The Santa Clause Fanfic

Magic w/ Bernard

After arriving back home, Merry and Charlie were sitting in the teen's bedroom while Laura and Neil were sitting in the living room, taking a breather after their encounter with Scott. Charlie was resting his head on his sister's lap while Merry was gently stroking her little brother's head for comfort. "Are Mom and Neil gonna take Dad's visits away?" asked Charlie, staring blankly at the wall of posters.
Merry takes a deep breath, "I hope not" she said, "They just don't understand what Dad is going through"
"But, why?"
"That's just how grown ups are"
The teen glanced over at the letter from the elf back at Charlie's soccer game, picking up to read it which read,
'Dear Merry, give me a ring when you get a chance. It's time to finally learn some magic. Better start now before Thanksgiving, or else things would go wrong
- Bernard'

Merry reads the letter carefully while Charlie did the same over her shoulder. Without hesitation, the boy ran to the dresser to pick up the silver bell and holly necklace, handing it to his sister carefully. "Thanks, Charlie" said Merry before ringing the bell three times. Surprisingly, Bernard didn't appear in the bedroom. The two siblings looked around in confusion, "Where's Bernard?" asked Charlie
Merry thinks for a second before standing up from the bed, "I know where he is," she said, marching out of the room. The moment she steps into the kitchen, Bernard was stuffing his face with a BLT sandwich Neil made for himself, "Could use some mayonnaise?" said Bernard, "And it's about time you called, I was starting to worry you were gonna start your magic training without elf supervision."
"First of all, it would be stupid to practice magic without you. Second, I told you to stop eating Neil's food"
"Kids?!" called Laura, "Who are you talking to? I hope it's not your father"
"No one, mom!" Merry lied, "Just ourselves and sorry about your sandwich, Neil!"
Without another word, Merry grabs Bernard's hand and drags him to her bedroom with Charlie following close behind, making sure neither their mom or Neil would notice.

Once the trio enter the teenager's room, Merry locks the door and pressed her back against the door, sighing with relief. "That was close" she said, "If they see you, we're toast"
"Let's get started on the lessons," said Bernard, using his own magic to make a present and other items appear in the room. Charlie watched in awe, taking a seat on the bed as Merry walked towards the head elf. "Let's start with the basics" the head elf spoke, "as you can see, each item should help with what kind of elf you'll become"
"What kind?" asked Merry
Bernard explains that the elves had many different talents from making toys, organizing presents, baking for Santa, making clothes, etc.. He then tells the teen that it's good to start with small spells to which job would suit her best once they head to the North Pole on Thanksgiving.

Merry swallows the lump in her throat before glancing at the present on the far left, "Can we try this one first?" she asked, pointing at the item. Bernard follows the teen's gaze and gently takes the present, placing it on the desk for the lesson to begin. "Okay, start by changing the presents color to red" he said, "Don't overthink it, just imagine any color then point"
Merry glanced at the head elf then back at the present, taking a deep breath before pointing at the object until it changed from a plain red box to a polka-dot mess. She cringed at the sight of the monstrosity before trying it again, only for the presents to change into random color stripes, then zig-zags, and other random patterns that don't seem appealing.

"Okay, let's try something else" said Bernard, getting rid of the present and pulling out another object. With each task, the lessons got progressively worse, which stressed Bernard out a bit but kept his cool for the sake of both Merry and Charlie. "How about we skip this and just focus on other spells?" he said, walking behind Merry, gently placing his large hands against her smaller ones. Merry blushed as the head elf's hands started guiding her gently, forgetting how to breathe when Bernard started whispering in her ear. "Just clear your mind, Sugarplum" he whispered, "focus only on your hands"
The teen glanced down at her hands, seeing a small ball of light forming just above her palms. Merry smiled at the sight while Bernard slowly stepped away. "Very good, you-" Bernard was cut off when the ball starts flying and bouncing on the walls, nearly hitting the three until it disappears on the ceiling, "Almost got it"

Charlie giggled, earning a glare from his sister, until he cleared his throat. "I assume there'll be more lessons?" asked Merry, "Cause I get the feeling, there's more"
"You know it" said Bernard, "For now, just practice these small spells, but be sure no one sees you doing it"
The head elf hands the teen a small page from his pocket, it was a list of simple yet small spells for practice. Each spell had small illustrations, brief info on the spell, and how to cast it. "Thank you" said Merry, "I promise, I'll get better the next time we meet for lessons"
"Be sure you do" Bernard sends a wink before vanishing into thin air. Merry was smiling to herself until Charlie spoke up, "You like Bernard"
"What?" asked Merry in confusion
"It's pretty oblivious"
"Y-you must be seeing things, Charlie"
"Nuh-uh, you blushed when Bernard touched your hand"

Before Merry could defend herself, a voice speaks up. "Who's Bernard?" asked Laura, glancing at her daughter. Merry quickly turned around and quickly hides the piece of paper in her pocket, "No one" she lied
"You know you're a terrible liar, young lady"
"I'm telling the truth"
"He's a friend from the North Pole" said Charlie
Merry shuts her eyes tight as Laura glances at Charlie. "Again with the North Pole?" she asked, "Charlie, we've been through this"
"But it's real"
"Just go, both of you" said Merry, gently pushing Charlie out of her room before glancing at her mother, "He is nothing to worry about"

Before Laura could say anything, Merry slammed the door shut and groaned silently to herself in frustration. She glanced at the doll sitting on her dresser before taking it in her arms and laying on the bed. Not once has the teenager left her room, all she did was stare at the ceiling in silence, her elf ears exposed as her long brown hair spreads on the lilac colored sheets. Her arms grasped tightly at the thought of Bernard, his sweet voice whispering in her ear, his soft cold touch against her warm fingertips, even the smile on his face. She then pulls out the page of spells, glancing at the door to make sure no one was coming, before sitting up to practice her magic quietly and carefully.

After possibly the 15th time, Merry was finally able to properly use the spell she casted earlier, her hand slowly waving in circular motions before tossing the ball of light into the air and snowflakes falling from the ceiling. The snowflakes left like soft cold kisses against her rosy cheeks, causing a smile to appear on her face. Just as when she opened her eyes, Bernard was standing in front of her bed, causing the teenager to squeal in shock. "Bernard, when did you-... I didn't even call you" she said, resting her hand against her chest
"I know" said Bernard, "Just came to see how your magic's working out"
"Well, it's working out just fine"
"Good, but you still need practice, Sugarplum. Don't worry, I'll be there to guide you even after Thanksgiving"
"Thanks, Bernard"
"It's my pleasure"
"No really, thank you, for everything"

Bernard paused, a blush tinted his cheeks when Merry smiled up at him. He felt his heart beating once again, seeing her thanking him of all elves, thanking him for possibly everything. "Y-you're welcome" he stuttered, avoiding eye contact.
Merry noticed this and couldn't help but smirk, "Did I hear the Head Elf stutter?" she teased, "I never heard you stutter before"
"N-no, you must be hearing things"
"You did it again"
"No I didn't"
"I'm teasing you, silly"
Bernard blushed and glanced up at Merry, seeing her so up close made his heart flutter even more. She was just as pretty as the last time he saw her, so much that he wanted to kiss her. But for the respect of Merry and himself, he took a deep breath and said, "You should rest, you did well"
Before Merry could protest, Bernard used a spell to make the teenager fall asleep softly in her bed, draping a blanket over her before whispering in her ear, "Sleep well, Sugarplum"