I slumped in my chair, not sure whether I was relieved or disappointed. Childrenshouldhave magic in their lives. Especially those who'd suffered tragedies, like Shelley. They should dream of dancing on stars, sliding down rainbows, and flying through the night sky on winged unicorns.
And—now that we knew unicorns really existed—kids should believe in Santa, too. Of course, Shelley had her own kind of magic, so maybe she didn't need Santa? Still. It made me a little sad.
Jack, who'd immediately started building a complicated tower with his share of the sugar packets, a few tiny butter tubs, and all the strawberry jam containers, shook his head. "That's actually not true. I've met Santa Claus," he said absently, his focus on his slightly leaning construction. "Lives in a palace in the Winter Fae lands. The only known portal is on Kaffeklubben Island, off the northern tip of Greenland."
Shelley's eyes narrowed. "Don't mess with me, Jack. I'm not achild."
She looked like a tiny schoolteacher reprimanding a roomful of rowdy kids. I had to bite my lip against the laugh bubbling up.
"Neither was I when I met him," he said. "I was on a rescue mission."
"You had to rescueSanta Claus?" I knew better. I really, truly knew better than to ask him about his many and mysterious past adventures but comeon.
He laughed. "Of course not. Don't be silly, Tess."
I sat back in my chair. "That's what I thought. The—"
"I had to rescue two of the elves."
I dropped my head to the table and banged it gently on the surface a few times.
Shelley's bright blue eyes gleamed, and when she opened her mouth, I knew at least a hundred questions would come flying out, so I was relieved to see Lorraine come back to our table.
"Andy took both of them to the sheriff's office to talk some sense into them," she said grimly. "What are they thinking to act like this where children might see them?"
Shelley sighed. "Aunt Lorraine. I know there's—"
"I wasn't talking about you, sweet pea," Lorraine said, ruffling my sister's light brown hair. "I was talking about Jack."
Jack grinned. "We'll discuss this later, Lorraine. Right now, I'm too hungry to argue with you."
"Me, too! What's the special?" Shelley asked, sitting up straight.
"Wait," I said. "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be in school?"
"There was an unexpected half day because of the stampede."
I blinked. "Did you say stampede?"
"Yes! Since Mr. Washington retired last month, the high school has had temps for their science teacher. Today they got their new permanent teacher, Mrs. Dempsey."
Mr. Washington, a snake shifter, hadn't exactly retired. He'd been captured by a Fae queen after stealing her dagger and kidnapping my Aunt Ruby. He'd done some pretty awful things, but I still had mixed feelings about him. He'd been my science teacher, too.
Lorraine tapped a finger on the table. "Shelley. What happened? Mrs. Dempsey caused a stampede?"
Shelley stole a sugar packet from Jack and added it to her own tower. "I heard she brought some classroom decorations, and one was a small stone gargoyle sculpture, and—"
Jack groaned. "Oh,no."
I looked at the two of them. "Oh, no, what?"
"Gargoyles hibernate, Tess." He winced. "And they're huge on family. If a young gargoyle woke up in an unfamiliar place, he'd panic and put out a psychic call, and—"
"And a hundred giant gargoyles stampeded through the high school to rescue him," Shelley finished, grinning wildly. "It wasoutstanding.We could see it from our windows at the elementary school."
"I … what …" I gave up. I had nothing.
Jack's forehead furrowed. "What happened to Mrs. Dumpster?"
