Chapter Five: Silent Night

"A lovely thing about Christmas is that it's compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together." –Garrison Keillor

When I finally manage to turn away from the sweet sight and wipe the dampness off my face, I walk over to the campfire. Jazz is in one of the fold-out chairs, and her head is lolling as she sleeps. I'm in such a good mood that I don't even try to be polite. I skip straight to the part where I form a small cloud over her head and let it dump snow on her.

She flails and sputters then glares daggers at me. "Danny!" she snaps.

I hold in my giggles and point to the sky. "Freak snowstorm. Not my fault."

The petite black woman in the chair next to hers laughs and points at me. "I like the way you think, Phantom."

I wink at the woman and say to my very annoyed sister, "Time to go home, Jazz. I won't have you turning into a popsicle."

Jazz yawns and says, "Said the guy who just buried me in the snow." I shrug without apology and will the excess snow away. Jazz turns to her new friend. "Sorry. I guess I'm just not a night owl."

The woman raises her hands. "Hey, you either got it or you don't. You get some shuteye, girl. Merry Christmas," she adds as Jazz rises from her seat. "To you too, Phantom. Sorry we all freaked out when we saw you."

"No worries," I say. Jazz and I head over to Bub and Cujo so she can say goodbye to them, and say to Jazz, "So, you made a friend."

There's a brightness in my big sister's eyes that I haven't seen all month. "Her name's Lorette. She invited me to her New Year's party."

"Let's hope your eyelids don't drop before the ball does." My comment is met with a playful shove.

Soon enough, Cujo is in front of us, doing one of those weird dog shimmies and making trails in the snow. Bub is trying to mimic him, and my heart melts. They both stick their heads up when they spot us.

Jazz kneels down. "Hey, you two. Danny and I have to go home now." She runs her hands over their heads. "But, thanks so much for making tonight fun."

Cujo headbutts her hand, and Bub raises his chin and declares that, "Santa did his job. Ho ho ho."

Jazz leans over and kisses Bub's head then Cujo's before standing back up. We say our final goodbyes and find Mira and Eileen waiting for us at the edge of the pond.

"Bedtime, Jazz?" Mira teases. "Did we wear you out?"

Jazz starts to reply but ends grinning in embarrassment when a yawn interrupts her speech.

"Mira told me about your little adventure tonight," Eileen says. "I can see why you're tired. But, I hope you had a good time."

"We did," I say.

Jazz hums in agreement. "Thanks, Mira. If it weren't you, Bub, and Cujo, Danny and I would have spent the night moping in our rooms." Mira curtsies in response. Then Jazz adds, "Eileen, look after Danny, will you? My brother needs constant supervision."

"Ja-azz!" I whine, unintentionally making the three of them laugh.

Eileen shakes her head fondly. "I'll do my best. Sleep tight, you two. And, Merry Christmas."

I give her one last hug before she heads back on to the ice.

Mira throws her arms around Jazz and says, "I'm glad we could help. Maybe we could do this again next year," she suggests when they pull apart. She bounces on her feet. "We could make it a tradition! Doing stupid stuff on Christmas night!"

Jazz laughs. "That's not a bad idea."

"Yeah," I say. "I like the sound of that."

Partly because Mira speaks as if she thinks we'll still be together in a year. The thought makes my meager pulse skyrocket, and a giddiness bubbles up in me. Mira's eyes glow even brighter in excitement, and she has such a beautiful smile.

Those three words are so hard to swallow.

Especially when Mira looks up at me like that. "Merry Christmas."

I brush a hair out of her face and cup her cheek, both of which turn greener at the touch. "Is now," I say.

I lean in for a kiss filled with so much tenderness that I want to weep. I raise my free hand to cup her other cheek, deepening the kiss. Mira makes a small noise, and I'm so glad I don't need to breathe this form-

Someone clears their throat, forcing us apart. "Um, Danny," Jazz teases, "I'd like to be in bed before the sun comes up."

It's frustrating, but it can't be helped. I point to my sister and say to my girlfriend, "Be glad you're an only child."

Mira laughs.


"Man, what a night," I say as I fly home with my sister in my arms.

"I think Mira's right," Jazz says. "We should do this again next year. Do you think those other guys will be at the pond again?"

Based on what Eileen told me, there's a good chance. But, I don't get to tell Jazz that because my Ghost Sense goes off. Here's hoping it's another false alarm.

"Danny, look," Jazz says, pointing toward our house.

I follow her gaze and spot a tall, humanoid ghost with a familiar white beard and red suit.

Curious, I descend in front of him and set Jazz down. "What are you doing here, Santa?" I ask the Ancient.

Santa strokes his beard and gives us a once-over. "Just checking on you kids in person. You weren't home, so I decided to wait for you. I assume you had fun with Mira?"

He knows about that?

It clicks for me at the same time it does for Jazz, who says to Santa, "You mean, you sent those three?"

"Three?" Santa repeats. He lets out the hearty laugh that he's known for. "So, she brought some friends along, huh?"

"Yeah," Jazz confirms. "Bub and Cujo were there."

Santa grins and claps his hand together. "Splendid! Nothing like a baby and a dog to bring out some smiles on Christmas."

Then I remember something and point to Santa. "That's what you were talking about, wasn't it? When I saw you and Mira talking at the party. You guys were planning all this, weren't you?"

Santa wiggles his hand in a "sort of" gesture. "Yes and no. Mira came to me asking if there was anything we could do to make Christmas better for you. I suggested she show you a little fun. I left the rest up to her."

I really do have the best girlfriend ever.

Jazz frowns. "But, you said you couldn't give us a good Christmas."

Santa leans forward with a smug smile. "I said I couldn't make your parents stop fighting. But, my philosophy is, when opportunity knocks, you answer the door."

"Thank you," I croak out. "Just…thank you."

"Seriously," Jazz says, also a little choked up. "This night was amazing."

Santa takes a bow. "Glad to hear it. Now, I'd love to stay and chat, but the Elves are probably wondering where I am."

Of course. All the Ancients have assistants/guardians at their lair. Reaper has Gargoyles. Clockwork has Observants. Pandora has Minotaurs. Santa has Elves.

"And your wife, right?" Jazz asks.

"No. No wife," Santa says. "No reindeer either, before you ask." He grimaces. "You ever seen caribou in the Ghost Zone? Those things are terrifying."

I recall the incident two Christmases ago with the Ghost Writer, and…I have to agree.

Santa turns around and swipes a hand through the air. The atmosphere ripples and parts like a curtain being drawn, and a swirling green vortex is revealed. He turns back to us. "I hope we meet again. Especially you, Danny. Halfas don't come around often, you know." There's wonder in his bright blue eyes as he looks at me with his hands on his hips. "The perfect blend of dead and living. That's…that's remarkable." I duck my head and blush. Santa chuckles at my reaction. "But, I really should be going. Until we meet again. Merry Christmas, kids."

"Merry Christmas," Jazz and I say as he steps through the portal and back to his lair.

I fly Jazz up to her room and change back to my human-form. We remove all the things we'd stuffed under her blankets. She yawns loudly when we're finished.

"I'm not helping you into your pajamas," I say, pointing at her.

Jazz rolls her eyes then smiles. "This was nice. I'm glad everyone barged in on us."

"Me too," I say. "Otherwise, we'd still be moaning and groaning."

Jazz pulls open a drawer and tells me to turn around so she can change. I do what I'm told, and she says, "Mira's right. We should definitely make this a tradition. Just going out and goofing off when our parents' fight is at its worst."

"Totally," I agree. A thought hits, and I add, "Mira made it sound like-like she thought she'd be there next year. With me. Er, with us. Do you…think she will?"

Jazz says nothing for a moment. Then, "You've got it bad, little brother."

I'm glad she can't see how red my face is. "Shut up."

Jazz chuckles and gives me the okay to face her, so I do. She is now clad in light blue flannel pajamas. "It was Mira's idea," she reminds me. "Why wouldn't she want to do it again?"

"Maybe Bub, too," I suggest. "He was having a blast! And, Cujo, too."

"Oh, I know they'd wanna do it again. Maybe we could convince Eileen and Reaper to come along."

I smile at the thought. "Thanks again for being so okay with the imprinting." I look away and rub the back of my neck. "I should have known you would be. And, I promise to tell Sam and Tucker soon."

Jazz's gaze softens. "They'll be just as okay with it." She steps forward to kiss my cheek. "Goodnight, little brother. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Jazzie," I reply.

There's a spring in my step as I walk to my own room. As I put on my pajamas and crawl into bed, I find that, for the first time ever, I'm looking forward to next Christmas.


I keep forgetting to mention this, but the ship name for DannyXMira is "Thunder Snow." That is not important at all. I'm just throwing it out there.

This was fun. It was nice to write something wholesome for a change, but don't get too comfortable. ;) Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in Part Seven!