Eric+Johnson+Santa's+Frantic+Assistant

The clean, comical version. A.k.a. the network Christmas Special.

Name: Eric Johnson Template: Emissary of Power (Santa Claus) High Concept Aspect: Santa's Frantic Assistant Trouble Aspect: The Green Meanies Background: Where did you come from? Eric Johnson grew up as the oldest child in a large working poor family. There was enough money to put enough food on the table, most nights, but Eric learned early that if you had extra then someone went without. Whenever Christmas rolled around he would carefully write his letter to Santa because he knew that his family didn't have the money for extras, so if he wanted the good stuff it was Santa or nothing. Because of this he believed in Santa longer than most, and a part of him never gave up on the hope that Santa was real and nicest was rewarded. Phase Aspect: Still believes in hope

Rising Conflict: What shaped you? When he was a teen his father's hours were cut back and the tight household budget shrank to practically nothing. Eric had to dropout of high school to find a job. Technically it was his choice, but it was to do that or watch his family disintegrate. He was able to get a job as a mail boy, with the hope of advancement. Through hard work and a good attitude he became a personal assistant to a junior manager. That, and he was the closest employee around when the previous PA was fired and uptight Ms. Ryan needed a new PA. This job meant longer hours for only a little more money, but the extra money was needed and Eric threw himself into the job. When Ms. Ryan needed something Eric was the one who got it done, whatever it took. Phase Aspect: Does whatever it takes

The Story: What was your first adventure? (Story Title/Guest Starring) Last Christmas, "whatever it takes" involved deserting his family (his gave them his expectantly huge bonus cheque but not his time) as Eric worked frantically to make Ms. Ryan's Christmas work. Through a series of mix ups Ms. Ryan (a single woman who was an up and comer at the company) was somehow saddled with her sister's two kids and then her brother dropped of his three as he and his wife rushed to Europe. Seeing her trailed by the five children one of the big bosses decided that Ms. Ryan was the answer to his nanny's unexpected departure and asked her to watch his daughter Jane while he was on "business trip" with his secretary. Swamped and unable to cope, Ms. Ryan dragged her PA into the mix (bribing him with a bonus big enough to give his siblings the kind of Christmas they deserved) and Eric (who had helped out with his younger brothers and sisters) rose to the challenge. He raced from store to store, battling other last minute shoppers for the kinds of toys he had never had, while soothing the rough feelings that were the natural result of two sets of cousins and the big boss' arrogant little girl all being crowed into a single woman's apartment. In between saving two Christmases (his bonus cheque saving it for his younger siblings and his dedicated saving it for Ms. Ryan and her temporary brood) he taught Ms. Ryan the True Meaning of Family, taught the cousins that sometimes you had to share a room, and taught the boss' daughter that she wasn't the centre of the universe.

While doing that last bit he had to give Jane a timeout a room by herself and while he was doing that bit Eric stumbled over an unfamiliar PDA. He tried to see whose it was and as he navigated through the menus he came across a huge file. The boss' daughter's name was in it and she was listed as 'naughty'.

Suddenly there was an elf and some reindeer and in moments he was somewhere else. Somewhere that looked suspiciously Santa's Workshop. A place where someone was throwing one hell of a tantrum. Eric didn't follow it all, but the bits he caught was that the girl (one who looked like an ice princess from a ballet) wasn't going to take it anymore. That didn't she know where the stupid PDA was and that she would rather work for someone named Maeve than deal with this Christmas rush BS one more time. With that she turned into a cloud of snowflakes which swirled out of the room.

Eric already had the PDA and he soon drafted as Santa's Chief Assistant (note: that's not his High Concept, only his title). It wasn't easy, but with the help of *Guest Star* he was able to get the workshop humming again so that all the toys were ready. After supplying the needed aid he was formally named Santa's Chief Assistant For Life, invested with his own Bag of Treats and a copy of The Big Guy's special brand of PDA.

Somehow he even made it home before Jane's timeout was up. It all seemed like a dream.

Of course things didn't end there. What followed was a comedy of errors as he met up with *Guest Star* who had thought it was all a dream about a place called Nevernever and was shocked to see him in real life. Then, tempted by the power of the PDA and the Bag of Treats, Eric and *Guest Star* had a frantic, non-stop adventure that lasted for long four hours. Eric almost put himself on the naughty list (he tried to sell treats that would fade in minutes to get money to buy real toys for his younger siblings), but he pulled back just in time. By the time all the kids were in bed for the night everyone was firmly on the nice list - and that included Jane who had learned that not only that she wasn't the centre of the universe but that the only business her dad was up to was monkey business with his secretary (okay, maybe she shouldn't have learned that last bit, but you can't get it right all the time). Eric still doesn't know how he was able to get everything done in time. Phase Aspect: Does it all in the nick of time

Guest Star: Whose Path Have You Crossed?(To be filled out later) Since then Eric still works for Ms. Ryan (who got her big promotion for making Jane's Christmas a happy one), but *Guest Star* has introduced him some of his/her stranger friends. They all laugh when they hear that he is Santa's Chief Assistant, but then some of them look at him closely enough to see Santa's Mark (a reindeer tattoo on the base of his neck) and then for some reason treat him very politely

Power Level: Up to Your Waist Skill Cap: Great Skill Points: 25 Starting Refresh: 7 Adjusted Refresh: 2

Skills Conviction: Good Discipline: Good Lore: Good (learned recently, all his knowledge comes from his PDA and talking to Santa's other assistants. He uses it mainly to conjure treats from the Bag of Treats). Rapport: Good Alertness: Fair Athletics: Fair Stealth: Fair Empathy: Fair Burglary: Average (learned from the other assistants) Contacts: Average (he knows people from various walks of life) Fists: Average (you didn't get through the elementary school he went to without learning how to fight) Resources: Average (Ms. Ryan came through on that raise!) Scholarship: Average (he's trying to finish his education; he already has his GED)

Stunts & Powers Marked by Power (-1)

Item of Power: Santa's PDA - Opens locks (-1) - Naughty / nice list (-2) Refund for first item of power (+2) Net cost: (-1)

The PDA has a special "lock app" that seems to be able to open any locked. Eric is supposed to use it only when he's "on the clock" but sometimes he uses it for personal reasons.

The "naughty / nice list" is huge, and so far everyone Eric found every name he's looked for (but it might be limited to names only in his city - he hasn't checked any out-of-towners). It's basically a massive divination spell (linked to reports from fairies who work for Santa) that lists the subject's general Naughty/Nice level and includes examples of some of the Nicer and Naughtier things that the person has done. Any blackmail would love to have this list, and if Marcone knew about it, well, he would probably think it worth the wergild he'd have to pay if he destroyed it. (Note: Marcone is definitely on the Very, Very Naughty list.)

Eric uses it mostly to help him in his work, but occasionally gives into temptation and curiosity to check on whether friends and relatives are naughty or nice.

Item of Power: Bag of Treats (-3) Effectively grants Ritual (conjuration only). This would normally be a (-2) power, but the bag supplies an incredible number of shifts that be used for duration only. The bag generations 100 steps of duration a week. Items created normally last for 15 minutes, which means that for the cost of 13 steps it will last a year. Dedicate 16 steps and the item will last for an entire generation. When the last step of duration is used it will only produce items if Eric dedicates at least one step to duration (so only smaller things). This means Eric always has a choice to make: give a lot people a little happiness (about 15 minutes worth) or a few people lasting happiness. Note: Only someone who works for (or believes in) Santa can use the bag. With his Lore of Good, Eric can reach into the bag and come out with anything that requires three or fewer steps to conjure. To get something better Eric needs to dig deep and feel around and even that doesn't always work (i.e. he has to tap aspects for more shifts). Yes, he can dedicate a few of the shifts he generates to duration and stretch out the number of lasting (but small) treats he can hand out.

Additional Notes: Being Santa's Chief Assistant means that all the other assistants (an odd mixture of fairies, elves, sidhe, changelings, and other creatures of the Winter or Wylde Fae) report to him.

In theory.

In practice they don't. Oh, they'll help him when he needs it (lending small amounts of aid that usually isn't worth much) but mostly they just bring problems to him. Problems that he has to solve "Or Christmas will be ruined!". Eric has accepted that when they say "Christmas" they mean "this family's Christmas" or "that little boy's Christmas" rather than Christmas as a whole, but since he grew up needing Santa to be real, Eric is all too happy to throw himself into the fray. The other assistants will work some magic or do some trick (like making one of their number look exactly like him) so Ms. Ryan doesn't notice that he is off doing other things and then Eric goes off to save the day.

He used to think that the people who opposed him were just Big Meanies, but occasionally he's noticed odd green flares around them. Sometimes plants will even grow noticeably fast when they are around, so he's taken to calling them Green Meanies. They often try to ruin happiness for no good reason.

His typical "save Christmas" adventures would make great movies of the week for the Disney channel, at least they would if the Disney channel made movies of the week and aimed them at preteens. Everything tends to be G rated. Little if any swearing happens and the violence is kept to the occasional scuffle. The weirdest thing that has ever happened on one of these "save Christmas" missions was when another assistant reached into Eric's Bag of Treats and came out with a book labeled "Child Psychology". At least it looked like a book, but when it was opened it proved to be a fake book with a large hairbrush in it. Eric tossed that book away (and it soon faded) and had a little talk with that assistant - the elf claimed to have seen something like that work on an old Bugs Bunny cartoon. Eric was fair but firm when he told that elf that things like that didn't turn naughty people nice and that was the last time anything like that happened. At least the last it happened when he was around.

When off the job, Eric's adventures are more perilous. The violence is real and the language is foul, but even when off working with the others Eric can usually tap one of Santa's Assistants to cover for him. He's accept that when he's not working for Christmas he's working amidst very dangerous people, but Eric doesn't believe in compromise. No matter what happens he won't do anything that would put himself on the naughty list.

At least that's how Eric sees his life. Outsiders in the know see things slightly differently. They see creatures from the Nevernever who, when bored, go running to Eric so he can "lead" them on "an adventure" while other Fae scry on his "must save Christmas in July" bits for amusement. It doesn't happen more than once a month or so and the Fae creatures seem to steer the adventures into safe territory, almost as if they are frightened of what might happen if Eric was harmed for their amusement.

More knowledgeable observers know that the Fae aren't just frightened of that; they are terrified of what would happen to them if they broke a Winter King's toy.

As for the "Green Meanies", most of them are Summer Court agents. Most of them don't really want to ruin Christmas but Eric works for Winter so they do what they have to do to oppose him. Some of the other "Green Meanies" are bored Winter Court Fae having a bit of fun by playing a role. The rest? Just normal people who have better things to do than to play around with useless concepts like Christmas, goodwill, or being nice to their fellow man. Ironically Eric is in the most danger when dealing with this normal people as no one from the Summer Court really wants to piss off Santa Claus by breaking his toy.

From the outside Eric is just a mortal that the Fae are playing carefully with. He's in no real danger, has some enchanted doodads, and seems to be enjoying himself so no one has bothered to tell Eric what they consider to be the truth. Instead they tend to see him as a resource to exploit but not one to endanger. Powerful Fae tend to hang around Eric and while he's harmless THEY aren't.

So what's the truth? Maybe Santa Claus sees Eric as something other than a toy. Maybe his adventures aren't entertainment for bored fae but are important acts that keep the spirit of Christmas alive. Who really knows?