The Little Spy Elephant

Part 1 of 1

In every culture, there is a legend, myth, or tall tell of an elephant. On the north pole, they know this legend to be fact. Santa employees a special group of elephants. Why? They can shrink and grow at will, travel long distances in a blink of an eye, and hide in plain sight. I personally met one of these elephants during my travels, around the world, and today I would like to tell you the story of the little spy elephant.

It was a cold, dark December night, snow was falling slowly outside. I was nine years old and staying with some friends when I was awoken by, what sounded like, a small trumpet. I slowly rose from the guest bed quietly, eagerly listening for the sound again. I thought it could have been my imagination as I made my way from the guest bedroom to the kitchen. As I turned the corner, into the kitchen, I stopped in my tracks both horrified and completely caught off guard by the five-foot elephant drinking from the sink. It slowly turned to face me with a questioning look in its eyes. I could not move as I stared back into her eyes. I tried to yell for help but the sound of words caught in my throat. After, what seemed to be an hour, the elephant tooted her trunk and shrunk to the size of a basketball. I, once again, was speechless, but slowly followed her into the living room, where we set staring at each other, motionless. Finally, I heard a sound of pattering feet on the roof and an elf landed in the unlit fireplace, with a thud.

"Okay, what is this all about?!" The elf asked, annoyed and gruffly.

The elephant tooted her trunk and pointed it at me.

The elf turned to me with a surprised expression. "You can see her?!"

I slowly nodded.

The elf slowly approached me, looking me over for a moment. "Mmhmm. I see. So, what do you think?"

I looked at the elephant. "I.. don't know what to think."

The elf laughed. "That is exactly what I said the first time I was introduced to the spy elephants!"

I turn to him. "Spy elephant? Spies for who?!"

The elf laughed again. "Why.. Santa, of course!!! I surely do not look like any of your friends, right?!!"

I looked at him and shrugged. "You look like a five-year-old."

"With pointy ears?" The elf pulled back his long hair to reveal his ears.

I, of course, had to touch them to prove they were real. When I was satisfied I relaxed a bit. "So.. what now?"

The elf looked at me, seriously. "We do not have a protocol for a situation like this, mainly because no one should be able to see our elephants.... but you can..." The elf sighs. "As long as you do not tell anyone, I am sure it will be fine."

The elephant toots her trunk in protest.

"What exactly am I supposed to do?" the elf whipped around. "It is not like we can pack him up and take him to the north pole this close to Christmas." The elf replies.

I look at a nearby calendar that had days marked off. "It is Christmas Eve." I say out loud.

The elf turns to me. "That is right! So I am going to have to let Santa address this with you, himself."

I did not know how to respond to that. I had always thought Santa was just... well... not real, but now a magic elephant and an elf were standing in front of me. I slowly stand with a sigh. "I am going back to bed, hopefully, this is all a bad dream."

The elephant watches me as I leave the room. 

The elf, on the other hand, shrugs and climbs back up the chimney.