SCENE II
Interior of Santa Claus’ Home. Two months later.
Discovered at the door Flossie Fixit and Gossip, singing and dancing.
Song
Air: “Glad Christmas Bells.”
Oh, wedding bells, oh wedding bells,
I hear across the lea,
For Santa Claus and the Fairy Queen
Are married, you shall see.
Oh, wedding bells, oh wedding bells,
Peel on, peel on, and ring!
For Santa Claus the Fairy Queen
To his home he soon will bring.
Oh! here they are! Oh! here they are!
They dance and sing, they dance and sing;
For Santa Claus to his fairy bride
Has given the marriage ring.
[Exit.]
Santa Claus and the Fairy Queen, dancing and smiling, enter.
Queen [seeing toys everywhere, remarks playfully]. Such housekeeping! Just like an old bachelor!
Santa Claus [hurriedly clears the place up, then hands the Queen his spy glass and she looks through]. See all the little children looking for Santa Claus. And see, they have no Christmas trees, holly, or turkeys. Won’t you make these things grow right away? The candies, toys and other gifts are all ready.
Queen [playfully]. I’m kind of tired. I’ve only been married one hour, and you want to put me to work.
Santa Claus. But it’s the very day before Christmas, and nothing ready.
Queen. I can see you are going to be a very bossy husband. Did I promise to obey?
Santa Claus [merrily]. You did.
Fairy Queen raises her wand. Flossie Fixit, Billy Bundy and Thomas Page enter.
Queen. Produce the Christmas trees, the holly and turkeys.
Flossie, Billy and Thomas exit, curtseying and very happy at receiving this order at last.
Music: “The Happiest Christmas Day.”
Queen keeps time to the music with her wand.
Santa Claus busies himself gathering toys together and doing up bundles. Finally points to the clock, as music ceases. It is noon.
Queen waves her wand.
Flossie, Billy and Thomas enter.
Sleigh and reindeer appear at door at the same time.
Billy Bundy. We have it all done.
Santa Claus [gathering up his bundles, hurries to the door and speaks jovially]. Come, Mrs. Santa, we must now distribute the gifts.
Queen [sweetly]. I have done my part.
Santa Claus [stands dumbfounded a moment]. The time is so short now. I cannot distribute all the gifts in time without your help.
[Queen is resolute and will not go.]
Santa Claus [starts regretfully for his sleigh. Coming back, playfully]. You are not a very satisfactory wife for a Santa Claus. [Queen looks reproachfully at him.]
Santa Claus gathers the little Queen in his arms for a moment, then exit. Enters sleigh and reindeer prances off, bells ringing.
Queen [throwing herself upon the couch, gracefully, but sadly]. I don’t believe Santa Claus loves me any more. Oh, why did the Prince have to die? [She weeps. Presently she falls asleep.]
Flossie Fixit [to Billy Bundy and Thomas Page]. Step softly. The Queen is asleep.
Billy Bundy. Sister Flossie, the Queen is very unhappy. You’ve got her married to the wrong man. What can we do? What can we do?
Flossie Fixit. Why, it wasn’t I who did that. It was you.
[Billy Bundy smiles in spite of himself.]
Thomas Page. Tell us the truth about the Prince.
Flossie Fixit. He has been asleep. But I’ll awaken him now. [Picks up Queen’s wand and waves it slowly back and forth three times.]
Thomas Page. Why did you not awaken him before?
Flossie Fixit. I could not get hold of the Queen’s wand.
Billy Bundy [apprehensively]. It will only make matters worse now.
Queen awakens. Flossie drops wand hurriedly.
Queen [notices Santa’s spy glass, picks it up, and looks through it]. Oh, the Prince is coming! Am I dreaming? The Prince, the Prince! Oh, my beautiful Prince! [She drops the spy glass, and runs out of the door to meet the Prince.]
Music: “The Owl.”
Gossip [enters]. Did you hear the news? The Prince has returned, and the Queen has gone off with him. [Flossie smiles.]
Billy Bundy [to Flossie]. I suppose now there will be a scandal and a divorce.
Flossie Fixit. Well, we have got the Christmas things all made, and the little children all over the world will be happy.
Thomas Page. But we must find a way to make the Fairy Queen happy, too, or she will die, and the little children won’t have any Christmas trees, holly or turkeys next year.
Gossip [playfully]. Why didn’t some of you goody, goody, wise people frame up a scheme that would have helped the children out without making the Queen suffer?
Billy Bundy. We would have done so in time.
Flossie Fixit. But there wasn’t any time to lose. You’ll see. It will come out all right.
Thomas Page. I’ll have to see what can be done to make it come out right. I shall see the Fairy Judge of the Supreme Court.
Billy Bundy [horrified]. That means a divorce!
Gossip [looking through spy glass]. Look here, everybody.
Santa Claus in his travels, as seen through the glass, coming down a certain chimney, finds an old lady dressed all in red. She evidently intends to play Mrs. Santa Claus. There is a tree, and stockings by the fireplace, and Santa Claus reads a sign:
FOR MY LONG LOST SON.
The old lady is crying.
Billy and Flossie clamor to have a look through the glass.
Curtain opens in the direction in which the spy glass is pointing, showing scene described (Scene III).