THE ELVES FROM SANTA’S SHELVES

and the magical adventures of Terry the Reindeer Wizard

A Christmas Card Toy Story

Written and Illustrated by Mighty.Beautiful Art Studio

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Once upon a land in a time far away, there lived three toy Elves,

who mostly just lived on Santa’s library shelves.

All year long they worked and read and swept and slept,

Cleaning and dusting all the books and knicknacks St. Nick kept.

But one day in December each and every year,

when the house is quiet and the coast is clear,

and Santa is out flying on his sleigh,

they'd wake up and tiptoe outside to play!

One year they got lost in a beautiful blizzarding

and the whole forest was shiv-shiv-shivvering

And all the creatures were buuurrrrrrrrrrr-buuurrrr-buuurrrrring!

'Twas the night before Christmas and the wind was howling!

And the Elves were a little spooked

because all the wheres where they looked

all looked the exactly the same,

everywhere they went and everywhere they came!

For as far as the eyes could see all they could see were flakes --

Flakes and flakes and flakes and, oh, for goodness sakes!

But then suddenly out of the flakes -- he appeared!

-- a wandering reindeer wizard, it neared!

(And, just for the record, all reindeer are wizards,

how else do you think they fly through blizzards?!)

"Hello!” The worried wizard walked toward the siblings, so bold.

“I’m Terry, the Reindeer Wizard!" he said through the blizzard. "Aren't you cold??"

The Elves considered the question carefully.

"We don't freeze all that easily," they said, shiveringly,

but our noses sure are starting to frost!"

The Wizard's eyes widened wisely. "You are looking a little lost!"

"But It's okay!" The Wizard said. "I'm magic!! Sooooo..."

"Hop on and I can take you anywhere you want to go!"

The three elves couldn't believe their luck!

They had thought for sure they'd be sitting ducks!

"We are the Elves from Santa’s Shelves,

and we need to get back home before the clock strikes Twelve!"

"ELVES from SHELVES?!? ELVES are MAGICAL creatures!” The Wizard roared.

“SHELVES are NO PLACE for ELVES!!!" He was so floored.

"Your shelf may be enough for a warm winter’s rest,

but magic never sleeps in the Dancing Pine Forest!"

"I'll just conjure up a spell so you can stay here forever!”

“Wouldn't that be wonderful?” The Wizard pled. “I’m so clever!”

And before the Elves' very eyes, you wouldn't believe:

The falling flakes started floating, suspended mid-freeze!

And in the breeze the trees started dancing!

And the pine needles all started prancing!

And giant balls of snow began rising from the ground!

And grew two legs and two arms and eyes that looked around!

"I AM JACOB MICHAEL MAXIMILLIAN AUSTIN OBERON HEATHERKATHERINESCHMIDT, THE MAGICAL KING OF SNOW!"

the Snow man declared. "and who are you, Mister and... Miss…ess…ess? Names, now!"

The Eldest Elf from the Shelf pointed at herself

and the two younger elves from the shelf.

"Who, me?" she said. "I am Alyssa, Snow Mister…."

"And this is Simon, my brother, and Emily, my sister!"

"IT IS A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU! WELCOME TO MY KINGDOM," the snow man shouted.

"You don't have to yell so loud!" The Wizard growled and pouted.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" the Snow King whispered so quietly now they could barely hear:

"Welcome to my kingdom, you can stay awake and play here all year!"

The Elves were beside themselves with possibility and wonder -- awake ALL YEAR?!

Who could say no to living out here with the Snow King and the Wizard Reindeer?!

Not me, and not those three! How could it be? Seriously?! For really?!

But then they thought about all their friends and family,

All the other Elves from Santa's shelves they would miss —

Sweet Pete and Daniel! And Lilliana and Pollyanna! And Felix and Tris!

And Freya and Ava! Elizabeth and Elena! And Charlie and Rafi! Henry and Grady!

And Aiden and Alice! And Logan and Mason! And Xander and Zoey!

The names just kept coming and coming, elf after elf after elf!

Holy Santa, there were so many elves back on those shelves!

There was just no way they could say they would stay!

But how could they just walk away?

And then Simon spoke up with a plan he had laid out on his hands.

And Simon said: "We're gonna go back home and tell our friends

About the magic we’ve seen out here and where we have been!

But then, we’ll ALL come back in a year when the coast is clear again!”

And that's what happened to the Elves

from Santa’s library book shelves,

who snuck out one year to play a game of Simon Said

and discovered the Dancing Pine Forest and the magical world

of the Snow King and Terry the Traveling Reindeer Wizard —

And who left Santa’s books in a dusty blizzard —

But who return each year when the coast is clear

To dust and clean and care for all the things Santa holds most dear.