Jesse and Daisy straightened up and looked around. The parapet was littered with dozens of tiny plastic action figures.
Jesse picked one up and held it close to his face. Beneath its yellow mustache, the figure wore a deep scowl. Its elbows were jointed, and its little plastic broadsword could fit in either hand. Jesse worked the arm and made the sword swing in a small arc. “Cool!” he said.
Emmy flew up to join them. She touched the cousins’ heads and their armor disappeared.
“I guess you finally got your full power back,” Daisy said.
“Big-time,” said Jesse.
“Aren’t you two glad I had some practice being Santa’s helper?” Emmy asked.
“What exactly did you do?” asked Jesse.
“Reverse Action Figure Spell,” Emmy said with pride. “Worked like a charm, didn’t it?”
“It sure did,” said Jesse. “Where’s Beowulf?”
Emmy shrugged. “Somewhere in this heap of plastic. These little dudes all look alike to me.”
She walked over and picked up the bag of Thunder Eggs. “Let’s get these back on track. To the North Pole on the double!”
“Oh, goody,” said Jesse drily. “I can’t wait.”
“Do we have to go through that nasty portal?” Daisy asked.
“I think you’ll find the portal quite changed,” Emmy said.
With the net of Thunder Eggs clasped in her talons and her Keepers on her back, Emmy flew up toward the mouth of the giant gray funnel hovering in the sky over Geatland. Emmy was right. The trip back was like a pleasure cruise, the air filled with flitting butterflies, tweeting birds, and fragrant flowers.
When they emerged from the portal, Jesse and Daisy climbed down off Emmy’s back. The very next moment, the great plates of ice began to move together with a scrape and a rumble, closing the portal to Geatland.
The Aurora greeted them in colorful splendor:
We’ve sung of deeds both bold and daring.
Now we sing a song of joy.
The Aurora is safe, as is the Ozone,
Thanks to the dragon, the girl, and the boy!
“Shucks,” said Emmy. “It was nothing. Right, guys?”
Jesse and Daisy blushed, then sat down and put on their snowshoes. They were both feeling more than a touch of snow fatigue. Following Emmy, they trudged across the ice to Beowulf’s Vortex machine.
“I sure hope she’s figured out how to swivel the whosits to get the thingie to whirligig in the right direction,” Jesse said.
“I know exactly what you mean,” said Daisy.
Emmy set the eggs down and slowly circled the Vortex Interceptor, all the time staring up at it. Then she threw back her head and directed a jet of flame at the bottommost girders. The metal turned bright yellow, then red, then finally white-hot. Like a flame traveling the length of a fuse, the white heat snaked up the Vortex machine. When it reached the top, there was a blinding flash. The next moment, the entire structure sagged, then collapsed through a hole in the ice, disappearing into the waters of the vast polar sea that lay beneath.
Emmy heaved a sigh of satisfaction. “Sometimes wrecking things is so much more fun than building them.”
Jesse and Daisy were both mortified.
“What about the eggs?” Daisy asked.
“How will you get them back on track now?” Jesse asked.
“Who needs a Vortex Interceptor when you’ve got dragon magic?” Emmy said with a grin. She retrieved the net and rocketed with it back up into the air. Jesse and Daisy stood with their heads tilted back, eyes on the sky. For the longest time, nothing happened. Just when their necks were beginning to get stiff, the Aurora gathered directly above the spot where the Vortex Interceptor had been. This time, the light was green.
The green light formed itself into a long pipe, one end pointing into the sky and the other aimed at the hole in the ice. Through the pipe, the Thunder Eggs began to swirl down, moving in a clockwise spiral. One after another, the Ethereals wound down through the pipe and plummeted into the hole, until they were lost to sight.
When the last egg was gone, Emmy came rushing back to earth, the wind whistling through her wings. “The Ethereals are officially back on track!” she cried. “The Aurora are out of danger. And all’s well with the world. Let’s go home, Keepers.”
“Plan,” said Jesse and Daisy.
“Is it still Christmas?” Emmy asked hopefully as Jesse and Daisy climbed onto her back.
Jesse looked down at his wristwatch. “It’s the day after. Four o’clock in the morning.”
“It’s Boxing Day!” Daisy announced.
Emmy brightened. “Does that mean I get to lace on the gloves and go a few rounds in the ring?”
“Silly girl,” said Daisy. “Boxing Day is when people go to the store and return the gifts they don’t like.”
“It’s tradition,” said Daisy.
“It’s a rude tradition. But you haven’t even gotten my gift yet,” Emmy said.
“We told you,” Jesse said. “You don’t need to give us one.”
“Having a dragon for Christmas is our gift,” Daisy said.
“And having a Christmas adventure with you is something we’ll never forget,” said Jesse.
“Oh, but you don’t understand!” Emmy said. “I finally found you guys the perfect gift. And I’m pretty sure you would never, ever dream of returning it.”
After Emmy had flown them back to Goldmine City, she retired to the barn for a well-earned rest. But Jesse and Daisy couldn’t rest yet. They woke up Aunt Maggie and Uncle Joe from their “long winter’s nap,” and got the delayed holiday festivities underway. By midmorning, Jesse and Daisy were sitting in a patch of buttery golden sunlight next to the Christmas tree in the living room. They were surrounded by a sea of crumpled wrapping paper and ribbons all sprinkled with Christmas cookie crumbs.
Uncle Joe said, “I think it’s kind of a nifty break with tradition waiting until the day after Christmas to open our gifts.”
“I just don’t know where yesterday went,” Aunt Maggie said, mystified.
Daisy wagged a finger. “Too much Killer-Diller Loosey-Goosey Eggnog, Mom.”
“I didn’t have that much,” Aunt Maggie said.
Uncle Joe frowned. “I might need to adjust the recipe. A little more goosey and a little less loosey.”
“It’s your turn to open, Mom,” Daisy said. Hers was the last present under the tree.
Aunt Maggie unwrapped the mailing tube and pulled the paper out of the cylinder. She held the sparkling paper up to the light. “Red sparkles!” she said. “I love them. I’ll use them to line my bureau drawers.”
“Great idea, Mom,” said Daisy.
Uncle Joe said, “And I’ll use mine out in the Rock Shop, to line my specimen drawers.”
“Perfect, Poppy,” said Daisy, giving him a fond look.
In their stockings, the cousins had found the usual sensible or sentimental items: socks, toothbrushes, candy canes, chocolate oranges, brain teasers, yo-yos. For bigger gifts, Jesse had gotten a coin collector’s starter kit, a chemistry set, and stilts; Daisy had received a miniature loom, a fancy matching hairbrush and comb, and a pogo stick.
“I’m so sorry the snow is already melted, Jesse Tiger,” said Aunt Maggie, giving him a sympathetic look.
Jesse smiled. “That’s okay, Aunt Maggie. I got enough snow yesterday to last me a lifetime. Really.”
“You have no idea,” Daisy said under her breath.
“Hey, look!” said Uncle Joe, pointing beneath the lower tree branches. “There’s one last present back there.”
Uncle Joe pulled out a large gift, crudely wrapped in old newspaper and green duct tape. He read the tag: “To Jesse Tiger and Daisy Flower, from E of L.” His eyes widened. “Very mysterious! Who’s ‘E of L’?”
Daisy was ready with an answer. “Elsa,” she said. “She’s a new girl in school.”
“Really?” said Aunt Maggie. “Where is she from?”
Daisy shrugged. “Leandra!”
“Really? I’ve never heard of it. Where’s that?” Uncle Joe asked.
Daisy frowned. “Up north. Norway, maybe? Yeah, that’s it. Norway. You know, the land of Beowulf?”
“Well, why don’t you kids open Elsa’s gift?” said Aunt Maggie.
Jesse and Daisy tore away the newspaper. They found themselves staring at a plastic scale model of a Viking warship bristling with oars, its red-and-gold-striped sail unfurled, manned by a crew of tiny plastic Viking warriors.
“This guy here might be Beowulf himself,” said Uncle Joe, picking up the action figure on the foredeck. Beneath the tiny helmet with the ox horns the figure had snow-white braids and a look of dread on his bearded face.
“Why not?” said Jesse.
“He doesn’t look so tough to me,” Daisy said.
“Say!” said Uncle Joe, returning Beowulf to the foredeck. “The detail on this ship is impressive! It looks really authentic.”
“These European toy makers,” Aunt Maggie said with an admiring shake of her head. “Santa’s workshop can’t match them for quality.”
“Hey, Jess,” said Daisy. “Check out the bowsprit.”
Instead of the goblin with the fangs, there was now a dragon with green scales and emerald-green eyes.
Uncle Joe regarded it doubtfully. “I’m not sure how many enemies that cream puff is going to scare away,” he said.
“Oh, I think that cream puff can hold her own,” said Jesse. “Don’t you, Daise?”
Daisy grinned widely. “Totally!”
Dear Mom and Dad, Christmas in America was amazing. The good news is that it snowed! And more than just a dusting! The bad news is that it melted overnight. I hope you guys liked your gifts. Did you know that paper was one of the most ingenious inventions in the history of the world? Daisy and I got lots of neat presents, but the neatest one (next to my new Blueberry) was a model of a Viking warship. One of the crewmen even looks like Beowulf. Except that he doesn’t look very brave. In fact, he looks scared stiff. Maybe it’s the dragon carved into the bowsprit. Daisy and I are going to keep it in the barn, along with our other treasures. We’re headed up there right now to test Daisy’s new pogo stick.
Merry Christmas,
Your son in America,
Jesse Tiger