A little holiday-themed Ponder/Adrian fluff. I knew this had to happen after I read that bit about the mistletoe in Hogfather...
The High-Energy Magic building was almost empty save two lone figures cleaning up a few last things. Everyone else had already left to queue up in anticipation for the night's Hogwatch celebration.
Ponder and Adrian finally finished fussing around with stacks of paper and glanced at each other, then around the room, which had been strewn with festivity by the overenthusiastic housekeeping staff.
"It'll be nice when all this stuff's taken down," Ponder commented absently, eyeing the garlands.
"Oh, I don't know... It's festive. Hex seems to like them," Adrian reasoned.
"I know," Ponder muttered, looking at the machine. "I can't believe the thing went to sleep early. It doesn't even sleep!"
The mechanical quill sporadically scribbled +++Zzzzz+++Zzzzz++++ from time to time.
"Well, you remember how it is... When you head off to bed early, the next day seems to come faster."
"Yeah, I know, I know. I just hope he doesn't get anything more embarrassing than that bear--'
"--FTB Protocol--"
"--this year," Ponder finished glumly.
"What's gotten into you lately?"
"Just not in a festive mood, I suppose." He glared at the walls. "And all these bloody decorations aren't helping!"
"That's the problem with having housekeepers in here. I still can't believe they threw away our Stack of Pizza Boxes. It was so close to breaking the record, too."
"Yeah, it had the right kind of mold that just stuck the boxes together. It was only, what, five away from the old record?"
"Yup. Sixty-seven. Had to borrow Modo's ladder to get them on the top by the end."
They smiled faintly in recollection of days gone by.
"Er... I suppose we should be going," Adrian suggested after awhile.
"I guess," Ponder agreed, then noticed his student was staring quizzically at the door.
"Hey, isn't that mistletoe?" he asked, pointing at a green and white sprig tacked above the door.
"Er, I think so... Hadn't noticed, honestly." Ponder thought about it for a second. "Why would they even put that in here? I mean... you know..."
"Well, it's a Hogswatch tradition..."
"But the tradition is to... you know... whoever gets caught under it."
"'You know'?"
"I mean, er... kiss," Ponder muttered with the acute embarrassment of someone speaking with absolutely no experience but trying to sound casual.
"Well, that's bloody stupid for a lot of wizards... It's not as if we're, er, even allowed to... kiss girls." Somewhat strangled tones indicated similar embarrassment. "Not that there's any girls here to kiss. Just..."
They paused, and the hanging end marinated in the unspoken.
"Anyway,' Ponder said, clearing his throat, "it's just some tradition thing. Doesn't mean anything."
"It's not like everyone goes about killing higher-ups anymore, and that was tradition."
"Or having to have a bloody beard to be a wizard," muttered Ponder bitterly.
"Or... Or any of that stuff," Adrian added lamely.
"Right. So we're just going to walk right by it without bowing down to the yoke of tradition," Ponder announced stiffly.
"Er... It's not like we could do anything, anyway, right? There aren't any girls around."
"That's what I meant," Ponder assured him with the brittle arrogance of one trying to backpedal out of the wrong alley of thought. "Tradition has no power over us.'
"'Cept that we're going to a traditional Hogswatch dinner thing."
"...Right."
They began to walk over, at first purposefully, but more evasively as they approached. It was unavoidable... Right over the door.
They stopped. They looked at each other. Tension stretched between them like a hundred rubber bands.
At this point, several thoughts were running through Ponder's head. Thoughts like "student-teacher ethics" and the not-a-guideline rule against relationships, and... and...
None of it was covering up the tiny little voice underneath it all that whispered you want to...
Adrian, who had been biting his lip nervously, apparently had less moral qualms about the issue, because he leaned forward very quickly and kissed Ponder.
As kisses went, it was the approximate caliber of shy eleven-year-olds in a secluded corner of the playground. It was wet, and rather mushy, and there was the discovery that faces are not things that fit together well, but it was warm and that was nice.
Ponder barely had time to register more than shock before the kiss broke and Adrian was blushing crimson and apologizing.
"S-Sorry! I... er... the... um... I didn't mean to... but the thing... up there and... I kind of..."
Ponder, who was on some blessedly glazed plane of existence at the moment, laid a steadying hand on Adrian's shoulder. "It's okay... Just... breathe, will you?" he said in dazed but vaguely worried tones.
Adrian took a nervous, shuddering breath and Ponder continued with the same detachment, "I'm sure it was just one of those 'in the moment' things, right?"
"Um, right," Adrian agreed, recognizing the out but also feeling rather crushed.
"But..."
"Yeah?"
"...D'ya think we're still in the moment right now?"
Hope blossomed across Adrian's face. "Uh-huh."
"Good."
They were considerably later to the party than expected.