Chapter 34: St. Nicholas, Part 3

Before either of them could speak, a sharply dressed elf woman, with long black braids and a red and green dress came out of a door in the back of the room.?She carried a silver tray with two steaming red mugs. "May I offer you some hot cocoa?" she asked, stopping next to Serendipity.
"Oh, thank you," Serendipity replied, taking the nearest mug off of the tray and raising it to her mouth carefully. She had not had hot cocoa since before her father had died, as her mother didn't allow her any sweets of any kind, and she was delighted to see there were several marshmallows floating atop the thick liquid. Taking a small sip, she closed her eyes in delight; never had she tasted such a rich, thick, chocolaty beverage. "Oh, my," she whispered before taking another sip and setting the cup down on a knitted square she could only assume was designed for such purposes.
Santa was drinking his cocoa as well, but he chuckled in delight at her expression. "Serendipity, my dear," he said as he sat his mug on a table near his chair. "I am so very pleased, and honored, that you have decided to come to the North Pole."
"Oh, why thank you," Serendipity replied, blushing. She couldn't imagine why St. Nicholas would be honored to have her here. Before she could ask, or even begin to explain that she wasn't really planning on staying, he continued, and she listened intently.
"I know how disappointed you were several years ago, the last time you asked me for a gift. Had your caretaker, Maevis, write me a letter. And well, as much as I wanted to give you what you had asked for, I simply could not." Leaning forward in his chair, the first expression of sadness on his face Serendipity had ever noticed, he rubbed his forehead. "Many centuries ago, I was blessed with magical powers unlike any a human has ever been given before. I became a legendary figure. And with that great power came a great responsibility. As you can imagine, there is a great deal of work that goes into making sure every well-behaved child in the world gets the present he or she asks for."
"I can imagine," Serendipity replied, staring intently at the being before her.
"I need help to do my job, to do it well, and that is where folks like you come in. It's simple really. A team of elves scours the globe for talented individuals such as yourself, and they spend years determining if those toy makers are worthy of our calling, if he or she will be willing to come here and take on such enormous responsibility, if they believe enough in magic, in me, in Christmas. Of the thousands of artists we consider, only a few will ever be invited. You are very special, Serendipity. And we are so blessed to have you with us."
As she considered his every word, tears began to roll down her cheeks.?"I'm afraid you must have me confused with someone else."
"Someone else?" St. Nicholas asked. "Serendipity Fizzlestitch, I know everything. I am, more so than any other being on the face of the Earth, the judge of good and evil. Until you stand before God Himself, no one will ever have as clear an indication as to whether or not your heart is clean and pure than I have right now, Serendipity.?And when I tell you, you are worthy of being here, worthy of magic, worthy of happiness, worthy of love, you must believe me. Yes, you Serendipity Fizzlestitch, you have been chosen. And I am so thankful to have you here."
"Don't you know?" she asked, her icy blue eyes staring into his jolly face intently as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Don't you know what I've done?"
"Do you mean about the accident child?" Serendipity nodded and buried her face in her hands. "Oh, my precious one, I know about the accident. Of course, I know.?But it was just that--an accident. You were just as much a victim that day as anyone else."
"A victim?" she asked, staring up at him now. "How can you say that? They died--my mother, my sisters--they died because of me, because I switched the canister of rat poison with the flour. Because I thought an 'r' was an 'f,' because I was careless, and stupid, and illiterate."
St. Nicholas was there beside her now, his arm around her shoulders as he crouched next to her chair. "Serendipity, look at me. What happened that day was a tragedy, but you cannot continue to carry the weight of something that transpired when you were a child for the rest of your life. It will crush your soul--and your soul is worth saving. You are a beautiful person, Serendipity. If you could only see yourself as I see you, you would know. And the longer you stay here amongst us, amongst the magic, you shall see for yourself. I'm sure of it."
Serendipity looked into his shining blue eyes then and her tears began to abate. While there were so many thoughts swirling around in her mind, the only thing she could think to say was, "Thank you."
St. Nicholas smiled at her before kissing her lightly on the forehead and returning to his seat, a jolly laugh shaking his belly as he did so.
Though she wasn't quite sure what there was to be so jolly about, she thought, perhaps, he was just happy that she was there, and that she was going to stay; only she wasn't. And she didn't know exactly how to break it to him. It seemed that Corey must have taken it upon himself to report otherwise. "St. Nicholas," she said quietly as he sipped his hot cocoa, "I'm not that is I'm not sure I mean to say, I don't know yet whether or not I should like to stay."
He sat his mug down on the end table, a more serious expression on his face now. "Is that so?" he asked, folding his hands atop his midsection.
"It's only I haven't been away from home ever, and I shouldn't know whether or not I am suitable for the job," she continued, studying her own folded hands in her lap.
"Oh, you are," he said confidently, causing her to look up into his smiling face. "But I understand that making such a decision can be difficult. I invite you to take your time, look around, visit the other toy makers and their shops.?Then, you'll see. You'll understand that you will fit in quite well here. And if Maevis should like to visit, of course she may do so at any time.?There are a number of helpers who are capable of traveling back and forth to England, but I should think Corey would be happy to help you in that regard. You have changed him, Serendipity, already, in just a short amount of time."
"I have?" she asked in surprise. "How so?"
"You have improved his disposition incredibly," St. Nicholas explained. "I rather like the new Corey much better than the old, sour one."
Serendipity began to laugh. "I have to agree. But I'm not quite sure he's changed altogether--not yet, anyhow."
St. Nicholas nodded. "Only time will tell, my dear. Only time will tell."
"There is just one more thing I did want to ask you about, sir, if you don't mind," Serendipity stated timidly, her eyes downcast once again.
"You may ask me anything," St. Nicholas assured her, leaning forward.
Serendipity paused for a moment, not quite sure how to phrase her question. At last, she said, "You know everything, don't you?"
"I am capable of seeing everything," St. Nicholas corrected her.
Serendipity nodded in understanding, remembering the globe she had seen earlier. With a deep breath, she asked, "Did did he suffer?"
Pulling absently on his whiskers, St. Nicholas replied, "Only briefly, child. He was morose, thinking of you, worrying about what might become of you without him there to protect you. He knew, even then, that things were not equal between your sisters and yourself when it came to your mother's disposition. But it was over quickly, sweet girl, I assure you.?Someday, if you should like to have a look, I would allow you to access my great globe and all of the records stored there so that you may do so. But I think that is better suited to a different time."
Nodding her head in agreement, Serendipity wiped away the few tears that slid down her cheeks. While she was relieved to know her father had not been in prolonged pain, the answer also snuffed out the one small spark of hope that, perhaps, her father had somehow survived the shipwreck and was toiling away somewhere in the world, trying to get back to her. Though it had been a brief hope, it had still been alive, until just now. At last, after so many long years of wondering, she knew for sure; he was gone--but it had been quick and relatively painless. That, at least, was something.
"I shall call for Mr. Cane now," Santa Claus said, as he stood, ushering her toward the doorway. Serendipity scooped up her coat and followed, wondering how he would go about retrieving Corey. However, as the golden door came open, Serendipity saw his familiar face standing near the staircase, waiting for her and couldn't help but smile. He was smiling at her as well, his real smile, not the fake one, and she heard St. Nicholas chuckle over her shoulder certain that he knew the difference as well.
"Thank you ever so much," Serendipity cried, turning to embrace the kindly spirit once more.
"Thank you," St. Nicholas replied. "It was delightful to see you again, my child."
Puzzled, Serendipity asked, "Again?" And with a wink and a nod, St. Nicholas pressed his finger to the side of his nose and disappeared.
Serendipity stood looking at a fine mist, her mouth hanging open as Corey approached her, taking her coat and slipping it onto her thin arms with her hardly noticing as she continued to stare in amazement. "I should never get used to all this coming and going," she muttered.
"Yes, you shall," Corey assured her. "Now, if you will take my arm, there is someone who cannot wait to see you."
Serendipity smiled broadly, thinking of her little friend, and taking Corey's arm, she let him lead her back down the stairs, through the workshop, on her way to see Pozzletot at last.