It is Christmas Eve, and Millie the Cockapoo dog is walking through Elderberry Woods with her family, Chris, Lisa, Ben, Eva and Mia. They are on their way to visit Santa’s Grotto. Millie is walking between everyone’s legs and making them laugh.
Santa’s Grotto is lit up with Christmas decorations twinkling all over the roof and a light-up model sleigh sits beside the door. Murals of elves making presents and reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh cover the walls. While the family are visiting Santa, Millie picks up a scent and walks, with her nose on the ground, around the back of Santa’s Grotto. She finds a sleigh attached to eight reindeer. Cupid is pulling at her reins. In her excitement, Millie runs in circles around the reindeer. Cupid snaps her reins and runs away! Millie follows her!
Millie runs past mossy trees crawling and scuttling with bugs. Leaves and twigs tangle in Millie’s golden curls. A robin flutters down and swallows a plump caterpillar whole. Cupid also runs past all of this, eventually stopping at River Alpine and paddling in the shallows where the currents aren’t too strong. Millie barks and joins her. “Hello! Let’s play!” Millie woofs excitedly and splashes in the water. “I’m Cupid,” replies the reindeer, “I thought I’d break free of my reins and have a little explore. I see wonderful places from the sky but I never get to explore them. I’d be happy to play”. Cupid splashes back at Millie.
Back at the grotto, Chris, Lisa, Ben, Eva and Mia are all looking for Millie. “Millie!” calls Eva. “Millie, come here, girl!” shouts Mia. “Come on, Millie!” hollers Ben. “Let’s look over here,” suggests Lisa, pulling back the branches of a fir tree. “There’s no sign of her,” sighs Chris, “we’ll have to go home”. They all walk away sadly.
Santa checks his list of visitors. No one is scheduled for the rest of the day. About time, he thinks, It’s six o’clock. All of the local children will be having their dinner by now. He goes around the back of his grotto and sees that Cupid is missing!
Santa jumps on his sleigh, following Cupid’s hoofprints. They reach the river and see Millie and Cupid splashing each other with the water. “Come here, Cupid!” booms Santa. Cupid gallops away, but Millie isn’t fast enough and is put in the sleigh. “Ah, you must be Ben, Eva and Mia’s dog, Millie,” Santa says, having heard all about her from the family on their visit. They set off after Cupid.
Cupid is going in a loop, back to the grotto. When she arrives there, Santa and his reindeer are on her tail. But Cupid runs down the path and starts to take off! Santa and Millie chase after her in the sleigh. They take off along the path as well. Some low clouds blow into the sleigh. Millie feels the moisture cover her fur. “Cupid, you’ve had a play!” barks Millie, “Come back!” “Of course, my friend,” calls back Cupid. She slows down and flies alongside the sleigh. They both land. Cupid is reattached to the sleigh and they fly back to the North Pole.
On Christmas Eve, Santa squeezes down Ben, Eva and Mia’s chimney not only with presents, but Millie as well! Santa places her in Mia’s stocking, tucked in snugly with the gifts, so that she can’t get out!
In the morning, Eva and Mia wake up to a barking noise. Eva and Mia look in their stockings and run into their parents’ room shouting, “Millie’s back!” The family celebrate Christmas and open their presents with Millie. And Christmas is complete.
By Max
