What exactly happened, That Christmas? When Amethyst and Sweet Pea were eight, they spent Christmas apart for the first time since they had met, and neither of them handled it well.
(This is a prequel to (Cast Not Your Stone at the) Wayward Daughter, but I'd recommend reading that first if you want this to make sense!)
Title is the song that this is based on: Christmas (Baby Please Come Home), and I recommend listening to either the Olivia Holt or Sleeping At Last cover while you listen
WARNING: nothing in particular, but the Sisters of Quiet Mercy should always be a warning just in case
(Baby Please) Come Home
December 24th, 2010
Sunnyside Trailer Park, Riverdale
(Christmas) the snow's coming down
(Christmas) I'm watching it fall
Sweet Pea looked out the dirty trailer window at the snow covered ground, and sighed.
"What's wrong, Lathyrus?" His mom asked, looking up from the cookies she was decorating.
"I told you, Ma, it's Sweet Pea now," he reminded her.
Sweet Pea was the English name for the Lathyrus Odoratus, the plant for which he was named. Amethyst had come up with the nickname, and now that she was gone he was insisting that everyone use it; hearing it was the closest thing he had to hearing her. But hearing it wouldn't bring her back, wouldn't change the fact that he didn't know when, or even if, she would ever come home.
"Okay, Sweet Pea," his mom conceded, "What's wrong?"
"It's Christmas," the eight year old told her, still watching the snow fall.
"Well of course it is. How is that a bad thing?"
"It's Christmas," he repeated, "and Amethyst isn't here."
"You have other friends," she pointed out, "Toni, and Frankie from down the street—"
"Toni's my friend, Frankie just goes to school with me. But they're not Amethyst. I want Amethyst."
"Well Amethyst is going to be away for a while. But I'm sure that, wherever she is, she'd want you to have fun."
"No, she'd want me to be with her."
December 24th, 2010
The Sisters of Quiet Mercy, Greendale
They're singing Deck the Halls
But it's not like Christmas at all
Amethyst sat on her windowsill, in the Sisters of Quiet Mercy. The windows were bolted shut, of course, but Amethyst could peek between the bars and watch the snow. She didn't usually bother to keep track of time in the orphanage, but they had all been forced out of bed at the crack of dawn for Mass, so Amethyst knew that it was Christmas Eve.
She could hear Christmas carols down the hall—only the most religious were allowed, of course—and right now they were playing O Come Emmanuel in all the hallways.
It didn't feel like Christmas, though, not really. Not at all, actually. If it were Christmas, she and Sweet Pea would be running around Sunnyside until the cold became too much, and then they would sneak into the Whyte Wyrm, where FP would shepherd them into the back room with lots of blankets and the worn out couch, where they would curl up together and nap. Presents weren't a part of either of their families' Christmases; Sweet Pea's mom needed to save all of her money for rent, and it wasn't like Amethyst's dad would suddenly care about his daughter just because it was Christmas, but the two of them always exchanged gifts. They were always small, just trinkets that they managed to nick from storefronts, but they treasured them all the same. The year before, Amethyst had gotten Sweet Pea a pair of brass knuckles—way too big on him, but he promised he'd keep them until they fit. He had gotten her a brown leather necklace, with a snake tooth on the end, which she made him promise to hold onto until she got home.
The Sisters came around, ordering everyone to bed, and Amethyst reluctantly complied. She wasn't tired, by any means, had napped for most of the afternoon, but she knew that they would once again be woken at dawn for Christmas Mass, which was apparently even longer than their Christmas Eve Mass.
December 25th, 2010
Sunnyside Trailer Park, Riverdale
Cause I remember when you were here
And all the fun we had last year
Sweet Pea woke up early Christmas morning, unable to keep sleeping as the sun streamed in through his window.
He knew that his mom would sleep until noon—she'd had a night shift at the Bijou, which didn't even close for holidays—so he pulled on his threadbare coat and too-small boots and padded out into the cold. He walked across the trailer park to the riverbanks, ignoring the wet snow as he sat down.
He absentmindedly packed a handful of snow into a snowball, then another, and another. As he did, he thought about the year before, and the year before that, and every Christmas since they met, at four years old. They met on their first day of school, and Amethyst, who was tiny even then, immediately declared him her best friend, and by the end of the day, they were. That Christmas, while Sweet Pea's mom rested after her shift and Amethyst's dad was passed out drunk, they snuck out of their respective trailers, holding hands as they braved the cold until they reached the riverbanks. Sweet Pea had only turned away for a second when Amethyst struck him with a clumsy snowball. He had laughed and retaliated, and soon they were caught up in what would become their annual snowball fight.
When the snow had soaked through their clothes, chilling them to the bone, they would always find their way to the Wyrm, where FP was waiting. They learned, three years into it, that he spent the morning making sure that the last of the Toys for Tots gifts got delivered, before going home to spend the rest of the day with his family. But he never left before they arrived, always ready to supply them with two mugs of hot chocolate and make sure that no one disturbed them while they napped in the back room that would one day become a second home to them.
Sweet Pea was pulled out of his thoughts by the familiar feeling of snow dripping down his legs, and looked around. The eight year old had made several dozen snowballs while he thought. Once again remembering that none of it mattered, that he didn't know if Amethyst would ever return to Riverdale, he stomped on the snowballs, before reaching into his pocket, where he always kept Amethyst's necklace. He knew that she hadn't just given it to him for safekeeping, but as a promise that she wound find her way to him again.
He didn't believe in God, or Santa, or anything, really, except for her, but he still took a moment to pray that by some Christmas miracle, Amethyst would be back with him before next Christmas.
December 25th, 2010
The Sisters of Quiet Mercy, Greendale
(Christmas) pretty lights on the tree
(Christmas) I'm watching them shine
"Amethyst, what are you still doing in bed?" one of the Sisters demanded, shoving Amethyst's door open.
She was starting to hate her name, even as she longed to hear it come from Sweet Pea's mouth, but she looked up.
"I'm sorry, Sister," she whispered.
She wasn't, of course, but she didn't want to be punished.
"It's time for Mass," the Sister told her.
"Yes, Sister," Amethyst said.
She was already dressed, in the stiff blue dress and itchy red sweater, so she shoved her sock-clad feet into her black Mary Janes, and joined the rest of the group in the chapel.
As the sermon began, Amethyst's eyes drifted to the grand tree in the corner of the room. It reminded her of the tree that always stood in the center of Riverdale, but instead of being welcoming and colourful, it was intimidating, with decorations only in white and silver. She watched the twinkling of the lights and smiled, remembering how Sweet Pea had always promised that one day they would have one of their own, with real presents, properly wrapped and everything, sitting underneath, and a shiny star on top.
She didn't believe in God, or Santa, or anything, really, except for him, but he still took a moment to pray that by some Christmas miracle, she would be back with Sweet Pea before next Christmas.
(Christmas) you should be here with me
(Christmas) baby, please come home
Hey guys! I hope that you all enjoyed this little tag along project! I've been thinking about it for a while and rushing to get through chapter nine of Wayward Daughter so that I could finally share it! I haven't written a song fic in… ten years? So I really hope that this turned out as well as I'd planned!