Looking for a Story

A group of adventurers had hired Liam on their quests to become heroes. Liam was mostly an errand boy. He helped them by guiding their luggage cart while they did their adventurer things. This group had a list of heroic tests they had to complete to become real heroes. If you asked Liam, it was a bunch of hogwash. Whatever oracle, deity or idol gave them this list was just sending them to their deaths. Killing off the village's best and bravest, likely in order to come and destroy them someday. But hey, eager adventurers paid well for one less worry on their minds. So Liam made quite a business going along. He took a week or two to travel with a group, see how far they got, and head back when they inevitably failed. There was a reason he took payment at the start of the journey. A long time ago he had stopped getting his hopes up that this group would be the ones. He knew it was a fool's errand. He told every group as much. And every group ignored his warning. But hey, a job is a job. He never made friends with the groups; he stayed out of night discussions about plans of action. But this group? Well, they were different. They included Liam in discussions. They wanted to know all that he had learned from the other groups. Did he have tips and tricks that could help them? He did in fact. He knew this route better than anyone else. Liam knew the masters, the tests they had, and how to pass them. He became more than just their luggage guide; he became the adventure guide. He knew what tools they needed; they became a team. Kind of. He was still just the errand boy. He was thanked by the adventurers for his aid, but when villagers celebrated their successes he was never included. He was left outside the tavern, not even a drink offered. He tried not to be offended, but it stung. This group was doing well - with their skills, yes, but also his help. Soon they made it farther than Liam had ever been before. He still had advice to give based on what he'd learned. He no longer sat outside the battle zone; he was there in the battle, calling out actions for them to take, tossing new weapons, and handing out healing potions. He even fought off a monster or two. Soon they were at the final monster. They entered its cave and found a small man sitting next to a large fire. "Welcome, Young Travelers. You have done well. But you are not heroes yet." "How are we not! We have served every challenge you threw at us!” the leader yelled. "Yeah, we've earned the title!” another party member shouted. The group looked like they were ready to kill the man. "Wait!" Liam stood in front of them. "Hear him out." "Fine!” the group huffed. "Thank you, young man." The small man nodded. "You are not heroes yet; one of you must do the greatest task of all." "Which is…?” the leader asked, annoyed. "Sacrifice. One of you must sacrifice yourself so the team can go on to live out their dreams of being a hero." Fighting instantly broke out in the group. Who would commit this great act? But they weren't fighting for the honour; rather, they were trying to force each other to make the sacrifice. Liam walked to the fire. "I'll do it." The team looked at him. "You will?" He shrugged. "Yeah, ya'll have this dream, I've helped you get there. No one is waiting for me back home." He stepped into the fire, but he didn't burn up. He floated up, and a light shone around him. He landed back on the ground. He felt stronger, bolder and braver, and he had a new sword and a shield. "Welcome, New Hero." The shorter man smiled. "What!" "How can he be the hero?" "He was just the bag boy!" the group called out. The man raised his hand. "He helped you face your challenges, never asked for glory, and when push came to shove, he was willing to give it all up. He's a hero." Liam looked down. “I thought this was a bunch of nonsense." "You'd be surprised how many heroes do.” The man laughed. “Your journey has only just begun.”

This wasn't supposed to be a love story, Alice was sure of it. When the story started she was a princess trying to save her sister and her kingdom, alone. Then he showed up. Jeremiah, the dorky, charming patrol guard. Who apparently was now a critical part of this story. The author had made a tone shift halfway through, so honestly Alice wasn't sure what was real and what wasn't anymore. She was fairly certain that she had gotten separated from her party somehow… How a royal entourage lost the princess was something the author was going to have to figure out. And Jeremiah had found her and was helping her. And this man gave her butterflies, and she hated it! She glanced at him, as he led her through the unfamiliar woods. He hacked through a thick brush. She found herself watching his muscles move. She shook her head; she had a mission, no time for love, especially for a patrol guard. Her father would never let it happen. But what if Jeremiah won her tournament…? Alice, stop this! You’ve only met this man, you can't love him. Just because he's the first man you've met who isn't some egotistical prince doesn't mean you love him! “My Lady?" She loved it when he called her that…. She snapped herself out of her thoughts. "Yeah, Jeremiah?” She noticed he'd found them a small clearing. "We should stop here for the night." He took off his pack. “It's still early, I can handle walking a bit further." In truth, she couldn't. She was so tired, but he didn't need to know that. He chuckled. “I'm sure you could, my Lady. But there is no cave here. Setting up camp will be more work, so better to do it with some daylight left." “Ah! Yes, of course. How can I help?" She didn't have many survival skills, but she wasn't going to let him do it all himself. “Why don't you collect firewood again? You did great last night.” He smiled and rolled out the sleeping mat. "We're lucky, it doesn't look like rain so we should be able to sleep under the stars tonight.” She hummed in agreement and focused on collecting different branches. She heard him say something about going fishing. But she was too lost in thought to really pay attention. She was thinking about what she was going to do when she met the dark prince. Would he accept her father's offer? Or would he try to marry her - or worse, her little sister…? When she had collected enough wood Alice looked at the space Jeremiah had left for the fire. Could she start the fire for him? She'd seen him do it enough times, surely she could do it… She set up everything like he had the night before. Then she rubbed the twigs between her hands, moving them up and down, and trying to keep the same level of force. Just as the fire started, her hands gave out, red and raw. She blew on the fire to keep it alive. She was feeling pretty proud of herself. She had given herself a small cut on her hand, but she was planning on ignoring it. When Jeremiah came back, he had a few small fish and a shocked look on his face. She was pretty happy with herself. “Well done, My Lady.” He quickly started cooking. "The river is sheltered enough that you could rinse off tomorrow morning. We should find them by midday tomorrow if you were right about where your party should be." Alice's stomach dropped; finding her party meant meeting the dark prince. Which meant dealing with the unknown fate that waited for her. She shook her head. “How…how wonderful." “You don't have to lie, Princess, there are no spies here." He chuckled. “I know there is a small part of you that would rather stay lost in the woods." He winked. She felt weak in the knees. “I…" She pulled herself together. “I have to protect my sister. Even if it means…" She couldn't bring herself to say it out loud. She fidgeted with her hands. “Ouch!" “Princess!" He ignored the food and darted to beside her. “What happened?" Alice hid her hands in what was left of the layers of the skirt. “It's nothing, Jeremiah." He offered his hand and she slowly lifted her cut hand to him. “It's just a small cut from the firewood.” “It's actually a sliver. Once our food is done, I'll dig it out." He moved away and she felt the emptiness. She wanted him to stay close. Instead, she just looked at her hand. She got so lost in thought that she didn’t notice when he came to sit beside her again. "We'll let the food cool while I get the sliver out, it won't be very comfortable.” She cautiously placed her hand in his. He took out his small knife and carefully worked at the sliver. She'd never had someone she knew this close sit this near to her. Sure, there were servants, but she wasn't allowed to know them. She winced in pain. “Sorry." He paused, and she nodded for him to continue. “I know it doesn't mean much, but I think it's courageous of you to marry that prince to protect your sister." "Thank you,” she whispered. "In truth, I’d give away half the Kingdom to keep her safe.” "She's lucky to have you. My older brother sold me to a farmer for a week's worth of food." He lifted his knife, showing the sliver. Then before she could say anything he tore a strip from his shirt and wrapped her hand. “I'm so sorry your brother did that.'' She timidly reached her hand up and touched his face. He caught her hand and held it. “It's the way of orphaned children." He shrugged. “If I ever am Queen, maybe I can change that…” she muttered. "You'd be a very good queen if given the chance." He interlocked their hands. “I'll be very glad to say that I got to meet the queen. I'll tell everyone what a wonderful woman she is." “Maybe I'll hire you as a personal bodyguard." She leaned in closer. “And watch you fall in love with some arrogant prince. Sounds like a cruel fate." He took her other hand in his. She blushed. “Maybe it would be. But then you would always be near.” Their foreheads were touching now. “Maybe I should just knight you, then you could enter my tournament. I could rig it, you know… Princesses have done it before." “You tempt me, my Lady." He kissed her; it was soft but everything Alice wanted it to be. She kissed him back, forgetting all the rules and all the proper protocol. He quickly backed away. "I’ll get the food!” He quickly moved to the fire and finished preparing the stew. She heard him mutter, "You kissed her! What's wrong with you… she's the princess." This…this was going to be a problem, wasn't it? Her not-a-love story was quickly becoming a love story…and worst of all, she liked it!

Origin Story Part 1 Origin Story Part 2 Origin Story Part 3 Origin Story Part 4 Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12

It was New Year's Eve, and parties were happening everywhere. Everyone was waiting for the New Year to come. And at Holiday Magic Head Quarters, things were no different. Christmas had come and gone and the next big holiday may be Valentine's Day. New Year had its own special kind of magic. The Kiss to Ring the New Year. This year Nadine was one of the chosen ones to help those kisses find their mark. The New Year Kiss wasn’t as powerful as a true love’s kiss, but it still could change the course of someone's night. Nadine sat at her station, ready to do her part. The night was going well so far. Every kiss she gave out had found its intended target. Then the alert went off, she quickly silenced it. A kiss had missed its target. This wouldn’t do. She had to fix it! It was part of her job! She told her adviser she was taking her “coffee break” and dove through the portal to the earth. Her tracking device told her the kiss had gotten lost at a small house party. How could a kiss get lost in a place so small? She needed more info. She found the couple that was supposed to share this kiss, and the lady was not happy. What had happened? Nadine got closer. “He just…Argh!” The lady set her glass down with force. “He knew tonight was important to me! He knew I wanted everything to be perfect. And he ordered the wrong food! I even wrote it down for him!” She pulled the note out of her pocket. “See! It would have had something for everyone!” She let out another angry sigh. Her friend put a hand on her shoulder, “Hey, hey, it’s not the end of the world, they both brought their own snacks just in case, no one is going hungry.” She looked around, “And I doubt he did it on purpose.” Oh… Angry couple… or at least angry wife… Is the husband mad too? Nadine looked around until she found a man sitting very defeated in an office chair in the next room. “I don’t understand, I ordered what was on the list she gave me…” He showed a list from his pocket to the man in his office. “See? How could she say I got it wrong?” Oh no! They’d somehow mixed up lists… Nadine looked at her bag; she didn’t have much in her emergency kit… Maybe an idea spray would help… But who to spray it on? She looked at the man and woman; the wife was still angry, so she’d better not risk the spray giving her bad ideas. Nadine sprayed the idea spray into the man’s office. “You don’t think there was a second list, was there?” the man’s friend suggested. “What do you mean?” the husband asked. “Like, do you think this is a first draft of the list, and she had a second one that you somehow didn’t get?” he explained further. “How? This one was next to the rest of the party lists.” The husband paused. “Then again… She might have said something about a note on the fridge…but she’s had so many lists for this thing that I can’t keep it all straight.” He put his head in his hands. “That might be all it was.” The other man shrugged. “The best you can do is go out there and explain what happened. Especially if you want to ring in your New Year with a kiss,” he teased. The husband rolled his eyes. “I mean, that's not why I want to fix it, but it would be nice to not break tradition.” He walked to the next room. Nadine raced back to the kitchen where the wife was still mad. Maybe she could use some of the nerve-calming candles? It was designed to give nervous targets the confidence they needed, but it was the best shot she had. She lit the candle and waited to see what would happen. “Girl, come on - you said it yourself,” the lady’s friend coaxed. “He knew how important tonight was. Is there any chance there is a logical reason things got mixed up?” The wife took a breath. “I mean, maybe. I’ve been going crazy planning everything, but I just don’t know how! I put it on the fridge for him. I told him where it was.” “But how many versions of the food list exist? Is there a chance he grabbed one of those by mistake?” Her friend gave her a look. “We both know how you get when you’re planning. And are you really going to let this be the reason you don’t kiss him in a few minutes?” Her friend pointed to the door, where the man stood, holding his list in his hand. The wife looked down at the list in hers. He walked in, and her friend placed a hand on his shoulder as she passed by. “Can we both admit that somehow there was a mix-up? And that you know I didn’t mess this up on purpose and that I should have double-checked that I had the right list?” He gave her a lopsided smile. She nodded her head. “Yeah, I’d like that… I’m sorry I overreacted, I know you didn’t mess it up on purpose.” He took her hand and pulled her in close, and the countdown began in the other room. Nadine watched as the lost kiss landed on its target, and then she slipped back through the portal. Another kiss saved.

The kids were in bed, the stockings were filled, all the gifts were wrapped, and all the food was prepped. She was as ready for Christmas as she was ever going to be. And a good thing too - Christmas was tomorrow. She was about to join her husband in getting ready for bed. She turned off the lights and soon the only light left was the tree. And woah, it was beautiful… Her family had done a good job decorating. She paused and looked at her tree, all the presents, and all the other decor; it sure was a lot. And tomorrow would be all kinds of chaos. All this for a day to celebrate my Saviour's arrival. She couldn't help but laugh. Her Papa’s Bible sat in its spot on the mantel, and she picked it up. She curled up on the couch and opened the book of Luke. She wasn't sure if it was bad to have a favourite gospel or not, but hers was definitely Luke. She read over the story. She had just reached the part where the shepherd took off for Bethlehem when her husband popped his head into the living room. “Darling? You coming to bed? I thought we'd finished everything.” "We did, Love, I was just taking a moment.” She lifted up the Bible. "Ah! May I join you?” She nodded and he sat next to her, wrapping his arm around her. “Where were you?" He nodded toward the page. "The shepherds are racing off to Bethlehem.” She pointed to the verse she was at and her husband started to read out loud. When he stopped she continued. Together they read through the story. Once they were done, she closed the Bible. “Thank you for letting me join you, that was a good reminder." “Thank you for joining me." She let out a happy sigh. “We should read it with the kiddos tomorrow. They need the reminder too." “Most definitely. I think that would be wise. Maybe we can read it before they start fighting over who gets to open presents first," he teased. She giggled. “I'm not sure that will change anything. But we can surely try. Maybe we should pick a picture book version instead, which might hold their attention longer.” They lingered another minute, enjoying the moment of quiet and calm before tomorrow morning. "Love?" She spoke softly. “Hmm?” He looked at her. “I'm glad we took this time tonight. It can be hard to remember what is important this time of year. Especially with the kids, wanting them to have all the Christmas fun.” He chuckled. “And I think they have.” She thought of all the photos on her phone, waiting to be printed. She closed her eyes and laid her head against his chest. “Alright.” He sighed and stood up with her in his arms. “If we don’t head to bed soon, the kids will be waking us up before we have any sleep.” She nodded and giggled at being carried to bed by her husband. Even if they only got a couple of hours of sleep before the kids came running into their room begging to start Christmas, this moment was well worth it.

Avery looked at her calendar. How did both her daughter's school Christmas concert and her Sunday School pageant end up in the same week? The girl had both a reindeer costume and a Mary costume. Talk about two very different shows. And Avery had to find all the stuff for both costumes. Thankfully, for the school play all the parents of kids playing reindeer had agreed that brown shirts, jeans, and dollar store antlers were enough. One of the moms had offered to do face painting if time allowed. So other than her daughter Harper's attitude about the school play, everything was ready. Harper was upset that she had to wear jeans. The rest of the girls in her class were either playing elves, wearing skirts, or playing a mother/daughter pair, wearing party dresses. And if Avery was honest, she couldn't blame her daughter - being Dancer the reindeer wasn't as exciting as playing an elf. But as Avery had tried to remind Harper, she did get to go first in the reindeer song and she was playing Mary in the Sunday School pageant. So it was okay to let the kids at school have some of the more fun roles in the school play. After trying to find everything they needed for the Christmas pageant in that church costume room, Avery had personally volunteered to sort through the room after Christmas. It was some kind of nightmare there. But at least all the kids had a suitable costume for this Sunday. She stared at the calendar. Harper had rehearsal on the stage as a class on Tuesday, dress rehearsal with the whole school on Wednesday afternoon, church rehearsal on Wednesday night, school concert on Thursday, dress rehearsal for church on Saturday afternoon, and then the Sunday morning show. Avery was already tired. And the week was just getting started… Avery stopped by the school during her lunch break to bring Harper her costume. “Do you want me to stay, Honey? My boss said I could come back late." "No! I want you and Daddy to be surprised together!” Harper gave her a quick hug, and a "Bye, Mommy!” Avery was a little disappointed that Harper didn't want her to stay, but hey, kids will be kids. That evening as Avery drove Harper to the church, she asked, "Can I stay this time?” “Mom! What part of being surprised do you not get!" Harper rolled her eyes. “I want you and Daddy to see both plays for the first time together!" Avery smiled. “That's very sweet. Okay, I'll wait. I'll bring you a donut after practice." “Awesome!" Harper jumped out of the car, trying not to trip over her costume. Avery took advantage of the time not spent sitting at the church to go pick up the last few things on her Christmas list. Thursday night Avery and her husband sat as close to the front as they could for the school play. Despite Harper's attitude earlier that month, she did a great job as Dancer the lead reindeer. She was clear and seemed to remember all her lines, even if she did seem a bit distracted during the songs. They stood and applauded when the show was done and cheered when the reindeer came on for their final bow. When they got home, flowers were waiting for Harper in her room. “MOMMY! DADDY BOUGHT ME FLOWERS!!!" Harper came barreling out of her room and tackled her dad in a hug. "You did amazing tonight, Sweetheart, and superstars get flowers!” He beamed. "Though I only could get you flowers for one of the shows, so they'll have to count for Sunday too.” He poked her nose. "Okay, Daddy.” She giggled. “Thank you.” Avery had her husband do the rest of the running around that week; she took the time to enjoy some moments of much-needed peace. Sunday morning came much faster than Avery was ready for. So much rushing around for a play that was supposed to remind everyone about the true meaning of Christmas. But eventually, she and her husband were sitting in their pew, ready to watch their daughter. The Sunday School pageant was full of all the usual shenanigans - kids who forgot their lines, sheep who hated their costumes, and wise men who forgot their gifts. But the kids seemed to be having fun. Poor Harper and the boy who was playing Joseph - they ended up with a case of giggles and couldn't stop laughing while trying to say their lines. But you could hear them at the very least. However, by the time they got to the last song, everyone in the whole church was singing, and all the distractions of the play seemed to be forgotten. Harper came running once church was dismissed. “Mom, did you see? I said all my lines and even when I was laughing!" “I did, Honey, I'm very proud of you!" Avery picked up her daughter and gave her a huge hug. “Ready to end this part of Christmas with some lunch with your grandparents?” “Yes! YES!" Avery watched as Harper ran. One Christmas event down, and a few more to go.

Beth had looked everywhere, and she couldn't find it. It was her copy of her grandmother's shortbread recipe. Her mom didn't have a copy, her sisters didn't have a copy, only Beth did. She knew she could ask Grandma for a new copy but she had given Beth such a pretty copy last year. And she had wanted to show Grandma she could make them without help. It had to be somewhere… She looked at the books and cards strewn across the table; maybe tearing apart her recipe box wasn't the best way to start. She took her time putting everything back, checking each book and carefully reading each card. It definitely wasn't there. Taking a breath, she thought back to last Christmas. Would it be tucked in a box somewhere that she'd forgotten? Her house was already decorated, the tree was up, and everything she hadn't used was nicely packed up in a box, so she was sure the recipe card wasn't there. Then where was it? She sat on the edge of the sofa and scanned the room as if the recipe card would jump out at her like this was a find-and-seek game. She had been so happy to have her grandma give her a copy. How could she have lost it since last Christmas? Maybe it wasn't with the Christmas stuff, maybe it wasn't with her cookbooks and recipe cards. Was it with her books? She had a bad habit of using anything as a bookmark. Beth headed to her room and stared at her bookshelf. … She was going to have to go through all of these, wasn't she? She couldn't remember what she had read last year. She sat on the floor - might as well start from the bottom and work her way to the top. Two hours and several distractions later, she had nothing. Well, she'd found several other things, but not what she was looking for. Beth blinked back tears. It was just a piece of paper. How could it make her this upset…? She sat against the wall and stared up at the ceiling. Maybe she could look another day; for today she could surprise her grandma with different cookies. Sighing, Beth stood up, went to the kitchen, and picked up a recipe box, she could make chocolate chip cookies. Mom's were better, but Grandma didn't mind Beth’s. An hour later, she had cookies cooling on the counter. Beth finally let herself relax on the couch. In the back of her mind, she was still figuring out where that recipe had gone. At least she had something to take when she visited her grandma tomorrow. The next day she climbed the stairs to Grandma's apartment, cookies in hand. Several of the other elderly folk who passed her teased her about having a cookie. She laughed and enjoyed the jokes. She finally made it to the apartment. "Hey Grandma, I'm here for tea!" Beth called as she walked in. "Hi Sweetie, oh! You made cookies! You didn't need to do that." Her grandma hugged her. "I know I didn't, but your space is smaller this year so you won't have all the room for baking like you used to." Beth shrugged. "Well, I appreciate it.” Grandma set down two cups of hot chocolate. “No tea?” Beth raised an eyebrow. “It’s Christmas - might as well be festive.” Her grandma took a cookie. “And we both know you hate tea. You drink it because I like it,” Grandma teased. “Something like that.” Beth laughed. “Oh - by the way, Dear, I found my original copy of the shortbread recipe, so you can have your copy back.” Beth blinked. The paper she’d spent half the day searching for was being slid across the table to her. “Oh! Thanks! I was looking for it yesterday. I forgot I gave it to you.” Her grandma giggled. “I think your mom picked it up for me a few weeks ago, you might have been at work.” “Ah, that would do it.” Beth laughed harder than she needed to; next time she lost something important, she should just text her mom.

Christmas comes but once a year, People greet it with cheer. Knowing the joy it brings to all the boys and girls. As they watch the snowflakes twirl. They wait all year round For the gifts to be found. It always arrives with such force Unless of course… You're Hailey… Hailey was not in the mood for Christmas. She almost had no use for it. There was already snow on the ground and had been for almost a month. But she couldn't be bothered. Her Instagram feed was littered with photos of fully decorated trees and people taking their kids to sit on some mall Santa's lap. Who has mall Santas out before December anyway? She had already been to two Christmas craft shows with her mom and sister. She'd been sent reminders for two of her friends' kids' Christmas concerts. She had two Christmas parties coming up, and her mom was on her case about a Christmas list for the family Christmas. The list of gifts she needed to buy felt expensive. Her inbox was full of Christmas deals “for the ones you love.” Was it too late to book a trip to the beach for Christmas? Probably. But it was a nice idea. Maybe next year she would just leave. At this rate, she was just lucky she had put up the outside Christmas lights before the mood set in. She wasn't sure she could have convinced herself otherwise… She was already feeling Christmas fatigue and December had just started. She didn't want to listen to the songs or put up her tree…and absolutely no Christmas movies! Even the lights weren't making her feel all magical like they had other years… Was this what growing up felt like? Hailey hoped not. Maybe if she just waited, eventually she would find the joy of Christmas. She decided she'd best pull out her Christmas decorations, just in case she found the desire to decorate. It took her an hour to get everything out of the attic… Why did she have so much stuff? She put the last box down with a huff, then sat down on the couch and stared at it. The box she'd just set down seemed to call to her. This is so dumb. She rolled her eyes but grabbed the box anyway. She set it on the couch…but before she opened the box she decided hot chocolate sounded like a good idea. The only thing her Christmas funk hadn't taken from her. She delayed opening the box, regardless of how strong this "call" felt. She made hot chocolate and scrolled through her phone. But eventually, she ran out of distractions and sat down with the box. "What makes you so special, huh?" She popped the lid off the box, and there sat books. "Oh… " A small smile formed. They weren't just any books; they were Christmas books from her childhood. She carefully pulled them out one at a time, flipping through the artwork, reading a few that she remembered so well... She laughed at the silly storylines, at all the happy endings. Suddenly she couldn't help but feel a little better about the whole Christmas thing. Christmas wasn't just about the tree, gifts, and music; there was more. There were friends and family, and there was the very reason for the whole season. She picked up a book she could still hear her father read - "The Crippled Lamb" - and put it on display. Maybe she was in a funk about Christmas, but she wouldn't forget the reason for the season. If that's all she got this year, that would be enough.

Ellie woke up after her husband left for work. She looked out the window and saw that it was snowing! The neighbours across the street still had their Christmas lights on; she had to admit it just felt like Christmas. So Ellie played Christmas music while she cleaned the house. She giggled, knowing how John would roll his eyes at her antics. It wasn’t that John disliked Christmas; he just simply believed that Christmas should be celebrated in December. On the other hand, Ellie believed it should start on November 1st. Cleaning didn't take as long as she planned, and she and John had brought all the decorations inside earlier in the week… So she was just gonna sort through the decorations so that when they were ready to decorate everything was organised. She stared at the tree box… She could just put it up now… Would John complain? It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas started to play, and she gave in to the urge. It took her longer than it would have taken John, but Ellie got the tree up and had it all fluffed. It looked so nice. It just made her smile. She knew John would probably be slightly annoyed. But surely when he saw how pretty the lights were, he wouldn't be too mad. She packed away the rest of the Christmas stuff. She could wait until she and John both had a day off to decorate the house. She made a list of all the Christmas things she needed or wanted to accomplish - oh, there was so much to do and she couldn't wait! Maybe she and John could check out the craft show next week - that was always so inspiring. Ellie shook herself back to reality. She daydreamed long enough; it was her turn to make supper, so she had better get started. *** John walked into the house and heard the music… "Ellie…" "Yes, My Love?" She met him in the entryway. "You're playing Christmas music already…it's not even December first yet… " He kissed her and then turned to walk into the kitchen. "I waited till after Remembrance Day this year…" she teased as she went back to working on supper. "I don't know if I'll ever get used to how early you celebrate Christmas," he teased. "You know you love it." She giggled. John simply smiled and said nothing. He started doing the dishes to help with supper prep. "How was work today?" He sighed. "Well, you know - the usual. Oh, but there was a debate over when we should decorate the office for the holidays." Ellie paused. "Oh…how did that go?" "The Christmas crazies won, so we are having a decorating party on Monday." He walked behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Maybe you should go to work for me on Monday, you'd have more fun than I would." "Yeah…I probably would," she said nervously. "And what did you do with your day off?" He held her a moment longer. "Oh, you know…" She stopped stirring. He raised an eyebrow at her, and she sighed. "Don't go into the living room." "Well, now I have to." He quickly dashed away before Ellie could stop him. "Ellie… You put up the tree?" She sheepishly walked into the living room. "The music was playing, it was snowing, and I didn't decorate the tree yet. I just wanted the twinkling lights. And we had the outdoors lights up already…" He pinched the bridge of his nose, then busted out laughing. "I was going to surprise you by putting up the tree tomorrow while you were out with your friends…" She turned bright red. "Oh." Then she laughed. "I didn't mean to spoil your surprise." "Beating you at your own game is harder than it should be." He wrapped her in a hug. "I feel bad now…" she whispered into his chest. "Don't. I'll find a new way to surprise you!" Just then their supper timer dinged. They sat down to enjoy their supper and talk about other decoration plans. Once they had cleaned everything up, John made hot chocolate, put it in their Christmas mugs and joined his wife on the couch. She giggled and grasped at her mug. "I don't think you are as much of a scrooge as you act.” "I'll never admit it out loud." He put his arm around her and together they enjoyed the twinkling lights of their tree.

Bethany and Sadie crept through the woods, using the moon as their only light source. “You’re positive you know the way?” Bethany whispered as they pushed through the brush. “Yes, I snuck out this afternoon to make sure it was out here. I just hope it looks more impressive at night than it does during the day.” Sadie pushed some trees away to help Bethany through. “Girl, you’re going to get yourself caught! You know all this is illegal,” Bethany warned. “It’s only illegal if we get caught.” Sadie smirked. “Come on, it’s just around the corner.” The two girls broke through the trees and came face to face with a large tree. “This is the hideout?” Bethany reached out and touched the bark of the tree. “Apparently.” Sadie shrugged. “Did you bring the note?” Bethany pulled the forbidden paper out of her pocket. “We’re lucky, I almost got stopped after work. But someone else was found with contraband so I was allowed to go, but I will be checked tomorrow, I’m sure of it.” Sadie's eyes widened. “Oh, good thing it’s written in code then. But we definitely should be extra cautious if we are going to stay.” Sadie read over the note and found a knob on the tree. She pressed it and a slit opened near the knob. “Password.” “The Power of Creation.” Bethany and Sadie spoke in unison. “Granted.” They heard a click, and then the tree itself opened. The girls quickly slipped in. A man stood by the opening. “Welcome to the Home of Creation!” He gestured to the staircase that led toward the hub of creation. “Woah!” Bethany spun around. “This is amazing!” Sadie grabbed Bethany’s hand and together they raced down the stairs. Within the tree there was a world of creation - there was music, dancing, paintings…and people were writing! It was as if the light itself was moving. This would be worth the many sleepless nights they were about to have. And it was better than cautiously writing in their homes where they could be found and reported. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, their friend Roy was waiting for them. “Girls! You made it!” “I’m so grateful you trusted us enough to let us in! This is amazing, how have you kept the government from finding it?” Bethany looked around again, just so shocked by it all. “It hasn’t been easy. We have to take turns coming here so they don’t follow us. You will be given a schedule and if one week you can’t come the day you’re scheduled, you will have to miss a week. It’s too risky.” Roy looked at them both sharply. They nodded quickly. “Good. Now, go find a place to write!” He headed over to a canvas. “I can’t believe we get to create with others!” Sadie gripped Bethany's arm. “I know.” Bethany smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Beth? What’s up? This is supposed to be the best night of our lives! We can create freely!” Sadie found a couch for them to sit on. “This isn’t free, Sadie…” She gestured to the wonderment around them. “We are in hiding, creating under the cover of darkness, a magical tree… The government doesn't want us to create, they want us to stay in the lines.” “But it’s a start! We are a part of a revolution!” Sadie smiled brightly. Around them a chorus of “Revolution!” echoed around them. “See - we are going to help bring creativity back, they can’t stop us forever.” Sadie placed her hand on Bethany’s shoulder. “We are going to do this together. No matter what.” Bethany patted her hand, and the two quickly got to work on writing their stories. The creativity in the room was palpable; the girls wrote more than they ever had before. But all too soon it was time to go. The people left in stages; Bethany and Sadie were in the last group to leave. As they crept back through the woods, they felt the most alive they had in years. The woods faded into city streets where everything was perfectly coordinated, nothing was different or unique. The government used it to keep control - not originality, no uniqueness. There were five standard looks for women and three looks for men. There was a list of five hundred names given out every five years of what children could be named. Those who got paid to “create” were creating government-mandated stories or portraits. Bethany and Sadie both wrote for government-mandated papers - it’s where they had met. They’d both been questioned one day after work, and this led them to cautiously open up to one another about their secret projects. Their friendship came fast and it was deeply rooted. They trusted each other, even keeping each other’s projects when one was suspected of breaking the no-creation law. After months of visiting the Creation Tree, the artist and other creatives decided it was time to take a stand against the government. Original artwork was showing up on the streets, and new stories were hidden in government-approved books. They reached a point where they needed faces of the revolution. When the request was made in a meeting, Sadie quickly volunteered to be one of them. Bethany stood beside her. “Beth…” Sadie objected. “Like I’m gonna let you walk through fire alone!” Bethany took Sadie’s hand and they raised their hands above their heads. The other people who had also volunteered joined in and everyone cheered. All the volunteers got tattoos to make it clear that they were a part of the wave of creativity that was flooding through the streets. Bethany and Sadie decided to get matching ones. “If we are going down…” Bethany looked over their design. “We are going down together.” Sadie handed the design over to the tattoo artist. Once they got their ink done they stood side by side, tattoos on their upper right arm depicting quill pens on fire. They would help change the world, together. And they would prove that creativity couldn’t be stopped.