This is Christmas
Disclaimer: I do not own Golden Sun, it belongs to Camelot.
As promised, my GarciaxPicard Christmas fic for all those GarciaxPicard fans. This is shounen-ai (duh!) so if you don't like it, don't read. No Flames please.
Happy Holidays. Enjoy! (and yes! it's snowing outside! ::runs out in frog pajamas and plays in the snow::) Read and review please. VERY SAPPY AND FLUFFY! So sappy that I think my teeth are going to rot.
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It seems as if we have been traveling forever, maybe it is because of everything that has happened since we started this journey in the first place. I did not much appreciate having to hurt my best friend's feelings back at Venus Lighthouse, even if he still said that we were friends…if he had done what I had done to him, I would probably hate him. I suppose that is one of the big differences between Robin and I. He does not see beyond the big picture unless you drill it into him and I think he is only beginning to realize that people change, no matter how close you were in the past. Sometimes I wonder if we are really doing the right thing, but in the end, I have no choice if I want to save my parents and Robin's father.
If anything good has come from this trip so far, it was meeting Picard. It may sound a little corny but he makes me feel good inside even if he does not say anything to me, just giving me a warm smile before turning away from me again. We have been together for a couple of months now, give or take a week. I have never felt this way about anyone else before, which is why Picard is so special to me. Even when my mind is filled with thoughts of the elemental lighthouses and the Elemental Stars, he seems to be able to clear my mind just by telling me he believes in me and that he will always be there for me. "I know you are doing the right thing, Garcia. You should not second-guess yourself. Even if what we are doing is wrong, and we somehow manage to bring everything crashing to the ground, I'll stay by your side to the very end. That is the only thing I can be sure of."
So many times I have wanted to tell him that I loved him but the words just never seemed to want to come out. I have played the scenario over in my mind a thousand times and it always seems perfect but then when I try to tell him and he smiles at me, I turn into a puddle and ooze to the floor and all that comes out is slurred words. It makes him laugh, though, and his laugh is one of the most heavenly things in the world to hear.
Jasmine would probably tease me if I ever told her about this, that is why so far I try to keep my relationship with Picard as secret as possible, which is rather hard when we spend so much time around the others and rarely get any time to ourselves. We manage though, somehow.
A couple of weeks ago, I started to form a plan (brilliant as I am, that was sarcasm if you couldn't guess) to finally tell Picard how really feel about him, just to show him that this is not some sort of fling. In the last town we were in, I snuck away from the others and went to the Jewelers. I spent hours there trying to find the perfect ring for Picard but somehow, none of them seemed perfect for him. Just as they were about to kick me out (there's this crazy law about not loitering around stores), I found it, the perfect ring for him. It was a band of white gold with a tear-shaped opal gem set in it. I bought it before they could actually kick me out and ever since then, I have been hiding it in my pocket so that Picard does not find it.
Once we reached the next town, we got snowed in by a freak blizzard that was not going to clear up until well past Christmas day. The last pieces of my plan fell into place then. I would propose to Picard on Christmas, he'll say yes, we'll get married once this is all over and live happily ever after. It sounds great in my head (if not the least bit corny) but now that I think about it more, I am not so sure that it is going to work out the way that I planned for it to. What if he does not want to marry me? What if I am just some weird little kid to him that he decided to play around with for a bit of fun? Of course, the last part did not exactly sound like something Picard would do…he is too prideful of himself to actually go through with something like that--especially for this long. I still cannot help thinking that I could get hurt if I ask him to marry me.
I need a bit of expert advice!
I have no idea why I went to Jasmine for it, though. Of course, she would probably slap me and step on my toe if I went to someone else with this so I am forced to ask my little sister--who has probably never been in love before (if she can go from liking Robin to Gerald in Tolbi minute, you would have to wonder). I am beginning to wonder if the gods hate me.
I stand in front of Jasmine's room, pacing before the door, wondering if I should really go through with it or not. If I do not go to her, I can't go to anyone else and she will probably want to know if I am going to propose to Picard or not so that she is not surprised when she hears the news--whatever that news may be. I am just glad that Picard is the only person that has the ability to turn me into a jittering blob of Venus Energist.
"Are you going to stand out there all day pacing the halls or are you going to come in?" The door to Jasmine's room opens and she pokes her head out into the hall. "You seem worried, big brother, is something wrong?" I pause, looking back at her and laughing nervously.
"I'm not exactly sure if anything is wrong…but I do have to ask you something." She practically bounces through the door and over to me, dragging me back into her room.
"You're coming to me for advice!? This is a momentous occasion, you never come to me for advice! You normally just tell all your problems to Picard and leave the rest of us out of it." I feel my cheeks warm at the sound of Picard's name and I rub the back of my neck, for lack of anything better to say.
"Yeah…Picard…" I drift off for a moment, slipping my hand into my pocket and feeling the small jewelry box inside. "This is sort of about him…" She looks at me confused for a minute or two before blinking and opening her mouth so that it forms a small O.
"Oh, did the two of you have a fight or something?" I drop into a chair and glare at her. She waves her hands in front of her defensively, "Sorry, I was just wondering. The two of you seem pretty close and it's odd that you would come to me about something instead of going to…him…" Something dawns on her as she says this and I bow my head when I realize that her thoughts are very close to the truth.
To my great surprise, he giggles and slaps my arm roughly, nearly making me fall out of the chair and onto the floor. "I get it now! It is almost Christmas and you want to do something special for your Picard-chan, don't you?" I feel my eye twitch at her nickname for Picard (and partly because she starts to make "kissy noises"--my mother's words, not mine) but I cannot help but blush in embarrassment at what her words may imply. Something special for Picard…I just hope that he accepts it.
"I guess you can say that…" I take a deep breath and pull the small, black velvet box from my pocket to show it to her. She drops her pervious childish air and her eyes widen.
"Oh, Garcia…you're going to…wow…" I smile bitterly and put the box away.
"I just do not know if he will say yes or not…" She puffs up her cheeks angrily and points and finger in my face.
"What do you mean!? Of course he is going to say yes! How can he resist you?" I shrug my shoulders.
"I don't know…but it is a possibility that he might say no to me. What if he is not looking for a long-term relationship? Even if he is, who am I to suppose that he wants to spend that much time with me? What if it's just…?" She cuts me off, or more, she hits me upside the head and glares at me. "Ouch! What--!?"
"That was for being an idiot and not being able to see just how much Picard cares about you and how much he does want to spend the rest of his life--no matter how long that may be--with you. The two of you do a crappy job at trying to sneak around, let me tell you that. Do you know how many times I've caught the two of you making out on the ship deck and had to run down before either of you noticed I was there?" I duck my head in embarrassment.
"You weren't suppose to see that…" She smiles and pats my head.
"Yeah? Well, I did. You should really propose to him, Garcia. I know that he is going to say yes." I nod slowly, hoping that she is right. "Are you planning to do it on Christmas?"
"I was thinking that that would be the best time to do it." She sighed happily.
"This is so romantic! Who would have ever thought that my brother could be such a sappy romantic at heart!" She stands me up and pushes me towards the door. "You have a lot more planning to do, Garcia, now that you are actually going to pop the question! Wow! I'm going to have another big brother! Mom and Dad'll be so surprised."
"Yeah…I think everyone is going to be surprised." I nod to her, "Thanks, Jasmine." She waves her hand, grinning now.
"Aw, come on, I didn't do anything. I have a feeling that you would have asked him even if you did not come and talk about it with me. Once your mind is set on something, you go through with it no matter what stands in your way, this time is no different. I can tell that you really love him, big brother, and you deserve to be happy, probably more than anyone else." She nods, "And Picard makes you happy so you should be with him. You have my blessing!"
"Uh…thanks…" I turn slowly and walk down the hall. Sheba and Kraden went out to do last minute shopping and most of the Inn is empty aside for the usual staff members and some other travels, but most of them are in their rooms. I go down the stairs and into the common room to find Picard sitting next to the window, watching the snowflakes fall with a placid smile on his face. I tiptoe over to him as quietly as possible before leaning down and brushing my lips across his cheek. I see his smile widen and he turns his golden gaze away from the window and up to me.
"I was wondering where you were." He said softly. He takes my wrist and pulls me down at that I am sitting in the chair as well, practically on top of him since there was not much room left. "Isn't it beautiful?" He looks back out at the snow and I watch him, already having seen enough of snow to last me a lifetime. "It never snowed in Lemuria so this is going to be the first time I've ever seen snow."
I smile gently at his profile, "Then, do you want to go outside?" I stand up slowly and reach him hand out for his. He takes it without hesitation and I pull him to his feet, he looks a little confused but I quickly press a light kiss to his forehead before leading him out of the common room and to where we had left our cloaks. I release my hold on his hand just long enough to grab his cloak and slip it over his shoulders, I grab my own and shrug it over my shoulder before I take his hand and walk with him out of the Inn.
"What are we going to do?" He asks, shivering as a cold gust of wind blows around us, a flurry of snowflakes swirling around our feet. I smile back at him as we reach a part of town that is separated from the houses and shops.
"You said that this is going to be the first time that you have ever seen snow, right?" He nods as we finally come to a stop and wraps his arms around my waist, burying his face in my cloak. "Well, I wanted to make it special for you." He lifts his head to look up at me, still resting his chin on my chest.
"It's already special since I'm spending it with you." His cheeks are flushed but it could just be from the cold air. I laugh, a little nervous again so I hold my hands over his ears to try to keep them warm. He buries his head in my cloak again and I rest my chin on his head, slipping my arms around his waist as well. After a moment, he lets out a contented sigh, "This is nice…" I nod in agreement and go to say something when I feel his lips at my neck and I tense up instinctively.
"P-Picard?" He pulls away slowly, looking back up at me.
"Sorry…I guess I got a little caught up in the moment." I lift a hand up to cup his cheek in my palm and he leans into the touch, letting his eyes flutter shut. I swallow hard, silently cursing my hormones for filling my mind with dirty thoughts at that moment.
I let go of him abruptly and he nearly tumbles forward, not expecting me to leave him so suddenly. He stares at me in surprise as I lay back on the snow and start moving my legs apart and my arms up and down. "What are you doing?"
"Making a snow angel."
"A snow…what?" I smile at him as he kneels next to me, wrapping his arms around his knees and leaning close.
"You'll see." Once I am done, I carefully climb out of my imprint and point to it happily. "See? A snow angel! Those are its wings and that part are its robes." He tilts his head to one side and then to the other.
"Where is its halo?" I sweatdrop. Of course, he would have to take it literarily…then again, I think I would have too if someone where to tell me about snow angels now.
"I…never thought about that." He leans over and draws a thin halo over the angel's head and he smiles up at me.
"There, now it's a snow angel." He stands up and walks over to me, "See? I don't take everything literarily."
"How did you know…?" He stands on tiptoe and ruffles my hair affectionately.
"You don't have to be a Jupiter Energist to read a person's mind, Garcia." He shivers again, "It's really cold and it's starting to get dark." He huddles close to me, using me as a shield against the wind as well as a means to keep warm. I slip an arm around his shoulder and lead him back to the Inn. "What else can you do in the snow? Maybe we can do it while we are snowed in."
I smile at him, "Sure, I'll tell you all about it tomorrow." Tonight is Christmas Eve, which means tomorrow is Christmas. I do not have much time to plan how I am going to ask Picard to marry me. I pull him closer to me, subconsciously leaning over and breathing in the scent of his hair. It is faint but sweet, sort of like the smell of lilacs in the springtime.
"Thanks for not laughing at me." He whispers softly and I look down at him to make sure that I heard him correctly. He has his head buried in my cloak again, his arms wrapped around my waist making it slightly difficult for me to walk through the gathering snow on the ground.
"What do you mean?"
"About this being the first time that I have ever seen snow." He glances up at me meekly.
"Don't worry about it, at least this way, you'll remember that your first snowfall was with me. I can still remember the first time I ever went out to play in the snow…" I look down at him and flash him a warm smile. "It was very special to me, so I want this to be special for you too."
He hugs me tightly, "Thank you, Garcia, this means a lot to me and it is special, especially because you're here." I laugh nervously. Maybe he will say yes. I just do not want to get my hopes up in case he does not…but if I ask him and he says no…I doubt that we will be able to go back to the way things used to be without feeling a little awkward.
We reach the Inn soon but I pause just outside, still standing in the snow with Picard. He looks up at me, worry showing brightly in his golden eyes. "Garcia, is something the matter?" I turn to look at him, waking from my daze slowly.
"Hmm?"
"I asked you if something was wrong." I still have the ring in my pocket and the small thing is taunting me like a clown that had too much fun with the oxygen when he was blowing up balloons (that analogy was a little detailed…I scare myself sometimes).
I bite down on my bottom lip, staring down at the snow before looking into his eyes. "Picard, I…" Just then, the door opens up and Sheba pokes her head out, shivering as soon as the wind hits her.
"I was wondering where the two of you were! Come in out of the cold, you're going to get pneumonia!" I glare at the girl, clenching and unclenching my fist. I swear, if I had not promised to protect her and if we did not need her to get to the Jupiter Lighthouse…
As if sensing my anger, Picard waves a hand to Sheba, "We'll go inside in a moment. Don't worry, we'll be fine." She nods and closes the door behind her. "What were you going to say, Garcia?"
"Um…I think we should go inside." He looks a little disappointed but he covers it up as quickly as possible. What was I going to say to him if Sheba had not interrupted us? He lets his arms fall from my waist but takes my hand in his and leads me back into the Inn.
I help him out of his cloak and he waits for me as I remove mine, brushing the snow off both of them before putting them away. The Innkeeper smiles at us kindly and points to the common room as we near her, "Your friends are all waiting for you in the common room." Picard thanks her and he pulls me over to the common room where we are greeted by Jasmine, Sheba, and Kraden, all sitting around the big Christmas tree in the corner of the room.
Jasmine grins at me as we enter the room and sit down on the couch next to each other. "Garcia, today is Christmas Eve, you know what that means…" I groan at the taunting tone in her voice. Sheba, Kraden, and Picard share befuddled looks before Kraden speaks.
"Yes, tomorrow is Christmas." Sheba cheers happily while Picard continues to look confused.
"What is Christmas?" I feel the bottom drop out of my stomach at the question. Okay, do not panic, Garcia, do not panic! You have fought against hundreds of creatures that were probably twenty times stronger than you at the time and you can get through this! This should not change anything at all…
He turns to me, as if directing the question solely to me. I look to the others for help but none of them want to answer, even Kraden is strangely quiet--probably because he is starting to nod off. Thanks so much for the help, guys, I know not to bail you out when you are in a fix. I take a breath and look at Picard. "Christmas is a time when…you spend time with loved ones, or just the person you care deeply about." Picard's eyes glint at this and his cheeks redden.
"And you exchange gifts." Sheba chimed in and Jasmine and I glare at her for ruining the moment. She shrinks back at our combined gazes (scary enough on our own but deadly when we work together), "What? You do…"
Picard decides to take the job of lightening the mood into his own hands. He squeezes my arm gently, drawing my attention away from Sheba and back to him. "So, you spend Christmas with the person you love most, right?" It is my turn to blush. Jasmine covers her mouth to keep the giggles at bay but Picard ignores her, merely holding my eyes with his and I swallow nervously, unable to turn away from him.
"Yes, you got it right…" He smiles and leans against me, obviously not caring that we were not alone.
"I like the idea of that…it sounds romantic." If I could die right now, I would die the happiest man in the world. It takes all my willpower not to kiss him right there.
"It does." Once again, Sheba manages to ruin yet another a romantic moment. Before I have the chance to say or do anything, Jasmine jumps up, grabs Sheba's arm and lifts her to her feet.
"Come on, Sheba! It's time for all good little boys and girls to be tucked away in their beds so that Santa Claus can come and deliver presents while we sleep! You too, old man!" She said, kicked the sleeping Kraden in the shin playfully. The old scholar jumped and climbed to his feet, obeying without further complaint.
"How come Garcia and Picard get to stay up?" whined Sheba.
"Because, they're big boys and big boys can do whatever they want." So this is why having a younger sister is good…it is nice to know that she is not around just to bug me. "Good night, boys!"
"'Night." I call back to them, glad to finally be alone with Picard again. I feel him rest a hand on my chest, his other hand lingering somewhere on the couch, forgotten for the moment. "So, we're alone now…" Thanks, Mr. Obvious, he did not know that already.
He shifts against me, "Mmm-hmm." I slip an arm around his back and trace slow designs on his back. He laughs gently after a minute passes between us and I pause in my ministrations. "Oh, it's not you, I was just thinking about something…" I continue to rub his back.
"Care to enlighten me?"
"Not really," He teases, lifting his hand up and poking my nose. "I was just thinking…isn't Jasmine acting strange? Almost as if she knows something about us that I do not know…" My eyes widen and I turn my head quickly, clearing my throat. "Ha! You noticed it too! And you do know what it is. Come on, Garcia, tell me what it is."
I throw my gaze over to the grandfather clock in the corner of the room. 11:30. Thirty minutes away from midnight. "Ah, look at the time! I did not know it was that late! We should really get to bed or Santa won't come!" I jump up, practically throwing Picard to the ground, and I take his hand in mine, dragging him out of the common room and towards the stairs.
"Garcia, do not try to change the subject." hissed Picard, tugging at my hand and stopping in the middle of the hall. I stopped and looked back at him. "What is it?"
I swallow and rub the back of my neck nervously, trying to avoid looking into eyes by looking at everything other than his face, I opted for staring at that red bit of cloth he always has around his wrist. "I…I'll tell you tomorrow. It has something to do with my present for you." His cheeks redden and he looks a little ashamed.
"Present for me? Y-you didn't have to…" I smile at his unusual shyness and lift his hand up, brushing my lips lightly across the back of his hand.
"I know that I don't have to but I wanted to get you something special and Christmas was the best excuse for me to do it. I probably would not have been able to work up the nerve any other time…" I admit, laughing. We stand there in silence for a couple of minutes, just watching each other before he clears his throat.
"We should…get to bed, right?" He flashes me his usual smile and pulls me towards the room we share (how we managed to get a room together without the others becoming suspicious, I will never know).
"What are we going to do tomorrow?" Picard asks as I pull the cloth keeping my hair in a ponytail out and throw it on the nightstand. He sits down on the edge of the bed, kicking off his boots and setting them up next to the wall, looking up at me expectantly once he is finished.
"Exchange presents, I suppose."
"I wish you guys had told me about this sooner…" He rubs his arm, looking down at the floor now. I bite down on my lip at the dejected look in his eyes and before I know it, I am kneeling in front of him, one hand grasping his and the other…fishing through my pocket.
"Picard…" I hear myself say and even though my voice is calm and steady, I am shaking all over and my heart is pounding loudly in my ears. "Picard, wha-what do you say to me giving you your present a little early? When I was younger, we always used to unwrap the presents on Christmas Eve because Jasmine and I could not wait until morning. This will be your first Christmas, so we can sort of treat it like that."
He blinks at me, unsure of what to say so I push on before I can talk myself out of it. I take a deep breath when I feel the soft velvet of the box brush against my fingertips. I grab it and pull it out, holding it before Picard. His eyes widen as soon as he sees it and he shoots a confused glance at me before slowly touching the box. "Picard, will…will you marry me?" I open the box and keep my eyes locked on his, trying to predict his answer.
Please say yes, please say yes, please just say yes…
"Oh Garcia…"
"I that a yes?" I ask nervously, trying to laugh to lighten the mood. He closes the box and I feel my heart shatter, but only for a minute. He lifts me up and pulls me down on top of him, bringing our mouths together in a passionate kiss that seemed to last for an eternity but at the same time, it was not long enough.
"What do you think?" I smile and throw my arms around his neck. "I am glad that my first Christmas was with you, Garcia, I'll always remember it because of this."
"Me, too."
-Owari-
::squeals loudly into Alex's ear:: That was so sappy! I cannot keep from smiling!
Alex: You could have done more.
Probably…but that was fun for me. Two Christmas stories this year! I think that should make up for my lack of holiday stories from last year. Next year I will be sure to make a Halloween story…that should be interesting. I hope that everyone enjoyed it. See you next year! Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!