Season's Greeting everyone! So I've given myelf a little challenge this December. I wanted to see if I could start and finish this story by the end of the month. The Santa Clause has always been my favorite Christmas movie so I thought I'd finally sit down and write something for it! This story will be about nine chapters long. I'm going to give it a T rating just to be safe, but I really don't think it needs it. If you like what you read, please review, because I'd love to hear your thoughts! If you dont feel like reviewing, that's okay too! Just sit back and enjoy.

If anyone's wondering, the title comes from the song May You Always by The McGuire Sisters.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from The Santa Clause series, that is owned by Disney.

"Comet! Where are you boy?" Bernard called, his mitted hands cupped around his mouth to help his voice carry across the snowy field. His only answer was the echo of his question dancing back towards him. Bernard let out an aggravated sigh that turned to mist in the chilly air.

"Losing hope, Head Elf Bernard?" A teasing, posh voice asked. He turned around, the crunching of snow beneath his pointed boots sounding louder than Santa's workshop in a mid-December rush. Quentin's grinning face greeted him, freckles and cheeks scrunched up in playful optimism. Bernard couldn't help but notice how his friend's purple pom-pom cap, wore low over his ears to guard them from the cold, and Christmas tree green velvet coat stood out obnoxiously bright against the backdrop of white from the field they stood in. If it were Quentin lost out here, instead of Comet, Bernard had no doubt in his mind that he'd have found him already. Twice, probably.

"Nah, just kinda irritated he even got out in the first place." Bernard answered. A wisp of frozen air snuck its way through his heavy brown coat. He shivered.

"Don't worry, we'll find him soon. And then we can finally head back to the workshop for fresh hot cocoa." Said a cheery, feminine voice. Bernard smiled gratefully at Judy, who had traded in her pointed hat today for a lovely cream hooded cloak and was currently blending in quite well with a large pile of snow by a cluster of trees. Her cocoa was the best and definitely something he was going to need after this mess.

"How did he get out again?" Quentin asked.

"I told you, I'm not entirely sure, but I think Jack Frost let him out."

"And what makes you think it was Frost?"

"Because Larry said he saw Jack Frost leaving the stables right before he noticed Comet was missing. And there was a half melted chunk of ice right next to Comet's pen door. So to me, all signs are pointing to Frost playing another one of his dumb tricks."

Jack Frost, Legendary Figure and Heralder of the Winter Season, was to Bernard nothing more than an irksome troublemaker. Every time he came to the North Pole, he found some way to cause problems. Whether that was freezing the conveyor belts, icing all the floors, or hiding the naughty and nice list in a pile of snow, he was always ruining something. Bernard hated having to deal with him, but as Head Elf it was one of his jobs. Which meant it was his job to chase an escaped Comet all the way to the outskirts of Elfsburg. At least he had good company though.

The three elves moved on, heading towards the icy mountains that surrounded their small home. Bernard was really hoping Comet hadn't decided to roam around there, the mountains were made of almost solid ice so they could be really dangerous if you didn't watch where you were going, but they were running out of places to look. They all called out his name as they walked, their voices ringing through the air like a mix-match of bells and gongs. Judy even yelled about having Comet's favorite candy in her bag, but, there was still no answer.

"Oh, you don't think he's hurt, do you?" She asked, worrying her bottom lip.

"No, Comet's smart. He wouldn't have done anything dangerous when he ran off. He's probably stopped somewhere to nap or eat and just can't hear us." Quentin said, patting her shoulder reassuringly.

Bernard scanned the area. He hoped his friend was right. Comet was Santa's lead reindeer, it would not be good if he got hurt. And if he was hurt, Bernard would make sure Jack Frost never stepped foot in the North Pole again.

Something caught his eye just then, a discoloration in the snow. He walked forward and was relieved to see a trail of dirty hoof prints. The first bunch were clustered together, like Comet had had a little trouble landing in the snow, but the rest made a neat path northeast of them. Bernard smiled.

"He's this way!" He called.

They spent another hour following the tracks, taking turns calling out to their reindeer friend. Bernard couldn't wait to find Comet and get back inside. The tips of his pointed ears were going numb from the cold and, he swiped his sleeve across his face, gross his nose was running.

"Comet!" Judy yelled. They all froze when a deep gibberish answered. Comet peeked his head out from behind a snowflake dusted bush. The three elves cheered and ran forward. Comet whined something at them in his animal-speak, but Bernard couldn't hear it over the crunch, crunching of their boots as they bumbled through the shin deep snow. Comet shook his head at them and then promptly turned around and flew off in the direction of the workshop. Bernard's jaw dropped open in disbelief. He stopped in his tracks, causing Quentin and Judy to slam into him. He stumbled forward.

"Jingle bells!" He yelped, just barely righting himself before he went face first into the snow.

"Sorry, Mate," Quentin said distractedly. He was watching Comet fly off. "Well, isn't that rude. He could have at least waited for us. We did spend half the day looking for him."

"Maybe he thought he was in trouble?" Judy guessed.

"Maybe," Bernard sighed. He pulled his green velvet cap down lower over his chilled ears and tucked his chin into the warmth of his knit scarf. "Let's just head back. I'm freezing."

Quentin and Judy nodded their heads in agreement and the three of them started walking back towards the center of town. They'd only made it a few steps when an unnatural blast of frigid winter air blew through them.

"Now, what are you three little elves doing all the way out here? Skiving off work?" Said a slippery male voice. "And aren't you the Head Elf? That's not setting a very good example now, is it?"

Jack Frost appeared before them, with a mischievous grin on his pale face. His blue, frost covered hair glimmered in the sunlight that shimmered down through the ice above. His cerulean pinstriped suit was neatly pressed and the ice along his shoulders and tie clung to the fabric like sequins did to webs of hot glue. Jack ran a hand down his side absentmindedly, smoothing an unseen wrinkle.

"We're not ditching work. We came out here looking for Comet," Bernard growled.

"Oh? Is he missing?" The legendary figure asked in a concerned tone, though it was not at all convincing.

"Don't play dumb, you know he's been missing all day! You're the one who let him out!" Bernard accused.

"Really? Do you have proof that I did that?"

Bernard opened his mouth to respond, but could think of nothing. Technically, he didn't have any actual proof that Frost was the one to let Comet out, just Larry's word that he had seen him and the ice near Comet's pen. That definitely wasn't enough to turn Frost in to Santa and the other council members. Frost's grin turned into a sneer.

"Didn't think so. You know, it isn't nice to go around accusing people of things." Jack placed his hands on his hips and sighed deeply. "I guess you three will just have to stay here until you learn not to go around jumping to conclusions."

Bernard shared a confused look with Quentin and Judy.

"What the heck are you talking about, Fro—"

Jack inhaled quickly and deeply, his face turning a dark frightening shade of blue. Bernard felt the air around them drop several degrees and then the next thing he knew, Jack was blowing a blast of wintry magic at them. They cried out at the freezing wind whipping around. Bernard and Quentin huddled around Judy, trying to protect her from the worst of it. Bernard heard the distinct crackling of ice encasing them. He looked up just in time to see Frost grinning at him, a look of devilish mischief gleaming in his blue eyes, before the ice closed around them, trapping the three elves inside.

"Have fun in there!" Bernard heard Jack's muffled voice call to them, before the legendary figure disappeared with a laugh and a shower of snow and ice.

Curtis huffed in annoyance and swiped at the sweat beading along his forehead with the back of his hand. He was currently crouched in front of one of the giant ovens in the kitchens of Santa's Workshop, trying desperately to pry its door open. A little over an hour ago, he'd received a complaint about the appliance not working. Curtis had thought that maybe the pilot light was out, or one of the knobs was broken. Instead he'd walked into the kitchen to find a group of elves standing around an oven whose doors were sealed shut by ice.

He'd tried cranking the temperature and melting it, forcing it open with a crowbar, and he even briefly considered getting the Research and Development elves to use their flamethrowers on it, though the thought of Bernard's shouting when he found out what he did stopped him. Nothing had worked.

The kitchen elves said this was Jack Frost's doing, which made sense because who else would bother doing something as childish as playing a prank with the oven doors. He supposed he could just hunt down the Legendary Figure and demand he get rid of the ice, but Curtis had never been able to get Frost to listen to him. Even Bernard hadn't managed that yet.

"Curtis, is it fixed yet?"

Curtis pushed his glasses up higher on his nose and turned around to see who had spoken to him. Abby stood behind him, clutching an empty silver tray. The crown she normally wore on her head was a little askew and she had a smudge of flour across her left cheek.

"Does it look like it's fixed yet?" He asked her. She pinned him with a glare. Curtis wondered if she was debating on whacking him with the tray.

"Well, can you please hurry up? The kitchens had a ton of orders this afternoon from the second shift elves who wanted cookies for their lunch break and with the oven doors frozen shut we're totally behind schedule."

Curtis rolled his eyes and turned back to the frozen oven he'd been working on.

"I'm going as fast as I can. This is magic ice. It doesn't just disappear, you know." He pulled a hammer and chisel from the tool belt around his waist and started chipping away at the ice. "Can't you just use a different oven? We've got like twenty."

"They're all being used!" Abby said with a frustrated groan as she set the tray onto the counter behind her. "I asked you earlier to send a memo to have one reserved so we could make the cookie orders, but everyone I asked about it said they hadn't heard from you."

Curtis paused in his hammering to give Abby a sheepish smile over his shoulder.

"Oh... right. I may have forgotten to do that," he chuckled weakly. Abby's face fell into her hands.

"Of course you forgot," she muttered. "Where's Bernard? I bet he could convince one of the other kitchen elves to share the ovens with me."

Curtis frowned and started working on the frozen door again. "I'm not sure. I haven't seen him all day. Last I heard he was dealing with some sort of hullabaloo down at the stables, but that was hours ago."

"I guess I'll head down there and look for him, maybe someone knows where he went," Abby sighed.

"Oh, I wouldn't bother doing that," said a voice from behind them. They turned around to see Jack Frost leaning casually against the door frame, a sly glint in his eyes.

"Why?" Curtis asked, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Because, he's not at the stables anymore."

"Then where is he?"

Jack Frost just shrugged and started examining his nails.

"If you know where he is, you should tell us," Abby demanded, hands placed firmly on her hips.

"And why should I do that?" Jack said in an extremely bored voice.

"Because, we all know you froze the oven!"

"I did no such thing," he said with obvious feigned innocence.

"The elves saw you leaving the kitchens, Frost," Curtis huffed as he got to his feet.

"That still doesn't mean that I was the one to freeze the ovens, and even if I was I'm sure it would have been a complete accident."

Abby and Curtis both rolled their eyes at Jacks poor acting.

"Look, it's obvious you're not going to fix it. So we need Bernard's help in here so I can get my work done. And since you're not going to get rid of that stupid ice, you should at least tell us where he is."

Frost studied them for a long moment,

"Tell you what, how about I give you all a little clue?"

"A clue?"

"Yes," Jack walked forward and leaned down so he was eye level with them. He cupped his right hand around his mouth like he was whispering a secret. "He's somewhere very cold."

"What? That's not a clue! He could be anywhere!" Curtis argued. Jack just cackled at their disbelieving faces and then disappeared in a swirl of winter magic.

Curtis and Abby stared at each other.

"Why do I have a bad feeling now?" Curtis gulped.

"We've been in here for hours, I don't think Frost is coming back." Quentin said. Bernard looked over at him and Judy. They were huddled close together, Quentin's arm wrapped tightly around Judy's shoulder to protect her from the cold. They had Bernard's long red and black knit scarf wrapped around their necks. He'd given it up to them about an hour ago when he saw them shivering. It wasn't much, but he hoped they were a little warmer.

"Can you teleport out Bernard?" Judy asked. Bernard shook his head.

"No, I already tried. I don't think my Christmas Magic can get through ice made by a Legendary Figure."

"So, we're stuck out here in the cold?"

"Don't worry, I'm sure Santa or someone will find us soon," Quentin tried to sound reassuring, but Bernard could hear the worry hidden in his best friend's voice. The elves might live in the North Pole, but the frigid temperatures could still get to them if they weren't careful. Bernard was freezing too. He'd hoped Curtis or someone would have come looking for them by now. He told the stable elves he was going looking for Comet, so he'd thought when the reindeer returned without them someone would have realized something was amiss.

Unless they think we went straight back to the workshop. That wouldn't really be all that surprising. Bernard almost never left the workshop, unless Santa or Mrs. Claus demanded he go get some rest. There was always too much work that needed to be done.

He saw Judy shivering, though the younger elf seemed to be trying to hide it. Bernard turned around and placed his mittened hands on the icy wall behind him. They couldn't stay out here forever. The sun may be out all the time during summer at the Pole, but it did nothing to warm their home, especially underneath the thick ice that kept them hidden from the world. Years ago, Bernard had made rules against the elves staying out for too long without the proper protection, like thick lumpy sweaters and scarves and plenty of hot cocoa. Their magic kept them warm enough, but he'd much rather everyone be safe rather than sorry.

"Bernard..." Quentin whispered. The head elf looked back at his friend. A dark cloud of worry was storming in the shorter elf's eyes. Bernard averted his gaze.

His job was to keep the elves safe and happy and working hard. It had been for a very long time and he prided himself on how well he'd been able to do it all these years. So, wasn't this just another moment where he needed to do his job and keep Judy and Quentin safe?

He glanced back at his friends again. If they stayed out here in the cold for much longer, they could end up sick or worse. He couldn't wait around for Santa or Curtis to find them or for Jack Frost to grow a conscious and let them out. Bernard took a deep breath and then slid his wool mittens off his hands. He stuffed them into his coat pocket and then placed his bare hands against the ice.

"Bernard," Quentin said, a little suspicious this time.

"What are you doing?" Judy asked. Bernard ignored them.

Magic was a funny thing. Even with Jack long gone, Bernard could still feel the tingling of his energy running through the ice, like bees buzzing in a hive. It clung to the water molecules, keeping them hooked to one another and stopping the ice from melting for a very long time, or for as long as Jack wanted. Christmas magic was a lot like Winter magic in this way, except it came from deep inside a person's heart. It blossomed in the warmth of someone's dreams and joy and their belief in the unbelievable. Winter magic, on the other hand, left you numb and cold and with a void inside you that you were always trying to fill.

The elves were not supposed to use Winter magic, ever. They needed to feel joy and happiness to stay young and full of the energy they needed to help people. That's why they used Christmas magic and helped Santa make toys for children all over the world.

They weren't supposed to use it, but that didn't mean Bernard didn't know how.

He emptied his mind of all the things he usually worried about; deadlines, production issues, what they were serving in the kitchens that day, and instead focused on chillier thoughts. He thought about fresh snow, frozen lakes, frosty ice capped mountains, and icicles hanging above a doorway. Bernard shivered as the cold from the ice seeped into his fingers, numbing them to the point where he couldn't feel them pressed against the ice. He almost pulled back when he saw them turn a deep shade of blue, but he shoved his concern away and pictured what he wanted most, the ice cracking open and letting them out. There was nothing for a moment, and then the next thing he heard was the crumbling of the ice as it broke apart and finally he could see the field they'd been standing in before Jack had showed up. Quentin and Judy jumped to their feet, stumbling a little because the were both still wrapped in Bernard's scarf.

"H-how did you do that?" Judy wondered in amazement. Quentin was hurriedly pulling himself free of the knitwear, panic making his breath come in short gasps.

"Bernard," he said, reaching for his friend's arm, "Mate, tell me you're okay."

Bernard didn't answer. He was too busy clutching his hands to his chest. His fingers burned from the cold, like he'd spent the entire day with them submerged in freezing water. He breathed on them, hoping dismally that it might bring some sort of warmth back. Quentin took his hands in his and studied the still blue fingertips. Without speaking, he reached inside Bernard's coat pocket and pulled out the mittens. He carefully shoved them back onto the taller boy's hands and then hooked his arm around his shoulder.

"Come on then, let's get inside where it's warm."

Judy stepped forward and linked her arm with Bernard's. The three of them set off south towards the workshop as quickly as they could.

Out from behind the now broken ice block stepped Jack Frost. He studied the remains of his latest trick and then looked out towards the retreating backs of Santa's elves.

"Now... how did you learn to do that?"