Christmas morning came quickly and many of the students who still had families or were at least on good terms with them had left the school in order to spend the holidays with their loved ones; by this time, the Winchesters had already gathered in the bunker to celebrate Christmas together. So, as a result, Lucien decided to spend the morning taking a stroll around the campus so that he could pass the time until he got a chance to see Jo and spend time with her, although the only thing that bugged him about this was the fact he hadn't found a proper present for her, which made him feel utterly horrible.
Despite something telling him that Jo most likely wouldn't be bothered by his lack of a gift, Lucien felt like it wouldn't be right if he didn't at least try to find something for her, especially after everything they've been through together and how close they were. At one point during his walk, Lucien had considered asking Salem for a few dollars so that he could try and buy her something special, but he felt like the gift wouldn't mean as much if he had to borrow the money to get it and he had never really been the type to borrow money that he wasn't sure he'd be able to repay.
After roughly an hour of walking, Lucien found himself at the edge of the woods, the scar over his heart itching when he thought about the night he, Jo and Dean had faced the Huntsman, Herne and how he had almost lost his girlfriend before pushing her into her Dad's arms and taking the sinisterly crafted arrow in her place; a decision he never once regretted and would willingly make again if it meant that she got to live. Lucien kind of shook the memory out of his head and reluctantly strolled passed the tree line, keeping his senses open just in case Herne or something else happened to be lurking around in the shadows.
Lucien made his way over to a tree stump that looked like it was perfectly formed to where someone could sit down if they wished, which he took advantage from before burying his face in his hands as he wracked his brain on trying to figure out a perfect gift for Jo. As he let out a light breath, Lucien ended up being startled by a light rustling a few feet to his right, which made him rush to his feet and take a defensive stance before sniffing the air in the hopes of identifying the source of the disturbance.
"H-Hello? Who's there?" Lucien called out, not receiving a response in return, which made him cautiously walk towards where the rustling came from, letting his claws sprout as he did just in case whatever it was proved to be hostile. "Wh..whoever you are, I don't want any trouble...you don't need to be here." He warned in a cautious tone, again not hearing any response other than the fact the rustling had ceased and whatever had caused it seemed to turn its attention to him. Lucien took a moment to listen before barely hearing a faint whine coming from the area, which made him raise his eyebrow curiously as he walked over to the bush and move some of the branches out of the way.
Lucien scanned the bush before looking down in surprise to see a brown and white bulldog puppy looking right back at him, which made him let his guard down, retract his claws and kneel down to the pup's level, making it back up defensively with a light snarl. "Hey, it's okay little guy...I'm not going to hurt you." He said softly as he carefully reached his hand out to the pup, which made it study him for a moment before cautiously approaching and sniffing his hand; after the pup was sure Lucien meant no harm, it licked his hand and yipped at him happily, its nub of a tail wagging the entire time.
When the puppy started licking his hand, Lucien felt a soft smile tug at his lips before he carefully picked it up and got it out of the bushes, making it hesitate a little bit before finding itself being cradled in his arms, which caused it to look up at him for a moment. "See? I won't hurt you." He said in a soft tone as the pup snuggled up in his arms a bit to get comfortable. "So, where's your family, little guy?" He asked in a curious, but soft tone before the pup let out a sad, lonely whine that made Lucien frown when he realized that it must have either been orphaned somehow, which broke his heart and made him give the pup a sympathetic look as he started petting it comfortingly.
"Oh...I'm sorry..." Lucien said, his tone noticeably saddened by the thought as he petted the puppy, doing his best not to disturb its position in his arms before a thought popped into his head. He remembered how he and Jo talked about getting a puppy a few months earlier and how she had her heart set on a bulldog, which made him look down to the puppy again before a soft, content smile tugged its way back across his lips. "Hey, what do you think about coming home with me...? I know somebody who would absolutely love you." He suggested softly, making the puppy look up at him again, a noticeably happy glimmer in its eyes as it yipped and licked his hand again, which Lucien took as a yes.
After bringing the puppy back to the school, Lucien prepared a shoe box that was big enough to keep him in while making sure he had plenty of room to move around, using his claws to cut holes in it so that he would be able to breathe comfortable before carefully placing him in the box; which made the pup whine in reluctance as he was set down in the box. "Don't worry, little fella...it's just temporary; I...kind of want you to be a surprise." He assured the pup in a soft tone before putting the lid on the box then picking it up and going to look for Jo.
When this was done, Lucien made his way to the bunker where the Winchesters stayed whenever the school year was over before timidly knocking on the door, waiting patiently for someone to answer before Salem opened the door and looked to him, which made him give him a kind of sheepish smile. "Hey Salem...is Jo around?" He asked in a shy tone, making Salem give him a nod. "Yeah, she's in her room...said she wanted to get some rest." He answered simply before he noticed Lucien hesitate a little bit, which made him place a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure she'll be more than happy to see you, though...might make her day better." He assured him with a light smile, which made Lucien look to him again. "I'll...try not to interrupt her rest too much...thanks Salem." He said, his tone still soft, but noticeably grateful for the information as Salem gave him a light nod.
"Anytime, pup...don't let he hold you up, I know you've been waiting to see her all day...and don't worry, I'll make sure Dad doesn't kill you for going in there." He said in a witty tone before giving him a light pat on the back, which made the puppy in the box yip a little bit with the impact as Lucien started making his way to Jo's room; Salem couldn't help noticing the noise and felt a light smile tug at his lip when he realized what was in the box.
Lucien walked up to Jo's door and carefully sat the box to the side before taking a light breath then knocking, truly hoping that he wasn't disturbing her any as he knew she needed the rest after everything they went through with Herne and the nightmares that kept her up every night since. It didn't take long for Jo to answer the door and Lucien could tell that she was tired from the restless, nightmare fueled nights, but it seemed that seeing him made her smile light up her face as they fell into each others' comfortable embrace. "Hey Luci." She said in a soft, content tone as he placed a tender kiss on her cheek, causing her to turn her head to meet his lips and kiss him back. "Hey Jo. How was your day?" Lucien said softly after their lips parted, their eyes locked with each other.
"Pretty good...we had dinner, opened presents and just enjoyed some family time." Jo answered, although it was still kind of hard considering this was the first Christmas the family had without her Mom, so that took a little adjusting; she tried her best not to show it, though and looked to Lucien. "Yours?" She asked, making him shrug a bit. "It was okay...but, it's much better now." He said with a soft smile, both of them blushing simultaneously when he did before the box to his right yipped, making Jo look at it curiously.
"What was that?" Jo asked curiously as she looked to Lucien again, his blush deepening as he nipped his lip before answering. "I uh...got you a present." He said in a soft, somewhat sheepish tone, making her smile and bounce in his arms with excitement. "Really? You didn't have to do that." She said, making him look to her and give her a light kiss on the lips. "Yes, I did...it wouldn't have felt right if I didn't." He said softly, letting her go long enough to pick up the box, follow her into her room and carefully pass it to her. "Merry Christmas, Jo." He said softly.
Jo studied the box for a moment, immediately noticing the holes in it and raising her eyebrow curiously before taking the lid off, her eyes lighting up like stars and her smile growing with pure happiness when she saw what was inside. "A puppy!" She exclaimed happily as she reached down into the box and carefully lifted the puppy out of it, making him look to her with its nubby tail wagging the entire time then licking her nose, which made her giggle a bit. Lucien couldn't help smiling more when he saw her reaction, it made the surprise completely worth it and he was thrilled to see how fast they took to each other as he watched her hug the puppy to her.
"Found him in the woods hiding in a bush...we...kind of scared each other, but we made up; he didn't have a collar or anything and I figured he was left alone...then I thought about you." Lucien explained, blushing a little bit the entire time as she looked to him, still keeping the puppy snuggled close to her while he made himself comfortable before she leaned forward and kissed Lucien again. "Thanks, Lucien; he's adorable!" She said sweetly as the puppy yipped at them, making them both smile contently before snuggling up to each other; when they did, the puppy stretched out across their laps and let out a comfortable whine.
"What do you want to name him?" Lucien asked softly, making Jo think for a moment as she looked down at the puppy then smile a little bit. "How about Charlie...?" She suggested, which made the puppy look up at her and give her a happy sounding yip then start licking her hand, making them both laugh as she started petting him. "I think he likes that name...and it suits him, he looks like a Charlie." Lucien whispered softly, lightly scratching him behind the ear as Jo rested her head on his shoulder, making him tenderly kiss the top of her head then carefully rest his own with hers, causing her smile to grow when he did.
"Merry Christmas, Luci." She said softly after a moment, making a soft smile tug at his lips as he looked to her. "Merry Christmas, Jo." He said, his tone just as soft before Charlie yipped at them again, making them laugh a little bit as they looked to the puppy. "Merry Christmas, Charlie." They said contently as they sat on the edge of Jo's bed, each of them savoring the moment and each others' presence the entire time.