Category: Family Fairy Tales
Journal: Thirteen-Story Building
Date: 12-21-2009
Ivy watched Spruce zip on ice skates through a tiny crack in the large doors at the end of the room. The Great Hall was filled with so many twinkling and sparkling things that Ivy felt welcome and cozy right away. There were wrapped candies in silver bowls, tall evergreen trees decorated with shiny ornaments, and all along the walls were magic snowflakes that reflected the smiling faces of all of the children in the world. Ivy floated around the walls looking at all the smiling children, when she came across the face of the little girl she had seen when she landed on Earth. Under the face of this happy little girl was her name, Alyrica.
The big doors flew open then and a twinkling of music flooded into the Great Hall. Spruce skated back to her quickly and circled around her three times before he stopped in front of her, smiling. His green eyes sparkled like emeralds. She giggled.
"The Holly King and The Evergreen Queen welcome you into the heart of their home." Spruce said as he motioned toward the room beyond the doors.
"Thank you, Spruce," Ivy said and started to fly off.
Spruce caught up with her and handed her an envelope. "It was nice to meet you, Ivy."
Then he skated off the other way. Inside the envelope was a card. The cover of the card had a glittery snowflake on it. Inside the card, there was a tiny silver pen attached. Spruce had written 'Have a Merry Solstice, Ivy. I hope to see you again before Yule is over! Love and Gratitude, Spruce Sprywrite.' Ivy thought this was very nice of Spruce.
As she flew closer to the big doors, she noticed the room was full of colorful lights. When she entered, she saw two thrones near a fireplace. On the silver throne, there sat a redheaded woman in a long green dress who smiled at Ivy. On the golden throne, there was a large and jolly old man in a red suit.
"Ho! Ho! Ho! It's Ivy Twinklesparkle!" He said in a friendly, booming voice. "Welcome to the North Pole and to our home!"
"Thank you both very much!" Ivy curtsied.
"I am Santa Nicholas Claus, the Holly King." Said the King.
"And I am Mrs. Eve Claus, the Evergreen Queen." Said the Queen.
"It's nice to meet you both. Tapper the bunny told me to ask you about this." Ivy said as she spread some sundust into the air in front of them.
"You are the newest Yule Fairy, little one." The Holly King beamed. "Every nine years, another is born so that the Yule Fairies can retire here. Their kingdom is in the east wing of our castle. But before I introduce you to the Yule Fairies of the past, I would like to tell you about what we do in my workshop first. Please, come with me."
Ivy followed him into another room. There was a frenzy of activity! There were elves skating around quickly and making things. One of them, who appeared to be the oldest, approached the door and greeted her.
"Welcome to Santa's Workshop! I am Alfred the Elder Elf. I manage the toy-making business here at the North Pole Castle. We are twelve elves who are chosen from all across the country to help Santa create toys for the world's children during their winter holidays. There's Elfie, Sami, Carol, Alpine, Shay, Eldon, Holly, Luca, Yuliana, Shep, and Star."
"Happy Holidays!" They shouted cheerfully, taking only a split-second break before going back to work.
"It's nice to meet you all! I'm Ivy Twinklesparkle."
"The Yule Fairy has arrived!" Alfred exclaimed and everyone cheered.
"Keep up the good work, friends." The Holly King said and guided Ivy on through another hallway. "You see, Ivy, there are many holidays throughout the world that happen during the winter and we all work together to make them the best they can be for everyone, especially the children. As Yule Fairy, you play a major role in everything we do. Not only do you do most of the deliveries, but your sundust also allows our nine reindeer and my sleigh to fly throughout the night on what many people in the world call Christmas Eve. Much like the Winter Solstice and the rest of the twelve days of Yule, Christmas is a time for family and friends to enjoy each other's warmth and love while the Northern Hemisphere is at its coldest. Once Yule begins, the days gradually start to get longer as the Sun is out more. This whole season is a time for rejoicing in the miracle of life. People do this in many different ways. On the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are opposite...but these holidays are still celebrated there too. All of us here at the North Pole do our best to give what we can to the animals and children of the Earth to spread peace and joy to all."
"I'm honored to be a part of it!" Ivy twinkled. "Thank you!"
"You're welcome, and thank you! Now let me introduce you to the Yule Fairies. We still have a few things to do before you begin your journey this Yule." The jolly man said as they reached another door.
He opened it and there was a crisp gust of wind from outside. Ivy saw the largest, most breathtaking evergreen tree decorated in the most beautiful icicles and crystals she had ever seen. She could not take her eyes off of it.
"This is the Yule Tree. It is the oldest and most magical tree in the world. The Yule Fairies and their families rule the kingdom within these branches, but you will rule once the twelve days of Yule have passed this year. The current fairy queen is Natalie Tinselwind. One moment and I will summon her."
The Holly King stood for a moment, silently admiring the Yule Tree. "I am an old friend to this tree." He said. Then the Holly King pulled a green pouch from his pocket and opened it. He took out some silver tinsel and scattered it into the air in front of the tree. The wind picked it up and spread the tinsel evenly upon the branches. The Ivy noticed it wasn't just a gust of wind, it was another air fairy like her.
The King bowed. "Queen Natalie, this is our newest Yule Fairy, Ivy Twinklesparkle."
The Fairy Queen flew down softly, like a snowflake, to greet Ivy. Her silver blue gown and long white hair floated with the breeze. Her skin was darker than Ivy's skin, but they had the came ice blue eyes. Ivy could see she was very beautiful.
"Welcome, Yule Fairy." She said with a soft smile. "Let me show you our kingdom."
"I will see you again later, fairy friends." They waved to the Holly King as he winked and went inside.