DISCLAIMER: Its hurts to say it. It really does. But I'm pretty sure you already know who owns what.
-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Silent Night.
-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Trowa sighed as his moved silently across the rooftop of the house. The snow barely made a sound under his feet. It was near midnight and he was freezing his jingle bells off. You'd think Santa would wear something warmer in winter.
Yep. It was his turn to play Santa Clause for the kids. They'd coerced WuFei into doing it once, but with the way he had been glaring at people, you'd think every child in the world had suddenly turned naughty on him.
Good times.
He shivered. He loved the earth and all. Just not in winter. Yet another reminder as to why he loved the colonies and he wondered how he'd been talked into moving here.
It took less than a second for him to remember again.
It always came down to Heero and himself. If only because they were the only two who could do the job without waking up everyone in the house and their next door neighbors in the process.
Speaking of which, he really hoped there were no police officers making patrols down the street tonight. In most cases he would be able to sneak into a police car with the policeman in it without trouble. But when you were wearing a bright red suit against a stark white background surrounded by streetlights…
Not the best decision maker in the round of "Who wants to be a Santa Clause" but it was still memorable. Usually they settled in a boxing ring, a firing range, a back alley… but they had been cornered by the girls and popped the question while at the Preventor day care center.
The girls probably caught on after showing up the day after thanksgiving covered in bruises, cuts, and an assortment of other injuries. It wasn't the prospect of winning. It was the prospect of losing.
You see, many of the kids were at the age where they knew who Santa Clause was and were determined to catch him in the act of delivery. Added to the effect was the fact that their mommies and daddies and friends and family were all Preventor affiliated. So they were smart.
They came close to catching him a few times too.
Hence why it now came down to Heero and himself. The best of the best. If only because they were the only two pilots who still honed their skills. With the exception of WuFei who swore on his life that he would never play Santa again.
Everyone would always remember WuFei with his eye brows burnt off, his fake beard aflame and a child clinging to his leg and another questioning Santa on his carrying a very familiar katana.
Sally took pictures.
There they were, weaponless, no ammo and at the face of a battle that would be talked about for weeks. Dozens of tiny faces watched from the sidelines, watching, waiting for the outcome that would decide the match.
Heero suggested they use their hands to see who drew the fastest.
The kids were kind enough to supply them with the paper and hand paint.
He drew a house.
Heero drew a puppy.
The kids decided. The vote was unanimous. Heero won this time. And the responsibility fell to him this time. It didn't help that the puppy painting was actually quite good.
Relena tacked it to Heero's door after she made photo copies so she could re post it after he'd tried to destroy the evidence.
Glancing at his watch, Trowa saw it was just past midnight. He had plenty of time to hit the other houses before going home.
He looked at the large chimney he was to clime down. He remembered Duo and Hilde arguing that one. Duo, being American, wanted Christmas lights everywhere so Santa could find the house. Hilde, being German, didn't want any lights because tradition for her said that Santa didn't come to houses with lots of lights on because it made Santa think people were awake when they shouldn't be.
He hated having to get a Christmas tree as it was if only because it took a week for his sister to decorate the damn thing. What with the way she would take a single strand of tinsel and place it meticulously on the tree as if it really made a difference in how it looked.
With a final sigh, he shimmied down the chimney. Holding the small sack of presents carefully beneath him as he shimmied.
Wait.
One of the packages shifted and wedged in the chimney. They should have known better than to give him something that large.
He himself was silent. But the sound of a box being gently kick to un-wedge it did make some noise. Still it shouldn't be enough to wake anyone up.
Unless they happened to be asleep in the living room couch.
The bag of gifts fell to the bottom of the fireplace with a small thump. Making him wince silently. He continued creeping and slid out of the chimney rear fist with a few silent grunts.
There we go. The house was dark aside from a few wall plug night lights for the late night walk to the bathroom. The tree stood in the corner.
He glanced at the plate of cookies and glass of milk sitting on a stand next to the tree. Chocolate chip. Bah, Humbug. They should be around here somewhere.
Ah, there they were, sitting underneath the layer of chocolate chip. There were a couple of oatmeal coconut cookies. Hilde knew him too well.
"SANTA!"
Oh no.
Duo.
"Ooff!" He exhaled as the air was pushed out of his lungs and a very large someone jumped into his arms.
"Hey everyone! Santa's here! Come one kids! Santa's here!" Duo exclaimed happily in Santa's lap. Steps sounded down the stairs. Some faster than others.
"Dad." Solo stumbled into the living room rubbing his eyes. "I told you. There's no Santa. There's just Mom…" he paused at the sight of Santa sitting underneath his father.
"Santa?!"
"See? Told ya so." Duo told his son smartly.
Hilde was standing by the door way with a hand over her mouth. Trying to muffle her laughter. It wasn't that Duo was ignorant or stupid. It was more that Duo chose to maintain his innocence. He believed the best in everything.
So they never could tell Duo the truth. Not without word getting out to the rest of the kids in the process. Duo and his 'never tell a lie.'
As Duo got up from Santa hurriedly, Trowa moved largely slower as he got his wind back and thought desperately. He'd not been expecting to get caught. He'd never had need for a 'Ho, ho, ho speech before.
He cleared his throat and attempted a deep hearty laugh as he stood strait. "Ho, ho-"
Crick!
"Ohhh…" Trowa moved a hand to his lower back.
He could see Hilde kneeling on the floor with both her hands over her mouth. Trying to muffle her laughter. It was only Duo's and Solo's excitable chatter that hid it at all.
"Santa!" Two voices spoke in stereo. Twin six year old girls rushed Santa. Each clinging to one of his legs. After everything else, it was a challenge not to fall over again.
He smiled down at them and bent over to pat them both on the heads. "Ho, ho-"
Crick!
"Ohhh…" He muttered in his temporarily stuck position bent over.
Hilde was practically stuffing wrapping paper in her mouth to muffle her laughter as she rolled to her back from laughing so hard.
Trowa had never twinkled his eyes before. He never the less gave his best attempt and pushed forward a deep heart voice. "You have all been very good children this year." He smiled at the children. "With the exception of Duo." He smiled at the shocked gasps from the children who all knew better. "But still not bad enough to disappoint Santa."
Duo rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Duo's pranks were known by everyone. And he meant everyone. Many of them recorded and viewable on the internet for people to view.
After handing each of the children and Duo their present and a candy cane, one of which he chucked rather forcefully at Hilde's head, he regretfully stood again.
"Ho, Ho-"
Crick!
"HO!" The last 'ho' came out rather forced. Placing a finger on his nose, he shimmied up the chimney again as quick as he could when he heard Duo exclaim to the kids to run outside and see Santa away on his sleigh.
Climbing out the top of the chimney, he stomped his feet on the roof as quickly as he could, hoping it imitated close enough what the sound reindeer made when they ran off a roof.
When the unthinkable happened.
He slipped…
Ffffffffffffffffffff- foomph!
At least the snow drift softened the fall.
And buried him five feet in snow.
Hurried feet rushed out of the front door of the house.
"Aww. We missed him." One of the girls could be heard pouting.
"Look kids! You can see the skid marks he made on the roof when he took off in his sleigh!" Duo exclaimed and presumably pointed at the roof.
"Wow!"
"Sorry I doubted you Dad."
"That's all right, kid."
"Can we go inside and open our presents now, Daddy?"
"Sure sweetie! Let's go see what Santa got us this year!"
"Yay!"
Hurried feet rushed back inside, slamming the door behind them.
Trowa released a sigh he didn't know he'd been holding.
Oh, Father Christmas…
Only four more houses to go.