Fandom: Twilight
Pairing: Jasper/Seth
Prompt: Tradition
Disclaimer: The book Jasper reads to Luka from is Charles Dicken's A Christmas Carol.
Luka Whitlock sat on his knees on the cushion of the bay window seat. His small hands were pressed against the glass. His breath caused the glass to fog but when it faded he could see the reflection of his golden eyes in the glass and beyond that, the snow falling outside. Christmas was technically over but it didn't feel like it, not really. It would start to feel more like it when his Papa and Daddy took down the Christmas tree and other decorations, but they waited until the New Year for that. Luka turned to look at his Papa, who was sitting in an oversized armchair in the corner of their living room reading.
"Papa?"
"Hm?"
"Why don't we take our tree down when Christmas is over?" Luka asked.
Jasper marked the spot in his book where he stopped reading with his finger. He looked up, meeting his son's inquisitive eyes. "Technically, it's still Christmas Day until midnight but other than that your daddy and I just love Christmas so we like looking at the decorations for a little bit longer."
Luka tilted his head as he thought about this. "Is it like a…a…" He pursed his lips as he tried to think of the word. "The thing where you do something the same every year?"
"A tradition," Jasper offered.
"Yeah, is it like a tradition?"
"I suppose so."
Luka hummed softly as he scooted off the window seat and went to the bookshelf on the left side of the fireplace. There was a matching one on the right side but he was pretty sure the book he wanted was on this side.
Jasper watched him curiously. Just what did Luka have in mind?
A worn green cover that was fraying on the ends finally caught Luka's eye. The title glinted in gold as he pulled it from the shelf and carried it over to his Papa. "Read this?"
Jasper looked at the book, setting the one he had been reading aside. "A Christmas Carol? This is a pretty dark book for someone your age little man."
"We watched the movie on TV," Luka stated.
"True…" And, as far as Jasper could remember the movie adaptations were fairly close to the original story. "So you want to make this a Christmas tradition?"
Luka's golden eyes sparkled as he smiled. "That means you'll read it every year?"
"Sure, if that's what you want. We can always create new traditions."
Luka climbed up into the chair and curled up against his Papa's chest. "Read please," Luka requested laying his head against Jasper's chest.
Jasper chuckled and opened the book, dramatically clearing his throat. "Marley was dead: to begin with."
At some point during his reading, Jasper lost himself in the story and only barely noticed when Luka fell asleep. Seth finished the cookies he had been baking and turned off the kitchen light. Coming over to the chair, Seth sat on the arm, listening for a moment before sliding down, pressing himself against Jasper's side. Resting his head on Jasper's shoulder, Seth sighed happily. This was the perfect ending to a busy Christmas holiday. Jasper's happiness blended with his own, making him feel warm and relaxed.
"Come in. and know me better, man!''
Seth chuckled. "I always liked this spirit in the muppet version."
Jasper gave a chuckle of his own, pausing for a moment to turn his head and press a kiss to Seth's forehead. He went back to reading, now that he was this far into the story, he might as well finish it. Jasper adjusted his arm, wrapping it around Seth.
The grandfather clock chimed one o'clock just as Jasper reached the final lines of the book. His eyes went to the clock, then to his sleeping son (who was drooling slightly on his shirt), before going to his now sleeping husband (who was snoring softly on his shoulder). Jasper smiled as his eyes went back to the book.
"And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless Us, Every One!" Jasper closed the book gently with a sigh. If this new tradition were going to end like this… next year he'd make sure that they started to read in bed.
