‘Ahg! Agh! Krrrrrrr… kut kut kut!’

Once again, Lacey blearily opened her eyes. Waking up to strange sounds seems to be my thing now, she wryly thought.

‘Ahg!’ the maker of the noise agreed.

The world was blanketed in white, and her head hurt something fierce. The pounding only increased as she slowly sat up.

‘Ahg!’

She looked over at the noise, shook her head and looked again. A partridge was sitting in a pear tree. And she knew it was a pear tree because even though the landscape was covered in snow, it was in full leaf, lush and green, and bearing giant golden-ripe pears. It was also the largest pear tree she had ever seen, standing tall and proud.

‘Hey! Hey you, elf! Why are you sitting in the snow? All the others are at the workshop already!’ a voice demanded.

It was a smartly dressed man wearing a uniform of black trousers and a red coat. The coat was edged with black trimming and topped off with golden brocade on the shoulders. He was the most handsome male she had ever seen. Tall, with short, dark hair, piercing black eyes, prominent high cheekbones and the most sensuous mouth. She could almost feel the warmth and softness of his lips as she looked at them. Suddenly, she felt unseasonably hot, even though she was in a snowdrift. Resisting the impulse to fan herself, she looked over her shoulder, trying to see who he was calling to.

‘No, I’m talking to you, worker elf!’

Confused, she looked back at him. He was staring straight at her with his penetrating black eyes. Then she noticed her clothes. Instead of her usual work suit, she was dressed in a vibrant green dress reaching about mid-thigh in length, with red and white trimmings and horizontally striped woollen tights alternating between red, white, and green. At least her shoes were sensibly black, although that sensibility was somewhat spoiled by the mistletoe decorations attached to the toes.

‘But I’m not an elf!’ she protested.

‘What are you talking about? Of course you’re an elf! You won’t make your daily quota of toys if you lounge in the snow all day. Are you trying to catch a cold?’

As if his words conjured it, Lacey sneezed and then frowned. There were green woollen mittens on her hands, with a furry white trim where they ended on her arms.

‘Can you see this?’ she asked, holding up her hands for him.

‘See what?’

‘This’, Lacey replied, waving her hands.

‘Yes, those are your hands.’

‘But these aren’t my mittens. I have black gloves.’

‘So, why did you put them on? Also, why are you sitting in the snow?’ A frown creased his face as he studied her.

‘I don’t know. I think I fell this morning, and then I guess I went to sleep.’

‘Oh, that’s not good. Did you hit your head when you fell? You’re not supposed to go to sleep if you have a head injury.’

‘I think so. I don’t quite remember…’

‘Stay still, and let me get you to the nurse.’

The stranger picked her up in his arms like she weighed nothing. His thick coat made it hard to get a good idea of his figure, but his shoulders were broad and square. Smiling, she leaned into his chest and put her head on his shoulder. Then she realised what she was doing with a stranger and tensed away. Why did this strange man feel so good? Her fall must’ve really rattled her.

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‘Okay, you just relax. I’m glad I found you. We really do need all hands on deck in the workshop. At this rate, I don’t know how we’ll get all the toys done on time.’

Lacey stiffened even more. ‘What do you mean “in the workshop”? Is this a sweatshop? I have friends, and they’ll come looking for me!’ she lied.’

The man paused, ‘You don’t remember the workshop? You really must have hit your head hard.’

Then he fell silent. The mistletoe decorations on her shoes jiggled as her feet bounced with every long stride he took.

‘Well, answer me. I might not remember the workshop, but I do remember my question from a minute ago.’

‘I’m sorry, but in your current condition, I’m not sure whether I should.’

‘Oh, just tell me and get it over with.’

‘Okay then. You are an elf in Santa’s workshop. We make Christmas toys here for all the little boys and girls on earth.’

‘Santa’s workshop? Elf?’ Lacey squeaked out.

‘Yes, Santa’s workshop. And also, yes, you are an elf. Feel your pointy ears if you don’t believe me.’

Lacey touched her ear. It was pointy. A lot pointier than usual. And so was her other ear. There was also a roaring sound, getting louder and louder until the world went black again.

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When she woke up, she was lying on a bed with a light blanket thrown over her. The blanket had a candy cane motif, and she could hear the stranger talking with someone else. She slowly blinked her eyes open.

‘Oh look, she’s awake,’ the man said.

Another elf in a nurse’s uniform stood with the man. She looked a bit familiar.

‘Matty? Is that you?’

‘Oh, pretty close, dear. I'm Nurse Mathilda. Have we met before?’

‘I, ah, I thought so, but I guess I’m mistaken.’

‘Don’t worry about it. It happens to the best of us. Peter tells me that you fell in the snow and are feeling a bit confused.’

‘I guess so. I don’t quite remember,’ Lacey replied. ‘Am I an elf now?’

At that the nurse elf giggled a little. ‘Yes dear, you are an elf. That must’ve been some bump to your head! Do you remember your name?’

‘Yes, I’m Lacey.’

‘Well Lacey, nice to meet you. I don’t recall seeing you before. Are you new?’

Lacey thought about it. Yes, she was an elf. Yes, she wasn’t one before. Logic.

‘Yes, I’m a new elf.’

Nurse Mathilda lost her amused expression.

‘No, I meant, are you new here at our settlement on the North Pole?’

Given that she had never seen this place before, Lacey nodded silently.

At this point Peter interjected, ‘Sorry Mathilda, but I need to leave now if you don’t need me. I still have to do my rounds in the village and check on the reindeer encampment.’

‘No problem Peter,’ Nurse Mathilda replied. ‘I’m glad you found her when you did. This could’ve been even more serious if she had been left out in the cold. Good luck with your rounds, and I’ll see you again later.’

He ducked out the door, and Lacey listened to his footsteps retreating down the hallway. She felt a bit disappointed at him leaving and also that he’d see Nurse Mathilda again later.

‘Okay, Lacey. Now that my brother’s left, you and I can chat better.’

Lacey tried not to show her relief about their family relationship.

‘I thought I knew all the workshop elves, but I don’t remember you, which is probably a good thing. I mostly get to know elves when they come here with workshop injuries.’

Then she clapped her hands over her mouth.

‘Oh no! Now I’ve done it! Thirty-six days injury-free, and I go and jinx it! At least you remember your name. That’s a good start for us.’

‘But you and Peter keep talking about the workshop. I don’t work at a workshop, and I’m not an elf! I don’t know why my ears are pointy! I’m an accountant!’

‘Hush, it’s okay. Why don’t you try to relax? We’ll take it from the beginning. Do you remember how you fell?’

‘Well, I was late to work this morning and slipped on the ice. I think I hit my head on the front step of my house. See, here,’ she said, pointing to the bump.

‘Oh yes, you've got quite a lump there. And do you remember what happened afterwards?’

‘The world went dark, and then I woke up underneath the pear tree.’

‘And you don’t remember anything in between?’

Lacey shook her head.

‘Okay, let’s get your hat off and see what’s going on underneath.’

Lacey hadn’t even realised she was wearing a hat. She patted her head. There was a gentle tinkle, and she felt a thick, rough material under her hand. When she pulled the hat off, she saw that it was green, with a white fur trim and a golden bell at the end. It matched her mittens lying on the bedside table. She gave it another shake, and the bell jingled again. Then she noticed Mathilda's focused gaze on her.

‘Sorry,’ Lacey apologised. ‘I didn’t realise I was wearing a hat.’

‘I see. How many fingers am I holding up?’

‘Two.’

‘And now?’

‘Three, one on this hand and two on the other.’

‘And now?’

‘Two on your one hand again, and I can’t see your other hand since you’ve put it behind your back.’

‘Answers worthy of an accountant. Keep your eyes on my index finger now.’

Lacey watched the figure eight Mathilda drew.

‘So, you didn’t realise you were wearing a hat. Anything else you forgot?’

‘Like I said, I don’t know how I got here. One moment, I was lying in my front yard, and the next, I was in the snowdrift where Peter found me.’

Mathilda paused and gave her another searching look.

‘And where is your house?’

‘19 Broadstreet, Farmington.’

‘Oh dear.’

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