Season's greetings everyone! It's close enough to the end of November that I can say that right? Is everyone still staying safe and healthy? I hope so! :) I'm excited to be back with another TSC fic! This chapter fic takes place right after the end of the first movie and will explore Scott's first full year at the North Pole. There will be lots of bumps along the way as our favorite Legendary Figure learns how to balance his new job, his family, and all the responsibilities that come with being Santa Claus. It does take place in the May You Always universe I have going for The Santa Clause movies, though I don't think it's necessary to read that story or Stormy Weather (which is also in this universe) to understand what's happening here. The most important thing from those stories is how the elves' magic works. Basically, the elves magic is connected to Bernard's because the core of their magic comes from a piece of his, that's why he's their Head Elf. It won't really come up in this story too much, because this is focused more on Scott's journey as Santa, but I thought I'd mention it just in case. :) I'm going to give the story a T rating just in case, but I don't think it really needs it at all. Each chapter will take place in a different month of the year. We will be starting at December of '95. If you feel like it, please review! If not, just sit back and enjoy! :)

As with my other stories for this fandom, the title for this story come from an older song. This time it is Dinah Washington's What a Diff'rence a Day Made.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything of The Santa Clause movies, or of Dinah Washington.


1. December '95

Scott wonders in that hazy sleepy sort of way, the kind when you haven't completely pulled yourself from your dreams yet and the world just seems a little bit sillier, if he'll ever get used to waking up to the sounds of enchanted puppets. Their voices are low this morning, and he thinks it has something to do with the grumpy glare he gave them yesterday when one of them had shrieked out a laugh so loud it'd nearly startled him right off the edge of the bed. He hears one of the puppets whisper something that vaguely sounds like his name and the word snoring, and then a flurry of stifled giggles. Scott blinks his eyes open, squinting at the low yellowish lights that resemble candlesticks glowing above his headboard.

He still isn't quite used to waking up in this bedroom, even though he has been for a little over a month now. His bedroom back at his town house is so different than the one at the North Pole. A little plain, the walls painted a neutral off white color, Scott had never taken the time to really decorate it, besides hanging up a few photos of his son Charlie and the occasional one of his parents and some friends he'd made in college. This room, on the other hand, is crammed with all sorts of things. Antique tin windup toys cover the shelves beside hand sewn dolls and old faded photos of previous Santas. A hand painted train set chugs merrily along a track that wraps around his bed frame, twisting up and down the sleigh bed as if it were climbing actual hills and mountains. The walls are painted the deep red of his coat, the wooden trim the green of a fir tree. All the furniture is made from sturdy wood, stained a warm cherry color. Even the floor is covered by a festive silver and gold rug. It seems oddly muted beside the obnoxious clash surrounding it, and yet still looks like it belongs.

The thing he is sure will take the longest to get used to, is the smell.

The air in his bedroom carries the faint traces of a dying fire, burnt wood and just a hint of smoke, which is no surprise because the fireplace is lit for him every night before he goes to bed. What does surprise him is the sweetness. Cinnamon, vanilla, and nutmeg hang heavy in the air. Scott remembers that first Christmas he spent here with Charlie, just over a year ago now, he'd spent a good while in bed just breathing deeply and thinking of his grandparents house during the holidays, when his grandmother would cover the counters with all sorts of pies and cakes and cookies. He never thought he'd get to experience that smell again, that warm, sugary scent that lingered in their house for days, and yet the elves at the North Pole had somehow recreated it perfectly. He wonders if it's just some byproduct of the enormous kitchen just a couple hallways away beside the workshop center, or if the smell has more to do with him being Santa Claus. Like if the scent in the air was made just for him by his Christmas magic, so this place would always remind him of happy times with people he loved.

There's a knock on the door. Scott drags himself up into a seated position as he grumbles out a "come in" and tries to rub the last of the sleepiness out of his eyes with the heels of his hands.

Bernard enters, his dark curls looking a little more wild than usual as they spring out from beneath his green velvet hat at odd angles. There's a younger elf following him. She has long dark hair, several shining beads braided throughout the strands, and atop her head is a shimmery gold crown. Her velvet dress is a deep maroon color with shiny gold embroidery all along the neck and hem. She's carrying a large silver tray heavily laden with a stack of fluffy golden pancakes, a cup of freshly sliced fruit, and steaming scrambled eggs. There's a pot of fresh cocoa and a large silver mug on the tray as well, and Scott can't help his lips tilting into a smile at the warm enticing smell of chocolate.

"Morning, Santa," Bernard says as he takes a step back to let the other elf around him. "This is Abby. I know Judy's been bringing you breakfast the past couple weeks but Abby will be the one taking care of that from now on."

"Good morning, Santa," Abby chirps with a wide smile. Scott gives her a grin in return.

"Nice to meet you, Abby." She sets the tray down onto his bedside table and then picks up the pot to pour him a cup of cocoa. Scott rubs at the back of his neck as he thinks. "You know, I still feel kind of bad being waited on like this. I can just go down to the kitchens myself to grab food. You don't have to bring it up to me."

Bernard huffs and rolls his eyes, but the look on his face is more amused than annoyed. "I already told you, get used to it."

"It's our job to help you as much as possible," Abby explains, "and that includes making sure you eat a proper meal."

Bernard snorts and says with a teasing laugh, "you sound like Judy."

"I'll take that as a compliment. Head of kitchens and in charge of Santa's personal elves? I hope I'll be as accomplished as her one day."

Scott smiles as he takes a long sip of his cocoa. Not too hot and extra chocolate, perfect. He smacks his lips as a question pops into his mind. "How many department heads are there?"

"Quite a few. I know I haven't really given you a proper tour of the workshop yet, but I like to wait until after that first Christmas since things are normally pretty hectic. We can go after breakfast though so you can meet everyone." Bernard says, moving towards the big walk-in closet across from the bed. Abby asks if Scott needs anything else, and when he shakes his head no, she gives him a friendly wave goodbye and heads out the door, calling out a "see you later!" to Bernard. Scott nods his head and turns his attention towards his pancakes.

"Alright, that'll work."

"Good." Bernard starts rummaging through the closet, pulling out the pants and thick red shirt of Scott's Santa suit. "So we'll probably start in Wrapping first, and then make our way to the Stuffed Animal department. We can skip the stables because you already know Larry."

"Right, right... Actually I have a question for you." Bernard hums so Scott takes that as his cue to go on. "Didn't you mention a vacation some time after Christmas? When does that start?"

Bernard sets the clothes next to him on the bed. "January first. The Council of Legendary Figures has to have the post-Christmas conference at the end of December before you go on vacation for three months."

"The who?"

"The Council of Legendary Figures. They're the ones in charge of different holidays and seasons and magic. The meeting's on the thirtieth."

"Okay... and I'm going because..."

"Because Santa is the Legendary Figure in charge of Christmas and Christmas magic." Bernard moves to sit at a workbench across from Scott's bed. He starts absentmindedly playing with some of the tools there. "I'll be at the meeting too."

"Oh, are you a Legendary Figure? I mean, that would make sense. You are the Head Elf."

Bernard chuckles. "No, no, I'm just a magical creature. I can't be a Legendary Figure."

"Why not?"

"Because, magical creatures... well, we're kind of like little pieces of Nature. We're born with our magic. Legendary Figures are living beings who were chosen by Nature to have magic. You have a lot more power and responsibilities than we do."

"Oh." Scott shoves the last bite of pancake into his mouth and then starts working on his scrambled eggs. He swallows his mouthful of food before looking at the boy again. "Well if you're not part of the Council, why are you going to the meeting?"

"The first meeting for the new Santa Claus is really important so I always go in case you have any questions. I've worked for all the previous Santas so I know a lot about how your magic works. The Head of the Legendary Figures knows I'm going to be there so it's not a problem that I'm coming."

"Who's the Head of the Legendary Figures?"

Bernard's face lights up in an excited grin. "You'll see."

After breakfast, Scott quickly changes into the clothes Bernard had grabbed for him, throwing on a warm red and white coat over top. Not the one from his Santa suit, but one very similar in design made of thick wool and lined with satin. He follows his Head Elf through the hallways and past the stairway that would lead him onto the main floor of the workshop. It's a little later in the morning, nearing ten, so he can hear quite a bit of noise echoing down the halls. It's still not nearly as loud as it was before Christmas, but the joyful sound of laughter, the steady banging of hammers, and the humming of machines fills the air around him. Bernard leads him into the Wrapping department. Scott looks around at the large circular room, amazed at all the wrapping paper lining the walls. Shining metallics, cheerful prints, every color from the darkest black to a bright eye-watering pink, the rolls are stacked in precise order on shelves starting from the floor and reaching all the way up to the ceiling. There are several rolling ladders so the elves working in this department can easily reach whatever paper they need. Scott walks into the center of the room, running his hand along a large wooden bin of tissue paper. He lifts a bolt of something sparkly and white out of the bin, chuckling as some of the glitter rubs off and sticks to his hands and the cuffs of his sleeve. Bernard calls out to a girl who looks about twelve or thirteen, with thick raven hair pulled up into a messy bun so it wouldn't hang in her face. Scott can't help the laugh that slips out when the girl barely acknowledges the Head Elf, her eyes briefly flicking up at him before going back to the spools of ribbon she's refilling at one of the long worktables in the room. He hears Bernard grumble "you could at least say hi" under his breath before the shorter boy motions for Scott to follow him.

Herennia, he decides, is his favorite elf he will meet today. She greets Scott with a smile and nod, but it's in a much more reserved manner than most of the other elves. What he likes about her though is the quick-witted, teasing way she speaks to Bernard. Within just moments of them meeting, she makes a quip about the older elf always bothering her when she's the most busy. The boy in question's face glows bright red as he stutters out a response, which only earns him another playful remark. Scott has to hide his laughter behind a cough when the girl's teasing flusters the Head Elf so much he starts to pout. He does decide to save him not too long after though, gently mentioning that they should probably let Herennia get back to work so Bernard can take him to the next department head he needs to meet. They say goodbye and then start heading to their next destination.

The Stuffed Animal department is crowded, not with elves but with soft, cuddly-looking toys in all shapes and sizes. There's a purple elephant as tall as him right by the door, and several overflowing carts of teddy bears, bright yellow ducks, soft fuzzy rabbits, and even a couple alligators lining the walls of the long rectangular room. There's about two dozen cherry-stained worktables with large sewing machines sitting on top. Each table also has a basket of different colored thread and little cushions shaped like tomatoes stuck with pins. There's a young boy with a shaved head and a pierced ear who looks about eleven adjusting the settings on one of the machines. Scott notices his fingers are covered in band aids.

"Theo..." Bernard sighs. The younger boy hears his name and turns towards them, face lighting up in a smile when he spots his Head Elf. The older boy introduces Scott to Theo, and then immediately starts fussing over the elf's hands, which apparently yesterday had only half the amount of bandages on them. Theo just laughs off Bernard's concerns, informing Santa he has an unfortunate habit of accidentally hurting himself. Bernard threatens to reassign the younger boy to a "safer" department, but Theo just snorts and says he knows he's bluffing, because Bernard knows how much he loves being the Head of the Stuffed Animal department and he would never take that away from him. Scott can't help but smile as the Head Elf's lips tilt up into a grin, proving Theo's words true. They don't stay for long, because Bernard gets a call on the radio he keeps hooked onto the belt around his waist. Someone's tinny voice comes echoing over the line, saying something about field elves arriving back home. They say goodbye to Theo and then Scott follows Bernard back down the hallways and down onto the main workshop floor.

There are about three dozen elves Scott has never seen before standing near the Naughty and Nice Center. They all have some kind of bag with them, either a duffel or an overstuffed backpack. Two ELFS teams are standing around chatting with them. Bernard walks up to them and Scott hears him thank the flight squads for bringing the other elves home. Scott walks over to join them and once the new elves notice his presence he's immediately bombarded with excited greetings and questions about how he's liking the pole so far. He tries to say hello to everyone, amazed that he can easily recall every name that is fired off at him. Bernard doesn't give him too long to talk to the field elves as once they've all had a chance to say hello, he ushers them off to the kitchens so they can have a big homemade lunch.

Scott waves goodbye to them, turning to Bernard once they're gone. "You know, I've been worried about remembering all the elves' names, but it's actually been really easy to."

"That's because your magic helps you remember them," the elf laughs.

"Oh, well that's really convenient."

Bernard snorts and starts walking away from the Naughty and Nice Center. "Magic usually is."

"So, where to next?" Scott asks, following him.

"We need to stop by Research and Development. Quintin has some questions about how the new sleigh worked for you."

"Alright."

They walk through the large double doors that lead to Research and Development. Scott always feels a little overwhelmed when he comes in here. There are so many radios and machines and he really doesn't know what they're for or how they work. The one that both confuses and intrigues him the most is the large tower like machine in the center of the room. The walls around its middle are made of frosted glass and there is a ramp on both sides of it leading up to two wide doors. Quintin calls them over to his desk when he sees them, so Scott shoves his curiosity aside for another day. He sits at one of the cushioned wooden chairs Bernard pulls up for them. Quintin immediately starts questioning him about the sleigh. Scott can tell the boy is excited that everything on it had worked so well. He laughs when he's told the best part was the CD, informing Scott the Cookie/Cocoa Dispenser was a hundred percent Charlie's idea.

"How is Charlie, by the way?" Quintin asks.

"He's good!" Scott says, leaning back to get more comfortable in his chair. "He asked me to come back down before his winter break is over so I promised I would."

"When is it over?"

"School starts back up for him second week of January. Which works out because I should be on vacation by then, right?"

Bernard nods his head. Scott watches him start to straighten up the clutter that has overtaken Quintin's desk, the younger boy merely pushing papers towards his Head Elf so they'll get cleaned up too. "Well that'll be fun. What are you guys going to do?"

"Eh, it won't be too fun. I'll have to spend some of the time down there trying to get hold of my real estate agent. I need to sell my house since I'm not going to be living down there anymore. No point in keeping it."

"You can't get hold of him?" Quintin asks.

"No, I'm pretty sure he went out of town for the holidays with his wife to visit some family on the west coast. They normally go every year."

"You know, this is why I told you to get your affairs in order before Thanksgiving." Bernard says, his smile a little smug.

Scott snorts. "Well, I was a little busy thinking I'd gone crazy to bother doing that. Actually, while we're talking about it, I was wondering if there's any way for me to get calls from my real estate agent up here? I know I can call down there, but if he needs to talk to me I'd rather not have to go back and forth from here to my townhouse just to get his messages."

"Of course, Santa. I'll tell Curtis next time I see him to hook the phone up in your office so that all the calls to your house get redirected to it."

"Who's Curtis? I don't think I've met him yet."

"You haven't?" Quintin asks, head tilting in surprise. "How... how have you not met him yet?"

Bernard looks a little sheepish. "I... may have been keeping him really busy this last month."

"Is that why he's been in such a foul mood lately?" the younger elf laughs.

"Probably."

"Are either of you going to tell me who Curtis is?"

Bernard shakes his head, chuckling, "you'll meet him soon. I'm bringing him with me to the Council meeting."

"Really?"

"Yea, I promised him I'd bring him along."

"Okay, then I guess I'll meet him on the thirtieth."

Three days later, Scott finds himself standing in the middle of the very crowded, busy kitchen. Elves are walking back and forth wiping down one of the long wooden tables, setting out pots of cocoa and cups, and putting the last minutes touches on several dozen fresh baked cookies. He feels a little lost, like he should be helping or at the very least giving directions, but he has no idea what needs to be done for one of these Council meetings. He hears the sound of voices behind him, one he recognizes as his Head Elf, so he turns towards the entrance.

Bernard walks into the enormous kitchen followed closely by a young boy with light brown hair and round wire-rimmed glasses. He looks about ten years old and is wearing a striped shirt with reindeer buttons on it. Bernard spots him and Scott sees him motion for the young boy to head his way. They reach him in a matter of moments and before the Head Elf can even greet Scott, the younger boy starts speaking.

"Hi there, sir! My name's Curtis. Sorry we haven't gotten to meet until now, but someone kept giving me ridiculous errands to do-"

"They were not ridiculous! It's stuff that has to get done and you need to learn how to do it," Bernard interrupts.

"I already know how to do that all that! You just didn't want me helping with the last minute Christmas stuff. You never let me help with that!"

Scott raises his voice some so he can be heard over the bickering, "Well, it's nice to finally meet you, Curtis. So what do you do here? Are you Head of a department too?"

"I'm the Number Two Elf," the boy says proudly.

Bernard snorts. "You're the Unofficial Number Two Elf. I haven't set anything in stone yet."

Curtis rolls his eyes and smirks at Scott. "Yea, I've had this job for, like, thirty-five years now. The only reason it's not official is because Bernard's stubborn."

"I am not! Curtis just- just go sit down! Everyone will be here soon."

"Fine. I'll see you later, sir." Curtis leaves to go take a seat at the end of the table.

"He's taking the minutes for the meeting." Bernard explains.

"Seems like the two of you have a pretty fun relationship." Scott laughs.

"Ugh, he drives me crazy sometimes. But, he does a good job, so I can't really complain too much."

"How come he's the Unofficial Number Two Elf?"

"There just... a lot to learn. Number Two Elf means he'll be next in line to be Head Elf if I ever need to step down for any reason. I don't want to rush my decision."

"Well, he seems nice. I'm sure he'll do a great job when it's finally official."

Bernard smiles, but before he can respond the doors open again and a group of people enter. Bernard leads Santa to their seats as the newcomers make their way to the table as well. Scott thought he was overwhelmed before, but he was wrong. He stares at the new people, confused and a little in awe. There's a man in a warm blue coat over a dentist's jacket with toothpaste and toothbrushes sticking out of his front pocket and shimmery blue wings lazily flapping as he walks down the steps. A tall woman with an intricate, flower adorned purple gown and bright golden headpiece walks arm-in-arm with an elderly man with a long white beard that reaches halfway down his chest and a long wooden staff. One man, wearing soft golden-colored pajamas with a matching cap and robe sits down across from Scott, putting his head down onto the table and immediately falling asleep. Another much smaller man flies into the room and hovers near the trays of cookies sitting out, staring hungrily at a plate of chocolate chip. He almost reaches out for one, but the woman shoots him a look and tells him to wait until after they get introduced. The last person to enter... isn't really a person? Scott knows he's gawking when the man-sized rabbit hops down the stairs and takes a seat on his other side, giving him a friendly nod as he straightens the bow around his neck.

"Is everyone here?" the woman asks as she an the older man take the last two remaining seats.

"Jack isn't, but when is he ever?" says the rabbit.

The woman sighs, but nods. "Well, we're not going to wait. If he shows up late then good, if not, I'll just send him a copy of the minutes. Which reminds me, thank you Curtis for taking them for us."

The younger elf grins at her. The man with the tooth brush in his coat leans over from where he's sitting across Bernard. He whispers to the elf, "Yes, it's so much better when you elves do it. Anytime my fairies try they miss half the meeting because they're too busy fighting over the pen."

The Head Elf lets out a snort and then quickly tries to turn it into a cough as the woman gives him an amused, patient look. When she's sure he's settled she turns back to the group. "Now, our first order of business is, of course, greeting our new Council member. Santa, it is so very nice to meet you."

Everyone turns his way to greet him, so Scott gives them all a friendly nod and smile.

"How about I introduce everyone? I am Mother Nature, and this is Father Time," she says, placing one hand on the elderly man's shoulder. "I am the Head of the Council and he's pretty much my second in command. To your left you have the Easter Bunny, across from Bernard is the Tooth Fairy, the man digging into the cookies even though I told him to wait is Cupid, and last but not least we have the Sandman."

She gestures to each one of them in turn, the man called Cupid snatching his hand away from the plate of cookies with a sheepish smile on his face. They all call out hellos to Scott, except for Sandman, who's only response is a snore.

Mother Nature huffs and then grabs a gavel sitting in front of her, slammingit onto the table. "Sandman!"

"Huh? W-what?" he splutters as the loud bang jerks him away from whatever dream he'd been having. "Was I asleep again? What did I miss?"

"We were saying hello to the new Santa Claus," Father Time answers.

"O-oh, sorry," Sandman looks at Scott and gives him a sleepy smile. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Scott chuckles.

"Well, now that we all know each other, let's get started with the post-Christmas agenda. Sandman, why don't you go first?"

Scott listens, a little in wonder at all this, as Sandman starts going over his numbers from Christmas. Apparently, the number of kids that got a full night's sleep on the twenty-fourth was way down compared to every other day of the year, but that was to be expected because a lot of children liked to try and stay up to catch a glimpse of Santa Claus. Scott grins at that. He had seen plenty of kids sprawled out on couches or tucked into sleeping bags in their living rooms, but the only one to actually see him this year was Sera. Sandman also said that almost all children celebrating Christmas had very pleasant dreams that night.

There is a pleased murmuring in the group at this news. Scott hears Easter Bunny say something about how Dream magic is sure to be burning brighter than ever by next year. Once she is sure Sandman is finished, Mother Nature moves on to the next item on her list. Cupid goes over his own numbers, recounting for them in extreme detail all the couples that got engaged over Christmas. By the time he starts describing how Pierre Dubois from Paris hung his now-fiancee's ring on a branch of their Christmas tree- the seventh engagement he's chosen to describe- Scott can tell he is not the only one growing a little impatient. Mother Nature looks torn between cutting him off or letting the man finish his story. Bernard actually huffs and rolls his eyes, slumping back in his chair a little.

Cupid stops mid-sentence, frowning at the Head Elf. "Am I boring you, Bernard?"

"Yes." Bernard says, staring lazily up at the ceiling. "Very much so."

Tooth Fairy snorts at the same time Cupid splutters in outrage. The flying man flaps his wings angrily. "How dare- you can't- ugh, Santa, you need to look into getting a new Head Elf! Preferably once that isn't so grumpy and rude!"

"Oh, can it, Cupid," Bernard scoffs.

"Bernard!" Mother Nature says in shocked disapproval.

"Did he just- oh, I want that in the official record! Write that down. The Head Elf just told me to can it!"

Tooth Fairy rolls his eyes. "Thank heavens someone finally did."

"Alright, quiet." Father Time says in his deep, rumbly voice, banging his staff onto the tile floor for emphasis. They all fall silent. The older man looks at the elf by Scott's side, a disappointed frown on his face. "Bernard, you need to apologize."

Bernard looks like he wants to argue, but after another look from the leaders of the council, he sits up straighter and grumbles out a halfhearted "sorry" to Cupid. The flying Legendary Figure still looks a little put out, but he nods his head in acceptance. Father Time turns to Mother Nature, politely gesturing for her to continue.

"Now then, thank you Cupid for that very... detailed report. I'm glad to hear the holidays went well for you too. It's time though to get on to our next order of business. Father Time?"

The elderly man uses his staff to push himself to his feet. He turns towards Scott, a serious look in his eyes. "As I do with every new Santa Claus, I'm going to tell you about the Escape Clause."

"Escape Clause?" Scott asks.

"Yes. It's a gift from the Father Times of our world to Santa. It's a way for you to turn back the hands of Time and return to a normal, magic free life if you so choose."

"How?"

Father Time motions towards Bernard. The Head Elf pulls out a small red bag made of the same material as Scott's toy bag. He digs around inside it for a moment, before pulling out a large glass ball, and handing it to Scott. It's a snow globe, exactly like the one Bernard gave Charlie a year ago, with a snow covered street, a simple two-story house, and several frost dusted trees. Scott sets it down carefully on the table and stares up bewildered at Father Time.

"What does a snow globe have to do with any of this?"

"Should you choose to use the Escape Clause, all you must do is place your hand on top of the snow globe and say the words 'I wish that I had never become Santa at all.' The magic in the globe will activate and you will be taken back to that period in Time where you first became Santa. This allows you the option to interfere and prevent yourself from ever putting on the coat that gave you your powers. It can be used at any time, but I always ask our new Santa to really consider if he wants this job during his first full year at the pole. The longer you wait to use it, the more it will effect your past, present, and future."

"It can effect the future?"

"Yes. The Escape Clause changes all of Time, not just your past. So over the next year I want you to really think if you want this job."

"I will," Scott mumbles, handing the snow globe back to his Head Elf so it can be tucked back into the magic bag. "I'll be honest, Father Time. I doubt I'm ever going to want to use it. I love this job and all the crazy wonderful things that come with it. I really think I'm going to be around for the long haul."

Father Time smiles at him, the wrinkles around his eyes and mouth crinkling in a warm, friendly sort of way. "Well, I certainly hope that remains true. We're very happy to have you, Santa."

Later that night, the clock on his bedside table reading just past nine, Scott finds himself already changing into his red satin pajamas, a huge yawn stretching across his face. The other Legendary Figures had stayed well after the meeting had ended, chit-chatting with Scott and having their fill of hot cocoa and cookies. He doesn't think he's ever felt so tired after a meeting before, and he'd gone to more than he can count back at the toy company he used to work for, some lasting for hours as they argued over how they wanted to advertise their newest toy. He's just turning down the covers on his bed when he hears a knock on the door.

The enchanted puppets start grumbling about visiting hours when Bernard opens the door. The elf shoots them an exasperated look before facing Scott. "Hey, boss, sorry to bother you. I just need to grab the suit you wore today so I can have it cleaned."

"Oh, right, it's in the hamper." Scott watches Bernard go to grab it, a question he's had since the meeting slipping past his lips. "H-hey, can I ask you something? About the Escape Clause?"

Bernard pauses and then turns to give him his full attention. "Of course. I told you I went to that meeting in case you had any questions."

"Right. Have... have any Santa's ever used it? The Clause, I mean."

"A couple have. I don't remember who. The Escape Clause makes it so they were never Santa at all. Father Time tells me when someone does, though."

He watches an angry cloud pass over the elf's eyes. "Is this a... sore subject?"

"I just..." Bernard begins, letting out a long sigh. "I don't understand how someone can see all the joy and happiness and wonder at the North Pole, and still say no to being Santa."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that with me, buddy. I'm here to stay. Promise."

Bernard smiles at that. A soft, hopeful smile that makes him look like the teenager he so resembles and not like the thousands year old being Scott thinks he might be. "I hope so, Santa. I've got a pretty good feeling about you."