Eight-year-old Jessica Riggs and her older brother, Steve, are being raised by their widowed father, grieving and cantankerous John. Their apple farm has fallen on hard times, with John temporarily being helped by his sister-in-law, Sarah.
While walking home after a school Christmas pageant, Jessica and her ex-best friend, Carol, witness a plastic reindeer fall from a Christmas decoration hung above the main street in town. She concludes it was Prancer from the order given in the poem A Visit from St. Nicholas (a.k.a. The Night Before Christmas).
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Afraid he will be unable to provide for Jessica, John discusses a plan for Sarah to take her in to raise temporarily. She overhears this, but initially does not know the full details. She and Carol go sledding and knock down some flowers at a house owned by a reclusive widow named Mrs. McFarland.
While walking home, Jessica encounters a live reindeer in the woods. He runs away, disappearing into the darkness. Later, while walking home from school, she finds his tracks and follows them into the woods once more. She hears a gunshot, and continues to walk. John eventually finds her and brings her into his truck, but almost hits the reindeer who is now standing in the road.
Later while dreaming of Prancer, Jessica is startled awake by the scene of the plastic reindeer falling from earlier. She hears a noise and sees that the window to the barn is open. Investigating, she finds the reindeer is now inside among the other animals. Afraid John will find him, she moves him to a shed.
Certain that he is the “real” Prancer, she takes it upon herself to nurse him back to health. She calls a veterinarian named Dr. Orel Benton who initially refuses, but comes over to tend to him.
Jessica later tells a mall Santa that she has Prancer, and gives him a Polaroid picture and letter to give to the real Santa before Christmas Eve. He takes them to the editor of the local newspaper. Jessica shows Prancer to Carol, and Steve walks in the barn as well. Jessica makes them promise not to tell anyone about him.
Eventually, she apologizes to Mrs. McFarland for knocking down her flowers, and asks her if she can have a job to help raise money to buy a bag of oats for Prancer. Mrs. McFarland agrees to pay her to clean a room in her house, and they become friends.
The newspaper editor, inspired by Jessica’s faith, writes an article which is then read by the local pastor in the middle of his sermon. Jessica, who’s attending with Steve, finds out she has been outed to the entire town. She becomes mad at Carol, who she thinks squealed. She later finds the article in the newspaper.
John is reading the newspaper when he discovers Prancer has escaped from the barn and town people are converging on the farm. Amidst the chaos, Jessica decides to rescue Prancer and with Steve’s help, they manage to set him free at Antler Ridge where he reunites with Santa and the other reindeer.
Watch the heartwarming story of Prancer online now and experience the magic of Christmas as Jessica and Prancer’s journey unfolds. Don’t miss out on this touching tale of faith, friendship, and the true spirit of the holiday season.