Chapter 15

15

God rest ye grumpy polar bear,

Who wished he’d done much more.

He would have liked a last beer,

Or a chance to even the score.

This was the end. Eaten by a Yeti. Nanook could have transformed, but he’d only be delaying the inevitable, as the Yeti had him in a tight grip. Time to accept the fact that Anjij had won.

She’d fooled Santa.

Taken over the village.

Kidnapped his girls.

Now, threatened to destroy the world.

How someone so lacking in morality could have succeeded in her devious plot he didn’t know, and his dumb ass had never once suspected the core of evil at the heart of her.

The depressing thoughts kept pushing as the Yeti lifted him toward its mouth. Without a fight, which was when it occurred to Nanook that he wasn’t one to usually give up.

He’d not given up when he’d been in that jungle facing down that very angry hungry hippo. He’d not given up when he and that seal had gotten caught up in a fisherman’s net. He’d come home with the seal and a slick yellow hat. When Anjij betrayed him, yes, he’d relocated, but he didn’t stop living.

Entirely.

Okay, so he did sulk, but he still kept on going and was always there for his girls. Yet, for some reason, with Anjij’s army lying in bloody pieces on the floor but for two Yeti, suddenly he was going to just let himself die?

It would be easier to just let it happen.

A thought that wasn’t his.

“Get out of my head,” he muttered. Asking didn’t work. The pressure hammering at his free will increased. Even worse, he couldn’t shift and fight.

He glared at Anjij, who had a strained expression but still smirked in triumph—until the twins pushed her off the catwalk and into the vat.

Splash .

The intense pummeling of his mind ceased abruptly, and suddenly, Nanook wasn’t in the mood to get chewed on. He furred out, and the Yeti dropped him. However, when Nanook would have taken on the abominable beast, he found himself without an opponent. The Yeti neared the vat with interest, even as Dancer grabbed the girls and tugged them away from the view of the churning happening within the oversized container.

Anjij thrashed as she surfaced, spitting the fluid and blinking it from her lashes. “You wretched little mongrels,” she screeched. “I’ll…I’ll…” Her voice deepened, and a growly rumble entered it. “What have you done?” she gargled as her large hands, the knuckles suddenly hairy, gripped the edge and she heaved herself over.

Anjij hit the floor with a splat, and no one approached. Everyone watched with bated breath as Anjij began to sprout fur. White fur, normal for a polar, only it grew shaggier than normal. Her body expanded, too, rending her clothes into rags, her breasts becoming pendulous and hairy, her hips wider. Her features also changed, getting thicker and more brutish. Horns peeked from her silvery gray hair. She pushed herself to her very large feet, which had burst out of her boots. “What is happening?” she asked in a low octave.

The Yeti closest to her sniffed and nudged his companion. They both leaned closer to inhale, before they both reached to touch. Anjij smacked one of the hairy hands and snapped, “Stand back, beast.”

The one she’d hit hooted and thumped its chest. The other sighed and took a step back.

The Yeti she’d chastised then proceeded to grab Anjij, ignoring her failing fists and shouts. “Unhand me. I command you.”

To which Santa, who’d just entered, replied, “I’m afraid Manchi won’t ever let you go. You gave him the ritual mating smack.”

“The what?” Anjij yelped.

“When you slapped Manchi, you signified your choice of him over his brother, and now, he shall take you to his cave in the very far North, where you will have his children and tend his ice cave.”

“No. No. I won’t do it.” Anjij screeched as Manchi tossed her over his burly shoulder.

“You will, or you’ll die,” Santa’s quiet proclamation. “Your actions were grievous, but I’m willing to overlook them seeing as how you’re the first female Yeti I’ve seen in decades. I’d feared poor Manchi and his brother would be the last of their kind, but now, with you, they have a chance to procreate.”

“I’m not an abominable snowman,” Anjij yelled as Manchi and his brother began marching for the hole they’d made in the factory wall.

“You are now, and it’s your own fault,” Santa said with a shake of his head and a tsk. “You should have never played with things you didn’t fully understand.”

“Help!” Anjij shrieked, to which the gathered elves began to sing, “Nah, nah, nah, nah, Nah, nah, nah, nah, hey, hey, hey, goodbye!”

It was oddly fitting.

Once the Yeti left, everyone kind of stared at each other before cheering. Not Nanook. He leapt onto the catwalk, kneeling so his girls could slam into him for a crushing polar bear hug. Which lasted two seconds before Sesi complained. “Dada, you need some clothes.”

“Yeah, Dada. No one wants to see your junk,” Siku sagely added.

Nanook closed his eyes and cursed his nephews silently. “I will try and find something,” he promised. “Are you girls okay?”

“Yes. We met elves,” Siku declared. “The grown-ups are shorter than us!”

“We ate all kinds of candy,” a bright-eyed Sesi exclaimed.

“And chocolate.”

“We learned all about Santa Claus.”

“And Christmas. You hid it from us,” Sesi added with an admonishing note.

“Not anymore!” Siku shook her finger at him. “We want a tree.”

“And presents. Lots of them.”

“I’ll do my best,” his weak reply.

“I’ll help,” Dani murmured.

He glanced at Dani over his daughters’ heads. “Thank you for trying to save my cubs.”

“Don’t thank me. I hesitated.”

“Because you were thinking of my girls.” He hugged them until they grumbled.

“Choking.”

“Dying.”

He released them, and they ran off in the direction of the big man who’d drawn a crowd, squealing, “Santa!”

How quickly they learned. How dumb he’d been to blame Christmas.

“Impressive fight. It was brave of you to try and take them all on by yourself,” Dani said.

“Not as brave as you.”

“We were all awesome!” Kira declared from below the catwalk. “Catch!” She tossed him a blanket. “Wear this for now until I find something to fit your fat ass.”

“It’s not fat!” he huffed.

“If you say so,” Kira sang as she headed back for her boys and husband, who stood clustered around Santa, along with the other children from FARTZ.

“Now what?” Dancer asked.

“Guess we find a place to stay for a few days while we figure out a way home.”

“Oh.” Her head ducked.

“Ahem, this is where you invite me to stay with you.”

Her gaze met his, and her cheeks heated. “I mean, yes, of course you can. My cabin will be tight with the girls, but I’m sure we can?—”

“Oh, the girls won’t be sleeping with us.” He shook his head. “Knowing them, they’ll want to be where the action is.”

He spoke of the yearly Christmas Eve overnight sleepover in Gingerbread Hall, where the elves dumped all their kids with the elders so that mom and dad could have a night to themselves to celebrate the year’s hard work. It usually led to a bunch of elf babies being born around the same time. April was a busy month for birthdays. This year, however, given the destruction, it appeared they were setting up camp in the square given the number of braziers being lit and tents erected.

“I’d like that very much,” she murmured.

“I’d say we both earned a kiss.” He drew her up to his mouth and savored the sweet candy taste of her lips. Enjoyed even more how she sighed and melted against him. He was ready to toss her over his shoulder abominable-style and stomp off for some private time. However, they couldn’t sneak off quite yet.

Amidst the rejoicing, the cleanup began. The elves sang as they went to work, forming a chain with wheelbarrows to remove the animal carcasses and wheel them to the butcher. The larders would be full and many new coats, boots, and muffs created from the remains.

Dancer went to speak with her reindeer friends, who emerged from the yoke looking exhausted and battered. Rudolph’s nose wasn’t just redder than usual. It had been broken and sat askew. More than a few limped.

While Nanook and the other polars handled the heavy lifting, he kept an eye on his girls, who chose to aid the elfin children in sweeping and moving the smaller pieces of debris into garbage bins. So much damage. Full-scale renovations and repairs would be needed for the hall, which might be why Santa sidled close to Nanook and cleared his throat.

“Lots of work to be done in the village,” Santa muttered.

“Aye,” Nanook replied.

“Could use some strong men to help.”

“Yup.”

“Well?” Santa eyed him, and Nanook sighed.

“I don’t know if I can come back. Everyone knows why I left.”

“They do, and honestly, no one ever spoke disparagingly of you. Anjij and Jingles’ actions at the time shocked us all. So, I wouldn’t worry on that score. Besides, they’ve got better gossip now. Or haven’t you been listening? All everyone can talk about is how you and the others bravely rushed in to save the day. You’re a hero. You all are.”

Hearing that coming from Santa’s lips did much to puff Nanook’s chest. “Just doing what was right.”

“And that’s why you’ve always been on my good list.”

For some reason, the praise had him cringing. Nanook glanced at his bare feet. Cold but not horribly so, the floors in the hall being heated. “How can you still think I’m good when I turned my back on you and Christmas?”

“Because it’s what’s in your heart that matters.”

Hearing the high-pitched giggle of Sesi, Nanook mumbled, “Guess my girls won’t be too happy Christmas morning. I assume they’re on the forever naughty list, given they shoved their mother in that vat.”

“Punish them for doing the right thing? They could have done much worse and still been considered good girls.”

“Thanks for not forgetting them.” Nanook ahd grumbled each time he saw the unmarked packages for his girls, but he’d never destroyed the gifts.

“I kind of blame myself for what happened. I can’t believe I didn’t see the darkness in Anjij, both in the past and then again when she showed up on my doorstep,” Santa grumbled.

“I don’t think anyone ever knew just how much hate she harbored.” Against the world. Nanook gestured to the vat. “What are you going to do with that poison she concocted?” The elves had cordoned off the area with caution tape that encompassed even the spills on the floor.

Santa’s expression turned grim. “I’m going to need to dispose of it very carefully. Even a few drops in the water could have a dire effect on the ecosystem. Most likely I’ll have to drain it into barrels and have them moved to a secure area for storage. I’ll keep a small sample to experiment with to see if I can nullify its effect, though. Wouldn’t want the wrong person to stumble across it.”

“Could it really have changed humans into furries?” he asked.

“I’d rather we never found out.” Santa slapped Nanook on the back. “Think about my offer. I really could use your help. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to see if we can still save Christmas.”

The big man sauntered off, and Dani returned to his side. “Looked like an intense conversation. Everything okay?”

“Santa offered me a job.”

“Oh.” Nothing more than that one syllable, but it led to him glancing at Dani.

“A job would mean me sticking around the Village for a while.”

Her lips curved. “I can’t lie and say I’d hate that.”

“Me either.” He wanted to explore this burgeoning thing between him and Dani. “But I’ll have to run it by my cubs.”

“Understandable, although I don’t think they’ll mind.” Sesi and Siku were currently playing tag with the other children.

It tightened his throat. “I’ve deprived them of a normal childhood and friends.”

“I wouldn’t say deprived. They’re young, and up until now, you were what they needed. A loving and involved father. But, yes, they’re reaching an age where they’ll want to explore more and develop friendships.”

“Speaking of friends, how are all of the other reindeer?”

Dani grimaced. “Not doing so good. Anjij literally treated them like beasts of burden. She forced them to keep their reindeer shape, fed them nothing but oats and water, and abused them when they refused to obey. Rudolph got the brunt of it. Apparently, he didn’t like not being in charge and kept arguing. He’s got bruises all over, and his nose will likely never be the same again.”

“Maybe he’ll lose some of his arrogance,” Nanook replied. He’d met the red-nosed hotshot a few times when here before and always had to curb an urge to give him shining black eyes.

“Doubtful. But I don’t want to talk about him. I’ve got something much more important to handle right now.”

“And what would that be?” he asked, hoping she’d drag him to her cabin to finish their kiss.

“Food. I am starving. All that shifting and running. This reindeer is starved.”

So was he, as it turned out. A good thing the elves were already cooking up a feast. Trestle tables were set up in Holiday Square and a buffet filled them. A band began to play. Nanook got offered a sweet Adirondack, Santa-sized, so fit for a bear. With his belly full, and Dani in his lap, it wasn’t long before they both ended up having a very cozy nap.

And woke to a hubbub.

People wailed, and when Dancer asked why, the elf closest to her pointed to the barn.

Dani took off at a run.

Despite wanting to sleep another twenty-four hours, Nanook followed.