An Impossible Christmas

by Lady Rhetorica

Christmas plans for Mim Possible and her companion, Jonathan Stoppable, take a dangerous and unexpected turn. A little holiday vignette about Kim's Middleton ancestor with important consequences affecting Kim's future. Joyeux Noel!

1. Part One

AN IMPOSSIBLE CHRISTMAS

Part One

It was Christmas Eve, 1940, and their last night in Marseille, France, held a couple of surprises for the famous reporter and world-traveler, Mim Possible. The first surprise was that Jonathan Stoppable presented her with a Christmas gift of a gold ring and asked her to marry him, and the second surprise was that she said "yes."

"After all," he said, "I'm an old-fashioned sort."

The remark prompted a smirk from Mim. Jonathan was shocked the first time she told him marriage was an obsolete relic invented by men. Yet he endured twenty years as her manager, nursemaid, confidant, and comforter—he was her only real friend, and still in love with her. In the past year or so, she noticed a subtle change in him—he joked less and seemed more concerned than ever before about the world's affairs. It was his idea to go to Marseille and use her reputation as a cover to help Jewish refugees escape Vichy France. She grew jealous of the constant stream of those who needed Jonathan's help to obtain false travel permits and fake passports, or his guidance in secret routes over the mountains into Spain. She wanted him for herself.

They were worn out. Their funds dwindled until they were broke—time to go home. While she packed their worn suitcases, Jonathan secured tickets to board a freighter bound for Algiers before the next morning light. From there, they'd head for Portugal, then sail to New York.

She heard Jonathan sing in the front room, "If Santa passes by my stocking, I promise not to mind a lot, the only thing I want for Christmas, is just to keep the things that I've got. A pair of loving arms around me, a garden of forget-me-nots…" She felt a warm kiss on the back of her neck. She turned and held him tightly. He picked her up and danced across the floor, whistling, "The only thing I want…" She wiped away a tear.

"Hey, what's this about?" said Jonathan. "Look, I've got our boarding passes on the S.S. Persian Star. Bernard destroyed anything suspicious left in your office. I'm finally engaged to the most wonderful and beautiful woman in the whole world, and we're going home! For a Jewish guy from Middleton, this is the best Christmas ever." He kissed her again.

There was a tap on the door—her heart skipped. Three figures stood in the hall shadows.