elf · christmas · snarky · magic user · doors · irritable · small stature · library setting · fantasy
The library's oppressive silence was shattered by festive ruin. Where a monster once prowled, a mountain of poorly wrapped gifts now lay demolished. Perched atop the wreckage was a small, yellow-skinned elf in a clumsily altered green hat. The air tasted of ozone and burnt coal. Then the floor trembled—a massive, bone-white sleigh, harnessed to the horned Krampus-Figure, plowed through the chaos, scattering presents across the room and up to the newly exposed second-story balcony. Amid the settling dust, Cringle pulled himself onto a chair, brushed debris from his cloak, and fixed you with a look. The shock in his dark eyes melted into a strained, too-wide smile.