Winter Dream (Bernard the Elf x Reader)

Chapter 8- Naughty or Nice

The cold winter months drew closer and closer, and with them, brought more change and problems. Dad officially had a full-on white beard, white hair, and a massive Santa belly. I also noticed smaller changes in dad. Such as he was frequently wearing red, he was craving sweets (more specifically cookies), and even spent more time with Charlie and me, something he hardly ever did before.

I had changed too. By November 1st, I not only had glitter on my cheeks, but my ears had grown long and pointy. I was officially an elf.

I began to wear a beanie to cover my ears to school every day, on top of a face mask for my cheeks.

I sighed as I tucked my pointy ears underneath my hat. My ears were sensitive, and the itchy beanie irritated them. I walked down the stairs into the main hall, and my jaw dropped.

Hundreds of red boxes were stacked on top of one another and scattered across the floor, "What in the world..."

I noticed Dad hidden behind a stack of boxes and slowly made my way across the sea of packages toward him. "Dad? What is all this?"

Dad held up a piece of paper. "The naughty and nice list; Bernard sent it. I'm supposed to check it twice." He gave me a sarcastic smile.

"That's a lot of naughty and nice kids..." I trailed off, opened a random box, and began reading random names.

After a moment Dad looked up from the list and over at me. "What's with the hat?"

I didn't make eye contact with him. "What???" I nervously chuckled. I still hadn't told him that I was turning into an elf.

"You never wear hats in the house. It isn't that cold in here."

"Oh! It's uhhh...fashion!!" I lied. "Beanies are super popular."

Dad shrugged it off. "If you say so..."

I went back to digging through the boxes, shamelessly trying to find out of my name was on the nice list or not, when I stumbled upon a letter addressed to me at the top of a stack. I slowly picked it up and began walking upstairs with it.

"Where are you going?" Dad asked skeptically.

"I-I forgot something in my room!"

I quickly dashed into my room a tore the envelope open. Inside was a piece of paper with excellent penmanship.

"(Yn),
I think I've figured out what's happening to you. Call me! :)
-B"

I smiled to myself. I was glad for the opportunity to talk to Bernard. I glanced at my necklace and held it between my index finger and thumb. "I wish to see Bernard."

A few minutes later, Bernard magically appeared in my room. "Hiya, Snow Angel." He spoke with a sweet smile.

"Hey!" I grinned at seeing him. "I got your letter."

"Ah! Perfect!" Bernard walked over to me. "I was doing some research about this whole elf situation, and I think I've found something in the Santa Handbook."

"Really? That's great!"

Bernard pulled a huge old book out of his satchel and carried it over to my desk. He set it down and began flipping through the pages. "247...247...aha!" He rejoiced, finding the right page and showing it to me. "Section C-138. It says:'In the event that the individual who put on the coat is unwed, The Santa Clause will choose a close contact of the individual, and transform them into an Elf to help support the individual during their transition into Santa Claus.'" He read.

I could hardly believe my ears. I leaned closer to the book and read the text for myself. "What the heck does that mean?!"

"It means that you're going to turn into an elf, Snow Angel."