(A/N: I do not own Paw Patrol, enjoy! Also, despite the title, this has nothing to do with the Disney Movies of the same name. Fun fact, I never saw those movies so it never crossed my mind when I invented my version a year plus ago, lol)
Santa Paws
Gregory stared at the fire damaged house he used to call home. His parents stood behind him with their hands on his shoulders, all of them semi-frozen in shock. As an early Christmas present, the family had gotten themselves a new stove to replace their old broken one. But instead of making their home safer, it had caused a fire.
"What do we do now?" the mom, whose name was Shelby, whispered to her husband as they stood in the snow.
"Once it is safe, we pick up the pieces" her husband, whose name was Eric, replied dejectedly. At that moment, a Dalmatian wearing the uniform of a Heartland Fire and Rescue Captain walked out of the house and headed towards the family.
"The fire is out," Fire Captain Cinder softly said to the family. "A team is on their way over to make sure your home is structurally safe before we let you back inside."
"Thank you, Captain," Eric replied.
"The good news," Cinder softly continued, "is that the majority of the damage is in the kitchen. There is some fire damage in the adjacent rooms on the ground floor, along with water damage from us fighting the fire. Upstairs, where your bedrooms are, is mostly intact with little bits of smoke damage. We did have to break a few windows in the hallway to vent the smoke but those should be quick replacements."
"At least we have somewhere to sleep and a roof over our heads," Shelby said thankfully.
"In case you don't want to spend the night here, we have a place where you can spend tonight," Cinder softly said. "It is not uncommon for victims of fires to not be able to sleep in their house right after so we already have made arrangements for you for tonight."
"You are too kind," Shelby replied.
"As soon as the Technical team says the house is safe, we'll help you get some things together and take you there on the fire engine" Cinder softly said before turning to Gregory. "How does a ride on the fire truck sound?" Cinder asked with a sweet smile.
"Fine" Gregory mumbled before turning away.
"You'll have to excuse him," Shelby said as she watched her son walk away from them, "this has been traumatic for him."
"Completely understandable and expected" Cinder softly replied, "which is another reason we would love for you to take us up on our offer. We may have something special going on tonight that will help his spirits."
Eric and Shelby looked at each other. "I think we will avail ourselves, Captain, thank you" Eric said quietly as he looked at the receding silhouette of his son, "as much as we may not want to admit it, Lord knows we need help."
Cinder smiled as she keyed the radio attached to her collar. "Dispatch, Light Force 25, Fire is out, awaiting Tech Team for site safety survey. Once complete, Engine 25 will be transporting three to the Fireplace."
"Dispatch copies Medic 25 available, Engine 25 unavailable for non-emergency calls."
"'The Fireplace'?" Eric asked.
"Our little nickname" Cinder softly replied with a chuckle, "I don't want to spoil the surprise but I think you'll like it."
It did not take long for the Technical Team to arrive. In short order, they declared the house safe. Since all their gear was already packed up, the firefighters and fire pups helped Eric, Shelby and Gregory put together an overnight bag for all of them. As soon as that was done, the bag was loaded onto Engine 25 and the family climbed into the back.
"Hey Gregory" Cinder softly called from her perch in the front, "would you like to honk the horn?"
"Do I have to?" Gregory replied uncertainly.
"Well, no," Cinder softly replied.
"But it is so much fun!" one of the fire pups next to Gregory, a brown American Water Spaniel whose tag identified her as Splash, yipped as she pressed against the little boy from the side.
"And it would make us soooo happy!" The other fire pup, a yellow lab whose tag identified her as Rain, added as she too pressed against Gregory, her tail wagging excitedly.
Gregory looked back and forth at the two fire pups giving him puppy eyes and couldn't find it in his heart to say no. Cinder smiled as Gregory leaned forward and honked the horn a few times as they pulled away from the house.
"Best honks ever!" Rain and Splash chorused as he sat back down and they snuggled up to him, tails wagging rapidly. Gregory couldn't stop himself from smiling as he got comfortable with the fire pups. He was so distracted that he didn't see the wink that Cinder flashed his mom and dad.
"We're here" Cinder softly announced after about 15 minutes of driving. The family looked out the front window of Engine 25 to see where 'here' was.
They were greeted by the sight of a fairly large, two story house with trim that made it look like a log cabin. "This is where we are staying?" Eric asked in surprise.
"The Fireplace is maintained by us to help families displaced by emergencies" Cinder softly explained as they all jumped out. "Come on, we made it in time" she softly continued as she led them inside.
"In time for what?" Gregory asked curiously.
"Storytime!" Rain and Splash yipped happily as they dragged the boy inside, much to the amusement of his parents.
Once inside, the boy and pups made an immediate left into a large living room where the fireplace was crackling. Six children were seated around a gentleman who had a big red and green book open on his lap and wore a red Santa hat. Quietly, Rain, Splash and Gregory found a spot to join in, listening to the story.
"Let me get you some food" Cinder softly said to Eric and Shelby, "please, make yourselves comfortable." Cinder gestured to the couches around the edge of the room which held four other sets of parents.
"The end" the gentleman said as he finished the story. "I think we have time for one more story" he continued as he looked at his watch. "And since tomorrow is Christmas Eve, I think we should do a story about Christmas and Santa, would you like that?"
"Yes!" came a chorus of replies from most of the kids. Gregory was noticeably silent.
"I hear a lot of interest in such a story" the gentleman said with a jovial laugh. "But we all know Santa doesn't make Christmas happen on his own. He has lots of helpers to assist him, from the elves who make the toys to the reindeer who pull his sleigh. I have a story about a very special group of his helpers, would you like to hear it?"
"Yes!" called all the children. Gregory again remained silent.
"Well then," the gentleman continued, "let me tell you about the Legend of the Santa Paws!"
"The 'Santa Paws'?" Gregory asked among the mumbled confusion of the kids.
"I take it that several of you have not heard this Christmas legend?" the gentleman asked. Gregory, along with several of the other kids nodded their heads.
"Here is your dinner" one of the firefighters whispered to Eric and Shelby as she handed them plates.
"What about Gregory?" Shelby softly asked. The firefighter pointed to where another firefighter was slipping a plate into the boy's lap. Almost automatically, Gregory started to eat while keeping his attention on the storyteller.
"Well, the Santa Paws are very special" the gentleman said as he launched into the story. "You see, Santa is very busy on Christmas night; he has the whole world to visit, you know. And not everyone has had a wonderful year…"
Most of the kids looked down at their hands, all of them could definitely say that they fell into that category at the moment.
"Santa wants to spend time with those kids; he wants to brighten their eyes in a special way," the gentleman continued. "But he has the whole world to bring joy to and just one night where he can do that. So, since Santa can't bring the special joy he wants to give those kids, he has helpers do it for him. Can you guess who those helpers are?"
"The Santa Paws?" A little girl sitting up front offered.
"The Santa Paws!" the gentleman exclaimed. "Their purpose is to bring some Christmas joy and magic into the lives of children who need it most."
"What are the Santa Paws?" a little boy asked.
"Excellent question" the gentleman said, "it is said that the Santa Paws are puppies who never grew up, whose eyes the magical sparkle never left."
"Magical puppies?" Gregory asked skeptically.
"Magical puppies," the gentleman nodded, "overflowing with love and joy. But I can see you harbor a shadow of doubt. Tell me, whose birthday is the reason for Christmas?"
"Jesus," another little girl answered.
"Precisely" the gentleman replied, "and what did he call on us to do?"
"Love one another," the little girl answered.
"I couldn't have said it better myself," the gentleman exclaimed, slapping his knee, "and what are Santa and the Santa Paws if not a physical manifestation of that love?" There were quiet murmurs among the children and the adults.
"Anyway, it is said that the Santa Paws are magical puppies. How they get from the North Pole to kids is unknown, theories range from they just magic themselves, to Santa drops them off on his midnight flight; but everyone agrees that they come down the chimney.
"When you see one, you'll know because they dress just like Santa. However, unlike Santa who works quickly under the cover of darkness and while you sleep, the Santa Paws either come while you are awake or will wake you up.
"Once they have your attention, they have a knack for knowing just how to bring you joy. It varies from kid to kid but they always succeed. They also drop off the presents that Santa has for the kids. But, they make you wait until morning to open it. Then, when their time is up, they head up the chimney and disappear."
"Where do they go?" the little girl asked.
"Back to the North Pole" the gentleman replied, "but no one knows how they get there. Very few have ever seen them. Well, that is the legend of the Santa Paws" the gentleman said, pulling out a pocket watch to check the time, "and unless I'm mistaken, it is now bedtime."
"Awww!" came the chorus from the kids.
"Now, now, no pouting," the gentleman chuckled, "you don't want Santa to put coal in your stocking, do you?"
Immediately, all the children, except Gregory disappeared, eliciting a chuckle from the parents as they followed their kids to their rooms.
"Here, let me show you to your room" the gentleman said as he led Gregory, Eric and Shelby up the stairs. "So did you like the story?" he asked as they climbed.
"It was interesting," Gregory said noncommittally.
"Well, you have a choice to make," the gentleman said as he opened a door for them. The room had a single bed and a couch with a fold out bed. Their stuff had already been delivered. It wasn't fancy, but it was warm and inviting. "You can choose to believe, or not" the gentleman said, "but your belief doesn't change whether it is true or not."
Gregory considered that as he brushed his teeth and laid down to sleep.
Gregory awoke to enticing smells penetrating his nose. His parents woke up as well. "What is that appetizing smell?" Shelby asked.
"Smells like eggs, sausage and bacon" Gregory offered.
"Then let's get dressed and investigate," Eric said. The three of them threw clothes on and went downstairs. They found the other families already serving themselves plates of food from big trays that had been left. "Where did all this come from?" Eric asked one of the other dads.
"One of the fire engines came by and dropped it off," he said."
"Which one?" Gregory asked.
"23 I think it was," the other dad replied. "They just left, sorry you missed them."
Gregory was sad, both that he missed them and that it wasn't the crew that had brought them in last night; he had enjoyed spending time with the fire pups. But the food smelled so good that he quickly forgot his sadness as he gobbled the food ravenously.
After breakfast, the family took a cab back to their house. As they inspected everything, the full scope of the damage really began to sink in. Every step seemed to come with a crinkle and a puff of ash being stirred up. The kitchen was fully gutted with the exception of the exterior walls. Inside, while most of the actual damage was on the walls adjoining the kitchen, many of the things in those rooms were also effectively destroyed by fire, smoke or water. Upstairs was better, with only the hallway showing visible signs of smoke damage. But their rooms still smelled of smoke so they opened windows to try and get some ventilation.
Shortly after they started looking around, an insurance adjuster came by and looked through everything as well. "The good news is that it is salvageable," he explained to them. "The downside is that it will probably take some time, especially since tomorrow is Christmas. I can get someone out here to do the estimating in a couple days. I'll also have a dumpster delivered today so you can start clearing out damaged items, just don't mess with the walls or anything structural."
"Will we be able to stay anywhere while this is happening?" Eric asked.
"That is more bad news" the adjuster said, "because it is not a total loss, the exterior walls are intact, and the bedrooms in particular are usable, we can't authorize a hotel for you. The good news is that you will get some money to help pay for food since you have no place to store or cook food."
"Well, that is something," Eric replied, "thank you."
The family spent the rest of the day cleaning out the house and moving debris to the dumpster. Gregory didn't really enjoy the work but it did make him feel a little better. Up until this point he had felt helpless but helping with the clean up made him feel like he was contributing, at least a little bit.
"What are we going to do for dinner?" Gregory asked as the sun began to set.
"The Fire Department invited us back for dinner tonight, as well as all of Christmas day" his dad explained.
"Great, let's go," his mom said. The family hopped in their car and drove back to The Fireplace.
Dinner was excellent, served up by a different team of firefighters than the previous night. Again, after dinner the kids clustered around the gentleman to listen to a story. There were more kids than the night before.
"Tonight is very special" the gentleman explained, "I'm going to tell the story of Jesus."
"A long time ago, more than two thousand years, there lived a woman named Mary. Mary was not married but betrothed to a man named Joseph. God sent an angel named Gabriel to Mary who said to her 'Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.'
"Now Mary had never experienced anything like this before and was afraid. But Gabriel said to her 'Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.' Gabriel further explained that Jesus would be the Messiah, or savior, of his people as had been foretold.
"'How can this be?' Mary asked 'since I am a virgin?'"
"'The Holy Spirit will come upon you' Gabriel explained, 'and the power of God will overshadow you. This is so that the baby born to you will be called the Son of God. Your relative, Elizabeth, who is old and everyone has said is unable to have a child, is in her sixth month because no word from God will ever fail.'
"Mary was awestruck and replied 'I am the Lord's servant. May your words to me be fulfilled.' Gabriel then left Mary. Mary left her home and went to see Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary greeting her, the baby in her womb leapt for joy!
"After some time, Mary went back home. When she came home, her fiancé Joseph realized that she was pregnant and greatly troubled because he did not know what had happened. So he planned to divorce her quietly so as to be faithful to the law of their people but not expose her to public disgrace. But an angel appeared to him and said 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.' Joseph was awestruck and did as God commanded.
"Now at that time, it was ordered that a census was to be taken. This meant that everyone had to go to the hometown of their family to register. So, Joseph took Mary, who was very pregnant, to a town called Bethlehem because he belonged to the line of David. When they arrived, they had no place to stay because so many people had come. One night, the time came for Mary to give birth so they went to the only place with space, a stable where animals were kept. It was there that Mary gave birth to Jesus. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, a trough where hay was kept to feed the animals.
"That night, there were shepherds in the fields nearby keeping watch over their flocks of sheep. An angel appeared to the shepherds and the glory of the Lord shone all around them, making the night like day, and they were very scared! But the angel said to them 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all people. Today, in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord! This will be a sign to you: you will find the baby wrapped in cloth and lying in a manger.'
"Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God saying 'Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!' When the angels had gone up into heaven, the shepherds went to see this miracle that had happened.
"The shepherds found Jesus exactly as the angel had said, they shared what the angel had said with everyone, glorifying and praising God for what they had heard and seen. But Mary treasured and pondered all these things in her heart."
"And that is the story of Jesus's birth" the gentleman finished. "Now, all of you kiddos need to scoot on to bed so Santa can come!" Just like the night before, all the kids quickly vanished.
"Are we staying here again tonight?" Gregory asked his dad.
"Unfortunately, no" Eric replied, "Another family lost their whole house today so I said we could stay in our own home. But don't worry, we'll be back here tomorrow to celebrate with everyone."
"Ok" Gregory sadly replied. With that, the three of them went home and went to bed. Gregory didn't fall asleep, however. Nothing he did seemed to make him sleepy. So, he just laid there in bed. He was just starting to fall asleep when…
*Crash! Bang! Splat!*
"I'm good!"
Gregory was perplexed as to what was going on and so he got up and headed downstairs to investigate.
As he came down the stairs, he saw a pup, dressed up like Santa, looking around the downstairs in confusion.
"Hello? Is anyone here?" the pup called out.
"Who are you?" Gregory asked as he finished coming down the stairs.
"Ah, there you!" the pup yipped happily. "Is your name Gregory?"
"Umm, yes, it is," Gregory said hesitantly.
"Wonderful! I have a very special delivery for you from Santa" the pup said happily before looking around. "But I think we might need to do a little bit of cleaning up first."
"Yeah, we had a fire two nights ago" Gregory sadly informed the pup.
"Yes, you did," the pup said gravely, "Which is part of why I'm here. Your Christmas spirit is dangerously low."
"I don't believe in Santa Claus," Gregory responded.
The pup turned to face him. "Do you believe in the Santa Paws?" the pup softly asked.
Gregory shook his head no.
"Well, then it is a good thing that neither Santa nor I need you to believe in us in order for our magic to work!" the pup yipped happily. "And since you don't believe, I can do whatever I want!"
"I'm not sure I like the sound of that," Gregory said warily.
The Santa Pup just grinned mischievously as he walked over to a pile of ash off to the side of the fireplace. "I think I'll start here" he said. With that, he patted the pile of ash the same way you would pat a child on the head. Immediately, a Christmas tree sprang up out of the pile!
Gregory was startled to say the least. But the Santa Pup seemed not to notice and began to hum as he pulled an electrical extension cord out of his sleeve and plugged it into the base of the tree. Carefully, he walked backwards, feeding the cord out of his sleeve as he went.
"Where are you going?" Gregory asked.
"To plug this in upstairs" the Santa Pup replied. I don't want to risk causing another problem by plugging it into an outlet down here that might have been damaged by the fire. The Santa Pup slowly continued to feed the extension cord out of his sleeve as he backed up the stairs.
"But if you are magic, can't you just light the tree yourself?" Gregory asked.
The Santa Pup stopped and looked at him. "I could" the Santa Pup said, "but then it would go out when I left and I want your tree to light up all night long!" With that, the Santa Pup clapped his paws together. Immediately, the tree lit up, momentarily blinding Gregory with the dazzling light.
The Santa Pup continued up the stairs until he got to an outlet at the top. He clapped his paws together again and the lights on the tree extinguished. "You always need to be careful with electricity," the Santa Pup explained. "Always plug electrical things in from the load, in the case of the lights on the tree, to the source, like this electrical outlet." The Santa Pup plugged the extension cord into the wall. The tree lit up again, this time at a much more manageable level, but still brighter than most trees.
"Perfect," the Santa Pup said, "Now, let's hang some lights…"
"I really don't think that is necessary" Gregory stammered.
"You don't believe in me, remember?" the Santa Pup replied with a happy snark, "so nothing I do is real, right?"
"Umm" Gregory stammered, trying to form words.
The Santa Pup took advantage of his stunned state to run to where a window used to be. He leaned his head out the window and howled. Immediately, lights appeared along the trim of the house. There were simple colored lights at first, but as Gregory watched, white icicle and snowflake lights began to form along the roofline.
"Simply lovely" the Santa Pup said with a smile, "Now, about that yard…"
"Oh, we never do anything that flashy," Gregory explained.
"Maybe not," the Santa Pup said, "but it's not you putting up the decorations, is it? Just some figment of your imagination!"
Before Gregory could reply, the Santa Pup grabbed some coals from his pocket and threw them out into the yard where they landed with a poof in the snow. Nothing happened. Gregory breathed a sigh of relief.
"Wait for it…" the Santa Pup said with a smirk.
Gregory realized his relief was premature as each lump of coal began to grow and grow and grow. Gregory's eyes bugged out of their sockets as giant reindeer, a snowman, a Christmas Dragon, a Christmas T-Rex and an ice slide with penguins sliding down it inflated in their yard.
"Simply magical" the Santa Pup crowed. "Now, what shall I do with the inside… I know just the thing!"
"No!" Gregory yelped, afraid of what the Santa Pup might do next. "I believe!"
"What do you believe in?" the Santa Pup asked, cocking his head to the side.
"I believe in Santa Claus" Gregory quickly clarified, "I believe in all the stories, and I believe in the Santa Paws!"
"Well, that is music to my ears" the Santa Pup said with a wag of his tail. "But it seems a little hollow for you to just start believing because a Santa Pup showed up at your house and decorated it. Will you believe after I leave? Will you believe next year, or the year after that? Will you pass this belief onto your children if you are blessed with them one day? You see, the real magic of Christmas is in those who do something for others, who give without any thought of reward, who believe in something that they have never seen, even when the world says that they are nuts."
Gregory didn't know what to say. Fortunately, he didn't have to say anything as the Santa Pup came over and wrapped his paws around his neck and hugged him. Gregory felt warmth filling him like he never had before.
The Santa Pup released him after a moment. "I will leave you with a few more things" he said softly, "but don't worry, they aren't that flashy. With that, the Santa Pup walked over to the Christmas tree and Gregory followed him. From his pocket, he pulled out a nativity scene ornament and gently hung it on the tree. "Every tree needs one of these," the Santa Pup said with a smile. Then he pulled another ornament from his pocket.
Gregory gasped when he saw this ornament. It was of him and his parents, bundled up with scarfs around their necks, standing in the snow, smiling as if they didn't have a care in the world. "Now, I don't know what presents Santa has for you," the Santa Pup said, "but I have a feeling that this ornament might just be a prediction. Oh! I almost forgot to leave the presents!"
"Somehow I doubt that you would have left with them" Gregory replied with a smile.
The Santa Pup didn't reply as he walked over the fireplace and pulled out a red sack. Out of the sack he lifted one decently sized present which he then walked over to the tree and neatly arranged underneath.
"Ok, I think that is everything" the Santa Pup said. "Now, I need you to keep this visit a secret."
"Keep this a secret?" Gregory repeated questioningly, gesturing to everything the Santa Pup had already done.
The Santa Pup nodded. "Many people would love to be visited by a Santa Paw. But we only visit those that Santa tells us to. And if people found out that you had been visited, well, they might just try and ruin it. Or they might be jealous and try to take it away from you. Or they might try to do something to try and get Santa to pick them next year. At any rate, bad things will probably happen if you start telling people that you were visited by a Santa Paw."
"But how am I supposed to explain all this?" Gregory asked.
"When people ask, just say 'a little bit of Christmas magic'" the Santa Pup replied with a smile. "The other thing you can do is keep the legend of the Santa Paws alive by telling the story to others."
"I will" Gregory promised. The Santa Pup smiled and gave Gregory another long, warm hug.
Unfortunately, like all good things, the hug finally came to an end. "Look very carefully at your present" the Santa Pup said as he walked to the chimney, "Since there is only one present, I have a feeling that Santa left multiple things for all of you inside it."
With that, the Santa Pup waved goodbye and disappeared up the chimney. Gregory ran over to see but when he looked up, all he could see was the night sky. And the twinkling of the lights on the house.
The next morning, Gregory was awoken by his parents. "You have to come see this!" they called. Sleepily, Gregory rolled out of bed, bundled up and came down stairs.
His parents were staring in awe at the Christmas tree and the lights and the giant inflatables in their yard. "Where did all this come from?" Shelby wondered.
"I don't know," Eric replied. Then he noticed that his son did not seem surprised. "Did you know this had happened Gregory?"
Gregory nodded. "I was here last night when it happened."
"When what happened?" his mother asked.
Gregory remembered the Santa Pup's words. "We were visited by a little bit of Christmas magic" he replied evasively.
"Well, it is wonderful," Shelby replied.
At that moment, Eric looked at his watch. "Shoot, it is almost time for breakfast. We need to get over to The Fireplace."
"What about the present?" Gregory asked.
"Bring it along, you can open it there" his dad replied. The family got dressed and bundled up. Gregory grabbed the present as they jumped in their car and drove over.
When they arrived, Gregory hurriedly stashed his present under the tree with the others before running into the dining area to enjoy breakfast.
After a wonderful breakfast, Gregory and his parents migrated back to the living room. Gregory retrieved his present and sat down in front of the fire while his parents sat on the nearest couch.
"So, I'm assuming that this too is part of the Christmas magic?" his dad asked.
Gregory nodded, "It is from Santa."
"Well, go on then and open it," his mother said.
Gregory meticulously unwrapped the gift. His eyes widened as he realized what the present contained. Inside was a train to setup underneath the Christmas tree. But this train was special. It had a dinosaur as the engineer of the steam engine, along with several dinosaurs riding in the passenger coach. Following the passenger car was a flat car loaded with Christmas trees and a second flat car with a big crane, obviously operated by a dinosaur. Gregory had never seen anything like it before, but it was perfect.
"Wow, Santa really knows you," Shelby said with a smile.
"What's that hanging from the crane?" his dad asked. Gregory looked and there indeed was something hanging off the hook on the crane, a note or card it looked like. Gregory carefully removed it, opened it, and began to read out loud:
To Gregory,
I hope this gift brightens your day and that my helper was able to bring a little extra joy into your life.
Santa
"How nice," Shelby simpered.
"Is that something on the back?" Eric asked.
Gregory flipped the card over. "There is something here in fact:"
To Eric and Shelby,
I didn't forget you this year. Call the number below and tell them Santa needs their help with a little project.
Santa
"How mysterious," Shelby said.
"A mysterious mystery if you will," Eric said with a chuckle.
"You should call, Dad," Gregory encouraged.
"Yeah, let's find out what our present is, honey" Shelby added.
"Ok, why not?" Eric said, pulling out his cellphone. He dialed the number and put it on speaker phone so everyone could hear. A voice answered on the third ring.
"Paw Patrol, what is your emergency?" Ryder said
Everyone's jaws dropped in surprise.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" Ryder asked with concern.
"Yes, sorry," Eric stammered. "I'm so sorry, we don't have an emergency. We got a card with our son's Christmas gift from Santa that said to call this number."
"Interesting" Ryder replied, "you said there isn't an emergency but Santa gave you this number. Did something happen recently, like a fire or flood or anything?"
"Well, yes" Eric replied, "our home was severely damaged by fire two nights ago."
"Ah, so there is something wrong," Ryder said kindly, "a little project that Santa needs help with?"
"Umm, yes, those are almost the exact words he wrote on the card" Eric stammered.
"That explains why Santa left Rubble a card saying he had to travel to his gift" Ryder replied with a laugh. "We'll be there soon. No construction job is too big, no pup is too small! Paw Patrol is on a roll!"
A single click was heard as Ryder hung up. The family looked at each other in shock, unsure of what to say to each other.
"Sounds like someone got a very special visit last night" a soft voice said behind them.
They all turned to look. The gentleman stood in the doorway with a huge smile on his face. Next to him was the Fire Captain pup from the night of the fire.
"How did you…" Gregory started to say.
"Unless I overheard incorrectly," the gentleman said, "it sounds like Santa volunteered the Paw Patrol to fix your house."
"He did" Eric said uncertainly.
"Then you might want to hurry home" Captain Cinder softly said, "Ryder and the Paw Patrol are not known for taking long to respond to yelps for help. And If you aren't there, there is a good chance that Skye will paint everything pink…"
The family looked at each other for a moment before bolting out the door.
"Speaking of going," Skipper said, "Don't you need to be going as well?"
"I do," Cinder softly replied, "Someone has to keep the boys Ryder left home out of trouble." With that, the Dalmatian walked out the door as well, leaving a still smiling Skipper behind her.
Gregory and his family reached their house just as a large blue and red truck was pulling up. "Good morning, I'm Ryder" Ryder said as he jumped out and greeted them.
"I'm Eric" the dad said, "this is my wife, Shelby, and son, Gregory."
"Nice to meet you" Ryder said, shaking each of their hands before waving to the pups behind him. "If you can show Rubble, Rocky and I what happened, we can figure out what we need."
"And if you'll come with us, Mrs. Shelby" Skye said, "we can start looking at paint colors for interior and exterior."
"You do have colors other than pink right?" Shelby asked.
"Of course, why do you ask?" Skye asked innocently as she and Everest led the mom into the Paw Patroller.
"What kind of outside games do you like to play?" Zuma asked Gregory.
"I don't know," Gregory replied, "how about we make snow forts?"
"Sweet dude, let's go!" Zuma yipped excitedly as Gregory led him and Tracker towards a nearby park.
In Adventure Bay, Cinder stepped off the back of the Air Patroller. "Thanks, RoboDog!" Cinder softly called over her shoulder.
"Arf Arf!" RoboDog happily replied.
Seeing no one around outside, Cinder made her way inside. There was no one in the kitchen but she thought she could hear voices from the control room so she walked up the stairs.
"I spy something brown" Marshall said as he and Chase looked out over the railing at the Lookout.
"Is it that tree?" Chase asked.
"Darn it, how did you know it was that tree?" Marshall laughed.
"Just lucky I guess," Chase replied with a smile. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw Cinder quietly reach the top of the stairs. "I spy something white."
"Is it that snowball?" Marshall asked, pointing to one down by his own pup house.
"Nope," Chase replied with a smile as Cinder stealthily snuck closer.
"What about that one?" Marshall asked, pointing to a snowball on top of Chase's pup house.
"Keep guessing" Chase snickered.
"This might take a while," Marshall admitted, "there is a lot of snow around."
At that moment, Cinder pounced on her twin and wrapped her paws around his neck. "Your line of questioning is too cold" she softly giggled.
"Cinder!" Marshall yipped happily as she tackled him to the ground.
"Correct!" Chase said with a huge grin.
At that moment, the mission display in the lookout started beeping. "Paw Patrol, what is your emergency?" Chase answered.
"Chase! It's my dear Chickaletta, she is stuck at the top of our Christmas tree and can't get down!" Mayor Goodway exclaimed in a panic.
"Don't worry Mayor Goodway" Chase replied calmly and professionally, "We'll be right over as soon as I untangle my firefighters."
"Firefighters?" Mayor Goodway asked before Chase hung up.
"Come on you two, let's go rescue Chickaletta" Chase said with a laugh as he jumped down the slide.
"Right behind you!" Marshall yipped as he and Cinder dashed for the slide. Predictably, they crashed and slid down together in a fit of giggles.
As the sun started to set in Heartland, Eric and Shelby looked at a house that they didn't recognize as their own. "Well, what do you think?" Rubble asked with a wag.
"I didn't think this was possible," Eric said softly.
"It's everything we ever dreamed we could do," Shelby softly added.
"Perfect," Ryder said with a smile.
"But where is Gregory?" Shelby asked, suddenly concerned that she hadn't seen her son in a while.
Perfectly on cue, Gregory raced around the corner being chased by Zuma and Tracker. "I'm gonna win!" Gregory laughed happily as the two pups tried hard to catch up with him.
"Not if I can help it!" Zuma yipped.
"Ándale, we've almost got him!" Tracker panted.
"Safe!" Gregory chortled as he crashed into his parents.
"So close!" Zuma panted as he slid to a stop next to Ryder.
"Say goodbye pups, time for us to go home" Ryder said with a smile.
"Dogpile!" Zuma yipped as the pups piled onto Gregory, burying him in a mass of laughing pups.
"How can we ever thank you?" Shelby asked as Ryder shook hers and Eric's hands.
"Whenever you are in trouble, just yelp for help!" Ryder replied with a smile. With that, the boy genius and pups piled into the Paw Patroller, waving and giving a honk on the horn as they drove home.
"This really is a miracle" Eric said softly as he shepherded his family inside.
"A Christmas miracle" Gregory said with a smile.
That night, the Paw Patrol pups were curled up in their beanbag chairs around the fireplace at the lookout while Ryder and Katie cuddled on the couch.
"I can't believe Santa put us to work on Christmas day" Rocky said with a smile as he burrowed into his beanbag.
"Yeah, it was awesome!" Rubble added as he chomped down on the pile of treats in front of him.
"It was really cool to do something nice for them," Skye said with a smile as she snuggled back against Chase.
"Yeah, all we did today was rescue Chickaletta," Chase bemoaned.
"Not once, not twice, but thrice!" Cinder softly giggled.
"Thwee times?" Zuma asked in disbelief.
"At least she made it interesting and different each time" Marshall snickered from where he was snuggling with Everest. "And I'm sure that Santa knew we would enjoy helping that family so this was really a gift to all of us."
"Yeah, this was really for our benefit," Cinder softly added.
Everyone turned to look at the two Dalmatians who couldn't quite hide their roguish grins.
"You two are such Santa Paws!" Everest giggled.
A/N: I couldn't let Christmas go by without a special story. I hope you enjoyed this one shot! Merry Christmas!
A/N: The story of Jesus' birth adapted from the Bible, ESV and NIV versions, Matthew Chapter 1 and Luke Chapters 1 and 2.