My Short Short for the Day

The elves looked at each other then back at Santa as their cheeks turned a bright pink. Puggy rushed over to Santa wagging his tail happily. Santa picked him up and untied the garland as he walked to the tree. Sheepishly Eddie held up the red ribbon to Santa who quickly tied it back onto Puggy making a neat little bow. Then he scratched Puggy behind the ear one more time before setting him back in his little bed.

“Now you stay Puggy and be a good boy.” Santa said.

Puggy woofed then circled in his bed three times before curling into a ball and promptly going to sleep. Eddie and Lou walked over to Santa with their heads down and shoulders sagging.

“Well, boys, let’s get this tree fixed up.” With a wink of his eye Santa set the tree back to the way it was and the elves watched in wonder. “I think that’s enough excitement for one Christmas Eve. Don’t you?”

“Yes, Santa.” The elves said in unison as they hopped into Santa’s red sack.

Once they were back on the sleigh Santa picked up the reins and called over his shoulder. “Hold on boys. Here we go!”

With all the gifts delivered to all the good little boys and girls of the world it was time for Santa to head back to the North Pole for a good long nap. When the sleigh touched down at the North Pole, Mrs. Claus and the other elves were there cheering. Santa waved as he deftly climbed out of the sleigh.

Without turning around Santa spoke just loud enough for only Eddie and Lou to hear him. “Next time you need help, all you have to do is ask.”

Eddie and Lou relaxed. “We will Santa. Thanks!”

Santa stood up looking at all the elves then turned to look at Randy who had stepped forward to take the reins. “I believe Eddie and Lou could use some help with the cookies.”

Randy’s jaw dropped in disbelief as Eddie and Lou stood up with their arms full of brightly decorated Christmas cookies. They smiled as they handed out the cookies saving the best one for last. Turning to Santa, Lou handed it to him speaking softly. “Merry Christmas Santa.”

“Ho, ho, ho!” Santa’s belly jiggled merrily. “Merry Christmas indeed!”

My Short Short for the Day

Just then the top of the sack opened and Puggy peeked into the bag. Lou giggled as Puggy licked his face and snorted.

“Shoo! Go on! Go lay down!” Lou whispered trying to be stern but Puggy ignored him.

“We have to take him back to his bed before Santa comes out.” Eddie stated climbing out of the sack.

Lou followed him giggling as Puggy jumped around him trying to reach his face. They got to the dog bed and put Puggy back in but something wasn’t quite right.

“Where’s the red ribbon Santa tied around his neck?” Eddie asked looking around.

“Here it is.” Lou said holding up a ribbon. Quickly he tied it around Puggy’s neck and petted him. “Look Eddie, I put the ribbon back on Puggy.”

Eddie looked up smiling and holding a red ribbon in his hands. “I don’t know what you have but this is the ribbon…” Eddie’s jaw dropped as he looked at Puggy’s neck. “Lou, that’s the…” Suddenly Puggy jumped up and ran away from Lou. “…garland.” Eddie finished as Lou watched in surprise while Puggy raced around to the back side of the tree.

“Quick! After him!” Eddie rushed after the little dog. Lou followed after Eddie.

Puggy looked back at the two elves with mischief in his eyes. He raced around the tree circle after circle as the garland unwound from the tree, shaking the tree and knocking ornaments on to the presents below. After circling the tree a few times Puggy stopped to face the two exhausted elves. Eddie halted abruptly and Lou rammed into him.

They held their breath for a moment then Eddie stuck out his hand towards Puggy. “Here boy, come here. Good doggy.”

Puggy wagged his tail as he slowly walked toward Eddie. Just as Eddie leaned forward to grab the little dog, Puggy stepped to the side and raced past the elves. Again the three raced around the tree as ornaments dropped off and the tree threatened to topple over. A noise came from the kitchen and all three froze.

“Ho, ho, ho! What have we here?” Santa said standing in the doorway. “Not another mess boys. I thought you might have learned after the last one.”

My Short Short for the Day

“Shh! You're making too much noise Lou.” Eddie scolded turning around to face his friend.

“I’m sorry Eddie, I’ll be quiet.” Lou said sheepishly.

Eddie turned back peering into the living room again. “Okay, Santa isn’t looking so let’s go.” Eddie crawled under the table cloth with Lou right behind him and Puggy close on his heels. At the kitchen doorway, they hesitated then rushed into the living room and behind the big couch. Puggy was right behind them panting and snorting.

“Keep that dog quiet.” Eddie said.

“Shh! Puggy. Shh!” Lou whispered. Puggy tilted his head at the sound of his name then began to lick Lou’s face again. Lou giggled in delight until Eddie gave him a stern look. Both Lou and Puggy stopped what they were doing immediately.

Eddie peered around the couch and motioned Lou to move up next to him. “See, Santa is almost done arranging the presents. As soon as he goes into the kitchen we’ll sneak into the sack.” Eddie explained.

“Okay Eddie.” Lou said nodding in agreement. Just then Puggy rushed past them towards the tree.

“Oh, no.” Eddie said grabbing at Puggy as he shot past. They both held their breath as Puggy ran up to Santa.

“Ho, ho, ho. There you are. I was wondering where you had wandered off to.” Santa said merrily as he tied a bright red bow around Puggy’s neck and set him down on a soft dog bed under the tree. Puggy snuggled into his new bed and Santa petted him on the head before walking to the kitchen. Once he had disappeared through the doors, Eddie and Lou rushed over to the red sack and climbed in.

“What about Puggy?” Lou asked.

“He has to stay here.” Eddie said.

“Oh.” Lou said sadly. “I wish I could keep him”

“But then you would be taking away a child's present and that child would be very sad on Christmas morning.” Eddie explained patting his friend on the shoulder.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right Eddie.” Lou said. “I wouldn’t want to make any children sad.”

My Short Short for the Day

Carefully Lou climbed to the edge of the chimney and jumped in. He landed on the floor and scrambled out of the way just as Eddie came down. They stood up, dusted themselves off and looked around. Santa was by the tree deftly placing presents around it and humming Christmas carols. The two elves snuck over to a nearby chair and gave one last look toward Santa before rushing into the kitchen. They grabbed a couple cookies and stuffed them into their pockets turning to head back to the living room when they heard a noise. Quickly they ducked under the table.

There was a thick, floor length table cloth that hid them but also made it impossible to see who had entered the kitchen. After a few tense moments they heard a funny noise, like loud sniffing. They looked at each other curiously wondering what that odd noise was. It seemed somewhat familiar but they couldn’t quite place it. It grew louder and the table cloth moved. They started to get nervous as the noise went around the table and stopped at a slit in the cloth. The cloth swayed as something pushed against it and suddenly a small, squishy faced Pug puppy pushed through the cloth. The elves sighed in relief as the little dog looked at them with a happy smile and friendly eyes. He pushed through the rest of the way, hurrying over to meet the two elves. He sniffed Eddie and licked his face then turned to Lou. Lou loved animals and was as happy to meet the puppy as it was to meet Lou. He laughed as the Pug jumped on him and licked his face. He pet his wrinkly head and the dog wagged his curly tail in delight. Eddie looked at the tag around its neck and read the name.

“Puggy.” Eddie said. The little dog turned to Eddie in response to its name. He tried to lick Eddie again but Eddie stopped him by scratching behind his ear. The puppy immediately started tapping his hind foot in happy response.

“Aw, he likes you Eddie.” Lou said with a big grin. Puggy turned back to Lou and nudged him for another pat on the head. Lou was happy to oblige. He laughed as Puggy’s tail wagged so hard it nearly knocked him over. He was snuffling and snorting the whole time and Lou was very happy. “Isn’t he the cutest little dog you’ve ever seen?” Lou gushed.

“Yeah, yeah, cute.” Eddie said nervously peeking under the tablecloth. “Now we need to think about getting back to the living room before Santa leaves.”

Lou giggled as the dog continued to lick his face and jump all over him. Eddie looked around trying to locate Santa.

My Short Short for the Day

“Phew! That was close, huh Eddie?” Lou asked.

“Shhh, keep your voice down.” Eddie reminded him.

“Do we have enough cookies, yet?” Lou's eyes lit up with hope.

“Let’s see. Bring out your cookies and I’ll count them.” Eddie said. “Yes, it looks like we have enough for all the elves. Now put them back in your pockets and hurry. Santa should be landing soon.”

They hurriedly put the cookies back in the bags and stuffed the bags in their pockets. They finished just as the sleigh landed on top of another roof. They quietly snuck out of the bag and around to the back of the sleigh before Santa noticed. As soon as Santa disappeared down the chimney they relaxed.

“Eddie, I’m tired. Can we go home now?” Lou whined as he slumped to the ground.

“We’ll be heading home soon.” Eddie said sitting next to his friend and keeping an eye on the chimney. Then he heard a crunch and turned his head quickly to see Lou munching on a cookie. “Lou, no! Don’t eat that!” Eddie yelled.

“Huh, what?” Lou said as he continued to eat.

“The cookie! Stop eating the cookie!” Eddie said in panic. “Oh, no! Now we’ll have to go back down for another cookie.”

Lou brushed the crumbs away from his mouth with his sleeve. “Sorry Eddie, I didn't mean to.”

“Ok, ok, but whatever you do, don’t eat anymore cookies.” Eddie stated.

Lou nodded. “I won’t, I promise.”

Just then they heard a noise coming from the direction of the chimney. They rushed around to the other side of the sleigh and waited for Santa to put the sack on the seat. He climbed into the front seat and picked up the reins. Quickly the two elves slipped back into the sack and braced themselves for take off. Both kept silent as they flew to the next rooftop. After Santa slipped down the chimney, the two elves walked to the edge and peered in.

“Are you ready?” Eddie asked looking at his friend.

“Yes, I guess so.” Lou replied.

My Short Short for the Day

They slipped through the doorway and rushed over to the couch. Eddie peeked around the edge to watched as Santa settled down at the table. The kitchen door swung gently closed and Eddie turned to Lou but he wasn’t there. He looked around until he saw Lou near the tree walking towards a cat.

“Lou!” Eddie whispered loudly looking from Lou to the kitchen. “Lou! Stop!”

Lou looked at Eddie but didn’t stop moving and accidentally stepped on the cat’s tail. He quickly picked his foot up but it was too late. The cat howled and raced towards the tree.

“Oh, no!” Lou looked sheepishly at Eddie then raced toward the tree. The cat leapt into the tree knocking decorations to the floor but the presents cushioned their fall and none broke.

“Come on Lou, help me get these back on the tree before Santa comes out.” Eddie scrambled to pick up the decorations.

The cat hissed at the elves who nervously scurried around trying to re-decorate the tree, but with each move the cat made, more decorations fell off the tree. A noise came from the kitchen and Lou and Eddie perked their heads up and froze.

“I think that was Santa.” Eddie stated.

“Oh, no! What do we do?” Lou asked nervously.

Eddie tried to think for a moment but the kitchen door started to open. “Quick, into the bag!” Eddie yelped.

They both dropped the decorations they were holding and jumped into Santa’s bag. They held their breath as they heard footsteps approaching.

“Oh, dear.” Santa said in wonder. “Now, what happened here?”

The two elves nervously huddled together as they heard the tree rustle. There was a loud ‘Meow’ as the cat jumped down from the tree and landed in Santa’s arms.

“Ho, ho, ho. So that’s how the decorations got knocked off.” Santa said with a smile, petting the nervous cat until it calmed down. “Here you go, now run along and let me put these back on the tree.” With a twinkle of his eye, the decorations returned to their proper branches so that it looked as it had when he first arrived. Another soft ‘Ho, ho, ho’ and Santa picked up his bag and returned to the roof. He placed the bag on the back seat and gently slid off the roof and into the air. The elves let out a sigh of relief as they felt the cool air of the outdoors.

My Short Short for the Day

The elves continued with this plan for several more hours until their pockets overflowed with Christmas cookies. The sleigh landed gently on a rooftop and just before Santa turned around to grab his sack, the two elves quietly slipped out and rushed behind the sleigh. After Santa climbed down the chimney, the two elves paused for a few moments before looking down the chimney to see if it was clear.

“Are you ready?” Eddie asked.

“Do we have to go down again?” Lou whined.

“Yes, but I think this should be the last time.” Eddie replied patting his bulging pockets.

“Okay.” Lou said climbing to the edge of the chimney. With some help from Eddie, Lou jumped down the chimney. There was a rug in front of the fireplace and it cushioned Lou’s fall, but he was unable to get out of the way before Eddie landed on him again. They stood up and dusted themselves off while looking around for Santa.

“Okay, there he is, over by the tree.” Eddie pointed at Santa. Then he continued to look around. “I think the kitchen is through there.”

“Okay.” Lou replied.

They quietly slid along the wall towards the kitchen until they reached a big wooden desk. They paused for a moment before dashing across the room to the kitchen door. Quietly they slipped through the door and immediately spotted the cookies on the table.

“We’ll have to grab the cookies and get out of here before Santa finishes putting the presents under the tree.” Eddie stated. “With no tablecloth for cover, we can’t hang around.”

Lou nodded his head. The two elves climbed up onto the table and stuffed the cookies into their pockets, and as usual, leaving one cookie behind for Santa. Then they climbed back down and peeked out the door.

“Santa's finishing with the stockings now.” Eddie said looking at Lou. “Let's go.”

Lou nodded and kept close to Eddie.