The Replacement

Reindeer TF

BANG! The shot rang out, echoing in the frigid are of the sub-arctic tundra. The reindeer that had been grazing went down as the bullet found its mark, making a clean kill. As the deer hit the ground, the golden bells on the emerald-green harness clanged in an outrageously loud cacophony of sound.

Brian lifted the rifle from his face, and got up to go check the deer. Even though it was the day before Christmas Eve, Brian had been determined to go on a hunting trip. Wanting to catch a reindeer, he had figured that he would have been able to bag one without anyone noticing. When he heard the bells ringing, he panicked and shot before he had thought about it.

Walking over to the fallen animal, Brian checked to see if there was any way to save it. After all, it had a harness on it, which meant someone owned it. The scarlet blood staining the pure snow around the wound meant that it had been a through shot. Kneeling, Brian could already tell it had died before hitting the ground.

"Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap," Brian muttered to himself as he looked at the dead animal before him, dropping the large bag on the ground beside him. "What do I do now?" Fear had begun rising up inside him, and he quickly looked for a way to get the harness off. Searching, he found a small engraved nameplate just below the neck. Brian paused long enough to read the name on the tag before finding the straps.

"Donner, huh? Well, Donner, we'll just have to keep this our little secret." Brian had begun to talk to the carcass as he began removing the harness to place it inside the bag. Moving as quickly and quietly as possible with all the jingling bells, he somehow managed to get the harness off the body and into the bag. Standing back, Brian began looking for the best way to carry the large animal. It was then that he realized something: The deer he had brought down was a buck.

"That's weird," He muttered. "I thought all bucks lost their antlers in winter. Even reindeer. Oh, well," Brian shrugged it off. "I guess it's just an added bonus for me."

* * * * * * *

At the same time Donner had gone down, someone else found themselves in a dilemma as well. Jayden the elf stood looking bewildered in the stables. All the reindeer were accounted for. All, that is, except for one. Somehow, Donner had gotten free, and the elf knew that unless he found the deer, he would be in big trouble. Well, bigger than normal, since Santa was already preparing for the next night, and Donner was one of the reindeer that always pulled the sleigh each year. Santa always stuck to tradition when it came to that sort of thing. Since there was nothing else to do, Jayden went out into the tundra to find the missing animal, not knowing the fate that had already befallen the deer.

* * * * * * *

Grabbing the hind legs with gloved hands, Brian began dragging the animal towards his truck. It was hard going, but he was managing to slowly make some headway. The body stretched out to it's full length, and a trail of red smeared itself into the white snow. Brian kept pulling, stopping only to take a few minutes to rest. After getting a tighter grip on the legs, he began to pull the deer behind him again. With his head down, fully lost in his thoughts as he lugged his catch, Brian neither heard nor saw the child-shape coming toward him. The elf and the hunter ran right into each other and both fell to the ground, making a pile that left the human on top of the elf, with Donner topping the whole thing. In the confusion, no one noticed the faint sound of bells coming from the pack Brian had on his back.

The elf crawled out from under Brian. "Watch where you're going, you big clumsy bear!" The elf angrily scowled at the human.

"I'm sorry; I didn't know you were there. It was an accident." Brian managed to get a weak apology out, stumbling over the words. The fear he had managed to suppress before came surging back in full force. Did they know what he had done? "My names Bri-"

"Brian. I know." Already over the confused tumble he had taken, Jayden had already started thinking about more important matters. Brushing himself off, he looked around before turning back to a thoroughly confused Brian. "You haven't seen any rein......" the question petered off as Jayden noticed the dead deer lying behind Brian.

The look of utter shock completely transformed the small elf's face he recognized the reindeer. "NO! NOT DONNER!" The elf cried in anguish and disbelief. It was so sudden and unexpected, that Brian was left standing in confusion as the elf ran to Donner's side, sobbing hysterically. It took Brian a few minutes to fully comprehend what was happening at his feet.

"Uh," Brian said, feeling a little stupid as the elf continued to cry over the deer. "What's going on? Did I miss something?" Brian looked around to see if there was anyone to explain why there was what appeared to be a midget in an elf costume weeping over a deer. It really just didn't make any sense at all; this had to be a prank of some kind.

"Is this some kind of, winter Wonderland Park or something?" Brian asked, still trying to make sense of what had just happened within the last five minutes. By this time, Jayden the elf had stopped crying, but was still breathing so heavily, Brian thought he was going to have a massive panic attack. "What's your name, anyway?"

"Jayden." The elf replied to the question before starting to pull his hat down the sides of his head in fear and blind panic.

"Well, Jayden, tell me what's so important about that deer?" Brian asked innocently. "I mean, it's just an animal, right?"

Jayden looked at Brian in shock and disbelief. "Just an animal? JUST AN ANIMAL?! It's not 'just an animal!' This is Donner! One of Santa's reindeer! And now he's dead, and Christmas Eve is tomorrow, and Santa's going to need Donner to pull the sleigh, and he won't be there! I'll be in trouble because I was the one in charge of taking care of the reindeer, and I messed it up! I don't know what Santa will do with me now!" Brian was impressed that the elf had managed to say all that in one breath.

"So, this is an amusement park?" The would be intrepid hunter scratched the back of his neck, still trying to figure everything out.

That just made Jayden angry. "It's not an amusement park!" Sighing, the elf just shook his head, took a deep breath, and began from the beginning. "Look. I'm really an elf working for Santa."

"Riiiiight," Brian was now sure that he was talking with a crazy person. "Listen, I've really got to be going, sooo...."

"It's true!" Jayden cried out in desperation, cutting Brian off before he could finish his sentence or walk away. "I was placed in the stables with the animals, namely reindeer, since I have a knack for working with them. And I'm, not too good at anything else." The elf seemed a little embarrassed about it. "Now, one of the eight reindeer specifically trained to pull Santa's sleigh is dead, and I don't know what to do."

"Can't you just, catch another one?" Brian suggested, trying to be helpful.

The elf just sadly shook his head no. "It doesn't work that way, Brian. The reindeer have to be born and raised around the magic that permeates Santa's workshop, as you humans tend to refer to it. That's why they can fly, and are so intelligent." Personally, Brian thought that last part was a little bit of a stretch, but was smart enough not to say anything about it. "It's also why the males keep their antlers through winter, instead of shedding them."

"Ah. That explains it." He still didn't believe most of what the elf was telling him, but the part about the antlers made sense. Sort of. Brian suddenly realized how late it was getting, and that the sun was already starting to set. Feeling a little bad, but not sure what he could do about it, he decided it was getting past time to leave. "Listen, I would love to help you out, but I really need to get going."

As Brian began to leave, Jayden told him "It wouldn't work anyway." Curious about that statement, Brian turned back around.

"What wouldn't work?"

"Your offer to help out." Depressed, Jayden just sat down on the ground hugging his knees to his chest and resting his chin on them. Looking up at the human, the elf could tell he had Brian's curiosity and attention. "It wouldn't work, because we don't have the harness. Without that, I wouldn't be able to make you change."

"I have the harness in my bag, but what do you mean, 'change?'" Brian gestured toward the heavy hunting pack still lying on the ground forgotten.

Jayden just looked at him with a shocked look that slowly turned to amazement and relief. "Really? That's great news! Maybe I'm not in as much trouble as I thought!" Before Brian could do or say anything to stop him, Jayden literally jumped on the pack and tore it open. Before long, the emerald harness was clutched in the elf's hands, draping down into the snow. The fading sun reflected in the golden brass and bells. "Now you really can help!"

Brian just stood there, quietly staring at the elf and wondering why he hadn't left when he had the chance. Jayden continued: "You see, we elves are naturals when it comes to using magic. And, since Christmas magic is the most powerful, we can do so much more when we need to." Jayden gave Brian a serious look before continuing. "However, there are some magic's Santa has forbidden us to use. Including the one I'm about to use. We need express permission from the Big Boss himself in order to do this, but since it's an emergency, I think he'll okay it." With that, the elf closed his eyes, and concentrated hard.

As he did, the harness began glowing in a strange, flowing light. It almost looked like he was holding the Aurora Borealis in his hands. Before Brian could move or say anything, a strange feeling came over him. His clothes suddenly felt tighter than normal, and a heavy weight started weighing on his head. Tearing his gloves off, he stripped his coat and extra shirts off until he was only wearing his undershirt. Taking his heavy winter boots and socks provided some relief to his swelling feet. Bringing his hands to his head, Brian felt around until he felt the two growths he now had rapidly growing on his head.

"This isn't possible," he whispered in disbelief. Brian could feel them getting bigger in his hands. Rubbing them, he felt something tickle the back of his hands. A short exploration revealed that it was his ears, which had moved up to the tops of his head, ending up just below his new antlers. They had become longer, ending in a point, and had grown a covering of fuzz. Brian had felt it often enough from his experiences hunting and taxidermy. "Fur. I'm growing antlers and fur." Brian couldn't believe it, but the evidence was there.

The growing pain around his waist brought his attention to the fact that his body was still growing. Realizing he had no choice, Brian undid his straining pants and took them off while he had the chance now. He now stood, shivering in the sub-arctic tundra bathed in the fading light of a setting sun, wearing nothing more than an undershirt and boxers, sporting deer antlers and furry ears. Looking over at Jayden, Brian wondered if somehow, the elf was causing these changes. If so, then stopping him somehow would stop the changes before they got worse......

As if sensing his thoughts, the shifting light covering the harness grew brighter, and the changes to Brian's body accelerated. His chest and stomach grew out, while his arms and legs seemed to get longer and thinner. Brian tried to remove the remaining garments, but his arms no longer moved the way he wanted them to. Suddenly, he was forced to the ground, his hands catching his fall, and Brian then realized that his bones had been forever altered to match that of an animal. He watched horrified and helpless as his fingers fused together, his hands now starting to form a broad, flat hoof with a cleft in the middle. There was no need to check his feet; he already knew they had already become his new hind hoofs. Looking at them, they were built for moving on snow and ice. A ripping sound made him realize his body was still changing. Moving his head that was somewhere between beast and human on his now longer neck, Brian looked back to see that the remaining garments had finally torn off his body. It was no surprise, since he had put on more weight and muscle, but it was still a bit embarrassing. Had he still been able to, he would have tried to cover himself. It wouldn't have helped any, since he had already started growing a thick fur coat to cover him and keep him warm in the cold, but the principle was the same.

Nearly complete, there was still one change left to make. Quickly and easily, the final touch was made. Brian's spine straightened out, leaving him with a fur covered tail. Swinging his humongous head, Brian looked at the elf. The harness had stopped glowing, and the elf slowly opened his eyes.

Jayden was exhausted; using the amount of magic required to transform a human took a lot of energy. Looking at the new reindeer, he grinned. "You make quite a handsome buck, Brian." Brian flicked an ear to acknowledge the elf. He was too busy exploring his new body to do anything else.

It was incredible. Brian had never experienced anything like this. He could now move his ears with only a single thought. His hearing had improved as well. He could hear sounds he had never heard before. The tail was interesting. Brian couldn't help but to look back and watch as he flicked it back and forth. He actually found that part amusing, giving as best a smile as he could with his reindeer mouth. Moving his tongue around, he explored his new mouth, rubbing his teeth to get a feel for what they were like now. It seemed like his vision had also improved, but Brian wasn't sure if that was part of his imagination or not. He'd never really researched reindeer all that much, so he didn't know how well reindeer could see.

The thing that really interested Brian, however, was how much his nose had improved. He could smell his human scent still on the clothes he had worn, and the elf standing not too far away. There was also the scent of another buck nearby, but Brian knew it wouldn't pose a threat; not only did his nose tell him, but he was the one who had shot it, starting this whole mess. He could even smell the grass growing under the snow, which made his stomach growl. Brian hadn't realized how hungry he was; he hadn't eaten much all day, and the sudden change in species had taken a lot out of him. Without thinking about it, he began digging through the snow to find the grass and lichen underneath. The sound of ringing bells interrupted his quest for food. Brian looked at the elf, which had begun to approach him with the harness still in his hands. Brian tentatively took a few wobbly steps over to Jayden and immediately began snuffling the elf with his nose. There was the strong scent of carrots, which Brian hadn't realized before, and he wanted them.

The elf just kindly pushed his muzzle back with a laugh. "I'll give you a carrot," Jayden promised the new reindeer, "But first you need to do something for me." Brian the buck shook his immense head which felt good.

"I need you to stand still while I put this on. Do you understand?" Jayden continued. The former human nodded his head. "Good! This will only take a minute, so be patient." The elf then went to Brian's side, and began placing the emerald harness over the deer. Brian knew he should feel scared and silly, having been suddenly transformed into the very thing he had come out to hunt and then to have someone claiming to be an elf running around him adjusting straps and buckles like he was a horse, but for some reason, he just couldn't. He wasn't sure if it was part of the magic, or something the elf was doing, but he just felt calm. He actually felt more alive than he'd ever had before. While it had been a bit frightening at first, realizing he was changing and would never again be human, but right now Brian was actually happy this had happened. If nothing else, he thought as he stood there as still as he could while the elf finished making adjustments, it will be interesting to see where this leads.

"Done!" Jayden said, walking up to Brian's cervine face. "And as promised, here are those carrots." Trying not to bite the kind elf, Brian took the proffered food in his mouth and munched on them. His new body seemed to know exactly what to do. "Now, we need to get you to the stables before things get worse." Jayden turned and began walking away, with Brian following on uncertain legs.

* * * * * * *

After a few minutes of walking and a trip through some kind of portal, the duo soon found themselves at Santa's workshop. During the trip, Brian and Jayden had become friends, something neither of them had expected. Brian had also steadily gotten better at walking on all fours. It had really helped that Jayden had been patient with him. As they approached the wooden structures obscured by snow, however, they both realized something was wrong. The whole place sounded like it was in a panic.

"Oh no," Jayden whispered under his breath, the worry evident in his voice. "We need to get to the stables. They're over here." The elf hurried off in one direction, with Brian trying to keep up. While this whole episode of weirdness had Brian thinking that nothing was impossible anymore, he was still finding himself surprised at some of the things the elf did. In this case, Brian had no idea how someone that small could move so fast, and leave him in the dust. Brushing that thought aside, he followed the elf as best he could.

Upon reaching the stables, Jayden slowly opened the doors and looked around before opening them up enough to let Brian in. Brian, trying to start thinking of himself as 'Donner' instead, was impatient to get inside. He was still hungry, after all, and he could smell the oats and hay inside. Once inside, the elf lead the new Donner to his stall.

"Well, Jayden, it's nice to finally see you're back," A heavy, deep voice said. Both the elf and the deer tuned to the far end of the stable to see the speaker. A large man stood in the far door way, framed by the light that was spilling in. His heavy, black leather boots thudded against the wooden floor as he walked over to speak to the elf and look the human-turned-deer over. As he did, the light revealed that he was wearing a thick red coat and hat covered with gold embroidery and trimmed with white fur. Brian and Jayden looked at each other, eyes wide with shock. They both knew who was standing before them, and both knew they were in deep trouble.

Stopping in front of the stall, the man in red simply folded his arms and looked at the two of them. Brian just hung his head in shame, while Jayden fumbled to explain the situation. "Well, sir, I found him standing over Donner, and thought that maybe...." Jayden's voice just petered off and died as he realized there was no way out of this. The man in red just smiled and laughed.

"I understand completely." Brian and Jayden both looked at the man speechless. The man in red leaned over to get a better look at Brian. "You did a good job changing him, by the way. Is his human mind still intact?"

"Yes." Jayden mumbled, still in shock at what was happening. Why was Santa himself down here? And why wasn't he angry? Jayden must have broken at least ten rules when he'd lost one of the most important reindeer in the entire North Pole, went off on his own to find it, and transformed a human to replace it when he found it dead! It didn't make sense!

The man in red was visibly impressed. "Remarkable, especially since it was your first time using such magic." He began inspecting Brian more closely, forcing his mouth open to check the extent the magic had gone. "Physically indistinguishable from a normal reindeer, very good," he muttered to himself. "And he's in very good health, as well." The man in red continued his inspection. Brian felt a little uncomfortable with this, and softly bugled in protest. "It's all right, I'm done." The man said comfortingly, rubbing Brian's long nose to calm him down. It actually felt good. "I was just making sure that everything worked out with the change."

With that, the man in the red coat turned to Jayden. "I really should be angry with you, first for allowing Donner to escape, and then going out on your own to find him. Especially since you used magic usually forbidden for elves to use on humans."

Jayden just stood there shocked and frightened. "How did you......"

The man just chuckled. "I'm Santa! How could I not feel you using magic that powerful? Besides, it wasn't hard to figure out when you added in the report of a missing reindeer and an elf not where he needed to be." Santa unfolded his arms and kneeled down to look at Jayden. "I can't punish you, though, since you did exactly what needed to be done."

Jayden didn't say anything, but the question was clear on his face. "I guess you didn't realize," Santa said as he stood up, patting Brian on his now broad shoulder. "That the young man you transformed, Brian, I believe, was the one responsible for shooting Donner?" The elf and deer just looked at Santa, both shocked at how much he knew. Could this day get any weirder? Brian wondered.

"Indeed. Brian here shot Donner, not knowing what he was. But whether you intended to or not, you found him, and punished him accordingly and also found a way to make everything right." A jolly laugh came from Santa. "You not only did what needed to be done, but in the exact manner I myself would have done it, and quickly. I can't punish you for that, especially since I knew that being close to the animals was the best place for you. Now," Santa turned his attention from Jayden, who was still trying to comprehend what had just happened, to Brian. The poor beast was still trying to comprehend what was going on. "Brian, or rather, Donner, how do you feel about remaining here as a reindeer? We'll make sure you're well taken care of, but you will have to help out by pulling the sleigh." Santa explained.

Donner just shook his head and bugled in happiness. It sounded just fine to him! His cry made all the other reindeer in the building raise their heads and start bugling in response. Santa just roared with laughter at this. "Good! That's all I wanted to know! You wouldn't have had much choice, but since you're okay with it, then there's no problem." Donner didn't care about not having a choice. He was happy here, even if he didn't fully understand everything. The only thing that did worry him was what his friends and family would do with him gone, probably for the rest of his days. Santa seemed to be able to read his mind. "Don't worry about you're previous life. It will be all taken care of. I am Santa, after all! You will live a long, happy life, and when the time comes, we will give you a choice of what you want to do after wards. But for now, let's just make sure you're prepared for tomorrow." With that, Santa walked out of the stables to check his list twice.

Jayden just stood there, still as statue. Donner had to push him with his head to get the elf moving. Quickly, he got a feed bag and placed it over Donner's mouth before beginning his rounds to the other deer. Donner dug in and munched away, happy not only to finally have food, but at the way things had turned out. He didn't know what Santa had meant when he had said there would be a choice for him to make, but it didn't matter. He'd worry about that when the time came. Until then, all Donner had to do was make sure he was ready tomorrow, when he helped pull Santa's sleigh for the first time.