AN: Barney and Robin Christmas fics for the soul. I hope you all enjoy this one and have a great holiday! Ps: Now that we've met the Mother, she is so not a Tracey to me, but that's how I've referred to her in past stories- so let's just go with it.
"You promised no huge gifts." Robin objected, as she'd been doing for the past hour; since Barney had strolled into their bedroom, dressed in a tux, and handed her a beautifully wrapped box.
Inside had been a shimmery, floor length dress- we're talking ballroom. It was gorgeous, of course, but completely unnecessary (it was gold and had a low neckline- she was certain Barney had chosen this dress purposefully).
"I also promised I would occasionally lie to you." he reminded her, smirking, "As long as it was in the interest of a great surprise."
Ah. Robin huffed, glaring, and leaned back against the limo's seat. It all made sense now.
"At least tell me where we're going." she requested, glancing out the window. They'd been driving for at least an hour, and Robin wasn't very keen on spending her Christmas Eve en route to some mystery location. Barney shook his head, the smug look remaining on his face. "Not a chance, babe."
Maybe Ranjit would let it slip if she could talk to him without Barney around. Robin sighed, closing her eyes- how insane would this surprise be?
"Would you relax?" Barney chuckled, rubbing her shoulders. Robin did her best to ignore him, decidedly annoyed by this Christmas gift. "You'll love it. I promise."
She looked at him now and scoffed. "You do realize that your promises are cheapened when you only half keep them, right?"
Barney shook his head. "I kept my word- this isn't a huge gift. It's merely a genius idea disguised as a present."
This man was impossible. Robin returned her gaze to the window, lights and buildings gliding by. She wondered if her friends knew of this, and decided they probably played a part in hoodwinking her. If so, even Lily had managed to keep it under wraps, which was enough surprise in and of itself.
The limo stopped short, and Robin felt Barney grab her hand. "We're here," he said with a squeeze, holding up a finger to signal for her to wait. He slipped out of his seat, throwing a last smirk at her as he shut the door. After a minute or so, Robin's door opened and a hand that was certainly not her husband's offered itself. Robin peered out, seeing Lily standing there with a wide grin.
Robin laughed, letting her friend help her from the limo. "I don't suppose you'll tell me what this is about?"
Lily flicked her eyebrows, shaking her head. "Sorry, sweetie." She moved to stand behind Robin, guiding her inside what Robin now saw was the Farhampton Inn. The lobby was decorated with strings of white lights and tiny pine trees dawning red bows and golden tinsel. Robin gawked, glancing to Lily, who was grinning still. Memories of her wedding weekend littered the room. The redhead was leading her up the stairs when they heard the music begin to play. At the top step, Robin saw that someone- assumedly Barney- had laid a path of rose petals down the hallway that led to the elevator. As the doors parted, Robin saw that Marshall stood inside. He gestured for Robin to enter, eyebrows raised. As the three of them rode up, Robin tried to keep her mind from racing about what awaited them. The doors slid open once more, and Marshall and Lily each took her arm to lead her down a hall. She noted that the music was growing progressively louder, and sure enough, there was Tracey, decked out in a deep red dress. She sang Barney and Robin's wedding song, the rest of the band backing her up. As Lily and Marshall led her past, Tracey winked.
They reached another staircase, and Marshall released Robin to dig into his tuxedo pocket. He fished out an envelope and handed it to Robin before darting back down the hall. Robin opened the letter, perplexed, to see that it read, Bundle up. in Barney's careful scrawl.
Before she could turn to ask Lily, Ted was beside her. Robin tossed her arms up, exasperated. Ted laughed, brandishing a black coat and pair of gloves. Bewildered, Robin took the gloves and allowed Ted to help her slide into the jacket. He placed his hands on either of her shoulders, nudging her up the stairs.
More rose petals awaited her as she made her way to the top floor. Robin saw there was a room before her, and had a hunch as to where Barney had rushed off to. She reached for the doorknob just as the door opened from inside, revealing her husband. He smiled serenely as Robin vaguely heard the last few chords of their song being played. "Ready for your present?"
Robin took a breath and shrugged. "Lay it on me."
Barney beamed, taking her by the hand to pull her inside. She saw that the circular room had been decorated just as the rooftop had been the night of their engagement. She bit her lip to keep form smiling. "I know you've been missing home." Barney said softly, watching her take in the scene, "And I wanted to do something special for our first married Christmas, so..." Robin saw where this was going as Barney reached into the desk behind him and pulled out a pair of flight tickets. Her expression softened. "Two first class seats." Barney continued, holding the tickets out to her. "The plane takes off in two hours."
Robin gaped. "Two hours? I haven't packed-"
Barney reached behind the desk once more, bringing back a suitcase. "You should know by now- the Barnacle thinks of everything."
"All this just to give me plane tickets?" Robin wondered, laughing at this ridiculous man.
"Merry Christmas." he said by way of replying, placing the luggage down to pull Robin to him. She smiled, thanking him with a kiss. Robin was touched by the evening's gesture, however ostentatious. It was more than clear by now that she'd married a man that spared no expense.