A CHRISTMAS CLARA I FLYNN CARSEN

We'll Be Good

We'll Be Good

Clara watched as Cassandra paced up and down, talking very fast about ley-lines and Santa releasing the magic at midnight, the power travelling through the world, using the ley-lines to do so. Apparently the Northern Lights were the most powerful, due to the legend of Santa, the North Pole and polarity - or so Jenkins had so grimly said. Now Jacob was trying and failing to unleash the giant glowing sphere Flynn used to illustrate his frequent soliquoys.

"It's not happening, Jake," Clara said, examining her nails.

Jacob slammed the sphere down, put out.

"Okayyy," Cassandra said, giving him a funny look, "I'm going to need satellite maps, a farmer's almanac, and plasma quantum dynamics charts. Also some of that - I'm sorry," she said, whirling around, "do you smell hot chocolate?"

At this, Ezekiel came down the sweeping stairway, still wearing Santa's hat. To Cassandra's joy, he was carrying a tray bearing hot chocolate, using Jenkins's best china for the purpose, much to Jenkins's silent fury. Clara raised an eyebrow at Ezekiel's frilly red and white polka-dotted apron, but he just beamed at her, setting the tray down on Flynn's desk, ignoring its angry mutterings about violation of personal space. "Don't forget the cinnamon sticks!" he trilled, his head snapping up at the sound of a loud beep. "Oh!" he declared, running backwards. "That'll be the cookies!"

"Okay, can I keep him?" Cassandra said, picking up a mug, inhaling its aroma, much to Jacob's amusement.

"Where did he get that apron?" Clara asked, confused.

"Don't look at me," Jenkins retorted.

"I wasn't!" Clara protested.

"You were," Jenkins said darkly.

~*~

"Tell me you have a plan, Jenkins," Eve bellowed down the line.

"No, I don't," Jenkins said, "but Cassandra does."

"Wait a" -

- "Okay, listen to me," Cassandra said, speaking over Eve, "I don't think we need to go all the way to the North Pole - I think we can tap in using the Northern Lights as a plasma conductor into the ley-lines" -

- "Want a cookie?" Ezekiel yelled, pausing from putting them into paper-bags. Clara had lost count at a hundred.

"Please be quiet," Cassandra said coldly, taking a sip of her hot chocolate, her tenth one, shamelessly exploiting Ezekiel.

"Are you drinking hot chocolate and eating cookies whilst I freeze my ass off in the middle of nowhere?" Eve accused, sounding irate.

"How do you know it's hot chocolate?" Clara asked, confused.

"Because I can smell it!" Eve exclaimed, her voice crackling strangely.

"We need the strongest Aurora Borealis as possible," Jenkins said to Cassandra, ignoring Eve.

"Which happens over Alaska," Cassandra supplied, bestowing a smile upon Jacob who just waved a cookie at her, his fifteenth one.

"Why can't I stop stuffing!?" Ezekiel demanded, a rare moment of sanity.

"I often ask myself the same thing," Flynn said, sauntering past, stuffing himself with stuffed mushrooms.

"Flynn!" Clara screeched, launching herself at him.

"My love!" Flynn screeched back, catching her in his arms.

Jenkins cleared his throat pointedly. "Aren't you supposed to be"-