The first thing Meghan registered when she came to was that the pain in her body had shifted to different locations. It was no longer burning away at her back, neck, and arm. The pain was now back in her fractured leg, with the skin tight from the familiar bandage that had vanished when she time traveled. As she shifted slightly, another familiar burst of pain tortured her side. Her hand moved to press against the wound. Her hand was no longer severed.

She managed to force herself up into a sitting position, panic overtaking her. Were any of them dead? Santa had said that the magic in the diadem wasn't fully developed, and that only a handful of things changed in the past would effect the future. If any of them died, they won't be here...

The panic heightened briefly when she was unable to see anybody across the vast entrance to the mansion. But then she found them, still fighting the mutated elves. Gordon and Carly were side-by-side, slicing with their weapons and dodging returned blows. Officer Jyles and Brek were near her. Officer Jyles was shooting more elves. The loud gunshots made Meghan wince as they echoed in the room.

She clambered to her feet, gasping in pain and leading everybody's eyes to her.

"Meghan!" Gordon called, clearly relieved, but his tone quickly changed to panic. "Where were you? Where's Santa's-?"

"Dead," she answered plainly, voice quivering. Her family was alive. She wanted to collapse again in relief, but even with Santa's brother gone, the elves were still living.

She didn't hesitate in joining the fight. Scooping up the knife Brek slid to her, she limped forward, feeling beads of sweat running along her hairline. The stickiness of blood plastering her shirt to her side was uncomfortable, but the pain was beginning to numb. After taking a knife to the back and losing her whole hand, the small puncture in her side wasn't as agonizing. But she was aware that she still needed medical assistance. All of them probably did. Especially Ryder. Her stomach churned at the thought of him. Was he okay? Was he still alive?

The elves snarls mixed with the sharp gunshots, ringing through the spacious area. It didn't take long before the large number of elves was minimized to only a few. And somewhere in the hacking and killing, Meghan noticed Brek exchange brief words with Gordon before disappearing from the entryway. Only then did Meghan remember that Gwen still hadn't been found. She could only hope that she was okay.

"Honey, are you alright?" Meghan croaked to Carly at one point, sweeping her into a brief hug. The vision of Carly bleeding through her back on the floor crossed her mind. She swallowed thickly.

"Y-Yeah," was her daughter's stammered reply.

Meghan nodded, grunting at the sharp pain in her good leg as an elf got too close. She kicked it over, shoving her knife into its neck. The gurgles and gasps had begun to stop bothering her, and she watched emotionlessly as it writhed around before falling limp. Her hand trembled, but as she pulled the knife back out, a steady stream of courage pumped from her heart.

She didn't even realize until the last screech of pain from an elf died that no more of the tiny creatures lived and breathed. She turned in a slow circle, swallowing again before dropping her knife. Gordon was walking hastily toward her. He dropped his own knife before pulling her into an embrace, enveloping her in his arms. She cringed in pain, but wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly.

"Are you okay?" he murmured into her ear, breathing heavily.

"Yeah," she replied unsteadily, resting her forehead on his shoulder. "He's gone. We killed him."

"We?"

She didn't answer, instead pulling away to hug Carly again. Officer Jyles was speaking into his cellphone, pacing back and forth between the small bodies littering the floor. His face was pale but firm, his pistol still in his hand. Empty bullet packets were strewn on the floor.

"Ryder!" Meghan suddenly gasped, whirling around.

Before they could begin racing for the kitchen, a snarl filled the silent air. One final elf was up on a pillar, clinging to it with its long nails and baring its teeth at them. Everybody looked up to see it. Out of the corner of her eye, Meghan could see Officer Jyles lift his gun. But only a click resonated as result when he pulled the trigger.

Meghan could only watch, petrified, as it lunged at Gordon, arms extending outward to sink its nails into his neck.

She began to move forward, heart racing. Everything seemed to be in slow motion. But then it reverted back to normal speed as an object flew through the air, sinking into the elf's side and knocking it off course. It screeched, falling to the ground a few feet to the side. Carly was quick to approach and kill it, ending the cries of pain. She looked terrified as she turned back to them, lip quivering. Meghan began to say something to comfort her, but when her daughter's eyes widened - locking on something beyond her - she turned instead.

Ryder stood near the kitchen entrance, his arm extended out in front of him as if he'd just finished throwing something. His pained face was frightened, but as he analyzed Gordon and saw that he was okay, he relaxed. For a moment, he was able to remain upright. Then he clutched at his stomach, making a soft noise of pain, and staggered over.

"Ryder!" Gordon ran toward their collapsed son.

Meghan followed, dragging her leg behind her, her heart pounding fiercely all over again. "Ryder?" she asked, helping to roll him over. His face was paler than before, his eyes rolled back. Tears pricked at her eyes, despite knowing he should be okay. As long as help arrived quickly, he should be.

"Cops and ambulance are on their way," Officer Jyles announced, approaching them. Carly knelt beside Meghan, grabbing her brother's hand.

"Where's Brek?" Meghan asked, her voice cracking. Her hand remained pressed against her side. She could feel the heaves of her own body as she breathed.

"I'll go find him," the cop assured, glancing around. "Stay here."

Ryder coughed sharply, his hand moving to his stomach again. His wheezes were the only noise to be heard.

Just a few weeks ago, the family had been awaiting Gordon's arrival home. Meghan never imagined that events like this would unfold. She thought the hardest thing she'd have to do was try to get Ryder and Gordon to get along. Turns out it may have happened after all, but in a difficult, brutal way.

"Mom," Carly whimpered. "You're shaking."

Meghan tried to steady her body. "I'm okay."

"Is Ryder okay?"

The woman swept her eyes over her son. Gordon had him cradled in his arms, just like before. His eyes didn't leave Ryder's face. "I think so."

Carly leaned against Meghan. Despite the objection her body made, Meghan didn't push her daughter away. She only pulled her closer.

After all that happened, it was finally over. And suddenly, the new year couldn't come any quicker. Already, Meghan was tired of Christmas. The holiday she loved so dearly as a child wasn't growing on her anymore. Not if Santa Claus was going to have anymore insane relatives that they'd have to kill.

"Does this mean the fawns are going back home?" Carly finally spoke softly.

"Yes. They're not ours," Gordon answered.

There was a pause before Carly murmured, "Good."

Meghan couldn't help but chuckle hoarsely, her eyes lifting to meet Gordon's briefly. Even though they hadn't known what was going on when she went back to the beginning night, her family didn't hesitate in rushing in to defend their home. A newfound surge of respect toward them all winded around inside of her. She stroked Carly's cheek gently, kissing her head. "You've been very brave, Carly."

She tugged at her red curls. "Thanks."

"Meghan!"

Meghan turned, finding Brek and Gwen rushing toward them. She rose painfully to her feet, returning the hug her brother gave her. Gwen hugged Carly tightly, her hair disheveled and eyes frightened, but with no physical wound in sight. Officer Jyles was following after them, still on high alert for anything.

"Are you okay?" Brek asked her, not letting go.

"Yeah," Meghan answered. "Are you?"

"Yeah."

Another silence fell over them. But after the scarring noises that were heard only a little while earlier, the silence was welcomed openly. Meghan couldn't bring herself to get back down onto the ground, so instead, she hovered over where Ryder was cradled against Gordon. For the next several minutes, she only made sure his chest continued to rise and fall with breaths. It wasn't until the sound of sirens interrupted the silence that she looked away, visibly relaxing.

Everything was going to be okay. And as if the thought had an effect on her, Meghan's legs buckled beneath her. She landed with a grunt on the ground, but laying there was more relieving than she ever thought it could be.

"Meghan!" Brek's voice was filled with worry.

"I'm...I'm okay," Meghan said, resting her head back against the cold ground. The edges of her vision darkened.

As long as they were all safe, she felt fine losing consciousness. It wasn't healthy, but at the moment, she didn't care. Her body ached painfully. Her head pounded viciously. Minutes later, she could feel hands grasping at her, hoisting her up off of the floor.

Then she allowed herself to drift away.

❄⛄❄❄⛄❄

Just getting her eyes to open was an exhausting exertion. She found a white ceiling above, fluorescent lights blinding her vision. She turned her head away, the sound of a heart monitor beeping filling her ears. Besides some aching throbs across her body, no pain was felt.

"Meghan?"

She turned her head to the other side, her eyes finding dark blue ones. "Gordon."

"Hey." He smiled softly, his fatigue prominent on his face.

Immediately, Meghan tried to sit up. He pushed her back down, shaking his head. She frowned. "Is...Is everybody alright? Who a-are they keeping here?"

He sat back down, taking her hand in his. "Everybody's okay. Brek and Gwen are with Carly in Ryder's room. Officer Jyles is back at the police station working. You and Ryder are the only ones admitted to the hospital."

Meghan rubbed her eyes, finding her knuckles bandaged. "How long have I...have I been out?"

"Two days."

"Two days?" she repeated, panicked. "Two days? That means-"

"Today is Christmas." Gordon nodded slowly.

"Is Ryder okay?"

"Yeah. Doctors restitched him since he popped a few but he'll be alright. They had to restitch and wrap your leg too, since you did a little damage with all of the running and fighting. They also stitched your side." He leaned back, gazing at her with saddened humor. "Lots of stitching going around."

Meghan cracked a smile. "Is he awake?"

"Apparently he woke up about an hour ago."

Apparently. Meghan's smile shifted to a frown. "You haven't gone to see him yet?" Gordon's silence was answer enough. "Gordon, why? He's going to think you don't want to."

"I just...I wanted to wait for you to wake up."

"Why?" She searched his face. He avoided her gaze, rubbing his neck. "You're scared to."

"No, not scared," Gordon quickly said. "I just...He's still healing. I don't want him getting mad or anything while he's weak."

Getting mad. Meghan shook her head in disbelief. "You think that after all that has happened, he's just going to get mad at you?"

"I don't know."

"Well, I do. He's not." Meghan forced herself up into a sitting position. Gordon objected, but she silenced him by holding up her hand. Then she set to work detaching the drip from her arm.

"Miss Byer?" A man Meghan was assuming to be a nurse stepped into the room. "You can't do that."

"I need to go see my son," she told him.

"I understand, but you've just awoken. First, I need to ask you a few-"

"Yes, I feel fine, I'm not dizzy or hurting, I can pay for expenses, and we'll go over them later." Meghan held her arm out to him. "If you will, a worried and irritated mom would like to go see her son who was dying when she last saw him."

The nurse stared at her a moment before skimming over some papers on his clipboard. Meghan folded her arms. She could sense Gordon's smile as he shifted beside her.

"Very well," he said a moment later, approaching and detaching the drip for her.

She slipped to her feet, happy to feel that her injured leg didn't hurt as much as before. She was able to place weight on it without disturbance. "Thank you. I promise I feel fine. I'll obviously be back here soon. You can run whatever tests you want on me then."

"Um...okay." His confusion left Meghan smiling as she limped toward the door with Gordon following behind her. Once they were out in the hallway, she glanced around. "Which room is he?"

"Just down here," was Gordon's reply.

She followed him down a few doors, stopping with him at one with voices talking on the other side. Meghan glanced through the small window in the door, finding Carly sitting at the edge of the hospital bed, talking with Ryder who looked weak, tired, but happy. Brek and Gwen were seated away from the siblings, talking with each other. All of them had noticeable bandages on limbs and their faces, but they all looked content.

They were all safe. No more Santa's brother. No more fear driving them insane. No more pain. No more terror of turning any corner. They were going to be okay.

Meghan smiled again, turning back to Gordon and taking his hand. "Let's go and have a good Christmas day with our family."

He smiled back and pushed the door open. Everybody looked up when they entered.

For several moments, there was only silence. All of their expressions said everything that needed to be said; ranging from joy, to relief, to sadness, to fatigue, to silent words of love and gratitude. Carly was the first to finally move, jumping to her feet to embrace Meghan as she entered the room, Gordon trailing behind her. "Mom! You're awake!"

Meghan planted a kiss on her daughter's head. The overwhelming desire to just hug her and never let go was tempting, but Carly was already squirming out of her grip to hug Gordon too. Brek and Gwen greeted Meghan with tight embraces. The only one to remain unmoving was Ryder.

The last time he had been fully conscious around Gordon was at the airport when he refused to say goodbye to him; still angered for them making he and Carly leave. Even before then, he ignored Gordon as much as possible, although there were a few times since his father's homecoming that Meghan caught the conflict and longing in Ryder's gaze. A longing for a father. His pride and pain always got in the way.

Meghan was unsure about which one of those emotions was holding him back now. He was on the edge of the bed, his body stiff as he analyzed Gordon. Gordon did the same, keeping a few steps away from their son to ensure no bodily harm was administered. Meghan couldn't see why it would be.

"Merry Christmas, Mom," Carly told her, smiling brightly, though the tiredness in her face was hard to miss.

"Merry Christmas, sweetheart." Meghan smiled too. "Merry Christmas" had always been a sentence spoken with a monotone voice in Meghan's childhood. The meaning behind it had been lost. It was only a way her family was polite to each other on the holiday. Now, in the hospital and finally safe, it held so much more meaning. They were all alive. Breathing. Living. Together. It was certainly a merry Christmas.

"How're you feeling?" Brek asked.

"Good," she answered truthfully, rubbing subconsciously at her leg. "What about you?"

"Still in disbelief that that actually happened," he laughed shakily, putting an arm around Gwen.

"And glad it's over," Gwen added, hugging her dad.

Meghan nodded in agreement. For sure.

At that point, Gordon and Ryder were still only watching each other. Gordon with silent apology in his gaze. Ryder with a broil of emotions still clashing with one another in his eyes. He swallowed, gripping the bedsheet tighter. For a moment, Meghan worried he would lay back down and ignore his father again. She stepped forward to say something but her mouth was only just opening when Ryder's barrier seemed to crumble. All of a sudden, Meghan didn't see her fourteen-year-old son. She saw but a boy with a burning ache to have his father back.

She wasn't sure what exactly happened next. Gordon seemed to lift his arms ever so slightly; tentatively. For a mere moment, Ryder stared at him, his gaze pained – and not because of his injuries. Then he was rising to his feet and stepping into Gordon's arms, hugging him tightly. The man embraced him back and Meghan could see him mumble something to their son. Something she couldn't hear but knew was along the lines of a sincere apology. A plead for forgiveness. A whisper of love.

Without meaning for it to happen, tears brimmed her eyes. She could tell she wasn't the only one releasing a few tears as Ryder's shoulders began to softly shake.

"Mom?" Carly asked. Meghan could detect the relief in her tone. It wasn't just Meghan who wanted Ryder and Gordon to get along. She knew Carly had been silently wishing for weeks. She had seen her daughter's sadness when Ryder wouldn't even acknowledge their father's existence. She had witnessed the tears wetting Carly's eyes when Ryder and Gordon would butt heads.

"We're going to go get some snacks from the vending machine," Brek said quietly, realizing how personal the moment was. Meghan gave her brother a thankful smile and nodded, watching he and her niece leave.

Once the door closed behind them, silence fell. Only after Ryder pulled away from Gordon and wiped away a few fallen tears did somebody finally speak. Gordon rubbed at his own eyes, saying, "I feel that I should apologize to you all. Ryder, Meghan, Carly. I'm sincerely sorry for everything. I'm sorry I left, that I allowed us all to drift so far apart. I'm sorry that I wasn't here for you when you needed me, and that I tried to avoid acknowledging it all when I got back. I'm sorry for messing the holiday up, for losing my temper a few times, for...for everything." He looked between the three of them with a saddened gaze, the regret and guilt radiating off of him. "I'm sorry for everything."

Meghan bit her lip and adjusted her glasses awkwardly before meeting Gordon's gaze. He watched her silently. She knew she had an obligation to speak. She cleared her throat. "I...We...uh...It...It wasn't all you, Gordon. It was...It was me too. The marriage wasn't working, and it probably still wouldn't now. I should never have been so bitter and angered toward you about it. If I hadn't been stubborn and let any...negative emotion overwhelm me...I'm sure we would have been good friends from the start after the divorce. But I...I let the darkness drive me forward instead of the light. I'm sorry."

"And I'm sorry too," Ryder pitched in hastily, his voice hoarse and tense with pain. "I shouldn't have been such a...such a...a brat about the whole thing."

Both adults shook their heads. "You reacted the way lots of kids would."

Ryder shook his head, his hand pressing lightly against his stomach in discomfort. Tears glistened in his eyes again. "No. I was...I was horrible about it." He looked between Meghan and Gordon regretfully. "Mom, Dad, please forgive me."

The first smile since entering the room slipped onto Gordon's face, letting Meghan know that all was forgiven. They all stood silently, some small sniffs from Carly being one of the only noises to be heard. Finally, Meghan folded her arms, tried a smile, and said, "Now, Ryder got a hug. Are you going to let me have one too?"

That left them all laughing and hustling forward for a group hug. The stream of joy in Meghan's heart was able to wash away the last bits of fear and guilt, leaving her with only happiness and love to guide her on. She squeezed them all close, tightening the hug. When a suppressed groan of pain from Ryder was heard, she quickly let go. He squeezed his eyes shut, wincing. Meghan quickly nudged him back to the bed. "Okay. Okay, lay down. That's enough exertion for a while."

He didn't even bother arguing, instead obeying her orders and lowering himself onto the bed, leaning back against the frame. A hiss of pain escaped between his teeth. Gordon patted his knee. "I'll go get the doctor."

"It's just some pain."

"Exactly. He'll get you some more medicine," Meghan said, realizing he didn't even have anything attached to him. "Did they give you anything? A drip? A-"

"Yeah, they removed them right before you guys came in."

"Why?"

"Um...I don't know?" Ryder squeezed his eyes shut again, exhaling deeply. Carly sat beside him, grabbing his hand.

As Gordon called a doctor in, Brek and Gwen made an appearance. Meghan was quick to hug them both, feeling bad that they missed out on the group hug. They didn't hesitate in returning it.

"Everything good?" Brek asked softly.

"Yeah. Yeah, we're okay now."

"Good." He released her to give her a mischievous smile. "We ran into somebody on our way to the vending machine. He wants to talk with us."

"Who is it?"

"The Easter bunny," said a voice from the door. A familiar, deep, jolly voice. Meghan instantly turned to look at Santa Claus. He looked happier than the last time they saw him. "Hello, Byer family."

"What are you doing here?" Meghan asked warily. She did not want to hear that he had an evil grandma with a shotgun floating around the city that they needed to get rid of.

"I thought I'd come and thank you all in person for what you've done." He moved aside for a familiar looking doctor to enter. The doctor did a double-take when he saw him, but Meghan knew he thought they just hired somebody to surprise the kids. The kids were surprised but not for that reason.

"Are the fawns okay?" Carly asked eagerly, the first to break out of her gaping trance.

Santa chuckled throatily, adjusting his red hat. "Indeed, child. Thanks to you and your family, things have been worked out with WASART and they are safely confined to the stables in the North Pole under the supervision of my older reindeer."

"That's...That's good," Meghan tried, shifting uncomfortably where she stood.

The doctor shot them all confused looks before pausing at Meghan. She immediately realized why he looked familiar. He spoke before she could, though, eyebrows furrowing. "Ahh, Miss Byer."

"Doctor Rezdru," she returned guiltily. He was her doctor when she fractured her leg.

He set to work readying an injection for Ryder, but still spoke to her. "I believe you left the hospital before we even released you those few days back, didn't you? Though I can't figure out how since somebody was holding the door off from the inside." Meghan was about to make up an excuse, but he quickly added, "Don't worry. I'm not typically the kind of person to ask questions. Ironic since I'm a doctor, eh?"

She only smiled timidly as he grinned. They waited until he left before Santa spoke again, closing the door behind him.

"It is Christmas day and I have made my round across the world. I thought I'd bring the childrens gifts in person since you did save my fawns and kill my brother." As he lowered a small sack to the ground, he smiled. "I am forever in your debt, as you may already know."

"Thanks," Gordon said, exchanging a look with Meghan.

Carly watched eagerly as Santa leaned down but, as the loyal sister she was, she didn't leave Ryder's side. With a dose of painkiller in his bloodstream, he was more relaxed. He watched Santa Claus cautiously as the old man produced bagpipes from the bag. Gwen let out a sharp gasp, making Santa chuckle. "I believe this is for you." He held it out to her.

"Thank you!" she said, accepting it with excitement.

"She's always wanted one," Brek explained to Meghan and Gordon. "She's had an interest in it for four years now."

The second thing Santa pulled out of the bag caused Meghan to jump at the squeal Carly released. The ten-year-old covered her mouth with her hand, gaping tearfully at the small puppy Santa held out to her.

"I recall you saying you wanted a puppy for Christmas," he told her heartily as he placed the tiny thing in her hands. "She's a rat terrier. She won't be very big when she grows up. They're small dogs. I thought you'd like her, and it makes it a bit easier for your parents to manage."

"I love her!" Carly giggled as the puppy yapped confusedly and glanced around. Meghan exchanged a look with Gordon, but one shrug from him and she knew they would make it work. Carly hugged the puppy to her, stroking its fur. It almost fit in her two palms. Definitely small.

"For you, young man," Santa told Ryder as he reached into the bag for the final object. Ryder gave him a startled look. "Since you never told me what you wanted, I did a little thinking and picked something out myself."

What he pulled out of the bag surprised Meghan. If it had been any other person giving him this, she would be concerned on a number of levels. But it was Santa. He always had his ways.

He extended a photo album out to Ryder. Meghan could make out the photo pasted and on the front. It was one of the four of them hugging. The group hug they had just shared minutes earlier. They were all smiling, with their arms around one another. Ryder took it reluctantly, staring down at it with furrowed eyebrows.

Meghan moved closer as he opened it. It was full of photos. Photos ranging from Ryder as a newborn to that very month. Family pictures. He flipped through the album slowly, and each photo tugged harder at Meghan's heartstrings. As Carly turned her attention back to her puppy and Brek and Gwen discussed the bagpipes animatedly, Santa Claus excused himself. He smiled at Gordon and Meghan. "Thank you so much for what you've done. It means a lot to me. I must excuse myself now but I want you to know that you always have a friend at the North Pole."

Gordon shook his hand with a smile. "Never thought I'd here somebody say that."

Meghan laughed in agreement. "Thanks, Santa. Good luck training the fawns. They've got spirit!"

"You're telling me," he chuckled. Then he was disappearing out the door.

Meghan had a feeling they wouldn't be seeing him again.

She turned back to her family. Despite being at the hospital with injuries not even close to fully healed, and having her son hurting from his own wounds, the day seemed magical. Happy. A day to celebrate not only their victory over Santa's brother and the torment he brought but the union of her family.

"You know," Carly said to Ryder, still holding her puppy, "I think you hold the official record of biggest injury in our childhood and I kind of don't want to beat you now because I don't want something worse than getting stabbed so...I guess when you're eighteen I'm giving you fifty dollars."

Meghan laughed at the solemn tone to Carly's voice. She remembered that conversation when Ryder was in the hospital after their house burned down. He had the record then too. She was seeing this as the end of the agreement too. "Yes. Please don't get hurt any worse than Ryder, okay?"

"Yeah, ladybug," Gordon agreed. "Let's avoid injuries for a while."

"For sure!"

Meghan sat down at the foot of the bed, smiling as she watched her two children discuss pictures in the photo album with one another. A slight ache was beginning to seep through her leg but she wasn't going to go back to her room just yet. Not on Christmas Day. Not when they were finally happy together.

"You okay?" Gordon asked, sitting beside her.

"Yeah." She paused, adjusting her glasses. "Um...You're okay with just being friends, right?"

"Yeah, I am." Gordon smiled, wrapping his arm around her. "Just friends sounds great. Maybe you'll find a guy in the future-"

"Hell no," Meghan objected, leaning against him. She scowled playfully. "Are you trying to fall out of love with me already?"

"Well, the sooner I do, the sooner our friendship can have no awkwardness."

"I don't think it will," she laughed. "Maybe a few arguments and pranks but I'm sure friendship will work well."

"Hopefully better than our marriage," he agreed, laughing too.

Meghan allowed her laughs to die down as a sudden realization hit her. If they could joke about their marriage, did that mean everything was okay now? There would always be moments of it that she would miss. It was the best experience of her life, but she knew that just because that particular adventure was over didn't mean they wouldn't have more all together. Gordon was still Ryder and Carly's dad, after all. He could still be Meghan's best friend.

"When are we going to go home?" Carly finally asked, looking across the bed at them.

Meghan shrugged, still leaning into Gordon's shoulder. "As soon as possible."

"And then will everything be okay?"

Ryder looked up at them too, his gaze questioning. Meghan's smile only widened. "I think it already is."

❄⛄❄

The book is officially COMPLETE!! And now I don't know how to feel...although my heart aches, for sure. xD

I can't believe it's finished! I've been working on it for how long? About a year and four months? WOW. 🥺