Christmas Crisis

Act 2: That's the Holiday Spirit!

Meanwhile, Huck and Quick Draw had found their way to the candy store.

"Since the candy canes are the easiest things to find, we'll head to the candy store first!" Huck smiled.

"Oh boy!" Quick Draw cried. "An' it's a little known fact...us horses have pretty big sweet tooths!"

About five minutes later, the duo located the nearest candy shop, and they immediately dashed inside to get out of the cold and start browsing for some candy canes. It was at that moment when he heard a commotion and saw a crowd gathering around a large window. Huck took his place in the crowd and watched, his eyes opening in awe as he could see candymakers hard at work in the back of the shop, making candy canes right before his eyes!

"I know! I'll ask the candymakers! Maybe they can let me take some candy canes!" Huck beamed.

"Yeah! Then we'll have one of Santa's favorite goodies to bring to him! And come to thin' of it, they're one of my favorites too!"

Huck giggled. "Oh, Quick Draw! They're some of my favorites too!"

He continued to watch carefully as the candymakers poured a boiling hot cauldron of sugar onto a sheet and started to layer it as it began to thicken.

"Wow, all them candy canes start like that?" he said to himself. "That's amazin'!"

"Yeah! It's like a taffy lasso!"

"Yeah, kinda like that!" Huck replied, as he put his paw over his mouth and giggled.

He watched as they pulled the candy on big machines to stretch it out, then they rolled the candy into gigantic logs, with the stripes in between each minty layer. Then they pulled the logs through a machine, stretching them even more until they got smaller and smaller.

"That's mighty impressive, but how do they make em' into a cane shape?"

"I thin' that's your answer right there, Huck. Look!"

He got his answer as he watched another candymaker bend the tiny peppermint sticks into cane shapes as they moved down a conveyor belt, then they were sorted and wrapped in colorful wrappers tied with a ribbon.

"Wow! How did they do that?" Huck wondered.

"They have to be really fast," a woman standing next to him said. "That sugar hardens quickly, so they only have so much time."

"No wonder! Now I gotta ask those candymakers if I can have a couple of them there candy canes!" Huck grinned, as he walked up to the candymakers. "Excuse me!"

One candymaker turned around and saw Huck. "Oh, what is it, sir?" she asked.

"I just saw you make those candy canes! So I was wondering if I could have some!" Huck smiled. "So, can I?"

"Sure!" the candymaker said. She then gave Huck a bunch of 26 candy canes.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Quick Draw asked. "Could I have an extra box? I'd like to mail them to my faithful partner, Baba Looey, who is spending Christmas in Baja with his family."

"Here you go, sir! An extra box to send to your little friend!"

"Much obliged miss candy making ma'am sir! And merry Christmas!"

As they walked down the block, Huck looked at the bunch of candy canes. "26 candy canes? Wow, that's a lot!" But then, his stomach began to growl. "Shuckins...I'm feelin' pretty hungry." He then looked at the candy canes again, and grabbed one from the bunch. "Golly, I could eat one of these candy canes, or get something from the diner," he thought to himself. He looked at the candy cane again. It looked really tasty. He then decided to give in. "Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt if I ate just one," he muttered. He took a bite and immediately smiled. "Mmmmmmmm! Gosh, this is yummy! The peppermint is nice and minty, and not too peppery!" He laughed and then broke it in half, and handed it to Quick Draw. "Here, Quick Draw! What do you think?"