing if he cares that much for everyone?"

"Well, I happen to know Santa does exist," Kermit said, "In fact, a few years back I went around interviewing people on Sesame Street on that very topic and got a number of…"

"Listen," Robin held up his flipper. The distant sounds of bells could be heard coming from inside the hole. "Hmm, that's interesting," his uncle remarked, "Must be some kind of ceremony."

"It's probably just from some house up the road, echoing through the pipes," Zachary still didn't believe it. Kermit sighed and handed him a flashlight. "Just watch," he told the boy, "They'll come out. We have an arrangement. Come on Robin, we might as well tell them it's just about time."

The two frogs walked into the hole and turned right up the large cavern before them. The beam of Zachary's flashlight illuminated the walls around them for a few feet. "Hello?" Kermit called up the tunnel, "Fraggles? It's Kermit the frog, I'm here for Christmas? Anyone here?"

"Do you hear that, Uncle Kermit?" Robin asked him. The sound of a pipe being played could be heard getting closer. Without warning, a large orange-hued Fraggle with red tufts on his head came around the corner, playing on the pipe in question. The frogs jumped in surprise at his entrance. The Fraggle, on the other hand, seemed almost nonchalant. "You're a couple of minutes early," he told them once he had finished his tune, "But close enough. The Festival of the Bells is just about over for this year, thankfully without any hitches this time."

"Have we met before?" Kermit frowned at the newcomer, "I have the distinct feeling we know each other."

"I am Cantus the Minstrel," the Fraggle told him, "I travel the Rock making music. As fate would have it, I've traveled here now."

"Cantus? No, that doesn't really ring a bell," Kermit's words were immediately followed by the sounds of more bells ringing in the distance. "Or maybe it does," he quickly added.

The bell ringing got even louder as five more Fraggles Kermit was familiar with appeared out of the same tunnel Cantus had come up. "It's Kermit," proclaimed the tallest one with the blue hair, "I thought I'd heard him calling. It's wonderful to see…"

"AAAAAACCCCCKKKK!" Boober shrieked out loud, pointing hysterically at Zachary's face peering in through the hole behind the frogs, "A Silly Creature! It's an invasion! Sound the alarm! Call out the Catapult Brigade! Mobilize the…!"

"Relax Boober," Gobo calmed his friend, "It's only a little one. He can't hurt us." He walked without any fear up to the hole. "Hello, I'm Gobo," he announced.

"Are you a…Fraggle?" Zachary picked him up and stared at him intensely.

"No, we're all a pack of poison cacklers," Red commented with a tinge of sarcasm as everyone made their way back out of the hole, "Yes, of course we're Fraggles. So where's the Christmas goodies?"

"It's all upstairs," Kermit told her, "We're going to have a lot of food and songs tonight, and later we're going to break the piñata and go for a sleigh ride and lots of other neat stuff I think you'll enjoy."

"I think we will," Wembley agreed, "Ever since you gave us that brief glimpse of Christmas last year, Kermit, I've wanted to see what the rest of the silly creature holiday is like."

"I too," Mokey added, "I've brought enough paper to write at least twenty new poems on the meanings of Christmas."

"What are these bells for?" Zachary flicked the one in Wembley's hand in wonder.

"We just got done finishing the Festival of the Bells," Gobo explained to him, "Every year at this time we all ring our bells to keep the Rock warm for the whole year."

"And now we all know that the Great Bell at the heart of the Rock will keep it warm no matter what," Cantus gave Gobo a knowing wink. He approached Zachary. "Tell me child, what seems to be bothering you? I can sense you need someone to talk to."

"How can you tell?" Zachary frowned.

"If you keep building your dam tighter and tighter, the water will only rise higher until it bursts," the Minstrel told him in lieu of a direct answer, "Thus, it may help you to tell me what your ailment is."

"Can I trust you?" the boy asked him.

"If you tell me nothing, there's no way I could help you," Cantus pointed out. Zachary nodded slowly. "Only in private," he told him, "I'm not really comfortable right now…you know."

"In that case, I request some privacy," Cantus told the others.

"No problem, I'll the others upstairs," Kermit nodded in agreement, "Come on you guys, the party's just getting started."

"Great, I love parties!" Red practically fell over herself running up the basement stairs, "I'll probably win every game!"

"Do you think she's excited?" Kermit asided to Gobo as they all followed her, "By the way, your uncle showed up already. Says he's got a new postcard for you; I think he was thinking of mailing it."

"Hey look!" Wembley pointed at the windows, outside of which the snow was falling hard again, "The silly creatures all forgot to ring their bells! Outer Space is frozen solid already!"

"Well, so much for the fun stuff," Red sighed in disappointment.

"No, actually, this works better," Kermit told her, "In fact, we'll be able to do loads more if there's a lot of snow on the ground. Although," he realized abruptly, "This would mean the Reisers don't have a chance to get to the airport now if it keeps up like this."

"Who?" Boober asked.

"The little boy's…" Kermit was cut off by the sound of the doorbell ringing again, followed by the person slipping as well. "Careful of the icy patch!" everyone called out yet again. Gonzo, who was nearest the door, threw it open. "Great, it's not the turkey," the whatever said with a sigh of relief, "If he shows his beak around here this year…"

"I think the turkey would be here by now if he was coming back, Gonzo. Come on in, Mr. Storyteller," Rowlf gestured the elderly man and his dog inside, "Was it a rough ride over?"

"It was for the last few miles," the Storyteller shook the snow off his coat and handed it to the dog, "Boy, I've never seen a storm like this. I'll be telling about it for years to come."

"Here, let me get those presents off your hands," Rowlf took them out of his hands, "I'll just go put them over here under the tree by the ones we brought." The dog frowned as he noticed the package the Baseball Diamond was wrapped in. "I don't remember bringing this one," he mused for a moment, but then merely shrugged and went back with the other presents. "Hey, you bring the chips?" he asked the Storyteller's dog, "The rest of the guys'll be starting the poker marathon in the den in about an hour or so—not for money, of course."

The other dog nodded at Rowlf and trotted into the den. As they passed the basement door, Zachary and Cantus emerged. "So, you guys have a nice chat?" Kermit asked them.

"We have talked about believing in the unseen and not holding in our feelings until they hurt," the Minstrel proclaimed, "And he informed me how his greatest Christmas wish is to see his mother for the holidays."

"Well, that's probably not coming to anything," Boober remarked, staring over Earl's shoulder at the TV screen, on which Howard Handupme was showing the weather, "This strange device says we're going to get two more feet of this fluffy white stuff between now and tomorrow morning, since this snowstorm's merging with another one directly overhead of us, whatever that's supposed to mean."

"I knew it," Zachary slumped to the floor, "I knew she wasn't going to come."

"Now don't give up like that, " Cantus tried to reassure him, "A miracle can occur at any time."

"But they don't just drop out of the sky!" the boy protested. It was at this moment that a strange humming sound could be heard directly overhead. "Ah, they did make it," Kermit commented, "And right on time too. All right, welcoming committee to the roof, welcoming committee to the roof."

There was a scramble for the stairs as about a dozen Muppets followed the frog to the roof, where a large spaceship was touching down. With a hiss, the door slid open. Out of the smoke inexplicably pouring from the inside trudged a small elfin figure with pointed ears and a cane. "Master Yoda, welcome to my humble home," Emily bowed down for the Jedi Master, prompting the others in the group to follow suit.

"A pleasure to be here it is," Yoda told her, "Stay here long, though, I cannot. Due on Kashyyk for Life Day celebrations, I am."

"By the way, is that ever going to see a home release?" Scooter inquired.

"Not if the Master anything to say has," Yoda shook his head. A gang of rough-looking creatures followed him off the ship. "Thank God we got through this," commented the small buzzard-like creature up front, "I've had to go the bathroom for the last ten million miles."

"Scred, why didn't you go when we stopped on Neptune!" King Ploobis demanded, whacking his aide hard across the face.

"Sorry your highness," Scred stammered apologetically, "But it's not my fault Crichton couldn't get a rental ship without toilet…WHOOOOOOAAAAA!"

"Careful of the other icy patch!" everyone called out as the residents of Gorch slipped on the spot Yoda had magically walked over without any problems. Behind them came the residents of Koozebane and the Yip-Yips, who also slipped. "Just be careful, no need to rush in a storm like this," Kermit told them all, "In through the window there, dinner should be done in the next two hours or so." He turned to Fozzie next to him. "Boy I'll tell you, you know you're doing good when you get these people to come thousands of miles to celebrate the holidays with us," he told the bear, "Jim would be so proud to see such diversity for peace and love if he were still here."

"And at least the good thing about this storm is nobody's going to interrupt our celebration for anything," Fozzie agreed, trying to catch some snowflakes on his tongue.


Unbeknownst to the large party, the Dry Bandits were at that moment pulling into a large vacant parking garage in Boulderville. Larry glanced around as they reached the third level. The only other cars around were a pair of limos about midway through the structure. He coasted up alongside the two figures in hats, trench coats and dark glasses that were standing beside them. "Top of the morning Ms. Bitterman, Mr. Hopper," he announced loudly as he climbed out of the cab of his truck.

"Could you not telegraph to the whole world that we're all here?" Rachel Bitterman hissed at him, "We agreed we would be meeting in secret! Do you have what we asked for?"

"It's right in the back here, as good as new," Larry gestured for the Riverbottom Gang to fetch the Baseball Diamond.

"You didn't have any trouble getting it?" Doc Hopper implored.

"No, no trouble, no trouble at all, Doc," the Weasel told him, sifting through the junk in the back of the truck.

"Then it's all set," the restaurateur looked upward with a grand look in his eyes behind the shades, "Once we pawn the diamond on the black market, Bitterman International and Doc Hopper French Fried Frog Legs will have enough capital to essentially take over the world! We can buy out politicians, control television and film, corner the world market, anything we please, because we'll be filthy rich!"

"We know that already, boss," the Lizard told him.

"I'm not talking to you!" Hopper upbraided him, "I'm spelling this all out for the readers! They'll need to know what our essential goal is so we won't look one dimensional!"

"So where is the diamond?" Bitterman asked the Riverbottomers impatiently, "You said you had it!"

"Um," the Snake looked very worried as it threw trash aside with no sign of the package the diamond had been in within sight, "Uh, Miss Bitterman, could you take a bit of bad news?"

"YOU IDIOTS!" Bitterman shrieked at them, "HOW DARE YOU LOSE THE DIAMOND?"

"Drat, she guessed it without us giving any clues!" the Pop-Eyed Catfish groaned. Bitterman grabbed Chuck by the collar. "I've been planning this for six months!" she screamed in the bear's face, "You and your moron squad better find it in twenty-four hours, or you'll be a rug on my office floor!"

"Does that apply to us too?" Bo asked innocently.

"Yes!" the businesswoman shrieked at him, "I don't care how you find the diamond, just find it and find it now!"

"Uh, that would be great, except we don't know where we lost it," Bo pointed out, "Any ideas, Larry?"

"I know, we'll retrace our steps," Larry realized. Without warning he blurted out, "Top of the morning Ms. Bitterman, Mr. Hopper," again, and then began walking backwards toward the truck's cab. "Then I put the truck in park," he said to himself, starting the engine again. The rest of his group also walked backwards and joined him in the truck, which began driving very slowly backwards out of the garage. Bitterman and Hopper exchanged frustrated glances as their associates left. "I knew we shouldn't have trusted this to them," the former grumbled.

"No problem," Hopper began dialing his cell phone, "I'm calling in several specialists just in case they screw up again. We'll get that diamond yet."