Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Or Christmas. That belongs to Santa.

O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O

Ino slowly regained consciousness, gradually becoming aware of her surroundings. She was warm, deliciously so, and tightly wrapped in the safety of Shikamaru's arms. Her breath emerging in a crystallized white cloud, she gazed up at him, temporarily caught off guard by the tender look in his eyes. He blinked and, abruptly, the look was gone, masked by his usual expression of lazy indifference.

"Back already?" His tone was faintly mocking, his eyes hooded behind fallen lashes. She sat in silence for a moment, reacquainting herself with her body. Knowing that her mind-transfer jutsu often left her disoriented, Shikamaru made no move to release her, his breath issuing forth in small, white clouds. It took several moments, but eventually her surroundings realigned and she realized-

"Shikamaru- your jacket…" His rangy body, surrounding hers so protectively, was trembling faintly. His jacket was wrapped tightly around her shoulders, keeping her from freezing, but exposing him to the elements. Their squad had hesitated to accept the last-minute mission for exactly that reason. The blinking snow and freezing weather made the mission difficult at best. Ino lay, stunned into silence as he arched a languorous brow and spoke. "If you had frozen to death, our mission would have failed.

Ino huffed, her silence broken by his less-than-decorous declaration. "Troublesome girl." Shikamaru grumbled as he caught the jacket Ino had flung at him while she stomped away. He rose, tugging on the jacket in an attempt to warm himself before following her tracks through the lightly falling snow. With the mission successfully completed, their next objective would be to meet at the rendezvous point to regroup with Choji and return to the village. He neared Ino only a few moments later, standing, arms akimbo, in the snow.

"Hurry up, Shikamaru!" She called in annoyance. Having ascertained his safety for herself, she leapt into the treetops to continue traveling, leaving only a few, nearly-invisible footprints on the snow-covered branches. Grumbling, Shikamaru followed her, forced to keep up with her or risk losing her in the falling snow. It was getting heavier, he noted with muted alarm. It was possible they wouldn't make the rendezvous point tonight and would be forced to stop for shelter before they became nothing more than snowmen, themselves.

A soft outcry caught his attention and he froze as he spotted Ino slip from the branch she had moved to and land on the snow-covered ground with a puff of snow. He instantly abandoned his vantage point and moved to her side. Already, she was standing, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, her teeth chattering from the cold as she glared at him, seeming to say without words that it was his fault. He resisted the urge to groan, casting his gaze around for a place they could wait out the remainder of the winter storm.

Uncaring what she thought of the gesture, he held out a hand to her. She eyed him suspiciously, before taking his hand and allowing him to assist her out of the drift. Once free of the snow, he pulled her into his embrace, tucking the jacket around her and sharing what body heat he had managed to generate during their travel through the treetops. He could feel her trembling and the soft shivers only made him wish more fervently for a blanket and a warm fire.

She snuggled closer to him as he tucked her legs around his waist and began to make his way through the snow to the small, rocky outcropping he had spotted. At least it would provide them with some shelter from the whipping winds and the falling snow. He peered down at her still face, concerned about the blue tinge of her lips. Somehow, he was going to have to keep them both from freezing until morning, when the snow stopped and they could make their way back to the village.

As he reached the outcropping, a small depression came into view, eventually revealing itself to be a cave. If they had happened upon it even a few minutes later, the entrance would have been completely covered, and they might never have found it. He cleared away the snow with his feet and started inside, hunched over, with Ino hanging onto him like a child, her long hair dragging on the cave floor. He moved her into the far corner, wrapping her in his jacket before moving back to the entrance to replace the snow his entrance had displaced. The barrier would be extra protection against the snow and would trap whatever body-heat they managed to generate inside the small cave.

He moved back to Ino, only to find that her eyes were closed tight. Concern crept over him and he shook her away, pulling her into the hollow between his legs, sharing his heat with her. Her eyes opened slightly and he palmed her cheek in his hand. "Don't fall asleep, Ino. If you do, you could freeze to death." She nodded, seemingly too tired to do more and laid her head against his shoulder, her eyes mere slits in her face. He rubbed a soothing hand over her back, gently warming her chilled skin and she did the same for his hands, gently massaging until he could feel the first pangs of sensation since he had piled snow over the entrance.

Oddly, their gestures were not awkward in the slightest. It seemed that both were willing to do whatever it took to remain warm in the freezing environment. Eventually, once the cave had warmed sufficiently, Shikamaru allowed Ino to drift off to sleep, remaining awake himself to monitor her and ensure her continued warmth.

Finally, the shadows in the cave lightened, the wind outside had stopped howling some time ago and the merest trickle of sunlight made it's way through a forgotten crack in the shield of snow that had protected them throughout the night. Exhausted, Shikamaru glanced down at the angel asleep atop him and gently ran a hand through her soft hair. Soon, he would awaken her and they would return to the village amidst celebration and blessed warmth, but for now…

"Merry Christmas, Ino." He murmured softly, gazing at the sliver of light as some brave bird began to chirp a greeting. "Troublesome girl…"

O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O

MM7 says:

Ah, the holiday season. How I love it so. I recently saw a picture that was the inspiration for this set of drabbles (I may post the link on my profile, we'll have to see whether or not I'm in the mood).

I'm hoping to produce one story a day. But, of course, this is me we're talking about. All I can really promise is that each chapter with be infused with holiday goodness and a healthy dose of fluff. Also, that I will finish before Christmas. Although, I might post the last chapter the day of. Who knows?

Suggestions and pairings are welcome, though, I already have a fairly good idea how this is going to pan out.