Someone Is Stealing Christmas Wishes, Charlie Boone! - 3. Chapter 3

Kiley said he felt most relaxed in his own house, so that's where they decided to perform the experiment. The mayor was out making his evening rounds, but Cawra Snorkum gave them a quiet place in the living room of their home to sit, and left them alone. The twin's mother seemed interested in what they wanted to attempt, but also felt that her presence might be a distraction to her children. So, she left them, claiming the Christmas cake in her oven needed to be watched carefully.

The Snorkum's home had none of the elements of a typical elf home in Max's world, but was rather like a human home in every way. The rooms were square, and furnished as might any one of the humans have furnished their own home. The living room was large and had ample seating, a nice fire going in the wide hearth, and a Christmas tree resplendent with colored lights in one corner. It was neat, comfortable, and prosperous-looking. And there was a country charm to the place that could not be missed, and a warmth that pervaded the home that Charlie felt could only come from the closeness and love this family shared.

It seemed the perfect place to start!

"Kiley, you and Kiri sit here," Charlie suggested, pointing to one end of the sofa before the fireplace. There was a long mirror in an ornamental frame above the fireplace mantel, and Charlie could see their group reflected in the glass. The twins sat, and Charlie sat next to them. He reached into his shirt and pulled out the dragon medallion containing Castor, the skwish entity that had traveled with them back from the island of Mnidoo Mnis.

"Amy, you sit next to me," Charlie continued, and took the woman's hand in his after she did. He grasped Kiley's hand in his other hand, and Kiley took Kiri's in his free hand. Charlie nodded. "Now, Kip, Rick, and Adrian, each of you put a hand on my shoulders."

After they were all arranged, Uncle Bob smiled at them. "Looks like you're all posed for a family photograph."

Charlie laughed at that. "That's not that far from what we're going to do. I hope that Castor can sort of unify us into a single point of view. He's done that before. This will allow Kiley to look back into his taba, um, record, and share that with Amy and the rest of us. Kiri will act to steady things for Kiley, and Kip and Adrian will help power the link."

"What about me?" Rick asked.

"You're just here for good looks," Adrian whispered, but loudly enough that everyone could hear.

Rick grinned a moment at his boyfriend, and then rolled his eyes. "Be serious."

"He is, lover," Kippy quipped, smiling.

Charlie sighed. "Rick, I want you to keep your hand on my shoulder so you can try to analyze any link we establish. We may want to try something like this again sometime. So, I want everyone to concentrate. This is important."

"Don't I get to do anything?" Browbeat asked. He was perched again on Uncle Bob's shoulder, and Charlie could feel that the little flyer felt left out.

Charlie considered that, and then smiled. "Actually, Bob, you and Horace can come around and each put a hand on Kip and Adrian's shoulders. Browbeat, that will put you in the link with them. I don't know if any of you can contribute anything, but at least you'll experience what we do. Your observations may prove valuable later."

After everyone was assembled, Charlie looked at their reflection in the mirror, and had to smile. It did look like they were posed for some sort of family reunion photo.

He felt warmth at his chest, and then the presence of Castor nearby. The skwish entity seemed already to know what Charlie had in mind, and Charlie felt that warmth expand to fill the room.

"Oh," Amy said right away, and Charlie could actually feel the smile in her voice. "That's quite wonderful!"

"I've never felt anything like this," Kiley said, his voice sounding a little small and awed.

"It's amazing," Kiri agreed, sounding just as impressed.

"I can feel everyone here," Browbeat put in, sounding pleased. "All my friends. Hi, friends!"

Charlie smiled at that. Castor seemed to have blended them perfectly.

"Okay, Kiley," Charlie continued. "However you have your sense of the town in your mind, I want you to go back to your earliest impressions, and we'll work forward from there."

The elf made a hesitant sound. "I don't know if they're all in time order...you know, chronological? I just know that some are much stronger than others."

Charlie felt a brief flood of images and feelings wash over him.

"Oh, I know that one!" Kiri exclaimed, giggling. "That's when Minnie Furminow was born."

Kiley laughed. "I remember that, too."

"Oh, and that one is when Miss Cubely 2 brought Mr. Duddlie in through the portal from the elf world to teach us about orflors."

Kippy snorted. "What on earth are orflors?"

"Everyone has one," Kiri explained.

"Some are bigger than others," Kiley added. "They're different colors, too."

"Save it for later, Kip," Charlie advised. "Kiley, keep looking."

It soon became clear that Kiley had an amazing record of the changes to Twombly that had occurred during his lifetime. They reviewed almost a hundred of them, with a seemingly endless supply of more ahead of them, before Charlie suggested a moment to rest. "I had no idea this was going to be so extensive."

"A lot happens here," Kiley said, sounding like he was just seeing the difficulty of their endeavor, himself. "There have been a lot of changes in my life."

"What's that light in the background of your images?" Browbeat asked then.

"I was just noticing that, too," Amy agreed. "That seems important to me."

Kiley was silent a moment. "Um, what light?"

Browbeat's voice sounded patient now. "It's behind everything we've seen. Sort of like a bluish aura."

Kiri gasped. "I see what he means! It is sort of blue!"

Charlie felt Kiley move beside him, as if the boy was concentrating hard. "I...that's always been there. I think that's just the normal background to everything I remember."

"No, Kiley," his sister said patiently. "It may have been there all your life, but it isn't part of the town. It's around it!"

"It's also important," Amy repeated. "This blue aura is linked to the current events here. I believe this is the missing ingredient."

Adrian made a hesitant sound then. "Um...guys? This bluish light has a similar feel to the weird skwish I felt in your room, Charlie."

Kippy blew out a startled breath then. "I think it does! What is it, Kiley?"

Charlie could feel the young elf's anxiety now. "I don't know what it is!"

"Everybody calm down for a second," Charlie advised. He focused on Castor then, and in mental pictures tried to ask if the skwish entity could in any way help to iron out this new wrinkle.

For a moment there was nothing; and then Charlie felt a new warmth at his chest. The sense of the town of Twombly they felt from Kiley paused, a picture of main street at Christmas frozen in time; and then...the image starting moving backwards!

"Oh! How's this happening?" the elf whispered. "It's going back...it's going back before I can remember!"

It was as if the were standing on main street in broad daylight. No...the light came and went in brief flashes, as the sun set and rose and set again, over and over, as they seemed to move backwards in time. The shadows of vehicles came and went, first just cars and trucks, and then horses and wagons mixed in with them. People fluttered all about them like wraiths, just living their days, but now in reverse. Charlie could sense the bluish aura now himself, invisible to the eye but not to the mind, all around the town of Twombly.

This went on for a few more minutes, and then the garage and gas station at the end of main street started to disassemble itself. Phantoms fluttered around it, the craftsmen that had built the place, now working in reverse to unbuild it. It was at that point that the bluish aura began to fade, and only moments after the garage disappeared, so did the aura.

"Stop!" Charlie called to Castor. The imagery froze then at midday, and they could just see piles of lumber and logs where the gas station soon would be built. "That's Knirkle's place, the gas station." He opened his eyes and turned to Kiley. "When was that built?"

Neither of the young elves knew the exact answer to that, and so they called for their mother.

"Knirkle's?" Mrs. Snorkum repeated. "That's a long way back. I guess when cars really started to replace horses and wagons here in town." She frowned in thought. "I know it was built well before the ski lodge. Somewhere in the late 1940s...I think 1948. Brin would know for certain."

"Over 75 years," Kippy said softly. "That's a long time for them to wait to act."

"For who to wait to act?" Charlie asked.

His boyfriend shrugged. "Whoever goes along with this weird skwish. They've apparently been here for 75 years, but not before that."

"That's why I never noticed the blue aura," Kiley said then. "It was already there when I was born!"

"You just thought it was a natural part of your mental image of the town," Kippy explained. "How could you know it wasn't?"

Charlie turned to Amy. "You said this might be the missing ingredient?"

"Yes, but I'm guessing a little bit on this. What we're doing here isn't like finding something that's lost. It's more like puzzling out what doesn't seem to belong. This bluish aura is a byproduct of skwish. But not elf skwish, and not human skwish." Amy held up her hands to emphasize that this was as far as her talent could take her. "There is some other party here that uses skwish, that is possibly responsible for what is happening with the wishes."

"You mean they're stealing them!" Kiley said pointedly, sounding a little annoyed now.

But Amy shook her head. "No, I don't mean that." She frowned. "I do not get a sense of purpose that is counter to what elves believe here. I actually sense a harmony with elf purpose here in Twombly. This new skwish...these new people, whoever they are, are intent on contributing to Twombly, not taking away from it."

That brought silence. Kiley and Kiri stared at each other in surprise. It was a new spin on the problem, definitely. If someone was causing wishes to disappear from the town, but they were not being stolen...what other alternative was there?

"What would you do with a wish if you took one, but didn't intend simply to steal it?" Charlie wondered.

Browbeat tittered at that. "For something to be a theft, you have to know the thing you're taking belongs to someone else."

Charlie smiled at that. "I'd agree with that. But--" He turned to Amy. "Wouldn't you say that these unknowns would have to know that what they're taking belongs to others?"

Amy smiled. "You're missing my meaning, Charlie. Wishes are disappearing, but that's a totally different idea than that they are being taken."

Charlie squinted at the woman, absorbing that. "This has nothing to do with Knirkle's place, does it?"

Amy looked surprised. "I'd say not. It's almost surely a coincidence that the blue aura manifested itself around the time the service center was built."

"The Knirkle's are nice folks," Kiri said. "They wouldn't have anything to do with this."

"I didn't think they were involved," Charlie said, smiling. "I was just wondering if the act of building the gas station at that time may have...I don't know...disturbed something."

"You mean like a genius loci?" Horace asked. "I don't sense any skwish entities of that sort here."

Amy shook her head. "No, I agree." She nodded to herself. "I am almost certain this is not a malevolent act, nor one of retribution. The people that are causing wishes to disappear feel they are helping in some way."

Rick patted Charlie's shoulder. "Are we done? I got a good feel for how this all went."

"I guess so." Charlie pressed his fingertips to the dragon medallion, mentally thanked Castor, and then tucked the medallion back into his shirt as the group link softened, and then vanished, and they were once again in the living room of the Snorkum residence. "So, Rick, what did you get from all that?"

Rick came around the sofa to where he could see everyone. "That was a very straightforward joining that Castor did, like the times he did the same thing back in the house that belonged to Arno Coldat, showing us bits of history." Rick nodded for emphasis. "And it's something that only Castor can do for us that well. We can share our talents by touching, and we can experience the same things together, but that clarity and precision we just experienced can only come from a skwish entity." He laughed then. "Well, maybe if we all live a thousand years, like Nicholaas, we can get better at it. But for now, Castor is the man."

Charlie had suspected as much. "Well, for now, we likely won't need to do that again." He patted his shirt. "But it's nice to know we have him with us."

A brief flash of warmth from the medallion was Castor's only answer, but Charlie knew that the skwish entity was always there to help, if needed.

"Can we break up this pose?" Kippy asked. "I've said cheese three times, but no one's taken a picture."

Charlie sighed over his shoulder at his boyfriend. "Sure. Everyone get comfortable."

"That seemed a very interesting experiment," Cawra Snorkum said, nodding. But then she raised her nose, sniffed the air, and immediately turned back towards the kitchen. "My cake!"

Kiri smiled after her mother. "The cake is fine. Mom is always dramatic that way about her baking."

"She loves it," Kiley agreed, and licked his lips happily. "And so do we!"

Amy got up to sit with Horace in the loveseat, and Kippy plopped down next to Charlie in her place. "So, now we know these others have been around for 75 years." He shook his head in amazement. "Why would they wait all these years to act out?"

Charlie held up his hands. "I don't know. But I think we can rule out the idea of these others being pure skwish entities. They'd be a lot older than 75 years. And I think Horace would sense them, if they were that type of life."

"I think I would," Horace agreed.

Kippy frowned at Charlie. "But we saw them. They didn't look like anything I've ever seen before."

Charlie agreed. Still-- "But they moved in a way that was familiar to me. I just can't place it."

"They did come across as strong and fast," Kippy commented. "But they were so small. They weren't people, or elves, definitely."

Charlie sighed. "That leaves us with pretty much nothing."

"Animals," Uncle Bob said then. "Could they have been animals?"

"Animals aren't smart like that," Rick said. "They opened our suitcases."

"And animals aren't skwish users, are they?" Adrian asked.

Uncle Bob smiled. "Animals we know aren't smart like that, nor do they use skwish." He waved a hand around the room. "Remember where we are. Things may happen here that we might not see at home."

Charlie looked up at the man. Could that be possible?

"Now that you mention it, the way they escaped was pretty odd," Charlie mused. "I mean, they didn't run off into town. They headed for the forest."

"Maybe there are houses, or cabins, or something that way?" Adrian suggested.

Charlie turned to Kiley. "Anything like that behind the lodge in that direction?"

The elf immediately brightened. "There's Norma Dinkin's rental cabins back there."

"Six of them," Kiri added. "I don't think any are rented just now, though. That's mostly a summer thing."

"Maybe we should walk back there and check them out?" Rick asked.

Charlie nodded. "It will have to wait until tomorrow. We can't see much at night."

"Norma would know if anyone was there," Kiri said with assurance.

Charlie smiled at her. "Like Miss Mili knew someone was in our rooms?"

The two elves stared at each other.

"Could someone--" Kiley began.

"--actually hide from us like that?" Kiri finished. She nodded her head at Charlie. "It must be possible. Kiley and I were downstairs at the lodge when your rooms were searched, and we didn't sense anything wrong upstairs, either."

Browbeat made a small noise of surprise. "Guys, I think it should be obvious that these others can stay below the radar. They've apparently been here for 75 years, and the elves don't know about them."

Kippy nodded. "Man has a point."

"What about it being animal life?" Uncle Bob asked again. "We shouldn't discount anything."

"We could talk to Mrs. Zumbold," Kiri said. "She's responsible for making sure the town is careful not to bother the animals that live all around us."

Charlie smiled at that. "Twombly actually has someone that looks out for the local wildlife?" But then he laughed. "Why am I not surprised?"

"The critters were here first," Kiley explained. "We came later. We share this place. We don't want to bother them."

Kippy nodded at that. "Can't hurt to talk to her. How about tomorrow?"

"Just let us know when," Kiri said, looking happy at the idea.

"We'll go with you," Kiley added, looked equally pleased.

They heard the front door then, and Mayor Snorkum came in, pulling a long woolen scarf from around his neck. "My, it's brisk out there!" He smiled around at Charlie's group. "Hello, all. How are things going?"

"We're just doing a lot of supposing at the moment," Charlie replied, smiling. "You know - talking things out? Every project we get involved with seems to get started that way."

The mayor laughed. "Laying out the questions is always a good way to start. Answering them is the hard part."

Mrs. Snorkum came in from the kitchen then. "I thought I heard you, Brin. You look chilled." She smiled. "How would some hot tea do?"

"I think it would do fine, thank you."

"I'm watching a cake in the kitchen," his wife responded. She gave a little cant of her head to Charlie's group. "Why don't you come out with me and I'll fix you some tea?"

Let the kids enjoy their guests, in other words.

The mayor picked right up on that. "Sure. I have to get back out again shortly, but I have time for tea." He smiled around at everyone. "Nice to see all of you again. If you need anything, be sure to let me know."

"We will, and thank you!" Kippy said brightly.

"Oh." The mayor smiled at them, an afterthought clearly in his eyes. "If you're interested, there will be some Christmas music at the town hall at 9:00."

Kippy's smiled widened. "Carols? In the old language?"

The mayor laughed. "Some. And in the new language, too!"

Kippy turned to Charlie. "Can we?"

"I wouldn't miss it," Charlie said, grinning.

Mayor Snorkum looked pleased. "See you there, then!" He put an arm around his wife, and they headed for the kitchen.

Kippy sighed, and smiled at Kiley and Kiri. "Your parents are wonderful people."

"We like them!" Kiri responded, her face aglow with happiness.

"They're pretty special," Kiley agreed, his own eyes bright. The joy of family was a powerful force among the elves.

Charlie looked at his watch. "We have some time before the carols start. How shall we spend it?"

Uncle Bob looked around at the group. "Seems clear we will need to wait until daylight to do a few things. Maybe we could just enjoy the evening?"

It did seem like they wouldn't be able to pursue some angles of this investigation until the next day. They needed to look for any possible trail in the snow outside their rooms, and then look at the cabins in the woods back behind the lodge, and then talk to Mrs. Zumbold about any possibly strange animal behavior of late. Charlie sighed, not seeing how any of that would really contribute to learning anything. But they wouldn't know for certain unless they at least followed these paths and marked them off their list.

And they were in Twombly, and it was almost Christmas...

"That seems like a good idea," he decided. "I'd hate to come here and not have any chance to enjoy the holiday."

"We could walk around town some more," Kiley said, smiling. "Everyone's out."

Kippy nodded at that. "What would the two of you be doing this evening, if you weren't here with us?"

The two elves looked at each other.

"We'd be at the town hall," Kiley said.

"Sitting on the steps with our friends," Kiri added. "Watching the people go by, and the snow come down."

"At least until the carols started," Kiley finished.

Kippy nodded, and turned to Charlie. "That sounds fun."

Actually, it did. Charlie felt they could use a break from all the brainstorming they'd been doing, to allow time for some things to soak in. He had an unsettled feeling, caused by too many loose ends that simply couldn't be looked at properly until the next day. Why fret about them all evening?

"Anybody have anything else they'd rather do?"

"I want to see more of this place!" Browbeat said. "It has good vibes!"

Rick sighed at the flyer's wording. "Um, we've been doing old TV shows this week," he explained to everyone. "Sorry about that."

Adrian laughed, and put a hand on Rick's arm. "Oh, you like those old shows, too!"

Rick grinned. "Yeah, I do. And Browbeat is a blast to watch them with!"

"We're partners in crime!" the flyer said, tittering happily.

Rick's eyebrows rose at that. "Well...I don't think I'd word it quite that way."

"I would!" Browbeat answered happily. "Book 'em, Danno!"

Kippy rolled his eyes, but smiled at Charlie. "The kids do like to play."

Horace offered a mildly surprised look to Rick. "If you're going to give him a crash course in human culture through television, maybe you could pick a few shows with loftier ideals?"

Rick shrugged. "We tried Masterpiece Theater. He said the people talked funny!"

"I'll say!" Browbeat added, and immediately affected a rasping cough. "Bit of a champagne day out there, ay Mertie? Better grab me ol' brolly at the door! "

The British Victorian-era inflection was perfect, and everyone laughed in amazement.

The flyer tittered in response. "They dress funny, too!"

Kippy sighed hugely, and waved an impatient hand. "Could we save this for another time, guys?"

But there were smiles all around, and some laughter. Integrating Browbeat into human culture had many joys, and few perils. Old TV was the least of their worries!

They got to their feet, and Kiley went to the kitchen to tell his parents they were going out, but would see them later at the town hall. The mayor came to the doorway and wished them well, and that he hoped to see them at the show.

They bundled up, and went back outside into the cold. It was still snowing, and the lights of the town glowed warmly through the slowly-descending flakes.

Kippy sighed, and linked an arm with Charlie. "It's so beautiful here."

"It's beautiful anywhere, when I'm with you," Charlie whispered back.

He could feel his boyfriend sigh happily, and grasp his arm more snugly; but Kip simply moved along beside him then, and didn't say anything else.

The mayor's residence was in the woods with many others at the edge of town, just beyond where the sidewalks ended. They reached the end of Main Street with the town before them, and the footing beneath their shoes changed from the crunch of the snow-covered gravel shoulder of the road to a firmer concrete walkway. Surprisingly, even though the snow was coming down with a will now, the sidewalk was wet, but wore no accumulation. The footing was solid, the grip sure.

"Oh, that's Mr. Postelpann's magic," Kiley explained, when Charlie mentioned it. "He's in charge of Public Works. He keeps the pavement all over town at a nice 50-degrees, no matter the weather. No slips or slides these days!"

Charlie looked around, and did notice that the piles of plowed snow he'd once seen around the town were absent. "That's pretty cool."

"Don't you think visitors would wonder about it, though?" Horace asked.

Kiri laughed. "Mr. Postelpann said most people won't notice. But they keep the old truck with the snowplow parked at Knirkle's, where everyone can see it. People are good at putting two and two together and getting five."

Both the elves laughed at that, and Charlie had to grin. Magic had returned to Twombly in force. The elves seemed careful with using their reborn skwish talents, but also practical in its application. Slick sidewalks and streets just wouldn't do!

As they neared the center of Main Street they encountered more people, all seemingly headed for the carolfest at the town hall. The goodwill was clear here, as people meeting shook hands, hugged, or clapped each other on the backs and smiled happily before continuing their walk together toward the town hall. That was one of the wonders of Twombly, Charlie mused. This community presented itself as a whole, rather than just many people living in the same place.

We could sure learn something from these folks, Charlie thought. But it's also easy to see why they left us.

"A man could get used to this," Uncle Bob said, happily, as they walked along. "I really do need to get Susan into this skwish stuff. She'll love it!"

"I'm surprised you haven't already," Rick said, patting his uncle's shoulder. "Hint, hint."

The older man nodded. "I know. It's just...Susan enjoys my illusions, and she thinks it's a great hobby for me. But I also think she thinks I spend too much time with it. I've just been worried that adding the real thing to the mix will be too much for her."

Adrian, his arm around Rick's waist, issued a very Kippy-like tsk. "You should give her the benefit of the doubt, and tell her."

Rick nodded. "She loves you, Unk. I think she'd be happier being included. Stop worrying, and tell her."

Uncle Bob watched the two boys a moment, and then smiled. "I think I will."

They met more people now, and were greeted like old friends. They soon found themselves part of an orderly mob heading for the town hall, laughing, talking excitedly about what was to come; and Charlie suddenly felt the magic of being part of such a crowd. That they were all going in the same direction, with the same purpose -- it was unlike walking in any human assembly he had ever been part of. He was immediately reminded of a line from Dumas, and Shakespeare before him: One for all, and all for one; and now he understood, really, what such a bit of antimetabole could mean.

We are there for you, just as you are there for us, always.

He sighed, and pulled Kippy even closer, and held his head up as he walked along. The snowflakes landed on his face and melted quickly, and ran down his cheeks like tears. But he was happy, truly happy, and knew that that happiness came from being among people for whom he cared, and who cared about him.

Twombly, on any map of the state, was a tiny dot, barely there at all. It was nearly lost among the twisting lines of roads and the greens of forested peaks. No eye perusing such a map would give the town a second glance, except perhaps to smile at the unusual name. But Charlie knew better.

Twombly was the world, minus the evils and the errors, the dislikes and the damnations, all lovingly distilled out like impurities from water. The town's true size was the measure of the heart and soul of its citizens, which no map could ever contain within its bounds, let alone share.

And sadly, it was a quality that would remain unknown to the world's travelers, unless encountered there in person.

* * * * * * *

"We have guests with us tonight," Mayor Snorkum said, as the audience settled into quiet. "Come to hear us sing. Shall we?"

Charlie and his group had been given chairs on the stage with the mayor, a place of honor, because the people seated below were the choir, and the small band on the stage, the audience. The reversal was important, because the people of Twombly wished to entertain them this time around. Those people stood, and smiled at those on the stage.

The mayor took a deep breath and let it sigh out happily. "Snjórinn fellur frá stjörnunum," he said then, and raised his hands high. "One, two, three..." He let his hands slowly sweep downwards.

At the same moment the voices slowly raised in volume, beautiful and clear, and Charlie closed his eyes. The sound filled the room, and then his mind's eye with a vision. He couldn't understand a single word, but what he heard told a story nonetheless. In his mind, he saw a windswept town somewhere in the foothills of snow-covered mountains. It was nighttime, and snow fell lightly from the sky; but, amazingly, a sky full of brilliant stars, streaked with thin white trails of high clouds. The red and green curtains of the northern lights flickered and danced along the horizon, giving the scene an almost surreal appearance, but also one of such beauty that Charlie felt wonder touch his heart.

The voices carried him into the town, to a central square, one full of people -- elves by their faces -- dressed warmly in furs against the frigid night. A tall fire burned in the center of the square, casting light and warmth into the crowd, which swayed gently back and forth, arm-in-arm, as they sang into the star-filled night above.

Charlie could feel their joy, both at just being alive, and at being together in that place, at that time. It was an appreciation for life, for simply existing, that he had never considered before. That this was taking place far in the past and on another earth, he now knew. This was the story of their first celebration after leaving behind the strife they had known in their former world, before coming to this new place, so similar to the old, yet completely empty of the race called humankind. This was their first Christmas in the world of elves.

The carol carried him along, a single snowflake on the wind, dancing around the fire with the children, but safe somehow from the heat that would convert him, cause him to fall to the ground as a drop of rain. Another snowflake appeared, also carried upon the wind, and moved closer to him, finally touching him, and he felt the warm love that Kippy had for their life together. Other snowflakes appeared, and moved closer, until he knew all his friends were with him, moving lightly in the chill breeze, warmed by the fires of their unity, but kept from dissolving into mist by the affection they shared with each other.

Charlie had always known that the secret of elf happiness was in their unity, their oneness. In their society, there were no others, just us. All of us. No one was of more importance than any other, and no one was of less importance, either. Everything was shared: the joys, the hardships, and the responsibilities. The clannishness, the tribalism that had plagued the human race for all of its run was absent here in the world of elves. One for all, and all for one.

It was the reason they had had to leave the old earth and seek out a new one, a place where they would not be condemned as witches or demons, or simply seen as the other, one to be feared, and dealt with accordingly. This song, this Christmas carol, was a commemorative, of their first celebration in their new world, their own place, away from the dangers that had followed them all their lives until then. It was a celebration of their freedom to be exactly who they were.

It was a feeling Charlie understood, and appreciated deeply. The human race excelled at finding an enemy among their own, and at persecuting them relentlessly, solely for the unity it brought the persecutors, and the power it brought their leaders. Of all the evils in the world of humankind, Charlie had always considered this persecution one the most evil of all evils.

But...that thought softened even as he considered it, and wandered away into the night. This was not a time to dwell on evils. This was a time to appreciate happiness, and togetherness. Charlie sighed to himself and relaxed, and simply enjoyed the tale told in song, and the closeness of his friends around him. For several more minutes the elves sang, and the world was a place of beauty.

But all too soon it seemed, the voices waned, and then stilled. The song was over. Charlie opened his eyes.

Kippy tightened his grip on Charlie's arm, while wiping tears from his face. Charlie now felt the snow from the song upon his own cheeks, and realized they were also tears. He wiped them slowly and carefully, feeling the brief resistance with which they fought being removed, the need they had to remind him of why they were even there.

I won't forget, he thought to himself. Not ever.

He looked around at his friends, and saw that everyone was gently wiping at their eyes. And then his gaze moved on to the people who had just sang to them, and he saw that they were all wiping their eyes, too. And then he looked over at Mayor Snorkum, and that man was also dabbing at his face with a handkerchief.

He saw Charlie looking, and nodded. "This is why we can sing to you and your friends, Charlie. You understand. We have always seen the unity with which you and your friends live, so much like our own. You are one, just as we are one." He smiled. "We feel you are one with us."

Kippy smiled, and managed a laugh at that. "I always wanted to be an elf."

The mayor nodded. "Elves and humans are of the same race, Kip. What sets elves apart is a way of thinking and acting, and an ability with skwish. That is all. In this respect, you are the same as we."

There were more songs, some they knew, some they didn't, and Charlie and his friends enjoyed them all. But it was that first one he knew he would remember all his life, that expression of joy at simply being free.

Eventually, the night was done, and they headed back to the lodge for bed. The town was still aglow with lights, and there were still people about, but not for much longer. The hour was getting late, and elves believed in a good night's sleep.

The snow fell with the silent patience that all snows covered the world with, and they kicked it off their shoes as they entered the lodge.

Tomorrow, they would get back to work on their investigation. But for this night, they were one in their peace of mind.

"What an evening," Adrian said, snuggling against Rick as they crossed the great room. "It's one I'll never forget."

"Me, either," Rick replied, sounding unusually content. He whispered something into Adrian's ear, and they both laughed.

"It was beautiful and romantic, in just an incredible way," Amy said to Horace, her head on his shoulder.

"It was a night like no other," Horace agreed, smiling at her, and holding her close. "We should come here more often."

"Sleep with me, Charlie," Kip whispered softly, as they ascended the stairs to their room. "Hold me all night?"

Charlie tightened his grip around his boyfriend and nodded. "This night, and every night, Kip."

"I love you, Charlie Boone."

"I love you, too, Kip."

Uncle Bob, trailing the others, sighed to himself. "Odd man out, again."

"I love all of you," Browbeat whispered, from atop Uncle Bob's shoulder. "What a great place this is!"

Uncle Bob smiled at the little flyer's words, and pulled his phone from his pocket and checked the time. And then he brightened noticeably as he stopped at the door to his room. "It's not too late. I wonder what Susan is doing about now?"

Browbeat tittered softly as the others entered their rooms and closed the doors behind them. "You should call her, and find out."