After looking far and wide, high and low, and harassing many more wild critters, Vairsing found who he was looking for. Or, almost. In his journey, he’d also picked up a handful of other curious kijikaiaku, all wanting to see this mysterious red man and the reindeer with the glowing nose for themselves. Hopefully, in the dark of the night and all the white, near-glowing snow under the moonlight, anything glowing red would stand out.
“Does this magic human really give presents to everyone?” Araliris, a sparkling, shining, golden kiji asked. His long tail swished. “I’d love to get a present!”
“We all would,” Glen, a vanilla-and-pink colored kiji with a soft mane said. “But I heard from the humans I stay with that Santa has a Nice List and a Naughty List… Bad people only get coal.” He shot a glance at Vairsing, who, being at the front of the little group, didn’t notice.
Araliris pouted. “Well, I’ve been good!”
Glen smiled. “Have you harmed any of the wildlife in your searches?”
“No, those blasted rabbits threatened me!”
Glen chuckled softly. “I’m sure they meant no harm.”
“You don’t understand…” Araliris sighed.
“Those rabbits did do a number on him the other year,” Eridanus commented, sidling up to the pair. His white wings were tucked, concealing his borealis-like marking, and he nearly blended into the snow all around them.
Araliris shivered, and not because of the chill.
Glen offered a sympathetic smile.
A red and rainbow-splashed kiji descended from above, and landed in front of Vairsing, then folded her leathery wings. “I think I’ve found them!” Aurorabeam exclaimed.
Vairsing’s ears pricked up. “Where?!” Being “descended” from Aurorabeam, he was also crimson-colored, with rainbow-like accents. His crescent-tipped whiskers twitched. KREB, the little crab robot that usually rested inside his mane, skittered up to sit on his head, between his horns. It clicked and beeped curiously.
Krvavé, another “related” to Aurora through Vairsing, and colored red with golden energy, also perked up. He’d been quiet much of the trip, mostly because it was hard to get a word in edgewise around the more talkative Vairsing, but he was still interested in their shared goal.
“This way!” Aurorabeam said, and she turned and dashed through the snow, leading the way.
The group ran, and ran, since several of them had no flying capability, until finally they stopped outside a lit-up village. There, past the outskirts, they caught sight of a hefty man in red, and sleigh loaded with a sack some of them recognized as being heavily enchanted, pulled along by a group of reindeer.
“That’s them!” Vairsing shouted. He barrelled towards them through the snow, and, lacking any better options, all the other kiji followed after him.
Santa started at the noise, and turned from his sack to regard the colorful group. Trepidation colored his face.
The reindeer at the lead, an otherwise totally average-looking creature with a strange, bright red glowing nose, also turned to face them.
“THERE’S ONLY ROOM FOR ONE RED MAN IN THIS FOREST!” Vairsing hollered, ignoring the fact that Krvave was right there, and that they were far, far away from his claimed forest home. He launched himself at Santa.
“Not again!” Santa cried. He pulled a fistful of something out of his sack, and tossed it up in the air.
Vairsing flew right through it, and crashed into the open sleigh. The remnant white dust glittered in the air behind him. Vairsing, overwhelmed with sudden grogginess, found he was too sleepy to get back up. But wait! Kiji couldn’t sleep! What was this foul sorcery?
Glen, lingering behind, heaved a heavy sigh. He cautiously made his way towards what he supposed was Rudolph, who regarded him with a large, wary eye.
Krvavé’s expression turned to one of firm disappointment and mild embarrassment. Seeing his summoner act like such a fool… “Vairsing…”
Aurorabeam also face-pawed. She sat in the snow, and looked Santa in the eye. “I’m very sorry about… that. We weren’t planning to attack you. Vairsing is just an idiot.”
Eridanus spoke, “He really is. We were all just curious about who you were!”
“Do you really give presents to everyone in a single night?” Araliris asked, his tail swishing excitedly.
Santa, having gone through this same kind of nonsense several times already this special day and night, somehow had managed to not lose his good nature and cheer. “Hoo, don’t mind your friend! Misunderstandings happen all the time. I’m sure he didn’t really intend violence. As for the presents,” he said, looking at Araliris, “it’s indeed true!”
Glen tilted his head up at Rudolph. “I see you’re a little scraped up. Would you like a magic herb to heal you?”
Rudolph’s long, soft ears twitched. He lowered his large head, and sniffed at Glen. “I see you mean no ill. I would like one of your herbs.”
Glen smiled, and produced a recovery herb from within his mane and proffered it to Rudolph, who gladly munched it down.
“Oh. Oh that’s quite tasty!” Rudolph said, and licked his muzzle. “It doesn’t taste at all like normal medicine!”
Glen’s tail wagged slowly. “And your wounds are already healing.”
Araliris, meanwhile, only grew more excited. “My friend said you had a nice and naughty list. Is that also true?”
“It is, it is! Now, normally, you’re all supposed to be asleep, but I know you spirits can’t do that. As a reward for your efforts in seeking me out, however, I suppose I can be a little more giving than usual.” Santa reached into his bottomless sack of gifts, and pulled out small, colorful boxes, one for each kiji - even Vairsing. He beckoned them over, one at a time, and handed over the little boxes.
After everyone had their gift, he bent down and hoisted Vairsing off the floor of his sleigh, and carried him gently in his arms. He stepped down onto the ground and laid Vairsing there, and tucked the final present into KREB’s waiting claws.
“Now, you all behave yourselves! It’s almost the end of the holidays, but that doesn’t mean I’m not still watching!” Santa hopped back into his sleigh.
The kiji gathered together around the still-groggy Vairsing, and watched Santa take the reins. He called out the name of each of his reindeer, and then with a snap of his reins, the animals, man, and sleigh all took off into the sky like a jet.
Eridanus poked Vairsing’s face with a paw. “Hey. You alright?”
Vairsing groaned, and lightly shook his head, and tried to rise. It was easier, now. “I… I think so. Good grief, what did he throw at me?”
“It looked like magic snow,” Eridanus said. “Maybe he uses it to keep people asleep while he’s delivering the gifts?” He shrugged.
“Ugh.” KREB clicked and beeped where it was still on top of Vairsing’s head. Vairsing reached up to take the tiny box, and asked, “What’s this?”
Krvavé chortled. “Probably a lump of coal.”
Araliris held his gift box in both paws, tail wagging excitedly. “Let’s all go home and open these!”