I have a wedding to plan.
I hum Christmas carols as I hunt through the abandoned toy factory for an empty vial, because nobody will care.
All the elves and orcs are spending the day celebrating before the real work of Christmas begins. As much as I would love to indulge in some spiced ale along with the fellow villagers on the square, it’s more important to me that I make everything perfect for my wedding to Ginger468.
I am not the smartest, but I easily remember the code that opens the safe that holds the wish vials—one for every child on earth, whether they celebrate Christmas or not. There are a few hundred thousand extra, in case some get broken, or someone young at heart and pure has a special wish.
I shouldn’t tell you this, but if you ever accidentally find yourself at the North Pole Village and need a wish to get home,the code for the wish vial safe is 36412. That’s 364 cumulative gifts described in the twelve days of Christmas.
Ever since Vulwyn left to marry a human, security around here has been pretty lax.
Once I have my wish vial, I slide it into the sporran of my fur kilt and head back home to log into the game and finish preparations.
As I use my character to sculpt ice statues, floral arrangements, and a beautiful tent, my heart grows with excitement. I can’t wait for Ginger468 to see everything I’ve done.
I hope she is pleased. I hope it makes her smile, and I hope against hope that she shares my ultimate wish.
Then we can be together … for real.
Chapter Five
Ginger
My character—a tall, blonde, curvy bombshell—finds Grak making a fire in the great hall of the Christmas castle. His character wears a beautiful formal suit of green with gold brocade.
“Grak, why are you so dressed up?” I type through the messaging feature.
“Today’s our wedding day, remember?” Grak types back.
I totally forgot. All the stress of today, and I forgot to look forward to the fact that our characters are going to get married in the game tonight.
“That’s right!” I type. “I’m switching to voice chat!”
I send my character to the nearest wardrobe and pick the ivory silk dress with the red piping and matching jacket. The fun thing about this game is that I can get super detailed with my designs.
I meet Grak in a pavilion behind the castle, decorated with colorful silks that sway in the breeze. Light fairies hover around and fly to and fro. It looks like a fairy tale. Grak has decidedto surprise me with an array of frozen sculptures done by elves, glittering ice pillars, and frosted floral arrangements.
“It’s beautiful, Grak. I almost wish we had someone real to share this moment with us.”
His character nods, and I look in the direction he indicates. Standing behind me on the screen is an array of a dozen or more woodland creatures waiting patiently for the ceremony to begin.
I’m blown away at the fauns, squirrels, foxes, and birds watching us.
“Grak. Did you do all this yourself? You didn’t have to. The weddings in the game take like thirty seconds.”
“I wanted our day to be special,” he says over the headphones. And I melt a little.
“You invited the skunks?” I laugh, noticing the little balls of black and white fur among the audience.
“Shall I send them away?” Grak asks.
“No. The skunks can stay.”
The next thing I know, Grak tells me to take a look inside my companion white squirrel’s inventory.
“What the…” I mutter, but do as he says. When I open my little companion’s backpack, there I find one item—a bouquet of red and white roses.
“What the heck?”
