“No biggie. Peppermint Bark can stay outside,” she said. “We’ll run in, grab some food, and take a look around for portals.”
“No!” Chris said. “We can’t leave him out here alone.”
Ivy nodded. “True. Leash laws, remember?”
“Fine.” Holly still didn’t see the problem. “So Chris can stay out here with him.”
“Forget it.” Chris unzipped his puffer coat. “I’ll just sneak him in under my jacket.”
Holly laughed. “Really? Talk about a belly like a bowl full of jelly . . .”
“Yeah, I don’t think that’ll work,” Ivy said. “He’s too big. Somebody will notice, and then we’ll get in trouble.”
“So what?” Chris sounded stubborn, like always when he didn’t get his way. Holly had seen it a zillion times.
She opened her mouth to respond. But just then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone—or something?—dash out from behind a dumpster and disappear into the crowds moving through the archway. Whatever—whoever—was moving too fast for Holly to get a good look, but it was red and green and small and looked an awful lot like whatever she’d seen in the bushes earlier . . .
“Hols?” Ivy prompted.
Holly blinked, telling herself she was seeing things. Or maybe just going nuts. Hanging out with fantasy-loving Ivy and believes-anything Chris was going to her head.
“So if somebody catches us sneaking a dog into the Junction, they might banish us for the rest of the day,” she told the two of them. “And that means no looking for portals in there.”
“And no lunch,” Peppermint Bark added, licking his chops. “I think I smell Christmas cookies.”
Chris crossed his arms, looking more stubborn than ever. “I’m not waiting out here. And neither is Peppermint Bark.”
“So what do you suggest?” Holly challenged her brother, fed up. “Listen, if you’re going to be like that, Ivy and I have better things to do. Right, Ives?”
Ivy didn’t respond. When Holly looked over, her friend was staring off into space. For a second Holly wondered if Ivy had seen whatever Holly had just seen.
But no. Holly recognized that look. Ivy always got all spacy like that when she was thinking hard—“lost in her own imagination,” some of their teachers called it. Holly poked her on the arm.
“Huh?” Ivy blinked at her. “Hey, I think I have an idea . . .”
* * *
A few minutes later, the kids were putting Ivy’s plan into action. Chris had been a little dubious when she’d first told him and Holly about it. But he couldn’t think of a better way to get Peppermint Bark into the market, so he’d just crossed his fingers and hoped it would work.
First they’d pooled their money, using part of it to rent a baby stroller. Then Ivy had dashed into the market to buy baby clothes—she’d remembered that the high school home-ec classes made items and sold them there.
“This stuff seemed like it would be around the right size,” she said, tossing a dress and bonnet to Chris. “Here—see if you can get them on him.”
Peppermint Bark looked confused. “I have to wear clothes?” he said. “But I’m a dog.”
“No, you’re not,” Holly told him. “For the next few minutes, you’re a baby. Got it?”
Ivy smiled and nodded. “I got the idea from fairy tales,” she explained. “There are tricky disguises in lots of them. Like in ‘Little Red Riding Hood,’ when the wolf dresses up in a nightgown and bonnet and fools Red into thinking he’s her grandmother. Remember?”
“Yeah, I guess.” Chris unbuttoned the baby dress. “Come on, buddy. Let’s see if this fits.”
Peppermint Bark looked doubtful as Chris buttoned the dress around the dog’s stout, furry body. It was a little tight at the top, but it was long enough to cover his back paws and tail.
“His front paws are sticking out,” Holly said. “That’ll give him away.” She reached over to tweak the lace on the sleeves.
“So will his face!” Ivy giggled. “Put the bonnet on, Chris.”
“Okay.” Chris held up the bonnet.
But Peppermint Bark backed away. “That goes on my head?” he protested. “But I won’t be able to see!”
“And nobody will be able to see you, either,” Holly said. “That’s kind of the point, okay?”
Peppermint Bark still looked wary. Chris scratched him behind the ear. “It’s okay, pal,” he said. “We’ll be right with you. Please let me put it on?”
Peppermint Bark wagged his tail, which made the dress wave back and forth. “Well . . . okay, Chris.”
Chris smiled at the trusting look in the puppy’s soft brown eyes. He was really going to miss Peppermint Bark . . . But no. He wasn’t going to think about that now.
“Hold still, okay?” he said. Then he tied on the bonnet. It completely hid the little dog’s face and ears. Only the tip of his dark nose stuck out.
Holly studied him, looking a bit uncertain. “If anyone looks too closely . . .”
“They won’t,” Ivy assured her. “It’s, like, a thing. Scientists have done studies about it. People see a stroller and a bonnet, they expect a baby. They won’t look hard enough to notice anything else.”
Holly shrugged. “If you say so.”
“She just did, right?” Chris patted the seat of the stroller. “Hop in, Peppermint Bark.”
Soon they were entering Jingle Junction. Holly pushed the stroller, while Chris and Ivy walked on either side of it to help hide Peppermint Bark from view. Most people hurried right past without so much as glancing in their direction.
Inside, the market was crowded. The Fa-La-La Fudge stall was giving out free samples, so there were tons of people trying to push their way up to the counter. Chris and the others skirted the mob, heading farther in toward the other food stalls.
Chris glanced down at Peppermint Bark. He was wiggling a little. “Doing okay, buddy?” Chris whispered.
“Sure, Chris,” the little dog barked softly.
A passing woman paused, glancing toward the stroller with surprise. Ivy stepped forward to block the lady’s view, smiling widely. “You might not want to get too close,” Ivy said. “My—uh—little cousin has the croup.” She coughed into her hand to demonstrate.
“Oh dear.” The woman nodded sympathetically. “Hope he’s feeling better soon, poor little thing.”
“Thanks.” Ivy kept smiling until the woman moved on, then let out a relieved breath in a big whoosh.
“Good save, Ives,” Holly whispered.
Chris nodded, for once glad to have Ivy along. “Yeah, that was quick thinking. But let’s keep moving. The sooner we get some food and take a look around for portals, the sooner we can get out of here.”
He was feeling a little tense. Normally Jingle Junction was one of his favorite spots in town. Today? It felt as if he and Peppermint Bark were outlaws trying to blend in at a sheriffs’ convention.
Finally they reached Sugarplum Square, where most of the food vendors were set up. Chris waited with the stroller behind a large humming generator at one of the stalls while the girls bought food for all of them.
Peppermint Bark gobbled down the hot dog they brought him, then ate several Christmas cookies.
“Mmm, delicious!” he barked. “These cookies are almost as good as the ones Mrs. Claus bakes!”
Chris licked mustard off his fingers. Then he re-tied Peppermint Bark’s bonnet, which he’d pushed back so the dog could eat. “Okay, let’s take a quick look around for portals,” Chris said as he pulled his gloves back on. “Peppermint Bark, you can still smell from behind that bonnet, right?”
“Sure, Chris,” Peppermint Bark said. His nose twitched. “Everything here smells great! But I don’t smell home yet.”
“Let’s check out the Santa Station,” Ivy said. “That’s the most Christmasy part of the whole Junction, right? So that’s probably where a portal would be if there’s one here.”
“Makes sense,” Holly agreed. “It’s this w
ay.”
They wound their way through the crowds toward the back of the park. They had to swing wide to avoid a herd of little kids clustered around a candy stand giving out free Christmas lollipops. As Chris and the girls moved past them, Chris felt something bounce off his leg.
“Hey,” he blurted out in surprise. He glanced down just in time to spot a weird-looking little kid in a striped cap disappear into the mob at the lollipop stand.
Ivy glanced over at Chris. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
Chris stared after the kid—or had it been a kid? Something didn’t seem quite right . . .
Before he could say anything, a gangly boy with dark hair rushed up to them. Chris recognized him as one of his sister’s classmates. “Holly, Ivy!” the boy exclaimed. “Yo, what’s up?”
“Oh, hi, Hassan.” Holly shot a worried look at Chris and Ivy. “Not much. Listen, we’re kind of in a hurry, so . . .”
But the boy was already staring down at the stroller. “Who’s the baby?” he asked. “Your parents decide you needed another brother?” Hassan laughed loudly at his own joke.
“No, he’s with me,” Ivy said quickly, grabbing the handles of the stroller from Holly. “My little cousin. But he’s sleeping, so don’t wake him up, okay?”
Hassan leaned over to peer past Ivy, confusion creeping over his face. “Is he okay?” he said. “He looks a little . . .”
“Oh, is that the time?” Ivy said loudly. “Listen, we have to go. Merry Christmas, Hassan!”
“Merry Christmas!” Holly and Chris chorused, crowding along beside the stroller as Ivy pushed it away as fast as she could in the busy market.
“Merry Christmas!” Peppermint Bark barked.
Chris froze. Hassan looked more confused than ever, staring from the stroller to the kids and back again.
Holly reached into her coat pocket and whipped out her phone. “Do you like my new ring tone?” she asked Hassan cheerfully. “It sounds just like a real dog, right?”
Hassan’s face cleared. He laughed. “Yeah, cool,” he said. “Mine sounds like an airplane taking off.”
“Is that Dad calling for us to come home?” Chris asked his sister. “We should go.”
He didn’t let out the breath he was holding until Hassan was out of sight in the crowds behind them. “That was close!” Chris hissed at the girls. “We really need to get out of here.”
“Okay, but we’re almost at the Santa Station,” Holly said.
“Yeah.” Ivy pushed the stroller around a stand selling Christmas-themed throw pillows. “We’ll just take a quick look and then leave, okay?”
15
Santa Station Altercation
Peppermint Bark tried to do as Chris said and stay hidden inside his disguise. But when the little dog heard a loud “Ho ho ho!” from somewhere nearby, he couldn’t resist peeking out from inside the bonnet.
“Careful!” Chris leaned down and tweaked the bonnet back over Peppermint Bark’s eyes. “Someone will see you.”
Peppermint Bark was disappointed. He wished he could see more. Because the glimpse he’d caught of the Santa Station was amazing! Mountains of snow dotted with twinkling lights surrounded a festive platform. An enormous golden chair sat at the center with a jolly red-suited fellow ho-ho-ho-ing as he bounced a tiny pink-cheeked child on his knee. Brightly wrapped packages were piled on either side of the chair, and people in peppermint-striped sweaters and jaunty green hats were keeping eager hordes of children calm as they waited in line for their turn . . .
But even though he couldn’t see with the bonnet over his face, Peppermint Bark could still smell. And there were lots of smells here! Some were easy to pick out—like the strawberry ice cream smeared over a toddler’s face, or the soiled diaper on a nearby baby. Other aromas swirled together into one big, happy holiday hodgepodge. Peppermint Bark thought he caught a whiff of cinnamon, and then the breeze changed and he smelled candy canes, then spruce branches . . .
His nose twitched as he took in all the tantalizing scents, searching for the one he was looking for—gingerbread and pinecones, just like home.
Suddenly he felt the stroller jerk. A second later, a high-pitched voice rang out. “This way, please!”
Peppermint Bark couldn’t hear that well through the bonnet, but something about that voice seemed familiar . . . The little dog sniffed again, then blinked. Hold on—was that the smell? The scent of a portal? Wait—and there was something else, too—another very familiar odor . . .
“No!” Ivy exclaimed. “Stop it—we’re not trying to get in line.”
The stroller jerked again, this time in the opposite direction. Peppermint Bark stiffened, trying not to let his disguise slip. But he could feel the bonnet sliding off his left ear . . .
* * *
Chris had been looking around for portals, so he wasn’t watching the stroller when Ivy cried out in alarm. When he looked that way, he saw that two tiny kids in elf costumes had appeared out of nowhere and were trying to get between her and the stroller.
Uh-oh! What if they looked down and noticed Peppermint Bark in there? Chris tried to jump forward to help Ivy get away from the kids, but his path was blocked by a pair of little girls holding hands who had just stopped to stare wide-eyed at Santa. Chris danced from side to side, trying to find a way past them, but the whole area was pretty crowded. To his left, a broad-shouldered dad was snapping photos with his phone. To Chris’s right, several teenagers were jostling one another and joking about asking Santa for a new car. Meanwhile, the two elf-kids were trying to herd the stroller toward the line of little kids awaiting their turns on Santa’s lap.
“Hey, stop—she already told you we don’t want to get in line!” Chris yelled, realizing that the elf-kids must be Santa assistants trying to keep the crowd organized.
Chris finally got past the little girls and ran forward, trying to grab the side of the stroller to stop the elf-kids from hustling it farther away. Ivy was still clutching the handles, but she seemed distracted, staring at the assistants with her mouth open in surprise. Before Chris could help, the stroller rolled off into the crowd, with Ivy barely holding on.
“No, no, no, children. You have to go this way.” The female Santa assistant’s voice was high-pitched and singsongy.
“Yes, yes,” the second one said. “It’s very important. Very, very, very important.”
Holly pushed her way toward them, looking annoyed. “Listen, you have to—”
She was interrupted by a loud woman’s voice from somewhere close by: “This way, children!” the voice called out. “Everyone from the number seven bus trip, come this way if you want to talk to Santa!”
“Tourists,” Holly said.
Chris nodded. Poinsettia was famous for its Christmas spirit. Every year, lots of people came from other towns near and far to join in the holiday celebration. “Don’t you mean ho-ho-holidayers?” he joked, remembering the name his sister had invented for the visitors.
Holly laughed. “I forgot about that!” she said, grinning at Chris.
Just then a new stampede of little kids arrived at the Santa Station. “Santa!” a bright-eyed girl shrieked, hurling herself forward.
“Santa, Santa!” the rest of the little kids yelled, pushing and shoving as they tried to get to the front of the line.
“Whoa!” Chris said as one of the little boys crashed into him and went sprawling. “Careful, buddy! You don’t want to get hurt.”
He reached down and helped the little kid to his feet. The boy immediately raced away again. “Santa!” he screamed excitedly.
The boy’s father hurried past. “Thanks, son,” he called to Chris over his shoulder. “He’s a little overwhelmed. Santa, you know . . .”
“Sure, anytime,” Chris said, though the man was already disappearing into the crowd.
“Come on, we have to catch up to Ivy,” Holly reminded Chris, jumping from one foot to the other as she looked for a way through the crowd. “This is crazy!”
Chris nodded, stepping aside as a wild-eyed little girl with a half-licked lollipop in one hand hurtled past. Holly was right. They had to get to Peppermint Bark!
Over the little kids’ heads, Chris could see Ivy and the stroller. The Santa assistants were still herding them along, taking Peppermint Bark farther away with every step. Suddenly Chris noticed something else.
“They’re not guiding the stroller toward the line waiting for Santa,” he said.
Holly’s eyes widened. “You’re right—I think they’re taking it toward the emergency exit.” She pointed at a door in the chainlink fence just beyond the fake snow wall encircling the Santa Station. “What’s up with that?”
Chris wasn’t sure. Had the assistants noticed that Peppermint Bark was a dog? Were they kicking him out of the Junction? Chris glanced around, hoping to spy a way through the throngs of kids.
Instead, he noticed something else—a shimmering spot on the fake snow wall nearby. “A portal!” he blurted out.
Holly turned and saw it too. “I knew there’d be one here!” she cried. “Come on, we have to get to Peppermint Bark!”
“Yeah.” Was Chris imagining it, or was the shimmering spot shrinking? He thought back to the way the one at the post office had blinked out of sight. “And fast!”
They tried to speed up. But there seemed to be more little kids arriving by the second to block their path. And the stroller was moving faster by now—Ivy still had one hand on the handle, but the two Santa assistants were pushing it along as fast as they could.
“Hurry, hurry!” one of them cried out in his high-pitched voice. “We have to hurry!”
“You know, there’s something weird about those assistants,” Holly commented. “They’re not dressed like most of the others.”
Chris wasn’t sure why his sister was always so worried about clothes and stuff lately. “Who cares?” he said breathlessly, dodging a little kid waving a lollipop in each hand. “This way!”
“No, I’m serious,” Holly said as she followed. “Don’t they look weird to you? They’re really tiny, for one thing. They’re definitely not adults, but they didn’t really sound like kids, either . . .”
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