This is based on a real piece of history from WWI that occurred during the Christmas of 1914, along the British-German battlefields in France. A moment of peace…in the midst of War.
Merry Christmas!
Disclaimer: I don't own GI Joe or any of the characters...
Winter was coming in full force and with each new day, it seemed, grew colder and colder. Soon, the clouds above them were darkening, threatening with more than a hint of the first snowfall.
After some serious initial fighting, the Joes had now been resigned to hunkering down and waiting. Sure, there had been a few short exchanges of fire here and there, small battles breaking out and then dying down almost as quickly, but then they'd had to suffer long periods of silence…and even longer periods... of just sitting. Across the battlefield, Cobra had still not budged from their position. And so, of course, neither had the Joes.
"Looks like another cold night," Lady Jaye sighed, rubbing her hands over the small fire. Shadows lit and danced on her face as she leaned in close.
"It does that…," Dusty shivered and frowned slightly, turning so he could heat the side that had now grown cold. Being a desert man, he had a harder time with cold climates than most.
To the left and right, more fires dotted the landscape, more groups of Joes holding the line bravely against Cobra.
"Sooo, how much longer do you think before we can go home, Lady Jaye?," Cover Girl asked, glancing at her sideways. It was the question they had all been wondering.
Lady Jaye brushed a hand over her eyes, wearily, "I'm not sure. Duke's still waiting on the report from Flint and Scarlett. But they should be checking in soon."
They all stared out at the battlefield. Already, they could guess what the report would say. No change. And they all knew they wouldn't be leaving until Cobra withdrew, and that didn't look to be any time soon.
"I can't believe I'm missing Christmas for this….," Ripcord let out a sigh.
"I know how you feel," Roadblock smiled softly, "I keep thinking about my Aunt Sarah's pecan pies…., I sure do hate to be missing 'em," he patted his stomach.
"My mom cooks the best ham," Cover Girl said quietly, her gaze far away, "honey glazed and everything…"
"Cinnamon rolls….that's what I miss… my momma's cinnamon rolls," Dusty spoke softly, "If I think real hard, I can almost smell them cooking…"
In the distance flickered small points of light, campfires like their own, no doubt circled by Cobra soldiers also trying to warm themselves.
"Aw, come on guys…It's not all bad," Lady Jaye smiled, trying her best to cheer them up, "at least we're not alone…"
"Yeah, if you like company for your misery," Cover Girl quipped.
"Aw, Lady Jaye, face it…it's Christmas and we're stuck here freezing our barnacles off. What's not bad about that?," Shipwreck growled.
"Yeah, some Merry Christmas….," Ripcord slumped moodily, "a real bah humbug."
Lady Jaye frowned. She imagined even the Grinch would have made better company at the moment.
Roadblock rose to his feet and squeezed her shoulder.
"Come on, gang, shake off that gloom. Jaye's got it right. We gotta lot to be thankful for. It is, after all, Christmas night..."
Then very softly, slowly, he began to sing Silent Night, his deep baritone warming the darkness around them. And as he sang, one by one, the other Joes joined in, their voices blending more or less in harmony, rising and falling as the words floated away into the night, leaving the darkness just a little bit brighter.
"You're right, Block...," Dusty said when the song had ended. He swept his gaze over all their faces and smiled, "Our family is right here."
"Thanks, guys," Lady Jaye smiled warmly and then opening her mouth, began another song.
O Tannenbaum, o tannenbaum rose up into the darkness. Once again, the Joes all joined in, some singing in the original German, others in English. More Joes could be heard joining in from adjacent campfires. The dark night filled with voices and song. And then it, too, ended and they all heard it- clapping- faint and from far away. It was coming from the Cobras. The clapping ended and another song began to rise up...this time from the Cobra line... the old latin hymn, Adeste fideles.
The Joes glanced at one another in surprise but when Cobra finished their song, they, too clapped appreciatively. Immediately, they launched into another song, O come all ye faithful. This time, both Joes and Cobras began singing together, their voices mixing and mingling across the great emptiness between them called no man's land.
And then they heard a shout rising above all other noise, a Cobra voice they all recognized, "Hey Joes, why don't you come over. We promise we won't shoot if you won't!"
It was Zartan.
The Joes looked at one another and shook their heads bemusedly.
"Yeah, right," Cover Girl muttered.
"Why don't you come over here!," Shipwreck shouted, followed by gales of laughter.
"Very well," another voice shouted from the Cobra camp, "If you insist."
Then, to the great astonishment of the Joes, two imposing figures stepped out of the darkness, holding a torch high above their heads. The light flickered brightly off the face of one... Destro. Shadows revealed shoulder length hair on the other…Zartan.
They held up their weapons into the light and then laid them down at their feet. Then they began walking, slowly, into the space between...where no one went. No man's land.
"What are they doing?," Shipwreck hissed, "This has to be some kind of ploy or something…, right? Am I right?"
"I'm not so sure….," Lady Jaye had half risen to her feet, "Anyone want to come with me to find out?"
"I do," Dusty jumped to his feet.
"Me, too."
"Duke! Where did you come from?"
"I heard all the singing and came to check it out. Glad I did, too. I'm going with you. You ready?," he turned to Lady Jaye and Dusty.
"You bet," they rose to their feet and lifted their weapons into the light just as Destro and Zartan had done. Then they placed them carefully on the ground.
"Are you guys crazy?" Cover Girl whispered, her eyes darting from one to the other.
"I don't think so…," Lady Jaye said, her eyes beginning to shine, "This happened once before."
"Yeah, it did," Duke said thoughtfully, a smile forming, "Come on."
They walked slowly to the middle, to no man's land, to the two waiting Cobra representatives. The Joes watched nervously as the five spoke with one another for a few minutes and then reached across the remaining space to shake hands. Then they all turned and began heading back to their respective camps.
"I wonder what that was all about?," Shipwreck scratched the back of his neck.
A grin spread across Roadblock's face, "I think what we've got here is some timely Christmas cheer."
A few minutes later Lady Jaye and Dusty returned, both smiling.
Duke followed right behind, "We've agreed there will be no shooting from either side before midnight tomorrow," he said, "But guards are to stay on duty and the rest of you, stay alert."
The Joes stared a him moment in disbelief, "Right…, Duke."
It wasn't long before word had passed down the lines.
Cobra built huge bonfire in the middle. Cautiously, Joes began to trickle over, at first one or two at a time, or in small groups. But, before too much time had passed, Joes and Cobras were both mingling together freely.
Wild Weasel and Ace shared handshakes and then stories of past Christmases. It turned out both had been huge fans of Snoopy as kids. And before either knew it, they were laughing their way through their own distorted version of Snoopy and the Red Baron.
Destro and the Baroness approached Lady Jaye.
"No hard feelings, Lady Jaye," the Baroness stuck out a hand.
"Not today," Lady Jaye smiled brightly, taking her hand.
"Good enough for me."
Several Cobra troopers, clad in blue, approached Cover Girl, nervously.
"Uh…, would you sign my magazine?"
Glancing at a worn cover of Vogue and seeing her own face from several years ago, her eyes widened.
"Yeah sure," she said, slightly embarrassed, "But I don't have a pen…"
"Umm. I do…," a young man fumbled eagerly into a pocket and produced a ballpoint.
"Hand it over, then," she grinned. Quickly she went to work signing "Merry Christmas! With love, Courtney Kreiger," on each magazine they produced.
"Thank you Miss Kreiger, uh, ma'am," they stammered as she handed the magazines back.
"Call me Courtney," she said warmly.
"Oh, yes, Miss Courtney," they gushed.
She laughed, beginning to feel a little self-conscious.
More songs and stories were traded around the fire, more Joes and Cobras breaking into small groups, chatting and laughing and sharing stories. It turned out that they had a lot more in common than they would normally have admitted.
At last, though, the hour grew late and it was time to go. But before they left, Cobras and Joes joined for one last song, Auld Lang Syne. And as they sang, their voices blended together, rising up loud and strong before fading away into the darkness. And then it was over. The two armies began to separate, heading back to their own sides of the battlefield.
A great emptiness and silence fell over the camps.
"I never would have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes," Ripcord said softly.
Lady Jaye, listening, smiled as she knelt before the fire.
"You said it, pal...," Shipwreck shook his head. And then he caught sight of Cover Girl making her way over and slowly raised an eyebrow, "Hey there, Courtney. You're looking rather smug. Any particular reason why?"
"Nope, Wreck," she grinned, "None at all."
"Duke said I might find you here..."
"Flint!," Lady Jaye jumped to her feet, smiling as she rushed into his waiting arms, "When did you get back?"
"About half an hour ago. We just handed our report to Duke."
"And the news?," she gazed up into his face.
"It's over," he grinned, "Cobra relented. They are finally withdrawing."
"So we won?"
"No…," he chuckled, "This is Cobra we're talking about, after all. We just agreed on a truce."
"But, we're still going home…?" Lady Jaye's eyes brightened with hope.
"Yes Lady Jaye, we're going home. All of us. Duke is arranging the transports even as we speak."
"Incredible...," she whispered, "I never would have guessed it."
"Me neither," he chuckled softly.
They stared out at the battlefield….the cold empty no man's land that just an hour ago held Joes and Cobra's celebrating Christmas, singing songs together, and laughing. Now it was empty, with each group on their own side, separated once more. And as Lady Jaye stared, a smile slowly formed on her lips. For a second brief moment in history, there had been peace, peace that would not soon be forgotten.
Then softly and silently, all around them, the snow began to fall, fat white flakes that came swirling down in great circles, landing on the both of them. Flint leaned over and brushed a snowflake gently from Lady Jaye's cheek, giving her a lopsided grin. She smiled back warmly.
"Merry Christmas, Flint," she reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a kiss.
"Merry Christmas, Lady Jaye."