Once apon a time, there was this little elf, she was a sweet little thing, kind and helpful, but a clutz.... she was always having little catastrophes and accidents. Now santa was very tolerant of her and would smile when he saw her sweet sad little eyes as she gazed down at another toy she had ruined. Santa would nod at the mistake bin and she would toss the toy in and begin work on another toy... the other elfs would laugh at her and snicker... santa would do his best to glare at them without yelling, so as not to bring even more attention to her that his showing favoritism would do.

Bella (her name) wiped a tear away before it got on the satin dress of the dolls and ruined another toy, She was so sad, she knew that you had to meet a certain quantity and quality of toys to even be in the drawing to be one of the elfs that was chosen to help santa at the malls before christmas, and the really special honor of flying with santa on christmas eve and helping deliver presents. She knew she was way below in points and would never be able to go with santa.

Bella wanted to fly, and she wanted to meet some real children, she wanted to see the rest of the world. Smell the exotic smells of India, eat pineapple in hawaii, grits in the south, see a kangaroo in australia, but for her it would never happen....

At shift change-over time Bella looked around nervously, it was the most chaotic time of the day. She saw that no one was paying attention to little old her. Bella slowly sauntered over to the mistake bins and started wheeling them out one at a time, hiding them in a store room in the old part of santas workshop. A room that wasnt used since the new additions were added on. No one would know she had taken the mistake toys... Bella had been taking all of the mistake toys for over a year now, since last christmas.

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a week before christmas, santa noticed that supplies were running short. That shouldn't be, he thought, with all the mistakes the new elves and Bella made, there should be plenty of recyclable parts. A investigation began. The elves in charge of recyling, who were actually the laziest of elfs, told santa that they had recycled everything that had come through. What they didnt bother to tell him was that they knew that the amounts of mistake toys weren't adding up, and being the lazy elfs that they were they would sit around all day drinking coffee and gabbing and only jump up to work when someone from another dept. came to their room.

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The investigation went on and on. Everyone was questioned and re-questioned. Fights broke out as the doll maker elfs blamed the top maker elfs and the video game elfs blamed the board game elfs. Then the fighting started within the groups and the doll wig maker blamed doll dress maker, the top painter blamed the top assembler, the video game tester blamed the video label putter oner, and the board game pawn carver blamed the board game spinner maker... well you get the picture! Santas work shop was not a pleasant place to be on christmas eve and santa still did not know where the mistake toys had disappeared too... Now Bella felt really bad about this and she cried more then she normally did, but she didnt fess up and tell anyone what she had done, what she was still doing at this very moment. of course when all the bug-a-boo had all started she had had to stop saving the mistake toys. but that didnt stop her from doing what she was doing. As much as she wanted to be a helper elf, she just couldnt stop what she was doing. Bella knew that if she was caught that she would be fired and the shame of it all, to be the worst elf ever and to be fired for stealing....

That evening as santa and the helper elves loaded up the sleigh, Bella peeked out the window of the old store room, she had only a few more boxes to tape shut. A few more labels to put on. Bella looked at the clock and gasped, oh dear it would be another catastrophe, it was almost closing time and she needed the postage meter. She snuck out and retrieved it without anyone seeing her. She was saddened at just how sneaky she was becoming, how dishonest. But as she finish putting the last label on, taping shut the last box and putting the correct postage on each box (magical postage that would get the package to its intended destination tonight) when she had done all this and began the slow process of putting each box on the time comsuming conveyer belt that would take the packages and mail them (even magic postage cant be rushed, things take time)

Bella pulled her satchel out of the closet and began crying again as she read the letters in it....

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The door burst open as Bella sat there reading the letters waiting for the last 5 boxes to be mailed... She looked up guiltily there was santa and a hoard of angry elves. Santa looked at her with a sad expression on his face, she could tell he was disappointed in her. Then all the mad elves began to shout at once, mean things, which of course made poor Bella cry even more. They were all chastizing her and yelling and accusing. Well it was all true so she hung her head in shame and let them.

One of the older elves, Allen noticed all the letters she had been reading and some of the words caught his eye.... PLEASE HELP US....... ORPHANAGE ..... and another went something like I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO MY HUSBANDS IN THE HOSPITAL...... and another one said WE LIVE IN A HOMELESS SHELTER, DOES SANTA COME TO SHELTERS? .... there were more letters, sad ones, and even sadder ones....

Allen let out a great piercing whistle that quieted the room down and he read some of the letters, as he did some elves rushed over to the boxes that they had 'saved' from being mailed bye the larcenous elf Bella, and they read the labels, the addresses were all to orphanages and shelters.

Bella looked up as a hush came over the room. Her first look was to santa and it was a funny thing but he was smiling at her, he didnt seem mad anymore, so she shyly looked around the room and noticed all the elves with tears in their eyes, ...

Allen spoke in his big booming voice.... "our little thieving elf has been found, and while we were all squabblin and fighting Bella has been fixing the mistakes and sending them out in santas name to the poor and misfits of the world" then santa said a few words, "as you all know, we are a business here and we have deadlines and quotas and prices and price cuts, but we forgot why we first started this workshop, to make children happy and this doesnt mean only the rich children, we have become to commercial and even tho we dont profit from this and put all our money back into new toys for next year.... well, we forgot that the sick and the poor and the unwanted, love christ and love each other and no kid should be excluded... Bella has shown great love to mankind... what she did in stealing was wrong but she has a good heart"

Several of the helper elves, wiping away their tears volunteered Bella their spots on the sleigh for that nights delivery... but santa frowned and said "no, Bella did do something wrong and should be punished for the dishonest part of it, so no, she cant go tonight.... but she is going to be our 'mistakes for misfits' head elf, she will be in charge of it for this coming year and i am sure with her talents at it she will be a helper elf next christmas.

Bella was crying again, (of course) but she smiled up at santa and then at her fellow elves, "oh i will do a good job' The room slowly emptied but for santa, allen and Bella.... Santa noticed the 5 boxes that hadnt been mailed yet... he winked at allen then said to bella, "allen is going to need some help delivering these pacakages as the elves broke the conveyer belt in their eagerness to stop you. would you go with him in the small elf-spying sled and deliver these?' Bella beamed and ran from the room...

Hours later Allen had to pull her beaming little face from a window where she was watching children in a shelter open presents.

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