Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Justin wasn't the least bit surprised to find out that Laetitia had doctors that could heal virtually any wound in seconds with magic. He also wasn't surprised when that doctor refused to do so once he found out who it was for. Two insane things in a row that hadn't surprised him. That was something to be proud of.

And God knew he had few enough of those these days.

“He just started flight training!” Lena shouted from the hallway. “How is he ever going to be ready for Christmas if you make him heal naturally?”

“I fulfilled my hippocratic oath by putting his arm in a cast,” the medic argued. “As Laetitia's doctor, it is my decision whether or not to go any further than that, and I've decided not to waste good magic on healing the lightless one!”

Justin sat on the infirmary's bed, trying to ignore the way his right arm throbbed as if it had a second heart that pumped pain instead of blood. There were three other beds in here with him, but they were all empty. They had passed several other rooms on their way to this one, all of which had at least one bed available, but the doctor had been very insistent that Justin be given this room.

The problem, Justin had soon realized, was that the other rooms all had other patients in them as well. Patients who might be susceptible to Justin's poisonous words and lack of Christmas spirit.

“That's not what Santa would want and you know it!” Lena yelled.

Since their ride together, Lena had gone from cold and abrasive to being so protective of Justin that, even with a broken arm, he had started to feel smothered. He must have apologized a hundred times for his screwup on the way to the infirmary, but every single time she had insisted that it was her fault.

Though the guilt ate away at him from inside, Justin hadn't had it in him to argue. It was…nice to have someone blame themselves instead of him for a change.

I really am a horrible person, he thought, his ears drooping.

“If Santa walks in here and tells me to use my magic on the lightless one, then I will,” the doctor said. “Until then, my word is law in this clinic. I've done all I'm willing to do, so you and him need to leave. Now.”

“How can you sleep at night after leaving an innocent reindeer untreated?” Lena demanded as the doctor's footsteps carried him away from Justin's room. “I hope it weighs on your conscience so much that everyone has to give you sleeping pills for Christmas!”

The door burst open and Lena stormed in, her face red and her lips pinched like she desperately wanted to start flinging curses—and with everything Justin had seen over the past day, he wouldn't have been surprised if they turned out to be literal curses.

Three things that didn't surprise me, he thought dryly. I'm on a roll!

“The Council of Eight won't stand for this,” Lena spat before Justin could say anything. “They need every deer they can get a saddle on for Christmas night. Whether or not they want to admit it, that includes you.”

“Don't you think I've caused enough trouble?” Justin asked. “My being here has already got everyone on edge. If they start fighting each other because of me, that'll only make things—.”

“Stop!” Lena snapped. Justin shut his mouth. “Stop talking like that! You've got everyone else ready and willing to beat you up, so don't waste your energy doing it for them!”

Justin stared at her, not sure how to respond. Lena's eyes were wide, putting the sky-blue irises on full display, and they practically glowed with emotion from within. Then, as if realizing how much of her true self she was showing him, Lena shook her head and adopted her usual, cold faced expression.

“Everybody's fallen head over heels for this ‘lightless one’ nonsense,” she went on, “but I only had to ride you once to know it isn't true.”

Justin’s ears perked up.

Well, there goes my no-surprises streak, he thought.

“Being lightless,” he said slowly, “there's…more to it than just not liking Christmas, isn't there?”

Lena folded her arms and leaned against the wall, sighing. “The light they keep talking about is the Light of Hope. For most humans, hope is just an emotion. But for magical creatures like us, it's a fire that burns inside every living thing.”

“And they think mine went out.”

Lena nodded.

Justin sighed, looking away. “Well, that's kind of hard to argue against, isn't it?”

“Justin…”

“You were there last night. You heard every word I said to the council. I'm not exactly overflowing with hope and joy right now.”

“I also heard you right after our crash.”

Justin looked at her again.

“As your Rider, it's my job to guide your flight, especially right now when you're just getting started. But I failed, and you were hurt because of it.”

I failed because I'm a toxic cretin who drags everyone around me down, he thought, but he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.

“But even though your arm was broken, you kept apologizing.” She paused, closing her eyes, and Justin could see the emotions welling up inside her again. With effort, she managed to push them down and said, “You were worried about me! Do you understand what that means, Justin?”

He shook his head.

“There's more to having your light extinguished than being sad. If that were all it took, then every light on earth would have gone out thousands of years ago!” She stepped forward, jamming a finger into his chest. “Being lightless means that everything good about you is gone! Dead! No more happiness! No more creativity! No more compassion!”

“Ow,” Justin whispered when she poked one of his fresh bruises.

“The fact that you were worried about me means you're not lightless, Justin! Your light might be low, maybe even dangerously low, but it isn't out! And if it's not out, then that means it can be rekindled! You just need help getting to that point!”

She spun around and walked away, throwing her hands up in the air as she paced the room. “But nobody here wants to help! They've already made up their minds that you're lightless! If they keep treating you like your name is written in blood on the Naughty List, then sooner or later you are going to turn lightless!”

She paused. Even though she wasn't looking at Justin, he could see the haunted expression in her eyes.

“And that's not just a problem for you, Justin,” she said softly. “Everything here…Val Luminara, Laetitia, Santa's entire operation…it revolves around the spreading of hope. If we were to be the ones to drive you lightless, the effect it would have is…I can't even begin to imagine. It would open up something that could never be closed again.”

Lena turned to look at Justin.

“It would let him in.”

Justin felt a chill go down his spine. “The enemy?”

She nodded, whispering, “His name is Krampus. We don't like to say it, or even talk about him, but…you'll need to know sooner or later.”

“Who is he?” Justin asked, almost completely certain that he didn't want to know.

“He is everything that Santa Claus isn't. Santa spreads joy and light to reward kindness and good deeds. Krampus spreads pain and darkness to punish mankind for their sins.”

By now, Lena's face was pale.

“There used to be a balance. Santa and Krampus both had their place in the world. But something changed. We don't know what happened, or why, but suddenly Krampus began to push farther and take more. He wanted to spread his darkness over the entire planet. To create a world without joy, peace, or compassion.”

She gave Justin a meaningful look.

“A world where everyone is lightless.”

Justin let out the breath he’d been holding.

“Santa and Krampus have been at a stalemate for hundreds of years now. I'm sure nobody told you, but Santa can only leave Val Luminara one night a year.”

“Why?” Justin asked.

Lena shook her head. “Nobody but Santa Knows for sure. It's been part of the eternal conflict between him and Krampus since the beginning. Krampus is bound by the same restrictions and can only leave his pit beneath the South Pole, Mantombra, on Christmas night as well. That makes every Christmas a race, with Santa fighting to keep the Light burning bright enough to drive Krampus back underground, while Krampus tries to cause as much suffering as he can to weaken the Light. If we win, the people of the world continue to live in a world where hope and joy exists. If we lose…”

She paused and shook her head.

“Justin, we have never been closer to losing than we are this year. Despite everything we've done, misery is running rampant across the world.”

“We do have a way of making ourselves miserable,” Justin said with a dry smirk.

Lena looked at him, then nodded. “Yeah. I guess you would know better than anyone, wouldn't you?”

The doctor, a silver-haired elf with a thick book with a caduceus embossed on the cover, poked his head into the room to scowl disapprovingly at them. He looked like he was about to say something, but then Justin gave him a friendly wave and he scuttled back into the hallway. He was a few inches taller than Lena, but Justin was coming to realize that most of the elves had at least a few inches on Lena. That seemed to be a sore spot for her.

“Krampus can’t enter Val Luminara,” Lena went on, “just like a shadow couldn’t exist inside a beam of light. But if someone here were to have their light go out—worse, if the people here were to cause their light to go out—that would taint the power that’s at work here. That, in turn, could act as a gateway for Krampus, and his darkness would be able to spill into our valley and extinguish every trace of light here, permanently.”

“So, what do we do?” Justin asked.

“We keep doing what we’ve always done. But you,” Lena looked at him with a mixture of hope and fear, “you need to stay strong. No matter what happens, no matter what the others do or say to you, your light has to stay shining. Never give in, Justin. Never lose hope.”

Justin opened his mouth, but found he didn’t have anything to say. What could he say to that? Not only was the potential fate of the world resting on the shoulders of someone who couldn’t even make it through a single Black Friday shift, but everyone around him was going to actively be trying to sabotage him despite the disaster they knew it would cause.

Maybe this world and mine aren’t that different after all, he thought wryly.

“Fruitcakes,” Lena cursed softly, sitting on the bed next to him and rubbing her eyes, “I feel like I just delivered a whole chapter’s worth of exposition in a crappy book.”

Justin closed his eyes. Responsibility. He had never been the kind of person to seek it out. Given the choice between less pay and more responsibilities, as long as his bills were getting paid he would always happily choose less pay. But to have a responsibility this big thrust on him without his consent…it made him want to curl up in a ball, except he knew he’d end up skewering some part of himself on his antlers if he tried that.

So instead, he stood up.

“If we want everyone to stop treating me like I’m lightless,” he said, “then the first thing we need to do is show them I’m not lightless, right?”

Lena looked up at him in surprise. “I…yes, but…”

“You said lightless people don’t have redeeming qualities like compassion or happiness. So if I can show people that I do feel those emotions, they’ll have to admit that my light is still shining.”

“It won’t be that easy, Justin,” Lena said. “I told you, they’ve already made up their minds!”

“Then I’ll just have to un-make them. And if I have to do that with a broken arm…well, then I guess I do it with a broken arm!”

Lena went to stand in front of him, her eyes uncertain. “Justin, you need to understand what you’re—”

“Lena,” he interrupted her in a soft voice, “I could really…really…use some encouragement right now.”

Lena stopped, then nodded. Then she nodded again, more forcefully. “Okay, then. Let’s get out there and show everyone you’re not lightless!”

“All right, all right, I’ll do it!”

Justin and Lena spun around as the doctor stormed back into the room, followed close behind by Lucas. The other reindeer shot them a grin.

“What’s going on?” Lena asked.

Lucas held up a piece of paper. “Message directly from the Council of Eight. They need every able bodied reindeer in Laetitia for Christmas this year, and that means Justin needs to be in fighting shape for flying lessons tomorrow.”

Lena’s mouth fell open.

“Sit down,” the doctor snapped, and Justin sat back down on the bed.

The doctor opened his book, which Justin realized was now floating in midair in front of him, and flipped it to a certain page. He raised his hands, which began to glow with dazzling light.

“Teuqniler mulos en cis ivrec surc egif coh mutluts!”

The light shot from his hands, striking Justin square in the chest. Warmth immediately began to spread through his body, rejuvenating him and…

“My arm!” he exclaimed, hastily sliding the cast off. “It’s better!”

“Yes, yes,” the doctor said sourly, “I’m sure the magic I just wasted won’t be appreciated the lightless—”

“Thank you!” Justin said, grabbing the doctor’s hand and shaking it vigorously. “Thank you so much! You’re amazing, doc!”

The doctor yanked his hand back, staring at Justin with eyes the size of Christmas ornaments.

“I…um, you- you’re welcome,” he finally said, before fleeing the room again.

Justin watched him go, then looked down at his freshly healed arm. “Hopefully that does a little for my reputation. Please and thank you are the magic words, after all.”

“Hopefully,” Lucas interjected, “he doesn’t look too closely at that note I gave him.”

Justin frowned “Why?”

“That signature won’t raise any eyebrows at a glance,” Lucas said with a shrug, “but it won’t hold up if he compares it to the real thing.”

Lena’s eyes went wide. “You forged the Council of Eight’s—”

“Not so loud!” Lucas hissed. “Do you have a yule log for a brain? I’m going back to the Aviary before either of you get me in even more trouble!”

He headed for the door, then paused.

“Hey, Justin,” he said, turning around and giving the other reindeer a regretful look, “I’m sorry about today. I should have done more, but…you know…It won’t happen again.”

“It had better not, you…” Lena snapped. “Nngh, he’s already gone!”

Seeing the two of them bicker, Justin couldn’t help but chuckle. Lena looked at him, her eyes narrowing.

“About this morning,” she said slowly.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Justin interrupted her. “I didn’t—”

“Not that,” she cut him off. She hesitated, then forced herself to say, “This was the first time I’ve ridden a reindeer for a long time, and I…may have gotten emotional.”

Justin raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Lena’s face was turning red. “What I mean to say is, don’t expect that from me every day, okay? And I…you know, would appreciate it if you didn’t go around telling people about it. Can you do that for me?”

Justin smiled at her. “Aww, don’t worry. I know you’re a tough little gnome, even if you get emotional—”

“Don’t you start that gnome business too!” she yelled, jabbing a finger at him. “I don't care if I'm your Rider, I'll still cut your antlers off!”

The two of them glared at each other for a few seconds, and then both broke down into fits of laughter.

“Come on,” Lena said once she’d regained her composure. “You missed lunch, so you must be hungry.”

Feeling remarkably lighthearted despite everything he had just learned—more lighthearted than he could remember feeling in years—Justin followed Lena out of the infirmary and out into Laetitia’s cozy, lamplit streets.