Crystal the Great
( The Elf Who Saved Christmas )
Status: unfinished
Comments: loved. Constructive criticism welcome.
There once was an elf so full of joy
who worked in Santa's workshop, creating new toys.
She loved candycanes, pumpkin pie and sugarplums.
She filled children's stockings with gum and dum-dums.
She went by the name of Crystal the Great.
And she truly was great, with the strength of ten reindeer plus eight.
She could handle anything that came her way:
a tangled coil of lights or a dent in Santa's sleigh.
But one particular challenge gave Crystal quite a fright.
That was the time that Santa forgot a present of Christmas Eve night.
"Wait!" Crystal cried, "you left one behind."
But she knew it was too late, there wasn't a doubt in her mind.
Then she got an idea; she knew just what to do.
If Santa could do it, why, she could too.
She would take the gift and carefully load up a sleigh.
hitch up a reindeer and take it away.
But there was a problem: there were no reindeer left!
So quickly and silently to the workshop she crept.
She snuck through the door, greeted by the scent of gingerbread spice,
and began to work on a diabolical device.
She needed a catapult to launch her through the air,
to the sleeping child's house; she had minutes to get there.
She instantly got to work, moving like lightning.
The skill at which she did so was almost frightning.
When she finally finished, she looked upa t her work.
"It's so pretty," she gasped, then turned with a smirk,
to come face to face with Kazoo, the head elf.
"What is all this, Crystal?" asked he, "explain yourself."
"W-well," Crystal stuttered, turning her gaze south.
Then the whole story fell like rain from her mouth.
"Oh my, this won't do!" said the head elf, Kazoo.
"Please carry on, I'm counting on you."
"Thank you, head elf, I'll do my best."
And slowly but surely Crystal's heart slowed in her chest.
But there was another obstacle: there was no room on the seat!
To fit herself and the present would prove quite a feat.
"Oh no." Crystal said, "I made it too small."
Kazoo laughed, "I think, to me, it looks pretty tall."
And he took the gift out of Crystal's hands
and placed it on the machine's seat after climbing all the stands.
"We can't send you both, lets send the present instead.
And with this catapult's accuracy, it should hit that kid square on the head."
Crystal smiled at this logic. They could wait and they could hope,
that it would hit the child upon the head; they could watch with Claus's telescope.
"Yes, let's do that!" she squealed with glee,
"I'll get Santa's telescope, so we can watch and see."
The catapult went off and the box went flying.
It did hit a girl on the head, but she took it without crying.
"Ouch!" she wailed, rubbing her head.
"Amanda, what's wrong?" her mother said.
"A present fell right out of the sky,"
said little Amanda, "Right out of the sky; I don't understand why."
"I don't see; how can that be?"
Amanda's father entered the scene. "Santa's presents are already unter the tree."
Amanda tore at the wrapping with child-like precision.
Her ferocious fingers exposed the box from the first incision.
"Coal?" Amanda whispered as she clutched at a rock.
She blinked in shock, this was worse than a sock.
"But I wasn't bad this year," she gasped in surprise.
"I never cried, I didn't pout. I didn't shout or tell lies."
In the north pole, thousands of miles away
Two little elves watched the scene in dismay.
Kazoo was puzzled, an emotion he rarely shows.
Coal belongs in stockings, not in boxes with bows.
"Who could have done this? he asked in confusion.
Crystal just shook her head, hoping this was a dilusion.
All her hard work was worthless, her efforts were wasted.
Instead of victory, it was dissapointment she tasted.
"Look, Crystal! Look! It wasn't coal after all.
In fact, it's not even something you can fund at a mall."
Kazoo was grinning from ear to ear
as he passed over the telescope, exclaiming "Look here!"
-to be continued-
